Just Aamir’s Dhoom, rest is DOOM

I use to believe that whatever is associated with Aamir Khan has to be flawless in its own genre. My firm belief has shaken a bit when I saw D3. The brand Dhoom created by John Abraham (not known for his acting skills though) has grown bigger in sense of budget, style, star cast and location, I wish it could have grown in the story telling aspect as well.

For a Friday night show, booking my tickets on Wednesday itself shows my anticipation towards the movie. Like me, all the film lovers throughout the country were eagerly waiting for 2013’s most anticipated film Dhoom 3. Yashraj’s Dhoom is a brand within itself and Aamir Khan playing the lead was like Adidas and Nike doing a joint venture in sports. Firecrackers were expected all over. Did they stand up to the anticipation?? I don’t think so.

Excitement was building up when I took my seat in the cinema hall. The film started with a bank robbery leading to a thrilling chase sequence. Just the time I was about to say wow, the act of stupidity took over the entire thrill. Movie starts with a bang but later on it fizzles out by the interval. Second half of the movie is exceptional. Talent stands out. Action scenes are thrilling, a bit unbelievable. Conversion of a sports bike into a speed boat and later something like a rocket is difficult to digest. Even Bond films have not come up with this technology as yet. The story of the film is ordinary, has few loopholes and doesn’t grip you after a certain point. Music is average. Hyped as the most expensive song in the hindi films, Malang is well picturised. Background score is gripping. Exceptional cinematography especially the chase sequences. Exotic locations are well captured.

Aamir Khan takes it all. He stands out completely in this ordinary film and tries to take it on a different level altogether. I wish half the efforts as Aamir would have put into the story writing and direction; the movie would have set new benchmarks in Hindi film industry. Abhishek Bachchan as Jai Dixit and Uday Chopra as Ali bring absolutely nothing new to this film. For the matter of fact few of their dialogues are taken directly from the previous Dhoom movies. Katrina Kaif’s expressions in the movie are as flat as a dry cricket pitch. Acrobats preformed by her in the song Kamli is something good to look for. The child playing young Aamir Khan displays incredible acting skills. Jackie Shroff is decent.

In all Dhoom 3 is well paced movie which won’t let the boredom affect you. You would come across some "What’s that" moments which are rare in Aamir Khan starrers. If you manage to avoid those moments, grumpy Abhishek Bachchan and irritating Uday Chopra, you would enjoy this film.

Ratings- 2.75/ 5

RV 

Morning Tea with Raj Thackeray

It was a Thursday, the 5^th of December 2013 when I got an opportunity to meet one of the very few personalities I look up to.  Yes… It was Mr. Raj Thackeray.  The name itself carries lot of magnetism which one cannot ignore. Having the hysteria to meet someone I look up to made me jittery.

I started my journey at 9:45 am from Borivali in a ford fiesta filled with creative minds, Mr. Vasudeo Kamath Sir, My Father Mr. Uday Pai and Mr. Bal Mungekar. It was a week day morning and jammed roads weren’t a surprise for me. Thoughts of interacting with the outspoken personality were overflowing my mind. The journey which generally takes an hour’s time took us extra 45 minutes to reach the desired destination, Krishna Kunj.

Getting in was easy as people around were familiar to my father. The meeting room was quite known as I had seen it in his interviews. My eyes started rolling all over the room noticing every possible object. I always believe that a lifestyle of an artist is very artistic and Raj Thackeray was not an exception. His meeting room was nicely done full of paintings and books. The pillow cover of his chair had his signature etched on it. There were few people along with us all waiting for Mr. Thackeray. My restless wait was ended after 15 minutes as Mr. Thackeray walked in. Everyone stood right there to greet Raj Thackeray and I was completely amazed by his persona.  Starting up with his party workers and paying his attention to the required issues he guided them and took care of it. Getting through with everyone he diverted his attention to us. Calling up for tea, he started interacting with Mr. Kamath and my father regarding various issues and I was just mesmerized by his presence. We all were served with a cup of tea and I was proudly sipping it with Mr. Raj Thackeray. I was introduced to him by my father and he warmly acknowledged by asking about my livelihood. Later on even I interacted in the discussions. The discussions were varied from art, films, paintings, history and photography. They were so interesting and informative that I failed to realize how the time passed by. It was more than an hour he was talking to us. It was great, phenomenal I must say. It won’t be an understatement if I say that confidence has a new name and that’s RAJ THAKERAY. While taking his leave, I got my picture clicked with him and I made it a point to tell him that I am his fan and I see all his interviews and speeches on YouTube. I was completely overwhelmed by his charismatic effect. While leaving his place he literally escorted us till his gate and did a good bye gesture.

The experience was great and that is why I decided to blog it down and keep it fresh in my memories.

RV