Paa Review

Can you ever imagine watching an Amitabh Bachchan film and not watching Amitabh Bachchan in it? Seems impossible, isn’t it? The towering persona and the rich baritone just cannot be overlooked. But R. Balki transforms the legendary actor into Auro, replaces the rich baritone with the voice of an adolescent [who's neither grown up, nor a kid] and taps the hitherto untapped talent of the icon. Trust me, 10 minutes into the film and you forget you’re watching Amitabh Bachchan. For, takes over the moment he is introduced to the viewer.

Paa is a simple film told in the most simplistic manner and that’s one of the prime reasons why this film works big time. The emotions would’ve fallen flat had the writing been sub-standard or the execution of the material been humdrum or the actors been inferior. But, thankfully, Paa scores in all three departments, although it must be said that the entire slum redevelopment episode is a complete put-off. Yet, all said and done, Paa is an outstanding film. A film for every Paa, every maa… for everyone with a heart. Take a bow,

Amitabh Bachchan is an intelligent, witty 13-year-old boy with an extremely rare genetic defect that causes accelerated ageing. He suffers from progeria. Mentally, he is 13, very normal, but physically he looks five times older. Inspite of his condition, Auro is a happy boy. He lives with his mother Vidya [Vidya Balan], a gynaecologist, but is completely clueless of his father’s identity. Till he meets him, Amol [Abhishek Bachchan], who is a full of ideals politician.
Okay, let’s not disrespect Balki by calling Paa a rip-off of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button or Jack. It’s not! Paa looks at the varied relationship so minutely. It may’ve been publicized as a father-son film, but the women – mother and granny – play equally pivotal parts.

The first hour of Paa grips you in patches. The introduction of Auro is brilliant, but the moment the story focuses on the politician and his arch rival’s sub-plot, it goes off-track. Sure, there are some interesting sequences, but the impact isn’t mesmeric.

But the post-interval portions take the film to dizzy heights and camouflages the defects. The father-son bonding and the penultimate 25 minutes raise the bar. The emotional quotient is tremendous. Get ready to overhear a lot of sniffs and see a lot of moist eyes once the lights are switched on.

Note the two sequences in the climax, when Auro reveals what his father’s first mistake was and the pheras towards the end. Also recall the scene when the girl Auro detests for a certain reason shows up with a sketch of Auro. It moves you completely.

But let’s not mistaken Paa to be a rona-dhona movie

It’s a positive film with funny/light moments in plenty. The conversation between Auro and his best friend , on various occasions, are superb. Also, not once does Paa show Auro as ‘different’. He’s one among the kids and there’s no discrimination whatsoever, which is remarkable.

Director R. Balki deserves a salute for thinking out of the box and also presenting Amitabh Bachchan like never before. The writing may be erratic, but his handling of the emotional moments is exemplary. Note this, he would be a force to reckon with after Paa. Ilaiyaraaja’s music is soothing. P.C. Sreeram’s cinematography is incredible.

It would be a blunder if one missed out the contribution of the makeup artists. Transforming the veteran actor into a kid must’ve been an arduous task and Christien Tinsley and Domini Till deserve to be complimented for making Auro look so real.

Now to the performances! No amount of praise, no amount of adjectives and personifications would do justice to Amitabh Bachchan’s performance as Auro. Sure, the icon has enthralled us with superlative performances in his four-decade career, but Paa is something else. The icon keeps surprising you at regular intervals and Paa is one of those beautiful surprises, which will remain etched in your memory forever.

That doesn’t mean that the remaining performances get dwarfed by Auro. Sure, Paa belongs to Auro, but not once does Abhishek Bachchan dither from his position or seems less inferior. This is the hallmark of a tremendous actor, which Abhishek is. Vidya is another surprise of Paa. She takes giant strides as an actor and proves yet again that given the right roles, she can match up to the best in the business.

Paresh Rawal is effective. Arundhati Naag is amazing. So is the kid, Pratik, enacting the role of Auro’s best buddy. His telephonic conversation with Auro is superb. Jaya Bachchan’s presence is lovely. On the whole, Paa is an amazing experience. It makes you realize two things. One, the Hindi film industry is also capable of narrating fresh stories. Two, Amitabh Bachchan is truly the most accomplished actor this side of the Atlantic.

