I smoked Classic Milds
Sitting in rome reading the extreme reactions and reviews.. I don’t mind taran’s review for he in his seven lives would not have understood why someone would like to make a film like this.. Khalid reviewed me and not the film and from his review all i can say is neither has he read “Quitter’s inc” nor has he seen “cat’s eye”.. he just read the comments on PFC.. and i will say to him is , “Chutiye tu retire ho ja , tera time khatam.”
Rajeev masand’s POV is quite fair.. he expected a lot..probably another black friday but he is an honest man.. his review was more anger than criticism.. only thing that upset me was him calling it the worst movie of the year..it probably is from his POV but then he should have broken an Ostrich’s egg on camera and i would have bought it.. reviews that the film has got were expected.. everyone involved and who had seen it had warned me about it..but then that’s the price you pay for being arrogant..
Yes it is an arrogant film..it is a film about arrogance.. of two kinds..why i made it , the way i made it, the reasons i have never discussed it before.. it is (like thani said) my most personal movie.. i am K.. K’s arrogance is the obvious arrogance, that everyone sees everyday.. he smokes..he breathes nicotine.. he says no one tells me what to do.. i breathe cinema.. and forever everyone has been telling me not to make the kind of cinema i do.. NO SMOKING is a tale of an arrogant man and another who is much more arrogant, who lives in his world, where he controls everything and he thinks he is morally superior to anyexisting Homo sapiens, he is the kind of man who thrives on minorities and underpriveleged, he worships the dictatorian attitude and all he wants from you is to lose your soul and convert….it,s a tale about an arrogant man’s descent into morality.. and the architecture of the moral world is so absurd that it sometimes beats reality.. what happens in the film is a parallel to what happens in the real world.. Taran’s review talks about three E’s which reminds me about the censor board official who asked me why did i make paanch, and then he further said cinema is suppose to be healthy entertainment.. Paanch is niether healthy nor entertaining.. baba bengali is like that man, who has already deciced what kind of cinema should be made and should exist.. the film is about my struggle against the system to have the freedom to (smoke)make films..
GIVE ME THE LIBERTY TO KNOW , TO UTTER , TO ARGUE FREELY ACCORDING TO MY CONSCIENCE ABOVE ALL LIBERTIES
since i do not have the liberty, and i get banned everytime i am directly stating my opinions(we started shooting much before Black friday got the clearence), one has to wage a guerilla war.. no smoking is my guerrilla war.. and in the end the man loses to the system and the only way he can survive is after having lost his soul(freedom).. everyone expects a good versus evil film, where good wins over evil, where the end sums it up, and all is well at the end.. well it doesn’t happen here.. here K doesn’t want to, but never comes to know how and when he gave in to the system, but accepts it and starts to do what his own people did to him,,why? in order to survive.. why his treatment becomes an incomprehensible nightmare, because it does in real life, i am the living proof..this film is just the treatment the powerful(baba Bangali) puts K(the man whose allusions are of greatness, seemingly invincible) through to bring him over to his side and manages.. there is nothing more.. i have seen the industry’s waking conscience when FANAA got banned in gujrat, and reading hrithik roshan’s democratic rights speech in midday the next mornig,, never saw none of that solidarity when my two films got banned..
Have had my film scripts stolen from right under me by the most powerful, respected and supposedly just people and did not see anyone even whispering it..and yes i am arrogant, because i work very hard to put my neck and my sense of security and my goodwill on line.. i do not scratch anyones back.. i criticise those who will always get the oppurtunity to trash me like they have this time.. i live on my own terms in this spineless world and that makes me arrogant, and i would rather have a good review when people like my film than by being on good terms with them..
in the end i do not want to explain no smoking anyfurther and would say i prefer it over Black Friday and i love every bit of it and i still hope it finds it’s audience and makes money for my producer who trusted me to make this film.
And i smoked nothing but classic milds while making this film mr. hegde..
But I must say one thing… the movie was pretty much difficult to understand for normal people. What was the target audience for the movie? I am sure it was not made for aam janta..
Hey Anurag
Whatever the reviews say I loved the movie.
Initially I struggled to understand the ending but after reading this article I get what you meant.
Loved the witty humour in the film, music and the background score was just too good and complemented the movie very well.
Loved ‘Black Friday’ and now this. Keep the good work going.
Will watch the movie once again.
Me and my good friend, Rajesh Dalvi (lead guitarist of the band Nakshatra) love you a lot and are with you in whatever you do.
Sunil Thakur
“
I guess Sunil dropped in before me. Nevermind.
hey anurag i just saw no smoking and i must say i loved the film but then………. is that enough…. i mean to say PFC had generated a buzz for no smoking n frankly i was so fucking excited that i played the role of a journalist and with that 1 stupid recorder i have….i recorded people’s opinion’s….SHOCKING BUT THE MOST COMMON THING I HEARD WAS…..” KYA BANAYA HAI SALE CHUTIYE NE,SALA MUJHE TO LAGTA HAI KHUD NAHI SAMJHA HOGA”. Infact my friends were asking each other what they understood about the movie…..n BELIEVE ME THEIR INTERPRETATIONS WERE funnier than MAYANK SHEKHAR’S FILM REVIEWS WHO PEOPLE CONSIRDER A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF A PSEUDO INTELLECTUAL. …..coming back to no smoking what should i call the film Psychological Thriller, neo-noir …… para surrealistic…… whatever it is…… i think its like serving scotch to a common indian who’s used to DESI DARU………… A PERFECT INDIA VIEWER IS AS DUMB OR EVEN DUMBER THAN MR TARAN ADARSH….. WHO ISN’T EVEN A CRITIC WHAT SHOUD I CALL HIM…..O YES THE TERM MR SUNNY DEOL IMMORTALISED ‘DALAL’.BY THE WAY I HAVE SEEN CAT’S EYE,N YES I HAVE EVEN SEEN THE Spoofs
Cujo and Christine BASED ON THE FILM. but then how many people have seen these types of films……leave alone these films people haven’t even seen similar classics like eternal sunshine of a spotless mind and vanilla sky……….. so the question is why would u make such a narsistic film….is it done with the sole ambition To promote THOU’S TALENT AND SHOW THEM. ” I M A GENIOUS”.
Very few people get to do what they want to do. Find yourself lucky that your producers allow you to make your kind of cinema. Woody Allen is one such person. I may not necessarily like his films but I do admire his passion and devotion.
I hope that you get your audience. A good product will find its way in the market. As far as reviews are concerned “log to kehte hain..unka kaam hai kehna.”
Dil pe Mat Le Yaar
Hota hai …Duniya hai..Bani to Bani nahi to Abdul Gani
Waise i expected this to happen.. I knew this would come..
And I also know that this would also come..
humko jab koi poochta hai …name your favorite movie: Apart from the regular stuff, you always have 1 unconventional in your list..
10 saal baad everyone wud have NS in their list..
Woh Zinda tha tab usse Nobel Prize nahi Mila.. Woh Mar gaya to kehne lage Ki Galti Ho gayee usko Noble Prize nahi diya
Woh 47 ke Pehle Terrorist Khelata tha woh 47 ke baad revolutionary kehlane laga.
Anuragji, I respect your views. One thing I do not understand is why not live in the system and make your kind of films. Why make enemies and put yourself in the corner everyday? One the other hand, I agree with Masand when he says that the film should not be self indulgent. Khalid Mohamaad totally lost it this time.
@ Tushar
Lol
Ya I can sleep peacefully now
I will watch the movie again
Kash Laga:)>-
Hey Anurag,
Im an 18 yr old guy, a film lover and i have been dying to watch your film ever since i caught the first promos on TV. I live in Kolkata but currently in Dubai and itching to watch No SMoking but was forced to go for Bhool Bhulayia with my family and friends today. I guess that sums up the mentality of the average movie goer but you are a winner and a winner with a mind of his own.
I would even dare to call you the HOWARD ROARK of BOllywood. I havent yet seen No smoking But i definitely will watch it irrespective of what Mr.Masand feels. MASAND KO PASAND NAHI AAYA THO KYAA?
ITS GONNA WORK.
K the absurd. K the Sisyphus.
Hey Anurag
Sunil here again
When I walked out of the theater today people kept talking about how they couldnt understand the movie and what was the intention of the movie….etc
I kept asking myself the same questions and I knew it somewhere this movie has a dark hidden message. After hearing it from the man itself I know what the movie is about. I called up my cousin at 5 pm in the night to explain how brilliant the movie is….even he thinks its awesome.
I only wished you could have done the marketing of the movie in a different way. Instead of promoting it as a anti smoking movie you could have made the people know that this movie is about you against this rotten system. I am sure then more people could have understood what you are trying to say.
You know what my friends always keep reminding me of the bad things about UP (corruption, poverty, illeteracy)…..Now I can boast about one good thing from UP……Anurag Kashyap
Anurag,
I haven’t seen the film yet – But I will. In fact, after reading that “chutiya” Khalid’s review I definitely will.
I think it was not a review of the film, but of you. It was the frustration of a wannabe-Truffaut, a wannabe-Bergman who could never himself make a decent flick!! How can he digest that someone has gone ahead and tried to do that.
But my only concern remains – if all this negativity diminishes ur spirit. Brother, there are a lot of us still behind you all the way. We need more of such stuff.
To the revolution!
Hey Anurag…
I haven’t even seen the movie yet…but i love it already… man… please don’t change and keep making such movies. I am going to see this movie today and I will love it for sure… you are our saviour man… don’t fall for khalid type chutiyas… lets make it happen… you rock man … you rock!!!!!!!
Gaurav
Haven’t seen it yet, but I already had assumed that “K” was you. After all, one of the directors wrote on PFC recently that a filmmaker needs to be true to his own experiences and not try to be someone else. (And your last name IS Kashyap.)
I like it. You make a terrible movie and then you justify it :D. That’s why you should never even hope to be in the class of RGV – at least he accepts he’s made terrible movies.
To be honest – why dont you just ask RGV what he felt about the movie…
I am sure you may agree to what he says..
What do you say, AK?
The promos gave a hint, the lighting and sound effects gave a hin, John Abraham’s interviews gave a hint, Anurag’s quotes gave a hint, the dialogues gave a hint but no one got it. Anyone with half a brain could guess that this film would have a surreal mood. And then people go and view it keeping thinking they will get a normal film. And when they get such a shock which is due to their own stupidity and inability to get out of their comfort zone, they shit on it.
Hi Anurag,
This is my first comment on PFC. I read most of your blogs on PFC before trying to comment on what you are trying to convey. I’ve seen Black Friday and I respect you a lot after watching that movie.
A movie coming in from a man who worked as an assistant to Mani sir will no doubt have a thin story line that is hard to break.
From the kind of movies that you make, don’t you think you were expecting this backlash from the “critics” ?. You always knew it was coming your way and I know that you were always having a chuckle about the reviews even before they poured in.
I don’t think you were even expecting critics or the aam junta to touch your feet after making No Smoking. So why are you quite fed up of the critics? You know they are always going to scratch the balls of “Bigger Production Houses”.
Seriously, you make the movie, we watch the movie. I think comments in the aftermath of the movie make no sense.
You seriously were not expecting a family with 2 kids to go and watch your movie. You seriously were not expecting a blue/white collared person to go watch your movie. You seriously were not expecting the guy on the street to go watch, and even if he does watch, understand your movie.
You have an audience that range from 18-23 years old who have seen Hollywood Classics and noir-niche films.
How about you get your reviews just from the 18-23 year olds and make comments about what they have to say.
The old man critic has anyway no relation to your film since you didn’t even make the film for him to watch it. Why bother about his comments ?
I am 21, and I loved No Smoking. Any movie, where in you are thinking for 6 hours after the movie finished about why did the character do certain moves in the film, is a film which is worth remembering for sometime.
I hope you can review more people from the audience that you are making your film for and rather not make chutiyagiri comments about the old man critic who is sipping on a 100$ beer.
Roshan, from Sydney.
Hi Anurag..
I’vnt seen the movie…
I am in Texas…and m really missing it..
itna samajh mein aaya ki GAAAND futt gayee hai kuch logo ki khaas kar…critics jaisey logo ki…
mast hai!!!!…lage raho!!!
-KM-
No,… it aint smoking !
I have been on PFC for a bit now and went to watch NO Smoking enthused by Anurag’s “build-up blogs”. At the very onset I must confess I havent watched his previous directorial ventures.
Having been a self taught student of cinema for the last 16 years it was a sobering experience to encounter a film so formidable against my comprehension.
Having said that, I do however believe that at least part of this complexity was undesirable from the point of view of a storyteller.
Every film maker is a storyteller and to that end it is imperative that – to be engaging he
must be honest and forthright. He can be crafty, …but he can never be devious.
He has to lead the audience, …not throw them off his trail, – confused and clueless.
It appears to me No Smoking is a victim of this fundamental flaw.
From the very POV of destiny the film abounds with events which do not seem (at least to me !) to serve any purpose in the “greater scheme of things”. For eg. How does the ” eunuch throwing coins at John as he awaits a signal” fit in ?
Or, one can talk about the juvenile inclination towards gimmicks, …eg. Why does the dwarf (for want of a better word, …no offence) speak in a baritone voice ?
Also, the “Pop Art meets Noir meets Black Comedy meets Bits and Pieces of Scores of Cinematic Frames in My Subconscious” treatment throws one further off balance.
Style is always secondary to content and story, …desireably a dictated by-product of the latter. Force framing “inspired” shot compositions is not style, …rather the absence of it.
It is a pity that the basic construct held so much potential, so much promise, …and yet lost itself in a patchwork of parallel worlds, time envelopes and reckless narrative.
Infact as John’s character is pushed into the mediaval dungeon of outlandish third degree smoking deterrents I couldnt help but recall “A Clockwork Orange” and go “tch tch tch”.
