Wednesday Watching Post: What Are You Reading and Watching and Thinking This Week?

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Happy Wednesday!  Almost forgot to put this up again, but then I remembered!  It was a roller coaster of emotion.

I’ll start!  I’ve been watching JHMS in the background a lot while I do other things, it’s a great background movie because every moment is interesting and pretty, so no matter when I look up and start paying attention, there will be something good to see.  I’ve also been watching a lot of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, because it’s streaming on Amazon Prime!  And also, I feel no obligation to pay close attention to it, so it is just a nice thing in the background while I am writing.

For reading, I started Prem Hai Mera, Prem Chopra which is just as fun as I was hoping.  Very lowkey and nice, as I have always heard Prem Chopra is in real life.  But interesting little tidbits about the 50s-60s industry.  For instance, he became friends with his future brother-in-law Premnath when they were stuck on elephants standing next to each other during a battle sequence in a Sikander film.   The shot kept getting messed up, so they were up there all day for weeks at a time, and they used to sneak snacks when the director wasn’t looking.

And for thinking, I am thinking about Sunday School starting up again!  First class this week, I’m supposed to print out and prepare all kinds of materials, and I’ve got a new teacher working with me which means I will be carrying dead weight.  So, lot’s of planning required that I will have to squeeze in somewhere, and I will also need to practice my scary “pay attention to me” voice.  Or at least my nice “I’m the cool young teacher who you want to be friends with, come play with me” voice.

 

Now, question for you!  I put up a post yesterday about Bang Bang, my big silly fun happy making Movie movie of choice.  What is yours?  What film just always makes you smile and never makes you think?

124 thoughts on “Wednesday Watching Post: What Are You Reading and Watching and Thinking This Week?”

  1. Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge. If you try to analyze it, it won’t stand up at all, and seems like an obvious attempt to capitalize on the popularity of DDLJ. But it never fails to cheer me up and relax me, and it has some good music, and some REALLY hot visuals of young and fit Salman. And I’m often left wondering why it works so well, but I can never figure it out.

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    • That is an excellent choice of a cheer up smiles film! I only watched it once I think (maybe twice), but I definitely remember smiling the whole time.

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 7:37 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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  2. Watching: Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Billu, for my chronological journal through Shah Rukh’s filmography, and Rangeela, to make up for all the lost years when I had no idea that I would love Indian films so much. I have also been catching up on this current season of Project Runway, the only reality show I really love. I used to teach fashion design, and used a “problem-solving” approach that was a very tame version of what they do in the show. We have also been watching a lot of English Premier League and World Cup qualifying soccer, and a little lit of college football (Go Terps! Fear the Turtle!)

    I have been reading the history of the Lane Bryant company, for my serious book, and some explanations of S&M for my very unserious fan fiction project. How should I post it, by the way? I am thinking a Google doc link where you can leave comments? I do consider it a draft, and will be revising if you think it’s worthy.

    I have been thinking about my upcoming travel, to Connecticut and Nebraska, which will involve lots of switching airplanes, buses, trains, rental cars, etc. This means I have been having scary dreams about losing my tickets.

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    • I just bought a bunch of clothes from Lane Bryant! They are my go to store because a) they actually make/sell clothes that fit people shaped like women and b) free shipping and return if you order online and pick ship to store.

      Rangeela and Billu and my Luck By Chance annotated edition should teach you all you need to know about Indian film! I really need to re-watch Rangeela sometime, possible for a Classics Friday post.

      For the fanfiction, if you want you can post it on WordPress! That’s what Asmita did with hers. It’s free and easy to set up a WordPress account, especially if you just want a place to dump text that allows for comments. That’s why I set up my first account, I wanted a way to share the basic findings of my research with all the people I interviewed, so I just threw it up on WordPress and sent around the link.

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          • Thanks! I am not sure where to go next, but willl let the characters take the lead. As for the dance numbers, especially with the guys, it’s strictly to please all the other mature ladies like myself.

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          • I may have told this story before, but I showed Dard-E-Disco in a class once as part of a talk on male/female gaze and identity in Indian film, and the one and only male student there, after first admitting that he felt a little uncomfortable being alone in a room with a bunch of male objectifying women, pointed out that there were scantily clad female back up dancers. WHO KNOW??? I had honestly never noticed them before.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 12:37 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • 😂 and in case someone really doesn’t get exactly what the female gaze does to men, they can just go through some of the older articles’ comments section!!

