YEH MERA DIL:

Movie Preview - Don

A huge Indian contingent embarks on a dangerous cat-and-mouse trail of capturing DON (Shah Rukh Khan) - the ruthless drug mafia in Malaysia.

When DON gets seriously injured in a police encounter, the word that he is dead begins to do the rounds. The reality, of course, is that DON is held captive in a secret location, while his bumpkin of a look-alike, Vijay, is polished and sent to take down DON's gang.

In a bizarre twist of fate, when the man shielding the humble and streetwise Vijay, is killed, the latter comes to terms with the horrifying realization that both the police and the gang are out to nab him for different reasons.

In a desperate attempt to prove his innocence, he is aided by the glamorously staggering Roma (Priyanka Chopra), and handsomely striking, Jasjit (Arjun Rampal), who owes Vijay a favor for care-taking his son during his imprisonment. But will Vijay be successful in his mission?

Based on the successful erstwhile classic of the same name, which featured the legendary Amitabh Bachchan, the contemporary and stylishly crafted DON, features Bollywood czar Shah Rukh Khan playing a double role in one of the most defining performances of his career, teamed for the first time with former Miss World, Priyanka Chopra.

The biggest and most keenly awaited motion picture of 2006, DON is a high-octane, tension-filled, twisty roller coaster of a ride, with just the right dose of glamour, action, suspense & romance.

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When a filmmaker decides to remake a classic movie, the expectations are pretty high and people are curious to see if the new movie can live up to the original. The music release for Don – The Chase Begins Again has generated much hype because the old Don of 1978 had several hit songs. In the new Don however, listeners get to hear some old tunes remixed, along with a few original tracks.

Farhan Akhtar and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy first brought one of the best soundtracks of 2001, Dil Chahta Hai, followed by 2004's Lakshya. Do they have another winning score?

The album begins with Main Hoon Don, obviously describing how the don is dangerous and brings action wherever he goes. The music goes with the theme, containing a very western feel to it, where the opening sequence seems to be the highlight. Shaan is totally in sync with Javed Akhtar's lyrics about recognizing the DON. There is a FCInternational mix version of the title track, that is purely heavy on techno beats and completely unnecessary, as the regular track is more appealing.

When you first listen to Yeh Mera Dil, you might press fast forward like I did, to the horrendous remix of the orginal sung by Asha Bhosle. However, I must admit, once you listen to it a few times, you might give it a chance by closing your eyes and letting Sunidhi Chauhan's sultry voice entice the mind, while picturing Kareena Kapoor's character seducing the Don, Shah Rukh Khan.

Maurya Re is most likely the introduction song of the duplicate Don. It caters to a small niche of listeners who like the Ganpati/religious songs. Singer Shankar Mahadevan infuses energy into the song that describes the devotion of its followers. The highlight of this piece is the heavy use of cymbals and dhol sounds.

The famous Khaike Paan Banaraswala finally makes an appearance in the album and its hard to imagine anyone other than Udit Narayan giving justice to this popular track of yesteryear. Although Udit Narayan fits the bill here, it's S-E-L's music that fails. The heavy beats, tuned to village lingo just doesn't sit well. Even Shah Rukh Khan's interlude in the second half leaves little to be desired as he describes the beauty of his love.

Surprisingly the best song in the entire soundtrack comes near the end. From the start of the drumming and the 80s lounge beats, you feel a hit song in Aaj Ki Raat. Alisha Chinoy begins singing and the song is taken to new heights with Mahalaxmi Iyer matching her note for note. The lyrics are simple and addictive where anything is possible in the night, you don't know what will happen, what you will gain or what you will lose. The song is picturized on Isha Koppikar and Priyanka Chopra, both vying for the Don's attention. So strong is the feminine vocal appeal that even the illustrious Sonu Nigam's entrance is overshadowed by the female vocal leads! A his song that should be thoroughly enjoyed on screen.

Knock knock . . . "yes, who is it?" "Don" cue in music to begin Don – The Theme, an instrumental by S-E-L, which has a 70s feel and is suitable as a background score, either for the opening credits or the introduction montage to the Don. It gets repetitive for a while, which makes this piece a little boring.

