On Re-Watching The Dreamers

It had been almost exactly two years since I had seen The Dreamers, when in the middle of June 2012, I found that I had to re-watch it. That very night. 

My Top 10 Bollywood Disco Song-and-Dance Scenes

Glittering balls hanging from the ceiling, electronic beats and/ or a strong bass and people dancing. 

That's what most people, including me, think of when we hear the word "disco". But in my mind, there is another thing which I'm sure won't pop into the mind of people who are unfamiliar with Bollywood: the disco song-and-dance. 

The disco song-and-dance assumedly made its way into Hindi film tradition in the 70s, especially after the superhit Disco Dancer, and was very popular in the violent/glittery cinema of the 80s and 90s. It also appeared in a lot of more or less commercial films and especially the big blockbusters of the early 2000s, representing the "new, modern" youth. It also found its way into a few more independent productions and also some more recent films, but is currently only seldom seen in films, as the disco background-song has been gaining popularity. At the same time, film parties have moved away from discos and now often happen elsewhere.

In a disco song-and-dance, all the three elements I named to start with are included, but what defines the disco song is that a) people sing a song themselves, and b) a bunch of people dance to the same choreography.

The All-round Elf

This post is part of the LAMB Acting School 101 - Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett - one of the most admirable actresses alive. A look at her filmography reveals the versatility of her acting and also the daringness with which she chooses her projects. 

Cate has been in many movies that I love or like, most importantly the Lord of the Rings trilogy, in which I saw her for the first time. Just like the whole magnus opuum of a film, what Cate did in it is pure magic, and I am literally dying to see her in the prequels The Hobbit 1 & 2. 

There seems to be a source of infinite energy hidden inside Cate Blanchett, aside from the obvious immense pound of talent and that enchanting mixture of fragility and strength. I think she has evoked every possible feeling in me already, except from dislike. Though most of her characters and films tend to be more serious, I was pleasantly surprised by her performance in Bandits, co-starring Bruce Willis, and the one in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. This woman can do anything - not even playing one of the most beloved musicians of the world seems to be a big task for her, as she easily outshone each of her many male teammates in the Bob Dylan biopic-thingy I'm Not There.

Heroes I Somehow Missed Out On As a Child

This morning, I watched Toy Story 2 for the first time in my life. And doing so, there were a couple of things I realized.

The first one is: Toy Story is the most awesome animated film (series) I have ever seen - chances are it's the most awesome one ever made, in case there's no totally underrated and unknown independent animated film from some country most people don't even know exists. Which I think is unlikely. 

The next thing I realized was that little kids are really stupid, and sometimes their parents should force them to watch certain movies. When I was a child, we often borrowed videos from the library (remember the times before DVD? so annoying...), and yes, I did walk past the Toy Story tape a couple of times. But I didn't watch it. Why? Well, it can't be there wasn't enough pink or enough girls, because I did watch both Tarzan and The Jungle Book and The Lion King back in the days. 

Maybe the reason was the animation? I think I didn't watch animated films until Finding Nemo in 2003... oh, except you can count Dinosaurs, I think that one was animated too...?

Well, let's just conclude that there was absolutely no good reason for me to not watch Toy Story... and nevertheless, I didn't watch it until a few weeks ago (the first part, I mean). Sadly, no heavenly coincidence made me watch it back in the days and let it become part of my childhood, as was the case with Harry Potter.

But is this necessarily a bad thing? I'm not sure. Maybe the fact that I've seen Toy Story as an almost (officially) grown-up teenager will make me appreciate this movie even more. Because it reminds me of what it was like to be a child, how important toys were to you, how mystical and wonderful they were, while those times still don't feel very long ago. Maybe it will make me see the world through the eyes of a child more often?

Certainly, the film gnaws at my conscience for having sold so many of my old toys... though maybe it's better that way. Most of them were bought by little children or their parents, and I think my Barbies would rather be played with than rot in an old case, won't they? I hope so... I'm sorry, Barbies. And dolls, and horses. If I will ever have the chance to say I'm sorry, I hope it's now.

I think seeing Toy Story now is better than never. It is a fantastic, excellent movie that will forever be dear to me from now on. But thinking about all of this, I guess it will never be as magical and mystical to me as the films I did see when I was a child - Harry Potter, The Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo and all the others... It just won't ever be the same, because I won't remember the enchantment of watching the film(s) as a child. 

But remembering the enchantment of watching them as a teenager might be very close to just as good.

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What makes Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara a perfect summer movie

For the record: I'm perfectly aware of the fact that 1) perfection is subjective, and 2) I don't have a clue what makes a good movie. A film with similar ingredients as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara might not have worked anywhere near as good, and maybe there are people somewhere in this world, who didn't fall in love head over heels with this film.
But as we continue, I want you to forget all these thoughts and look at Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara from the viewpoint of a summer-craving, adventure-seeking, latinophilic (there's no such word, is there?) fan, and just sense the love...

Success factor #1: Setting

Cool Films With Ships and Boats

Be it the grand, sensational cruise ship that was immortalized in 1997, or the claustrophobic, dark U 96 from the 80s' German blockbuster Das Boot - ships and boats have served as both setting and important element in a variety of motion pictures.
Perhaps it's the blend of angst and fascination caused by floating on or in the big sea that convinces film makers to include these vehicles in their productions... At any rate, the audience seems to appreciate it - that is, if the films are well made. I, for one, have an important relation to ships and the sea, as I have spend most of my life on or at the sea - actually I used to hate ships and boats when I was a little younger than now. Teenage rebellion.
But as I startet do get more into the art of film, I also started appreciating and loving those things.
Of course I had always loved the sea - who doesn't? But making a list of good films about the sea or including the sea would be impossible. So I decided to talk about films with ships and boats. Cool films with ships and boats.

