bandish bandits full webseries download

We have heard many stories of artists being tormented by their quest to perfect a song, a painting, a novel, or a dance form. But Bandish Bandits, now streaming on Amazon Prime Video says art should not be a burden but a joy that sets you free and helps you brings people together. The show is created by Amritpal Singh Bindra and Anand Tiwari, with Anand also serving as director of the entire series.

Quite like the film Morning Raga, Bandish Bandits tells the story of two individuals and two musical styles meeting. Radhe (Ritwik Bhowmik), a classically trained singer, meets pop star and social media music sensation Tamanna (Shreya Chaudhary) at her concert in Jodhpur. This chance encounter ends up becoming a life changing event for the two.

Radhe lives with his parents, uncle, and grandfather Pandit Radhemohan Rathod (Naseeruddin Shah), a classical music singer who is held in high regard even by the Maharaja of Jodhpur. Sadly, their respectable public image is in stark contrast to their grim and unhappy home where the air reeks of stifled ambitions and repressed desires. Panditji’s sons Rajendra (Rajesh Tailang) and Devendra (Amit Mistry) nurse grudges against their father for holding them to impossibly high standards, while Radhe’s mother Mohini (Sheeba Chaddha) has a tragic story worthy of a spin off show.

Tamanna comes a breath of fresh air into Radhe’s drab life. Inspired by the purity and sincerity in his voice, Tamanna asks him to collaborate with her on a song. Radhe however is determined to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps and refuses to sing in any other style till his family’s dwindling fortunes force him to change his mind. Singing with Tamanna offers Radhe a completely different musical experience that he finds enjoyable and liberating. The two also indulge in a rather unnecessary role-playing sidetrack where they decide to fake a love story (we know how that will end) to get the right emotional vibe for the song they are creating. It is unabashedly frivolous and corny, but I realised it has been created to specifically appeal to a younger audience.

Tamanna and Radhe’s song is a success and the two come together to form the ‘Bandish Bandits’ and create more music together. Just when we think Radhe can have his Riyaaz and his fusion too, enters Digvijay (Atul Kulkarni), Panditji’s son from his first wife whom he has abandoned years ago. Digvijay wants his father to name him successor to his musical legacy instead of Radhe. Unfortunately, after this point, what begins as the story of two youngsters trying to navigate careers in music and finding their own voice, literally and otherwise, suddenly shifts focus to Panditji, Radhe and Digvijay and a male dominated war of succession that is unforgivably clichéd. It also dilutes the core promise of the show - youngsters creating a bridge between classical purity and commercial viability in an art form.

Bandish Bandits has been made with sincerity, but the pace and quality of writing is inconsistent. The story gets unnecessarily stretched over 10 episodes and could have easily been at least two hours shorter. But what it lacks in a taut screenplay and sharp editing, it makes up for in its performances. Ritwik and Shreya aren’t strong performers, but their lack of experience works well here. As young artists in real life as well, they strike a nice balance of naturally exuding more confidence around people their own age and looking suitably overwhelmed around veteran actors in the cast.

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Ritwik especially has a tough task on hand having to work opposite far more experienced actors who effortlessly steal scenes. Rajesh and Amit bring adequate pathos and resentment to their roles but scenes of them playing musical instruments have been clumsily filmed and edited. Naseeruddin Shah is excellent as the impractical and unlikeable patriarch, but the actor manages to bring just the right amount of vulnerability to his role to ensure that you don’t hate him. Sheeba is in brilliant form yet again, and her performance in the scene where her backstory is finally revealed is perhaps the best by an actor in the entire series. Atul Kulkarni, another fine actor, is excellent as Digvijay. Kunal Roy Kapur as Tamanna’s agent Arghya brings the laughs, but even his role like most of the cast’s lacks dimensions and finer details.

The real star of the show though is the music. As someone who trained for several years in Hindustani classical music, and enjoys music in general, this show was a treat. Music directors Shankar Ehsaan Loy create a great album, but it’s wonderful to see and hear characters talk about and sing a khayal, thumri, and bandish, all styles that are slowly getting lost today.

The relevance of these traditional compositions and classical training in a world where music is increasingly expected to provide instant gratification is another theme the makers attempt to discuss throughout the series. It’s strange then that the names of the singers don’t appear earlier in the end credits. I actually sat through waiting for the names of the singers to appear, especially the ones who have lent their voices to the main characters and saw that a casting intern received his or her credit before the actual singers without whom this show would not be possible. I realised later that the show’s soundtrack has been released separately with detailed credits, but honestly that’s not good enough.