About the actors, John delivers to the best of his ability, as one wood expect ( no typo that, …he is wooden !), Ranvir hams his way through with characteristic (read Bheja Fry) tacky mannerism acting ( Traffic Signal comes to mind as an exception in his defence ) and
Ms Takia doesnt merit a mention.
That brings us to Paresh Rawal who apparently tries to make up for a fractured directorial vision with his own interpretation of “modern day AnguliMala”, but in vain, …if you dont know where you are going, …you arent there yet !
Which brings me to the music. It was discordant for me ( though it can be argued – that was its purpose, …but hey ! it works that way only if there is order in your narrative).
The english tracks made me wonder “who is this film intended for ?” Mind you, 90% of the “educated metro moviegoers” who work in MNCs and speak “english” have an exposure to “english music” which is limited to “Sexy Eyes” and “The Ketchup Song”.They dont understand the difference between jazz and hip-hop.
… And you can work out what percentage the “metro moviegoers” contribute to the “national movie going population”.
I can bet the people who financed this cinematic suicide also want their money back.
All said and done, if you wanna preach, – address a community gathering, if you wanna be clever, – swindle somebody, if you wanna trip,- go to a rave party, …but if you wanna make a good film, empathy and humility will carry you a long way !
Arrogance doesnt a film make.
Saw it yesterday with two ‘normal’ friends of mine..
Although they didnt get much of the movie and kept asking questions as the plot progressed, all of us agreed on the fact that the free wheeling flow of the movie made it quite an interesting watch.
This is one of those movies that i would keep a dvd of and as everytime i watch there would be something new to be experienced…on the lines of a donnie darko maybe ….
Anurag if you are reading this, then i would suggest that you build a website which can carry on the ethos of nietzsche :-)
Maybe NS could also be one of palahniuks cults of smokers trying to pull in one of their own into the baba bangali INC ……
Hey has anyone here read ‘The Carnivore’ by wachowski bros ?
anurag…aap ke liye…ek hindi review and try to get sahara newspaper review… http://chavannichap.blogspot.com/2007/10/blog-post_6921.html
I don’t think the indian audience is dumb.. they are just so used to be served.. they do not believe in self service..
they were too shocked.. Denial is also a reaction.. i m reading those people who are taking pleasure in bashing me up.. i don’t think taran or rajeev are biased, they are disappointed and angry..
Hey Anurag,
I think ur doing a great work…plz keep it up…I mean for how long can we watch stupid running around the bushes movies? Some one has to bring the change & bring the revolution in the film industry & so far your doing it brilliantly. We are very proud to have you in the industry.
In mean, while I was also thinking if you are interested to encourage documentaries on our social problem in Mumbai city. I have lived abroad for few years, after coming back I was thinking of leaving coz I thought it is impossible to live here but then I thought I am just running away. Instead I have decided to take up a project, which would help creating awareness in people and also educate them about certain issues. I would not like to disclose the subject of the documentary as it is still under research but since you are my idol in the film industry I would like to know your thoughts.
Regards,
Chetana Jogi
Great heart and pleanty of balls. I like your spirited defense of the film and my curiosity is piqued. Will certainly catch it when I get back to Delhi.
You know the limited and seriously retarded education of most film going folks (reviewers included) in India. They think Page 3 is edgy cinema – where, pray, where do you begin?
Make your films for audiences who appreciate the ‘work’ (folks who ‘get’ that its not necessary to understand a movie in order to appreciate it). They’re out there but outside India, sadly.
The quality of film criticism and reviewing in our country is pedestrian and uninspiring. Where is our Derek Malcolm?
I like your arrogance. Don’t let this nonsense water it down.
I am going to see the film…
Mr.Anurag,
I had planned to see this movie. But by the way of your respect towards reviews and reviewers makes me think about it. What do you think, having managed to see some world cinema and just because the vast majority would not have seen em , trying to ape them and claim you are the last word in meaningful cinema. Learn respect and the art of listening & Learning before you learn fim making at all.
naren i would seriously listen to what PL(A)YBACK says because that is criticism..You have to read khalid’s review before you remind me of respect..
Saw the movie yesterday nite…still thinking about it…my mind is heavy…im trying to fit in the pieces in the puzzle…bought all the english dailies today…the saner review was by midday..and probably mumbai mirror (sandipan dalal)..he talks about passion for dark cinema.
my interpretaion of the movie is the journey between absurdity and reality n i shall take that line.
As Jassim has mentioned ..its one of those movies which you unravel something new everytime you see….everytime i think of NS..i find something new..its mindboggling and at the same time mindfucking.
Its beyond comprehension at first then the movie starts trickling down..slow and steady..it is trippy..it makes you think.
Will watch it again to delve deeper.
Good work Anurag
Stay the same….RESPECT ABSURDITY!!!:)
Dear Khalid Mohammed,
Kashyap atleast made an honest attempt with a unconventional plot and also paid a honest homage to Bob Fosse.
What were you thinking when you dedicated your 3rd grade shit Tehzeeb to Ingmar Bergman? I am sure Ingmar Bergman would have appreciated the classic story of yours about Tehzeeb and Nazneen! Wah! That’s what great movies should all be about! Mentally Unstable sisters, Extra Marital Affairs, Loaded guns! WOW!!!! Khalid Mohammed, you sure know all about film making.
Yes, your other classic really mind numbed us! Silsiilay, the greatest movie ever made about who is fucking whom is cinematic genius! Who is this movie dedicated to?
Buddy Khals, your review reeks of personal animosity! At least do your job faithfully? If you still feel you need a platform to write about your personal opinions, why not start a blog? hehe! If you need any help in setting up a blog, do ask Anurag, I am sure he will help you through the setup.
Meanwhile, we are waiting for more movies from you. I am sure you are as we speak writing a script about some Mumtaz or Zeba having an affair with a reviewer and how the woman’s husband finds out about the affair by reading the reviewers reviews! Whoa!
Yesterday someone here asked me to send my review of No Smoking. I answered that I have not yet perfected the art of film making and in the process of still learning many things about Cinema so I do not bring myself to write a review.
Are you an expert on everything about films Mr.Mohammed? Do you know there are two kinds of films. One, a film maker tailors his movie for popular acceptance. Another, a film maker makes movies for himself and this is where we see new horizons of film making taking birth. Until film makers don’t stop exploring film making, we would be stuck in stories involving marital affairs, sleaze and nonsense!
Sadly, none of your films appealed either way. So shut up and write your reviews. We don’t care.
The emperor has worn his new clothes.
Articulating abstract thought. Do I do it well? Is it important that you understand a complex premise in its entirety or is it more important to feel it? Is it more important to draw a literal interpretation or more important to get a general feeling of what something was about.
I ponder these questions as I walk out of
Havent seen the film yet, but I hope it does well to atleast recover money or even make some, so different cinema gets promoted. AK, hopefully you will shares your views and discuss the movie here with people on PFC.
I am sorry to say this and i might be on the receiving end of a lot of gaalis for this but i am disappointed. I was expecting so much more after Black Friday, ….i was expecting a movie that would be kafka, pink floyd, david lynch,the who, hell tim burton even,,,,….i’m sorry to say it wasn’t even close…..but this is just the narrative part i’m talking about…..it just didn’t seem edgy enough to me…and seemed predictable…
however i loved your direction, the camera angles, the lighting was brilliant, the dialogues were killer, and who the hell knew JA could act (or should it be who the hell knew you could MAKE JA act?)?
I wouldn’t call it the worst movie of the year of course, in fact its closer to the best movie of the year than the worst considering all the yash raj crap that we’ve had thrown at us….but i would call it the biggest disappointment…..i just hope it garners enough attention to help you get the actors and producers you want for your next…..
btw the ‘chutiye retire ho ja, tera time khatam’ line killed me……LOL
waiting for the next one anurag!….hope you’ve started writing it….
PS: i caught the 3.45 show of No Smoking and immediately after saw Jab We Met at 7 30….must say JWM is pretty go too….:)
@ Kapil Its playing in Houston and dallas check out www.funasia.net for timings….
aaah,,….I’m going again this evening to watch it with a friend who idolizes Kafka…maybe ill enjoy it more with her…the first time i went with KJo fanatics:d
Anurag
I thoroughly enjoyed the movie.
Exploring the subconscious mind and showing that on screen so beautifully – man it was quite an experience.
This movie laughs at the reviewers knowledge of cinema…no one got it right.
BRILLIANT MOVIE ANURAG !!!
IT REMINDED ME OF THE KUBRICKISH STYLE OF MOVIES WHICH I ADMIRE VERY MUCH!!
THIS MOVIE HAS GIVEN INDIAN CINEMA A NEW SCOPE,A NEW GENRE !!!
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK SIR!!!!
BEST OF LUCK!!
one of the replies to the rediff review (someone had stated in their reply that the movie was a rip-off of some hollywood movie strring keanu reeves called ‘november Rain’, if you believe that.here’s the reply.
november rain was a song by guns n roses you dumbfuck…..there was a movie called sweet november starring keanu reeves and it was a rom-com.this movies rocks…its shitheads like hegde who dont understand it….what the fuck do you want in a movie…..boy meets girl boy fucks girl boy marries girl, girl almost dies boy fucks girl again…happily ever after ……IDIOTS!! go read a Franz Kafka book….or watch a david Lynch movie …you ignorant BOLLYSLUTS…..
Its just reminds me of the situation when Stanley Kubrick was panned for making “2001: Space Odyssey”.One of the then critic had said that “This is the end of Kubrick”.(~ yeah sure ~)
Stay the same.
Up the Irons \m/
Anurag boss, have been admiring your ideas and your work for sometime now. I regularly follow your blog like millions of your other fans. Yet to see No Smoking but I sure would and also buy a copy of the film’s DVD when it comes out here in Singapore.
Quoted you in one of my latest articles that was published in The Weekend Today (Singapore). Hope you don’t mind it:
“Emerging Bollywood writer and director Anurag Kashyap (Black Friday, 2007; No Smoking, 2007) cried on his blog: “Believe me, there is going to be a change in order in this Hindi film industry. There definitely is a new wave, I have seen it coming, the world is also seeing it which is why Ronnie Screwwala is on the cover of NEWSWEEK and not Aishwarya Rai or Yashraj or Amitabh Bachchan.”
“For upcoming filmmakers like Anurag, entry of Hollywood symbolises the end of the tyranny of the status quo in Bollywood, for Bollywood’s new blood wants an end of the dominance of the few “mom-and-pop” variety of filmmaking houses in the Hindi film industry.”
Here’s the url:
http://dreamink.blogspot.com/2007/10/bollywood-hollywired.html
The Weekend Today: http://www.todayonline.com/articles/218955.asp
Wish to interview you for a major story but don’t know how to reach you. Hope you see this and drop me a line at zafar@zafaranjum.com. Thanks much.
Hey AK, asll’s not lost. Armageddon aint here yet. Check out dis link…
http://www.aol.in/bollywood/story/2007102606439019000001/index.html
Cheers to good cinema. and hey, NS is the first movie (after i started smoking) jiske interval mein i didn’t smoke. so i guess u made a point.
=d>
Roshan Fraaam Sydney-
One simple question. Will you stop watching and appreciating these kind of movies after you turn 24 ?
@Magik
Nice link. First review that did some homework before penning down the thoughts.
@Anurag kashyap
Is it possible to release the movie on internet like Anish’s movie ? Think about it. The internet release (before DVD release) can also play a part in reaching foreign audience. Any takers.
Anurag, I am sure your script must be looking really good on paper, it’s would have been even better when you narrated it to someone. Why? because you feel so much for the film and it’s fair after the fate of your last two films.
As an audience, who watched your film with so much expectation (I watched black friday and was amazed by the presentation), I would say I am disappointed. I would say you have taken your arrogant too far and have failed to turn a good script into a good movie just because you wanted to prove something.
Well, there are always more than one ways to say anything. The best way according to me is the one, where other person clearly understands what you want to say. Unfortunately in your way of communication you fail to communicate with the audience (which is necessary if you want your movie to make money for your producers).
khalid’s a fag. so he’s bitchy. screw it. you the man
The difference between RGV and the rest – RGV knows it when he has made a mistake and has no qualms about accepting it.
Anurag, the movie might be personal to you, but I must say you have failed to put across your point to the audience. I went to watch the movie with an open mind, but could not understand most of the scenes. The same happened to me when I had first seen Matrix, but Matrix was compelling enough for me to go back and watch it again and again. Sadly, I am not going to invest any more to understand this movie, as I found it gripping it only in parts.
Looking forward to your next release
I haven’t seen the movie yet but am enjoying the utter chaos the film has created….am just forwarding a review by a guy who normally pans anything that comes out of Bollywood…except for CHAK DE…but here he’s different….
http://www.khullamkhulla.net/nosmoking.html
Few reviewers who have been fair to Anurag’s No Smoking -
aol – http://www.aol.in/bollywood/story/2007102606439019000001/index.html
indya – http://news.indya.com/newsDetails.aspx?xfile=2007/October/News_20071026_272
mid-day – http://mid-day.com/hitlist/2007/october/166143.htm
ur so arrogant anurag kyshap
evry single critic has given it under 3 stars except 1
http://www.allbollywood.com/v2/bd/stc/mov/n/700.shtml
Juss accept ur movie is bad
Dear Anurag,
I agree with you that Khalid M. should retire totally & permanently. I have not yet seen the flick but will be definitely seeing it this week.
i understand azad, you or many others might not like it, might even hate, when we set out to do it, we knew this would happen.. this was also to test the waters, to see how far one can go and now i know..
will do my best to reach out next time..
thanks
Anurag…there is no doubt you have the passion, the will,the verve and the talent to make good, ‘alternate’(for the lack of a better word) cinema. And me and my bunch of friends understood the film, there was no problem at all. Infact, I like your take, politically, on fundamentalist moralising, you spared no side, and they shouldn’t be. I liked the conceptualisation as well, the fascist fantasy world was gripping, one was waiting.
