Why Kamal Haasan should never watch Kambakkht Ishq
Ok so Sajid Nadiadwala entrusts a debutant filmmaker Sabbir Khan to make a movie. So like all Nadiadwala productions they decide to make another lavishly mounted project with A listers Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor. There are also top notch Hollywood stars like Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Routh and Denise Richards featuring and to top it all they decide to shoot the movie against the backdrop of Hollywood. And what do they do about the story – well they just decide to look down south and rip apart a Kamal Haasan’s Tamil movie.
Followers of Tamil cinema and fans of Kamal Haasan would remember a movie called Pammal K.Sambandham (referred to as PKS hereafter) which had Kamal Haasan and Simran in the lead. Directed by Mouli and with hilarious dialogues by none other than Crazy Mohan, the movie was a simple tale of a stuntman and a lady doctor, who both have distinct identities of their own. This movie was shot without too much of grandeur in Chennai except for a couple of songs which were shot abroad.
But in case of Kambakkht Ishq (referred to as KI hereon) there is nothing called originality. In fact exaggeration is too weak a word to describe the happenings in the movie as virtually everything is over the top. The plot is extremely silly and it’s all about Viraj ( Akshay) a Hollywood stuntman who doesn’t respect women & has them literally falling all over him. Viraj arrives at his brother Lucky’s (Aftab Shivdasani ) wedding to Kamini ( Amrita Arora ) to admonish Lucky for getting married. That’s where Viraj bumps into Simrita ( Kareena )who is Kamini’s best friend and who in turn admonishes Kamini for getting married to Lucky, as she doesn’t trust men.
The die is cast and there’s a virtual ego clash between Viraj and Simrita now. So after numerous silly jokes, some illogical situations and some constant love- hate banter between the two, the movie ends on predictable lines. Akshay Kumar seems to have literally sleep walked through the movie as the role is a cakewalk for him and he has no need to try hard. Kareena looks gorgeous no doubt but there’s nothing beyond it. Vindoo Singh as Akshay’s side kick is o.k. while Amrita Arora and Aftab have nothing much to do. Javed Jaffrey and Boman Irani are virtually wasted in the movie. Kiron Kher has again a very typical role.Anu Malik’s music is nothing great- you are likely to forget the songs after the movie completes its theatrical run.
While a lot of things can & should be overlooked considering that it is a movie after all, nevertheless certain things are almost tantamount to crime. I have never heard of any stuntman who is able to lead the kind of lavish lifestyle that Akshay Kumar leads in the movie. The kind of excessive indulgence shown in the movie actually starts hurting the eye after a point. None of the so called appearances of the Hollywood actors make any worthwhile impact on the movie. Kamal Haasan’s stuntman character was a Hanuman bhakt who wants to remain single. The character was largely believable unlike the fake portrayal by Akshay over here. Though Simran who played the heroine in PKS also has a fiery temper, she still endears to us by some realism in her depiction whereas Kareena tends to certainly go overboard often.
The script (Anvita Dutt Guptan,Sabbir Khan ) seems to be the big culprit here in what could have otherwise been a reasonably engaging movie similar to PKS. Considering that KI is probably made at more than 10 times the budget of PKS, Kamal Haasan would indeed be shocked to see what a relatively quickly made medium budget movie has turned out to be in its Hindi avatar. And yes it would also remind him again that while people are not willing to back his magnum opus – Marudhanayagam or Marmayogi due to budget constraints, there are people in Bollywood who have it going for them to produce an expensive tasteless film like KI ( at more than half the budget of a Marudhanayagam ).
Akshay- inspite of the setbacks of late (CC2C and 8*10), you are still right on top with the Khans.Why do a film like this in the first place? And as for your statement that you & Kareena in KI would be the new Mr. and Mrs.Smith, well I have no words to describe my feelings on the same. In spite of all the excesses your recent blockbusters like Welcome and Singh is Kingg worked because it was patronized by the family audience. But with KI you seem to have only alienated them and in case you haven’t realized it by now it’s certainly a pity.