Luckily Don Revisited by Midival Punditz is much better than the theme because the arrangement of the music is easier on the ears (with the word Don being said periodically). There is a mixture of techno beats and it has a interesting dramatic mood (we even hear how the Don cannot be captured by police around the world). This instrumental suits the theme of the movie and is fast paced; definitely worth a repeat play.

Overall, people say there is nothing like the original . . . Don – The Chase Begins Again's soundtrack is average, but the picturizations of the songs, once the movie releases, may cause this soundtrack to grow in popularity. Perhaps if the classic songs were not touched and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy had come up with all original tunes, this could've been a real win.

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quote:

Perhaps if the classic songs were not touched and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy had come up with all original tunes, this could've been a real win.

Any day the original would always beat out the redo; as shown in "Yeh Mera Dil"

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quote:

When you first listen to Yeh Mera Dil, you might press fast forward like I did, to the horrendous remix of the orginal sung by Asha Bhosle. However, I must admit, once you listen to it a few times, you might give it a chance by closing your eyes and letting Sunidhi Chauhan's sultry voice entice the mind, while picturing Kareena Kapoor's character seducing the Don, Shah Rukh Khan.

Have to admit that this scene was poorly done,
I remembered that this scene in the Old Don, after viewing in the cinema, one could have been satisfied........that 90 percent of their cinema fees were worth this scene only;

Yeh mera Dil- Don [old]

Shahrukh Khan is happy with the success of his movie Don - The Chase Begins, Shahrukh's fan have found the movie to be a good one and were happy while coming out of cinema halls. Farhan Akhrar has taken a big risk in making Shahrukh Khan compete with Amitabh Bachchan and has succeded in his mission, the movie has done well in India and abroad as well. The only bad experience movie has faced is the viewers have compared Shahrukh Khan with Amitabh Bachchan.

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Talking about the most unique feature of any masala Bollywood film – the music! Don's music fails to impress... though the background score is amazing, but the remixed songs don't leave much of an impact! Even the "khai ke pan banaras wala" no. doesn't have the rusticity in it! Wonder what Shankar Ehsaan and Loy were thinking when they included two new songs(read duds) like ˜moriya re' and ˜aaj ki raat' in an album like DON???

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Don: The chase begins:

Overall, good entertaining movie. Nothing great, but may be OK for one time viewing. If you have not watched the earlier 1970s DON (will call Don1), then you may like it more. But, for people like me who must have watched Don1 more than
dozen time, it's hard to stay away from comparisions.

The Plus points in Don2 are: Priyanka - who did much better than Zeenat, and she was just superb for her role. Boman Irani did the excellent job, too. Also, the background and theme music is superb. Finally, the end and double twist suspense is better in Don2, than in Don1. Westernized Matrix style fight sequences, and cinematography in Malaysia is pretty good - better than Desi style fight sequence in Don1.

Minuses: SRK - not fitting well at all (like angry young man) with his dialogues, though he tried to do the best he could in the double role. Not too bad, but not great either. BigB was awsome in Don1 as stylish, and composed character. SRK was looking like a fake to begin with. May be SRK is losing touch, and getting desperate to get some hit movie. I feel Hritik or Abhishek would have been better fit for the role of Don. Kareena, and Arjun Rampal - no way close to Helen and Pran. Music by SEL is so horrible that none of the remix tunes you will remember after the movie. Original, Kalyanji - Anandju (I think) music for Khaike Pan, Yes Mera Dil, Yeh Hai Bambai, and Main Hoon Don were all superb memorable songs. It seems like SEL is also going downhill. No wonder why Himesh is getting all the movies. It seems all the presumably good music directors like Jatin-Lalit, Ismail Darbar, AR Rehman and SEL are going down hill and Himesh is filling the gap with his 8 out of 10 rotten songs/music (he reminds me of Bhappi Lahiri). Also, the pace of the movie at times felt way slower in Don2 than in Don1. I will blame Editor and Director (I think, Farhan Akhtar) for not paying enough attention.