            Wait is that why filmmakers don’t make female-gaze centric films (like they do for men!)?

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          • I always thought they DID make female gaze centered films (Jab Harry Met Sejal), but after this story, I began to realize that those would more properly be considered just “balanced” films, there were male gaze elements as well that I hadn’t noticed.

            Although, I might still argue that Aiyyaa and Ohm Shanti Oshana are female gaze centered.

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          • Aiyya is definitely IT. OSO is just a teenaged girl liking a guy. It underplays the gaze. Of course it features a barely-18 girl at the beginning so it would be creepy if they didn’t underplay it.

            I like the “balanced” interpretation. Of course it also means that everytime you have a female-gaze inviting film (let’s say Gunday), the target audience is women, straight men who would want to be those men and gay men. And it’s kept subtle enough so it’s almost a family film.

            Take a male gaze inviting example. Let’s say Sheila ki jawaani. Target audience- straight men. Women DON’T want to be that woman because there are too many men around her on the screen and they wear the same expression that the filmmaker wants the men in the audience to have too. The expression is-rapey. There’s no female gaze equivalent of THIS phenomenon.

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          • I really want to come up with a counter example, and I can’t. This is as close as I can think of:

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 12:59 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Yes. The lyrics. Plus there are “virginal” girls torturing him and beating him up. See how they have face packs and curlers and unattractive night clothes on?? Also, all that being on all fours by all those girls– tilting the balance a lot and definitely a lot of cleavage baring. More “balanced” than you’d think.

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          • Yeah, you’re right. But so close! Just make it a car load of prostitutes or something, and a little more clothes tearing, and we would be there.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:14 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • I’m having the same feeling! Something with a guy having his clothes torn off by a bunch of women. There’s a moment kind of like that in Kaho Na Pyar Hai, and one “chase” song in One 2 Ka 4, but I feel like there is something else.

            Not Desi Boyz, right?

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          • What about that one song from Hum Hain Rahe Pyar Ke?

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:23 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Also, I just thought about it and Aiyya is us looking at a heroine with a female gaze. So it’s second hand female gaze. Which is new for our industry but not really the same thing as everything else on screen that caters to male desires.

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          • It’s still way way better than anything on offer in the West. Magic Mike aside.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:07 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • So you missed Jon Snow’s butt on display because female fans requested it? And the same scene also featured a naked Danaerys so yeah “balanced” ugh, all this sexism in entertainment makes me mad!!! 😡

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          • What really makes me mad is people getting mad. Like, a male butt is a HUGE story and people are for it or against it or whatever. But all the stuff women have to show onscreen, that’s just “Normal”, like, who would even care about that? Parity! That’s what I want. Either no one is sexualized at all, or everyone is sexualized equally, but the double standard drives me crazy. Also, why DO the guys get to wear coats and boots in the snow and the women are stuck in tiny little thin saris?

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:11 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Thank you!!! Tharkipana for all or nobody gets to have it!!

            Also on my hate list — this lopsided Tharkipana being served to children via U/A certificate films that get shown on tv. Did you know Sheila ki jawaani and Munni Badnaam and Kajrare were songs little girls danced to in school functions? How fucking disgusting is that?!

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          • Yes! And I think in this case I wouldn’t want parity. I don’t need to see little boys stripping their shirts off to dance to Dard-E-Disco.

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          • Well, surely not LITTLE little boys, right? Only over 18 year old boys?

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:22 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Ewwwwww! I don’t want to see that!!!! Make that stop!

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 1:25 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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  3. Oh, and my “cheer up” smiles movie right now is RNBDJ; Raj is one of his very best comic roles, and Anushka is so good in her debut! But when things get really dreary in the winter time, I have been known to host all-day marathons of Fawlty Towers with homemade chili and cornbread.

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  4. Reading (well listening, actually, since the audio book is read by the author) What Happened? by Hillary Clinton. Just today on the way to work I both laughed out loud and cried. Smart, funny, and sincerely tries to answer that question that so many of us have been asking since 11/9.