Thanks to the Bollywood strike people have been literally starved of movies and so the terrific opening for KI is not a surprise at all. But it would be interesting to see if the movie is able to sustain the momentum and emerge profitable for all. I’m someone who loves the smaller films but once in a while would like to indulge in the regular mainstream stuff also. But if this is Bollywood’s idea of entertainment then I guess I would rather stay away from it. So what made me watch this? Well at 50 bucks for a balcony ticket at a good standalone cinema, I thought the deal couldn’t go wrong. But I was proved wrong. So go on if you are getting some good deal like this or else leave it for one of the T.V channels to air it shortly- you won’t regret it one bit.
On a parting note I would like to ask a question to Sajid Nadiadwala and co- when you had a lot of people to thank in the opening credits, was it too difficult to acknowledge anybody concerned with PKS? This is all the more surprising because due to industry sources, the remake rights have been bought officially.
Tags: akshay kumar, Anu Malik, Crazy Mohan, kamal haasan, Kareena Kapoor, Mouli, Sabbir Khan, Sajid Nadiadwala, Sylvester Stallone
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
Does it deserve this in-depth analysis?
@ Gaurang- you have a point there.At first even I was like – this doesn’t deserve a watch so does it deserve a post?but then I had a lot of questions in my head- to akshay & sajid nadiadwala.and this post is basically meant for that.I dunno if they will ever read this or not, but hopefully this will make all of us feel all the more clear on the kind of Bollywood cinema we do not want ( at least I do not want ).
@sethu: for once i disagree with u. the subject-line of this post and the content are hardly related. it could have simiply been called ‘why nobody should watch KI’.
.
secondly, kamal hasan himself has drawn flak for ‘dashavtaram’ so why would people trust him… just because its a KH venture?? not really. his last few movies have been disappointing as well, including ‘hey ram’ and ‘mumbai express’
.
lastly, no one should spend obscene amount of money and serve trash to audience. although the money on KI may have gone down the drain, i would rather see that amount going into producing a few indie movies than a KH venture. this should not have been a KH-centric post to begin with because PKS was not a movie that he produced or directed…he just acted in it.
Sethu:
“there are people in Bollywood who have it going for them to produce an expensive tasteless film like KI”
“when you had a lot of people to thank in the opening credits, was it too difficult to acknowledge anybody concerned with PKS”
This is the way Indian films work, my friend. Many people call Dasavatharam as an expensive tasteless film (Not my personal opinion). And Sabbir Khan’s interview in TOI says that they have acquired the remake rights of PKS. So the producer of PKS has made money. And the screenplay is changed so much from the original (for the worse, as you pointed out and I am with you on this), there is nothing wrong in Sabbir Khan & Anvita Dutt taking credit for the script.
Mind you, I am not defending the film as such. I agree with you that it is a tasteless film. But at the idea level, it is A WONDERFULLY crazy idea, COUPLE OF EXAMPLES:
– Akshay playing the stunt double of Sylvester Stallone and in the climax Sylvester Stallone fights the bad guys to save Akshay’s grilfriend
– Denise Richards playing the third angle in the love story
Unfortunately what we see on screen is disappointing. Though the film falls flat, that one scene when the entire audience in the Kodak Theatre think that ‘Om Mangalam’ is the National Anthem and stand up in respect, is an indicator of what the movie could have been, had it been executed by a better direcot!!
crazyrals: PKS Screenplay was by Kamal Hassan, if I am not wrong.
You call Hey Ram and Mumbai Express disappointing! Thats why I like this site – one gets used to so many shocks here that even lousy films like KI becoming big hits is not a shock anymore!
@ Rals-
agreed the post could have been titled ‘why nobody should watch KI’.But I refrained from doing so because-
1. IMO it did not sound too right for me to name it that way and
2. The KH angle was used only for effect- nothing more- dont take it for anything too beyond it.
So I’m not going to discuss KH or his movies here.
But yes I’m glad you agree with what I felt about the obscene amount of money getting wasted in a productin like this.
@ Anand-
If you notice I have not mentioned that they shouldnt credit the screenplay to Anvita,Sabbir & co.Rather I just mentioned that they could have just mentioned PKS in some way in the opening credits when anyway lot many people were thanked.
