Matinee Masala

Alam Ara (The Light of the World) was released in 1931. Alam Ara was the first Indian sound film directed by Ardeshir Irani.

Irani recognized the importance of sound in films and raced to complete Alam Ara before several other contemporary sound films. Alam Ara debuted at the Majestic Cinema in Mumbai on March 14, 1931. Both the movie and its music were widely successful, marking the beginning of the talkie era and music in Indian cinema.

The film was based on a Parsi play written by Joseph David. Alam Ara’s story revolved around a King, his two wives and their daughter, Alam Ara. Due a change in fortune Alam Ara grows among the gypsies and ends up falling in love with a prince. In the end the lovers are united.

Alam Ara was produced by Imperial Movietone and dubbed in Hindi as well as Urdu languages. It starred Master Vithal, Zubeida, Jilloo, Sushila, Prithviraj Kapoor.

In the history of Indian cinema one film will always remain ahead of all other films titles. The film that many directors dream of making it their own way with the same title and writer, you guessed it- Devdas written by Sharat Chandra Chatterjee.

Make a note of these versions and take a trip down memory lane-

1. Devdas (1928), directed by Naresh Mitra, Phani Burma as Devdas, Tarakbala as Parvati or Paro and Niharbala/Miss Parul as Chandramukhi.
2. Devdas (1936), directed by P.C. Barua, starring K.L. Saigal as Devdas, Jamuna as Parvati or Paro and Rajkumari as Chandramukhi.
3. Devdas (1953) (Telugu) (also known as “Devadasu”), directed by Vedantam Raghavaiah, starring Akkineni Nageswara Rao as Devdas and Savitri as Parvati.
4. Devdas (1955), directed by Bimal Roy, starring Dilip Kumar as Devdas,Suchitra Sen as Paro, and Vyjayantimala as Chandramukhi.
5. Devdas (1979) (also known as “Debdas”), directed by Dilip Roy, Soumitra Chatterjee as Devdas, Sumitra Mukherjee as Parvati or Paro and Supriya Choudhury as Chandramukhi.
6. Devdas (2002) (Bengali), directed by Shakti Samanta, starring Prasenjit Chatterjee as Devdas, Arpita Pal as Parvati or Paro and Indrani Halder as Chandramukhi.
7. Devdas (2002), Bollywood film directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, starring Shahrukh Khan as Devdas, Aishwarya Rai as Parvati or Paro and Madhuri Dixit as Chandramukhi.

The recently released Kabul Express joins the band wagon of banned films. It has been banned from screening in Afghanistan, where Bollywood films enjoy immense popularity. The reason for the ban is the portrayal of the Hazara ethnic minority community shown in parts of the film.

Films banning in India is common, the latest was ‘The Da Vinci Code’. But Hindi films those were banned or created some sort of controversies initially but eventually released went on to add more curiosity for cinegoers. Some films which come to mind are…

Fanaa (2006), Bandit Queen (1996), Fire (1996), Zakham (1998), Paanch (20??), Black Friday (20??), Aandhi (1975), Fareb (1996), Main Solah Baras Ki (1998), Bombay (1995), Mother 98 (1999), Zakhmi Aurat (1988)…

Blockbuster
Dhoom 2
Krrish
Lage Raho Munnabhai

Super Duper Hit
Fanaa
Rang De Basanti
Vivah [Blockbuster in Bihar]

Super Hit
Phir Hera Pheri

Hit
Gangster [Mumbai; Semi Hit in other circuits]
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Malamaal Weekly

Semi Hit
Apna Sapna Money Money
Don
Golmaal - Fun Unlimited
Pyaar Ke Side/Effects
Taxi No. 9211

Partial/Moderate Success
Aksar
Bhagam Bhag
Chup Chup Ke [Mumbai, Delhi]
Khosla Ka Ghosla
Woh Lamhe

Average
Being Cyrus [metros]
Corporate
Shaadi Se Pehle [some circuits]
Tom Dick And Harry [some circuits]
36 China Town [some circuits]

Biggest Disappointments
Aap Ki Khatir
Baabul
Family - Ties Of Blood
Humko Deewana Kar Gaye
Jaan-E-Mann
Kabul Express
Naksha
Omkara
Umrao Jaan
Zinda

(Source: Indiafm.com)

Enter 2007 and it starts raining awards. As usual the categories will remain the same and lobbying will start for the popular awards where favoritism will dominate yet again. Here is a random list of awards that I thought should have been made for 2006.

