Ae dil hai mushkil

A divorced poetess, a heart broken girl looking for friendship but not love and a Casanova who has failed in love, come together to dance to the memoirs of Karan Johar. It's a porridge of old Hindi songs enjoyed by youth supposedly and  vintage shayaris that end up confusing the normal.

I'm neither faulting the  shayaris nor the songs, hope one gets the essence. That is - Love is a poisoned chalice, while one is drunk with friendship, people can have either and not both. 

Ash the drunk poetess, Anushka the Confucius, Ranbir the confused . The most befitting summary of this movie can be  extracted from the breakup song - it's music in our heads which outsiders are supposed to interpret as chaos :)

Anushka has done justice to her role, Ranbir is the most befitting cast for this script and Aishwarya wants to reintroduce herself with the swerve of a seductress . 

The first half is fun and frolic. A one month Fling, heartwarming love / friendship, marriage of the loved, heart wrenching failure of the lover. 

Second half continues to enthral you with The poetess(Ash) being seduced by a failed Casanova(Ranbir), they hang out and within one another, the poetess falls in love, while Ranbir the lover finds solace in coitus (profanity intended) in order to distract himself from his heart. One fine day the married Confucius (Anushka) returns to see her so called friend ( Ranbir ) spoiled in the home comforts of a seductive poetess. The latter realises she can never be loved by Casanova. She breaks up with him, while he rekindles his love and reminds Confucius of the same. 

In the meanwhile, as a prelude Ranbir likes to sing , as an interlude he sings quite well as he has sorrow in his heart and voice that can convey his love, it seems. He becomes a singer. 

One fine day Karan saw the first cut of this movie and couldn't cry enough so he had to script cancer onto it. Just so that he could eek out those droplets of sadness from your eye sockets. 

Thus the Climax nears, supposed to be followed by Mohabbataen tears, as death by cancer nears :) Who dies ? Please watch as I can't be more sarcastic as I'm feeling sleepy. 

I have used the word Confucius because - he was known as a philosopher with strong morals like the highly moral and principled  Anushka's Character , who perfectly knows the difference between friendship and love that only the scriptures authored by Karan Johar  could have told :) 

Pic courtesy - Wikipedia 

Kabali

It's all about revenge of a freed gangster in old age, sadly a soon to be forgotten adage- "Kabali". 

A well dressed Rajni with Salt and pepper hairdo to entice the diehards, subdues his star value for a supposedly realistic outing with PA Ranjith.

A sober Rajni, no slick moves, subdued performances and if you've kept your eyes open, a glimpse of the  Rajni we all craved for, for a few seconds here and there. With Dhansika for action sequences, Radhika Apte for an adorable spouse. 

Ever imagined watching a Rajni movie in  silence, it was like watching pushpaka vimanam without Kamal in it and coming out wondering the shot gun used in the climax is too heavy for Thalaivar :) bemused fans, ultra pricey tickets, wasted talent, fans becoming silent- in short Kabali da. 

It's the Royal Enfield of the south fitted with a uninspiring local silencer in Malaysia . With Venomous Chinese, rebellious Tamils, a lil bit of Koli Kari, infighting, Ill Gotten wealth, dope, gang war over and again, a rehabilitation/de-addiction centre run by a gangster, who incidentally inspires inmates to join him in gangsterism, Alumni? meet of a family presumed to be dead for more than two decades, a forgotten wife and a supari daughter that the parents didn't know even existed, same/similar BGM for almost the entire movie for fights, style! Finally any guesses who comes out the victor on the top floor of Malaysian hotel shaped like a Linga? 

 Some amount of neruppuda and a lot more of yedhukku da combine  for this very different Kabali da :) 

 

Iraivi - review

A story of chauvinistic men, selfless women, impulsive decisions, compelling thoughts, provocative content, noble intent, all of that conveyed in parts and lost in translation at  most.

A character sketch for your interest ;

A dejected director's creation fails in his race against  time and fate,  when confronted with the love he bears for his brother. ( S J Suryah)

A smuggler's respect for women makes him desire for an ill treated wife of another.  He's a man in solitude, who wails in sorrow when he sees undeserving men partner divine women Ill treating them to the point of dejection,
never understood by his siblings, wants to avenge men that ill treat women, wants to covet another's wife for he can offer her a better morrow. (Bobby Simha)

That another with misplaced loyalties, failed love life, undervalued service to the undeserving, neglection of the deserving, with a wife that loves another but lives for him. (Vijay Sethupathi)

Now comes the part of the women who play the better halves of the above.