But here is where it ended for me. The visual narrative was heavily overloaded by dialogue, the visual execution demanded more (at least, u can see what is expected of u, much more), John and Ayesha? Frankly, marrying world cinema audiences and our own homeground by using song and dance-big star/terrible actor-leaves it neither here, nor there. Am not satisfied because I want more craft, and the guy behind me is not satisfied because he can’t understand. You marry the two, am not saying its impossible, but i think it needs very, very very hard work to get a breakthrough.
As for you being disappointed with the reviews, well, personal or not, it was not a’wow!’ at all. Am sure you know that as well.
It may sound like highhandedness; even precocious, since am still on the way to become a filmmaker, not even there, might not ever be there, and you already have made some, but maybe its time to introspect and forget the world, they say and do all sorts of things?
I write this only because you are one of few filmmakers who one watches for the filmamker, like one did with RGV at some point, and not the movies themsleves.
Wish you the very best. yes, it was terribly disappointing. But its not all lost yet, you have many more movies to go, am sure.
smoker joe.. on paper it was the same.. it actually was much more complex.. even the thought bubbles were put in as after thought to make some connection between the two siberias and make sense of annie and anjali in the songs..
guess need to simplify it more next time
Hey Anurag,
I think ur doing a great work…plz keep it up…I mean for how long can we watch stupid running around the bushes movies? Some one has to bring the change & bring the revolution in the film industry & so far ur doing it brilliantly. We are very proud to have you in the industry.
In mean, while I was also thinking if you are interested to encourage documentaries on our social problem in Mumbai city. I have lived abroad for few years, after coming back I was thinking of leaving coz I thought it is impossible to live here but then I thought I am just running away. Instead I have decided to take up a project, which would help creating awareness in people and also educate them about certain issues. I would not like to disclose the subject of the documentary as it is still under research but since you are my idol in the film industry I would like to know ur thoughts.
Regards,
Chetana Jogi
anurag thank you for making this film, after a long time came out of a theatre after watching an indian film with such feeling.
this film probably wont find too many people , but with time it would pave the way for directors to make more such films that go against the existing trends.
bravo sir for making this, hats off to you
and sir can you please once write about the screenplay writing process of this film on pfc
Anurag, to test the water you start from the top, not from the bottom. Anyways, although i didn’t understood/liked the movie, I wont say it’s a bad movie and I haven’t yet wrote my review, because I think I would not be able to do the justice to it. Still I am happy about the fact that at least someone is trying to do something different.
Read your Howard Roark post and would suggest don’t try to be him as you have rightly said, no one can be him.
I still think the movie would have been much better on paper and would like to read it, if you can share the script.
nupur you are not being precocius..it’s actually very fair.. i m not upset with the reviews.. my favourite critic derek malcolm did not like the film, My anger is, actually was about people reviewing me and not the film and i let it out..
criticism is welcome..
and yes it is time to introspect..
but i do not regret this film.. thanks
would put my script up soon
@Anurag
like you said long time back for No smoking..”Smokers are jews, Ramados is hitler”
That said it all.
would be looking forward to reading it, and did you follow any specific process while writing this?
and dont you think the second half of the movie could have been a little pacier?
Judging from the reactions, i am sure to catch this movie this week, sounds just something i would love to see. The main criticicizm seems to be that the movie is very self indulgent , non compliant to the ‘bollywood’ norms. How can an artist not be self indulgant i ask ? Film making is an art , its an viewpoint of a man, his interpretation of the story. Anurag is one of the few revivalist film makers who should continue to make what he feels like. Anurag is like the fassbinder of india .. er minus the gay part ( he did verbalbash khalid)
For all those who really didnt like this movie, there is saawariya & om shanti om around the corner.
I dont really blame people like adarsh, khalid , they are actually either over the hill or intellectually challenged , they are unable to comprehend or understand cinema.
One chap who has been writing good reviews is the guy from indya[dot]com , atleast its a frank viewpoint on the movie.
ANURAG, I WOULD LOVE YOUR THOUGHTS ON MY THOUGHTS BELOW. I WRITE THESE TO YOU BASED ON THE FACT THAT I HAVE BEEN A VIEWER AND STUDENT OF FILMS FOR OVER 25 OF MY 32 YEARS WALKING THIS EARTH. FOR THE FACT THAT I FOLLOW BOTH CANDY-FLOSS AND BLACK FILMS. AND LASTLY BECAUSE I AM AN ASPIRING SCRIPT WRITER.
If you were to ask me, No Smoking, has followed the classical 3-act structure thus far. Part 1 was the whole build-up to the film, including your very readable posts on PFC and the entire anti-critics, anti-YRF kind of filming. Part 2 was obviously the film itself. And Part 3 has been the reaction from critics, viewers and assorted industry voices.
As for Part 1, I leave it entirely to freedom of expression. You were free to air your views on NS and the critics, and YRF, and Khalid M, and they were justified in their comments vice versa.
Similar pattern for Part 3, a somewhat expected response from Messers Khalid M and Co. And a somewhat expected justification of NS from your side.
Now let’s come to Part 2…the proof of the pudding…No Smoking as a film itself.
Let’s see…I’ve seen Cat’s Eye (Quitters Inc)… I’ve followed films made by Bob Fosse (All that Jazz and all that jazz), the world of Franz Kafka, the movies of David Lynch, the work of Michel Gondry, etc. I’ve loved the way such work ‘disrupts’ your normal preconceived way of looking at things, and distills it in a way to affect your conscious and sub-conscious thereafter.
Whilst I loved most elements of No Smoking, I do feel Anurag that this film was not for the masses and certainly not even for most of the classes. For too long now, Indian audiences have been used to their staple spoon-feeding of paper thin plots, predictable outcomes, over the top histrionics and the like.
Hence I disagree with you wanting people to shed these long-worn skins and embrace NS with the warmth reserved for a cold drink at the end of a hot day. It just won’t happen. C’mon yaar, down here, people are used to a diet of seeing geriatric gentlemen with pot bellies romance nubile nymphets and avenge the rape of their sisters or the ill-treatment of their mothers, by flying through the air, catching bullets with their bare hands and changing 15 sets of multi-coloured costumes in the time it takes one to blink one’s eyes.
We as an industry would gladly nominate Abhishek Bachchan as Best Actor and Aishwariya Rai as Best Actress, even as we don’t even consider Ranvir Shoerey, Sudhir Mishra, Smriti Mishra and their like for similar awards. Ironically then, we offer the latter ‘Critic’s Awards’…man, critics were the ones who said ‘this film is not for you’, ‘this film is not aimed at backbenchers!’.
It’s a dog chasing his tail situation.
I firmly believe NS is a great experiment. It’s obviously been made the way you would like to see a film being made. It’s been made with both an intention to cock a snook at established systems within the industry, as well as with an eye to try and let audiences interpret movies, through their own looking glass, rather than the film maker fill in the blanks every time for them.
So has it failed? I really wouldn’t know. It was obvious that NS was never intended to make bushels of cash for Kumar Mangat and Vishal Bharadwaj. NS was never intended to be juxtaposed with Karan Johar’s films and spun down as a family entertainer. NS was never intended to ‘educate India’s burgeoning movie goers to this radical, noir style of film making which they haven’t been exposed to.’
NS was supposed to be a culmination of your own imagination, trails, tribulations, frustrations and sensitivies on the silver screen.
I wish it would have remained just that. Without the antecedents, the precedents, the qualifications and the justifications.
Anyway, I do put NS as one of the most daring, pathy breaking films to have accosted our senses in recent times. It may not be entertaining, or straight in narrative, or simple to digest, but last night as I craved for a smoke, I couldn’t help but think what it would be for me to enter Baba Bengali’s hell and go through life without ever having to point my middle finger at others!
Keep making films that appeal to you Anurag. But don’t justify them. Eventually, your language will justify everything that needs to be put to rest.
And yes, if you do want to lay your hands on a weird, twisted, wicked crime-murder-horror script, do give my inbox a tinkle on shantyarow@yahoo.com
I promise you, no disappointments lie in wait!
Thanks, Shantesh Row
Anurugji , it was time that I had seen some movie when i was totally stripped out of my logically correct brainwave . The whole time I was trying to connect dots & ends to arrive at a logical conclusion . But just before the finish line the reality dawned and it seemed that you were always ahead of the viewer and may be twisting their heads a little . But our so called intelligent multiplex hopping viewer is not happy if someone is trying to ” screw thier minds” . I have seen this movie alone so to analyze the incoherent coherence and i can declare happily that my 150 bucks are more than reimbursed as i have to really apply my little creativity & imagination left .
Thanks for the gem ( surely this is the start and future stuff is much thought provoking)
Anurag i am totally agree with u.and for that i like u seriously.
FOR Khalid Mohhammed
Read Khalid’s review (i read them after watching the film, as i don’t trust any of their opinion. Also, there might be things they don’t like and I do.)
Well, he doesn’t seem to be reviewing the movie. In fact he chooses to talk less about the movie and more about the director.
Khalid is definitely up to settling some personal grudge (I know why).
Yes, and for the record, I would put NS in the league of some films that have tickled my senses over the years – Being John Malkovic. Metamorphosis. Falling Down.
@Anurag,
Was this movie meant to be dark comedy about smokers/smoking and political/authoritarian references added later, or was meant to be a be a dark comedy against political/authoritarian regime and smokers/smoking was used just a tool.
When I had first read The Trail, I loved it as became an every man’s story. Nothing was mentioned abt the crime committed. I know some of my friends who disliked this aspect of the novel, but this worked for me. When I had first read abt NO Smoking, I thought it would be my story, as I am a smoker myself and I often speak abt my right to smoke, if I want to. But sadly, I could not relate to the movie.
anupama chopra of ndtv has given the film a very good review
here is the link
http://www.ndtvmovies.com/reviews.asp?lang=hindi&id=275&moviename=No+Smoking
AZAD.. it is many and every things..i don’t know which was first..offcourse the smoking was first, when i heard the story from ramu.. but i guess what attaracted me was the parallel it could draw with the latter..
but believe me it was mostly subconscious writing as it took place during my darkest peiod, when i was trying to understand why me, so a lot of what was happening seeped in..
and it wasn’t about who is right or wrong.. it’s about what just is between morality and freedom to choose, judgement versus free to be,it can be interpreted anywhich way provided people want to..
if i remember correctly Taran adarsh called kaal “new age cinema’ or animation of parrot in MPKDH “groundbreaing” and yea ha liked Hawa???
hmmmmmmmmm????????????[-([-(
as for khalid mohammed
is he mentally retarded cause his reviwes are like reviwes from person who has some menatal issues:w;:w;
MR Kashyap the movie is as complicated as what has been written by u above!!!
An absolute disaster after a cinematic beauty like Black Friday!!!!
I request u to kindly go for Pawan Malhotra instead of such idiotic actors such as John(sucks) Abrahim(Machisshhhhhhh!!!!!)
Hey Anurag, Loved the film.reminded me of david lynch and mulholland dr. and you dont have to explain everything in the film.it is brilliant the way it is now.thanx for a great cinematic experience….
@ anurag
I have been putting my interpretations in this particular thread…I would love to know your interpretaions..the thought which you harboured during the making.Probably in a nutshell…it will be great..Thanks
i read khalid mohammed’s review in HT and put a feedback message asking “where is the review in this?”…i was almost aghast at seeing similar kind of expressions all over PFC…in oz’s post ,, here above….
i wud have lost the respect if i had not seen AK’s reply to playback accepting his article as real criticism…thats the right attitude
its time yaar to stop spitting venom..
and then…i havent seen NS so no comments..i know u r the writer of satya..i liked it..so i expect ur movies will be good..
my personal message to both filmmakers and reviewers…Indian film viewing public is not stupid, but they are not all well versed with the language of cinema..it depends on they way you communicate to them…and its the reviewers/critic’s duty to ensure that the finer nuances of cinema is presented to the viewing public…in short u need to tell them WHY so-and-so cinema is good or bad or whatever it is..
Of course for that the critic shud have deep knowledge about the art of cinema…which sadly i dont see in anybody…
Anurag Kashyap..u r amazin man! completely..love the way u direct movies…pah classic u r! n i need some help frm u..can i contact u thru this webpage or is there a better way to reach u?
well anurag i liked it alot watched it yesterday at night show cannot take it out from mind, specially the last scene when d soul of jhon is shown crying seening his body standing after he quits smoking………..mindblowing stuff but i would like to mention two hings perticularly
1. dont you think 1st u need to make some movies which people can comprehend easily ( i think black friday was brilliant and comprehendable by everyone also) coz uc as a director u need to cut ur ice with viewers in larger prospect so that ppl will have a flexible mindset to accept your kind of cinema, if u can write something like kaun, satya and can direct black friday u surely can make something more appealing to gernal public and not to ur ego, c afterall some else’s money is riding on the film.
2. wat abt a sequel Mr. Kashyap after all u’ve gone through wat u’ve shown but ultimately u bounced back…….. may b same cud happen with innerself of K. think abt it, i would like to associate with u in ur future projects.
P.S. wen can i get to c paanch or gulaal plz upload atleast some portion or if possible its script.
ALL D BEST
anuragji , so i was right that indian viewers have still not graduated to the movies which are not playing stereotypes . see the comparison in the following weblink .
http://www.boxofficeindia.com/
I hope u r not worried about the 15-20% attendance and will go on making the movies which stimulate ur left & right minds.
Anurag Sir,
I dont know what prompted you to give your point of view of this film because this film could have more than one meaning(interpretaions)….but once you have said the film was based on you….there is no point in making different interpretations of this film…..as for the film it was a good and brave effort put up by you…..much better than your previous Black Friday which left me dissapointed but this one was really good.
After watching the film, there were several thoughts in my mind. Like
1. Is this movie about a man’s struggle to live in this bad bad world on his own terms? Smoking is used as a symbol. K wants to live his life the way he wants, but the world around him is not letting him do so. Finally he gives up and starts living his life the way others want him to.