It’s no masterpiece but watch Bandish Bandits for the lovely music that I am pretty certain we will not get to hear on any other show, and for some its fabulous actors who quite like the music only get seen on web series like these.

Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the webseries.

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AVRODH THE SIEGE WEBSERIES FULL HD DOWNLOAD AND REVIEW

"Let's tell them that we aren't just the land of Mahatma Gandhi, we are also the nation of Subhash Chandra Bose," National Security Advisor (Neeraj Kabi) tells Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Vikram Gokhale) in a wilful, frustrated tone.

After eight months of the Pathankot attack, which killed 7 Indian security personnel, the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists infiltrated the Indian Army headquarters in Uri and killed 19 soldiers of the Indian Army, making it the deadliest attack on the Indian security forces in a decade - till then. This was September 18, 2016. The 2019 attack on the CRPF jawans in Pulwama was still a few years away.

Since the Partition in 1947, India has faced many terrorist attacks, retaliation of which would majorly be limited to political dialogues. But the assault on Indian soldiers on our own soil in Uri did the job of awakening the beast from its eternal slumber. It's payback time, and India's Special Forces (SF) will leave no stone unturned to execute the cleanest operation of crossing the Line Of Control (LoC) and killing over 38 terrorists, residing in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. All of this, without any casualties.

We all have read about the way Indian soldiers undertook the heroic 2016 Uri Surgical Strike. Most of us have seen the entire operation in Vicky Kaushal-starrer Uri: The Surgical Strike (2019). But how many of us know the back story? What led to the surgical strike?

How the Army and India's ruling party joined hands to execute the daredevil plan deftly and swiftly is what forms the crux of Sony Liv's new show, Avrodh: The Siege Within. The series turns these pages of history for us. Avrodh is based on the first chapter ('We Don't Really Know Fear') of the book India's Most Fearless 1, by Shiv Aroor and Rahul Singh, which lists first-hand accounts of military heroes who braved the most dangerous circumstances. The makers have, however, taken ample creative liberties.

From the uproar in the Valley after the killing of militant leader Burhan Wani to Jaish-e-Mohammed's training camps and their suicide bombers, Avrodh lists all the incidents that lead to the Uri Surgical Strike. In fact, we get to see the soldiers execute the strike in only the last two episodes. The first 7 episodes of this 9-episode series shows us how the whole operation was built and the planning that went in.

Amit Sadh is seen playing the role of Major Videep Singh, who has spent a decade of his 13 service years in Jammu and Kashmir and has been part of 20 successful anti-terror operations. He knows the topography of the region well, and thus is put in charge to chalk out the plan for the surgical strike and choose his men for the task ahead.

Amit beefed up for his role of Major Videep Singh. We see he has prepared well for his character. But that's where the problem lies: he tries a little too hard and it is starkly visible on the camera. Darshan Kumar as Major Gautam is promising. Neeraj Kabi, however, is the star of the show. He remains effortless and is the most watchable actor in the whole series.

Performances aren't the problem in Avrodh; its uneven narrative is. The segment introducing the character of journalist Namrata Joshi (Madhurima Tuli) is jarring. Media plays an important role in delicate circumstances like these, but the subject needed some more depth.

The truly daunting task for the Indian soldiers was the return from behind the enemy lines after the successful execution of the strike. They had to tread an uphill track with their backs facing fire from the Pakistani forces. In the book, the Major Mike Tango mentioned, "... the one thing bothering me was the de-induction - the return. That's where I knew I could lose guys." This part is also handled loosely in the series. Right after crossing LoC, Amit stands in front of the National Flag for a good minute. In real life, the soldiers were facing heavy barrage from our angry neighbour and trying to make it back safe.

Apart from these few glitches, Avrodh emerges as a well-rounded series. It delves deep into the functioning of terrorist groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizbul Mujahideen, how they employ terrorists and the backing they get from Pakistan Intelligence agency ISI. It also takes into account the international pressure from the US and United Nations that the ruling parties had to go through while delivering such fearless operations.

The guns and the glory, it's all there in Avrodh, and director Raj Acharya presents it as mere facts, without the series coming off as hyper-nationalistic.

