One movie to watch

barodian

I don't recall Dhoom having a kissing seen. Dhoom 2 did.

True, there are many movies before Dhoom 2 which showed kissing scenes. But, Dhoom 2 got the BIGGEST attention.

shashank.aggarwal

yeah it got all the attention and that scene was worth nothing..it had no passion..was just like a freindly peck..(I though so.. )

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lotus blossom

re the kiss...

must have heard that wrong. maybe it was about this?

http://news.sawf.org/Bollywood/29080.aspx

certainly true. in fact, the most sizzling love scenes in movies know how to do so without showing any sex.

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shashank.aggarwal

Things like this are simply publicity seeking stunts and nothing more than that !!

barodian

I agree that this might be a publicity stunt. But, lot of "indescent exposure" is blown out of proportion. Tanushree Dutta's film Aashiq Banaya Aapne was more sexual than Dhoom2 but nothing came out of that and also Malikka Sherawat 17 famous kisses in a movie..

They are just targetting big stars for a quick fame.

somnath

OK, now i am able to understand no need to be so specific. hence i would request you to select ALL from the following list.

Baghban, Lagaan, Amar Akbar Anthony, Awwal Number, Khalnayak, Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi, Raja Hindustani, Raja, Guddu, Tere Mere Sapne

Why????? OK....



Baghban: Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini are separated right after Holi
remember Amitabh singing Holi khele Raghubeera?). They are said to be
separated for six months, ie from March to September. Within that
six-month period, they celebrate Valentine's Day, which falls on
February 14, and
karva chauth, which is usually observed in October. There is no way
these two occasions could come between March and September!

Lagaan: Lagaan was shot in the late 19th century. At the time, an over
in cricket used to consist of 8 balls. But in this movie, an over has 6
balls. Maybe modern cricket learnt from the movie.

Amar Akbar Anthony: Three men donate blood at the same time to the same
person.

Awwal Number: Dev Anand is an omnipotent genius -- former
cricketer,captain, army chief, commissioner, you name it. And Aamir Khan
carries a huge transistor in his pocket while batting!

Khalnayak: The police tracks the villain from an MS Word Document
screen! something that office team will be interested in)

Pyar To Hona Hi Tha: Kajol gets off the train to use the public toilet
at the railway station and the train chugs off without her. Poor
girl,little did she know that every train compartment has four toilets inside.

Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi: Akshay Kumar boards a Jet Airways flight to
America . Well, well, some promotion for our Indian Jet Airways. Since when did
they start flying international?

Raja Hindustani: Navneet Nishan has short hair before marriage. After
tying the knot, she acquires waist-length hair overnight. What a hair-raising
experience!

Raja: Dilip Tahil empties a can of petrol over Madhuri Dixit. Minutes
later, Sanjay Kapoor takes the same can and pours it over Dilip Tahil.
That's what I call an autofill!

Guddu: Manisha Koirala and Shah Rukh Khan are seen hanging on a
parachute during a song. But when the song ends, they land on a glider. What a
switch above sea level!

Tere Mere Sapne: Priya Gill is doing her BA. But at the bus stop, she is
carrying an electrical technology thesis by B L Theraja. What an
electrifying interest!

(came to me as a forwarded mail..... just wanted to share with you).

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anindya911

Well... Jet do fly international, but not to USA as of now though.
Checkout the link for Jet at the bottom of this webpage

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barodian

Jet Airways did not fly international destination when Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi came out.

NeeliAankhen

I love Bollywood, and I have done a lot of thinking, discussing, and experimenting about which films are good introductions to Bollywood for a western viewer who presumably either knows nothing about it, or has preconceptions based on a handful of oft-repeated inaccurate statements and assessments.

I'm sticking here to Bollywood itself, popular musical movies in Hindi produced in Bombay, so this leaves out all the other cinemas of India (Bengali, Tamil, etc.) as well as the interesting non-musical movies that have also always been made in Hindi or in India (Being Cyrus in English, Cheeni Kum, Life in a Metro) though I like many of these too.

I am going to assume you're looking for a suggestion to make to "anyone" - somebody you don't know well, whose approach is colored by goodwill and sincere curiosity (versus, say, pre-formed scorn for the form, the music, etc.).

First your own idea, Hum Apke Hain Kaun: this might be a good one if you were to watch it with the person yourself and make a few comments, otherwise - I've known people to find it boring (I did not, to my own surprise!), and also to regard it as "too Indian," though of course that thing about it makes it good for the right person.

Then - a few things that I've found useful:

-some Hindi movies take a while to get going - fine with me, but I think the western person gets antsy so I like a strong beginning.

