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Of Don, Mithya and Don…
Earlier tonight I had a very strange urge to put on the DVD of Farhan Akhtar’s version of “Don”. I can’t quite pinpoint what it was that brought me to do it… I think it may a lot to do with all this talk around plagiarism and originality.
So I sat there watching, thinking to myself “if it were anyone else, I might even be offended. But his father co-conceptualized and co-wrote the original. Who knows how many of these famous lines, these scenes, were his brainchild. If anyone has the right to remake this film, its Javed Akhtar’s son”
As hard as I tried that Diwali weekend, and as hard as I tried tonight, I just could not allow myself to be entertained. I was constantly bothered by watching the same scenes I had been thrilled by so many times over, in a newer, modernized format. It bored the shit out of me. Sure it was bigger, badder, slicker than the original, but it had the soul as a statue. It just was not the real thing. It could never be.
I was genuinely excited by the prospects of Farhan Akhtar, a very capable director in his own right, remaking a classic with current superstars. After seeing how Farhan had influenced the entire industry by treading his own path with “Dil Chahta Hai” (re-inventing the genre of urban-centric films in India) and then following it up with a courageous personal journey with “Lakshya”, I was eagerly awaiting how he would translate and re-invent that late 70’s classic. It was exciting to think of all that Shahrukh could do to bring in his own touches with such an iconic character, or characters. I admit it, I fell for the hype. I anticipated Farhan’s modernistic, almost futuristic vision of what Don should be, and all that it could be, in this 21st century.
And I was sorely disappointed. What makes it all the more perplexing is that I don’t think that, on its own, the new Don is all that bad a film. Barring of course the jalebi twisted 2nd half, which I saw as a desperate escape from a lose-lose situation. I mean, not give the old story a new spin and you’ll disappoint since we’ve all seen the original. Tamper with the original and you’re messing up a classic film.
I had watched it with a friend who’d never actually seen the original, and I could totally understand why he liked it so much. He wasn’t sitting there comparing every little detail to what Chandra Barot, Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman, Pran and Iftekaar saab had accomplished. He was enjoying the new film as a new experience altogether. I bet he was also one of the few people out there who had that advantage.
Then I thought of Mithya. Its a take off on the original story of a simple everyday Joe replacing a dreaded underworld leader only for fate to put him in a very precarious position. Like the original Don, the fun, the suspense, the thrills in Mithya were all about empathizing with Vijay/DK’s character and his so very fucked up predicament. How the hell is he going to get out of this one? Can he get out, or has he been sucked way to far in?
Rajat Kapoor’s brilliance lies in his innovativeness. Though he borrowed heavily from the Salim-Javed original concept, he overhauled it with his own creative vision. He created new characters, new settings, new situations. And an absolutely mind-blowing new twist. No one is going to accuse Rajat Kapoor of plagiarism, even if the “inspiration” is fairly obvious.
So Farhan’s Akhtar’s loyalty to the original is where the problem lies. Had Farhan taken the Rajat Kapoor route, and broken the mould so-to-speak, he would instead had created a win-win situation for himself. That, and setting a long overdue precedent of how to really “re-make” a film, especially one that is so damn popular and accessible.
Can we expect something similar from Anurag Kashyap’s Dev D? Will other filmmakers pick up the queues and start employing some true ingenuity rather than lazily “copy/pasting”? Will us, the critical audience, recognize the efforts and applaud them? Encourage them? Will the cycle of “inspirational film-making” be broken once and for all?
36 Responses to “Of Don, Mithya and Don…”
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You are right.Even I am a fan of the Amitabh starrer “Don”.So when they remade it with Shahrukh I really had high hopes.I must say some portions of the remake works specially the “style and look” part,but the “soul” is missing.
BTW, here’s a fantastic review, albeit with a different subtext than what I’m trying to get at in this piece. Of course, the review is by the inimitable Baradwaj Rangan:
http://brangan.easyjournal.com/entry.aspx?eid=3118166
nicely said tony
hey watch , the tamil movie BILLA,its a very good remake of don,though its faithful to the original,it has the soul and it is stylishly shot.a must watch
@raghu,
maaan i couldnt even watch BILLA in fast forward mode. style was all that was there- that too laughable
When I watched Don (new) I was shattered. I never thought that Farhan could give such a sucking movie. Everything about the movie was bakwas ( style dekhni hai to kisi fashion show pe jaao bhaiyya !! ). Also Lakshya was not so good. What I liked in Lakshya was the emotions in the scenes. They were really intense and well shot by Farhan.
