Posts Tagged ‘dia mirza’
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Dia Mirza must be used to getting attention all the time thanks to her pretty looks but this recent incident takes the cake as far as being admired goes. Dia was taken aback when she saw a 30-something guy on his knees with a bouquet and a ring proposing marriage to her right outside her doorstep on December 10.
At first, Dia was shocked but her domestic help and driver took her to the police station to lodge a complaint.
A source said, “The stalker has been following Dia for the last six years. When he realised that it was her birthday on December 9 and she would be receiving many bouquets, he disguised himself as a florist, fooled the building’s security guard and landed up outside her house the next day. He told her that he is well-educated and a doctor by profession. He had even got an engagement ring for her and asked her to marry him. At first Dia didn’t know what to do but she quickly got her act together and called out to her domestic help and driver. They managed to drive him away with a warning. However, Dia did not take the matter lightly and lodged a complaint at the Khar Police station. The cops are now trying to find her stalker.”
Dia confirmed the news and said, “Yes, it’s all true. I have made an official police complaint against him. I have noticed him for many years but I never bothered much as he never came in my way. However, this time he landed up at my house which was quite shocking. It was a security lapse because on my birthday(December 9) many bouquets had been sent to my house.
The next day he came to my house disguised as a florist. Thankfully, my driver, who has been with me for ten years, was present and let him off with a stern warning after which he ran away. I hope he doesn’t come back as cops are hunting for him.”
Dia continued, “He had brought a card and an engagement ring and he proposed marriage to me. He is an educated guy and is apparently a doctor but I didn’t want to take any chances. Everyone suggested that I should file a police complaint. The cops are hunting for him and they have even warned the security guards in my building.”
The glittering premiere of Paa!
Posted on: December 4, 2009
The premiere of the Bachchans’ home production Paa was a glittering affair with the who’s who of Bollywood attending the event last night
The preparations for the grand premiere of Paa last night had started much earlier with Amitabh Bachchan visiting the venue at Wadala Imax at 1 pm yesterday to check out all the arrangements. Though the main event was scheduled to begin at 8.30 pm, a casually dressed Amitabh arrived at the venue much earlier at 6 pm and the first thing he did was to double check the arrangements.
He changed into natty formals shortly before the guests started arriving.
The Bachchans had divided their responsibilities to ensure that their guests are well-looked after. While Amitabh, Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai were standing at the entrance, Jaya Bachchan was looking after all the guests near the screens on the first floor.
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| Spec-ulation Why were Ritesh Deshmukh with Abhishek Bachchan wearing identical frames? |
The first wives club Abhishek Bachchan with reel wife, Vidya Balan and his better half, Aishwarya Rai |
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| You me aur hum Ajay and Kajol Devgan |
Twinkle Twinkle big star The colour co-ordinated couple Akshay Kumar and Twinkle |
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Anil Ambani, his wife Tina and their son were among the first guests to arrive. Some of the power couples who attended the premiere were Shah Rukh Khan and wife Gauri, Ajay Devgan and wife Kajol, Hrithik and wife Sussanne, and Akshay Kumar and wife Twinkle. SRK sent Gauri and the kids upstairs while he stayed back to chat with the Bachchans for a while. SRK was seen hugging Akshay Kumar. Arshad Warsi and wife Maria were there too.
Ritesh Deshmukh, Dino Morea and Rakeysh Mehra and his wife followed shortly and the director seemed happy to catch up with his Rang De Basanti team Atul Kulkarni and Kunal Kapoor. Sharman Joshi made a late entry.
Ranbir Kapoor and Ritesh were engrossed in a conversation outside screen 3. Aishwarya came upstairs and was seen talking to Ashutosh Gowariker, his wife Sunita and Srishti Behl. Aamir Khan came with his 3 Idiots director Rajkumar Hirani and producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Aamir left half-an-hour after the screening began.
Abhishek was seen chatting with Govinda, who came in quite late.
Filmmakers David Dhawan, Satish Kaushik and Madhur Bhandarkar were there. Filmmakers Abbas Mustan came all the way from Lonavla.
The screening was held in all the four screens at Imax but it was screen 3, which had the maximum number of stars. The screening of the film started around 10 pm.
