Tag: india

  • Tabu on Next Filmfare for Haider Promo

    … or what I think it’s an upcoming issue of Filmfare, anyway.

    tabu-filmfare-2014-haider

    I just ran into this lovely photo from the Filmfare editor’s Twitter account [1][2], and if you zoom into the images, you sorta can read those first two pages. Otherwise, I did a search and found nothing yet. According to the main quote, the most note-worthy thing Tabu said was “Apart from a child, a man can give me diamonds,” which is not, considering that she says she wanted to learn ballet. Now THAT is interesting!

    In general, prima ballerinas are thought to be small… though that is apparently changing now that people are taller. Imagine a danseur that is 5’11 or 6 feet tall with a prima ballerina that is only 5’2. If Tabu had problems with her height in an industry that could pull off camera tricks, I can’t imagine if she had follow through with ballet.

    Other notable comments from the images were the ones she made about her moving from Hyderabad to Mumbai. It’s interesting because it goes so in contrast to her early interviews. And she hasn’t read Shakespeare. I hated reading unfiltered-yet-translated Shakespeare in school. LOL Anyway, having said all of that, Haider is really one of my anticipated films this year :)

    Oh-oh, and she wants to do an action film where she does her stunts. While watching Jai Ho, I wanted her to go all Mama Bear before she had to call Salman- like, THAT would have made the movie actually a lot better. It wouldn’t have made sense with anything in her current backstory, but they could’ve made it work. Tabu just hitting bad guys.

    *May22’14 Update*

    Interview is up!

  • More Candid Koffee for Madhuri and Juhi

    I ran into this deleted clip of the Rapid Fire Madhuri and Juhi did for Karan. I wonder how it’s decided what questions or answers make it onto the show.  Madhuri kept being her usual diplomatic self, especially that answer about who’s the best dancer- it does make me wonder~ I do know that she could totally pull off most dance numbers in most movies most of the times…

    Post-Madhuri, I haven’t seen any actress being able to pull off what Madhuri was able to give to the screen… though Aishwarya came close for a while back there. However, there are… on rare occasions… when a choreography is so full of energy from a particular actress that it seems only that actress can pull that number alone. I’m not HUGE on Deepika, but post-Cocktail she improved quite dramatically and she sorta impressed me with Nagada Sang Dhol [clip] – a part of me wants to see whether Madhuri could pull that number right now. It’s the stamina involved.

    And though I’m pretty sure the track has been sped up, Discowale Disco [clip] and Dil Bole Hadippa [clip] could also prove a bit of a challenge. But… could Madhuri pull off the funny swag that Rani put into Bhangra Bistar [1]? Ha! I’d LOVE to see that~

    Anyway, going back to the clip~ I do think Juhi’s questions were a lot more difficult and expose her a bit more, especially the one asking her about who she considers a current sexy actor, what would happen if a younger co-star would hit on her, and the impact that marriage (and kids) can have in people’s (specifically women) careers. People have also been milking the “rivalry” that should have, so there’s been a lot of focus on Juhi’s character. It shows… err- the shades of her as a person. She’s not the super human that exudes confidence and always has an opinion on anything- she seems like a human being that has had insecurities throughout her life in an industry that heightens everything, and she’s had to lived under that microscope.

    In theory, it should bother me… but I find her oddly endearing. Juhi makes me feel like I want to give her a hug, and ALWAYS hope for the best for her. The other day when I found out she voted “for the first time,” my reaction was… “Juhi, you’re in your forties, I can’t believe this is the first time you vote.” LOL Though voting is mandatory down here [two 2-round presidential votes, one for city mayor and one to kick out the major LOL], I do have a really strong sense of politics. I’m the snotty late-twenty-something talking to the thirty-somethings and forties about South and North American politics (I’m a little fuzzy in Central American dealings), East Asian, English, and West European politics.

    And I do have too many older friends.

    I wonder what it’s like to be Juhi Chawla’s friend. Sipping a cup of coffee or tea and chat.