Cool isn't a cool word anymore, but I still like it, and I think many films with ships and boats are cool. Here are some of my favourites, in no particular order. Focussing on the ships and boats.

In fact I haven't seen that many cool films with ships and boats. So in case you know some, I'd be glad if you would recommend them.

TITANIC (1997)

The classic. So beautiful, so gruesome. I've been on a mini cruise only once, and the ship seemed gigantic, so I always imagine what it must've been like on the Titanic. On the outside and upper levels it's very shiny and extravagant, but also very dirty and dark in the lower levels. Anyway, I think Cameron did a great job of bringing the ship alive, especially in the scenes where we see it from the outside, like above. It looks so incredibly real. As for the film, you already know how much I love it, so let's skip that part today.

DAS BOOT (1981)

The only and best submarine film I've seen until now. Unlike the Titanic, which you like and feel sad for, you start hating the U 96 in this one. I don't think I could survive more than a few days in it. Even though it's fascinating too, seeing the underwater animals and somehow becoming one yourself. Or actually it's the U 96 that becomes one of the underwater animals... unpredictable and dangerous.

SUNRISE: A SONG OF TWO HUMANS (1927)

The boat plays an important role in this film - at first a scary and threatening place, later on midnight-moonlight-romantic, and then a truly bad one. Its three sides stand for the three parts of the movie and perfectly underline the current atmosphere of this awesome silent picture. 

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN (2003 - 2012?)

I haven't seen the latest one (4), but I really like the first three though they're very main stream and predictable. Maybe it's the pirates. All I know is that the ships are one of the main reasons too. I can't say if they're realistic, of course, but very impressive, and wooden ships are the best anyhow. Even better when they have canons. 

These were the most impressing and most important ships and boats in films I could think of, but I'm sure you know some yourself - what are your favourite cool films with ships and boats?

Summing up on the Heavenly Creature

“ One actress that has been a role model and inspiration to me, both on-screen and off-screen, is Kate Winslet.“

This is how my contribution to the LAMB Acting School 101 starts. It's been a little more than four months now, since I promised to watch five particular Kate Winslet films before I turn 17 - and now there are only three days left! 

It is quite amusing to look at the list and remember how curious I was about finding out what lies behind those five images. How much has happened since then...

Has my view on Kate Winslet changed? Certainly. I can't say whether it's for the better or the worse, it has just changed. Before, she was this "period" actress that I loved, loved, loved, but couldn't really imagine in something more modern. Now, she is a very versatile and great actress that I love, love, love and want to see even more of. Even if the films were decent only, Kate was always the saving grace of my watching-experience - if it weren't for her, I might not have finished Hamlet.

There is one sad news before I start evaluating the films; I (ironically) haven't had the opportunity to watch Heavenly Creatures, because I don't want to watch it online just to watch it. But hopefully I'll get the DVD soon.

When I did my post, I listed the five films in "chronological, most-anticipated/"curiosifying" order; this time I'll list them in favorited-order and along with that I'll see if they have dropped (pretending that Heavenly Creatures isn't in the list, the films before will naturally not fall "more"):

Thoughts on: "Tagore Stories on Film"

Biting the bullet: silent, black-and-white, Bengali.

On occasion of the 150th birthday of the acclaimed literature-nobelprice winner from India, Rabindranath Tagore, the Indian government published a filmset consisting of six films concerning the literary legend. This was done with the help of the National Film Development Corporation. 

There have been many filmatizations of the stories and novels that Tagore has written, but the government and NFDC have selected the following for the compilation:

Khudita Pashan (1960) - Tapan Sinha, Bengali

Teen Kanya (1961) - Satyajit Ray, Bengali

Kabuliwala (1961) - Hemen Gupta, Hindi

Ghare-Baire (1984) - Satyajit Ray, Bengali

Char Adhyay (1997) - Kumar Shahani, Hindi

BONUS DVD:

Natir Puja (1932) - Rabindranath Tagore, Bengali

Rabindranath Tagore (1961) - Satyajit Ray, Bengali

I promised you to write about the filmset by the time I'd be finished watching all seven films, so here I am, talking about three things I thought I would never fully be able to appreciate as much as I wanted:

1. Silent films (Natir Puja)
2. Black-and-white films (Natir Puja, Khudita Pashan, Teen Kanya, Rabindranath Tagore)
3. Bengali films (Natir Puja, Khudita Pashan, Teen Kanya, Rabindranath Tagore, Ghare-Baire)

With the exception of the silent film, which I simply cannot truly adjust to, I've grown fonder of the latter two than I had excepted initially - but what am I rambling; let's start to dive deeper into the subject...

MY THOUGHTS ON THE FILMS

(including a few of those essential trying-to-be-objective remarks)

Timeless: Feed the Kitty (1952)

Watch "Feed the Kitty"

While the feature film still is the padrino of cinema, Warner Bros, Disney and countless independent directors have more than one time proved that there's not much you need to make an ingenious film with everything in it. Like FEED THE KITTY. With a duration of 7 minutes and 23 seconds, this film outlines some of manhoods most discussed and thought-about issues and eternal questions. 

Soundtrack of the Month - November '11

The wonderful French romantic comedy I saw yesterday convinced me to have a soundtrack of the month this time, instead of just a song - a very special soundtrack, that is.

