Hindi Movie Reviews

Movie: Roadside Romeo

Directory: Jugal Hansraj

Starcast: Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Jaaved Jaffrey

Music: Salim Merchant, Sulaiman Merchant; Lyrics: Jaideep Sahni

Rating: * 1/2

India’s first animation film from one of the biggest film houses in association with Disney was being promoted heavily and Saif/Kareen pair’s offscreen pairing was being useful for this promotional campaign. But Jaaved Jaffrey the person with magic voice stole the thunder from the star pair.

Hindi movies always have a different story line from a typical hollywood movie; and audience likes the running around the trees, songs and dance sequences. They have grown up seeing the hindi movie in this format. But the movie makers forgot that the same set of people have been given healthy doses of excellent animation films including Finding Nemo and recently Kung-Fu Panda and Wall-E. Making this film the bollywood way didn’t go well with audience and the movie didn’t do that well on the box office.

A week story line and lack of ‘glamour’ didn’t help the movie either. Saif and Kareena were fine as voice over artists but the sidekicks did better. Jaaved Jaffrey was like the donkey of Shrek (Eddie Murphy) and was a saving grace for the movie. The cat was plain irritating after watching the Shrek cat with Antonio Banderes’ voice.

The animations were good and some parts were done nicely. Puns on Charlie’s angles and other movies were well executed.

Jugal Hansraj should try hard next time.

Movie: Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic

Produced By: Yash Raj Films
Direction: Kunal Kohli
Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy
Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi
Starring: Saif Ali Khan, Rani Mukherji

The only promotional ad which served as an incentive to watch Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (TPTM) was perhaps the scantily clad Amisha Patel son –Lazy Lamhe. But this was because TPTM is not that kind of a film. Instead, it is a heart-warming tale filled with fun, frolic and a lot of love. After the nicely told stories in Hum Tum and Fanaa, Kunal Kohli seems to have only got better and more mature with this movie for children and adults alike. This time, Kohli’s childish imagination holds no barriers and pays a visit to the fantasy land.

The story is basically about four orphans and their relationship with a self made businessman, Ranvir (played by Saif Ali Khan). His life is transformed when in a car accident, he kills a couple. After a court decision, he has to look after the orphaned children of the dead couple but does not want to. They don’t bond well and the kids desire vengeance. It is god who sends his favorite and the bubbly angel, Geeta (Rani Mukherji) to sort things out between them. What follows is a little clichéd roller coaster ride of light hearted fun. With funny ludicrous scenes, spruced up with special effects, the story is indeed well told, as is the style of Kunal Kohli.

TPTM may not belong to the original films of the day because it has a lot of Hollywood influences. However, Kunal manages to deliver a soft, humorous film, filled with melodrama and engaging scenes. Add to this the brilliantly composed music of Shankar Ehsaan and Loy, plus the poetical magic of Prasoon Joshi’s lyrics; the film is indeed Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic.

Music Review : Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic

Director: Kunal Kohli

Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy

Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi

Putting efforts and into good music albums has become a rarity these days with more funds into publicity. But Kunal Kohli belongs to this rare breed of film makers who just cannot do without great sound in their movies. So with the fun-filled and melodious tracks of Thoda Pyaar, he scores yet again.

Carrying the baton this time is the hit music director trio, Shankar , Ehsaan and Loy who have proved their skill time and again with bunty and babli, Kal ho Naa Ho and Taare Zameen Par. With new sound in the tracks, they have carved a new milestone. Together with the accomplished Prasoon Joshi providing his soulful lines, they sure have delivered.

The first track Pyaar Ke Liye is a smooth and calm song with beauty in its vocals sung by Shankar Mahadevan. Though its not as catchy, it serves as a good background filler. Then comes the loud and catchy bhangra song to move you into the groove ñ Nihal Ho Gayi. This song is filled with Prasoonís fantastic lyrical ability and Shankarís tunes who seems to do as good a job as he did in Kajra re and Rock n Roll Soniye.

This is followed by the cheerful and vivacious Bulbula sung beautifully by Sunidhi Chauhan. Prasoon again adds a dose of energy to make it chirpier with his lines. Beetey Kal Se server to teach a positive lesson to the younger ones in the film and with Shreya Goshalís, child singer Snehaís sweet vocals and Praoonís magical poetry, the song hits its mark.

The song, Lazy Lamhe, is the most infectious song with its high-spirited music and lively presense. The song hints at the Musical trioís superb capability at the job.

The conclusion is that the crew scores with the beautiful music in the album.