Happy Monday! Back to normal life for 3 days, then holiday again, and then depressing nothing for simply AGES. February is the shortest month, but always feels longest.
Here is where you get to ask me anything you want! From “are you going to do awards for 2020?” to “wait, did Salman’s birthday happen and we missed it?” Just keep swinging back to this post all week as you think of new questions.
Now, question for you! Two questions actually. First, how are you doing with post-Christmas depression?
I’m doing okay! Day after Christmas, spent the whole day in my PJs watching junk TV and eating junk food and ignoring all the holiday mess around my apartment and generally feeling bleak. And then yesterday, the day after the day after Christmas, I actually got dressed, put away my presents, did one of my new puzzles, drove over for my monthly gas purchase, and put a bunch of cards in the mail (check your mailbox, good people!). Today I have to face the reality of doing my job-job, blech! Thank goodness I only have to do it for 3 and a half days.
Second, Oops, I did miss Salman’s birthday! Oh well, what is your favorite Salman film?
Bajrangi Bhaijaan! It’s been years and years now, and I still love it.
dontcallitbollywood 
Bajrangi Bhaijaan is my favourite Salman film as well.
To cope up with this dilemma of the enthusiasm of New Year and the withdrawal of Christmas,do you intend to revisit Manichitrathazhu?I would love to read your review,now that you are much more familiar with Malayalam cinema.
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Nah, I’m doing brainless stuff.
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I think Sultan is still my favorite Salman film but I also really love Salman’s character in KKHH if that counts!
I was wondering, what remake (either old Hindi movie or a southern movie) would you want to see David Dhawan and Varun to work on next?
My answer to this would be a Nani movie called Bale Bale Magadivoy which is hilarious and I think would be a really fun plot to put in the hands of this duo.
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Sultan is pretty good. GREAT title song.
If we are going outside the box, then I want Varun and his Dad to do The Gay Divorcee next!!!! It’s the first Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers movie, based on a stage play, and a classic farce. A woman wants to divorce her husband but he won’t let her divorce him. So her lawyer hires a gigolo to act as a fake lover to force the divorce. The plan is that they will meet at a resort, pretend to be having an affair, and then the husband will catch them. Only at the same time, a nice young man has met her and fall in love at first sight. She mistakes him for the hired gigolo and there are loads of misunderstandings, for instance when she practically invites him up to her hotel room minutes after they meet. You can imagine the complications on top of complications, the real gigolo shows up, the husband shows up too and refuses to give a divorce so they need a new plan, and so on. It’s got the perfect little bit of social rule breaking, divorce treated as a comedy. Plus it has love at first sight, which Varun does so well. And there are all kinds of fun roles, from the real gigolo (a dedicated family man who takes his job as a fake co-respondent for divorce cases very seriously), to the incompetant lawyer, to the evil husband.
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 10:48 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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ooh yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun! and there’s a lot to work with in terms of roles.
my feeling is that whenever they work together next, they’ll definitely not remake one of david’s own movies again because theres been some backlash both J2 and CN1.
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Okay, I watched Raabta earlier this year on your recommendation and LOVED it. What are some similar films that are fun, romantic and don’t take themselves too seriously (bonus points if they’ve got a great villain). Should I finally give Jann-e-Mann a shot?
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Mirzya, Jaan-E-Mann, Befikre, I like them all! And the critics didn’t because they are STUPID.
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Done! There go my New Year’s Eve plans 🙂
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Oh, also Laaga Chunari Main Daag, Jhoom Barabara Jhoom, and A Gentleman. And maybe Baar Baar Dekho.
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Oh, I’ve seen A Gentleman! I watched it right after I saw Raabta. It was just okay for me, but I probs would have liked it more if there had been more Suniel Shetty. He looked GOOD, even if he was supposed to be the villain.
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Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Ek Tha Tiger and Maine Pyar Kiya for fave Salman films. I have to work today so post Christmas depression is rough ðŸ˜. I have zero concetration.
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And I am HERE FOR YOU!!!! I see you already found my “shirtless” post.
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But have you reviewed AK vs. AK? I really want to talk about it here! Melanie and I recorded a review but it’s not getting a lot of traffic so I think the reaction to it is mixed but I loved it.
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I’ve got a date to watch it with Dina tonight over Netflix Party, will probably review tomorrow.
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Oh oh, have you started the watching Bridgerton? It’s so stupid and so fun!!! Plus period costumes!
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I can’t decide! I’ve read all the Bridgerton books and they are super fun, but I think it might weird me out to see it in a TV show version.
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 1:58 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I now want to read the books! I am actually glad I didn’t read the books before watching the series!
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Oh I have already heard great things about Soul on Disney+ and will likely be watching it this weekend!
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Yes! My parents and I are planning to watch it too!
Have you watched Pick of the Litter yet on Disney Plus? Now that Theo Dog has graduated, it is the perfect time.
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 2:16 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Oooh no, I have not but now I will! Thanks! I need fun things to watch this weekend after having to work all week. Working the week after Christmas is the WORST!