Kangna Ranaut hung around outside for a while, posing for pictures even though the film had started. She soon went inside the theatre.
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| Dil de Dia Even Auro, who doesn’t like girls, can’t resist the pretty Dia Mirza |
Pretty woman The single life seems to be agreeing with the glowing Kangna Ranaut |
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| Daddy’s girl Aishwarya with her father Krishnaraj Rai |
Two-gether Hrithik and Sussanne Roshan |
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| Star trek Suhana seems to be taking after her mother Gauri Khan already. Shah Rukh Khan, Balki, Amitabh Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Gauri and Suhana |
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| 3 Idiots meets Paa Rajkumar Hirani, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
| (pics: nilesh wairkar) |
In the process of eliminating handful of terrorists, we end up creating many more-this best describes the policies of Western developed powers who are hell bent on making the world more democratic but adopt inhuman ways to achieve the end point. Kurbaan throws light on this sensitive topic and thankfully treats it well. The flick throws a spate of questions and forces you to think, discuss and debate. But it doesn’t get preachy and hence it’s not like one of the several films on terrorism that are made for a niche audience. The film is thrilling, has some wonderful twist-n-turns and includes some moments of love and passion too. All this make Kurbaan one of the finest films of the year-one that can’t be missed!
The story of the movie: Ehsaan Khan (Saif Ali Khan) takes the job of a teacher in a university in Delhi where he comes across a psychology teacher, Avantika (Kareena Kapoor). He instantly falls in love and she also ends up liking him. But unfortunately, she’s called back to New York where she originally belongs. Realizing that it would be wrong to have a long-distance relationship, Ehsaan also moves to NYC with Avantika. But before that, they marry. After moving to New York, they buy a new house in a neighborhood full of Asians, conservative Muslims to be precise. The neighbours invite Ehsaan and Avantika for dinner so that they can get familiar with each other. Soon, Avantika realizes that things are not fine in the neighbourhood as they seem and finally, realization dawns upon her-she has been as used as a pawn in a dangerous game.
The beginning 20-25 minutes focuses on Saif-Kareena’s courtship and may not impress. It was the weakest part of the film and wasn’t treated well. But thinks take a good turn with the song Shukran Allah and when the couple shifts to New York. The film engrosses from the scene where the neighbours invite them for dinner. From this sequence, the film turns into a roller coaster ride with lots of unpredictable turns. The entry of Riyaaz (Vivek Oberoi) in the narrative adds to the icing on the cake.
The intermission point was brilliant and fortunately, unlike other films, Kurbaan doesn’t fall or gets slow in the post-interval portions. In fact, the 2nd half also keeps you hooked onto your seat. A number of sequences are memorable in this hour. Kirron Kher sharing the tragic story astonishes you and Kher’s mind blowing performance only enhances the impact. Same goes for the scene where Saif is nursing the wound with little help from Kareena after getting hit by a bullet. The way the blood tickles down and the way Saif screams-man, it gives goosebumps!
The last 30 minutes of the film is undoubtedly the best portion of the film. The tension that is created in the climax and the engrossing and captivating direction is truly appreciable. The film ends on an acceptable note.
Regarding the flaws, as mentioned before, the first 20 mins doesn’t work. Also, the film is full of violent and gory scenes which might not be liked by some sections. And the editing wasn’t upto the mark. More about it later!
Kurbaan is a rare film where the cast and most of the crew have worked exceptionally well in all respects. Saif Ali Khan was outstanding in his role. He looked dapper in his new look and performance wise, doesn’t provide even a miniscule chance of complain! Thus, Kurbaan can safely be added to the list of ‘finest performances of Saif’. This year has been particularly lucky for Saif with his home production Love Aaj Kal being a super hit and now even Kurbaan has been appreciated. His next Agent Vinod with Kareena is also expected to rock! Way to go Saif!
Kareena Kapoor has exposed as minimal as possible and still managed to look stunning. She’s always been delivering fine performances and in Kurbaan too, she does a perfect job. Watch out for the scenes where she discovers that she has been used and in the climax. She proves once again as to why she’s one of the top actresses today! Great going!
