Distant Clones

Comparisons are inevitable, if the protagonists are so strikingly similar. Bollywood and Hollywood might be poor and distant cousins, but their thespians aren’t. Haven’t you wondered about Amitabh while watching Al Pacino perform, or seen Aamir’s fineness in each and every Tom Hanks’ sculpted movie. While these are the most obvious ones, some have been keenly observed ones too, like that between Akshay Khanna and Ben Cussack, Akshay Kumar and John Trovolta. I couldn’t help adding one of my own, even though the actors concerned aren’t very high-profile ones. I am talking about Abhay Deol and Mark Ruffalo. I don’t know why but I like them so much. Perhaps I am endeared because of their non-performance, exhibited in their innocence and sinlessness on the screen.

I watched Abhay Deol first in ‘Socha Na Tha’. Paired with Ayesha Takia, another cherubic faced cutie, he had delivered an instantly disarming performance. His ‘Ek Chalis Ki Last Local’ was another very goody performance. But his real knock-out punch was in ‘Manorma-Six Feet Under’ where he exhibited the perplexed character in many tones with aplomb. These movies never made to the permanence of the audience, but I think he was superb in all of them. Hopefully his new movie ‘Oye Lucky ! Lucky Oye’-already having earned promising reviews- will win him some deserved admirers.

Mark Ruffalo has adopted more ruggedness in his roles now-a-days, but my first view of his was in a very sweet fluffy movie-’13 Going on 30’. It remains one of my favourites, mostly due to the sheer undertoned chemistry bewteen Mark Ruffalo and Jennifer Garner. The way he portrayed his distanced but honest love towards his lady was so real. His other movies, ‘In the Cut’, ‘Zodiac’, and ‘The Eternal Sunshine of Spotless Mind’ throw him in graver roles, but his inner character retains the same softness.

They themselves might not believe that they are similar in any way, but they would indeed agree that they are what now are by their common simple appeal only. No wonder, if anyone else too feels vicarious about them.

Miss in the remix

We were watching the movie 'Naseeb' on Zee Arabia. The dazzling Hema Malini stepped on the floor, and started crooning the memorable 'Mere Naseeb Mein Tu Hai Ki Nahin ....'. My friend immediately gushed, 'Yeh Is Film Ka Gaana Hai' (This song is from this movie?). The sense of bewilderment was very much palpable on his face. And it would have been on most of ours, because in an age of Remixed Songs, we have somewhere missed their origins.

It is not a crime not to be aware of the original songs, but it is definitely less musically-sousing if we can't compare the new-age Remixes with the old-charmed master copies. I can tell you this because I felt that completeness only when I watched the original of one of my favourite songs.

1> Koi Sehari Babu

I like this song, more so because of the saucy and raunchy 'Reshma Bombaywala'. But when I watched 'Mumtaz' performing altogether differently on this song, I was reminded of the song's vivacity. Really, an exquisite dance by the incomparable 'Mumtaz'. Watch it ....

Remix:-




Original:-



2> Sajna Hai Mujhe

Another instance, where the Remix version outscores the original one on the glamour front, but the pure love is exhibited in the original one only.

Remix:-



Original:-

Sajna Hai Mujhe

3> Ek Pardesi Mera Dil Le Gaya

Sophie was very famous amongst us when the Remix Song had come out in the market. Not hard to guess why, just watch her intoxicating sexy moves. But also watch the original Black and White version.

Remix:-



Original:-



4> Mere Piya Gaye Rangoon

Who doesn't know this song? Unique for its nasal vocal rendering, it is a class in itself. Both the Remix and Original versions are equally enchanting.

Remix:-



Original:-



5> Mere Naseeb Mein

Finally the song from which it all started. The original song fitted the story line of the movie perfectly, but the Remix version too has a likable set-up built.

Remix:-



Original:-



There are lots of other remixed songs too, and the new ones keep coming incessantly. It is not good to outlaw them as crass, just to look puritan. But as said above, it makes a hell lot of difference if we are able to symphonize the purpose in both.

Choreography to beat

The song is revving, but not peerless. But buoy, the choreography is non-pareil. It has been 10 years now, but it still give me goosebumps which no other dance routine, except Thriller's, can give.

Shooting into the top

If it is so good, then it has to be seen. After watching Spiderman-III last year, I had developed an instant anathema for these super hero movies. Much to my chagrin though, these sorts of movies continue to jingle coins at the box-office. The prime examples are IronMan, and the recently released Hancock. So, when Dark Knight was mentioned and introduced to me as another Batman movie by one of my friends, I greeted it with another shrug-of-shoulders thing.