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YAARA FULL HD MOVIE DOWNLOAD

Yaara movie cast: Vidyut Jammwal, Amit Sadh, Vijay Varma, Shruti Haasan, Ankur Vakil, Kenny Basumatary, Mohammed Ali Shah, Sanjay Mishra
Yaara movie director: Tigmanshu Dhulia
Yaara movie rating: Two stars

Friendship and betrayal is a long-running thread in Tigmanshu Dhulia’s films. Yaara, based on the 2011 French crime drama A Gang Story, gives us the story of four childhood pals and their journey through the murky world of gun-running, country liquor, and the shenanigans involved in buying and selling large tracts of land for profit. Given the director’s skills in this kind of set-up, Yaara, set in the 70s, should have been a uniformly fast-paced ride, studded with interesting performances, but it works only sporadically.

Part of the fun of watching Dhulia’s better movies is the way they put together a bunch of quirky characters, craggy locations and eye-popping intrigue. We see the foursome comprising the ‘chaukadi gang’, Phagun, Mitwa, Rizwan, Bahadur (Jammwal, Sadh, Varma, Basumatary respectively) hanging out, shooting the breeze when they are not shooting their way out of trouble, often dispensing with their shirts, so that their bare chests do the talking, and till they are in that initial stages of cementing their yaari-dosti, it’s all good.

Subsequently, the plot starts to meander, into dangerous Naxal territory, in which we see socially-conscious students of redbrick Delhi University colleges working off their privilege. This part of the film reminds you of that infinitely superior trek into the same terrain by Sudhir Mishra’s Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi. That’s the cue for Sukanya (Haasan) to show up, as a sympathiser-cum-activist, the weakest link in the film. It leads to a bulbous middle, and a twist which leads the way to a muddled third act, where the friends, now middle-aged, beards-flecked-with-grey, meet up again, and the body count piles up.

The only way to work a testosterone-laden, bullet-riddled sprawling desi Western-cum-crime saga, is to keep it believable. I’m quite happy to watch young men, drunk on the power of can-do-anything youth, swagger about, especially if they aren’t the overused, jaded stars Bollywood works with. But there needs to be more that they, and us, are given to work with. Yaara needed both more clarity and heft, to deliver on the promise it set out with.

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Sanju movie review: The Ranbir Kapoor starrer is a tamer version of the real-life hellraiser

Biopics are quite in vogue in Bollywood and in recent times, many of them have even tasted massive commercial success. But often, these biopics are criticized as they become quite hagiographic and tend to glorify the person in question. In such a scenario, blockbuster director Rajkumar Hirani’s SANJU promises to be different and shows the highs as well as lows and dark periods of actor Sanjay Dutt. That it’s directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who has a cent per cent track record and features popular actor Ranbir Kapoor, has added to the excitement considerably. So does SANJU live up to its hype and turns out to be a yet another feather in Hirani’s cap? Or does it fail to impress? Let’s analyse.

SANJU is the biopic of controversial actor Sanjay Dutt and some of the dramatic and significant episodes of his life. Sanjay Dutt (Ranbir Kapoor) is the son of famous actor Sunil Dutt (Paresh Rawal) and yesteryear actress Nargis (Manisha Koirala). He is about to get launched in a film by his father titled ROCKY. Upset with his father, he tries drugs for the first time courtesy his friend Zubin Mistry (Jim Sarbh). At this point, he finds out that Nargis is suffering from cancer and has few days to live. She is taken to New York for treatment. Sanju is unable to control his drug habit even when his mother is struggling. While in New York, he befriends Kamlesh Kapasi (Vicky Kaushal) and they both form a wonderful bond. Sadly due to his drug addiction, his relationship with his girlfriend Ruby (Sonam Kapoor) gets affected and ends on a dismal note. Nargis dies just three days before the release of ROCKY. An overwhelmed Sanju agrees to go for rehab in the USA. Once he overcomes this addiction, he gets into a bigger problem. He gets arrested for illegal possession of arms. He’s also accused of aiding the terrorists in carrying out the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993. How Sanjay Dutt fights this dreadful charge forms the rest of the film.

Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi’s story is interesting but one can sense that they have tried to play safe. But they have balanced it out by not glorifying Dutt and showing his bad and dark side too. Also, it’s impressive how Rajkumar and Abhijat haven’t focused on his film career and have focused on his personal life and turmoils. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi’s screenplay is terrific and despite the minuses, can be used as a guide on how to write films. With so much happening in the film, the writers ensure that the narrative doesn’t go all over the place. Everything is neatly put together. For instance, when the sequence where the Dutts are returning back to India, Nargis’ remarks about Ruby. This is done organically and neatly links to the next sequence which is related to Ruby. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi’s dialogues as always are entertaining, sharp and massy. Few dialogues related to sex will bring the house down in single screens and in the hinterland. A section of the audience, however, would also be put off by such jokes and dark humour at places.

Rajkumar Hirani’s direction as expected is highly effective. This is no easy film to make but he executes and presents the plot in a simple and crisp manner. His magic comes to the fore in several sequences and is bound to leave viewers smiling and teary-eyed. However, the climax could have been better and more powerful.

The biggest strength of SANJU is that the film never drops. The screenplay is riveting and keeps you hooked, even if you might not agree with the goings-on. And that’s a feat for a film which is 160 minutes long. The back and forth narrative works very well and keeps viewers intrigued. The first half is excellent and boasts of some fine emotional, funny and dramatic sequences. The intermission point comes as a bolt from the blue. The madness continues in the second half but the plot gets a bit shaky here. The film goes on a high in the first half but the same doesn’t happen in the second half. The film should have ended with a punch or on a rocking note, as it has happened in the previous Rajkumar Hirani films. However, the film leaves a strong emotional impact overall, which works very well.

Ranbir Kapoor owns the film and delivers a terrific performance. Nowhere does his performance seem like a caricature and he gives his best shot in ensuring that he looks and behaves like Sanjay Dutt. Watch out for him in the emotional sequence, particularly when his mother passes away and he confesses to his father that he needs to get better. Also, he’ll leave viewers moist-eyed in the scene where he fails to read his speech to his father and later the inevitable happens. SANJU surely ranks as one of the most or arguably the most accomplished performance by this young actor and is bound to win him accolades, admiration and awards! Paresh Rawal is also quite impressive and plays the important part of Sunil Dutt with perfection. SANJU is a father-son story and he compliments Ranbir very well in taking some scenes to great heights. Vicky Kaushal is the surprise package of the film. Right from his entry, he makes a mark and brings the house down at several places. Also, he’s rocking in the emotional sequences like when he meets Ruby or when he tells Sunil Dutt that they need to help Sanjay Dutt. Even in the second half, watch out for him when he meets Sanjay Dutt in the hospital and in the pre-climax when he listens to the radio. Manisha Koirala has a supporting part but is an important pillar in the film and charms with her performance. Anushka Sharma (as Winnie Dias) delivers a splendid performance. Again, her screen time is limited. Jim Sarbh makes an impact with his role. Sonam Kapoor (as Ruby) is decent in the cameo. Boman Irani (as Homi) contributes to the fun quotient. Sayaji Shinde (as Bandu Dada) looks every inch a gangster. Dia Mirza (as Maanayata Dutt) gets overpowered. Aditi Seiya (as Priya Dutt) looks quite like Priya but doesn’t have much to do in the film. Karishma Tanna (as Pinky) is quite sizzling and makes a mark, despite being there for just a scene. Mahesh Manjrekar (himself), Piyush Mishra (D Tripathi), Ashwin Mushran (security officer), Bharat Dabholkar (lawyer) and Aanjjan Srivastav (minister) are good.

Songs are not that great but work well in the film. ‘Kar Har Maidaan Fateh’ is the best of the lot. ‘Main Badhiya Tu Bhi Badhiya’ is very well picturised and imagined. ‘Ruby Ruby’ (by A R Rahman) is relegated to the background. Sanjay Wandrekar and Atul Raina's background score is much better and exhilarating. S Ravivarman’s cinematography is splendid and has captured some of the locales beautifully. In fact, he impresses right from the first shot itself – a bird’s eye view of Bandra. Shashank Tere’s production design is appealing and rich. Eka Lakhani’s costumes are authentic. Vikram Gaikwad’s make-up design, Clover Wootton’s prosthetics and VFX by Fluiidmask Studios deserves the highest praise for making Ranbir look like Sanjay Dutt through the ages. Rajkumar Hirani’s editing is crisp.

