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Ram Gopal Varma ki Raakh!
I am no Sholay fan.
Eyes of fellow film-buffs pop out of their sockets usually when I say this, but to be very frank- I don’t even remember when I watched Sholay, and what remains of it in my mind can hardly even be termed as a faint memory.
But irrespective of whether you have watched and loved Sholay or not, you are equally likely to be absolutely appalled by Ram Gopal Varma’s seemingly audacious remake of the legendary film. No question about it, blokes- this one’s pure Aagony.
What was Varma thinking? Was he even thinking? Is this the end of the filmmaker- the man who once gave us Satya and Company? All these questions haunt you after watching Aag- simply because more than an insult to Sholay, it is an insult to Ram Gopal Varma himself- or rather, the filmmaker he once used to be.
Varma has always reveled in his sheer arrogance, always supremely irreverent of what critics may say about his films- so much so that many of his recent films are almost like indulgent pleasure trips by the director, as if they were made on a whim. But this time, Varma’s indulgence has truly got the better of him. Aag is a god-awful mess of a film, and it makes me use a word that I never thought I would use for a RGV film- it is unwatchable.
The promos of the film (set in a weird semi-rural, semi-urban setting called Kaalganj) suggested that RGV has chosen to place Thakur (now Inspector Narsimha, played rather ably by the brilliant Mohanlal) as the main protagonist, sidelining the other tracks of the film, and placing him face to face with the most celebrated villain of Hindi Cinema- now called Babban- played by the Big B, no less.
Which turned out to be mostly true, actually- but how one wishes Bachchan and Mohanlal had been given some more meat, some more screen time. It may have made the film much, much more bearable- the powerhouse performers that these two actors are. But the film inexplicably chooses to spend more time on inane comedy and romance tracks- featuring a totally miscast Ajay Devgan and a must-never-be-cast-in-anything Nisha Kothari- that are totally unfunny and fall flat.
The film that starts off tepidly- with titles that proudly proclaim- ‘Introducing Amitabh Bachchan as Babban’, keeps you hoping that things will finally fall into place and start rocking once the main conflict begins, but it never happens. Instead, you have to contend with cinematographer Amit Roy’s countless camera angles that soon get tiresome and a screechy score by Amar Mohile, which really gets on your nerves.
Ramu even pays tribute to his nemeses- Karan Johar and Yashraj films- by making AB shake a leg with AB junior in the badly composed Mehbooba song in the film- with a very overweight Urmila Matondkar. Tsk, tsk.
Of the performances, Amitabh Bachchan is quite good, creating some great moments with his superb expressions, dialogue delivery and body language. He is snakelike and rather menacing- though also somehow, not menacing enough. To top it, Ramu chooses to show the human side of Gabbar or should I say Babban- in what is probably the only interesting scene in the entire film*- but then, I am not really sure if that’s really a good thing.
Mohanlal is stellar in his role, but is often handicapped by a poorly written part and an accent that often comes in his way while acting. Sushmita Sen is stiffly restrained in her part, and newcomer Prashant Raj makes a confident debut appearance, though nothing to really write home about.
A special mention must go to Sushant Singh who makes for a mean Taamba (or was it Khaamba?), a great foil to the ferocious Babban. In fact, Bachchan and Singh share better chemistry and a far more endearing kinship than Jai and Veeru (now Raj and Heero) in this film, whose great friendship the film feebly tries to establish by playing the Yeh Dosti tune in the background.
The worst acting honours, predictably go to Ajay Devgan and Nisha Kothari- arguably one of the worst pairings ever witnessed on screen. Ajay, fresh from the no-show of Cash, is not in much form here too, not particularly fun to watch in a role he should not have played at all. Nisha Kothari, of course, tries hard to act as an actor and as a rickshaw-walli, and fails in both. She can’t act to save her life, and why she’s given so much screen time is impossible to fathom.
There’s no smoke, no fire in this Aag. Only ashes- from under which I really hope Ram Gopal Varma rises again, like the proverbial phoenix.
Ramuji, it takes genuine humility to truly pay tribute to a classic, which it seems you have lost completely- if you ever possesed any, that is. For now, I think you definitely need a break.
15 Responses to “Ram Gopal Varma ki Raakh!”
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* (spoiler alert- if you care, that is) There was a shot shown in the promos where a tear rolls out of Babban’s eye. This realy fascinated me- this shot, in fact comes in the film when Khaambe (Saambha)dies.