DIRTY DANCING. A film about music and coming-of-age, including a dash of 60s-nostalgia (those old enough to remember watching it on the silver screen might also say 80s-nostalgia). Countless teenage girls must have been introduced to it by their mothers when "the time was right" and fallen in love with not only the film, I'm sure. As for me, I didn't fall in love with Patrick Swayze for that matter, but the film initiated my chronic crush on dancing and the 60s - style, films, and especially music from that decade (or music inspired by it).

A Heavenly Creature

This post is part of the LAMB Acting School 101 - Kate Winslet.

One actress that has been a role model and inspiration to me, both on-screen and off-screen, is Kate Winslet.
The film that introduced her to me was ex-most-successful-film-ever TITANIC, during the year that started my great passion for cinema for real: 2009 (I'm a late bloomer concerning this). I thought she was one of the most beautiful women on earth, and was impressed by her acting skills as well. Plus I've never since seen a (on-screen-)chemistry like the one she has with Leonardo in this film.

Kate is one of those few actresses that have the body of a goddess, and oddly enough, makes you feel very confident about your own one. She has appeared in various period films, and I remember her saying in an interview, that she can only explain the reason why she was chosen for these films must be that her body is perfectly apt for wearing a corset.

The Tree of Life (2011) - A Bittersweet Symphony That's Life

After a long time now, I'm finding myself writing a non-Indian review again - only the second published on this blog. Many things are changing in my life at the moment, mostly mental things. I stopped learning Arabic, and I don't feel the urge to learn new languages (except French at school) anymore. 

I don't feel like watching Indian films, I'm tired of a lot of films that wasted my time.

Hence I felt I needed to review a film that meant a lot to me and has had a great influence on my thoughts for the past few days. 

In all my past reviews, I had a small section saying who the director, the authors and the actors were, and a short sentence about the plot. You won't be seeing that again. As I said, my mentality or however you may call it, is changing more than usually at the time, and I have also, in addition to many other things, thought about Lime Reviews. So this is one of the alterations I've made. 

Comment on the ISHQ Awards and the ACEBAs 2011

You all know the IIFAs, the Filmfare Awards the Zee Cine Awards and all those other corrupt awarding ceremonies in Bollywood (yes, Bollywood is the right expression here).

But I doubt that many people have ever heard of the ISHQ Awards, have you? The ACEBAs (Annual Central European Bollywood Awards), however, are a little more famous, even having a real awarding ceremony with real people this year.


Explaining: The "ISHQ Awards"
The "ISHQ" is the most-read Bollywood magazine in Middle Europe, and if I'm allowed to give a little subjective comment: the best Bollywood magazine I know, especially in Germany. It is German, high quality and couldn't live without it.
The first ISHQ was published in november 2006, I believe, and instantly gained much success in the German fan community. By then, there were no other German Bollywood magazines. There are some others now, maybe one or two, but they can't compare to the ISHQ, in my opinion.
Last year, the ISHQ editors decided to put up the ISHQ Awards, where readers and editors could vote for their favorite films, actors, actresses etc. of the year that passed. They decided to keep the project going this year. Sadly, I wasn't able to vote myself - I missed the deadline.
Well, that's no reason for not commenting the results...

Read more about the magazine:  http://www.ishq.de/ (only German)
The results were published in magazine #48, August 2011.

Explaining: The "Annual Central European Bollywood Awards"
The ACEBAs are the most important Bollywood Awards in Europe, founded by Marco, the host of the largest German (the language, not the country) Bollywood forum, http://bollywoodforum.ch/, and owner of the review site http://molodezhnaja.ch. The awards have existed since 2004, and have improved a lot over the years. The voting is held online, and there's just one vote for everyone. There's also no fixed amount of nominees - it depends on how many films, performances, songs etc. are good enough to be nominated, which also means that sometimes, a whole category drops out for one year.
This year, the awards are presented by not only molodezhnaja, but also BNA Germany and IFFI Goa.

Read more about the awards: http://www.bollywoodforum.ch/aceba/index.htm
The results of the 7th ACEBAs were announced the 10th of August 2011 and published this weekend.

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Will the results be more honest, more elitist or maybe just more fair than at most of the "big" awards? Let's take a look.

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The results are listed chronologically - most votes is 1), least votes is the last.

BEST FILM

(The ISHQ has a lot of nominees but only 10 "winners", from which only one is the true winner, off course, and furthermore they've divided this section into "Reader's choice" and "Editors' choice").

ISHQ Reader's choice:

1) My Name Is Khan 

2) We Are Family

3) 3 Idiots

4) Kites

5) Guzaarish

6) I Hate Luv Storys

7) Band Baaja Baaraat

8) Anjaana Anjaani

9) Dabangg

10) Ishqiya/ Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

only nominated:

Break Ke Baad - Action Replayy - Baava - Aisha - Do Dooni Char - Badmaash Company - The Japanese Wife - Jhootha Hi Sahi - Love, Sex aur Dhokha - Knock Out - Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey - Karthik Calling Karthik - Peepli Live - Phas Gaye Re Obama - Raavan/ Raavanan - Rakht Charitra 1 & 2 - Enthiran - Striker - Tere Bin Laden - Tees Maar Khan - Thanks Maa - Udaan - Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa - Well Done Abba

A very typical result, and just what I had expected from most of the German readers/ viewers. I had hoped for better, though. MNIK on the first place is acceptable, as I personally liked it a lot as well, but honestly, We Are Family on the SECOND place??? Kites, Guzaarish, Anjaana Anjaani - I can find a more suited winner for all of them in the nominee's row. A problem is that probably many readers just haven't seen many of the films that were nominated. Which is sad, I think. I do like that there's a good variety in the nominees: some southies, too, some blockbuster, some flops, some main stream, some parallel cinema. Sadly, no big variety in the results. Maybe the editors know better?