Vivek Oberoi steals the show with his wonderful act. In fact, his acts impact more than Saif-Kareena at several points in the film. Audiences as well filmmakers would surely sit up and take notice of this highly talented actor who was neglected in the past due to many reasons. He is expected to shine in his next films, Prince and Rakta Charitra too!
Kirron Kher, like Vivek, leaves a mark in several scenes. For a change, it was good to see her in a different kind of role than her usual stereotypical ones. Om Puri performs with ease. Dia Mirza looked charming and impresses with her special appearance. Nauheed Cyrusi does a fabulous job. Asheesh Kapur, who plays her husband, was great. Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Aakash Khurana and others were good.
Salim-Sulaiman’s music was haunting and songs suited the film well. Shukran Allah, Ali Maula and Kurbaan Hua are the three best songs. Ali Maula leaves a mark. The duo’s background score was electrifying and they may bag the Best Background Score award this year.
Anurag Kashyap and Niranjan Iyengar’s dialogues were sharp and top notch. Best dialogue of the film was, “Ek minute ke liye bhi ye mat sochna ki ye allah ka kaam hai!” Parvez Feroze’ gory action enhanced the reality of the film. Asif Ali Shaikh’s editing wasn’t upto the mark. One can notice that desperate attempts were made to haphazardly cut down mini portions of scenes to reduce the duration of the film as much as possible. Not good!
Rensil D’Silva, the screenwriter-director scores in his dream debut. Although the direction wasn’t perfect, the film managed to make an impact and give out a strong message. The screenplay was undoubtedly intriguing.
And finally, kudos to Karan Johar for writing the film and also for producing such a hard hitting flick. KJo was criticized for making lovey-dovey films only. But with his last two films and Kurbaan, he has proved that he’s here not only to rake in moolah but also to provide fresh and interesting flicks! Hats off!
Some of the best scenes of the film:
1. The songs Shukran Allah and Ali Maula
2. Ehsaan and Avantika at the dinner in the neighbour’s house
3. Avantika meets Dia
4. The plane bombing sequence
5. The intermission point
6. Riyaaz at the Saif’s lecture
7. Riyaaz’ quick conversation with Avantika at the mall
8. The scene at the sandwich parlour
9. The coffee scene
10. The climax
On the whole, Kurbaan is an engaging and thrilling film that impresses and engrosses thoroughly! Go for it and have 160 minutes of captivating and thrilling time!
My rating-**** out of 5!
This review first appeared on MouthShut.com: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Kurbaan-180014-1.html
By Taran Adarsh, November 19, 2009 – 15:14 IST
Post 9/11, there’s anger, distrust, suspicion, uneasiness all around. Not a day passes when you don’t hear of terrorists killing civilians in the name of religion.
Many storytellers have, in the past, narrated stories about terrorists and their nefarious and despicable plans. But let me state one thing categorically. You haven’t watched a more profound, a more thought-provoking, a more dramatic story on this subject before KURBAAN. It’s not just the most powerful film to come out of Dharma Productions, it’s the most powerful film to come out of the Hindi film industry this year, thus far.
| BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COM |
KURBAAN tries to penetrate into the psyche of not just the terrorist, but also someone who has been a helpless spectator all this while. This film is sure to spark off discussions and debates, although it must also be noted that it doesn’t take sides or gets preachy.
Rensil D’Silva has chosen a burning issue for his directorial debut, which is a complete departure from Karan Johar’s earlier films. For some inexplicable reasons, parallels are being drawn with FANAA [Aamir Khan, Kajol] and NEW YORK [John Abraham, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Katrina Kaif], but the fact remains that barring the backdrop of terrorism, there’s no similarity with those films.
I’ve often felt that certain films are beyond box-office. Movies are not meant to merely entertain, but enlighten and educate as well. They need to prick your conscience and in the process, make an attempt to make this world a better place. KURBAAN does just that and for this very reason, it deserves a double thumbs up.
Final word? Drop everything else you’re doing to watch KURBAAN. Movies like these need to be made, encouraged and lauded.
Avantika [Kareena Kapoor] is a teacher at a university in Delhi. She has come back from New York where she teaches, because her father [Aakash Khurana] has suffered a heart attack. During this period, she meets a Professor called Ehsaan Khan [Saif Ali Khan]. Soon, they begin seeing each other and love blossoms.