2. The movie has been shot from two different points of view, one is how K sees himself and other is how others see him. Whatever you see in most of the movie is probably his hallucinations although to others he looks normal. Baba Bangali, his Prayogshala, the character following him all are in his mind.
3. You have to loose your soul in order to survive in this world, because there are people around you, who have expectation from you and there are people whom you care about. All these things does not let you live the way you would have wanted to. If you do something without approval of others, your loved ones might get hurt (K’s brother committing suicide) or you will be forced not to do it (baba bangali and his tactics). There are always people telling you to live your life in a certain way (K’s wife and friends)and somewhere down the line you give up.
4. If you do something wrong you are punished (cutting fingers, torturing your loved ones, making you deaf), but same can be undone if you repent and make up for your mistakes. (fingers coming back for recommending another client).
http://gauravt168.blogspot.com/2007/10/no-smoking.html
Anurag sir dont worry about reviews..people are saying bad things about ur movie cause u r genius and they cant think the way u think…Anurag sir you bringing a philosopher’s eye to cinema,and film as a medium of philosophical expression You are a wonderful writer,someone who writes. It sounds obvious, but many people who call themselves writers don’t produce enough words in a year to fill a postcard..The reality of writing is not what many people believe it to be.I dont think that i need to say more cause u r a genius. Remeber one thing when it comes to film making that……
“Anything you build on a large scale or with intense passion invites chaos.” ~ Francis Ford Coppola
With best wishes
Sahiba
Oz,
I don’t understand one thing. Why are the
“regulars” (am using this word as I realise you hate the use of a generic “PFC”) on PFC so out there to “protect” this film?
It’s not an “indie” film by any standards…
– A budget of 15 crores (phew!)
– A top-star on posters…ace character artists.
– Shot abroad extensively, I hear
– Item songs and all from one of the hottest sirens in Bolly-town
– Backing from a reasonably big producer.
– Music and lyrics by two of the biggest names.
– Huge and well-sustained marketing effort.
– Regular, even irritatingly so, unpaid media coverage everyday for the last couple of months (John-Bipasha fights and makeups and more fights, the Director’s maid not cleaning his utensils well et al, World Premierin Rome etc.)
It’s a BIG film, no two ways about it. So why these kidgloves, if I may ask? It’s not an “indie” baby like Manorama SFU or similar such small films, so why this attempt to cottonwool it?
The movie is out there…a big release – good and enough show timings in all big halls. For audience to see, for critics to review, for people to like or dislike. Let the world decide whether it’s a good film or not. What this desperation from PFC (I know…who is PFC…but you and me) to protect it against all costs. It’s a movie which a director has made and put up in the showcase – LIKE EVERY OTHER DIRECTOR IN BOLLYWOOD DOES – and it is going to be a hit or flop, solely depending on its merit (as, we have just seen, it has got all the right backings to succeed). So why do the critics suddenly turn moron when it comes to reviewing this film? Even if we assume that they were always morons, why bring it up NOW?
Why are we afraid THIS TIME to let this movie be “judged” fairly and squarely, by the audience and by the critics? I haven’t seen the film (but have really been wanting to as I am a writer and I really admire Anurag’s work both as a writer as well as director), but frankly, all this jingoism that I am seeing here is putting me off. Quite a few of my friends have echoed similar sentiments. I hate to put this here, but one of them almost sounded dreadfully vengeful when he said – “Haan, uchhalne do inko…inhi 10-12 changu mangu ko baith ke dekhne do…aur jab flop ho jaayegi to aukaat mein aa jaayenge…abki baar to koi sympathy wave bhi nahi hai.”
The MBA-school I went to had a way of treating its “weaker” students to a “preparatory crash” course before the start of the regular program. Why are we trying to tell the audience / critics to first see every film ever made from the noir genre before they go and see this film?
Laying down these pre-requisites could have worked with a bunch of moony-eyed MBA-hopefuls. For an audience which is going to fork out its hard-earned money for the film, it’s not going to work. In the here and now, it’s just going to be the film. Out on display. Stark naked. For the buyers to lascivate, or give it a pass.
Sad…but such is life…in showbiz!
Why all this “critic bashing”? Like all of us, they too are entitled to their opinions – good or bad. If you don’t agree with them, simply ignore them. See the film for yourself and decide! That’s what I am going to do.
@Shravani
You could have ignored but chose to opine what you thought is correct. The same stands true for the poster too.
I dont care what anybody says, anurag kashyap is the sort of director that is gonna take indian cinema to another level. original brave films made from the heart not from the pocket.im from the enlgand, leeds and im gonna definetly watch the film in the cinema, because such passionate honest filmaking should be encouraged, yash raj come on stop hiding, anurag is gonna be world renowed in ten years times, make a film with Sanjay Dutt keep up the good work
well….mr anurag kahyap……if u think that u r better than everyone in our film industry then ur wrong…..ur film sucked……ram gopal ki sholay was better than that…….its no suprise that most of ur films dont get released……so now instead of wasting ur time in criticizing filmmakers like karan johar and yash raj….it would be better if u concentrate in making a better script………otherwise ur next movie DEVD would be even worse than no smoking….and stop thinking that ur a blessing to the indian film industry……..
This article should have been placed for the audience before the film started because if the director fails to explain the idea through his frames, I see no other way. Some people may try to be among the so called intelligensia by praising NS but if some thing fails with the audience, then lot of retrospection is required, not just by the director, but for the producers and few very important personalities assocated with the project. Anyways, looking forward to Anurag Kashyap’s next ventue. A suggestion however. I heard Anurag speaking earlier he wanted it to be a 100 minute film. I think, cutting NS still further and converting it into a 30 minute short would be good idea. Lotto repetitive frames could be removed.
Anurag,
Saw the movies and it is a very good one, though some obvious flaws make it fall somewhat short.
Art has a life of its own beyond what the artist attempts to give to it. This life is imbued by the people who attempt to construe it, the interpreters.
I guess I have my own interpretation, which differs from the one given by you (which I find somewhat unnecessary, since a self-critique does not raise the value of a work but belittles it somewhat, since it reveals a sense of insecurity in the creator’s mind with regard to the value of his work). K’s struggle is to preserve a freedom that transgresses on the the freedoms of other members of the society to which he belongs (unlike the Trial’s protagonist). Smoking is more important to him than his brother’s asthma problem, the relationship with his wife, even simple civility (as his reaction to the old woman in the lift shows). K refuses to acknowledge that membership within a society transfers certain freedoms as well as certain responsibilities on the member.
He is finally jolted out of his obstinate and somewhat immature delusional world by his wife’s walking out on him. His decision to quit smoking is quite temporary, just a ruse to get his comfort zone established again.
What follows is a metaphor for any bad habit of an individual or society; the struggle to hold on to it despite the mounting costs, and the wish to let it go. The initial reaction to Dr Bengali’s pronouncement is obstinacy, much like any patient who has been informed of the inevitability of a life-threatening disease (similar to society’s reactions to predictions about environment etc, corroborated by the shots of Mumbai smog and slums) and measures that should be immediately taken to contain the inevitable. “This is not happening to me”, says K and pretends that he can cheat the destiny that his habit has written for him. As every step starts confirming the predictions, K loses the shield of arrogance. At each step he is given a choice, to either quit smoking or pay a bigger price, but all his choices are the ones that would immediately alleviate his current stress (much like taking a smoke in response to stress despite knowing that your health is giving up on you), rather than the one that solves the main problem. He smokes his cigarette dry, despite knowing that his brother is dying because of that action, wanting to prove himself innocent. The commitment that his brother shows to his suicide (the repeated attempts until success), is metaphorical of K’s commitment to his own downfall to retain his freedom to smoke. The last situation is K’s final attempt to escape his situation, knowing that the last smoke will get him death, and hence escape, he hurtles towards it.
The subsequent dialogue with other prisoners reveals to K that he is finally ready to be cleansed. This point represents the point at which the protagonist is convinced of the need for change. The 1 rupee ’shagun’ represents the wish that K has always been lacking (which I thought he should have discovered with him by now, given by the eunuch) to complete his conversion to a complete member of the society, who not only enjoys the freedoms it bestows, but also accepts certain responsibilities.
The last scene in which K discovers that his fingers are missing depicts the first responsibility assigned to K, that of converting another member, which will mark the completion of his cure. The scene also shows that K’s renunciation of his habit is positive for him as well, he has his wife back in his bed, and is in good health apart from his missing fingers that he shall recover once he has disposed off his responsibility.
Even if the director rubbishes my view, I still liked the movie, for it was brilliantly done. Besides, as I said, the beauty of art is that it takes it own form and appeals to everyone in a different way.
My advice to the director: Again, continuing the discussion on what good art should be, the artist should not try to become bigger than his/her creation. The movie fails in the moments in which Anurag Kashyap attempts to wrest the spotlight from his work. The biggest challenge in front of creative people is to restrain and unleash their creativity at the right times. Sometimes, less is more. We could’ve done without the thought bubbles and the Anjali-Annie duality, since that does not add to movie experience.
The final word: The bravest Hindi movie I’ve seen ever. I like the challenge, even if you don’t think I was up to it this time. Keep them coming.
-Nikhil
Hi Anurag,
Saw the movie, brilliantly done…one of the true noir films to come out of India. The pace could have been tighter and subplots cud use some trimming….
This is the kind of movie that people are gonna hate but 15 years down the line its gonna be hailed as a masterpiece. Watching it gave me a sense of deja vu from the directorial point of view…there were certain sequesnces where i felt I am watching the great STANLEY KUBRICK’S work… how much of his work has influenced you??
I don’t think the “regulars” or anybody is trying to defend anything here.
Well, finally it all depends on what exactly you guys want? Okay agreed that Anurag got a 15 crore movie with all the stars and the necessary distribution back up. What will make you guys happy? A “No Smoking” with Allan-Amin as the stunt director, John Abraham as a secret agent in Siberia trying to steal a cigarette formula that will make people quit smoking with just one puff and the tobacco lobby is behind his life and Uday Chopra thrown in for some comedy plus some songs by Vishal-Shekar and Shankar-Ehsan-Loy?
Also add some spicy songs featuring Bipasha walking out from the sea in a sexy Bikini?
Let the movie that Anurag made be bad, fuck all or can’t understand a shit or anything…Let it be inspired by any fucking movie. But at least there is an effort to do something new. Well, he is a young director, bound to fall down sometimes but admire his courage man! Any other director would have chosen a “safe” subject after the halo of Black Friday. I am just waiting for the day this guy masters the technique. It can be a few films down but it’s worth the wait.
Other than that, let the BO results do the talking meanwhile, whether good or bad.
HOLY FUCKING shit!!! i didnt read ur post or any other post on no smoking cuz i wanted to finish my conversation first…
HOLy fucking SHIT!!! i need to put a disclaimer on my post now i guess..
‘about the time when the conversation takes place’
Anurag, saw your movie yesterday. The story was loosely taken from Quitters Inc . The parallel drawn between a smoker being made to quit and society forcing conformity was a good potential scrpt. What the movie lacked was cinematic articulation of your ideas. This left audience bewildered. Giving reference ” Memento” , “Matrix”, ” Fight Club” etc all had path breaking cinematic treatment. But each were successful because all had a clear logic flow which became clear at the end of the movie. But “No Smoking” leaves too many questions unanwered for the story to be called a complete cinema. It rather looks like a collage of dream sequences of a chain smoker which defies any logic.
I really liked “NO SMOKING”.The movie is cool,stylish,grim,surreal and one draining/depressive journey through the human psyche.
-The cinematography is resplendent.Nice art direction.The movie is a complete visual treat.
-Soothing OST.
-Good performances.
As far as the story is concerned :- :d Surreal movies are meant to be one cryptic puzzle and the audiences are left to decipher it !
Brilliant efforts by Mr. Anurag Kashyap.:)>-
Holy cow! That’s some serious business. Incidentally, I don’t mind the part on Khalid. Ignoring prafanities, I would definitely agree with Kashyap.
Hey AnuRAG.
Brillaint Piece of work, loved every bit of it, specially the way couple of shots were done, the cinematography, background score, art direction, Dialogues,,i actually waited for audience reaction ther were confused and dejected and felt cheated as they felt that it was not justified,, they were expecting a clear cut tale like,,,in da start when he is shot in serbia and its shown as dream,, there were this 2 womens who were guesssin till the last minute that BOOOOOM ab bolge ke yeh drem tha,,,movie did remind me of JACKET, and MEMENTO for the tretament,,,,,kinda de ja vu feeeling waise am not a literary orinted fella althouh am highly exposed to world cinema i have my own collections of 250 GIGS of classics,,,,,aur indian review ko tho bhool jaao do what u feeel is right…this is a chapter in art of making meaningful cinema which is tough but intersting,,,,,
WAITING FOR GULAL… by da way yeh baba bangali ka charcter mum ke local train ke AD se tho nahi liya na??????
Jab Admi Gusse mai Ho tab usse advise nahi deni chahiye :D
Let the dust settle down.. Let everything be over and out..Then we can talk abt NS again..Dont explain the idea and rational.. Picture bana rahe ho ya painting bana rahe ho.. reminds me ek circle bana diya aur keh diya ye aurat hai.. :D
Filhaal i wanna know Anurag what u planning to do since NO SMOKING ka dabba gul ho chuka hai.. Critics have written it off and moresoever JAB WE MET got good reviews.. obviously there is a choice for the viewer over here..I wud hope NS also to do well.. This is just for Black Friday and the movie passion you have.. NS to maine dekhi nahi hai..
To all Anurag movie lovers and Anurag
Ya to baith ke rote raho ki saalo ne movie ko samjha hi nahi..
Ya fir
Couple of suggestions
1. Get a new promo for the movie where moviewatchers are talkin abt the movie..Go ahead and let some of the ppl who liked the movie say exactly what they have said.. ” Its unconventional.. Let them make statements like not many wud like it but its a brilliant film..I can see some nice things said abt the movie on this blog itself.