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Pick of the Litter is the BEST. Guaranteed smile.
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 2:41 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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They can’t possibly be the same. The books are the standard super light short romance. Really well-written, great dialogue and relationship conflicts, but light and short. Like, one book would be enough for one or maybe two hour long TV episodes. So I am assuming they smooshed them together and have all kinds of things happening at once.
Also, a good 3rd of the books is just pornography (she is very big on oral sex), so I am EXTREMELY curious how that can translate to film? Especially since it’s well-written, so it’s mostly internal. How do you convey “she felt a great sweep of warmth over her breasts” in a TV show?
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 2:13 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Oh, it goes pretty slow initially (as in there is not much plot) and from what I have read about the Netflix series, it basically sticks to the first book but adds some additional characters and sets the plot lines for the other siblings for the second and third season. I have a feeling the second season will veer away from the books and smush multiple books together. Also, I don’t think the book does this, but I got a very distinct gay/bisexual vibe from Benedict Bridgerton on Netflix, so I really hope the second season goes there and veers off the book.
Also, during the first half of the series, I just desperately wanted to give all the young women sex-education lessons. I would be so rich doing that!
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This is also covered in the books! As part of all the oral sex scenes and stuff. Although the Daphne plot revolves around lack of knowledge of where babies come from in a very specific way, so that one is even more extreme. Very curious how they will convey that plot without X-Rated sex scenes, as in the book.
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There are definitely some very adult sex scenes – mostly in the second half of the series. My husband jumped in around the end of episode 5 and just went, WOW this is graphic!
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I distinctly remember from the first book a whole discussion of the stickiness of sperm and how to wipe it off.
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Yeah it doesn’t go there quite as graphically! Probably because eww! But it does seem to imply it through looks and gazes.
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HA! I have to see a look that implies “yuch, I did not realize sperm was gross and sticky” and “sorry for my gross sticky sperm, let me lovingly wash it off you”.
On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 3:00 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Benedict in the books has a Cinderella story. He’s the prince and he meets a Cinderella at a ball and loses her. So he could be playing it as “lost secret love he is pining for”, or he could be playing it as “lost secret love he is pining for who is also a boy”
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This thread is amazing. So many things I’m clueless about. Bridgerton books? Pick of the Litter? And so many Indian films I may have seen but can’t remember the names of. How do you? Telugu titles have so many letters. I run a Ram Charan film that looks interseting and, damn! I’ve seen it before. This happens a lot.
I’m not a big Samlan fan young or old. But I liked Bodyguard.
Can’t wait for the Ak vs Ak revue. i think it missed the mark as to what exactly it was supposed to be: farce? high comedy? insider’s joke? Anil showcase? twisted adventure? I have to say I enjoyed it altho parts made me go, “Oh come on.” Not the parts with Harshvaardan. I loved those.
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Bridgerton Books are hit Regency Romances that Netflix turned into a series, which seems REALLY weird to me! You know romances, right? Even if they are well-written, it’s still just a few misunderstandings, a lot of sex scenes, and a happy ending. How is that a TV show????
Pick of the Litter you would ADORE. It is a show about dogs on Disney Plus, if you have access to Disney Plus.
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I think that’s why I like the series so much because it is just such a silly fantasy ridiculous romance! The misunderstandings are so stupid and easily fixable. The romance is so over-the-top swoony, yet childish. It is like watching a teen drama but with adults in period costumes. Exactly what I needed after Christmas!
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Xmas : I’m not really a rituals person. Fun to do with family and friends, but equally happy to just be by myself and watch a good movie or go for a bike ride or make/ cook a complicated recipe I’ve been dying to try. Maybe it’s from growing up with multiple cultures, thus multiple sets of rituals – it made me more interested in rituals than invested in them. So I haven’t experienced post ritual depression either. The closest similar feeling I used to have was the first week of summer following the end of the school year – a blues you maybe didn’t have because you were home schooled? This year, between pandemic and my parent’s increasing dementia, we actually haven’t done Xmas yet, we are waiting for parent to have a lucid day, then we’ll have a zoom Xmas with the rest of the extended family. It might happen today, fingers crossed.
Salman : I haven’t seen too many Salman films, so the ones I’ve seen him in I’ve liked, since I’ve only seen what I would have liked. I saw these in theater and liked them all (and liked him in them) at the time, not sure if I’d feel the same today – Tere Naam, Jaan e Maan, Ek tha Tiger. Love him in HDDCS, especially the final scene where the film reveals that he’s actually BSC – he does BSC well (and should play BSC characters more often in films!), though it kind of ruins the movie. Instead of Aish’s choice of Ajay being about her character growth, Ajay just becomes an obvious alternative to BSC. I haven’t yet seen his most recent most acclaimed work – BB, Sultan, Bharat. TZH wasn’t bad either, though i prefer the cheesier ETT.
