Lage Raho Munnabhai
Comedy is perhaps the hardest genre in filmmaking. And to do it without resorting to slapstick is truly remarkable.
With a script reminiscent of Hrishikesh Mukherjee's movies and perfect timing between its lead characters, Lage Raho... was a sweet movie. Wisely deciding against a sequel to the sleeper hit Munnabhai MBBS, director Rajkumar Hirani made Lage Raho.. the second in the series of adventures of Munna and Circuit, played with great flair by Sanjay Dutt and Arshad Warsi.
This gave the director the freedom to change the story completely and recast the heroine. Vidya Balan as Jhanvi was a tremendous improvement over Gracy Singh.
Lage Raho... is the story of a hoodlum transformed by the power of universal, unconditional love as preached by Mahatma Gandhi. In these cynical times, Hirani and producer Vinod Chopra dared to offer us an uplifting, hopeful tale about the essential goodness of man. No wonder the movie resonated with audiences jaded by the endless remakes of past Hollywood and Bollywood films and went on to become such a big hit.
Omkara
It's a pity screenplays adapted from English works are not considered for entry into to the Oscars.
Dark and brooding, this remake of Othello stayed true to Shakespeare's vision of the jealous moor, despite being set in the fetid atmosphere of a small North Indian town.
Omkara is the lieutenant to a corrupt politician, and the battle against the Turks is translated to a turf battle for political control. Much has been said about the clever reworking of the original play and the little nods that the director Vishal Bhardwaj gives to Shakespeare's creation, like the black shawl Omkara wears to convey the black moor that Othello was.
But to my mind, one of the most remarkable things about this movie is its perfect casting. Ajay Devgan and Kareena Kapoor are exactly suited to the parts of Othello and Desdemona, with the latter's unmade-up face living up to the description of 'a skin whiter than snow and smooth as monumental alabaster.'
Both Ajay and Kareena give powerful performances but the scene-stealer of the movie is Saif Ali Khan as Iago, almost unrecognisable as a limping, pan-chewing, henchman with ambition.
With his award worthy performance, Saif gives evil a human persona, all the more terrifying for being utterly credible. Rounding it all off is superlative music from Bhardwaj himself.
Dor
In a year filled with star-studded remakes and sequels, this little gem managed to leave a lasting impression.
Bolstered by a great script and sweeping cinematography spanning the deserts of Rajasthan and the lush mountains of Himachal Pradesh, Dor weaves the tale of two women brought together by shared sorrow.
Ayesha Takia, as a grieving widow, gives a charming and mature performance. Gul Panag does a very creditable job as the woman fighting to save her husband's life. But the standout performance is that of Shreyas Talpade as the 'beherupiya'.
Having played a deaf mute in Iqbal, Shreyas can't stop talking in this movie, showing an amazing talent for mimicry and mining a rich vein of humour to highlight the serious subject of powerlessness of women in rural India.
Director Nagesh Kukunoor continues to grow with every movie. Special kudos to him for creating the character of a gutsy Muslim woman, who is able to support herself and her family and undertakes an unbelievably courageous journey across the country.
The only criticism I have of this movie is the casting of Kukunoor himself in a villainous role, at which is he is totally unconvincing. He should stick to Hitchcockian cameos and limit his appearance to a single blink-and-you-miss-it scene.
While Dor is not as polished as it could be, it is still a very well crafted movie, able to hold the viewer's interest for two hours despite a skimpy storyline. I hope the movie made enough money to encourage filmmakers to consider investing in such pieces of work.
Rang De Basanti
India's entry to the Oscars in the foreign language category, this is a passionate story about patriotism, an emotion that has almost been forgotten by a generation that never had to make any sacrifices.
Aamir Khan effortlessly blends into a talented ensemble cast without overwhelming the movie with his star power. Slickly edited, the movie follows a group of college students who get increasingly disillusioned by the workings of power and politics.