ANURAG – THE SOONER YOU DO THIS THE BETTER IT IS.. DONT DISREGARD IT.
2. Everyone who liked the movie, plesae go ahead and take part in the mirror poll and rate the movie as rocking..Use the system.. Yaha Poll results will try to justify the reviews.. Please go ahead and punch in your views.. there are hardly ppl who respond to this..
3. Everyone who liked the film, make sure you talk abt it..promote it in your own freakin way..if you did not like the film keep your mouth shut LOLzzz..Ye log ne movie barabar promote hi nahi ki yaar..Ye film viewer ke paise bhi nahi dubayegi kyonke not many ppl will go to watch..
After reading this, dont just say ye dekho kya bak raha hai..Change you laidback attitude..Change your freakin mindset..
Please get out of your ” Bhaad mai Jayee” attitude.. Iam thinkin abt the producers actually.. Next time koi 10 baar sochega iski movie mai paisa lagane se..
Iam only saying assemble yourself .. Ya to Mar JAA ya ladte ladte Mar…ACT NOW.
ABSURDITY ROCKS !!!
Much has been said about how bad or good the film was but no one actually sat down to analyse it the way u have done it. You are spot on in your interpretation of the so called ‘year’s worst film’.
There will always be bad criticism for any novel attempt-be it cinema or art. But imagine if the same film had been attempted by Karan Johar (which he would’nt have in his wildest dreams) the criticism would have been more subdued or he could even had been applauded for breaking into new ground.
It is quite evident that the critics are bored of thrashing the same sub-standard fare dished out week after week so when they get a whiff of some refreshingly new content which they can’t decipher, they spare no bones to rip it apart.
No person in this universe can decide how cinema should be or what it should deliver. It has always been an expression of an individual and will always be. And expressions cannot and should not be controlled.
There are a select few who get it right the first time. For a Swades to be created, there had to be a Pehla Nasha, Baazi and Lagaan. Similarly, for a RDB-there had to be an Aks. Atleast these filmmakers are challenging our minds and sensibilities by delivering good cinema.
The same applies to Anurag Kashyap. He ain’t no god of filmmaking…still has a long way to go but after watching No Smoking….even a kid can see that given a typical bollywood script, AK will make it 10 times better than any other director. But if a KJo or a Dharmesh Darshan is asked to make No Smoking….they will piss in their pyjamas !
Didnt like the movie..specifically the 2nd part…cant stand the crap that has been dished at some blogs callin all the people who didnt like the movie as ‘idiots’ … intelligent my foot…At the end of the movie I wanted to educate the people who were saying I didnt understand the movie…but something else was tellin me that some “Iam-so-different-coz-I-liked-the-movie” guys would be requiring more of my ‘education’…Iam not callin it the worst movie of the year…It was average…but it is no ‘eternal sunshine of the spotless mind’….The first half was very interesting and entertaining … the 2nd half to me was BULLSHIT (complexity just for the sake of it)…Anurag u might have loved wat u made…u might call it better than black friday..But as much as I want to proclaim to the world that you are the best thing that has happened to indian cinema I also cant convince myself that NO Smoking was truly smoking….The cinematography was superb though
Anurag… u r born in a wrong country. u dnt belong here. ppl here are accustomed of seeing easy,colourful cinema. movies like Partner are still a huge hit here. in shrt u need nt mind wht they say n think abt ur movies. i havnt seen NS yet but ur interpretation of the story has fired me up to go n watch it as soon as possible.
n i wld appreciate ur effort even if i wont like it (n thts unlikely). cos ur one Black Friday has made me ur biggest supporter (i wont say fan) for coming many decades. i consider it equal to Munich (no kidding).
so jst keep speaking ur heart Anurag. n dnt expect this bollywood janta to support u who think tht Yashraj Chopra is a living legend and Amir Khan is no less than Tom Hanks n Al Pacino.
(cummon… Tom Hanks wont ever do a Fanaa.)
Direct till u die!
Dear mr. kashyap
Shakalaka boom boom, Paisa vasool, main aisa hi hoon, jhoom barabar jhoom, well now i don’t want to blame just the makers. Because i think you are capable to write them, the way they were.
I liked your black friday.
I hated your no smoking.
Point is just not to understand the philosophy of your film, the philosophy is clear. narrative is bad. Journey also matters.
I will suggest you to seriously think of joining politics. You have an art that our great “corrupt” politicians have.
i will suggest you to work there then to call people “chutiya”. why to abuse people? Don’t sound frustrated. If you want to fight, make good films.
I will love to see your next movie.
I still have hopes from you.
Talk less and concentrate more on your film making.
all the best
well i thought u completely lost the plot in the second half…dint understand all that being said abt aatma and body etc…but somen told me to read the blog, like he’s telling everyone..but how many will read it before or after watching the film???
Loved what you said to khalid mohammad…now this guy seriously is a cocky arrogant bastard who cant do anything but sit on his ass and write off other people
this is the only film in which john has acted well…and ofcourse the ample showcasing that his abs got couldnt have gone unnoticed either
Sir,
the moment I saw the promo for the first time about a month back, I knew that this film would flop badly, it would be thrashed by the critics and very very few people will actually appreciate this film! Now if I can understand that having seen the promo, I am sure you knew that all along when making this film that it did not have an audience in India!! However u still made it, which is great..because there are times when one must express himself regardless of whether anyone understands or not!
Look forward to your next films!! Dont pay attention to the reaction and do that where your passion lies – make more movies :D
Khalid Mohammad writes half page reviews of Karan Johar’s Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and K3G and gives it 5/5 stars…gives KANK 4/5 stars….
Is their sexual preference mutual admiration society at work there?
He calls KJo’s childish namaaz scene by the kid gal in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai a homage!…wow man!!!
Khalid hiding behind his madhu mottis in HT Tabloid fulfills his ambition of daily hittg at everyone he thinks hate him.
After 3 masterpieces that he has made…each an “inspiration” from a Hollywood flick has no write pointing fingers on others!
Karan Johar has lambasted you in Mid-day sayg u need psychiatric treatment….
Awaiting ur response to him!
Karan Johar’s latest on Anurag Kashyap –
http://www.mid-day.com/hitlist/2007/october/166102.htm
Let
The very first doubt came to my mind when i finished watching collection Mr K’s Konfused hallucinations is why did AK finished the movie after 2 hours? I mean to say, given the story he could have finished it in little bit more than one hour then why did he take pains to show all those weird things for next 40-45 mins? And if you really wanted to show your movie making skills then why did u stop after 2 hours? you could have shown more surreal melodrama or did you run out of ideas or may be you thought if you continue this for some more time then people will probably tore down the screen and burn the theater? I didn’t try to understand the movie but i’d really like to know what made you think that this should be logical ending for this movie?
If this is so personal and close to your heart, then you should have kept it to your movie shelf, why did you make us pay for what you wanted to do?
The very first feeling i got after watching movie was director made fun of innocent people like me who spent 200 bucks to see something he made for himself not for us. Well i don’t blame you, coz i was fooled by publicity in past also, but i was not expecting this from you.
@Ologadhvo
Now suddenly, Oscars are big daddies???????
Hey anurag…..black friday was pathbreaking cinema….with no smoking u ventured urself into unchartered territory…but u failed miserably with this effort of urs…See the box office verdict doesnt matter if the film is really good…The only thing i would advise you is that dont turn urself into another ramu……you would absolutely love ur film..but to say its better than black friday would be an understatement…obviously people are disappionted because they had huge expectations from u….still i would advise you to take all the feedback ur getting for no smoking positively than arrogantly……..someday i want you to make a film like cineme paradiso
It’s a matter of choice : liberty one gets knowing that there are few who will stand by your choice and many wont or otherwise, freedom of expression knowing that a few or many wont probably understand … there is no discussion in there.. the point is each expresses solely for one’s satisfaction or according to what people expect if that is important to that person.
Fantastic to see someone open doors for new forms of expression in Indian cinema – I remember Rakesh Mehra’s Aks ( obviously audiences didnt see that “masala” element or whatever ), why what about the many movies like Ijaazat ( where the concept of living in was shown in the bloody 80’s !! ). Arrogance that is shown in No Smoking is very much a part of each smokers daily life in the mind – K’s bathtub is my shitpot – where most of the best thoughts run everyday.
Anurag’s detailing in the comment posted in here a little earlier irked me to write this – sure that the film isnt something our junta will understand since the majority of cinema is still basking under a few clans, and that we are so used to “keeping our brains at home” and we only want “entertainment” – can you imagine in 2007 with the Sensex hitting 19000 points and high FDI investments, Partner is one of the biggest hits of this country. :d/
Hell will it take for such cinema to even see wider acclaim considering it also hurts “bijness sense ” of many successful film makers – the point is not that I dont enjoy their creations – it is about an UNBIASED attitude towards cinema which is imperative for it to flourish and allow many more such stories to see light of the day.
John has looked the best he has ever looked in any of his films with a much leaner body and the “no one tells me what to do” is so much true in almost every man’s life i know and why men, also women!! And lets just sit back and remember – our mind is exactly like this film – random thoughts which have a common thread or that “hidden element / message” which many have mentioned in this column – can we please give a standing applause to a man who has proved it yet again of his prowess of putting it together!
Cheers to you Anurag, Black Friday was the finest [presentation I have ever seen on screen of a tragic event and your eye-for-detail is miles beyond anyone I see existing today.
And for No Smoking – all smokers will love this film ( cos there are many who have also taken professional help to quit) and know what is in the mind, the film touches those who are a little literate ( not necessarily educated ) and have a sense of their own.
the “jab bhi cigarette jalti hai” song was the best choreographed and filmed song I have seen in recent times comparable to “international” cinema if I may say, ” phook le” in the end is awesome nothing cos Rekha Bharadwaj’s voice for Bipasha is just a hit!
Many congratulations to you Anurag and would be great if you manage to read what I have scribbled.
We have met once.
Cheers!!
:o:o
now i saw no smoking first day first show saying my mom “ki main classes jaa raha hoon”reading ur blog for 10 months n always reading abt nosmoking iwaited 4 this movie for 9 months ………………no thats not a story of a woman getting pregnant but thats a despo waiting to watch the most differnt form of screenplay ever in an indian film ……….. now i loved the movie …..bot the guys in pvr(audience)nwhich included my frnds too said areey ye wapas sapna dekh raha hai ………….”arrey ye kya chutiya bana raha hai yeh toh zinda hai” in the movie the movie goes back n shows the start frm a differnt angle most pple diddnt understand my frnd who is also u r fan hated it he said “anurag kashyap ek gandu hai jisne ek gandu film banai hai”…………………………………. as critics r concerned i also always believed we hav rajeev masand the only critic …………………………….he understand cinema better than anybody and has watched so many movies that he is an encyclopedia i himself the other guy i know who has watched so many movies is sajid khan but i guess he prefers more commercial movies n make the same kind ………………..anyways by seeing the audience reaction in the theatre n the reviews the film is gonna flop fpr sure hope it dosen!!!:-?:-?
It amazes me to read comments on the mental abilities of the Indian writers on this blog by existing and aspiring filmmakers and writers. Spoon feeding or not, I object to the way some of you guys deride the audience. Excuse me, who do you make films for? And excuse me, the same member of the audience that you are talking down to pays more than Rs 200 to see something you have made! And it’s not like you don’t care whether or not the audience comes in the theatre to see YOUR great OEUVRE. Oh you care, care badly because that determines whether or not you will get another chance to make a film. You cannot be talking down to your audience because of whom you are earing your bread and fulfiling your creativity. If that’s the kind of attitude some of you filmmakers have then why release films at all? Just make one with your handycam and screen it in your living room and feel superior. Don’t come knocking at the audience door if you don’t respect them. It’s all about respect and as an audience I don’t much care for this tone!!!
the movie was go0od though i had some questions in my mind after the movie :-?……….ok waited 4 the movie 4 nine months n it was satsifying to see that i waited for a a film which was a little short of masterpiece ……………………though at pvr the audience didnt like it n there were sounds of kya chutiya bana raha hai yaar ……………kya yeh phir sapna dekh raha hai ………………….the movie is a flop coz neither it has got a thumbs up frm the audience nor the crthe latter does not matter much coz as u said except rajeev no one understands cinema
sorry instead of writers in the first sentence i meant audience!!! so the revised sentence is:
It amazes me to read comments on the mental abilities of the Indian Audience on this blog by existing and aspiring filmmakers and writers.
So Anurag Kashyap has finally done his two mentors proud. A film that’s as heart-felt and internal as Aag, and about as watchable as Ekalavya. Perhaps its true. We are all doomed to become the people we hate.
But Anurag’s managed something the Daddy-duo never did. He got us to love him. Through Khauf, Paisa Wasool, Main Aisa Hi Hoon and Shaka-Laka Boom-Boom… a generation of admirers celebrating his brilliance and his passion.
Genius is dead. Long live genius.
SOMEBODY BAN TARAN ADARSH , he has consistently taken money and reviewed movies – DALAL!! One example is his review for main prem ki diwani hoon (( wish I could find it) and week after week I seen many more.
hey Anurag,
I am a great fan of Black Friday… admired your style of presentation (of what you can say a documentary). . I saw NS first show and considering it was quite morning for moviegoers (only who breathe/love cinema can, or who wants to pass time will go to see morning shows) and knowing that it is coming from Kashyap, the “time pass” audience is not expected obviously..
now lets come back to BF … you know why I liked that movie or whoever liked it, because it was a Truth/Reality presented in very smooth way infront of the audience enveloped in Ak’s STYLE… which was TOOO GOOD… again this movie also didn’t get family audience(mother father kids) coz it was/is a sensible cinema which was not promising entertainment… so obviously the next product will more or less will get the same kind of audience who appreciated your BF…
First reaction of mine after watching movie : “BLANK! CONFUSED!” I had heard a simple one line of the story (another version of the 1947 novel, from which i assume you also picked up story line and i quite liked it ) and to my disappointment i couldn’t understood your point of view…
but now after reading your blog I can relate to the movie what you wanted to say… but…but anurag the only problem with the movie is no-one seems to understand what is there you want to CONVEY!! you can say/show whatever you like but show it in a bit smoother way please…
I am sure its not that you dont want to be appreciated as mainstream cinema director… otherwise you wouldn’t have opted for john and probably wouldn’t have created an item number with bipasha basu..