--western person has a lot of trouble with high-pitched female singing -- if there's one most-heard complaint that's it - so I avoid anything that has this in the first hour. (Once a viewer is engaged I don't think s/he notices.) This also leaves out Veer-Zara, if you are not used to Lataji, her elderly voice coming out of Preity's mouth is traumatizing!!!

--we (frequent Hindi movie viewers) are fine with the low production quality/poor dvd quality of the older movie, but others are not, so I'd rule them out too in this situation.

--I think a western viewer needs a good script more than someone used to the Bollywood genre, who will be more used to the essential Hindi movie experience of a sequence of strong emotional experiences amplified by music and cinematography, created by a "high intensity" acting style.

--and finally, songs have to be translated or the new viewer really does lose a lot of the experience. This leaves out most of Mani Ratnam's movies, unfortunately.

Good all-purpose intro movies for westerners:

Dil Chahta Hai - it's modern-looking but still Indian; good beginning (Dimple taken to hospital in ambulance); very good script; relatively character- (as opposed to hero-) driven. Balance between male-female romance and male-friendship stories. Terrific cast.

Lage Raho Munnabhai - another good script. Good comedy with a little romance. Fewer songs than usual, and focus on Gandhi - westerners have heard of Gandhi!!

Rang De Basanti - very good story, and there is a British girl as a main character, which helps the westerner "in" as she is socially more familiar. Great Ensemble acting. Ending controversial, but that can generate discussion rather than contempt, I would assume!!

Swades This is nice because it's really "about" India, and about someone going back to India and helping with social/economic problems; also not a pure romance but still an exposure to ShahRukh Khan who is such an appealing actor. Again, a good script/story. And the beginning scenes set at NASA are a nice surprise for the western viewer.

For women more than men - Fanaa -- best for someone who can at least accept that a Bollywood movie often operates by the rule of the "tale," not the realistic story - so coincidences and miracles are to be expected and enjoyed. If someone would enjoy a Big Romance, beautiful romantic songs etc (and a surprising second half) -- this is a good one.

Separate topic -- the "intellectual" who "knows" (without having seen even one Bollywood movie all the way through) that all Bollywood movies are the same, etc. -- I'd sit that person down for Kaagaz Ke Phool. Anyone at all able to recognize filmmaking brilliance will see what kind of hands he's in with the opening scene, cinematography, and music.
In fact the story has its problems, but by the time you get to them you do have an appreciation for Guru Dutt, and maybe
an altered preconception.

paakhipardesi

NeeliAakhen, you bring up some excellent points, and I'm pretty much in agreement on all of them. Happily, subtitled songs are becoming more and more the norm, and I have been pleasantly surprised to encounter so many of them even in older movies. I too get a bit of a jolt when Preity sings in Lata's voice, but she is such an institution, who would dare suggest putting her out to pasture - one might as well suggest Amitabh is getting too old for light romance with heroines 40 years his junior!

But to get back to the original query - I have hooked in several Bollynovices with 'Main Hoon Na'. One of them, the teenage daughter of my daughter's boss, was so instantly enamoured that it was many months before I finally got my copy back.)

1) Wonderful, subtitled dance numbers.
2) Shahrukh Khan
3) Decent stunts and special effects.
4) Masala with a vengeance - young love, mature love, betrayal,
violent death, filial piety, family dynamics, political intrigue, villainy, comedy (that is actually funny!), sadness, college life, suspense and a generous dose of Ma.

Hm, I think it's time for another viewing - it's only a little after 1am!

NeeliAankhen

You know, Main Hoon Naa was my first choice for some people, and in fact they did like it -- but while I was watching it with them I became very aware of the slooow beginning, all the stuff about SRK's father, India and Pakistan, etc -- SRK's "entrance," smashing through the glass, is a brilliant "introduction of the hero" moment, but somebody who doesn't know "the introduction of the hero" doesn't necessarily get it.

So some of it is my own nervousness about how the "mark" is tolerating it, rather than his/her own problem.

And it is 3 1/2 hours!!! and for me, it could be 8 1/2 hours.

Have a nice "evening" watching it again, nice activity for filling what is left of one of the shortest nights in the year!!

vireya

Main Hoon Naa was the first HIndi film I ever saw and it blew me away! It was at the cinema though, the effect may not have been so great on TV. But for me it started a chain of events that has changed my life. I have now seen over 200 Hindi films, I am studying Hindi, and then last year I visited India - a place I had never thought I would want to visit. And of course, I loved that so much I am going back again this year.