And DCH remains my all time best Hindi Cinema ever
Mithya was strictly ok. Ofcourse miles ahead of Don (new). I loved RS in the Bathroom after he comes as the Don….Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
=))
Even I happened to watch the new Don before I could watch the original. I know, I mite sound like a black sheep when I tell this here.But I liked the new Don; cant say better than the original. Probably, I value both the movies as two different entities. and it was after a long time, that i actually liked SRK again; though the second guy was a lill over the top.
While watchng Mithya, even I did feel the same; an inspiration of Don. I went back to the reviews that were floating in the net at that time and cudnt find any such reference. Glad you came up wid this Tony !
Btw, I liked the new Billa too; except for Ajiths(the lead actor)funny side.The movie was technically brilliant, good teamwork, was a lot shorter , yet had all the ingredients and soul of a perfect masala movie.After all, these Dons and Billas are masala movies, rt?
I think all this is truly unfair to Farhan Akhtar. New Don was a genuinely good movie (and a hit too at that).
The problem that most people have is that they keep on comparing it with the original and where it is unable to keep up - they drop a bomb on the movie. And wherever it exceeds the expectations - ok he had benefit of hind sight and what not.
And the movie is never supposed to be better than the original Don.
It is supposed to be a fresh movie and that is what it is.
All the scenes that are directly take off have been dealt with beautifully. And it does not go Mithya way as it is not an inspiration (how can JA be inspired by JA - does it make sense!!!) but a remake with a twist.
I actually liked the ending a lot.
It was good the way movie built up (exactly same as the original one) and it was even better the way it unfolded (totally a contrast to the new one).
Don’t tell me you were not shocked by the last doalogue “I love wild cats”.
Agreed SRK wasn’t up to Big B’s performance (he can never be) but Priyanka in that role was much better than Zeenat.
Arjun Rampal cannot match to Pran in a 1000 years though!!
Give the guy some credit. He made a genuinely good remake.
“Will other filmmakers pick up the queues and start employing some true ingenuity rather than lazily “copy/pasting”?”
Lets hope so :)
Only yesterday, while commenting on Kartik’s post, Mithun mentioned Benegal’s Kalyug, a brilliant movie inspired from Mahabharata.
Eagerly awaiting AK’s take on Devdas.
Anindya: Thanks. I think part of the reason the “soul” is missing in the 2006 adaptation of “Don” is because it’s too dependant on audiences knowing the original film. The sould is “borrowed”. It seemingly was never intended to be a film to be viewed, and critiqued, on its own. Like I said, I see it more as a detriment, with Farhan setting audiences up for disapointment.
Thanks DPac. Oh, and I haven’t seen “Billa”. Was tempted to when it first came out (mainly because of Rajnikant) but couldn’t get a hold of a copy w/ good subtitles. I’m not sure how the trademark “superfast-hand-movies-ending-with-lit-cigarette-in-mouth-and-sunglasses-lookin-slick-on-the-face” move would suit the more subtle, cool calm and collected “Don” (or “Billa”) character…
kcp: I didn’t find the new “Don” to be “sucking” as much as it was “lacking”… like I said I don’t think its all that bad a film. Could’ve been much better for sure though.
So you didn’t like “Mithya”? I was just floored. Director Rajat Kapoor had absolute full grip over each and every scene. Compared to the new Don, Mithya had such a powerful graph.. it was so well-crafted that I for one just could not help but think if Rajat Kapoor and company can pull this off on such a moderate budget, why couldn’t Farhan Akhtar who has at his disposable every required resource (including exclusive access to Javed Akhtar).
And I don’t even want to begin to compare the performances. Not only did Ranvir Shorey completly astonish audiences with such a precise, well-tuned, versatile performance (its not easy to continually adapt to ever changing surroundings/circumstances, maintain such high levels of emotional desperation, keep pace with a larger than life script AND make it all so damn believable.
I guess such comparisons aren’t really fair, but then I never said being fair was my intention. For me, these comparisons are inevitible and I’m not going to be so pretentiously politically correct so as to avoid analysis altogether.
kcp: There’s so many moments in Mithya that I loved. All completely original. Remember:
DK: “Maine to kaha tha ke main sirf boss se baat karonga..:
Gawde: “Mujhe dekh kar tereko lag raha hai ke mere bhi koi boss ho sakta hai?”
