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Bollywood Actress Priyanka Chopra Hot still

Don - The Chase Begins Again

Directed by Farhan Akhtar
Starring: Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Arjun Rampal, Boman Irani
Released: 2006
My Rating: 7,5/10

Here to read my review about the original Don. 

It is never unsual in Bollywood to remake movies, whether they are from other parts of India like the South or from other countries like the USA. But it is rare to see a remake of a Hindi movie in Bollywood, especially when it is a classic like Don. Not only because some people might think that nothing can be better than the original Don, but also because expectations are very high, not only in matters of storytelling and also performances. Does the new Don meet those expectations?

I have to say in the beginning, my first impression was that they only re-made the movie to give it a modern (and globalized) look, the look of our times; but more the story went on, and more I was surprised...

If you have watched the old Don, the story is (almost) the same. Don (Shahrukh Khan) is the King of the underworld and police is trying its best to catch him. The story now happens in Malaysia (no Bombay sight for this Don), and deals now with drug trade (I said it was modern). Police officer D'Silva (Boman Irani) believes the best way to break this drug gang is to catch Don, who is the lieutenant of the drug lord Singhania. During a chase with the police, Don is seriously injured and captured by D'Silva. The latter keeps it a secret (even from his fellow police officers) and finds a look-alike whose name is Vijay (also played by Shahrukh Khan). He wants him to infiltrate Don's gang, and in return he will make sure the child Vijay adopted, Deepu, gets an education in a great school. There starts the game of mirrors and subterfuge...

Stylish, breath-taking, EXCITING are the words to describe the new Don. Seriously, I could praise Farhan Akhtar over and over after watching this movie (it was already the case after I watched his Dil Chahta Hai but for another reason). I had really low expectations before watching it, because 1. it is a remake and 2. remakes are most of the time very less good than the original. Don is the exception to the rule. Scriptwise, it is even better than the old Don with surprising and unexpected plot twists... I am not going to reveal anything here, and if you have not watched it, then I could only advise you to run and find it.

Don is also, as written above, very stylish, full of visual details. You better not blink once, or else you will miss something! Everything can be a hint, every gesture or words of the characters can reveal its importance in the end. I think that if you have watched the old Don, then you are more easily fooled by the story. I was under the impression of only watching a remake. But the new Don is not remake, it is an original movie on its own.

Before revealing my thoughts about the performances, I wanted to mention the soundtrack. I admit, I was not in love with how they remade the songs of the original soundtrack at first. Techno is not really my thing, and I thought there was too much of it but after listening to "Main Hoon Don" and "Khaike Paan Banareswala" several times, I started really liking it. They are really catchy. In the end, the soundtrack is really effective, and it worked!

Now I want even more to eat Paan from Benares...

Another thing I looked forward to was the performances. And nothing disappointed me. Priyanka Chopra is very good as the fierce and strong Roma, Boman Irani gives us a refreshing change from his usual comic roles and the sober acting as D'Silva he gave is flawless. But the words which had been being on my mind for a long time after watching this movie were: I love SRK. I love him. I love him. Really, I love him. He is for me the best actor ever, and after watching Don, I felt really proud of being his fan. No other actor could have done this. Equalling the legend Amit-ji in one of the latter's most cherished roles. He was as good as Amitabh, he was even as much different. He made Don his own. As much as the original and the remake are different, Amitbabh's Don and Shahrukh Khan's Don are totally different. He was amazing.

Gosh... He is HAWT!

In the end, Don proves he is the Master of the Subterfuge as he fools not only the characters in the story but also the viewers until the very end.

7 Khoon Maaf

Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj 
Starring: Priyanka Chopra, Vivaan Shah, Neil Nitin Mutesh, John Abraham, Irrfan Khan, Aleksandr Dyachenko, Annu Kapoor, Naseruddin Shah, Usha Uthup, Konkona Sen Sharma
Released: 2011
My Rating: 8/10

Warning: As the movie has been released just last month, most of you might have not seen it and I know the promos around it were rather mysterious. This review will be spoiler-free, but I do not want to influence your ideas on this movie in any way. But if you still want my opinion about it, I advice you to skip the first paragraph (the plot) and to read the rest.