A few months later, Avantika receives a call from her university in New York, asking her to come back. Avantika breaks the news to Ehsaan. He, in turn, tells her he doesn’t mind coming to the States with her. But first they need to get married.
Soon after the marriage, they leave to start a new life in New York. They buy a house in an Indian neighbourhood and move in. Just as they are setting up home, their conservative Muslim neighbours invite them over for dinner. The next morning, Salma [Nauheed Cyrusi], one of the women Avantika met the night before at the dinner, visits her under the pretext of gifting her sweets.
When Avantika invites her in, Salma tells her that she is in grave danger. Nothing is what it seems. Salma pleads with Avantika to help her. What follows next is a series of incidents that sucks Avantika into a vortex of danger and intrigue. As her life spirals out of control, Avantika realizes that she is a pawn in a huge game.
KURBAAN has two stories running concurrently – the love story between Saif and Kareena and the story of Islamic terrorists. Rensil sets the stage in the initial 15 minutes itself, after which there’s a twist in the tale every 15-20 minutes, which catches you completely unaware. Rensil doesn’t borrow from the past, which makes the proceedings thoroughly captivating.
The highpoint is the 35-minute climax, which leaves you spellbound. The culmination to the story shakes you completely, largely because it’s pragmatic and has been executed most logically as well. In fact, filming the climax at the various underground tube stations must’ve been the toughest challenge for the director.
On the flip side, KURBAAN caters more to the intelligentsia or the thinking viewer and might not be lapped up whole-heartedly by those who survive on the staple diet of hardcore masala fares.
Some of the finest technicians in the business are associated with KURBAAN. Hemant Chaturvedi’s cinematography is super. The film bears an international look all through. Salim-Sulaiman’s music is well integrated in the narrative. At least two tracks merit a mention – ‘Shukran Allah’ and ‘Ali Maula’. Anurag Kashyap and Niranjan Iyengar’s dialogue are superb. The lines enhance the impact of several sequences. Thrills are, again, in sync with the mood of the film.
KURBAAN is embellished with superlative performances. Saif is extra-ordinary in a role that only proves his versatility once again. If he won your heart with a winning performance in LOVE AAJ KAL a few months ago, you need to watch this supremely talented actor underplay his part so beautifully in KURBAAN. As for Kareena, KURBAAN reiterates one fact yet again: She’s the best in the business. No two opinions on that! Watch her get those emotional sequences right, it’s incredible. Here’s a performance that truly merits the highest praise and admiration, besides fetching her awards and accolades.
Vivek Oberoi is fantastic. Matching Saif and Kareena at every step, KURBAAN should be the turning point in Vivek’s career. It’s a difficult role to portray and only an actor with a wide range could’ve portrayed this part so effectively. Om Puri is top notch and so is Kirron Kher. Kirron is marvellous, especially in the penultimate scene. Dia Mirza, Nauheed Cyrusi and Kulbhushan Kharbanda lend credibility to their brief roles.
On the whole, KURBAAN is the most powerful film to come out of the Hindi film industry in 2009, so far. The film has a captivating plot, gripping screenplay, super performances and a climax that shakes you up completely. Watching this movie should be on top of your agenda this week.
By Taran Adarsh, October 23, 2009 – 13:54 IST
FRUIT & NUT, directed by Kunal Vijaykar, is one of those films that succeed in making you giggle intermittently. But how one wishes the film had a strong story in the first place. This one is a senseless comedy and the sad part is, the absurdities here are not too amusing.
FRUIT & NUT is about Jolly Maker, who is a simple, hard working middle class struggling bachelor in search of love, money, friends and success. He works as a clerk/accountant in the office of a greedy and corrupt builder named Khandar. He is typically nerdy and un-stylish. He is also accident-prone and leaves a trail of disaster behind him.
| BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COM |
One fine day, Jolly Maker’s beautiful, sexy, smart and snobbish colleague, Monica, gets mysteriously kidnapped. Through a roller coaster ride and series of comical mishaps, Jolly Maker finds himself in the middle of a plot that has been hatched by an insane Ex-Maharaja to destroy Mumbai.
Whether the poor, adorable, accident-prone Jolly Maker finally falls in love or not, gets his girl or not and above all, is able to save Mumbai or not, makes for rest of the film.