All the best..
and who likes an arrogant film with no story to understand. make it a home video instead but yeah i guess no point in taht u see. great work i am sure, if u say so.
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Talk abt co-relation ..Sigh.
anur
Anurag Sir,
What did the character J mean ?
1. Was used only for the comic element in the film
2. J as was K’s brother who was asthematic might have stood for your fellow directors who might like to smoke(make good films) or might not but are forced to make bad films.
3. J meant producers who again because asthematic makes bad films for money
If it is the second one then, how come J suffers from censor board whenever K makes a good film. In India it is the other way round.
If it is the third one then, it goes true because in India a good film suffers in terms of money.
There was also a scene where Baba Bengali said the first time you smoke, your brother will be put in a room having the smoke of all the cigarettes you have smoked…..meaning whenever you make a good film your brother…………….????????(I didnt get it).
The girl just before the intermission who said to K not to make good films……might have been audience…..then how come she landed up in hospital….????? My view point – because good films may have some violent scenes which the girl could bear.
The scene on ice…..where K takes a cigarette and asks for matchbox….what did that mean….????
My view point – he asked for producers instead he got shot.
What did the police men represent who were investigating K’s wife murder????? And Abbas Tyrewala comes up and says K not to say anything about the censors to them else it will make his life worse……what did that mean??????
I thought K’s two broken fingers in the end of the film meant the films of yours which got banned?????Now why did you show K asking others to go to Baba Bengali to get his fingers back??????
The same way how did Abbas get his back when he sent K????? What did this mean?????
A few lines in your film was very cleverly written…I appreciate that but I think you unnecessarily complicated the film…..which was as it is complicated???? But it was a good effort by you altogether. Hope you solve my above questions????
Thankyou
from all the buzz around this site…..
anurag kashyap is a darling here……..
and the movie is super hit in passionofcinema.com…if nowhere else….
c’mon guys admit it the story was interpreted in such a bad way…
maybe you understood it…but am damn sure my grandma wont understand it in her 7 lives…spare the critics…
btw…
you talented , arrognat fellow…stop pretendin to be ….
if
you were you…
nobody tells me what to do…
…
blah blah….
you wouldnt be bothered by the way ppl givin thumbs up to the movie here…while critcs and JANTA…givin thumbs down elsewhere…
chill mate!!
Dear Anurag,
Had written you this morning, 27th October. Wondering if you received it. Pls confirm as much. Thank you.
Apart from my effort, it took a third person’s generous aid to help me reach that mail to you. Just want to know that it has.
Anurag Kashyap, a product of hype or really an intelligent film-maker????
Apart from the Black Friday that he got readymade from the book … the so-called genius has not come up with anything that I can call a winner … his writing in the recent films (TRASH!!!) – Shakalaka Boom! is one of them … Anurag Kashyap jaago … No Smoking was no Requiem for a Dream … audience is confused and is not loving it – PERIOD!!!!!!
pLEASE GET out of this large group of chelas that you have on this site and at your home and office … get out of that darkness of urs …
Take care
JACK
Madhuriiiii
Idhar sab baba bengali ban gayee hai..
Everyone is providing treatment for NO SMOKING
Mai 2 din mai hi bore gaya..Itna likh diye hai movie ke baare mai..
Calm Blue Ocean… Shant Karna dhari Bheem Shaant..
Anuraag Kashyaps biggest achievement with No Smoking is that he has made a film that is worse than what Khalid M or for that matter any film maker has made. I appreciate his honesty about not taking resposibility for SHAKALAKABOOMBOOM as the film must definitely have a contribution from SUNIL DARSHAN as it was far more sensible than NO SMOKING. AK has gone to lower depths than Baba’s paatal in the film. FUCKING FRAUD!!!
JA ANURAAG TERA TIME KHATAM HO GAYA HAI !!! TAHNK GOD
[Admin HG: If you did not like the film, fair enough. But do not act like a numpty, this ain't a zoo!]
and the people in passion for cinema, a new word has been coined for you.
COCKSUCKERS has changed to
ANURAAG KASHYAPS COCK SUCKERS
why isn’t the admin responding to the use of such bad languag on the site… this should be deleted
Rs.21,11,001 to quit smokin….(or sumthin like that , ridiculous to even imagine that)…
in Anurag’s fantasy film…with a budget of 15 crore(got that input from sum1’s post above)…
…
…
…
lookin at the budget,producers,music director,lyricist..and all leavin apart the director..it’s a mainstream film…grow up guys…
if it was a KJo movie…budget would be tripled…
to quit smokin…charges would be 41 lakhs…
and even the directo would be proud to say he is from mainstream bollywood!!!!!
…
only diffrence is they make it for the masses and
our man here gives into his ego and makes this one for himself and POC… oh yeah, also the critics…lol:)
…
Suchita,
The admin will respond by loggin in with different name and take potshot at non existant family members of poster.
Another interesting review…
http://withoutgivingthemovieaway.com/main/reviews/review-no-smoking/
:-t
Why do I think the above comments are being made by someone we all know? Someone who is very happy and “gay” about this backlash to NS!!
Abbe lalloo Jack Daniels, The so called chelas on this site never influence anyone how to make movies or on what to make.
Let me tell you one story. Ek time pe there was this guy who was accused of corrupting the mind of youth with his philosophy. He was formally charged and sentenced to death. Uske dost logo requested him to flee and run away! He refused! He executed himself by drinking the hemlock poison given to him…..
That time, woh kuch nahi tha…public chutiya hain na, kuch jaan nahi paayi….hazaroon saal baad, we call him a great philosopher…
I am not comparing Anurag with that great philosopher…All I am saying is, he gave us one great movie….Well you mentioned it was a book…There were many movies based on books, but bringing it alive on celluloid takes talent boss…..
Okay…We might not have understood No Smoking…teekh hain…cool…but ek minute bhi socha ki yeh banda aisa premise chuna ki bhenchod guts hona chahiye to put your career at risk….
Okay Okay…picture acchi nahi lagi…abbe bhadve log, saal mein teen sau chutiye picture release hoti hain…sab acchi lagti hain kya? at least picture different hain…
Tum jaise chutiye logo ko sirf multi million dollar sets, chutiya fight sequences aur feel good music dena chahiye…bas…tum log iske hee kaabil ho….
Sab ke sab aise gir pade ki aage aur koi film maker koi hatke picture banane ke pehle hazaar baar sochega aur darr jayega…aur wohi gaana bajana picture banayega….
Anyway, they say the understanding of the movies reflect the stage any society is in…our Indian society, in spite of the hype of global economic power, is still stuck in the middle class shit mentality where no one has hope. They go to work in the morning, come back home in the night and sit with their fat wives. It’s actually the film makers mistake to make any different pictures for these chutiyas…When this chutiya goes to the movie, he wants dhamaal! he wants jing bang! So just give the same to them!!
Abhishek Bandekar gives it 4 stars!
http://www.naachgaana.com/2007/10/27/review-of-no-smoking/
“No Smoking surely grabs your attention and doesn
just that if somebody didnt like this movie..it doesnt mean that they dont appreciate this kind of cinema fuckhead….am sure they would be disgusted at thos 300 flops / year too as much as they are offended by NO SMOKIN…
so Machchar stop fuckin around mate…
and stop tryin to prove that POC exists for some
psychos of cinema….
Anurag…why all these unnecessary struggles man…
Make a blockbuster next time…albeit ur style….
Make a movie that is hard core commercial but contains ur Stamp of film making….
Commercial movies in India are not only Yashraj style…
Make a genuine blockbuster so that you can make enough money and then make your kind of films…
What i would say is alternate between commercial films and indie movies…. ala Steven Soderbergh….
Thats the thing…I don’t understand…when you can make your life much easier..why are you hell bent on digging your own grave…..
In india, people look for enjoyment in the movie..they come to relax….they don’t want to stress so much thinking about “what the heck is happening in the movie”…
People have fun man making commercial movies (Take your friend Imtiaz Ali’s example…he made a hardcore commercial movie but he made it his own way..thats what i am trying to say)….your should also try to have some of it!!!
Editor Note (D): Comment Trolled. Contains Personal attack and/or Verbal Abuse
zephyr bird brain: if you don’t like it then simple, you don’t like it and no one is asking you to change your opinion! Just because he blogs here, you assoles have been attacking both PFC and Anurag. I kind of see the hatred being more just because Anurag blogs here and the site has a great community running. What’s this has got to do how a film is made or not made? Bad film…Ok bad film…what it’s gotta do with any site? Read your comments moron:
“from all the buzz around this site
“Anyway, they say the understanding of the movies reflect the stage any society is in
If people can turn down Tararumpum inspite of great reviews..
If people can watch movies like Dhamaal inspite of ok reviews.
If Dhoom can get a good review!!
then..
there is a lesson to be learnt here.. make good dependable cinema.. in the end you will have to only answer yourself man..
But I would also add.. make cinema for the common man – after all this is business..
If you can do both – for yourself and for the audience.. one without the other is not of much use..
ooooooooh.. well, finally got the hidden message..
but still i wont call No Smoking great..
I mean if u hav to come out and explain ue own movie, somethings missing rite?
“JA ANURAAG TERA TIME KHATAM HO GAYA HAI !!! TAHNK GOD”
hey hello hello cool down dude, or better see a shrink, why r u so thankful ki Anurag ka time khatam ho gaya hai, did he put a gun to ur head, did he blackmail u or something.
Ok No Smoking is a dud, fine, does not mean, that AK ka time Khatam ho gaya hai, sorry, dude, maybe u have to wait to throw that dream champagne party of urs, to celebrate AK’s demise.
AK does not need a prick like u to tell him to go, he is sensible enough to know, So just shut the hell up dude and stop fighting crusades here.
And the Argument continues
Baba Bengali’s are now providing next level treatment for NO SMOKING
i can see K singing..Jalne mai kya maza hai.. Parwane Jaante hai..
Saala movie dekhne ki jaroorat hi nahi padi.. Sabne puri picture yahi dikha di..
Johnny Gaddar, read the comment no.108 in this post – http://passionforcinema.com/to-be-howard-roark-you-have-to-first-kill-your-family/
I just watched the movie, n have only one thing to say to Anurag, “Man, I respect u even more now than ever before.” What a movie! It takes GUTS to even think about actually making this movie.
I am one of those simpletons who’re fed on the staple diet of Bollywood cinema, n don’t know a shit about those foreign names that I hear here, but I can definitely say that aaj tak aisi movie India mein kisi ne nahi banayi. Don’t stop, Anurag. U inspire us!
i dont know how but i could not feel K’s arrogance. really.
i think it is john abraham. who wasnt able to carry it to me. id like to believe its his mistake, not mine.
and the ‘arrogant K giving in to the system’ part, damn it dint work for me, though im starting to understand now what the film was tryin to say – i would have very well, given a better performance from the lead actor, conveying things better. the actor was not taking me anywhere, the film was. but the actor was supposed to too. its disappointing.
man how much i want to see this film with another actor playing the lead.
im really sorry if this is offending cos i very much respect john for the person he is cos this film wouldnt hav been made without him. but im disappointed, cos this film wudve worked better, conveyed things better, personally enagaged the audience better if a better actor played the role.
seriously.
what a fix
may b john worked for people who smoke. i hope so
sry again, due respect to john. “heartful thanks for doing this with anurag, for having the guts to do something like this”
i cant believe the producers/distributors who went on with the film. i think they have more guts than anurag. they should be applauded first, foremost.
can we know the cost of making the film?
hello anurag,
I admire your courage in making “no smoking”. I find an uncanny resemblance to Dante’s Purgatorio (subversively) while seeing the movie. I liked the documentary style in Black Friday but thought you missed a bit of the nighmarish darkness while conforming to the stereotypical reality. here it is better although, I think you borrowed heavily from Neil Gaiman in many of the dream sequences.There are certain images i came across in sandman graphic novels. However, contrary to what people say it is not a very tough film at all…you must have seen ritwick ghatak’s “jukti tokko golpo” or bunuel …this film is simply structured in comparison. I also love “tough” films anyway. However, the thing i missed is depth in certain scenes. I know you will look at them later and think of them as overindulgent on your part. The bizarre in indian films are far from being mature…look at the korean films for instance. and i am not changing my opinion even after watching your film.
@Ratnakar: I did not intend to generalize and I hope you got what I am getting at. This is totally becoming a freak show over here. I did not even “celebrate” this much when Yashraj movies bombed. By the way, give my regards to Bhabhiji :D
hi anurag i’m very excited after watching the film.it was a great effort u actually managed to break all the barriers of hindi cinema..kudos to u…Another reason is that 2yrs back we hade made a short film Quitter’s Inclusive and i played the main character…u know i actually wanted to tel u the moment the story unfolded..Ours is not delving into psychological aspect but Anurag by coincident the shot taking of 3 scenes is xactly same..not comparing wid ur baby but its a proud feeling…i wld like u to watch our film.i can send it to you…Chiraag
Great Movie Boss!!!i saw the movie today and my respect for you increased much more…really it takes a lot of guts to make a movie like this in this land of shits…where donkeys like johars and chopras make movies
and also brainless people like Ratnakar can stay away from this movie
anurag…mah man….just got back home after watching ure movie and cant go to sleep without posting what i thought of it…damn gud work man…really liked the movie, the concept, the treatment…second half was a little long but other than that, everything was gud…loved the background score and rajiv ravi’s camera work was edgy and captivating…been a long time since ive seen an Indian movie where i didnt know what the hell would happen next and No Smokin had that effect on me…John was gud (way better than the other so-called talented Bollywood actors)…so was the rest of the cast and THANK YOU FOR GIVING PARESH RAWAL A ROLE WORTHY OF HIS TALENT……
The criticism you are gettin kinda reminds me of what was happening when Fight Club was released and me thinks its got more to do with people not being tuned to these kinds of movies over here…
And dude…dont ever change man…please,please keep makin these movies that blow our minds out no matter what anybody says cause we badly need some fresh stuff in our movies…..