    Watching: I think I’ll watch Bang Bang this weekend after your great review. Also hopefully binge watching the new season of Endeavor.

    Smiley movie (and TV since joyomama took it there): Clue, and Jeeves and Wooster. And my two SRK song DVD’s. I really like to have those on while doing tedious paperwork or organizing type tasks.

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    • Question: do I need to watch the entire Inspector Morse series before watching Endeavor? Or, alternatively, do I need to watch all of Endeavor before watching Inspector Morse? I am trying to decide which way best follows my “must see things in order” rule.

      I have to admit that I still haven’t seen Clue, even though I have been told over and over again that it is super fun. Also in that category, Murder By Death. I have seen the entire run of Jeeves and Wooster many many many many many times. So weird when House started and everyone else in the world discovered Hugh Laurie, and thought of him as this “serious actor”! I can’t even watch that show, because he shows up and I just think “Bertie!”

      and you should definitely watch Bang Bang! From what I know of your taste based on your comments, I think you would really like it.

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 8:25 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • Hi, Endeavor is fine as a stand-alone. You may miss some Morse Easter Eggs, but you can always catch those another time.

        I watched many of the Morse episodes when they aired (I am old) and have watched some again on Amazon. I hate to say that, as much as I love the setting and characters, they haven’t really aged that well.

        I was obsessed with House, for the first 5 seasons or so. After that it went downhill pretty fast. But I loved it when glimpses of Bertie would show through Greg House.

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        • there was all that talk about Hugh Laurie’s perfect American accent, and I just wanted him to slip so I could get my little bit of Bertie!

          On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 11:11 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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  5. My all time happy film– Hulchul. I love it, my mom loves it, my dad loved it, my brother loved it and it somehow was always playing in our house on TV either in my room or my parents’ room and it was the one film all four of us could watch together without me, my brother and my dad fighting over something or the other.

    Watching– well, life feels kinda empty after Biju. I wanna watch another film exactly like that. So I guess I’ll stop with films for a while and watch either the latest season of Modern Family or try to find some zombie/post-apocalyse kinda show. Or I’d get around to finishing This us Us and Shameless.

    Reading – there’s a copy of The Company of Women by Khushwant Singh that my auntie lent me and it’s just been lying on my nightstand. I might finally start it tonight.

    Thinking — I really should hit the gym. The weather’s finally sorta bearable and if I don’t start in the next 10 days, I’ll get sucked into the holiday season and the birthday season and then it will be winters and I would then just end up postponing it for after holi. Also, thinking about eating healthier because I’ve been indulging in some very unhealthy routines since before Holi! I haven’t taken a break from them as I usually do (didn’t even fast over Saavan this year) so yeah gotta thinking about that.

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    • YES!!! Another Hulchul lover! Assuming we are thinking of the same Hulchul? Kareena-Akshaye? Hulchul is one of my all time favorite films, Kareena actually does a great performance, the item song is amazing, Akshaye is Akshaye-riffic, and Suniel Shetty and Jackie Shroff are there too.

      Here’s my review: https://dontcallitbollywood.com/2016/05/09/hulchul-my-favorite-hindi-priyadarshan-movie-its-all-about-the-cast/

      Hmm, a film like Biju? Maheshinte Pasthakam (sp?) has a similar kind of slow easy slice of life feel to it, but a very different hero. Jacobinte Swarigan does a little too, but again a very different hero. Oh! Angamaly Diaries! That might be a good option.

      I haven’t been to the gym in like 6 months. Because I was moving, which was better than any work out (two hours every night putting heavy books in boxes and then taking them out of boxes). But the move is now officially over, so I really need to figure that out. Although, that also means giving up 3 of my precious 18 unscheduled hours per week. Maybe I just figure running after a dozen 8 year olds every Sunday morning is good enough. On the other hand, eating much better since my new place has a great kitchen so I can make my own food!

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 8:44 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • Running after 8 year olds definitely counts!! Yey for healthy eating. Although do we know what that means anymore? Following diet trends is the hardest part. That’s my weakness. I love food way too much!

        And yes, that’s the film!!

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        • I figure so long as I am actually cooking instead of using delivery/take-out as my kitchen, it’s got to be healthier.