ISHQ Editors' choice (only 5 wins):

1) My Name Is Khan

2) 3 Idiots

3) Udaan

4) Raavan/ Raavanan

5) Ishqiya

Now this I like. A piece of everything. Not sure if I would've picked Ishqiya, but then again: it might not be the best film, but it's an incredibly important film, especially for the future of women in Bollywood. Good job, ISHQ editors!

ACEBAs:

1) My Name Is Khan

2) Dabangg

3) Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

4) Raajneeti

5) Udaan

6) Peepli [Live]

7) Ishqiya

8) Raavan

9) Aakrosh

10) Rann

Again, the usual suspects: Shah Rukh and Karan Johar. That's what works here in Germany. 74,49 % - that's almost 10 times as much as Dabangg got. Good I mentioned it already: Dabangg? Dabangg? Admittedly a more suited winner than WTF, I mean WAF, but still... I am, however, fully contented with the rest of the results. My personal vote was for Udaan... Maybe not the best of last year, but still one of the best, and I wanted to vote for one of the more unknown films.

BEST DIRECTOR

ISHQ:

1) Karan Johar: My Name Is Khan

2) Rajkumar Hirani: 3 Idiots (editors' choice)

3) Vikramaditya Motwane: Udaan

4) Abhishek Chaubey: Ishqiya

5) Habib Faisal: Do Dooni Char

Good choices, I would stick with the 3 Idiots - Karan Johar didn't really impress me. I just liked the film.

ACEBAs:

1) Karan Johar: My Name Is Khan

2) Sanjay Leela Bhansali: Guzaarish

3) Vikramaditya Motwane: Udaan

4) Mani Ratnam: Raavan

5) Anusha Riza: Peepli [Live]

6) Ram Gopal Verma: Rann

... ... Is there anything left to say? "Karan Johar, so boring, bla bla", "SLB, who set a high personal standard with Devdas and also a little with Black, and who since then has failed to impress me with his later works, even though Guzaarish is a tiny step towards a better filmic tomorrow of his - he is nominated???"... You know what I have to say. I don't have to write it. I voted for Motwane, he's made one of the most impressing debuts I've seen. Mani Ratnam is my favorite director. I loved Peepli Live. 
... Ah, just remembered that a copy of Rann must be laying around somewhere...

BEST SCREENPLAY [only ACEBAs]

1) Raajneeti

2) Peepli [Live]

3) Ishqiya

4) Karthik Calling Karthik

5) Udaan

6) Well Done Abba

I wonder why the ISHQ doesn't honor the technicians, even thought they tend to write the Bollywood awards don't honor them enough... But then again, it's a young award, it can still improve. Though I'd rather honor the technicians than some "love scene". But whatever. Raajneeti is a deserving winner, and all the others are deserving nominees.

BEST ACTRESS

(Yes, Ladies first - my choice).

ISHQ:

1) Kajol: My Name Is Khan (also editors' choice)

2) Vidya Balan: Ishqiya

3) Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan: Raavan/ Raavanan

4) Anushka Sharma: Band Baaja Baaraat

5) Deepika Padukone: Break Ke Baad

While I think that Kajol delivered a good performance in MNIK, I don't think anyone (including her) can compare to Vidya Balan in Ishqiya. Kajol's role wasn't as layered and deep as Vidya's, so in my opinion, she didn't even have the chance to be better than Vidya. 

By the way: Deepika? Really? I didn't watch BKB, and I have good reasons.

ACEBAs:

1) Kajol: My Name Is Khan 

2) Anushka Sharma: Band Baaja Baaraat

3) Vidya Balan: Ishqiya

4) Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan: Guzaarish

5) Kangna Ranaut: Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

6) Minissha Lamba: Well Done Abba

Remarkably, Kajol won with only 62,05 % (!). But Vidya is and will always be the best actress of 2010. Dot. Nice that Anushka came second, though... But Aishwarya for Guzaarish? She was much better in Raavan... don't you think? Well Done Abba is one of the few 2010-ers I'm yet too watch, by the way.

BEST ACTOR

ISHQ:

1) Shah Rukh Khan: My Name Is Khan (also editors' choice)

2) Hrithik Roshan: Guzaarish

3) Aamir Khan: 3 Idiots

4) Boman Irani: Well Done Abba

5) Rishi Kapoor: Do Dooni Char

Suck... I didn't expect this to be a genuine MNIK show... But what else should I have expected? And the year didn't really well over by overwhelming male performances... Maybe I would've picked SRK as well, I mean he was good. 

ACEBAs:

1) Shah Rukh Khan: My Name Is Khan 

2) Salman Khan: Dabangg

3) Hrithik Roshan: Guzaarish

4) Ajay Devgn: Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

5) Boman Irani: Well Done Abba

6) Paresh Rawal: Road to Sangam

The winner is Shah Rukh? Really? Oh my Gosh, that came so unexpected! 
That's all I have to say.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR [only ACEBAs]

1) Arjun Rampal: Raajneeti

2) Arshad Warsi: Ishqiya

3) Nana Patekar: Raajneeti

4) Ronit Roy: Udaan

5) Paresh Rawal: Aakrosh

6) Randeep Hoda: Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

Woooohooo! This feels like a personal win - the nominee I voted for won! Ah... magical. In contrary to the main actors, it was easy to find good supporting performances in the cinematic archives of 2010. And in my opinion, Arjun Rampal's was the best one.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS [only ACEBAs]

1) Kareena Kapoor: We Are Family

2) Sonakshi Sinha: Dabangg

3) Bipasha Basu: Aakrosh

4) Amrita Puri: Aisha

5) Dimple Kapadia: Dabangg

6) Ira Dubey: Aisha

If there's one good thing about WAF, it's Kareena. She didn't save the film for me, but she was my personal highlight, a flash of cinemagity in the dullness of a kitschy-bitchy "children's drama/comedy/wtf". That's why she deserves this award.