Parallels are drawn to India's freedom struggle when hot-blooded young men felt that violence was the only way to make a statement. Though I was not convinced by the cause that Aamir and friends ultimately give their life to, the lovely sepia toned juxtaposition of the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh and his comrades with the contemporary struggle made for a powerful movie.
Many viewers took umbrage with the ending of the movie, which seemed to endorse taking the law into your own hands, but this was first and foremost a commercial movie, where the aim was to entertain viewers.
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Love it or hate it, you cannot deny that this lavish ode to adultery created a buzz that spanned the continents. Shankar, Ehsaan, and Loy's memorable music framed the story of two unhappily married people who fall in fall with other people, setting in motion a train wreck of anguish and despair.
Amitabh Bachchan provided the comic relief but even his sparkling performance was not enough to lift the movie out of its emotional doldrums, making a repeat viewing of the film very painful.
Despite all the brickbats thrown at the movie, I thought it represented a genuine attempt at analysing the curve of an affair. Cinematically, it was a departure from Karan Johar's previous candyfloss efforts.
The dazzle generated by having the five biggest names in the movie business (Big B, Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta and Abhishek Bachchan) was enough to make almost every Indian watch the movie.
******************************************************************
Top Five Bollywood Actress of 2006
Priyanka Chopra
Priyanka Chopra is one of the newest success stories of Bollywood.
After a good debut in Andaz, and a couple of hit films later, Priyanka has had an especially good 2006.
She starred in two of the most-awaited movies of the year, opposite two of the biggest stars -- with Hrithik Roshan in Krrish and Shah Rukh Khan in Don.
Priyanka also bagged good projects like Nikhil Advani's Salaam-E-Ishq and scriptwriter Rumi Jaffrey's God Tusi Great Ho, both opposite Salman Khan.
Rani Mukerji
Rani has evolved into one of the best actresses in the industry today, never mind her box office luck this year.
Both her 2006 releases -- Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna and Baabul -- saw her in author-backed roles. And the actress did justice to both.
Rani's climb on the Bollywood ladder is assured. After all, the actress is a favourite of one of the biggest banners in the industry -- Yash Raj Films. Her next film, Tara Rum Pum -- directed by Siddharth Anand (Salaam Namaste) -- will be produced by Yash Raj as well.
Aishwarya Rai
Never mind Umrao Jaan, Aishwarya Rai deserves to be on this list only because of her breathtaking beauty and awesome figure in Dhoom:2.
When Ash exclaimed, 'I'm so hot' in her opening lines in the film, everyone agreed. Of course, one would have preferred if she kept her dialogues to a minimum, and not constantly shoot her mouth off like Sholay's Basanti.
But after making a terrific pair with Hrithik in the very fashionable Dhoom:2, the two will get together again in Ashutosh Gowarikar's period film, Jodha-Akbar.
Bipasha Basu
Bipasha's done it all this year, and come out looking better than ever.
On one hand, she tried her hand at serious cinema, and did well in Madhur Bhandarkar's Corporate.
On the other, she took up an item number in Omkara's Bidi jalai le, and did full justice to it.
She got herself a big hit in Neeraj Vora's Phir Hera Pheri, the sequel to the Akshay Kumar-Suniel Shetty-Paresh Rawal blockbuster.
And to top it off, she was fab in Dhoom:2. There seems to be no stopping this Bengali actress.
Kajol
Kajol may prefer sitting home, taking care of hubby Ajay Devgan and daughter Nysa, but viewers definitely prefer otherwise.
She took a sabbatical from acting after Karan Johar's Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), in which she almost stole the show, and won a few Best Actress awards.
Five years later, when she decided to do another film, it came as a surprise that she chose Aamir Khan as her co-star, as opposed to her close friend Shah Rukh Khan.
What did not come as a surprise, however, was her brilliant performance in Fanaa, and the fact that we fell in love with her all over again.