DK: “Jo bulane par aadhe ghaante mein aajaye, aur saath mein girlfriend bhi laaye, woh boss nahin ho sakte”
LOL! Naseerudin Shah’s reaction was priceless.
The scene where DK is tied to the bed, screaming desperately for Inspector Shyam, is just disturbing. Almost too real to handle. Wow.
@tony,
the billa raghu was talking about is not the rajni starrer its the ajith starer - remake rajin - billa which in turn was a remake of don
Thanks Vimal. Like I said in the above comment, I think these comparisons are inevitable. I’d suspect Rajat Kapoor knew that when he started working on Mithya.. and THAT’s a set of BALLS.
I can see how you’d like the new Don. One question though, since you hadn’t yet seen the original Don, were there any moments where you felt the characters were a little underdeveloped, or that you felt a bit lost because the situation wasn’t fully layed out?
Ajith was in the new Billa? So then I must’ve thought of Rajnikant in the old Billa. So they remade a remake? Crazy…
Yeah Dpac, just realized that… so how would one compare the new Billa to the old Billa??
that would be a case for someone else to ponder.
i havent seen the old billa.
(i might have on the tube, but certainly dont remember)
the new billa is like a remake of farhans don :-)
Shreyas, you said “I think all this is truly unfair to Farhan Akhtar”. I know. But its not us being unfair to Farhan Akhtar… I think he was unfair to himself.
There are certain risks and rewards that go along with a re-make. As you rightly pointed out, he was rewarded with a box-office hit.Personally I’d attribute much of that hit status to Shahrukh, Diwali and the overall hype. As for it being a “genuinely good movie”, I’m glad you think so. I really wanted to like it and get into it as well.. just couldn’t do it though.
You said “The problem that most people have is that they keep on comparing it with the original and where it is unable to keep up - they drop a bomb on the movie. And wherever it exceeds the expectations - ok he had benefit of hind sight and what not.”
That is exactly the “Lose-Lose” situation I’m talking about. Its a tough task to satisfy an exisiting audience for such an established film by giving them a new “spin” on it. Works better in Hollywood because the lineage there isn’t nearly as prominent. People for the most part aren’t as nostalgic about their cinema as we Indians are.
Farhan opted to remake a classic, iconic film/character. It was an ambitious task to start with and I’m sure he expect mixed reactions and harsh critism. It goes with the territory.
“…And the movie is never supposed to be better than the original Don. It is supposed to be a fresh movie and that is what it is.”
But Shreyas, its not that it COULDN’T be better than the original. The reason I brought Mithya into the mix is to show that it definately could’ve been better, more contemporary, and fresher. I disagree that the new Don was a “fresh movie”, since it was so heavily dependant on referencing the original.
“And it does not go Mithya way as it is not an inspiration (how can JA be inspired by JA - does it make sense!!!) but a remake with a twist.”
Again I’ll have to disagree here. It’s not so much that Javed Akhtar needed be “inspired” by his own work. But then who better to alter the new work and give it a fresh new treatment? I know personally that so often when I revisit old works of mine, I see so many new directions I could’ve taken it in.
And the potential for “Don” in the new millenium was huge. There’s so much more they could’ve done. The problem is they sort of did and sort of stuck to the original, trapped somewhere in between, at least in my opinion.
“Don
Neeraja: I hope so too, that’s why I’m really looking forward to Dev D. That and, well, I guess “No Smoking” wasn’t exactly my kind of film. Looking foward to an Anurag Kashyap film that is more relatable, and I think Dev D’s going to be that film.
Dpac: Really? Didn’t the new Billa come out just a few months after the new Don?
lemme rephrase
‘the new billa is more like a remake of farhans don ‘
The old Don was a B grade illogical tale that only held together because of Amitabh’s superstar status. How else could one explain a hick Vijay turning into a sophisticated ganglord? I think Farhan’s Don had more logic, the characters held together better, and I liked the slick and sophisticated feel of the film. Mithya does start off with a doppelganger premise, and continues in that vein for quite a bit, but leaves many a gaping hole. Why was the actor being inserted into the gang by the rival gang? It is also not quite clear on what it wants to be - is it a crime drama, a black comedy, a tragedy, or a philosophical piece? It tries to be all of the above and I think loses the plot in the process. There is no doubt that every actor in the films performs amazingly, yet the film leaves me feeling a bit empty at the end and for that I can only blame a slightly muddled story and lack of clear intent on the part of the makers.