BEST SOUNDTRACK

ISHQ:

1) Vishal-Shekhar: Anjaana Anjaani (btw: An Education-poster, anyone?)

2) A. R. Rahman: Raavan/ Raavanan

3) Sajid-Wajid: Dabangg

4) Ishqiya (editors' choice)

5) Amit Trivedi: Udaan/ Aisha

I'd say 1) Raavan, 2) Udaan/ Aisha, 3) Ishqiya, 4) Dabangg, 5) Anjaana Anjaani. Meh.

ACEBAs:

1) Band Baaja Baaraat

2) Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

3) Dabangg

4) Guzaarish

5) Aisha

6) Ishqiya

Thanks for reminding me: Why wasn't BBB nominated in the ISHQ awards? Meh. There was music in OUATIM? No Raavan in the ACEBAs? Well, I kinda can't get no satisfaction regarding the music awards of both the award-thingies.

BEST SONG [only ACEBAs]

1) Pee Loon: Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

2) Munni Badnaam Hui: Dabangg

3) Pe Pe Pepein: Chance Pe Dance

4) Tere Liye: Prince

5) Wallah Re Wallah: Tees Maar Khan

6) Chal Halke Halke: A Flat

Sorry for the latter comment, now I remember at least one song from OUATIM. Beautiful song. But the true winner is "Beera" from Raavan, can't believe it wasn't nominated. Don't remember any of the others except for "Munni". Good choreography, not the best musical work. 

BEST SINGER - MALE [only ACEBAs]

1) Mohit Chauhan - Pee Loon - Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai

2) Rahat Fateh Ali Khan - Dil To Bachcha Hai - Ishqiya

3) Rahat Fateh Ali Khan - Aas Paas Khuda - Anjaana Anjaani

4) Atif Aslam - Tere Liye - Prince

5) KK - Jaane Yeh Kya Hua - Karthik Calling Karthik

6) Krishna - Kaise Jiyu - Hide & Seek

I'm listening to "Pee Loon" at this moment, and I must say it's much better than I had remembered. Definitely worth a best singer award for Mohit Chauhan. 

BEST SINGER - FEMALE [only ACEBAs]

1) Sunidhi Chauhan - Udi Udi - Guzaarish

2) Bela Shende - Sun Le Dua Yeh Aasmaan - We Are Family

3) Mamta Sharma - Munni Badnaam Hui - Dabangg

4) Alyssa Mendonsa - Uff Teri Ada - Karthik Calling Karthik

5) Rekha Bhardwaj - Badi Dheere Jali – Ishqiya

6) Reena Bhardwaj - Khili Re - Raavan

Sunidhi Chauhan would've been my second choice, but Reena Bhardwaj convinced me the most. How sad that she's last in the row...

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

ISHQ:

1) "Dum Dum": Band Baaja Baaraat

2) "Zoobi Doobi": 3 Idiots (editors' choice)

3) "Sheila Ki Jawani": Tees Maar Khan

4) "Munni Badnaam": Dabangg

5) "Chhan Ke Mohalla: Action Replayy

One of the results that I almost completely agree with. The ISHQ Awards 2011 included 3 Idiots, because the DVD was released so late. Considering that, my personal favorite would be "Zoobi Doobi", but from last years' releases, "Dum Dum" is probably the best. I do, however, prefer "Munni" over "Sheila".

ACEBAs:

1) "Dum Dum": Band Baaja Baaraat

2) "Sheila Ki Jawani": Tees Maar Khan

3) "Pe Pe Pepein": Chance Pe Dance

4) "Munni Badnaam Hui": Dabangg

5) "Fire": Kites

6) "Nakhre": Action Replayy

Don't have much more to say than to the ISHQ result... Nice that they included a song from Kites - Hrithik is my favorite dancer ever. He is simply perfect. Some may say too perfect, but I like being perfect (Black Swan, if you know what I mean... and I take ballet classes myself, by the way).

BEST NEWCOMER - MALE [only ACEBAs]

1) Ranveer Singh: Band Baaja Baaraat

2) Omkar Das Manikpuri: Peepli [Live]

3) Ali Zafar: Tere Bin Laden

4) Aditya Roy Kapur: Guzaarish

5) Rajat Barmecha: Udaan

6) Pradhuman Singh: Tere Bin Laden

Aditya Roy Kapur, "that I'm not laughing!" (German expression, I felt nothing else was appropriate). I voted for Omkar Das, it was before I had seen BBB. I'd probably vote for Ranveer now. 

BEST NEWCOMER - FEMALE [only ACEBAs]

1) Sonakshi Sinha: Dabangg

2) Zarine Khan: Veer

3) Shraddha Kapoor: Teen Patti

4) Arya Banerjee: LSD

5) Nushrat Bharucha: LSD

I voted for Sonakshi, of course. But I'd like to see the two LSD-ladies on the second and third place. 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY [only ACEBAs]

1) My Name Is Khan

2) Guzaarish

3) Raavan

4) Kites

5) Aakrosh

6) Rann

Raavan, Raavan, RAAVAN! Phew, calming down...

