Satyagraha is a bad script with good actors

The film could have been so much more had it taken the Madras Cafe route and made an honest, hard-hitting film.

Rating: **1/2
Directed by: Prakash Jha
Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpai and Amrita Rao

What it's about:
If you ask me if Satyagraha is based on Anna Hazare and his whole movement, I will have to say yes. Even though everyone connected to the film has denied that. There are just too many coincidences for me to call this film a work of fiction. Yes, large dollops of fictional elements have been added to the script but it's too easy to guess who is playing who here. Dadu's aka Dwarka Anand (Amitabh Bachchan) fight against corruption is no different from Anna's movement, then there is his 'deputy' Manu (Ajay Devgn) who could easily pass off as Arvind Kejriwal. The whole political scenario at that time, the support of the opposition, the police action, the participation of the youths, the maligning of the party members, the disillusionment of the public, and finally formation of the party…We witnessed all this not too long ago..

What's good:
Satyagraha has all the ingredients for a good film. A subject that is still fresh in people's minds, a big star cast, a huge budget, a big banner. Director Prakash Jha takes up the issues (corruption and dirty politicians) that plague this nation. There is enough anger/frustration amongst people, if Satyagraha's purpose was to reminds us that nothing changed even after the movement, the rallies and the noise on the social network, it succeeds. The film will make you angry and make you feel helpless, powerless…it's all too real.. too close home. Maybe that it the director's intention. Which is why he should have done this docudrama style. It would have been more effective and relevant. Drama and emotions are the director's strengths and he excels in the scenes between Dwarka-Manu, Dwarka-Sumi (Amrita Rao) Manu-Yasmin (Kareena Kapoor). Some times an actor lets a script down, at other times the script lets an actor down. Satyagrahabelongs to the latter. It is laden by superb performances by it's cast. Ajay Devgn is in his comfort zone, yet another subdued and impactful performance but this role has a seen-that quality, Arjun Rampal and Manoj Bajpai are brilliant but it is Amitabh Bachchan who stays with you. Don't ever let this actor convince you he has already delivered his best performance. He just betters himself, and leaves you speechless and more than a little in awe. Kareena is sincere but let down by a poor role.

What's bad:
The thing that troubles me is: why make a fictional version of a subject like this? The only valid reason seems to be to not piss off the powers that be. To ensure a release. Admitting this is based on the Anna Hazare movement would have meant many hurdles. From political pressure to censor trouble to say the least. So director Prakash Jha choses to call this a drama/love story, thereby defeating the whole message/point of making a film like this. You can't make a film about what is wrong with the system, while surrendering to the system. It is a cop-out.Satyagraha could have been so much more had it taken the Madras Cafe route and made an honest, hard-hitting film. The bollywood-isation of the film is what ruins it. Another thing that jars in the film is Kareena's character. For some reason she is seen smiling through out the protests/rallies while filming them. Her hair is perfectly blow-dried, face too made up, which would have been fine had she been reading news in a studio, and not part of the ground team doing a report. But that is the least of my grouses with her character. She moves into the house of the person who she is covering, is seen on stage with them, becomes part of the movement…all while filing stories! A journalist can never do that. The reporting has to be unbiased, irrespective of the reporter's personal view on the subject. And which channel will allow one of their reporters/editors to openly align themselves to a campaign? What else is wrong? The songs. This film did not need songs. Certainly not actors lip-syncing them. The film begins with a song in which the item girl gyrating in bar dancer attire, the crowds are dressed in a trendy nightclub ensemble -- WTF moment.

What to do:
Watch it for Big B's performance. It would be a shame to miss that.

Arjun Rampal: I feel blessed & energized after meeting Dalai Lama

Arjun Rampal has always wanted to meet Dalai Lama since a very long time. 

Arjun Rampal was on a different kind of high when he got to meet Dalai Lama. He met Dalai Lama along with his family. Arjun's friend knew that he really wanted to meet Dalai Lama the religious guru. Arjun's friends asked him and he immediately agreed. 

''I immediately decided to travel with my family. It all happened very incidentally,'' says the actor, whose meeting with the Dalai Lama lasted for about half an hour.

During their chat, the Dalai Lama asked Arjun to do something ''very special''. Says Arjun with a smile: ''He told me that all my movies should have a message, which I feel is true for my last couple of releases.''