On the whole, SANJU is an entertaining saga that blends emotions, humour and drama in adequate doses. It is powerful, engaging, emotional as well as compelling. The combination of Rajkumar Hirani and Ranbir Kapoor works like a dream. At the box office, despite not being a ‘typical Rajkumar Hirani family entertainer’, SANJU will score tremendously and emerge as a Monstrous Hit! Don’t miss it!

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'Gold' Trailer Review: Akshay Kumar Turns Patriotic Bengali in this Reema Kagti Film

The trailer of Reema Kagti’s big Independence Day sports film finds Akshay Kumar doing what he likes best: pitching for country and flag. There is a loud jingoistic feel to the trailer, as though the director has let all systems go into creating a feverish pitch as hockey takes centre stage once again.

Let me say at the outset that  Gold looks nothing like Shimit Amin’s hockey film  Chak De. The two films are as dissimilar as Shah Rukh Khan and  Akshay Kumar. Akshay with a  Bengali accent that Uttam  Kumar would have envied plays the captain of India’s first post-Independence hockey team and he wants nothing less than the Gold from the Olympics. “The King will watch as we take away the gold,” he dreamily announces to Vineet Mishra (the actor who was last seen trying to become a boxer in Mukkabaaz) who is reluctant join the team. Aren’t they all!

The team, if you must know, looks dependable and appealing, what with Kunal Kapoor philosophizing how in life as in hockey, you sometimes just need to let the ball go. Not this time, buddy.  Reema Kagti’s Gold has ‘winner’ written on every frame. The trailer screams for attention as patriotic sounds merge into visuals of the furling-unfurling flag. It’s all done in the spirit of a gamely night of nationalistic fervour, filled with sounds and visuals that are meant to suck us into its seductive nationalism.

WATCH THE TRAILER-

https://youtu.be/Pcv0aoOlsLM

It works most of the way. Mouni Roy the very beautiful television actress, is seen as Akshay’s bullying wife who literally pushes aside his Olympian dreams and later is seen praying for her husband’s victory. Akshay loves to be bullied by his screen wives (see Jolly LLB 2, Toliet Ek Prem Katha, Padman, etc). Mouni seems to wear the pants in this relationship too. Akshay happily lets her.

Gold has a warm rugged feel to it, as though the spirit of nostalgia and sportsmanship that rule the theme are pre-conditions for a  sincere film on winning against all odds. The ‘formula’  cannot stop working as long as the filmmaker uses it to tell an inspiring story. Gold will hit pay-dirt.

inspired by true events, Gold captures India’s first Olympic Games’ win as a free country in hockey. India had just become independent when the Olympic Games were being hosted in England in 1948. India defeated its former colonial masters on their very soil and the pull of the story is obvious. Sharing the trailer, Akshay wrote, “Winners under British India, Legends under Free India. Witness the golden era of Indian Hockey through #Gold.”

Akshay Kumar, in an interview to a leading daily, also pointed out a coincidence, “Gold releases on August 15 and on August 12 is the 70th anniversary of India’s first gold medal as a free country at the 1948 Summer Olympic Games in London. The release couldn’t have been planned better. It’s a matter of pride that while we celebrate the 70th anniversary of one of our first biggest victories on foreign soil in hockey, we will also host the Hockey World Cup. As for the sport getting its due, I think this was long overdue.”

Talking about the film, producer Ritesh Sidhwani had earlier told PTI, “It is not a biopic. It is a completely fictional story but it is set against a real backdrop between 1933-48 India about what the country was, the sports... about hockey. It is not based on any character.”

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Parmanu Movie Review: John Abraham Does His Best But The Film Never Explodes To Life

Cast: John Abraham, Diana Penty

Director: Abhishek Sharma

Rating: 2.5 stars (out of five)

Abhishek Sharma's Parmanu - The Story Of Pokhran is a tale without a sting. In this anything-goes, post-truth film, fact and fiction are freely and selectively mixed to whip up patriotic fervour around a nuclear test that India conducted two decades ago. Those explosions in Pokhran were more about technology than military heroism. That distinction isn't allowed to come in the way of the film's priggish tone, which serves to uphold the skewed notion of strength and muscularity that is peddled nowadays for us to aspire to as a nation.