BEST ART DIRECTION [only ACEBAs]

For a lot of screencaps, click here

1) Guzaarish

2) Kites

3) Action Replayy

4) Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey

5) Tees Maar Khan

6) Raavan

Okay, deserved. I agree.

MOST DISAPPOINTING FILM [only ISHQ]

1) Tees Maar Khan (also editors' choice)

2) Veer

3) Dulha Mil Gaya

4) We Are Family

5) Guzaarish

Unbelievable that both We Are Family and Guzaarish made it into the Top 5 of the Best Films. Tees Maar Khan was much better - and I know I'm pretty alone with that opinion. Yes, I liked the film, and I'm not going to apologize for that (I also didn't expect much, so how could it be the film I was most disappointed by?). Haven't seen neither Veer nor Dulha Mil Gaya (again, good reasons), so We Are Family would definitely win this section if I were to decide. And Tees Maar Khan would be 5) - even Guzaarish was worse.

BEST COSTUMES [only ACEBAs]

1) Band Baaja Baaraat

2) Golmaal 3

3) Guzaarish

4) Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

5) Kites

6) Tees Maar Khan

Agrrrrrreeed! (I want those clothes!).

JODI NO. 1 [only ISHQ]

1) Shah Rukh Khan & Kajol: My Name Is Khan (also editors' choice)

2) Shahid Kapoor & Genelia D'Souza: Chance Pe Dance

3) Anushka Sharma & Ranveer Singh: Band Baaja Baaraat

4) Vidya Balan & Arshad Warsi: Ishqiya

5) Abhishek Bachchan & Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan: Raavan

Shah Rukh + Kajol is nothing new, we've seen it a hundred times - but then again, don't we still love. Don't they still enchant us with their mind-blowing chemistry on screen? Come on... yes, they do. And that's why they won over the fresh newcomers of BBB and the interesting pairing of Ishqiya.

BEST EDITING [only ACEBAs]

1) Band Baaja Baaraat

2) Kites

3) Ishqiya

4) Aakrosh

5) Prince

6) Rann

Yeah, go on... (good choice, yap).

BEST GERMAN RELEASE [only ISHQ]

1) My Name Is Khan: Extended Director's Cut (DVD)

2) Koyla - Glut der Rache

3) Tanz um dein Glück - Chance Pe Dance

4) Kites - Auf der Flucht

5) My Name Is Khan: shortened cinema version

6) Sag Ja zur Liebe - Dulha Mil Gaya

7) Gestern, heute und für immer - Love Aaj Kal (editors' choice)

8) Live aus Peepli - Irgendwo in Indien (Peepli Live)

I don't buy many German releases, as they are mostly a lot more expensive than the Indian ones, but I do own the "Director's Cut" of MNIK. It's only called "Director's Cut", because the cinema version was shortened - which I didn't like, but whatever. The German DVD is good, I mean, I didn't watch the special features yet, but... 

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS/ STUNTS/ ACTION [only ACEBAs]

1) Dabangg

2) Toonpur Ka Superhero

3) Prince

4) Veer

The only one who was qualified enough to win this. 

BEST "LOVE SCENE" [a special ISHQ Award]

1) My Name Is Khan ("Marry me!") (also editors' choice)

2) Kites (Kiss scene)

3) Anjaana Anjaani ("That's not funny anymore, Kiara.")

4) Aisha (Balcony scene)

5) Band Baaja Baaraat ("Let me rest...")

Come on, guys... this is getting really boring and foreseeable. I'm not blaming the magazine - they had good nominations - but the general viewer is almost as unspectacular as the general public... Man. I can agree on Kajol and Shah Rukh being the Jodi No. 1, we already discussed that, but it's not equal with having the best "love scene", because it's not equal with having the best screenplay-writer to write it. 

THE 5 MOST ANTICIPATED FILMS [a special ISHQ Award]

The editors didn't vote for this one.

1) Don 2 (Shah Rukh, Priyanka)

2) Ra.One (Shah Rukh, Kareena)

3) Untitled (Aamir, Rani, Kareena)

4) Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Hrithik, Farhan, Abhay)

5) Mausam (Shahid, Sonam)

As the two Shah Rukh films are the ones most likely to have a theatrical release in Germany, I understand why they are the most anticipated ones. Also because of Shah Rukh himself, of course. And because Don 2 was partly filmed in Berlin (yes, I wanted to go there, but long story). I chose Untitled, though - the pairing is too interesting. 

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Phew, that was some hard work, putting this together. I hope you enjoy.

Mette M. K.

Kapoor Khazana: "The Start of Something New" - How it all began...

For a clearer overview of the Kapoors, view my Kapoor Family Tree.

Ever wondered, how all the Kapoors got their careers started? What the begins of each one were like?

Though you probably all have one, or more, favorite Kapoors, and know all about their careers and private lives, I'm sure there's some stories you haven't heard yet (me neither).

That thought then led me to creating this post, on the filmic origins of the Kapoors (those I could find out about), and here it is.

Prithviraj Kapoor - The Handsome Founder

Finding out anything about Prithviraj's oldest films is very hard - there seems to be no information left whatsoever. His first role, however, seems to be "Be Dhari Talwar" - but I'm not a 100 percent sure, as there really is no information. According to several sources, though, his first big role was in 1930's (some say 1929's) "Cinema Girl". He also played in India's first sound-film, "Alam Ara", from 1931. 