          On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 9:44 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • It varies depending on the year. We are getting into fall now, which means I am about to go pumpkin crazy. Pie, soup, stew, bread, everything.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 9:50 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • As I continue to try to find the right lighting/camera placement location, I’ve been thinking about that! More importantly, the kitchen is also where I have my massive floor to ceiling wall poster of Veer-Zaara.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 10:49 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • The ones I did with her in her car? I could always just sit in my car and put the camera on the dashboard 🙂

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 10:57 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Yes. The ones in her car. The video clarity, lighting and sound are perfect in those.

            I dunno about the car thing. That’s moviemavengal’s thing. If she’s ok with you doing the same thing and if you’re OK doing the same thing as her it might work. Whatever causes the least amount of stress for you because ultimately I’d want more than just BO reports in the videos. Like The Pain of Disco was an amazing one. That content isn’t available anywhere else.

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          • Really? For the content? Because I could do something like that once a day, SO MANY thoughts are stuck in my head. I just figured stick with box office because that way I can refer to recent movies and stuff.

            But heck, I can do 5 minutes on industry theory every morning for infinity.

            On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 11:29 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Yes please!!!!! And don’t worry about the final finishes for now. Do like small, just talking videos and you can go back and make elaborate ones with the graphics and all whenever you have the time/inclination to do so. The in-car thing would then be like “so this is what I thought about driving to work today”.

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          • Seriously tempted to just do it WHILE driving to work, in a savvy time management way. But that seems ultimately very unsafe.

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          • Well, you can just not look at the camera. But yes, that is unsafe. Maybe record drafts for final videos when you’re driving and then you can read through your notes when you’re doing the actual video later??

            I think you should try getting as many thoughts you can on video first. You can always reshoot. The pain of disco was an amazing one and a memorable one. I’d definitely watch a more refined version of that again.

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  6. Only new film this week was Jab Harry Met Sejal but already commented on that. Couldn’t finish Sarkar 3, so I’ve decided that this will be one of those film series where I forget the sequel/prequel was ever made (i.e. The Hobbit, the second Sex and the City film, etc).

    But I’m really getting hooked on some Indian web series and have discovered that it really is where the more interesting “television” stuff is happening in the industry (and there are both Hindi and Tamil series that I know of so far). I had already watched Bang Baaja Baarat and enjoyed it but I finished the first series of Permanent Roommates plus the first episode of series 2 (which was even better), also TVF’s Tripling was really, really good, one of the best modern Indian treatments of sibling relationships. Since the total run time is I think just less then two hours, it felt like watching a light and breezy dramedy film. By far my favorite web series so far. When did Kunal Roy Kapur become a hottie?! Also, Sumeet Vyas really is fabulous, adorable in Permament Roommates and sexy in Tripling (and he looks amazing in a suit). Also watched Better Life Foundation, a very fun remake of The Office set in an NGO with Kanan Gill and a great comic cast.

    Not all web series that I’ve tried have hooked me…Life Sain Hai about four guys living in Delhi was particularly offensive. And Livin’, a Tamil series had great potential but fell flat for me.

    Still reading Sonali Dev’s A Distant Heart and sadly it’s just not maintaining my interest like her other novels, even though its set in Mumbai and feels like a movie script.

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    • Oh, and I have so many mindless comfort watches like Bang Bang. Mere Brother Ki Dulhan is one of them. Chori Chori (with Rani/Ajay), Dhoom 2, and I Hate Luv Storys.

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      • Yes to I Hate Luv Storys! The big flaw is how horrible our “hero” is when we first meet him, but if you power through the first 20 minutes, it turns into such a great grown-up unusual love story. Plus, gotta love Karan making fun of himself.

        On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 9:00 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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        • Yep, I don’t even like the chemistry between Imran and Sonam that much, but the light satire of the industry and romantic comedies in general is just mindless fun.

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    • So glad you are keeping me up to date on web serieses! I know it’s a “think”, but I just cna’t find the time to follow them. Did you see our exchange earlier this week on how great it would be if Shahrukh did a limited run kind of series like that? I can picture him so clearly in some kind of Hitchcock style “normal guy who is caught up in a conspiracy” sort of role, with a wife and kids and stuff as part of his “regular” life.