@rextreme
taking your point of the change from Vijay to Don in the Old movie in the right spirit, please tell me how is the change in the new Don seamless?
I think you have to ask yourself - is it easier for a hick to convincingly play a sophisticate, or for a sophisticate to convincingly play a hick. Keep in mind that every time we see a hick on screen the role is being essayed by a sophisticate! So Vijay becoming a convincing Don is a far stretch, but Don pretending to be Vijay playing Don is much much more convincing. And this is why the character seems always a little “off” - deliberately so. The surma bedecked, ghungroo clad Vijay never even tries to struggle to get into the character of Don in the original, thus making it unbelievable. He is back in mode as soon as he encounters the paan and bhang toli, but where was he hiding until then?
rextreme: Both Don films are masala entertainers. Looking for logic in the original Don is like looking for logic in Amar Akhbar Anthony, Namak Halaal or any of dozens of other entertainers of their time. Those films are not about logic, they were about engaging the viewer to the surreal level where logic no longer matters. Whatever happens makes sense within the context of the film. The real world is left outside the cinema halls.
If anything, following your logic, the remake should have made more sense. But it didn’t. Rather than one machiavellian twist the Akhtar’s layered on 2. A second watch leaves, in my opinion, far more holes than the original Don or Mithya. I’ve stated my opinion on the film and its characters, relying too heavily on the original as if it were a backstory leading us to where the characters are now. As far as the slickness/sophistication element, oh yeah the new Don was much much slicker. I also love the new theme song.
“… you have to ask yourself - is it easier for a hick to convincingly play a sophisticate, or for a sophisticate to convincingly play a hick.”
You got a solid point there. Reminds me of another film of this variety, Subhash Ghai’s “Kalicharan” (*ing Shatrugan Sinha). There’s a key scene where Kalicharan is posing as an inspector (if I recall correctly), and Ajit asks starts conversing in English with him. Of course, Kalicharan doesn’t know English, and his attempts at faking it are horrid. Shatrugan performed the scene with just the right amount of “I’m shit scared but I can’t show it right now”.
rextreme, I think that’s where Mithya scores bigtime. DK is an actor, he takes the role of Raja Bhaisaab as seriously as any acting assignment. At a few points in the film we see his rehearsing, working out, training himself to fit the mould of the character. And yet he still can’t pull it off convincingly.
Not sure which plot-holes you’re referring to though.
“Why was the actor being inserted into the gang by the rival gang?”
The question answers itself: They were the rival gang. Think of the advantage they’d have if, in addition to their already planted mole (a long-time member of the said gang at that), they’d also have the gang’s leader working for them. Destroying the gang from the inside was the plan I gathered. I’m glad it wasn’t overtly stated that way though, would’ve taken away the fun of computing that as the film progressed.
@rextreme
I do not support the original change but playing Vijay and singing khaike is as impossible as the other! Also, a lot of assumption goes into that especially aboutr the relationship with the kids etc. I do not prefer assumptions when I watch a thriller!
@Tony - really? The second watch of Farhan’s Don actually made the motivations and actions of the key players a lot clearer and the director’s vision that much more brilliant for me. He did not have the luxury to watch the whole once and then try to redo it! The hesitation as Don goes with Roma to meet the kid, the realization that DeSilva has been conning him all along - those were the elements that seemed just a tiny bit off in first viewing. I did not think that Farhan had left too much that was to be assumed from the previous version. This is why people who view Don (2006) without having seen the earlier are absolutely in love with the film. Knowing the old just adds some baggage, but it is in our heads and it is because things seem bit off and our assumptions are betrayed. Remakes come with such baggage.
Yes, I remember Kalicharan - but it is time to revisit it :-)
@sarang - playing Vijay? Don was never playing Vijay - he was only playing what he thought Vijay would be like playing Don. So add all this up - he got a very tiny glimpse of what Vijay was like, then supposedly was tutored some by DeSilva to become a little less hick, and then he was actually playing himself with a tiny amount of Vijay. In all the criticism of Don (2006) the one thing that stands out and cannot be denied is Khaike Paan - that is truly a moment that did not belong, yet you can see how much Farhan, SRK and gang MUST have wanted it, so it stayed. It was the one ‘for the galleries’ sequence and it was off. But that is a small quibble indeed in the context of the fact that these folks are all lipsync singing songs to music playing out of the ether!