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DON - THE CHASE BEGINS AGAIN - BLOOPERS

DON - THE CHASE BEGINS - DELETED SCENES PART 1

MAIN HOON DON

DON 2006 - THE CHASE SCENE

In the UK, the film grossed GBP £537,000 (a little more than USD 1 million) in the opening five days along with the preview, which is the highest Diwali opening weekend ever for a Hindi film.

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In the US, the film grossed USD 1.2 million in the opening 5 days.
* In the period of just nine days, Don has grossed above 3.45 million Dirham in Gulf which is highest ever for a Hindi film.
* In Australia and South Africa, the week's collections were the highest ever for a Hindi film.
* Akshay Kumar was offered for the role of Jasjit.
* Don - The Chase Begins Again opened in at least 1,200 screens worldwide, beating the opening of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna.

KHAIKE PAAN BANARAS WALLAH:

KHAIKE PAAN BANARAS WALLAH:

BOLLYWOOD MOVIE REVIEWS:PAGE 7 UMRAO JAAN

UMRAO JAAN based on the Urdu novel Umrao Jan Ada (1905), written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa.
In 1981 this novel was picturised on film directed by Muzaffar Ali.
The film starred Bollywood actress Rekha.

Rekha was praised for her acting, if not her dancing. The supporting characters were also played by strong performers, such as Naseeruddin Shah, Farooq Shaikh, Raj Babbar, and Bharat Bhushan. Audiences appreciated the carefully done historical setting.

Umrao Jaan also featured a brilliant soundtrack, with music composed by Khayyam and lyrics penned by Shahryar. Several songs from the film, sung by Asha Bhosle, are considered classics of filmi music: Dil cheez kya hai?, In ankhon ki masti, and Yeh kya jageh hai doston.

2006 remake by J.P. Dutta
A remake of Umrao Jaan was released on November 3, 2006. It is directed by J.P. Dutta and stars Aishwarya Rai as Umrao Jaan, Sunil Shetty as Faiz Ali, Puru Raaj Kumar as Gauhar Mirza and Abhishek Bachchan as Nawab Sultan. Shabana Azmi portrays Madam Khanum Jaan (notably, Azmi's own mother, Shaukat Kaifi, portrayed Madam Khanum Jaan in the original version of the film)[1]. The music is composed by Anu Malik and the lyrics are penned by Javed Akhtar.

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THE PLOT OR STORYLINE OF UMRAO JAAN ADA: FROM THE NOVEL OF MIRZA HADI RUSWA 1905

In the year 1840, a young girl named Amiran (Umme Farwa) is kidnapped from her family by their neighbour, Dilawar Khan (Satish Shah) and sold to Madam Khanum Jaan (Shaukat Kaifi) who owns a brothel where she trains courtesans (tawaif). Amiran, renamed Umrao Jaan, learns to read, write, dance, sing, and charm wealthy men. She is no common prostitute, but a cultured woman trained to captivate men of wealth and taste.

A grown-up Umrao Jaan, (Rekha), catches the eye of Nawab Sultan (Farooq Shaikh), and the two fall in love. But the Nawab must marry to please his family, and Umrao's heart is broken.

She meets a dashing bandit chieftain, Faiz Ali (Raj Babbar), who wooes and wins her. She flees with her dacoit, hoping to marry him and leave the world of the courtesan far behind. But her lover is killed by local police and she is left alone, with no choice but to return to her old life.

Soon, the British attack the city of Lucknow and the residents, including Umrao Jaan, are forced to flee. Umrao's party of refugees stop in a small village near Lucknow. The residents ask the courtesan to sing and dance. Umrao, looking about her, realizes that this is her village, Faizabad, her family, the place from which she was kidnapped. She had been so young when kidnapped that she had forgotten it all, but now it all returns to her.

She sings the song, Yeh kya jageh hai doston? -- What kind of place is this, friends? -- a veiled reference to her feelings of dismay at being treated like a pariah entertainer by her very own people. Afterwards, she meets her mother and younger brother, who had thought that she was dead. Her mother would be happy to welcome her back into the family, but her brother forbids it -- she is tainted by her profession and must not return to embarrass them.