The scene I mentioned in the article is the one in which Babban (Gabbar) has his gun pointed at Raj (Jai) and then says “Arrey O–” only to realise that Khaambe (Sambha) is no more. This hits him like a shot in the heart, and he kills Raj. The only good and inventive scene in the while film I thought- though it also kinda made me feel- Hey, Babban’s a softie!
IT IS A FUCKIN PAIN IN YOU KNOW WHERE TO SIT THRU THIS FILM !!!
RED AND WHITE GALLANTRY AWARDS SHOULD BE GIVEN TO THOSE WHO MANAGE TO SCRAPE THRU ALIVE !!!
IT SHOULD GO FOR THE AXN - WHO DARES WINS ….
~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(
~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(~X(
that reminds me of an old (but very appropriate) joke -
What is the difference between RGV and GOD ???
God doesn’t think he is RGV !!!
nothing can be said more than what already has been said below-
http://passionforcinema.com/shivaaaaaaaaaaargh-applicants-invited-open-letter-to-rgv/
I see a conspiracy theory here. RGV is innocent, he didn’t cheat us, poor Ramu never said he will make a good movie, it was us who thought he may be out-of-form now, Ramu dont worry you are still in-form. You said Aag is the way u saw Sholay so I would like to ask Mr. Sippy, which print did u provide to Ramu not us, I think Mr. Sippy is very-very clever thats why he parted with RGV much before he could start the movie. Aaargh, is a frustration of filmmaker, I think he is taking revenge to us because we made RGV’s life unbearable, had we didn’t praise him for Shiva, Satya, Company (and few for D) his life wouldn’t have come so busy, he wouldn’t have surrounded with so many ‘Janta’ and ‘ Patrakars’.
Keep it up Ramu we all were part of people who made ur life a sh*t, we all should be hanged err… sorry to be punished with your movies with digital-surround-sound-sytem-with-full-volume-on.
on the other hand, bhaiyon-aur doston, please come and contribute to a movie which was supposed to be made under the title ” Ramu Pagal Ho gaya ” I’ve given a tribute to his movie ” Nishabd” on http://mohitmishra.wordpress.com/2007/03/03/nishabd-is-like-this-only-not-even-worth-talking/#comments
hope you will continue liking RGV, he provide us so much energy that we actually can stop us writing all this…
RGV ki jai ho!!!
[...] Jahan Bakshi, Passion for Cinema Rating: Thumbs down …more than an insult to Sholay, it is an insult to Ram Gopal Varma himself… See full review [...]
25th of August 7.50 pm, Saturday
I was working. I work for Deloitte btw. My colleague and friend Anita got a call, her mom.
Beta Lumbeenee parak, Gokool Chat lo Bomb vispot. (yes, you can say typical South Indian accent)
3 minutes pass and its my Dad calling.
Beta ghar aaja, lumbini park aur gokul chat may bomb blast hue. Kab aara?
My firm provides me with home drop facility but as the blast took place near by to where I stay, I was asked to wait uptill next logout i.e 11, so that things get under control. I decided to stay back.
I was tired, informed my dad that I
I believe such hate posts again one particular man…one who has given so much of opportunity to artists and technicians alike is uncalled for…..
Just treat him as any other director..Plz dont make this good site as vandetta site….If ppl like Ramu are discouraged believe me u will never hear leave alone talents like AK, Manoj Bajpai, Urmila, E Sriniwas, Jaideep Mehta, or Shimit Amin..
Ramu is one man who puts his money where his mouth is. I think he’s given a fitting reply to all those who thought he was making a ‘frame by frame’ remake of Sippy’s Sholay. A charge Ramu kept refuing all this while. Now he can back it up by saying, “Dekha, mera Sholay unke Sholay se kitna different hai. Theirs was a superhit, mine’s a superflop!”
LOL @ Saurabh..
Jahan bhai, aapko SHOLAY nahin yaad? Do urself a favor and get the DVD… u NEED to watch this film…
Hey guys, you know whats funny? The person who most accurately predicted the outcome of “Aag” prior to its release was none other than RGV himself.