Susanna Anna-Marie Johannes has had a life filled with pain, emptied by her mother's death at an early age then by her father's, who was also a mother, a brother and a friend for her. She then yearns for love, for this fatherly love in a husband. Rather idealistic, she comes across reality in a rather harsh way, her lovers (husbands) have fatal flaws, and as she tries to find love, she has to kill them all... Now, it seems she has commited suicide, and a young forensic doctor Arun (Vivaan Shah), who has to confirm whether the body is hers or not, is forced to revive all his memories, for Susanna made him the man he is today...

I am usually not a fan of Vishal Bhardwaj's works, but for me, 7 Khoon Maaf marks a new trend. Dark comedy is almost inexistant in the Hindi cinema industry, and to some extent, that makes 7 Khoon Maaf very refreshing.

The minus point is the slow-pace of the movie, however you never lose interest in Susanna's search of love. Some scenes are also pretty disturbing and violent, though there is no graphic violence, that is probably what makes it even more unforgettable. The soundtrack, with the great exception of "Darling", is rather forgettable on its own, but it perfectly serves the story. No song is ever misplaced and all contribute to the atmosphere.

Daaaarliiiiiiiiiiing!

True, the story gets a little predictable after a while, we know Susanna is going to kill her current husband, but surprisingly, one cannot wait to see what is the actual reason behind it. We never lose touch with the story.

Another positive point of the movie is definitely its atmosphere. As written above, dark comedies are very rare in Bollywood, but 7 Khoon Maaf is a gem in the genre. There is a gentle and subtle touch of dark humour, which makes some scene priceless, and surprisingly, you can find yourself laughing several times. Creepy, isn't it? All the more so when you find yourself longing for some of the husbands' death, Susanna is, surprisingly, no villain to our eyes, most of her husbands were terrible men.

The performances are all very good. Every husband plays their part well, and are convincing. One can see they take the most that they can in their small and short screen-time space. One has to mention Vivaan Shah, the movie being his debut, who is the main attraction of it, besides Priyanka Chopra. He is natural and flawless, and one detects incredible charisma in him which, I am sure, will reveal itself in its future career. I am very positive on him going far and wish him the best.

He is not only talented, but very handsome too!

Priyanka was terrific. Amazing, impressive... Well, many words can be applied on her performance. She proves she is the finest actress of her generation with 7 Khoon Maaf. She did not play Susanna, she was Susanna. Her body-language, her dialogue delivery, her every gesture and her every glance expressed every desires and feelings of Susanna. She made her a living and real person. Susanna is one very interesting character. You cannot hate her, you sympathize with her, but with horror, you still realise what she is doing is horrible and wrong. Somehow, Susanna is the epitome of womanhood; she is feminine, beautiful, mysterious, strong, level-headed and she has a heart. She is the "perfect" woman. But perfection does not allow the other to be flawed. And her husbands were flawed. Susanna needs the perfect man, the one who will accept her the way she is, the one who will be nice, gentle and faithful to her. The one who will give her everything, and to whom she will give everything...

A woman with hopes and desires...

7 Khoon Maaf is a must-see this year. This is, in a rather surprising way, a tribute to real love. Its originality, its performances and its story make it worthwhile. And of course, don't you want to know who is this mysterious 7th husband?

The Weekly Bollywood Song - Darling

I did not post such article last week, because of the Holi post. But here is the song of this week. 

Darling from 7 Khoon Maaf

As you might know, the movie has been released back in February, box office success was not there for Priyanka Chopra and Bhardwaj, but the positive reviews from the critics came. One of the plus of the movie is definitely its interesting soundtrack. And I have to say "Darling" is a gem! Inspired by the folk Russian song "Kalinka", it could not be less! Enjoy!

What's your Raashee?