Since I am in the UK, I am also keeping a track of what the reviewers has to say here and here is a glimpse of that:-
http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,2199141,00.html
Some encouraging points which the reviewer mentions:-
1)It could be the beginning of a trend,
2)If and when Bollywood does deliver a crossover hit, it’s likely this film-maker will be behind it.
To read more go to the link mentioned above………..
The movie is already beginning to find it’s audience…………..
Hi,
My apologies for posting the same comment on multiple posts,happened because both the windows were opened at the same time and due to absence of mind happened to post it twice………
I just read Ratnakar’s article and posted what i felt…but then goign through the comments i find many more of them like A.P….Well I again repeat for Mindless IDIOTS like you ‘No Smoking’ kinda film is not the right choice…just wait and watch OSO or in that case Sawaariya i think they will suit your sensibility…and Mr (or Mrs) shirinn i also support Anurag Kashyap’s kind of cinema but i beg to differ in one of your comments regarding Aamir Khan…evenif he does Faana I also think he is one of the few who makes Indian cinema proud with every different kind of films that have more than commercial appeals..
face it anurag. you have slipped. so stop whining and trying to justify a bad film with those pathetic “I’m too great for the rest of India” vibes. after two commendable films, Paanch and Black Friday, you have made a film that nobody — repeat nobody will understand, appreciate, or bother to understand or appreciate. at the end of the day, if your film finds no audience whatsoever, why bother making films? make home videos that you can sit and watch in your living room — all alone. you have mentioned being arrogant as if it is some virtue — know this, it is not. and going by your (assumed) intelligence, i think you already know as much — you are only trying to hide an awful truth that you yourself know very well, in the sheen of arrogance — the truth that you tried to do something very different with No Smoking and failed miserably. if you call this good cinema, either you are lying (i hope you are) or else, blinded by your own arrogance, you have lost it like one ram gopal varma(i seriously hope you havent). about the critics you mentioned, no one gives a rat’s ass about khalid mohamed anymore, so dont bother. rajeev masand knows how to show the carrot and shove the stick smartly at the same time, just like HT Delhi’s ex critic vinayak chakraborty (who, i dont know, for some same reason has stopped reviewing films these days)– you probably missed the sarcasm in rajiv’s “anger”. taran adarsh has a logic in his point of view and i think you should respect it — he truly represents the masses (i know, i know — you are too high brow to make films for the masses). I will say this — watching No Smoking i realised the awful truth — your film wont be rejected by the discerning audience because its a “different” film. it will be rejected because it is a bad art film.
PS: this is just my honest opinion. nothing personal. thought i should write because i really liked your first two. all the best.
AB,
Although it will probably take you a while to distance yourself enough from NO SMOKING to be able to re-read these reviews, sort through the personal vendetta, and find the critique in them; they aren’t all wrong.
You are writing to be read, speaking to be heard, to some extent at the end of the day. I do believe there is a way of making movies that is both completely honest, absolutely uncompromising, and STILL accessible to the audience. If the technique does only one of these things, we need to keep searching for a better technique.
My two cents.
Dear Anurag,
I loved “Black Friday” and I am gonna watch “No Smoking”….But having read all the comments about your latest work,(esp by those desis, drunk on K.F, blokes in U.S.A),dont you think it could have been marketed to the right kinda audience? I think still there’s ample time left to reposition the movie.I loved “Aks”,must have watched it 5- times,it was way ahead of it’s time…but after reading N.S’s reviews,I think our aam janta and critics are still cocooned in a juvenile time-wrap.
All the best.
p.s: I smoke Classic Menthol
pps: position your movies,a la Q.Tarantino,as neo-noirs and the French are the biggest audience for such kinda niche movies irrespective of which language it is in.
well , i for one i have yet to see the movie and i have read the review by khalid m ,and it clearly seems that it is targeted towrads Anurag and not the movie , i wonder why :-??
but for a man who has made a movie of “BLACK FRIDAY” , stature HAS to have some talent and thats the precise reason why i will watch the movie.
The audience watches movies because they like it and not because critics like it or hate it, simple as that.
Indiafm has published excerpts from this article:
http://www.indiafm.com/features/2007/10/27/3187/index.html
I think its unfair to publish part of the article verbatim without providing a link back to the original article at PFC. I am not so sure about the exact terms of creative commons license but it may violate the license terms too. Even if it is legally OK it is a common courtesy to give readers access to the original (complete) article and subsequent comments.
This is not the first time it happened and Oz you must look into that.
So much angst and so much love. So much passion and So much cinema.
How can you not, but feel personal. Right?
To hell with every critic.
You made a movie, Anurag…thats what counts, you made something you will stand by…thats what counts…
if it hasnt worked for most…doesn’t matter…as long as you look in the mirror, and it says to you…you and your movie stood for something…
I just cant wait to see “No Smoking” myself.
The New Wave Cometh?!
anurag,
just make a quick call to RGV…he’ll give you some good tips to deal with these moron critics…afterall like in your case, they too attacked RGV personally in their reviews of AAG and forgot to review the film…they think that like RGV you too have lost it…according to them both of you are arrogant and self-indulgent…a lot of common things have been said by these critics about you and RGV…but to hell with these critics…no matter what these critics have to say, you and RGV will always keep making what you guys want to make…and that’s one common thing i like about you guys! period!
Anurag,
Being arrogant is fine and so is making an arrogant film. You are talented and you work hard. These are facts we know and admire. However, there’s more.
You’ve made enemies around you which is not healthy but which upholds your spirits. You’ve made a lot of fans and supporters who’d stand by you come what may. You need them, perhaps. Yet, all these are people with farily fixed opinions and hence, are totally useless.
It’s your work that should speak for you and not the other way around. When you sledge either as a tactic or act smart after you’ve had success, it’s fine. But you seem to be living in defiance. Your arrogance should be your strength and not your weakness which is what it has turned out to be. The only point to remember is that – “No Art can flourish in Defiance.” Yours is suffering badly. And if anything, your attitude needs a total overhaul.
Hope you take it in the right spirit. Hardly anyone would be as happy as me to see the KJs and SRKs going down the drain. But I don’t want to replace Agarkar with Munaf Patel. Give me a worthy replacement. Give me a Wasim Akram!
– Akshaya
There’s many a slip between cup and lip.
It’s a curious film. After the dust settles, and 7 years down the line when you have made more films, this film will stand out as a curio in your ouevre.
Several people have pointed out that your film is indulgent. Let me guesstimate. The first problem is that you wrote and directed the film! You are an exceptional writer and a good stylist capable of getting decent if not good performances. All talent needs restriction, to truly produce good work.
The director in you did not demand focus from the writer (what does the Baba want? What’s his vision of the world?), the writer didn’t have the conviction to fight the director and your producer was too much in awe of your knowledge of cinema and “cinematic genius” tag and your editor probably deferred to you.
You spend the first 30 minutes doing what? Showing that K is arrogant. Jysus, not only did you have a slomo shot of K admiring himself and smoke swirling about, you have him state, “nobAWdy tells me what to do” and yet you spend the next 25 mins showing he is a dick and arrogant. We get the picture. What could have ben accomplished in one scene, takes 30 minutes.
The internal logic of the film “seems” muddled because you have not been able to articulate several things. It seems like you are playing obscurity and absurdity for depth. When in doubt, stick to Occum’s Razor.
There are superflous scenes and characters. In what should have been a tight and gripping scene thrusting K into further paranoia and perhaps even dementia, when he smokes at the interrogation room to prove his innocence, you squander the opportunity by an ill-informed surreal segue into the cartoonish death of his brother. This scene in my mind captures the basic flaw in the movie. An editor that is not afraid of you or a Producer that can whipcrack ur ass, would have cut that shite.
The eunuch tossing money and his arrogance at not having basic kindness etc etc is all well but i think you were trying to say that he had an opportunity to save his soul, by taking the change from the eunuch and his soul could have later made the telephone call using that. An insert of the coins in his car would have been useful. In the absence of that, it stands out as a pointless scene.
Your dialogues feel too clever, calling attention to themselves. I can see the writer which is always a bad thing. The thought bubbles feel too gimmicky without too much wit about them.
I will give you style points and you should attempt to make a good horror film or thriller. There are some very well executed scenes like the Lab, finger chopping and the slo-mo shot of John driving with the reflection of trees on his windshield before the crash and the ringing sound (used very well in Black Friday and here again) and the aatmas disappearing in smoke in the end.
I wish I had been there when you pitched this movie to the people that opened their purse strings because this has got to be one of the best pitches that got a movie greenlit, coming second only to Jackson’s that won him $300MM for Rings and Zack Snyder’s 300. It’s a different thing that Lord saved a studio that was going bankrupt and all the execs behind 300 made enough money to do coke off a Natasha’s ass for the rest of their merry green lives.
You have no room to complain about anything as you had a fat cow to milk and I hope no one is eating beef biriyani any time soon. I feel bad because 15 crores is a lot of money in India and I don’t think this will make it back. I hope it doesn’t stop Mangat from backing future films that are not vanity projects masquerading as intelligent cinema.
With Due respect to You Writing Skills you still have long way to go as Director….Black Friday was Very Good Movie….But lately you seem to wasting lot of time criticing other like Yasjraj films, Karan Johar…Come one man focus your energy on being Great director not critic !!! For starters U have 2 solid examples in Bollywood Super Star Aamir Khan & Most Underated & Talented Director Nagesh Maknoor who continue to create Great quality work without trying ridicule Bollywood system which they are part of !!!!
Good Luck
The lingering doubt about this movie is whether it is expressing anything meaningful, an alternate perspective, the absurdity of an individual life in a society ..or something about the nature of reality itself.
The movie doesn
i remember the time when u had come to delhi for the scriptwriting workshop…i was present too….during the session,u had mentioned about what people’s reaction would be after they see the film “no smokin”….
n this is what u said….”what was this? it’s crazy…kashyap has made a crazy film”….n guess wat,it’s true…it was bloody crazy…n i was enjoying myself watchin the film…
i’ve understood pretty much what the movie was about…but i think i missed somethin…n i want to see it again…the reason tht i missed it is bcos- mistakenly i accompanied by a friend for the film…n he was quiet a pest….when the interval came,he went on criticising,n i wanted to see the rest of the film in peace…so i told him to take the exit n criticise aloud…shameless as he was,he didn’t….so i had to miss quiet a lot which made it difficult for me to understand…
i can’t comment right now on the film..i might have to see it again….but i like the idea of your story…paresh rawal was really good n i love the song “kash laga”…
@Macchar: Na, its fine, i understand things happen at times.
@Arnab: Dude, can u seriously tell me why u felt my post was brainless. I did not comment anything about the movie, as i have not even see it, and I was defending AK against personal attacks. I was just asking Macchar to generalize the middle class, and he himself was fine with it. Did u read my post properly? I never attacked the movie, because i have not even seen it in first place, to give my views on it.
@ Arnab
“I just read Ratnakar
@Ratnakar…Cool buddy…and I suggest you try to ignore these arnab characters ;)
i saw it 1st day 1st show.but boss its really is difficult to figure what was happening out there.although, design was really good ,so was the music.john and paresh did good but aayesha was disappointing.
i will wait for your next movie to come out.
you are a geneous.and one day all will accept it
So it’s official…a series of loosely connected metaphors that stimulate one guy(and of course,his eloquent online fanboys) is now classified as a “movie”. What’s more,throw in a few obscure references to cult classics and a Voila! You have the “New wave” of Intelligent,Abstract,Thought-Provoking Cinema. Genius,even.
I,for one, would prefer to be mentally retarded (which I am, since this was the first Hindi movie I chose to watch in this decade) than piece together a jigsaw puzzle of someone’s brain(hmmm…or is it atma) splattered on the graffitti wall. And for 150 bucks, no less.
Picture this – for eg : David Lynch’s ERASERHEAD is regarded as a cult/masterpiece movie by one and all. The movie is more abstract , bizaare and surreal than No Smoking . It takes a lot of time to understand what is going around in the movie and u are bound to be confused. But this movie was considered as a great film, so what if it was confusing and highly abstract. So tell me, if suppose by some stroke of Misfortune , Eraserhead does get played in front of the banal and “wht is international cinema standards?” critics of India. What wud be their reaction ????
You know …. 101 % they would come up with the same fantastic ripping/panning desi/clueless vocabulary that they used to review NO SMOKING ….. they will end saying…. ” oh my God , if their was one movie which is number 1 in my hate movie list, it will be Eraserhead….” and then ” Wht was David bhaiyya(read banal/clueless/ignorant) thinking wen he made this film and why did he make such a aweful movie . bcoz i cannot undestand a thing and nor wud the average moviegoer who wants paisa wasool movies” ….
Anurag Bhai….its clear that critics are unable to digest No Smoking …!!! This has to be the most innovative cinema coming from India… infact…. its not indian cinema…its International cinema meant for ppl who are have grown up or atleast have the experience of watching simialr flicks from Lycnh , Darren Aronosky , Chris Nolan and Lars von Trier….
Yes…. this is your attempt to change the viewing preference of the indian cine public..which i wish could happen( but will not in some yrs atleast….coz india is not in europe …sad)…
I have an idea…. gather all the critics , make a reforming center called as ChitraNirmaaan Shaala and over there show them all the european/american movies(am sure they wudnt have heard abt any). After watching the movies, ask them to review No Smoking again or say some other future movies of similar abstact/surreal nature. If if If….. if they still dont get tht type of cinema in their heads and fail to understand them….. then …. they surely lose their Ears (not hearing) , Hands (not fingers)..and atlast ….their clueless Brains and not soul..
naam bade aur darshan chhote!