Prithviraj's was later on considered as the founder of the Kapoor family, being the first one of this khandaar to pursue acting. His last film was "Judaai" from 1980 - according to IMDB, which is weird, because he died in 1972. However, he was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for contribution to Indian Cinema, after his death.

I haven't seen any of his films yet - but I'm sure I will.

Trilok Kapoor - The Forgotten Brother

Trilok Kapoor, Prithviraj's brother, made his debut in 1933's Char Dervesh (also known as "Merchant of Arabia")... The film is known by some film fans as a classic - I didn't know it - but Trilok never gained as much recognition and success, as his elder brother. Today, he is very much forgotten by the fan community of Bollywood, even the fans of the real classics, and there's not even a wikipedia-entry on him. We don't even know, when he died.

Trilok's last filmic appearance was in a TV movie called "Akanksha", where he was credited as "Late Trilok Kapoor" - so I think he was already dead by then.

R. I. P., man whose films I have not seen.

Raj Kapoor - "The Show Man" AKA The Man Who Was Loved By Everyone

Today, everyone knows Raj Kapoor. For some people, he is the best actor who has ever sat his foot on this earth. I don't know anyone who doesn't like Raj Kapoor. Maybe some people haven't seen any of his films yet, I also watched my first RK film this year (Anari), but if they do, they love him.

He was a genius, no doubt. In his first film, he shared the screen with his father Prithviraj. "Inquilab" (1935) is rated high on IMDB, but not much information exists otherwise. Raj, though, was only 11 years old in it, and his first "real" role was in 1943's "Hamari Baat". 

Raj Kapoor also directed 10 films, and gained a good reputation as a director as well. 

Raj's first work as a director: "Aag" (1948)

In 1984, four years before his dead, he made his last filmic appearance in the TV movie "Kim".  

A little anecdote: When I was in Hamburg in April, buying all those new DVDs, I went to a lot of stores, and in each one, the Indian employees were like "These are Indian DVDs... They're in Hindi...", sounding like "Get outta here, this is for Indians only... bla, bla", but in the last one (also the one where I bought most), there was only one employee, and he was so nice. When he asked me, if I'm searching for anything in particular, I said, well... Raj Kapoor? He almost fell off his feet! "Oh my God, you like Raj Kapoor! How cool is that? Wow, you're a real insider..." and on, and on. I think most customers in Hamburg just want to buy some German dubbed kitschy "typical" Bollywood - meaning the "typical" that Western medias made the masses believe that Bollywood is like. 

Shammi Kapoor - The Indian Elvis

Shammi is the smaller brother of Raj Kapoor, and also he has a big fan community. He was especially successful during the 1950s and 1960s, and is still alive today (turning 80 in October, he is one year younger than my grandmother).  Shammi made his debut in 1953, where he starred in 6 (!) films. 

Who will people be starring at - Ranbir or Shammi.... ?

During the 90s, and until now, he mostly appeared in small and rather unsuccessful films, the last time in 2006s "Sandwich" with Govinda, Raveena Tandon and Mahima Chaudhry.

But this year, Shammi will be back in a film of one of the latest Kapoor-offsprings, Ranbir Kapoor: the long awaited "Rockstar". It will probably also be the first film I watch of his (speaking of Shammi, not Ranbir).

Urmila Kapoor never entered the film business, but married.

Shashi Kapoor - The One With the Pardesi Dulhan

Shashi Kapoor, the youngest brother of the Three Incredibles (though, let's not forget the small sister Urmila), has already acted in 168 (!) films - as a comparison: Raj Kapoor (who is dead) only acted in 67 films. Well, not everyone thinks that quality goes over quantity (like I do), but another reason might be that Shashi already appeared in many films as a child star - mainly mythology flicks. The first one was "Meena" from 1944 - and as always, I can't seem to find anything about this film. 

Shashi was also married to British actress Jennifer Kendal, and they appeared in various films together.

Today, Shashi Kapoor is 73 years old, and has been "retired" since 1998, when he appeared in the American production "Side Streets", along with some unknown foreign actors and Shabana Azmi.

No, I haven't seen any of his films - what did you think?

Randhir Kapoor - The Economy Class Son

Just like Raj Kapoor himself, Randhir (his eldest son) made his debut in a film with his father, which he also happened to direct. It turned out to be an average success, however, he never came anywhere near the genius-ness of The Show Man. Randhir worked his way through the years, directing and producing a couple of films, but mostly starring as the second lead, without ever reaching the big breakthrough. 

In 2010, Randhir starred in the two comedies "Housefull" and "Action Replayy", of which I have seen the later one, but was not in the slightest impressed by his acting - it was rather embarrassing, actually.

He will also appear in two upcoming releases this year.

Ritu Kapoor-Nanda, daughter of Raj Kapoor, never entered the film business, but is a "prominent Indian entrepreneur" according to wikipedia.

Rishi Kapoor - The One I Don't Really Get the Appeal For

Debuting in a film directed by your father, one of the biggest stars in Bollywood ever, is not a bad thing. Starring as the lead of a major hit of your decade after that, is not bad either - I'm talking of "Bobby", of course. Rishi Kapoor had luck by his side - but also, and I must admit that, talent. Until the 2000s, Rishi did a lot of romantic films after that kick-started career, and especially gained a big female fan community. From then on, and until today, he mainly played side characters as an older man, mostly in successful films like "Hum Tum", "Fanaa", "Luck By Chance" - and even God, in "Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic" (btw, one of the worst films I've ever seen... and also a flop). 