Directed by Ashutosh Gowariker
Starring: Priyanka Chopra, Harman Baweja
Released: 2009
My Rating: 4/10

Yogesh (Harman Baweja) is a modern young man, living and working in Chicago. The favourite of his grand-father, he is to receive his whole inheritance on the day he marries. Meanwhile, an astrologer predicts to the worried family of Yogesh that fortune is to fall on them. That is a comforting news for Yogesh's brother, Jitu, who has endless debts. To save the family from ruin, they call back Yogesh to India and ask him to marry. Yogesh, who has always hoped for a love-marriage, agrees when he realises the gravity of the situation. His brother shall pay his debts on the 20th of the very month, which leaves more than twelve days for Yogesh to find his soul-mate. By urgence, the latter then asks to meet twelve girls only (all played by Priyanka Chopra), one of each Zodiac sign, of each Rashee.

Will you choose Anjali (Aries)? - a friendly but insecure girl

Or Sanjana (Aquarius)? A well-educated and gorgeous microbiologist, gifted with a cheerful nature

The movie has the credit of holding a record, the one of having played the most of characters in a single movie for Priyanka Chopra in the whole History of cinema. Pity this record is not hold in a much better made movie.

Kajal (Gemini) might be great also. She is fun, outgoing and VERY romantic. And she dances really well!

Or you might prefer the quiet and traditionnal Hansa (Cancer)? She has an amazing sense of honesty!

This is an Ashutosh Gowariker's movie though. And his filmography is amazing with movies like Lagaan, Swades and Jodhaa Akbar. But we shall not add What's Your Rashee to this glorious list.

Why? The main flaw is its length: 3h20 of screening, of Yogesh meeting twelve girls, every time in (mostly) the same way: the meeting with the family (most of the time), then time to know more about the girl, then a song... Yes, a song for every of the girls. That means: thirteen songs if we include the title song. And only one or two stand out, the others add to the slow-pace of the movie, I ended up fastforwarding them after a while...

Or perhaps you're rather business-like? Rajni (Libra) believes everything, even marriage, is a contract.

But well... if you're the dreamy kind of guy, then you can always dream of your past-life love with Chandrika (Pisces)?

Another flaw is also the plot to some extent. Other little "plots" are added to the main story, but all of them are uninteresting and add even more to the length. The characters are also rather cliché. Yogesh is a submissive boy, not once does he get angry at his brother for he is sacrificing his personal happiness because of Jitu's mistakes. And Harman Baweja does not add any subtility in the character with his rather, but how cute, expressionless face but we cannot say he is bad. Predictably, the twelve characters Priyanka is playing are also rather shallow, but that is only normal in a movie which have to introduce and deal with so many characters. I have to say I still do not understand how the characters were related to their zodiac signs in any way... because I did not see any similarity.

There is also Mallika, the stunning dancer. But beware, she's a Leo... Raawr!

But there are also ambitious and passionate girls like Nandini (Scorpio)...

...or caring and loving women, Pooja (Virgo) for example

The main cast has rather done a decent job, but Priyanka owns this movie throughout. She is the only reason you would need to watch this movie. She pulls off all her twelve roles with ease and makes all of them different. She proves she can carry a whole movie on her shoulders, but the fine actress that she is deserved much better...

You will love energetic, friendly and playful Vishaka (Taurus). She's a bit immature too

And you will be surprised by mysterious and spiritual Bhavna (Sagittarius)!

Well... there's also Jhanka (Capricorn)... Simple and quiet young girl...

Catch a pen and a piece of paper before watching the movie, you will need it, to catch up and remember all the names of the twelve characters... if you still care about which girl Yogesh will choose in the end, that is... through the endless story and songs...

Happy Holi!

Aaah Holi... The source of many joyous (and colourful) songs in Bollywood. So, to celebrate it my own way, I just selected my three favourite Holi songs.

 3. Let's Play Holi - Waqt - The Race against Time
I have not watched the movie yet, but this song is too catchy for me not to mention it.

2. Holi Ke Din - Sholay
The perfect Holi song! Joyous, lively... and served with Hema Malini's grace.

1. Soni Soni - Mohabbatein
I did not like the movie, but the great soundtrack saves it and Soni Soni is defintiely the gem, the one which stands out. What can I say more? Watch it to see by yourself!

Happy Holi!