Care to clarify what these assumptions are? There was one kid, and he had no relationship with Don, that is why Don failed to recognize him.
@Tony - I agree that DK being an actor was a brilliant stroke in Mithya. But you did not feel the film derailed from Black comedy to family drama (why were the kids kidnapped), to sentimental claptrap? And why did the rival gang feel that putting a look-alike in would be of help to them? This gang was a family affair and tightly run.
@ Tony
While watching the new Don, I was wondering what Om Puri was supposed to be doing in the movie. Its only after watching the original, I came to know of that characters importance. So I personally feel only his character was a lill under developed and yes certain situations also seemed stupid after the twist in the movie.
Like u had mentioned, the twist wasnt a twist after all. Theres this particular scene where SRK and Priyanka goes to the school to see the kid, and we cud see SRK searching for the child with his eyes. Bingo! Thats when I thought,” This is the Don himself!”
To clear the confusions on Billa : The new Billa IS NOT a remake of Farhan Akhtars Don. The new Billa was quite like the original with a complete omission of Pran/Arjun Rampals character. Yes, the kid was still there; but in a different context altogether. Instead of a CD(tht contained the secrets), it was a Pen Drive. It infact was more glamorous and slick than F.A.’s Don; and just 2 hrs and 15 mins. Probably, the director wudve got inspired by the new Don in remaking the remake; but the presentation is a lot better and original. The new Billa had its release only last Dec 14th.
Imagine FA, SRK doing a Mithya twist instead of their own twist. The so-called purists and nostalgic audience would have butchered them for massacring AB’s DON script. They took the middle way.
So they must have thought : Lets make a stylish slicker movie which re-introduces Don and in the end Don is still around. Lets have Don 2 and then they can fool around with whatever they want.
Personally, I love the fact that Don is still alive unlike in AB’s Don.
If I were FA, my first scene in Don 2 would be Don killing Roma :-)
Mithya worked in some way cos they were not many mainstream elements in the movie including the main leads.
I agree somewhere it was confused movie or it had me confused, whether its a black comedy, a real tragedy, a farce or plain silly and boring. I don’t know and I don’ think I will want to watch it again.
Agree, sir…though post could have had some more stuff, but definitely, while Farhan Akhtar’s Don wasn’t too bad, Rajat Kapoor has made the Don remake FA could not accomplish.
I havent watched the original DON but having watched the new DON i still felt that the movie fails to excite you at some level of story telling…
FA might have used all possible resources to give a facelift to the original DON and make it slicker but it still does not grip u in terms of the narrative…..
At the same time,what Rajat Kapoor has done with MITHYA is that he might have used the story of DON as an inspiration but has actually ended up giving a clever twist to the story and has shown a person who ends up living a life which is based on a LIE and when he gets habituated to this life he is suddenly bought back to realisation and the LIE spells his DOOM….
I think the ending was pretty much dark,brooding and witty…..
I quiet liked the casual conversation that Naseer’s henchmen are having while disposing off Neha’s body in the climax….was pretty much signifying the sombre mood of the story….
old don = actors were strong… v dont feel v need 2 c others in these roles
new don = actors look weak…
nd v search alternatives…
kareena kapoor was pathetic in dance helen was very gud…
ab was v gud… srk was poor… he acted only in song khaike…
priyanka chopra was unbearable….
wht om puri was supposed 2 do????????????
how boman got police job???????????
in old don om shiv puri replaces interpole officer.. here boman is dcp???????nd he asks a police inspector abt vijay nd boy????????
arjun rampal.. bad…
pawan malhotra was wasted….
only actor was chunky pandu :d
@vishesh: “Personally, I love the fact that Don is still alive unlike in AB
Yes Tony,for example if you remember the scene when Vijay in the old Don tell Iftikar,”Don pan nahi khata tha?Bahut bura karta tha”..you could almost sense a guy addicted to pan unwilling but forced to give it up.Cut to “new” don,same dialogue,it looks terribly misplaced and “plastic”.Same applies to a dozen more dialogues.Shahrukh’s portrayal of “Vijay”s character was way below the mark.That is where Amitabh and the old Don scores.Also Pran’s character was far more effective and developed than Arjun Rampal’s.It appears that Arjun’s character was cut in the editing table.The only good thing about the new Don was Boman Irani’s character.It had a lot of punch.