But no matter how hard the makers try to fuse dubious intent with ill-considered execution, Parmanu is a damp squib of colossal dimensions. It never explodes to life. While claiming "based on a true event" status and liberally incorporating footage of Bill Clinton, Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and, above all, Atal Bihari Vajpayee speaking on camera, the screenplay throws a whole lot of fictional elements into a messy pot. This results in a film that is caught in cross-signals so dreary and humdrum that even rocket science would seem exhilarating in comparison.

The Parmanu script, which unabashedly attributes the success of India's nuclear programme to one prime minister and his chief scientific adviser, serves a deliberate, blatantly lopsided, please-the-current-powers-that-be purpose. It suggests that nobody in India had ever thought of tapping nuclear power as a means to ensuring both security and peace for the nation. That obviously is an overt falsehood aimed at erasing the names of Jawaharlal Nehru, Homi Bhabha, Indira Gandhi, Vikram Sarabhai, Raja Ramanna and others from the roll of honour, if we are willing to associate honour and humanity with any policy that rides solely on brazen bellicosity.

This film would have us believe that India's nuclear programme was the brainchild of a resolute, unwavering 1990s engineer-bureaucrat who put his personal and professional life on the line for the greater glory of the nation. The covert mission spearheaded by him and his handpicked team, which is projected as a race against time, US surveillance and other grave challenges, is as scintillating as watching a television weather forecast.

Early on in the film, this lionized government functionary, Ashwat Raina (John Abraham), son of a gallantry award-winning army officer, grandly pipes up at a stuffy official meeting: "It is time for India to become a nuclear state." His earnestness takes our breath away, but his boss, a sceptical minister, looks askance at his suggestion and even ridicules him.

The floppy disc that Raina hands over to one of the officers in the room is quickly reduced to a coaster on the table. But the politician, who has a direct line to the Prime Minister, seeks to hog the credit for the nuclear test plan. When the project backfires - this is in 1995 - he instantly washes his hands of the aborted test. Ashwat Raina is scapegoated and handed an "immediate termination" order.

A song blares on the soundtrack - Parmanu eschews many of the conventions of commercial Hindi cinema but cannot resist bunging in mood-highlighting musical numbers - to point to the wronged man's state of mind as he is banished to Mussoorie. There, he coaches aspiring civil service officers while his astrophysicist-wife Sushma (Anuja Sathe) shoulders the responsibility of raising their nine-year-old son.

Raina's life takes another turn three years on when Himanshu Shukla (Boman Irani) assumes office as the new principal secretary to the Prime Minister and summons him back for another shot. The Mahabharata comes in handy and, slipping into the role of Krishna, Raina puts together a team of five Pandavas - a scientist, a technocrat, a surveillance man, a woman from the space agency (Diana Penty), and an army major - to attempt a series of nuclear explosions in the army range in Pokhran where Indira Gandhi had tested "Smiling Buddha" nearly a quarter century ago. The earlier test is referred to by the protagonist, but only dismissively. It was for peaceful means, so it does not count, he says.

Raina's mission is what Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran is all about, but at no point does the film manage to capture the urgency of the operation, which entails dodging detection by US spy satellites, destructive sandstorms and bouts of self-doubt. The six operatives look like a bunch of eager-beavers playing hide and seek in the desert heat. Indeed, Parmanu is never more engaging than that.

Raina wants to do something for the country. His wife says to him: "Hero vardi se nahi iraadon se bante hain (It isn't the uniform that make a hero, it is his resolve)." The man takes that exhortation to heart. His subsequent foray into the unknown resembles a boring stroll in the park that is occasionally interrupted by a marital misunderstanding and interventions by two spies working for the CIA and ISI in the area.

John Abraham is a co-producer of this film, so there is no reason to surmise that he does not believe in what Parmanu is trying to achieve as a film. He does his best to lend some frisson to his onscreen role, but he is weighed down by a ridiculously fanciful screenplay (jointly written by Sanyukta Sheikh Chawla, Saiwyn Quadras and director Abhishek Sharma). He really cannot make much progress against the headwinds.

Diana Penty, playing as an all-knowing busybody who is the mission's operations point person, is pretty. But she is pretty unconvincing, too, in her perfectly coiffured and neatly attired look in the midst of a life and death project.

In one scene, the hero blames his flat foot for his failure to break into the army. He could well have been speaking about the film as a whole. Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran is as a flat as a pancake, a hopelessly limp exercise with creaky nucleus that is buried under a mound of forced tropes before it can get going.