Director Kunal Vijaykar tries hard to keep you entertained, but the writing is just not captivating. Sure, you do laugh at a few jokes/situations, but there are times when the jokes aren’t too funny and also tend to get repetitive.
The performances are over-the-top, but go well with the mood of the film. Boman Irani glides into the character effortlessly. Cyrus Broacha is perfect. Mahesh Manjrekar is first-rate. Dia Mirza does a fine job.
On the whole, FRUIT & NUT has some funny moments, that’s it! A film like this holds very limited appeal.
Bruna in KJo’s next?
Posted on: October 23, 2009
After doing an item number, Rehem Kare in Anubhav Sinha’s Cash (2007), Brazilian model Bruna Abdullah has bagged a cameo in Karan Johar’s Imran Khan-Sonam Kapoor starrer I Hate Luv Storys.
A source said, “Dia Mirza was director Punit Malhotra’s first choice for the role that Bruna finally bagged. Dia politely denied the offer as she didn’t want to do one more cameo having done one in another Karan film Kurbaan. Punit then started auditioning and decided to cast a relatively new face.” Somebody recommended Bruna’s name during the auditions and Punit fixed up a meeting with her. “Punit was impressed with Bruna and immediately finalised her for the role. Bruna is a Brazilian and has already started working on her diction and dialogue delivery. This is Bruna’s big break in Bollywood. Although it is a cameo, her role adds substantial weight to the script,” added the source. First, Bruna’s manager Meenaxi confirmed the news and asked us to email the questions for Bruna. However, later when we contacted her again, she denied the story and said, “I thought you wanted to speak to her regarding an interview. Bruna has not signed any film.” |
Bollywood walks for Shabana
Posted on: October 23, 2009
NICOLE DASTUR Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; October 23, 2009)
To rewind a bit — Shabana Azmi’s NGO Mijwan Welfare Society (MWS), which was started by her father Kaifi Azmi, has been doing noteworthy work for the betterment of the villagers of Mijwan. When Namrata was amidst the villagers, she too was inspired to do something for their welfare. And that’s how ‘Mijwan — Sonnets in Fabric’, a fashion show with a difference was born, to raise funds to set up a District Learning Centre in the village. “I have always believed in the power of youth to act as catalysts for change. Fifty percent of India is under 25 years, they can change the world if they are motivated to get involved and tap into their own reserves of strength,” says Shabana.
The fashion contest-cum-show will also serve as a platform for fashion designing students to showcase their talent. Students from five fashion and design institutes will take part in an inter-collegiate contest where shortlisted students will be mentored by designers Manish Malhotra and Anita Dongre, and their creations will be showcased by top stars and models including Karan Johar, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Abhay Deol, Malaika Arora-Khan, R Madhavan, Konkana SenSharma, Dia Mirza, Prachi Desai, Raima Sen, Boman Irani, Arshad Warsi, Sandhya Mridul, Mona Singh, Tupur and Tapur Chatterjee, Aditi Govitrikar, Diandra Soares, Alesia Raut and Dipannita Sharma. The show, to be held in December, will be compered by Mandira Bedi, styled by Manish and Anita and judged by eminent names. “These stars are youth icons and it will be a huge boost for these students to have their creations showcased by them,” says Shabana, adding that she is grateful to all the stars and designers for being a part of this venture absolutely free of cost. 
ACIDIC HANGOVER!
One can’t deny the fact that White Feather Films (WFF), Sanjay Gupta’s production house, has churned one of the best dark thrillers in the past. In fact, every film of WFF right from Kaante to the recent Woodstock Villa has been very dark but still managed to impress audiences. Their new flick, Acid Factory, too follows the WWF tradition! It’s dark, it has black humour and most importantly, it has surprises. However, the second hour spoils the show. More details later!
The story of the movie: A guy somewhere in his mid-20s (Fardeen Khan) wakes up and finds himself trapped in a dilapidated factory. He has no memory as to how he got there inside. He doesn’t even remember his own name! A phone rings somewhere and he picks up. The caller (Irrfan Khan) seemed like a boss, who gives some orders. Later, the man discovers four more people in the factory (Aftab Shivdasani, Manoj Bajpayee, Dino Morea and Danny Denzongpa) and they all are in a similar state of mind. One of them is tied to a chair and one is handcuffed. All doors are locked and the windows had iron grills and so there was no chance of escaping. Also, the factory was located at a remote place so there was no possibility of even shouting and getting attention of someone from outside. The guys later discover that it is an acid factory and that some of them were criminals. To find out as to how they lose their memory and what happen next, watch the film.