  • Funny Tabu for Meenaxi Extras

    You know how we love to put stars on pedestals? Often reserved and measured in interviews — except for the fact that Ang Lee told her she laughs like a school girl [1] — it was totally worth the buy of the Meenaxi DVD for the Making Of. Now we have these~

    tabu-meenaxi-making-of-funny-001
    My reaction when I saw that?

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  • All My Biases in One List Ranked

    amys-favorite-actresses

    Too much awesomeness into one.

    What made it to the list and where it placed? Some of my biggest biases placed lower than expected, and some that I don’t want to be my bias placed high on there~

    Head over there and do your thing~

  • Ranveer Does the Rex for Durex

    Let’s tag this NSFW on the basis that is a condom commercial, alright? Otherwise, you’re really safe watching it considering some music videos are way WAYYY more risky than this I-don’t-know-if-I-should-be-embarrassed-or-do-the-rex commercial.

    I have sooooo many conflicting feelings on Ranveer Singh. I look at him, see him act on movies, look at his photos, be a dork in short spans of time… and I find him oddly attractive. Then I see him behaving in a rather lengthy interview, and my logic wants it to continue- but it’s off. Totally OFF. The Koffee with Karan episode he did with Arjun Kapoor, it grossed me out.

    As a general reaction, I get all Madhuri Dixit and laugh my butt off saying “he’s hilarious.”

    The commercial starts off pretty cringe-worthy until you reach the 10-sec mark, and a goofy loose-pant Ranveer does a funny dance. The music (or at least the beat) is a bit generic, you can think of a dozen songs that are catchy and might sound similar to it (Psy, LMFAO, I felt all of you guys — and i don’t even like you), and he certainly shouldn’t quite his job as an actor.

    BUT! He’s such a dufus. I can’t help it~

    I haven’t been able to find anything on it, but rumor has it that DigitasLbi was in charge of the ad, which seems to target women as their demographic. Why should condoms be solely a guy’s responsibility, no?

    I can’t believe there’s still people who don’t practice safe sex.

  • The Tabu 5 Character Dinner Table

    Interesting interview that I think I had read back when Jai Ho premiered, but now that I’m more knowledgeable makes much more sense and it’s much more interesting.

    Since you’ve played such diverse and memorable roles I’m curious to know if you could invite any five characters to dinner, who would you choose?

    Nimmi (Maqbool), Mumtaz (Chandni Bar), Aditi (Astitva), Panna (Hu Tu Tu), and Veeran (Maachis).

    Source.

    tabu-dinner
    From left to right .– Veeran, Panna, Aditi, Mumtaz, Nimmi.

    I would surely agree that those are her best characters, but I’m not sure I would like to sit in a room with Nimmi, Panna or Veeran (unless that’s pre-Maachis events). I would certainly feel uneasy with Nimmi. LOL And Nimmi would definitely not get along with Panna, so the whole dinner party would end up being blown up to pieces ;P that is if Nimmi doesn’t get someone to get her first~ ha!

    With my current watches, I would keep Aditi and Mumtaz, and add~~~ Sowmya (Kandukondain, Kandukondain), Kavita (Ghaath) and- I can’t pick between Ashima (The Namesake), Nina (Cheeni Kum) or Meenaxi. xD Or maybe I’ll go thematic and pick Dr. Malini (Fanaa) or Neetu (Khuda Kasam), with whom we will talk about laws, the justice and defense system.

    Aditi and Mumtaz will probably enjoy the company of Ashima, Meena (Aamdani Atthanni Kharcha Rupaiya) and… Janki (Chachi 420) or Gehna (Virasat).

    Also, I went on a binge Amazon purchase and got myself a bunch of Tabu movies (and other movies) as the good fan that I am with my fandoms.

     

  • The Film Journey Continues with Freemind

    I broke MindMeister a while back. Around early March actually, so I went back to FreeMind. It doesn’t look as slick, and you gotta install it… but the interface works in the most straightforward of ways. And their PNG export works really good.

    Since March, there’s been a bunch of changes in the list, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra got his own hub after a watch of Delhi 6 — which is the change that broke MindMeister. Mani Ratman also got his own hub, and a watch of Fire sprung a Deepa Meetha hub.