The scene in the Kodak theatre which you mentioned ( people mistaking Om Mangalam as the National Anthem & hence stand up in respect ) was the only scene I genuinely liked.
Denise Richards could have been better utilised & yes the Stallone angle was interesting but again came as half baked on screen.
Is it possible to start something like SPCMG- Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Movie Goers?
..
I seriously am fed up with the torture we r subjected to in the name of Entertainment.
Finally, how much did you spend for this movie?
I was hoping for more juice.Yup i think Akshay’s next film will have great effect due to KI.
Surprisingly on the Director’s blog he never mention the source of story, and takes credit that he himself has written.
Eros people should be banned from filmmaking.
They gave gems like drona.
Anyway dont think Kamal would watch KI, considering how the Hindi remakes of some of his previous flicks turned out.
..
Dayavan- Very pale rehash of Nayagan.
Red Rose- Utterly pathetic remake of Sigappu Rojakkal, Rajesh Khanna just does not look like a pyschotic killer from any angle.
Viraasat was a decent flick, but nowhere as good as Thevar Magan.
Even Sati Leelavati was much better than Biwi No 1.
@ Ratnakar- seriously I share your concern, something needs to be done all right.
@ Cinemausher- I’ve mentioned towards the end of the post that I spent 50 bucks and it was a balcony ticket in a good single screen
couldnt write anything beyond this- in fact I’m even surprised I managed to write so much after watching something like this.
Lets see what Sabbir Khan comes up with next & whether he can actually write an original script.
yes Ratnakar you are right about KH remakes in general in Hindi.Virasat was certainly decent though not in Thevar Magan’s league.Same holds true for Eeshwar.
Abhimanyu ( Anil Kapoor ) was a silly copy of KH’s Sagalakala Vallavan.Even Dayavan was no patch on Nayagan.
@Sethu: <<>>
… tats exactly what KI is doing … just to get the eyeballs … why crib then???
… think again!
so, its just to get the eyeballs
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if u title your post just for “effect”, what wrong has nadiadwala done
the reference in previous comment was to this: [The KH angle was used only for effect- nothing more- dont take it for anything too beyond it]
@ Rals-
I thought you’d understand my point.I deliberately did not want this discussion to be wandering into KH’s territory on how good or bad his films are etc.
So I made a quiet little statement which was completely disguised thinking you’d get it.
But now let me tell you that I completely believe in the title.I’ve clearly mentioned the reasons also in the post for supporting the title like-
1. the kind of medium budget used in PKS and shot locally vs the unwanted lavishness of KI
2. the naturality in KH’s character and the way he carries it off vs what Akki does
3. also to some extent the kind of reality that exists in PKS vs versus the fake show in KI
all in all PKS is a project where KH has been involved in the script writing part so when the script is the major culprit in case of KI, it again becomes a sore point.
I can go on & on but lets forget about KH over here.The fact remains that KI is a bad film & I’m certainly shouting this from the rooftop. What a sheer waste of money.
Hope you got it now?
good post and if i write could have not be better than this..i am sorry for akshay.a brilliant actor has been wasted every time and i wish he will make a come back soon coz this way he will lose who actually love him…..rather feeling bad about these comments he should go back and make a cross check list atleast on script level…INDUSTRY IS REALLY PLAYING WITH HIS CAREER BUT HE IS ANWARE OF THE FACT THAT HE IS SIMPLY CONTROBUTING IN THAT…..
“was it too difficult to acknowledge anybody concerned with PKS?”
If the Bollywood audience gets to know that this was a lift off from a regional film, no bollywood fan would watch it due to their general disregard for regional cinema. In any case, the producer had bought out the remake rights, so he need not make anyone concerned with PKS happy
@ Deepak- thanks and yes I agree with your points on Akshay.Its high time he takes a status check on what he is doing and start focusing on the scripts before choosing to do a film.