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 8:55 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • I’m hoping that Saif’s turn in Sacred Games will inspire more migration of big stars to the television/streaming/web series world and we will get content like that! I know Anil has done the 24 thing in India (haven’t seen it), but I could easily see SRK and others in that kind of role or in a remake of any number of limited run/critically acclaimed series, like Luther or Sherlock.

        The web/streaming content is so clearly influenced by global industries (ie The Office remake) but what’s really interesting to note is how free-wheeling they are with the f-word and other racier content. Clearly, not having to deal with the censors lends itself to much more realistic content.

        If you want to invest your time in any of them, I suggest Tripling, though I feel like Permament Roommates is the most popular one, I think.

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      • I need SRK and Kangana as Luther and Alice in my life!

        I think SRK would also be great in a worn down cop kind of role that is less serial-killer-y. Like John Rebus. I love Ian Rankin’s books and there’s never been a decent TV or movie adaptation.

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  7. Watching – nothing! for the past nearly-two weeks. I think I have withdrawal symptoms. Might get to see Victoria and Abdul next week.

    Reading – a bunch of easy read, cosy crime books downloaded from Bookbub.

    Cheer up movie – Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi every time.

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    • I am entering my crime book phase. Every summer I read children’s books, fall I read mysteries, winter/Christmas bad romance novels, and then spring is up for grabs.

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 12:16 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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  8. I caught up with all the major Malayalam releases from the past 6 months on the Onam weekend.The channels were on a movie marathon and I barely got time for the traditional Onam activities.Godha is definitely the best of the bunch.Tovino is getting better with each new film.Watch out Nivin and Dulquer. I love how Nivin and Tovino payed their dues and graduated slowly from doing friend-of-the-hero roles to meatier roles.Their craft improved along the way.And contrary to my fears, the heroine is quite different from the Dangal girls.

    I also caught up with Phillauri and Behen hogi teri.The former was quite satisfying and I hope Anushka will carry on making these kind of ‘hatke’ films.Behen hogi teri was disappointing with Rajkumar Rao the only shining light.I think this is the first time that we’ve seen a hero who is a ‘coward’ in the literal sense.We’ve seen gamma heores and boys who refuse to grow up.But this is different.And the parody on Kala Chashma and the religious ecstasy which leads to the Goddess inhabiting a devotee was interesting.

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    • Godha came out right after I saw Guppy, so I was really curious about it. But I missed it in theaters, and then it kind of seemed like no one was talking about it after that, so I wasn’t sure if it was worth tracking down. Sounds like it is. Also, I got to see Tovino live and he was SO SHY. Like, trying to fall through the stage so we would stop looking at him shy. It was really cute.

      Agree about paying their dues. To be mean for a second, it was super frustrating watching ABCD with Dulquer being way over his head in this role and knowing that any other actor would have had to be in 4-5 movies in a smaller role before he got this one.

      On Wed, Sep 13, 2017 at 12:23 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • That’s not mean.We were a whole lot meaner.However Dulquer in ABCD has nothing on Prithviraj in Nandanam.The heroine went home with all the glory while poor Prithviraj did an excellent impression of furniture.But boy did it all change after Vargam and Vasthavam.He literally made us eat our words.

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        • Prithviraj was fantastic in his second film – Stop Violence and what about Fahadh Faasil everyone had written him off after his first film and he went away to study acting and came back being a matured and Natural actor.

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  10. Watching: I’ve been in the States visiting my sister, so not so much. Of course, we did Raja Hindustani and my sister watched while working, and then later we played the fight scene over for my BIL. Everyone enjoyed that. Then on the flight back my Indian options were MS Dhoni or Azhar (WHY two sports biopics on the same flight, United Airlines???) and Baar Baar Dekho so I watched Baar Baar Dekho. It is not bad if you are trapped on an 11 hour flight. I thought Katrina didn’t suck as much as usual. Sid, on the other hand . . . I mean, I didn’t think he could be less convincing until I saw him in age progression makeup. Nothing like an actual mask on a non-actor.

    My happy movie: Main Hoon Na, Band Baaja Baaraat, or Salaam E Ishq. The last is just too long for frequent rewatching but sometimes I skip through my favorite subplots or just listen to the music. Main Hoon Na is what I watched the night of the presidential election, so that’s for when I need to bring out the big guns.