An office going wife, married to a drunk n impulsive idiosyncratic director,
in crossroads In her life, unable to decide between happiness and her love for him! (Kamalini Mukherjee)

A housewife resigned to arranged marriage, paying thy Lord to wed a  mixture of Ajith/ Vijay, ends up being wedded to a guy (Sethupathi) who's infatuated to a widow, whose loyalties lie elsewhere. (Anjali)

What we have here is women who haven't given up, men who haven't realised the inscrutable affection of love that their better halves bear for them.

It's a mishmash of noble intentions, made  in the honour of women who stayed back to let their men go about their impulsive, unchecked, selfish walks of life, with gravely misplaced loyalties indicating future tragic casualties.

Do these men, who venture out in the dark, choose to be enlightened by their spouses or do they impulsively choose to self destruct is what is the story to unfold.

The director hasn't given us Bharathi 's Pudhumai Penn, he gives us Iraivi - iraivanikum melana thunaivi.

It's a brave attempt in support of the women of the Old, the sacrificial lambs, even to date in this male dominated institution of marriage, a heart felt thanks to a mother's unflinching affection to her kids, a housewife's thankless job  and their fidelity of self sacrifice and motherhood, a loving lady's unceasing regard for the loved one, finally an ode to all the women who are forever under appreciated by us.

"Yevalo kevalamana aatkal ille namma?" -
 S J Surya's really knows to act, his instincts to exaggerate are subtly downplayed  by the director and given to us in refreshing doses.Vijay sethupathi plays a pivotal role in the movie,  that would make a man of the ilk described above hate himself. Bobby Simha underplays the role of the torchbearer for under appreciated women.

 Kamalini Mukherjee lets her eyes express, Anjali for a change has gone back to katradhi Tamizh days, to impress.

Karthik Subbaraj tries to elevate women to a pedestal wherein they are the epitome of sacrifice, the verdict is out. But I do agree that they are God's most noble invention, a invention with an ability to create like no man can do! If this movie is a hit, it'll go out to prove that the Tamil Audience are one of the most mature of the lot.

Pic Courtesy - Moviecrow.com

Twenty Four (24)

A watch that lets you time travel back or forth to any moment of the past/future 24 hours. A genius who creates it, a villain who craves for it, the kid of the creator who finally gets to wears it . There's romance on the way back to past, time frozen to love and incriminate the sinister(Villain)! The dad, the kid and dad's brother to complete the trinity of the creator, protector and destroyer vying for the watch.

The script does have flaws but comes full circle and is thoroughly entertaining  It is the story of time travel to change the destiny of what was to be to what could have been in happiness, to avert the ill effects of lust and after effects of murder .
A regular related villain, jealous of his sibling, lusts to capture the most significant achievement of the sibling "the watch", he wants to erase the existence of his sibling, create a kingdom of his own, altering destiny as per his own whims and fancies. He succeeds in wiping out the family of his brother only for the kid and the watch to escape from his evil clutches.
With his extermination plan taking a wicked twist,  he ends up killing his sibling and the consort  before jumping off to a river, while trying to save himself from a bomb hoax. The kid survives the onslaught of the villain miraculously, as the villain jumps off the train believing a bomb hoax engineered by his brother and onto years of coma and disability as an aftermath of his life threatening jump. 
The kid grows up, has the boxed set of the watch, unlocks it, opens the Pandoras box, learns the functionality of the watch, uses it as a Cupid's arrow to strike chords of love with his lady, The schemer is awakened from the coma as a cripple with his undying lust for the watch ...... What happens post this would be for you to see... 
As it is one of the most exhilarating, technically sound movies to come out of South Indian Cine industry. An effort made never before and unmatched in its grandeur in the past. If Bahubali were a sight to watch with CG(Computer graphics), this one is a step towards excitement and believability, with an intact script. Don't miss it. This is not a Ra one, it's the Era's new one! Not Kochadaiyaan, it's padaikanjaan! One of its kind Indian Movie! 
Surya sizzles in triple roles.  As the trinity, he creates, kills, survives, loves, fights, all to an extent of believability. Samantha is loveable. The visuals are at times breath taking. Cinematography on par with the best of Indian movies on Science fiction. Surya produces a gem, the director unearths a new genre..... Seeing will lead to Believing!  