Award for…

1.The most surprising performance (actress) of the year goes to- Mallika Sherawat for Pyaar Ke Side Effects!
2.The most surprising performance (actor) of the year goes to- Tusshar Kapoor for Golmaal
3.The most unwanted attention of the year goes to- Rakhi Sawant for her kiss with Mika and appearance on Sony TV’s Big Boss.
4.The comeback of the year goes to- Rahul Roy for Naughty Boy
5.The loyalist of the year goes to- Karan Johar for repeating his favorite Bachchan’s, SRK, Rani, Priety in KANK
6.‘No chemistry on screen’ of the year goes to- Aishwarya & Abhishek for Umrao Jaan
7.The most popular Lyrics of the year goes to- Gulzar for Beedi Jalaile Jigar Se… from Omkara
8.The most talked about film of the year goes to- Karan Johar’s Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
9.The best Ham of the Year goes to- (as usual)- Shah Rukh Khan for KANK & Don
10.The most delayed film of the year goes to- Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar
11.‘Biting more than chewing’ of the year goes to- Himesh Reshammiya
12.’Messing up the remake’ of the year goes to- Farhan Akhtar for Don
13.The most awaited film of the year goes to- Dhoom:2
14.The most unexpressive face of the year goes to - Mohit Ahalawat for Shiva
15.The most underrated actor of the year goes to- Arshad Warsi for Lage Raho…& Kabul Express
16.The most underrated actress of the year goes to-Konkona Sensharma for Omkara, 15 Park Avenue & Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota
17.The most insipid performance of the year goes to- The three leads of Tom Dick & Harry for exactly delivering what was not expected of them.
18.The best film title of the year goes to- Ek Se Mera Kya Hoga
19.‘The most audacious remake in the making’ of the year goes to- Ram Gopal Varma for Sholay
20.The most inspiring film of the year goes to- Lage Raho Munnabhai
21.‘Much ado about nothing’ of the year goes to- Priyanka Chopra for Krrish & Don
22.The most sincere film of the year goes to- Nagesh Kukunoor for ‘Dor’
23.The surprise hit of the year goes to- Vivah
24.The most weird hair style of the year goes to- Saif Ali Khan for Omkara & Salman Khan for Saawan
25.The darkest film of the year goes to- Sanjay Gupta’s Zinda
26.The last appearance of the year goes to- Amrish Puri for Kachchi Sadak
27.The most off-beat film of the year goes to- Being Cyrus
28.The most promising debutant- Kangana Ranaut for Gangster
29.The best dialogues of the year goes to- Omkara
30.The most different film of the year goes to- Alag

The list of actors who delivered performances that made the year 2006 a memorable one at the box-office.

1. Hrithik Roshan- for his sheer screen presence, without whom Krrish & D:2 would surely have been duds.

2. Sanjay Dutt- for his performance as Munnabhai in LGM and revolutionizing Gandhigiri.

3. Arshad Warsi- for his tremendous and effortless comic timing in LGM & Kabul Express. It’s high time he stopped playing the side-kick and does some solo leads.

4. Abhishek Bachchan- for doing his part sincerely.

5. Shah Rukh Khan- for doing what he’s best at—giving fantastic openings!

A sum up of the actresses who left a mark on screen rather than off screen.

1. Bipasha Basu- May have gone unnoticed with biggies ruling the roost but she did make her presence with Corporate, Dhoom:2, Omkara & Phir Hera Pher. Bips had all the oomph and variety to walk away with the No.1 tag this year.

2. Priyanka Chopra- Although she didn’t have much to do in Krrish and Don but she did deliver two hits.

3. Vidya Balan- For just being herself in Lage Raho Munnabhai.

4. Rani Mukherjee- For sincere performances in KANK & Babul.

5. Kangana Ranaut- For her decent debut in Gangster & Woh Lamhe.  Hope to see her in better roles or might become repetitive.

It was on June 19, 1970 that Chetan Anand’s Heer Ranjha was released. It was a typical Chetan Anand film with loyalists Raaj Kumar playing Ranjha, Priya Rajvansh playing Heer, Madan Mohan, Kaifi Azmi etc.

Heer Ranjha is considered to be a benchmark film in hindi cinema because of its dialogue treatment. For the first time Chetan sahab had requested Kaifi Azmi to pen the songs as well as the dialogues for the film because he wanted to give a poetic feel to this period love saga. Though no one had attempted anything of this kind earlier but Chetan sahab was convinced that it would work.

Although Kaifi sahab didn’t keep good health those days but somehow managed to write the dialogues in verses to ensure that Heer Ranjha is made the way Chetan sahab wanted.

It was a calculated risk that turn out to become a huge success. The unforgettable songs are still remembered for its melody and sheer poetry. Incase you haven’t seen it, grab a DVD and I bet you won’t regret it.

Some films of 2006 that went unnoticed. Read them at your own risk:

Vidyaarthi, Bipasha- The Black Beauty, Item Girl, Husn Bewafa, Men Not Allowed, Husn - Love & Betrayal, Mr 100% - The Real Player, Be-Parda, Rafta Rafta - The Speed, Ek Se Mera Kya Hoga, Bhookh - The Hunger of Body, Choco-Bar, Galtiyaan - The Mistake, Ankush - The Command, Pink Ludoos, Retake - Phir Ek Baar, Ek Zakhm - The Blast, Chumban - The Kiss, Tera Pati Mera Pyar, Free Entry…

…the list is endless, phew!

1. Dhoom: 2 (November 24)
Director: Sanjay Gadhvi
Producer: Yashraj Films

2. Krrish (June 23)
Director: Rakesh Roshan
Producer: Filmkraft

3. Lage Raho Munnabhai (Sept 1)
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Producer: Vidhu Vinod Chopra Productions

4. Vivah (November 10)
Director: Sooraj Barjatya
Producer: Rajshri Productions

5. Fanaa (May 26)
Director: Kunal Kohli
Producer: Yashraj Films

6. Rang De Basanti (January 26)
Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Producer: UTV Motion Pictures

7. Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (August 11)
Director: Karan Johar
Producer: Dharma Productions

8. Phir Hera Pheri (June 9)
Director: Neeraj Vohra
Producer: Base Industries Group

9. Malamaal Weekly (March 10)
Director: Priyadarshan
Producer: Sahara One Media & Entertainment

10. Golmaal (July 14)
Director: Rohit Shetty
Producer: Shri Ashtavinayak Cine Visions