    Thinking: Going to Bangladesh next week to do some teacher training and I’m not done with my presentations and we’re going to have a typhoon! Once I’m there it will be great but right now I’m in extended freak out mode.

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  11. This week I was super busy and not so much time to watch movies. I did attend the Shreya Ghoshal concert in Chicago with friends, and that was super fun. My dance teacher also had a program called The Making of a Bahu (Daughter-in-law) which was a mix of classical and modern Indian dance which is actually based on her research project about daughter-in-laws in India and America (also Desi). There was an extensive discussion afterwards that was super interesting.

    I tried to see Chay Akkineini’s Yuddham Sharanam, but there were no subs at my theater which has had them for every other movie of his so I didn’t even think to ask. Bummed!

    I showed two friends who are newbies to Bollywood, Band Baaja Baaraat. They thought it took Ranveer a Looooong time to get a clue. I hadn’t seen it in quite awhile, and it amused me how I recognized all the background songs now at the weddings. Band Baaja Baaraat was one of the first Indian films I saw, so interesting as a yardstick both recognizing the songs, and while I can’t speak Hindi, I could sense their accents much more now.

    I also watched Anjaam, the 1994 first film pairing of Madhuri and SRK. Video review will be out later today. Wow that was hard to see Madhuri be tortured for 2/3rds of the film, and then she went all Kali Maa at the end getting revenge on everyone. Interesting that it came out a few months before HAHK, and she was nominated for best actress Filmfare for both films, but won for HAHK. SRK won best villain. This is after Darr and Baazigar, in his villain anti-hero phase, and just on the cusp of DDLJ. I’ve watched it once now, my 54th SRK film, but likely never will again, except for Madhuri’s great dance clips.

    Also, Johnny Lever as a Hijra == MY EYES!!

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    • Ooo! A heroine with glasses! Also, I really like that the fight scene didn’t come until the very end, it looks like the rest of the time he is more of a thinky hero. Which would be cool! A guy who stares at a computer all day in headquarters who has to turn into an action guy.

      On Thu, Sep 14, 2017 at 2:44 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • Usually whenever there’s a heroine with glasses, they end up making her nerdy/clumsy. I hope it’s not like that. But it looks like the heroine in Spyder is more tied to the plot when compared to the heroine in Thupakki and Kaththi (Murugadoss’s last two movies).

        I think there will be a multiple action sequences in the movie but I do agree that he seems like more of a think first, then act hero. Have you seen Thuppakki because this reminds me of that in the tone.

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        • I haven’t. I’d say I will try to watch it before this one comes out, but I’ve already got your list of priorities for my next films so I have to work through all those first!

          On Thu, Sep 14, 2017 at 9:56 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • Wait, have you seen Holiday: A Soldier is Never Off Duty with Akshay? Because that was the Hindi remake of Thuppakki which was also directed by AR Murugadoss.

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          • I have! I loved it! In a big silly action movie kind of way. I also saw Akira, which I think Murugadoss directed himself? and I really liked that one.

            On Thu, Sep 14, 2017 at 10:03 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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          • I loved it too! I mean I loved Thuppakki but it’s basically the same movie with different actors. The story is the same, locations are the same, most of the songs are picturized the same way, etc.

            Yeah, he made Akira as well but I still haven’t seen it. I wanted to before it came out but then I heard it wasn’t very good so I ended up never seeing it.

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          • I really really like Akira. It’s definitely darker than Holiday, but it’s got a great heroine and great fight scenes and Amit Sadh, my new crush.

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  14. This weekend watching was interesting so I thought I’d share:) I’m working on converting one of my good friends to Bollywood fandom. She loves old school Hollywood musicals and dance in films in general and so far we’ve watched Aaja Nachle, Khoobsurat, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, and Bang Bang. This weekend we both needed a good romantic comedy. We ended up watching 2 States and she cried throughout it, something she does at most movies (see, she’s perfect convert material).

    Also watched another episode of the second season of Permanent Roommates and it really is so good.

    Spent tons of time watching Coke Studio videos and downloading my favorites. Already liked Ali Zafar, of course, but Umair Jaswal is another talented pretty boy with a great pop voice and Meesha Shafi is a great singer who reminds me of Sunidhi Chauhan, not necessarily the voice but the sexiness and the fierceness of her vocals. And then there are the “real” artists/musicians on the show…Mai Dhai, Abida Parveen, wow!