@ Vasu- I dont think the Bollywood audience is so fickle minded that they’d not watch the movie if they knew its a south remake.even if it were so the makers need not have to publicise but can just give a tiny acknowledgement in the opening/end credits- it wont make any difference.
its not about making anybody concerned with PKS happy, its about giving credit to the source.I’m sure that even in case of Shortkut there may not be any acknowledgement of Udhayananu Tharam.Certainly a disturbing trend IMO.
Well, hordes watched Ghajni knowing its a south remake. That’s besides the point.
Sethu, the Kamal angle is well justified. Here’s a man who in 1/100th of KI’s budget made an immensely fine film in 1/10th of the shooting schedule. PKS is one of the lesser films of Kamal, and yet there are so many wonderul moments in it. As for crazyrals, just a kamal hater, i suppose. Dasavatharam, for its ambition, didnt have the money to fulfil its ambition. Certainly, noone in their right mind would deny that the finances are better deserved for a Marudhanaygam or Marma Yogi. Unfortunately, bolly clowns are getting all the love. Even the Kashyaps and Bharadwajs are outsiders – they wont get this sort of money.
@plum: kamal-hater
… u r joking right! i am one of his bigger fans and sethu’s frivolous usage of words like “i used KH-angle for effect” irked me. thats the reason for using the “grab eyeballs” context that even sajid nadiadwala is doing the same. if u see my first comment[#3], i have clearly stated that money should not be spent on crap movies like KI. plz read comments in correct perspective.
@sethu:i am in total agreement with your post. all i said was that KH could have easily been avoided in this context. why should this amount goto marmayogi or mardhanayagam is unexplained? why should this amount not goto shekhar kapoor’s time-machine or AK’s movie or some other indie movies? thats all my question was??? that still remains unanswered
and of course, PKS itself was not a masterpiece so KI has not done what ramu’s aag did to sholay. so, we can all take a chill-pill. KI has taken a great opening, audience is entertainment hungry. AK is not doing himself any good at all. read this callous interview of AK and his least concern for critics: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/kambakkht-ishq-is-not-vulgar-or-offensive-akshay/96390-8.html
not a good trend at all :(
PKS is not a great movie either but it was set in the right context (Tamil Film Industry) and it had some hilarious scenes. KI should have been set up in Bollywood. The whole Hollywood thing is just a gimmick.
Simran did not play a supermodel cum surgeon. Kamal was a hanuman bhakt (as Sethu mentioned) and his character wasn’t offensive or vulgar. Sneha’s character was more fleshed out as a dominating wife (Amrita obviously cannot act so they probably had to remove that) and Abbas was the henpecked husband.
KI writers took the same original screenplay
(both hating marriage and breaking up the other couple’s marriage with their interference, the surgeon pretending to be in love to retreive the watch) but removed the funniest bits and instead added vulgar scenes and dialogues.
I cannot understand why they removed the scene where Simran is in chains and her dad dies in the dream that she has (that was hilarious) and the scene where Simran tries to get Kamal in that circle of rope. I also liked the scene where Simran is giving a speech and says close friend and Sneha who is sitting next to her moves her chair.
If KI makers had left these jokes in and set up the story in Bollywood with the same characters as the original but removing the Kamal family portions it would have been a very entertaining movie.
I am really scared to say this here..But I liked the movie..I got entertained. A no brainer, went in expecting nothing out of it. It was fun all the way (still don’t like Kareena though), Akshay was superb…
Rals-
The reason I mentioned Marmayogi & Marudhanayagam and not any other movie is very simple.if I was in KH’s shoes and if I see that someone has gone on to make a excessively tasteless film like this at some 10 times the budget of a film of mine which was quite decent in itself, wouldn’t I wonder why is this happening in Bollywood?This was coming from KH’s point of view.
Let me clarify something- basic fact is that I found the movie to be extremely annoying and offensive and would like to let everyone know that.At the same time I had questions to ask Akshay and Sajid and also looked at the situation
from KH’s view point, thats how this post got
developed.
Rals- sorry if I irked you with that statement, I have already explained my rationale for the same.
Went through the link you sent- Akshay seems to be heading nowhere.
@ plum- yes I agree its sad that people get to spend money to make such crap like KI.
@ sputnik- you are very correct in what you’ve mentioned.PKS is certainly a classic in front of a mindless movie like KI.