CHECK OUT: Arjun Rampal - D DAY is not about Pakistan bashing affair

Arjun has wanted to meet the spiritual guru since the early '90s.

Arjun Rampal says, ''But at that time, it didn't happen. This time, our meeting was really unique and special. He has a great sense of humour and child-like innocence. When you are in his company, you can't fail but experience incredible energy. He has a way of making you feel calm and composed. He will give you a great insight on life without making it sound like a lecture. I feel blessed and energized after the meeting says Arjun. 

In Pics: Star kids and their unconventional names!!

Shah Rukh Khan has finally confirmed the name of his surrogate baby boy as AbRam. A look at other star kids and their unusual names. 

Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan's daughter is named Suhana, meaning 'pleasing' in Sanskrit. They also have a son, who has a more conventional name -- Aryan


Hrithik and Suzanne Roshan named their first kid Hrehaan, which means 'God's chosen one'. It is also a combination of their own names. Their second child is named Hridhaan, which signifies a 'great heart', and is again a combination of their own names


Aamir Khan has a daughter named Ira from his first wife Reena Dutta. The name has various connotations - 'watchful' in Hebrew, 'warrior' in Greek and 'the wind God' in Sanskrit


Ajay Devgn and Kajol's daughter is named Nysa, a name of Greek origin, which means 'goal, ambition'. Their son is named Yug, which means 'era' in Hindi


Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra have a son named Viaan, meaning 'full of energy and life'


Lara Dutta and Mahesh Bhupathi have a daughter named her Saira, which is a variant of Sarah (Hebrew), and means 'princess'


Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan's daughter is named Aaradhya. The name means 'first one' or 'one who is worth worshipping', in Sanskrit


Arbaaz Khan and Malaika Arora Khan have a son named Arhaan. The name is derived from the Arabic word, which means 'the ruler'


Arjun Rampal and Mehr Jesia's kids are named Mahikaa and Myra. The former is a variant of Mahika, which means 'Earth-Goddess' in Sanskrit while the latter means innocent and beautiful in Greek. Myra is also Latin for 'extraordinary'


Arshad Warsi and Maria Goretti's children have rather unusual names. Their son is called Zeke Zidaan, which means 'shooting star' in Aramic and 'memory of God' in Arabic. Their daughter is named Zene Zoe, which signifies 'beautiful' in an African language


Two of Farhan and Adhuna Akhtar's kids are named Shakya and Akira. Shakya means 'energy circle' (a form of Chakra) in Sanskrit while Akira is Japanese for intelligent'


Farah Khan and Shirish Kunder's triplets also have unique names. Their son is called Czar, which translates to 'head of heir' or 'emperor' in Latin. The daughters' names are Diva, which is derived from a Latin expression meaning 'divine', and Anya, meaning 'grace' in Russian and the 'inexhaustible' in Sanskrit


Sanjay Dutt and Manyata have twins. The boy is named Shahraan and a girl named Iqra. The boy's name comes from two words 'Shah' means 'royal' and 'Raan' is 'knight' or 'warrior' (in Persian) 'Iqra' means 'to educate' 


Singer Sonu Nigam's son is called Nevaan, which means 'holy soul'


Madhuri Dixit has a son named Arin, meaning 'the sun's first ray of light'


Karisma Kapoor's daughter is named Samaira, which comes from the Urdu word which means 'enchanting'. She also has a son name Kiaan. It's an American Hebrew name, which means 'grace of God'


Sushmita Sen has two adopted daughters, Renee and Alicia. The former translates to 'reborn' in French while the latter means 'one who is noble', also in French


Raveena Tandon's daughter responds to the name Rasha, which means 'Young Gazelle' in Arabic


Akshay Kumar and Twinkle Khanna have a daughter Nitara, which means 'having deep roots' in Sanskrit. Akshay and Twinkle's elder son is named Aarav, which means 'calm' or 'peaceful' in Sanskrit 

After watching 'D-Day', Big B speechless!

• Mumbai, July 19 (IANS) Amitabh Bachchan, one of the finest performers in Hindi movies, says that he had such a wonderful experience watching Nikhil Advani's spy thriller "D-day" that he is unable to comment on it.
  