Yes, he is a good actor. But. I don't find him sympathetic at - all! Maybe you've heard about that Karan-Johar-conflict, maybe you haven't. Well, Ranbir, Rishi's son, shared his advice on how to keep several girlfriends or affairs at a time, without them finding out - and Rishi really appreciated his sons behaviour - and was FREAKING proud of that bastard (who though also happens to be a good actor, and, well, young people can be like that - but parents (who are married) should NOT appreciate that!). Rishi even grew very angry, when Ranbir's ex-girlfriend Deepika (whom I seem to like more after watching "Karthik Calling Karthik", btw), said some unpleasant stuff about Rishi's betaa. 

And that's why I don't like Rishi, Raj's most successful son.

Rajiv Kapoor - The One With The Short Filmography

It does look cheesy...

The youngest son of Raj Kapoor, only starred in 14 films, while he directed one and did some other behind-camera work for about 4 films.

His debut happened in "Ek Jaan Hain Hum" (1983), a rather unknown, cheesy-looking 80s fillum. I also haven't heard of his other films before, except for his directorial work "Prem Granth" from 1996, which I only heard of because Madhuri Dixit is in it.

After completing "Zimmedaar" in 1990, Rajiv Kapoor retired from his work as an... actor.

Rima Kapoor, the fourth child of Raj Kapoor, also never entered the film industry.

Aditya Raj Kapoor, son of Shammi Kapoor, worked mainly as a second unit or assistant director, and directed two unsuccessful films in 2007.

Kanchan Kapoor, daughter of Shammi Kapoor, never entered the film industry.

Kunal Kapoor - The One Who Wasn't As Hot As THE Kunal Kapoor

Again, someone who debuted in his father's film - and "Siddhartha" was, if I'm right, quite successful. After acting in some of his father, Shashi's, films, Kunal launched his own company and produced commercials. He only appeared in 8 films.

Karan Kapoor  - The One Who Was Just As Unsuccessful As His Brother

Karan's career was pretty much a copy of his brother Kunal's. He started it in "Junoon", a Shashi-film, and stopped after seven films. He also modeled.

Sanjana Kapoor - The Pioneer Woman

Calling her a pioneer might be a little over-the-top, but Sanjana Kapoor, daughter of Shashi Kapoor, was the first female Kapoor to pursue acting. She started out co-starring her parents Shashi and Jennifer in "36 Chowringhee Lane", and later on also appeared in the acclaimed "Salaam Bombay", after which she though quit acting. She then focussed on theatre, where she had more success.

Karishma Kapoor - The One I've Been Impressed By Lately

Looking a bit masculin... But this was a dream debut!

Karishma Kapoor, daughter of Randhir Kapoor, made a dream debut in 1991's "Prem Qaidi", and after that became not only the first successful female Kapoor, but even one of the most-loved actresses of a whole decade. 

Before I saw any of her films, I often felt that she looked weird on pictures, and not as sympathetic as her sister Kareena. Kareena is still my favorite, but after having some difficulties with Karishma in among others "Dil To Pagal Hai", "Shakti" and (though she was better in this one) "Raja Hindustani", Karishma came near to blowing me away in "Fiza" (2000). It was the first time that I really could see her great acting skills, and I was very impressed by her performance - especially the well-known crying-scene.

After her career high in the 90s, Karishma slowly vanished during the early 2000's, and only made films every couple years.

Her last appearance was in 2009's "Zamaanat" - a major flop - and she has two (or one?) children today.

Kareena Kapoor - The One I Love, Love, Love

Kareena made her debut along with the offspring of another legend: Amitabh's son Abhishek - completely stealing the show from him. While Abhishek had to struggle a lot to gain recognition, Kareena was almost immediately at the top. However, she had problems proving that she could handle serious roles, after having a lot of success with her "bitch" image, especially after doing "Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham". You know that K3G was my first Bollywood film ever, so Kareena has been with me from the very beginning. I've seen almost every film of hers (excluding "Refugee", though), and she really is one of my favorite actresses. I love how she manages roles that are so different from each other, how she is incredibly sympathetic, and how her acting skills improved during the years.

Kareena will appear in various releases this years, many of them long-awaited, such as "Agent Vinod" and "Ra.One".

Nitasha Nanda, daughter of Ritu Kapoor-Nanda was credited in "Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham", as Thanks.

Nikhil Nanda, son of Ritu Kapoor-Nanda is a business man, and married to Bachchan-daughter Shweta Bachchan-Nanda. 

Riddhima Kapoor, daughter of Rishi Kapoor and sister of Ranbir Kapoor, is 31 years old and has not entered the film industry.

Ranbir Kapoor

Ranbir Kapoor is the latest offspring of the Kapoor khandaan, and the first one that I'm able to really "follow" through his career. His 2007 debut "Saawariya", a Sanjay Leela Bhansali creation, was longly awaited, and extremely pre-hyped... by me. As you all know, I was let down. The film was a failure, also at the box-office. 

By the way, Ranbir had also appeared in two short films before. After "Saawariya" though, both Ranbir and his co-star Sonam had their feet inside Bollywood, and both of them respectively launched their careers quite successfully. 

I'm even able to see away from the mentioned KWK-episode (and I wouldn't be able to like Barney from How I Met Your Mother otherwise - the major heart breaker), because I really like Ranbir. 

My favorite film with him until now is "Wake Up Sid". But the best is: I think we haven't seen all of his talent yet.

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Last but not least, my favorite Kapoor:

My favorite male Kapoor is Raj Kapoor

My favorite female Kapoor is Kareena Kapoor

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Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.