Akshay comparing KI with Hangover is the joke of the day
@ Hemanthks- dont be scared.I like your guts for speaking honestly
you are the only one whom I know to be giving a positive feel for the movie.
@sethu: no need for apologies man…chillax…
@hemanthks: u need not be scared at all, its a forum to voice opinions. u liked the movie, good for u
I am writing in response to the view that credits must be given while lifting stories.. Completely agree..
But in a lighter vein,
I guess the makers of and PKS and Manichithrathazhu or and Udayananu tharam would only be too happy to have their names not mentioned in the titles of such mindless capers called remakes..
Atleast the original will keep its name intact.. :D
Anyways, the issue needs to be addressed..I totally agree..
@Sethu: You really think Kamal Hassan would bother?!
Anyway, why doesnt the disappointment of this film come as a surprise? Just that I am getting more and more disappointed with Akshay with every choice that he is making. To know that our supposed ‘top stars’ endorse cinema like this (If you can call it that), is disheartening. I dont even want to begin talking about the film. I wonder if it deserves being written about. Anyway, let’s see if the film works. If it doesn’t, that’s damn good for us! And if it does, well, it is janta janardan’s verdict. All we bad-film-haters can do it write! LoL! :D
This discussion on mentioning credit for the original will continue for next week too, with shortKut releasing. Lets see if they will credit the original.
@ jj- check out my comment # 19, even I feel the same in case of Shortkut.
@ Arati- LOL yeah I’ll be shocked if KH will bother after all this.
@ Rahul- this is a serious issue & if Shortkut also follows the same route then it could be an unhealthy trend.
Sethu sahib, sorry to say, but whatte boring post on whatte useless topic yaar. Come on, you can do better than this dull, tedious exercise in futility.
@ JJ Kulkarni- sirjee will keep the feedback in mind & try to write something more interesting the next time around.
loved the review sir
nice move sirjee will keep the feedback in mind & try to write something more interesting the next time around.
kamal’s film , like all of his, got dubbed in telugu as ‘Brahmachari’ and i saw the film twice in the theater. i just loved that film. dint like his later films from the ‘confusion comedy’ genre though… this one just rocked
@ kalki- yes indeed PKS was dubbed as Brahmachari in Telugu.The movie was simple and quite harmless I would say.
@ scratchy,framzez- thanx
the team of KI is going all out to prove its a blockbuster with 1st week collections of 100 crores + ( India +overseas …)and there are the detractors trying to prove them wrong.Great fun- but I am seeing the movie getting taken off theatres or number of shows reduced in most places.
In fact, in my blog, I have mentioned how sick it made me even reading the review of KI, forget watching it. I had made a reference to the Kamal Hassan’s humour in PKS in that. I really do not know whether there is a acknowledgement of that in KI..Crazy Mohan’s brand of humour has made PKS a classic!
@ Subhashini- there’s no acknowledgment of PKS given in KI.I’ve mentioned this in my post above.Of course PKS and KI cannot be compared as such.
Pl do not talk about Akshay Kumar’ and Kamal hassan’ movie off late. They are such a weirdo!
BTW heard PKS was a good movie! Isn’t it?
Hey!there PKS was certainly good.
But I fail to understand why you would call an industry veteran like KH or even Akshay for that matter a weirdo.
Excuse me! Why are you calling KH a weirdo? Is it because of Dashavataram? That was an experiment which failed. In fact, it became a laughing stock. My cousin said: Dashavataram is so full of KH that you will halucinate the ticket-seller, the ticket usherer, the pop-corn seller, even the person sitting next to you looking like KH!
But KH brings humour alive in Michael-madana-kama-rajan, Panchatantram, PKS, Avvai Shanmugi (to name a few). He brought out humour in films, not comedy.
@ Subhashini- went through your blog and I understand your feelings over PKS not getting credited.In fact even the makers of Shortkut did not acknowledge the actual source- Udhayananu Tharam, a malayalam movie.Looks like this could be the start of an unhealthy trend.
BTW Naaka Muka,Chennai & Kolkata/Calcutta all rock