Talking from the business point of view, Paa has been made in a sensible and reasonable budget [approx. Rs. 17 crores, including P & A expenses], which should easily be recovered from multiplexes alone. In the final tally, here’s a film that should win awards  and also box-office rewards, given its low costs . A film that should strike a chord with every paa, maa… just about everyone with a heart!

The Being Human Foundation is an inspiration from my parents: Salman

Salman Khan talks about his trust Being Human, his inspiration and his plan for the foundation.

Salman tells, “My trust, the Being Human Foundation, is an inspiration from my parents. It works to help people who need aid. Currently, we have not asked for monetary help from anyone. I only take money from my close friends and family and meet all the other funding requirements on my own. I am in the process of setting up a website for the trust and the idea is to make money for charity from the website. We’ll be selling things like bracelets signed by me, my paintings, sketches, clothes I’ve worn in my films. We’ll put it all for sale and the proceeds will go towards the charity. It’s a good feeling to see a child smile soon after being close to not living. I have been blessed by God who has given me so much, I don’t just want to lend my face to a cause; I want to be there and support it in as many ways I can. I want to teach people that the biggest gift in the world you can give to anyone is to be human.”

Best wishes for your foundation Salman.

Ranvir rubbishes all break-up rumors with Konkana

While Shilpa was entering married life, Tinsel Town was abuzz with Konkana Sen Sharma and Ranvir Shorey calling off their December marriage. The reports were following by gossip suggesting that the two actors, who are living in for last one year, have decided to part ways.

Well, the raging rumors were sufficient for Ranvir to speak up about his personal life for the first time. And, the man has refused all such stories claiming that his relationship with Konkana has gone ended. “I guess a few people have decided to pick on us because till date we have never spoken about our relationship. I don’t want to go on and on to say that things are fine between us,” Ranvir reportedly told.

Don’t panic Ranvir, it’s a gossips world.

Katrina sizzles at Dreamz Concert

Check out the pictures of Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif from Dubai Dreamz Concert 2009. She looks really ravishing and beautiful in that pink saree.

A.R. Rahman Nominated For Two Grammy Awards For The Film Slumdog Millionaire

Music genius A.R. Rahman’s nominated for two Grammy awards for “Slumdog Millionaire”.

The Mozart of Madras, as Rahman is fondly called, has been nominated in the best soundtrack for motion pictures, television or other visual media category for the film, and in the best song for motion picture, television and other visual media category for “Jai ho”, said the official Grammy website.

Written by lyricist Gulzar, “Jai ho” has been sung by Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer, Vijay Prakash and Rahman himself.

Nominated for the first time at the Grammy’s, Rahman won two Oscars for “Slumdog Millionaire” and the best original score award at the 2009 Golden Globe Award.

The 52nd edition of the Annual Grammy Awards will be held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on 31st of January next year.

Veer latest wallpapers

Check out the latest wallpapers from Veer featuring Zarine Khan and Lisa Lazarus. Do you like the two new actresses? I think she looks a combination of Aamna Sharif(Aloo Chat) and Katrina Kaif.

Rahul Bose is the next guy to appear nude?

Okay, after John Abraham did it in New York and Neil Nitin Mukesh did it in Jail, Rahul Bose is the next guy to appear nude on screen.

Rahul Bose’s next movie, Fired, a horror movie with lot of blood and gore also has full frontal nudity in a sex scene. Actually, it is a sex scene between Rahul and British model Militza Radmilovic with full frontal nudity.

No points for guessing, the nude scenes are not going down well with the Censor Board and the film has run into trouble for its disagreeable content.

Well, we wonder who’s gonna see Rahul when a British hot-bod is also up for skin show.

Ranbir gets romantically linked with Priyanka Chopra

The two single celebrities, Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, who broke up with their partners freshly, are bonding big time in Bangkok shooting for their

new movie Anjaana Anjani.

After Ranbir-Katrina’s hit pair, the fresh pairing of current heartthrob Ranbir with the hot and sexy Priyanka Chopra is what is creating a lot of buzz. Needless to say, the two Punjabi actors are young, energetic, successful and raring to go.

While the Kapoor lad fatefully gets romantically linked with his female co-stars, we are sure the day is not far when we will wake up to Ranbir-Priyanka’s prem kahani.

