Ferrari ki Sawaari review

2.5 / 5

‘Ferrari ki Sawaari’ marks the return of Vidhu Vinod Chopra to production after 3 Idiots. Raju Hirani is also involved with this movie as a dialogue writer and creative producer, while Rajesh Mapuskar is the director. Sharman Joshi, Boman Irani and young Ritvik Sahore complete the cast. Music has been provided by Pritam while there is Vidya Balan in a special item ‘lavani’ song.

The movie traces the lives of the Deboo family comprising young Kayo (Ritvik), his father Rusy (Sharman Joshi) and his grandfather (Boman Irani). Kayo is a cricketing prodigy while his grandfather is skeptical about the young kid’s cricket interest due to his own failed past as a promising cricketer ruined by his close friend (played by Paresh Rawal). Rusy, a ‘Mr. Do-Gooder’, wishes to make his son a cricketer by any possible means despite his meager savings from his government job. An opportunity to send his son for coaching to a prestigious club at the home of cricket (Lords, London) comes up and Rusy goes through one helluva rollercoaster before he finally arranges the required money and fulfills his dreams. The grandfather also joins in the cause to send his grandson to London, once he is convinced of the young kid’s caliber.

As the title suggests, a Ferrari also plays a prominent role in the scheme of things. One must say that the red Ferrari is indeed jaw dropping and to add to its appeal, it belongs to ‘Little Master’ Sachin Tendulkar. There are a set of people who are after the Ferrari for various reasons and these events surrounding the Ferrari are half-funny and take the focus away from the aforementioned main plot which is truly endearing. There is also a lot of Sachin worshipping in the movie which is justified because the movie is set in Mumbai which is the cricket heartland of the country. The movie in fact is dedicated to Sachin.

The movie has a truly special opening few minutes when we are introduced to the special bonding between Rusy and Kayo. These sequences will bring a light tear to the eye. Boman Irani also adds to the emotional appeal of the movie with a typically fantastic performance in a different makeover. Sharman Joshi and the kid are very earnest and their bonding is what makes the movie tick. Generally, filmy kids act over smart while here the young kid is natural and truly likeable. His face and innocent smile will win you over. Sharman has caliber and he proves it yet again in the emotional scenes. The father-son bonding has shades of the climax portions of ‘Forrest Gump’ and ‘Life is Beautiful’. Generally also, movies based on the sacrifices made by a father, always strike a right chord. In that sense, ‘Ferrari’ is a timely release for ‘Father’s Day’.

There is some needless melodrama and mush in the climax which could have been toned down and it is also tough to digest the fact that an entire community back in Mumbai is watching a live feed of an under-14 match happening in London. Needless to say in these scenes, Kayo is worshiped on the lines of Sachin himself.

Hit machine Pritam has given nice feel-good songs which are on the mark. The VFX work for the title song is authentic. Most of the songs just go with the flow of the movie as montages. The BGM score also adds to the mushy, feel good appeal of the movie. The item number featuring Vidya is a good distraction.

Ultimately it is the honest intention of the movie and the endearing, earnest nature of the grandfather – father – son bonding that make the movie work to a large extent. The scenes featuring the Ferrari are illogical and are just supposed to provide some fun. Also, the climax could have been made more believable even though it is an underdog movie which is supposed to end in triumph.

VERDICT: A feel-good ‘underdog’ movie with its share of flaws. 

Kahaani movie review

A seriously seamless thriller and one of the best in recent times. Set in Kolkata, the movie is raw, edgy and never falls off the radar.

The movie begins with a poison gas attack in the Kolkata metro that kills many. The person who planned it goes underground and no one knows his whereabouts.

Then begins another 'story' where a pregnant Indian woman Vidya Venkatesan Bagchi arrives in Kolkata from London, looking for her husband Arnab who has been missing for a while. Arnab was supposedly working at the National Data Center.

With the help of her own charm and one goodhearted police officer Rana, Vidya goes about looking for traces of her husband. During her investigation, the name Milan Damji comes into the picture. Milan looks similar to the missing Arnab.

Damji was a former intelligence agent who was the mastermind behind the metro gas attacks. Lot of people in the government are behind this scam and they want Milan's identity to remain under wraps. There is a contract killer Bob Biswas who kills anyone remotely associated with Milan's identity. On the other hand, Khan from the intelligence bureau is ruthlessly behind Milan and wants to nab him at any cost.

As the movie progresses, there are times when one party is used by the other in the effort to nab Milan. In the end it is a masterstroke as there is a chilling twist that gives goosebumps. Milan is killed but, the one who does it, is the suspense factor.

Another Vidya Balan special after The Dirty Picture. It takes guts to play an uncouth 7 months pregnant woman. She rocks. Some more awards will fall in her kitty for sure. The other support characters are all mostly Bengali locals with Parambrata Chatterjee as Rana leading the credits. Nawazuddin Siddiqui as the ruthless IB officer Khan impresses as well.

Kolkata has been captured in all its vibrancy. The climax durga pooja scenes are really riveting. The narration by the Big B in the end is a fitting end to a remarkable movie

VERDICT: One of the best investigative thrillers in recent times with one helluva twist in the plot. MUST WATCH

The Dirty Picture (2011)

The Plot
It is the real life story of the late South Indian item queen 'Silk' Smitha, with extra masala flavor added. Silk's journey is well documented, from being an ambitious small town girl named Reshma to her encounters in the film industry with various men ranging from a big star Suryakanth to his brother Ramakanth and finally finding a soul mate in a director named Abraham who initially hates her.

Silk carries her reel life glam avatar in her real life as well. She shuns the rules and lives her life the way she wants. She dresses uber glamorously, smokes and drinks to her hearts-fill. She is looked down upon, by the majority of the industry and she is betrayed by most of the men she trusted. Ultimately, she suffers major financial losses and decides to go away in peace.

Hits

• Vidya Balan. SEXY, SEDUCING, DARING, BOLD, VAMP-LIKE etc. etc. It is a shocking make-over where Vidya exposes to the maximum extent permissible on an Indian screen. It is a cleavage fest on screen and it is jaw dropping stuff. The over exposure of her belly could have been avoided. 
• Her acting skills have always been terrific. Be it the sexy/bold attitude or her anguish, she is the best actress around by a mile. Perfect combo of skin show and acting caliber - Kate Winslet like. She is a benchmark in daring and guts among the mainstream Indian actresses 
• Naseeruddin Shah as the southern superstar Suryakanth is natural and elegant as the ageing superstar. His mannerisms and casual attitude are classic. Emraan Hashmi is intense and earnest as always. 
• The dialogs send the masses into a frenzy. Such punch and raunchy in their meaning. 
• The songs are already popular. Oh La La and Ishq Sufiana are the picks. 
• The period feel is quite authentic save 1 or 2 glitches. 

Misses

• The item song featuring Silk and Shakila in the 2nd half is a sore miss. 
• The skin show becomes too much to digest beyond a point.
• The delightful Ishq Sufiana song doesn't suit the overall mood of the film. 
• Tushar Kapoor with his soft voice, is the biggest minus of the film 

VERDICT

A Vidya Balan festival. Sure to become a blockbuster among the masses.