At the end of the film, Umrao is left alone, with nothing but her profession and her poetry.

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Having an insight of the Old Umrao Jaan, we will focus on the New Umrao Jaan:

The 2006 remake by J.P. Dutta

A remake of Umrao Jaan was released on November 3, 2006. It is directed by J.P. Dutta and stars Aishwarya Rai as Umrao Jaan, Sunil Shetty as Faiz Ali, Puru Raaj Kumar as Gauhar Mirza and Abhishek Bachchan as Nawab Sultan. Shabana Azmi portrays Madam Khanum Jaan (notably, Azmi's own mother, Shaukat Kaifi, portrayed Madam Khanum Jaan in the original version of the film)[1]. The music is composed by Anu Malik and the lyrics are penned by Javed Akhtar.

ASHWARYA RAI AS SHE APPEARS IN UMRAO JAAN:

ABHISHEK BACCHAN AS NAWAB SULTAN:

SUNIL SHETTY AS FIAZ ALI

Umrao Jaan - Endless Tragedy of Errors

Faridoon Shahryar,

The man with a heart that booms with the passion of warfare artillery has gone seriously wrong by composing a courtesan's plaintive number on celluloid. Yes J P Dutta should stick to guns of patriotism for the roses of romance die before they blossom in his cosmetic period drama ˜Umrao Jaan'. And no, Aishwariya isn't the best thing in this musical tearjerker.

If anyone really dazzles with the sheer dexterity and range of emotions then it has to be Shabana Azmi. For her hard hitting performance is the most notable thing about this well-over-three-hour-film (The editor must have been sleeping I guess). Shabana is a great actress but what's most praiseworthy in her performance is that she has taken immaculate care of fitting the context of the mid nineteenth century Lucknow culture. How! She is the only one who speaks Urdu with correct pronunciation. And trust me Urdu is such a beautiful language that if it's diction is not proper then the rest of the details like fancy costumes and lavish sets seem out of context and detached. There are several other details which enable Shabana to literally dwarf all other performances, but then I don't think you guys are keen on a thesis on the movie. So, how ˜bout moving ahead with this review...

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Umrao Jaan - Endless Tragedy of Errors continues.....

J P Dutta had a tough task on his hand when he set out to make ˜Umrao Jaan'. Comparisons are inevitable even though he may shout from the rooftop that his version is not a remake as it based on a work of fiction. So, does he measure any close to Muzaffar Ali. Not at all. I would say ˜Don' was a well made remake for at least it had something new to offer and it was entertaining too. Here, J P takes ages in telling the sad story of Amiran (Ash) as to how she is sold at a Kotha in Lucknow to a calculative yet heart-of-gold Khanam Jaan (Shabana). Amiran turns into the bewitchingly beautiful ˜Umrao Jaan' the famous courtesan who loses her heart to Sexy Pathan Nawab Sultan (Abhishek Bachchan).

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A few-love-moments in the lover's arms later, ˜Umrao' is called an infidel by wine-eyed Nawab. Their love story was genuine but somehow Time had some other plans as a dacoit Faiz Ali (Suneil Shetty) stabs their happiness while losing his own. Umrao never recovers as she encounters one tragedy after another. Although poignancy dots the story but somehow the emphasis is more on the designer jewellery, heavy and grossly embroidered costumes, colossal sets (they look tacky at times), even Aishwariya's make-up is totally out-of-place at times

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Anu Malik's music is worth a ˜Salaam'. Well, ˜Salaam' is one of the mujra's in the film and that happens to be the only song that haunts you once the movie is over. I also liked ˜Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Na Kijo'. But when you compare with Khayyam's magical spell of ˜In Ankhon Ki Masti Ke', ˜Dil Cheez Kya Hai' and ˜Justuju Jiski Thi Usko To Na Paaya Humne' then Anu Malik stands no chance at all. Although Alka Yagnik is no Asha Bhosle but I think this is by far her finest performance yet as a singer who has sung semi classical songs with fantastic innovation in rendition as well as expression. Vaibhavi Merchant's dance steps rely more on coquettish facial expressions than any firebrand dance steps. Ayananka Bose's camerawork is gripping.