Wht do u think abt the above Anurag bhai ??? I admired the movie coz i had prepared myself for such an experience….in the same way..wen i knew wht to expect from a lynch film !!!…..
To change the viewing preference of the indian audience !! do u think it can happen ??
Hey Mr. Kashyap, Juz watched ur movie…. I’m so spellbound that ur movie actually made me think abt quitting smoking…
Never expected something influential as this is Hindi…
Kudos…
Keep up the good work….
…’B'…
“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”
“Citizenship in a Republic,”
Theodore roosevelt
“…the man who really counts in the world is the doer, not the mere critic-the man who actually does the work, even if roughly and imperfectly, not the man who only talks or writes about how it ought to be done.” (1891)
“Criticism is necessary and useful; it is often indispensable; but it can never take the place of action, or be even a poor substitute for it. The function of the mere critic is of very subordinate usefulness. It is the doer of deeds who actually counts in the battle for life, and not the man who looks on and says how the fight ought to be fought, without himself sharing the stress and the danger.”
FANTASTIC EFFORT AND…
MIND NUMBING EXPERIENCE
Take a break with your family…then write your next….K.. ur time has come.
:-)
Since every one’s busy reviewing/dissecting/analysing No Smoking, let me do my bit. Anurag, I can liken ur effort to Misbah Ul Haq’s performance in T 20 finals. It was going all too fine. He built that innings with courage n determination but gave it up up with one suicidal, over-confident and arrogant shot. Same goes for ur movie. I loved the first half so much so that I was calling up my friends in the interval to say what a fucking awesome movie it is. But in the second half, u went overboard. How I wish, u just kept it a little simpler and safer in the second half to suit the audience’ sensibilities, psyche and taste.
But I would still say I admire u for the guts, n also it’s the most genuine ‘hat ke’ film I’ve ever seen in Bollywood. Kudos!!!
@anurag…
saw the film yesterday… made me feel really weird when i left the cinema hall(i think that makes you successful in what you wanted to do) … the movie never at any point seemed to suck except for the first part which seemed to be a little ‘fragmented’, but all came togather in the end…. the movie ’sucked me in’ after the interval…
after reading this article of yours i make out the movie to be a totally different one… it seems to make sense in a totally different way which is impossible for any critic habituated to ‘criticising’ yash raj and karan joker movies to see….
great movie!!!! bravo!!!
Hey Anurag,
I dont know what to write to you, because its nothing I can tell you that will please you or make you feel any better or worse. But I have a small lil poem for you that my elder brother once wrote, its called Manthan…
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??? ?? ????? ?? ??? ?????? ??? ???
?? ??? ???? ???? ?? ?????? ??? ????
?? ????? ?? ???? ???? ??? ??? ?????
???? ?? ?????? ?? ???? ??????
????? ??? ???? ???? ??? ??????
?? ??? ??? ?? ???? ????? ??
???? ??? ?????? ?? ????? ??????
i feel at times that its written for me, today i guess its written for you. And yes, my brother’s name is also Anurag.
we will surely meet some day…
hey anurag
i might b in the minority….but i absolutely loved the movie
main toh movie ka free mein publicity de raha hoon…..i’ve made a few of my frnds xcited for watchin the movie
i cudn’t absorb everythin entirely in 1 viewing..
but i cudn’t believe it wen i saw a HINDI MOVIE being so abstract….i guess its a first
hopefully, the movie can recover its costs
btw, anurag don’t mind me askin, how much the budget of ur movie?
wat i luv abt an arty movie like this is tht whoever cared to watch the movie wholly had their own interpretation of wht was shown on screen….THTS WAT I CALL A MASTERPICE MAN!!!!
neway i din get the movie wholly….lookin forward to readin the script…nd i wanna the vision of the maker!! so i can understand everythin tht i saw
absolutely loved the subtle humour tht was running parallely with the movie
m waitin for the dvd to come out…nd i want ur autograph on it
anurag, M A FAN!
Your film was different. But by virtue of being different, it does not become good. And while you have every right to make the kind of films you want to, you need to have the common sense to discern whether you should screen it at a cinema hall or at your home theatre. If you wanted to prove your intelligence, you should know the first step lies in deciding the target audience. When you realise this movie in the manner you have, and let people slot in the commercial bracket pre-release, you deserve all the shit you’re getting. To make a couple of films, which struggle to see the daylight does not elevate you to a position from where you can call seasoned critics and the audience four lettered words. We are all reay to contribute towards the fee for a course in film-making for you.
P.S: Don’t be a sore loser and actually bother replying.
Saw ‘No Smoking’ today.
Twice!
Loved it!
Anurag has made a very unique film.
It works on many levels and is intriguing to watch.
I really wish critics would admit that a film is too clever for them, before they start to rip a film to shreds!
The reviews were NOT justified at all!
I really want to see more of this kinda cinema!
The audience were sayin negative stuff bout the film, but i made a point of talking very LOUDLY ON MY FONE to a friend, and praised the film to the skies!
Critics can go fuck themselves!
Yes, the film is bizarre.
Yes its gonna confuse u if u DONT PAY ATTENTION!
But boy, its gonna entertain u too, in its own individualistic way.
A brave attempt, and I
This is to Mr Anurag Kashyap.I became a fan of yours after seeing Yuva and Black Friday.In fact i firmly believe that Black Friday is one of the finest Indian movies ever made,so i was eagerly waiting for NO SMOKING.After watching the movie i m utterly confused,and i m not in a position to review it. The part of the nightmare coming again made some sort of sense(the Siberain scenes).In an interview before u hadtold that the movie will remain in the audience’s mind even after they leave the cinema,weirdly that is also true.I m a student of cinema;so from a student point of view i thought for a while about the movie and couldnt make out how much of the movie was real and how much was surreal.Did you put it deliberately in that way??so that the viewers muse over it??Or was the idea something else?
The one rupee thing was brilliant(most people buy cigarettes for RS 1,if my idea is right).Please try to answer my queries.I m very curious!!!And i came out of the hall laughing very hard even while walking to the bus stop and in the bus.I saw a few heads turn to look at me.I became a little mad.Was that your intention too??
I came to your blog for the first time especially to write my opinion about “No Smoking”.
I went to movie before I could read any reviews which is a practice I follow to avoid nonsense movies. So the comments I am making right now can be considered unbiased.
The first half was terrific. It was gripping and beyond my imagination. Each scene, sequence was unthinkable and unknown and that’s what I like about a movie. This was a different and unknown world and I had to throw all prejudices whatsoevr to understand the concept of the movie. As I said, the experience was exhilariting and everybody in the cinema-hall seemed to be shell-shocked. However I was so impressed with whatever I was watching, that as soon as I came out in the interval, I called up my friend who is also a movie freak and told him that finally we have got a movie in the Indian cinema which is going to change all the predefined moulds. I asked him to watch this movie the very next day.
As I expected a lot better next half and went with a lot more curiosity, for some time I endured the sequences but after a period of time, I begin to feel what the hell it is…And there were many reasons:
1. I and similar to me others got very confused with the entire sequence of second half. I had no idea how K reached Ajarbaijaan. If in the end, it was about “aatma”, how come people like K were able to see them? What’s all that confusion about her dead wife and secretary and their so-called role-playing sequence? I also could not understand the significance of shower sequence.
2. The movie was too long. The kind of genre and type of movie it was, I felt exhausted long before movie ended. Some people left in between which is very rare for a movie I saw ever. In the end too, people couldn’t wait movie to end and started leaving thinking it has ended. Bipasha Basu song was simply wasted. Very few people were there in theater to watch that song and even then it looked completely wasted. In my view you should have edited the movie for at least 20-25 minutes and it should have been 1-1/2 hour movie max. I like the way RGV made Nishabd. Crisp, concise and with no-frills.
3. Too many songs. In a movie like this, songs seem to be like dampener. One or two thematic songs could be enough but more than that was just dragging the movie.
You might be having abundance of ideas but it’s not necessary to put them all in a movie. You need to understand the mind of a movie-goer also. Human mind can take one thing at a time. Also it gets exhausted after a period of time. So, unrelated sequences, too many ideas may not make a great movie. It’s necessary to understand the dynamics of crisp and concise words. Simple things work. This is a rule. Even for a subject as bizarre as NS, things would have worked, if you could avoid that much of confusion from the audience.
In my view, our viewers cannot become thinking audience in a night. The attempt was as harsh to Indian audience as it was for K in the movie. In foreign movies, I have seen that some of thinking part is never explained. You need to understand that. To that I would say, the second part was even an overdose for such an audience and Indian audience haven’t experience such a thing before.
Even after saying so many negative things, I would like acknowledge that this is a landmark attempt for Indian cinema. Though I felt exhausted after watching the movie, I felt good to be part of such an attempt. It’s just that I would have felt happier to watch a landmark movie which it could not because of above mentioned reasons.
HI ANURAG !!!!
1ST OF ALL CONGRATS THAT THESE F**KERS ALLOWED U TO RELEASE YOUR FILM WITHOUT ANY PROBS….MAN THATS ONE UP FOR YOU…I HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING YOUR STRUGGLE AGAINST THESE PSEUDO F***S WHO NEVER LET TRUTH TO BE TOLD AS IT EXISTS…MAN HATS OFF TO YOU N DAT…ME BEIN AN ACTOR MYSELF AND ALSO MAYB COZ IM ALSO BEIN SUBJECTED TO IT IN A DIFRNT WAY…I CAN EASILY UNDERSTAND WHERE THAT ANGER IN U COMES OUT WHICH THOSE F***S CALL ARROGANCE…HERE I RECOLLECT THE FAMOUS LINE FROM SCARFACE WHEN AL PACINO SAYS” ALL I HAVE IS MY BALLS….” U SUIT THAT LINE TO THE T… NOW FOR THE FILM …I WENT THERE WITH LOADS OF EXPECTATIONS AND WHY NOT…I EXPECTED SUMTHING DIFFERENT AND DARK..AND DATS WHT I GOT… I LOVED THE WHOLE ENVIRONMENT U PLACED THE FILM IN ..I MEAN THE DIFFERENT SHADES U GAVE …OH YA ND I DID READ THE REVIEWS TOO, I KNW THEY WERE NOT WHT U WOULD HAV EXPECTED BUT WHT ELSE CAN U EXPECT FROM THOSE JERKS…CHILL MAN ..U R BEIN HONEST TO YOUR THOUGHTS AND I GUESS THATS WHT MATTERS IN THE END…ITS NOT ALWAYS ABT TELLING A STORY ITS ABT TELLING THE TRUTH…DATS WHT I BELVE IN…FOR ME I UNDERSTND UR KINDA CINEMA AND WOULD LUV TO B A PART OF IT …INSHALLAH…LUKING FORWARD FOR MEETIN UP WITYA…TAKE CARE AND KEEP CHURNIN OUT THOSE BELTERS….
So anyone who doesn’t like/get this film is a 4 (or more) letter word?! :-?
Anyway, here’s someone who seems to have liked and got it…
http://www.mid-day.com/hitlist/2007/october/166143.htm
Anuraag
I am not sure if you have heard about this telugu film journilist who is know for her bold reporting.
This morning i came across her posting which is infact a threating letter from one of her readers.
The reason i am posting this is because, whenever something like this happens in blogosphere here in united states, there comes tremendous support from fellow bloggers.
Could we expect that here in india ?
http://sunitablogs.com/?p=2144
Hey Anurag,
I can say a lot about the movie but I’m probably going to write a long feature on it on my blog, which I’ll link to, in awhile.
Until then, all I can say is that I loved it. It was exactly what I expected it to be – somehow, reading about the movie, reading your posts, seeing the trailers, I expected something like this … I try not to have too many expectations from movies because I usually end up being disappointed, but recently, I have expected a lot from both Johnny Gaddar and No Smoking, and haven’t been disappointed on both occasions.
Most people I know have hated the film – a majority of them haven’t understood it, and yes, I find it a little funny when people keep talking about how the film is about the hazards of smoking. Love the layers to the film – my analysis of which would be different from someone else’s, that’s the lovely bit about interpretation and perspective, isn’t it? And yes, knowing a lot of film reviewers personally (my dad is a film journo), I admire your guts to make this movie. Also, a kudos to John who I considered expressionless, until I saw No Smoking … another kudos to him for doing this movie, in spite of the obvious reactions this movie was going to generate amongst the masses and critics.
I loved it, and yes, am seeing it again tomorrow because there are a number of sequences I wish to see again …
More later.
Hey!
First, no smoking’s easily the best movie of the year. Mr masand lost it a long time back. And after reading this, i just remembered a Ghalib quote. Kindof suits this really well. It goes:
Woh humse poochhte hain ghalib kaun hai?
ab tum batlao ki hum batlayein kya.
thanks for a movie like this!
Reviewers like Taran and Khalid are biased by their own idea of what a good movie should be. Directors are equally biased by their own idea of what a good movie should be. Difference, though, in this case seems to be that Taran doesn’t feel the need to justify his biases or his “poor reviews”. He has a take it or leave it attitude. You, on the other hand, go licking your wounds on your high horse and claim that anyone who doesn’t understand your movie lacks vital portions of their brain. Are the critics obligated to like your movie? Or, are the audiences? And if they don’t, perhaps it says something about YOUR product rather than their taste?
If piecing together random bits of abstraction is your style, then so be it, it’s entirely your choice. By some of the comments here, it even seems like you have your own cult following, whether or not they really “understood the point” of your movie. You should have known that movies like these, in any part of the world, would cater to a select audience. There’s a reason why movies are in the entertainment section — it’s there to entertain. You do have the liberty to make the movies you want, which you have. What you seem to be demanding is the liberty of the people to like the movie. If you expected audiences and critics to gush about your movie when it’s not even made with their sensibilities in mind, then perhaps you deserve the flak you’re getting. Grow a thick skin and stop whining.