And the MAGIK continues...

Farhan Akhtar recreated the magik (literally) after Dil Chahta Hai for the first time. Rock On seemingly is directed by Abhishek Kapoor, but it has an unmistakable impression of Farhan Akhtar IMHO. The guy came alive with this movie what with showcasing good acting skills, but more so excellent singing skills. He is hosting a TV show as well, would he ever stop?

A friend of mine suggested Rock On is DCH in a different package. I cannot disagree more, though I do agree that it has the Gen Next aura that DCH had at the time of its release, and the plot revolves around a set of friends and the screenplay doesn't break away from the main plot. But this is where the similarilty ends in my opinion. DCH showed a set of stories, a story of each protagonist woven into a common story, about having fun and enjoying life. Rock On however is not any one person's story. It is the story of MAGIK, the band and of people around them. It is a story about striving to achieve what you have always wanted, a story of going for the one thing that brings joy to your life, completes your life, and in turn completes the lives of your loved ones. AND, a story which in my opinion, has nothing to do with Rock Music.

The entire cast has come out with exemplary performances. I feel after Farhan, Prachi Desai has come out as the rising star, an unexpected package altogether. This girl is going places! Not to forget Shahana Goswami, who again I feel is an excellent actor and needs to pick up more roles with substance. Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Luke Kenny have provided good support, specially the way Arjun has portrayed the character of Joe. The glam factor is ample though subtle (which is just the right way of doing it). The ladies mentioned above are looking stunning in their own way, but I think the icing on the cake is Nicolette Bird's re-entry. She is looking absolutely ravishing in the present. That Koel Purie who is a favorite of mine otherwise and is looking good in this movie, is named after the other three indicates how mesmerized I am with the ladies on the whole.

I won't delve into the story much (I intend to keep all my posts on movies to a generic opinion than a story telling review), though the way the movie is edited deserves a special mention. The way the story moves from present to past to present seamlessly is pure editing genuis (though credit should go to the screenplay also).

Watch the movie for the story, for the acting, for the songs (ranging from beautiful soft numbers to catchy rock) and for the MAGIK!

Brother Effect - The good and the bad!

Here goes my first Cricket post on a day when 2 sets of brothers scripted a success story in run chases. Messrs Hussey and Hussey spoilt the party for New Zealand, and Messrs Pathan and Pathan followed suit much to the disappointment of Sri Lankan fans. 

The first one was a bit of a disappointment for me as I have been for the past few weeks playing every single game against Australia, hoping to relegate them down to #3 permanently, with India moving up to #2 in the ODI Rankings (and this did happen but lasted just a couple of days), and another Auz win over NZ reduces the chances of this happening in the next month. How the Aussie arrogance and double-standards piss me off is another story that I will talk about in the days to come.

Coming to the latter, it was simply AWE.......................... wait for it............................ SOME (can't help plugging in some Barenyisms as you might notice in my future posts... for the uninitiated, more on Barneyisms some other day). I have always been a huge fan of both Pathans and feel that they have been unlucky and should have been a permanent face in the ODI and T20 teams since long now. Seeing them play in tandem today was an Orgasmic feeling, what with Yusuf taking apart the spin (Bandara!!!) then showing mettle and sense in slowing down and handing over the baton to Irfan, who moved on to torment the seamers. The beauty of the partnership was that none tried to over shadow the other, and in the end, this is what in my opinion resulted in the WIN.

Can't wait for NZ series to start now, and hope to see a lot more Pathans and Gambhir action there!