    Then for a complete change of pace, I watched the first episode of Farah Khan’s Lip Sing Battle (no subtitles but I got the gist of it). Farhan Akhtar (Disco Dancer) vs. Arjun Kapoor (Khalyanak). Very silly, but I’m definitely watching the full season. Next week Karan Johar dances to Rock n Roll Soniye and he really is a good dancer.

    Finally decided I really did need to see Disco Dancer after seeing Farhan spoof it. I guess I know what all the fuss has been about! It’s like the director and everyone involved set out to make a “cult” film from the beginning. It’s so amazingly fantastic.

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    • You are so good at watching the TV shows! I just cannot get myself to focus on Hindi/Indian stuff if there isn’t a song break and big stars and romantic drama involved. Sounds like all of your options involve one of those elements, but not all of them.

      And i haven’t even seen Disco Dancer! Just the title song. But Dina (my podcast friend) has been nagging me to watch old-school Mithun movies with her, she’s been on kind of a kick, so maybe I should check it out. Possible Friday classic option?

      On Sun, Sep 17, 2017 at 8:48 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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      • I think you’ll absolutely love it and it’s definitely Friday classic material. I had seen clips of the songs but it’s nothing compared to the whole thing. I’m fascinated by the fact that this is a beloved movie in Russia and parts of Africa. Om Puri as his manager cracks me up, because he just doesn’t belong in this film. And there’s a great special appearance by Rajesh Khanna. A must see.

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        • Karz is AMAZING!!! The all time reincarnation classic. And Rishi is delightful, and the villain is extremely amusingly villianous and generally all things are good. Definitely definitely track it down.

          On Mon, Sep 18, 2017 at 9:03 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:

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  16. I think my big happy film in Telugu is Dookudu! I’ve seen it so many times that basically have every dialogue memorized. I think my Hindi pick would be Main Tera Hero. The Telugu original used to be one of those movies that I loved but now I stopped watching it because of Main Tera Hero. It’s such a fun, colorful, happy movie with a very cute Varun!

    I’ve seen three movies this weekend. The first one was a Telugu movie called Keshava. It’s a revenge thriller with a really interesting premise; the main character has a heart condition that restricts him from getting too excited. So even while killing someone, he has to do it very calmly. The movie was pretty nice but I felt like it was just a regular revenge thriller; they didn’t do anything special with the hero’s heart condition. I was kind of disappointed because of that.

    Next I ended up watching a small budget Telugu independent film called Vellipomaakey. It wasn’t that great and it was really slow. Usually I don’t mind slow movies but this one was kinda boring.

    Then I ended up rewatching Biwi No.1 because I really liked Salman and Karisma together in Judwaa. I still don’t get why Salman started cheating on his wife after spending the first 10 or so minutes of the movie singing about how his wife is the best. I looked it up and the original to Biwi No.1, a Tamil movie called Sathi Leelavathi, makes more sense. In that movie, the main character apparently wants to cheat on his wife because she’s fat. Anyway, I didn’t really like Biwi No.1 as much as I liked Judwaa. So far in all the David Dhawan movies I’ve seen, Judwaa and Main Tera Hero are my favorites.

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    • I think I like the Biwi No.1 version better. It may not make any sense, but I have an easier time forgiving Salman for cheating just because it was convenient than because his wife got fat. Have you seen Andaz Apna Apna yet? Not a Dhawan, but another great Karisma/Salman comedy.

      I really should rewatch Dookadu and pay attention this time. Or at least pay attention at the parts I skipped and skip the parts I paid attention to last time. And probably ditto for Main Tera Hero!

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      • I’ve been meaning to watch Andaz Apna Apna for a while now. I didn’t actually know that Karisma’s in it.

        Dookudu will be fun even a second time! Plus you’ll get some more of the jokes since you know who Nagarjuna is now 🙂

        Main Tera Hero isn’t as good. It’s fun but I just think that Varun is really cute in it and I can spend the entire movie looking at him.

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        • Definitely watch Andaz Apna Apna!!!! And then rewatch it, it is way better on the second watch when you can appreciate the set up for the jokes and so on.

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