But it somehow kept appearing everywhere-print, media, discussions. And when I saw its profile in imdb, I was gob smacked. Number 3 in all-time movie rankings ! You are kidding. Oh my God, it has actually reached Number 1.Either people must be dumb or Dark Knight must be truly outlandish. For me, no movie can match the magic of ‘The Shawshank Redemption’. So, if it is so good, it must be more magical. My rankings fixation aside, the movie has actually received some beyond-this-world reviews. Ah!

So, I am gonna watch it now. But the problem is I haven’t watched previous Batman movies. When I searched, I found that there is a serious backlog to be completed. So, Mr Knight, you will have to wait for some more nights; and if you are so good, moon must be blue that night.

A song has haunted me

I have been listening to this song continually since yesterday. And really I had no intention of doing it, but somehow got hooked to it. I was just youtubing some songs by Rihanna, when I stumbled across a song ‘Take a Bow’ re-sung by some ‘Sheena Melwani’. I didn’t know her; probably you too wouldn’t have.

But curious to watch the song as it was on the top of the list, I buffered it in a new tab: the girl was beautiful, the song lilting, and the voice musically melodious. I searched more, and wow-I had just heard the voice of the Internet. Follow this URL:-

http://sheenamelwani.com/

An Indian-American singer, another first among the ubiquitous engineers and doctors, she had taken to Internet to reach out to the people worldwide. And indeed, she has succeeded to a great extent. In just first 7-8 months, her songs have received many million views on different sites, but more importantly, lots of rave reviews, appreciation and offers. Now, that is something to start on a career one loves dearly. And I did ‘take a bow’.

And searched more about her... I then reached the song, ‘Bad Grammar’ on her MySpace profile. Though not originally song by her, she has lent an incredible voice to it. Her two original songs, ‘Crazy Place’ and ‘Wonderful Life’ too are mellifluous. Since then I have been listening to them, more devotedly to ‘Bad Grammar’. Oh, I gotta leave now; the song needs a re-hit on the ‘Play’ button.

Pathos of worst kind

It has been a very bad movie-watching phase for me in the last few days. I have watched a few movies more than I normally do, but unfortunately they all have been trash-kinds.

The first one was ‘Dan in Real Life’ which I watched during my flight from Munich to Chicago. A Steve Carell movie, the first of his that I probably watched, it was another a-lonely-man’s romantic life perspective. There has been a surfeit of these kinds of movies in Hollywood, but still if put in a refreshing way, ala Sleepless in Seattle, can be really worth watching. ‘Dan in Real Life’ was painfully slow, its only saving grace being the suaveness of Steve Carell.


The next week, I watched ‘The Strangers’ in a theater. Touted as a very chilling horror movie by my accompanying friend, it was another let-down of massive kind. It did have its striking moments, drawing gasps and screams from the viewers including me. But in the end, you felt unconnected to the whole set-up. Three psychos lurking around a house and brutally killing a couple: the story deserved more than this. Where have the genuine unobtrusive scary movies gone?


To continue on the scary genre, I watched ‘The Happening’ of M Night Shyamalan fame the next day. Being a reputed director of Indian origin, he is naturally held in high regards by all of us. He started off very well, with his ‘The Sixth Sense’ undoubtedly moving in the pantheon of unforgettable cinema. But he has tapered off since then, and with ‘The Happening’, it seems, he has hit the nadir. The story revolving around trees emitting toxic gases leading humans to kill themselves, had ample novel scope to make the movie a classic. But I don’t know what he made of it. Sometimes, the movie felt like a comedy. And I am not alone; just go around the movie-forums for the proof.


How much things can go bad? Not worse. To challenge it, I watched a low-profile movie, the 13th Alley, which was simply a non-descript even on the list of movies being shown in the theater. We two along with another idiot, i.e. three in total, watched the movie, and needless to say, it broke all the records for squalor. I don’t want to talk more about it.


So, that is the story till now. After taking a break, I will start afresh and watch the classics only now, at least for a few days. They have forgotten to make movies now-a-days. Anybody listening?

Nobody can beat Lataji

It is true; Lata Mangheshkar is the best singer India has produced. Now-a-days she doesn't sing that often, so her poor pretenders to the throne rule the roost. But still if competed with them, she will win hands down. In fact, one of her fellow compatriots had commented on her voice, "Saali kabhi besuri hi nahin hoti"

I have a strong liking for melodies, and in fact, it is the only genre that holds me now. There is such a wide array of such beautiful songs sung by her that it is almost hard to pick the best. But I like the song embedded below the most. It is a wonderful lyrical song picturised on the ever-gracious and beautiful Vidya Sinha. Simply outstanding!