Pic Courtesy: http://entertainment.chennaipatrika.com/

Nil battey sannata

Swara Bhaskar plays a struggling housemaid who dreams big,  with a daughter in tenth grade who can't dream of a better life . She struggles, juggling between maid-hood,  workmanship at a shoe factory she's taken up for livelihood and her dream of seeing her daughter become something in her life viz., a doctor, an engineer, a collector. 
While the mother strives for a better morrow, daughter is resigned to continuing her lowly yesterday The daughter struggles at math to an extent where she won't clear her tenth grade exams . She clearly lacks motivation to make an effort to understand math and clear her Career's first hurdle - tenth grade. Mother uses some  brute force and wisdom to make her daughter study. She hatches a plan with the doctor in whose residence she works as a maid,  whereby she resumes her discontinued studies coincidently in the same school and grade as her daughter. The mother literally competes with her daughter mainly in math, making her daughter disgusted at the thought of her outscoring mother . The daughter hates the idea of having her mother for a classmate. The mother challenges her daughter to pass her interim examinations if she wants her out of sight and out of school. The daughter strives hard to out score her mom in the interim exams. She out scores her mom but shows no signs of continuing her pursuit of excellence for want of motivation. It seems that she only wanted her mom out of school and out of sight but doesn't want to continue working towards passing her grade exams. Mother confronts daughter alarmed by her lack of interest in studies and speaks of her struggles . The daughter has a notion that her mother comes late from work owing to unethical pursuits to earn money. She later learns from her friend that her mother toils on a daily basis, in a dhaba as a worker by night, as a maid in doctors'' residence in the morning, as a classmate during day after managing all these pursuits and all  of that to see her daughter avoid the same fate as her. 
Understanding the hardships of a lowly life, respecting her mothers' labour, she works towards dreaming of a better tomorrow with her mom. As they sit beside  the greatest marvel of human love - the Taj Mahal, the curtains are drawn closer, a new chapter dawns on us, as mother's unconditional love has yet again conquered the lassitude of mediocrity,  the daughter appears in the UPSC exams years later,  her opening response to a question in the UPSC panel interview being "I don't want to be a bhai"! Her mother's dreams appear a step closer to reality. 
Watch it for its purity in thought, depiction of struggling motherhood, Swara Bhaskar's speckless acting, the daughter's  natural depiction, the government school environment and supporting characters, your unsettled tear glands while you leave the hall:(:::) beautiful it is! 

Pic Courtesy: www.dnaindia.com

Kadhalum Kadandhu Pogum

An intermittently well mannered rowdy/Adiyal. A beautiful girl who's jobless. Their lives crossover.

The girl comes to chennai with an offer letter, she's loses her job, gets lost in the world of unemployment, she's vulnerable with none to care.

He's just being himself, the rowdy with a heart. Frank to the core,  a lover extempore. A man with more of wisdom, less of muscling his way out of a fight. When given a chance he turns provider of comforts to one and all.

He dreams of being a bar owner and she's looking for a job for ever. He's just there every time she returns from a failed interview. He provides solace without expecting a return. Her head is turned....

But things maybe aren't meant to be as cliched as one is used to...he helps her all he can to make it into the world of monotony called employment. She succeeds. He goes savage on a assignment to kill his employer's nemesis and doesn't return for long. The sparks of love are diffused by passage of time before they come into contact with one another

Thus,

vazhkayil idai vidatha katru varum,
vazhkaiyum thodarndhu pogum , Kadhalum kadandu pogum, Un idhayathai kavarndhu pogum,  vazhkay enbadhai unarthi pogum,
Kadhalum kadandhu pogum!

Above was An effort to summarize.

The humour elements are perfectly interlaced to give the required laughter bits. The lead cast have emoted well enough to convey the varied sentiments. Vijay Sethupathi plays his role to perfection, Madonna sizzles her way into her first Tamil film. Others do their believable character roles well enough. The director delivers again, helped by the actors and a well written script except for the climax written to address Tamil audience. Definitely worth a watch.