Question : I’ve seen some recent YT videos saying that Bollywood is remaking John Le Carre (RIP) spy novel The Night Manager into a streaming series starring Hrithik, Sushmita, Saif, and Manoj Bajpai. Do you know anything about this? I’m excited about this. Seems the right kind of property to combine Hrithik action stunts and acting chops. Amazon Prime has a version streaming from 2016 starring Tom Hiddleston (hero), Hugh Laurie (villain), and Olivia Colman (as a Judy Dench M type character). I watched S1E1 last night and was struck by how similar Tom Hiddleston is to Hrithik onscreen as a “hero”, despite being more understated than Hrithik. Tall lanky builds, light emotive eyes, faces that easily fill the screen in close ups. Now I can see why TSwift was into him 😉.
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I really need to get less invested in rituals. Christmas and my birthday are just so HUGE in my mind that I always get let down. I need to look at them more as optional fun days. And New Years! Oh my, I have so many superstitions about what you need to do at the exact second it changes years, and I get so stressed that I will miss something and ruin the whole year. You are right about the first week of summer though, our summers just sort of drifted on to us, there wasn’t a big divide either way. That’s what I should strive for more with Christmas and New Years, not a build to 24 hours of ritual followed by “blech”, but a nice easing off. Part of that was Zoom pressure this year. Grandpa is lucid, but was completely exhausted by the end of the day with all the Zoom calls and stuff, we forced ourselves to talk to him for 10 mintues and then end. And my poor nephew had so much pressure, all those presents and Zoom calls and things and he had no idea what was happening. Probably would have been smarter to do what you are doing and just reschedule Christmas until everyone was feeling more relaxed.
You gotta help me, what does “BSC” stand for? I think you are making a really good point about HDDCS, which maybe ties into the whole idea of Salman’s onscreen persona, but I am worried I am misunderstanding it. And you should definitely see BB at least, and maybe also Sultan and Bharat. They are really really good, and very good uses of Salman. His other recent stuff, not so much.
I know nothing about a Night Manager remake! If it is a thing, I would suspect it is less of a “remake” and more of a “concept of a taught spy thriller sort of like that one” thing. the streaming services generally seem to be avoiding straight remakes, because they don’t want folks to wait for the version in “their” language, they want everyone to be watching everything. Anyway, I am nervous about Hrithik in a streaming series. He just feels like such a movie star to me, all larger than life charisma, not small screen subtlety.
On Tue, Dec 29, 2020 at 10:02 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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BSC = bat sh*t crazy
Sushmita had success with her recent streaming series Arya which was a remake of a Dutch streaming series. I think it was a faithful to the original, but since it’s set in all Indian locales, clothing, sets (as well a being in Hindi), it’s a different product. Plus it’s on hotstar or sonyliv, so it’s not 2 Netflix properties competing with each other.
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Aha! Now I understand. In that case, Salman in Bharat, Sultan, or BB may not be your thing. Obsessive, yes. But not crazy.
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Salman is usually not my cup of tea, but I did enjoy Bajrangi Bhaijaan. I don’t really get a post Christmas letdown because I haven’t celebrated in a big way since I was a child. The thing about Christmas is being back in the States and seeing my family, which extends after Christmas (and obviously didn’t happen this year) . I read a thing that said celebrating Boxing Day in small way is a way to sort of ease out of Christmas less abruptly. You’ve obviously got to go back to work, but could you plan a small treat for those days that you could look forward to, like a special lunch or something?
So guess what movie they are bringing to our theater, which will be the only Indian movie since Eega which I couldn’t see? Wrong, it’s Mission Mangal. So, I’m wondering if my dedication to Indian Cinema extends to watching Mission F. Mangal in the theater? Usually I suck it up and watch whatever because then they will realize there’s an audience and we get good Indian movies as well, but this might be a bridge too far.
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The past few years I’ve planned a trip for late Feb/early March, so I can go straight from Christmas to picking out where I am going to go and when and stuff. Obviously that is out this year, but I think I might substitute simply scheduling some days off work for February, for no reason at all. Take a staycation, just officially block time to do nothing but live life.
DON’T DO IT!!!! No one deserves to see Mission Mangal. I took that bullet for you all, and the few folks who ignored my dire warnings and tried themselves, lived to regret it.
(I am so happy with what a cohesive clique DCIB is! Can you imagine anywhere else on the internet where Mission Mangal is like death, and Jab Harry Met Sejal is like life?)
On Tue, Dec 29, 2020 at 8:09 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I’m seeing your Coolie no.1 and AK reviews and it’s making me more excited than I already was to see both, but I can’t right now since I’m on vacation in India. Have to ask, aren’t there any offensive jokes in the former, because I was pretty sure there would be! Salman – I haven’t seen most of his recent stuff, and I’ll always pick his 90s stuff (AAA, Judwaa, etc.) as my favorites.
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I’m sure there’s offensive jokes in the former, but nothing that really stood out to me. The only thing I noticed especially was the bad fake Singapore accent. But in the realm of “making fun of other Asians”, it was nothing.
On Wed, Dec 30, 2020 at 12:32 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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