At the press conference (maybe music release) of Aag, he was quoted as saying:
“Main agar media mein hota to mere pehla sawaal hote ke “KKhud ka Shiva nahin remake sar saka, Sholay kya banayega saala”…
Your not fucking kidding me Ramuji…
RAAM GOPAL VERMA KI…RAIL
main lagbhag eak hafte se RGV ki karastani (oops remake of sholay) ki dhajjiyan udta dekh/padh/sun raha hoon. ab jaake maine ye film dekhi hai aur mujhe lagta hai ki RGV pe sabhi atyachaar kar rahe hain. RGV jaise dhurandar nirdeshak jinhen film banane ki samjh hai aur jinhone hamen Satya, rangeela jaisi behatareen filmen di hain, unhone agar RGV ki Aag naam ka namoona diya hai tho hamen use swikaar karna chahiye aur unse sahanubhooti rakhne chahiye kyounki ye film dekhne ke baad saaf hota hai ki who kisi bhayankar trasadi se guzar rahe hain. ab who mansik hai ya sharirik mujhe nai pata lekin agar koi insaan jeevan bhar ye kahe ke God Father aur Sholay jaisi filmen dekh dekh kar who seeekhe hain, aur who kadardaan hain in filmoun ke (aur agar unse in do filomoun ke bare main baat ki jaaye tho who acche acche ko moon pe taale jad den) aur un jaisa insaan agar is tarah ki film banata hai tho zaroor kahin kucch “problem’ hai. RGV ji ham log aapke bahut bade fans hain aapka bura nai chahte, ham chahte hain aap hamesha swasth rahen aur hamen acchi films den. RGV ki film Nishabd aayee thee, main dauda dauda ye film dekhne gaya (halaanki ye baat main RGV se zaroor poochna chahunga ki unhen Nishabd ka idea aaya kahan se? agar yaad agaya ho tho meri khushkismati hai aur durbhagya ki aapne us idea ki ye halat ki) Nishabd dekhne ke baad main samjh gaya ki ab Satya aur rangeela beete zamane ki baat ho gaye kyounki RGV ne zameen choor di hai aur hawa ka daman pakad liya hai. eak mitti ke aadmi se aisee ummeed waise log kam hee karte hain. mera ye sochna hai ki remake tabhi banayee jaatee hai ya jaanee chahiye jab aapko lage ki “who classic film” log bhoolne wale hain, hamen zinda rakhna chahiye, jab neeyat acchee ho tho DEVDAS ka wapas janam hota hai, aur neeyat kharaab ho tho Aag hee banthee hai Sholay nahin. RGV eak samjhdar nirdeshak hain, unhen thoda sa aaraam kar lena chahiye, aur neeyat saaf karke wapas ana chahiye kyounki ham fir satya aur rangeela dekhna chahte hain. duniya bhi thoda bahut dimaag rakhtee hai (shayad aapse thoda kam hee sahee). main ant main RGV ko sirf ye kehna chahunga “Sarkaar abhi Sholay mari nahin hai, sabke dil aur dimaag main zinda hai….. aap hamen baksh den, kucch aur banaye”
shukrya
Vivek Tewari
hey jahan,
would love to read your review of RGV’S next flick DARLING (releasing tomorrow..hope he doesnt disappoints us again!
chk dis out gang:
http://www.jammag.com/movies/show_movie.php?movie_id=525
Please don’t post any more links to Aag’s reviews…sick and tired of TV channels, newspapers telling us all how bad Aag was!
I just hope RGV does not become another N.Chandra etc, who have been reduced to making crap these days. Still hoping….
Here is RGV’s submission and I believe he’s been honest to himself…
“I have to face it”
Like I say, I asked for it. If I had the confidence or the arrogance or the stupidity or the madness or - in Ramesh Sippy’s words - the foolishness, to actually go and attempt to make an adaptation of a classic like ‘Sholay’ - I asked for it. So I have no choice but to face it.
I decided to remake ‘Sholay’ because I respected it and I love it and till today, despite ‘Aag’, I still believe that I understand that film more than anybody else. I believe that.
But understanding does not necessarily mean that you can make it as effective - which is what not only the critics and the audience, even I realised after the film was over.
If somebody were to ask me to remake another classic, I would probably.
The point is, I really don’t believe it’s only to do with the remake being wrong - I think a lot of things went wrong - at the time I could have been confused because of the court cases, the name change and character changes and whether I should stick to them.
Over a period of time, did Sholay in my mind remain as moments, or dialogue, or did I think of the story - or was there an emotional context? I am not very sure.