Acid Factory’s first hour is power-packed. The film holds your attention wonderfully right from the first scene. The characters in the factory waking up, bewildered, one by one and their talking, shouting and cracking jokes with one another sets the mood. Two more tracks run simultaneously-one, the flashback portions of Fardeen and the other, the kidnapping heist. Yet, the film doesn’t turn confusing and for this, full marks should be given to director Suparn Verma.
The characters later learn that two of them are kidnapped. But again, with no memory, they have no idea as to who are the kidnappers and who are the hostages! This really makes the situation weird but interesting!
But things slid down in the 2nd half. They should have been more thrilling moments and drama but instead, a lot of action scenes are thrown in. No doubt that it was a treat watching those scenes but after a point of time, it became too much. Also, the climax wasn’t impressive, although it was engrossing. And the glaring flaws at this point are shocking. But due to a bad 2nd half, one gets out of the theatre disappointed. If the film had an equally powerful 2nd half, Acid Factory would have been a coming of the age film.
Every actor was perfect. Fardeen Khan had more screen presence than the rest and like everytime, he gave a fantastic performance. He still has two films this year (Dulha Mil Gaya and All The Best). Let’s hope he gets appreciation which he rightfully deserves. Aftab Shivdasani rocks as the angry young man. Dino Morea surprises with a brilliant performance. Manoj Bajpayee acts well and succeeds in making the viewers laugh.
Danny Denzongpa, like everytime, was flawless. Irrfan Khan impresses. A lot of hype was created about Dia Mirza’s presence in the film as she’s the only female actor in the main cast. However, she enters only in the second hour and didn’t have much to do. But she performs well, though. Gulshan Grover and Neha were alright.
The film has couple of songs (including an item number) which wasn’t needed at all. The song ‘Ye Jism Hai’ looked totally out of place in the film. Sahil Kapoor’s cinematography was topnotch. Actor Saurabh Shukla and Sanjay Gupta have written the dialogues which were excellent. Tinu Verma’s action was top-class and kudos to him and his team! Hemal Kothari’s editing was slick. Milind Gadagkar’s story was great but he can’t be given the credit as the film seems inspired from the Hollywood flick, Unknown.
Suparn Verma and Sanjay Gupta’s screenplay was outstanding in the beginning portions but deteriorated in the 2nd hour, esp towards the climax. Suparn Verma, overall, impresses a lot as the director. This film will be a commercial flop but Suparn’s efforts will surely be noticed and would be appreciated for sure.
Some of the best scenes of the film:
1. Fardeen picking up Irrfan’s first call
2. The chase sequence in the beginning
3. Fardeen’s first meeting with Danny
4. Fardeen, Dino and Aftab interrogating Danny
5. Irrfan taking away the ransom (wonderful scene)
6. The intermission point
7. Dia Mirza’s entry
8. Fardeen, Dino, Aftab and Danny calling for help from outside (another fabulous scene)
On the whole, Acid Factory is a fast, intriguing film that falls in the 2nd half. The film was badly promoted and that’s why it failed to have a good opening. With three BIG releases next Friday, Acid Factory will vanish from the theatres for sure. But all those interested, it would be no harm catching this 120 minute dark thriller on VCD/DVD later!
My rating-*** out of 5!
This review first appeared on MouthShut.com: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Acid_Factory-177028-1.html
By Taran Adarsh, October 9, 2009 – 09:32 IST
Besides Abbas-Mustan, Sanjay Gupta has attempted interesting thrillers in the past. His new outing, ACID FACTORY, directed by Suparn Verma, is a cat-n-mouse chase that will have you on edge of the seat as it unfolds.