Don’t know about you, but we think the two look great together and will absolutely make a power couple.

Surprise what Deepika and Shahid have to say?

Big B to hold special screening of Paa for Dilip Kumar

Bollywood Megastar Amitabh Bachchan is now planning to organise a special screening of his Bollywood Movie Paa for the legend Dilip Kumar, who will not be able to attend tonight’s star-studded premiere of the movie due to health problems.

Amitabh Bachchan, 67, seems to be leaving no stone unturned to ensure that the movie’s premiere tonight is a resounding success & receives loads of applauses from the entire audience. According to bollywood report, Amitabh Bachchan has invited a host of Bollywood celebrities including names like Bollywood’s King Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Akshay, Hrithik Roshan, Anil Kapoor, Ajay Devgan, Ranbir Kapoor, Jeetendra, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol and Hema Malini.

“Dilip Saheb is unwell as are Shammiji, Shashiji and Dharamji…but speaking to them after such a while was a joy and an accomplishment in itself,” Amitabh Bachchan wrote about his phone conversation with the veterans ahead of the event.

“Dilip Saheb gave his characteristic laugh when I told him I was playing Abhishek’s son…I would keep a separate trial for him where he does not have to worry about the crowd and the rush of the media,” said Bachchan, who plays a 13-year-old child suffering from progeria in the movie, releasing tomorrow.

“Sunny and Bobby confirm they shall be there. Vinod Khanna calls in sends wishes for success. Hemaji acknowledges and will be there as will Jeetendra…and the list goes on,” he added.

Bachchan was at the venue IMAX multiplex in suburban Wadala since wee hours today to check on the last minute preparation for the premiere.

“I have asked all the team to assemble by 1 am…Getting over 1600 people to follow instructions can be anight mare,” Amitabh Bachchan said.Expressing his anxiety, the megastar wrote that one of the most trying tasks in organizing an event, if it is an invited audience, is the allocation of seats.

“Where? Whom? When? Why? Just an endless flow of questions that keep changing their answers every few minutes. Dealing with each request, each preference, is a job most diplomats would find difficult to handle. The end result is a nightmare operation day in and day out, right to the very last minute,” he said.

Celebrity at Paa Premiere

The other celebrities who made it to Paa premiere are Ben Kingsley and his wife, Juhi Chawla, Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Ambani, Shamita Shetty, Dia Mirza,Ayesha Takia and many others.

Akshay-Twinkle and Kanagana at Paa Premiere

Akshay Kumar and Twinkle Khanna also made it for Amitabh Bachchan’s star studded Paa premiere. Both Twinkle and Kangana were spotted wearing same blouses however they accessorized themselves differently. Who do you think looks the best?

Ajay-Kajol grace Paa premiere

Ajay Devgan and Kajol were spotted after a long time at the Paa premiere. Kajol wore a Manish Malhotra saree with a red velvet blouse.

Hrithik Roshan and Suzanne Khan also attended the premiere.

Bachchan parivaar at Paa premiere

The premiere of Amitabh Bachchan was a star studded affair. Amitabh Bachchan and his wife Jaya Bachchan looked really rocking together. Abhishek Bachchan and Vidya Balan who play Amitabh’s parents are also seen at the green carpet. Vidya is wearing a Sabyasachi saree.

SRK and family,Aamir at Paa premiere

SRK attended Amitabh Bachchan’s Paa premiere along with his family. Big B gave a special autograph to SRK’s daughter Suhana.

After seeing Paa, SRK said, “What Bachchan Sahab has done in Paa is awesome. One is really looking forward to seeing it. It’s going to be immensely entertaining.””I think it’s a great learning experience for me as an actor. I have seen R Balki’s work. With Abhishek and Vidya, there are other nice and wonderful actors in the film. So it will be a great experience for me as well.”

Aamir was also spotted with his 3 Idiots team at the premiere.

Abhi-Ash at Paa Premiere

Bollywood’s super couple Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai rocked together at the green carpet for Paa premiere. Aishwarya Rai wore a lacy black Sabyasachi saree and made her look sexy by sporting red lips.

Talking about Paa, Aishwarya said, “I hope people will enjoy the film. Paa is a simple story said beautifully. It’s about human relations and it’s perfect the he touched upon a subject that needs attention.”

Like the couple?