Finally, in the acting department, Ash is no Rekha as SRK can't be any patch on Big B. But yes, this is Aishwariya Rai at her best. Lack of consistency in performance is made up by a lot of sincerity and feeling for the character she is enacting. One can notice a lot of warmth in her eyes and body language while showing her physicality towards Abhishek Bachchan's Sultan. Aby baby is made out to be macho and that is one of the most filmi aspects JP could have resorted to. No, this is not Junior B's better performances. I would say he shouldn't have done a relatively smaller role considering he has proved his credentials as an actor and it's time he remains in the forefront.
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Rest of the cast comprising of Puru Raj Kumar (he has a future), Divya Dutta (wasted), Ayesha Jhulka (how can you cast her as a courtesan looking at her puffy face and overweight bulkiness), Himan Shivpuri (fine), Suneil Shetty (loud as usual) remain more or less in the background. Kulbhushan Kharbanda as Maulvi sahib gives you those lump-in-the-throat moments while he interacts with ˜Umrao...' and definitely he looks the part of the context of Lucknowi culture in which the film is based.

As for J P Dutta's direction his attempt at grandiose lets him down badly. The romantic subtlety in Muzaffar Ali's ˜Umrao Jaan' is superseded by overpowering sexual intrigue which tends to be crass at times in Dutta's visual idiom. O P Dutta's dialogues sound archaic for it hurts when the audience laughs at chaste Urdu. I don't find any relevance of ˜Umrao Jaan' today. For making a film like this requires immersing yourself completely and not merely touching the tip of fragrance and assuming the perfume will spread all over on its own.
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ASHWARIYA RAI AS UMRAO JAAN ADA:

THE SONG THAT LEAVES A NOSTALGIC FEELING AFTER THE MOVIE:

ALKA YAGNIK DOING A TREMENDOUS JOB WITH THIS SONG:
1) SALAAM:
http://www.musicindiaonline.com/p/x/vXfmu_1NQ9.As1NMvHdW/

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˜Umrao Jaan' tells a touching tale of a woman who was abducted as a child and sold to a kotha in Lucknow where she grew to be a beautiful courtesan with refined skills in poetry and singing. But behind her beautiful exterior, Umrao Jaan remained a lonely woman with many unfulfilled desires.
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Shabana Azmi as Khanum Sahib

Khanum is the high priestess of a high-class kotha, frequented by aristocrats and cultured Nawabs of Lucknow. To the world she is a perfect courtesan. A woman of impeccable manners, she is the embodiment of etiquettes, charm and sophistication. When needed, she can be caustic or charming, commanding or cajoling, shrewd or compassionate.

Khanum Sahib gives Amiran a new identity, a new name, Umrao Jaan. Under Khanum's guidance, Umrao grows to be an aesthete woman with a refined taste in arts. She gets her education from Maulvi Sahib. Khan Sahib initiates her into the world of music, while the great Kathak Acharya teaches her dance. Umrao Jaan develops various other skills, including poetry, in the company of Bismillah, Khurshid and Gauhar Mirza (Puru Raj Kumar).

FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS NOT SEEN THE OLD UMRAO JAAN; WILL ENJOY THIS ONE, BUT AS I DID SAW THE OLD ONE ABOUT SIX TIMES, I ALWAYS KEEPS COMPARING THE OLDER REKHA GEM WITH THIS ONE:
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I saw this over the weekend. Good story but too long. Some parts were boring and I yawned countless times. Comparing to the older one, Abhishek makes a much better Nawab than Farook Shaik did. Ash, as beautiful as she looked, paled in comparison to Rekha as Umrao Jaan. My opinion

We both think alike on this one, although you have not mentioned, songs from the older Umrao Jaan were gems by Asha Bhosle: will get to both movies songs later:

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