Inspired by Hollywood film UNKNOWN, ACID FACTORY is engaging in most parts. Also, it’s well adapted to suit Indian sensibilities. It starts off strong enough and keeps the momentum going till the end, though, of course, it goes back and forth at times and that could get a bit confusing.
| BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COM |
ACID FACTORY demands your attention from the very start. The viewer ought to stay alert and watch the goings-on carefully. Even if you blink, chances are you may miss a vital link and the subsequent portions may not work for you since there’s something happening every minute.
At the same time, ACID FACTORY has its share of loose ends. The climax, for instance, could’ve been more impactful. Also, the concept is too urbane and holds appeal for the urban youth, who’ve a penchant for slick thrillers.
Final word? ACID FACTORY is a well-crafted, well executed film with the ensemble cast pitching in competent performances.
A man [Fardeen Khan] wakes up in a deserted factory surrounded by several other seemingly dead men. He has absolutely no memory of who he is or how he got there and he is unable to get out. Before too long, the others [Aftab Shivdasani, Dino Morea, Manoj Bajpayee, Danny Denzongpa, Dia Mirza] wake up and they all have amnesia too.
All they know is that some of them have been shot, one is tied to a chair, a third is hanging by his wrist, which is handcuffed to a railing… It is eventually discovered that they have lost their memory because of gas leaked from a container.
Much later, they figure out that two of them have been kidnapped by the other three. Who are the kidnappers and who are their victims? Meanwhile, the police are tracking a sinister man [Irrfan Khan], while a worried wife [Neha] desperately searches for her husband.
ACID FACTORY has enough going for it, thanks to its premise which is intriguing. But the plot is such that it takes time to come to the point. There’s not much happening in the first hour, except the fact that everyone’s clueless about their identity and how they seem trapped in a dilapidated factory.
But the answers start flowing in the second hour. The answers come quick and the reasons why they are trapped are also justified. But, as mentioned earlier, the conclusion could’ve been as realistic like the rest of the proceedings. Also, the track of the harried wife trying to trace her husband isn’t too convincing.
This is Suparn Verma’s second film as a director and midway through the film, you realise that Suparn has grown as a storyteller. The film bears a slick look and also, the narrative holds your attention for most parts. Cinematography is top notch. So is the sound design. Tinu Verma’s stunts and chase sequences deserve distinction marks.
Every actor pitches in an effortless performance. They aren’t putting on an act. The film has an assorted mix of experienced and accomplished actors [Danny Denzongpa, Manoj Bajpayee and Irrfan Khan] and yet-to-reach-there actors [Fardeen Khan, Aftab Shivdasani, Dino Morea and Dia Mirza] and each display confidence in their respective parts. Neha doesn’t get scope, while Gulshan Grover is as usual.
On the whole, ACID FACTORY is a slick thriller that has an interesting premise and also super stunts and chase sequences as its trump cards. The film is targeted at the urban youth, especially those who relish thrillers. Of course, the film will have to storm the dull pre-Diwali period which might curtail its prospects to an extent despite decent merits and also, the three biggies that arrive next Friday.
Acid Factory-Fast and faster!
Posted on: October 9, 2009
SHARIN WADER BUTANI Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; October 8, 2009)
“All six actors — Irrfan Khan, Dia Mirza, Fardeen Khan, Aftab Shivdasani, Manoj Bajpayee, Dino Morea and Danny Denzongpa, have added a clear definition to their roles,” said Mumbai Mantra CEO Andrey Purushottam, adding, “Bollywood action has come of age and this film proves just that.”
The one person who had the time of his life working inside this “factory” was director Suparn Verma. “If the cast and crew, while shooting the scenes, thought that they could have probably died, then let me tell you… they could have! The scenes were dangerous,” said Suparn. There’s not a single place in Cape Town where they’ve not blown a car or had a helicopter chase. “By the time we had completed shooting, the place looked like a war zone,” laughed Suparn, giving all the credit to action director Tinu Verma.
Dia Mirza, who has surprised all with her daredevil acts, said, “I insisted on doing the stunts myself. I’ve proved that I can kick some butt too!” she said. Irrfan had other reasons for signing the film. He said, “I asked the director, ‘You think this will work, the critics will like the film?’ He said, ‘NO’. So I said, ‘Hell, man, let’s do it’.”
Fardeen is confident that the film will keep audiences at the edge of their seats. “The plot is such that you don’t know what the other person is going to do next,” said the actor.
Fenil and Bollywood 