  Big B watched the film at a special screening Thursday.
  
  "I had a wonderful experience watching the film and it will take me a lot of time to gather and understand my emotions and feelings for the film. Right now, I have no words to express my feelings for the film," said the 70-year-old actor here at the screening.
  
  "Everybody has done a brilliant job. Writers, director, music and all the actors have been wonderful," he added.
  
  Released Friday, "D-Day" features Rishi Kapoor, Irrfan, Arjun Rampal, Huma Qureshi and Shruti Haasan in pivotal roles.

Relationship With Shah Rukh Khan Is Nobody’s Concern : Arjun Rampal

Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal, who has not been on friendly terms with Shah Rukh Khan, said his bonding with the superstar is nobody's concern.

During an interview with a leading daily, Arjun said, "What's my relationship with Shah Rukh Khan got to do with my career? My relationship with Shah Rukh is my concern and no one's business. Do these people, who keep inquiring about such issues, pay our bills or help us in anyway? So why should they be bothered about my relationship with him and why should I be even clearing the air about us?" The Times of India reported.

Shah Rukh and Arjun were once the best buddies of B-town after they worked together for the first time in Farah Khan's "Om Shanti Om". They were spotted with each other at most of parties and were seen going on trips along with their families. However, the actors snapped ties after their alleged fallout over the cuts made on Arjun's role in "RA.One".

According to reports, Arjun and Shah Rukh gave each other the cold shoulder at several occasions after parting ways. The actors even went to the extent of saying that they were in the industry to work and not make friends.

Recently, reports had surfaced that the actors had ended their animosity and patched up. But Arjun's latest comment does not reveal anything about their friendship.

Sensuality a key element in 'D-Day'!!

She asserts that sensuality is a key element of her character, and says it hasn't been used just for titillation.

Directed by NIkhil Advani, "D-Day" is an espionage thriller slated to release July 19.

"I'm playing a prostitute in the film and sensuality is a key element. We've not done it for titillation or unnecessary scandalising. The character is like that," the 27-year-old actress said here in an interview.


"If you do it in a wrong way, then the audience and actors both don't like it as the conviction is lost. It's very much integral to the character (in the film). As an actor, I feel we get to express all the emotions, and sensuality is a part of human emotion so its very important," she added.

The film also features Irrfan, Rishi Kapoor and Huma Qureshi in key roles.

D-DAY- shruti hasan and arjun rampal set the screen on fire!

D Day does not glorify underworld, says Arjun Rampal

Mumbai: Actor Arjun Rampal insists that his upcoming movie 'D Day', which is reportedly modelled on underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, does not glamorise or glorify any underworld person.

Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor plays a negative role in the film, while Rampal essays the character of an ex-officer of an Indian Armed Forces unit. Actor Irrfan Khan plays an undercover RAW official and Huma Qureshi an explosive expert.

"We did not glamorise or glorify any underworld person. The film is about Irrfan, Huma and me who go to Karachi to bring the most wanted man in India. It is about their story," Arjun said.

Sharing similar sentiments, director Nikhil Advani said, "The film is not about underworld, it is not about bhaigiri. It is a spy thriller... There are RAW agents. It is about four patriots who go to bring back India's most wanted man."

Arjun is happy with the response the film's promos has received.

"We got lot of positivity after releasing the first look. As it appears as a different story, there is interest among the audience about the film," he said.

Though, several films have been made involving RAW agents, Irrfan insists 'D Day' is different and a step ahead of others.

"The nuances of that profession is shown in detail in the film. People will get to know as to how the intelligence services operate... Like how they pass information, an advertisement is placed in a newspaper, how things are

decoded," Irrfan said.

"My character has his own life, has family. They never reveal anything even to the closest of people," he said.

The film opens in theatres on July 19.

D-Day - Official Trailer | Rishi Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Irrfan Khan, Huma...

D-Day is a 2013 Indian crime-thriller film co-produced by DAR motion pictures and Emmay Entertainment Private Limited. The Hindi feature film D-Day (slated for release on July 19, 2013) is the next directorial offer from Nikhil Advani, starring Arjun Rampal, Rishi Kapoor, Irrfan Khan, Shruti Haasan, Sandeep Kulkarni and Huma Qureshi in the lead roles.

























Watch The Trailer Below :