    I’ve watched a bunch of Sridevi movies, but not a big fan of the movies themselves except for Sadma / Moondram Pirai. Also added random single titles, catching up with films as varied as Udaan (which sprung a Vikramaditya Motwane hub), Stalin, Highway, and Student of the Year (Alia Bhatt is YUCK in there), and single film additions for Aamir Khan, Shahrukh, Juhi, Madhuri, Rekha, Shabana Azmi, Seema Biswas and Tabu.

    According to IMDb, it’s nearly 200 movies already.

    indian-film-journey-apr2014

    I also bought a bunch of Indian movies. The first batch arrived yesterday with Rani Mukherji (2 titles), Vidya Balan (1), Tabu (2), Mani Ratman (1) and Sanjay Leela Bhansali (1) titles. I still wish and hope for SLB Bluray releases for everything pres-Saawariya.

  • Manisha Koirala’s Women in India Plea in Lajja

    Lajja has got to have to longest and best emotionally-biting monologue in pseudo parallel-would-be-commercial film in the history of Indian cinema. Pseudo parallel because subtlety isn’t exactly the film’s strongest point; it’s got some over the top drama, comedic moments, big stars, musical numbers [1], chopping of the limbs, and a super evil baddie that gets a la chancla [1] payback. Plus, a big BIG social message.

    Are you kidding me? I love it. This is my second time watching, and I moaned, denounced, clapped, sang, shouted at the screen, called people names, and cheered.

    I was so into Manisha Koirala’s ‘shame on you‘ monologue, I tried to make an image sequence of it. It’s impossible. It’s so long, but here’s part of it. Considering, the not so recent events in Delhi and Mumbai, Lajja is more relevant now than ever. It freaking needs a re-release, and more freaking women need to get off their bums and watch it.

    manisha-koirala-lajja-quote

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  • From the Vault: Tabu’s Words of Wisdom

    I ran into this interview Tabu did for the promotion of Toh Baat Pakki! for Hungama — or as I’ve labeled ’15 minutes in heaven’ — where they speak about her roles and experience in films like Maachis, Astitva, Chandni Bar, Cheeni Kum, Maqbool, and The Namesake.

    https://dai.ly/xc46xk

    Here’s Part 2 of that interview.

    Then my procrastination got ridiculous when I found this really old interview of her, and things got out of control from then on~

    • A really young Tabu talks about who forms her family unit and mentions how Mumbai is not home [1].
    • A fairly early interview talking about how Prem and Vijaypath are her babies [1].
    • A brief clip talking about Ghaath [1].
    • A short interview on her role in Astitva [1].
    • Tabu wins Best Actress at Zee Cine Awards for Astitva, and Shabana Azmi receives it in her behalf [1].
    • Tabu wins Best Actress at Zee Cine Awards for Chandni Bar [1].
    • Rekha gives Tabu the Critics Best Actress Filmfare Award for Hu Tu Tu [1].

    I find interesting the last clip, because (I think) she thanks her dad, but in previous interviews (like in the first link) completely ignores his existence. Or maybe I’m mishearing, and she’s thanking Gulzar as if he were her dad. As a side note, I love that her mind just drifts off after the announcement coz she’s just too damn excited, and totally ignores the question.

  • Madhuri with Swag

    I’m not a fan of the cowboy gauchito hat, but I was surprised that Madhuri Dixit’s Facebook page shared this photo of her showering all her swag. It’s the first time I’ve seen some sort of gender-bending from India. Like… I would die with all the femininity that is supposed to embody women there with their overly long hair, their strong accentuating make-up, the saris and anarkalis.

    Rani… sorta did the gender-bending gig for Dil Bole Hadippa! [1], and she had swag but the role was played for laughs, while Tabu has worn suits for different reasons in a number of films (lawyering up in Ghaath, gender-switcheroo gag in Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa), and wore short hair for a brief period during Hu Tu Tu, but I’ve never come to grips with that.

    Maybe I’m just used to seeing them with long hair and saris. I also love how the color red suits Tabu. Sure~ it looks good on film and photoshoots, and it could be local – so of your own – and exotic at the same time, but I would find having to live with it exhausting.

    gender-bending-madhuri