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'Veerey Di Wedding' star cast hopes for good response

Even before the multi-starrer film 'Veere Di Wedding' has hit the theatres, the star cast of the movie believed that the viewers will surely come out to watch the film. The star cast of the upcoming film, Kareena Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania also expressed happiness over the positive response enthralled by the trailer and songs of the much-awaited.

The movie which marks Sonam Kapoor's first film after her marriage with a long time boyfriend Anand Ahuja holds a special place in her heart because it has been produced by her sister, Rhea Kapoor. During an interview, the 'Sawariyaa' actress said, "Every film I get is important to me but 'Veere Di Wedding' is more important to me because it is my sister Rhea Kapoor's film. Even my friends are a part of this film. This film has a lot of flavours, it has drama, comedy, romance excitement. I hope it goes really well and I hope the audience enjoys the film."

'Jab We Met' actress Kareena Kapoor Khan, who is making a comeback in 'Veerey Di Wedding' after her pregnancy break said, "I am really excited about the film. The trailer has received a good response. While shooting for 'Veere Di Wedding' it did not feel like work because we were only talking about food and having fun. We had a fun time shooting in Delhi. There is a comedy, romance, friendship, everything."

Meanwhile, actress, Swara Bhaskar who is usually known for playing non-glamorous, content-based films such as, 'Nil Battey Sannata', 'Anaarkali of Aarah', will be seen in a completely different avatar in the film. She herself believes that an artist should take up challenges and do roles they are scared of.

"For me 'Veere Di Wedding' was a very different experience. Till now I haven't done such roles. I am an urban, westernized, glamorous character who shops only in London. I particularly called Rhea and said I want to take up that role. My characters have always been down-to-earth. I wanted to see, that in a film that has a glamorous cast like, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Kareena Kapoor Khan if I can supersede them in terms of glamour. I think an artist should take up challenges and do roles they are scared of," she said.

Another actress of the movie Shikha Talsania who has earlier worked with Kareena Kapoor Khan's cousin, Ranbir Kapoor in 'Wake Up Sid' said, "I was really waiting to start working with Kareena. I am her big fan and I was excited to start shooting with Kareena Kapoor Khan. I was never nervous, I was only feeling the excitement. I couldn't wait for work, shooting to begin."

The chick flick is directed by Shashanka Ghosh and produced by Balaji Motion Pictures, Anil Kapoor Films & Communication Network and Saffron Broadcast & Media Ltd is slated to release on June 1. The trailer of 'Veere Di Wedding' holds true to its tagline and is a high-spirited, coming of age story revolving around the lives of four childhood friends Kalindi (Kareena Kapoor Khan), Avni (Sonam Kapoor), Meera (Shikha Talsania) and Sakshi (Swara Bhasker).

The tale takes a turn when Kareena is about to get hitched with Sumeet Vyas. Filled with swear words, slapstick moments and some hilarious one-liners, 'Veere Di Wedding' is a complete joy ride.

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Race 3 movie review LIVE updates: Check out the first day, first show review of Salman Khan’s power-packed action entertainer

And finally, Friday is here, Eid is here and so is Salman Khan at the theaters near you! This time, the superstar has arrived with a family suspense-thriller… he likes to call it Race 3 with Hum Aapke Hain Koun! Don’t try to figure out what he means by that because you have to watch the film to know more. Race 3 is the third instalment of the super hit series which has always managed to impress the audience and the box office alike. Say for that matter, Race 2 had ended up making over Rs 100 crore when it had released in 2013. Obviously, this time the film will only get bigger thanks to the ultimate crowd-puller, Salman Khan who is at the helm of all affairs. And then when you know everything has undergone a change right from the director (Remo D’Souza) to the cast which has a host of new actors including Bobby Deol, Daisy Shah, Saqib Saleem along with the original Race faves Anil Kapoor and Jacqueline Fernandez, you only expect more twists and turns in store for you.

Race 3 is everything film students are taught not to do, but then what do they know? From the first scene in which Anil Kapoor blows up a gang member with the help of a pen bomb to Salman coming to the rescue of his family in a base-jump suit, Race 3 unabashedly targets the fans. There isn’t any pretension of logical filmmaking or sound screenplay. It seems Race 3 categorically wants the non-Salman fans to mind their own business.

Shamsher Singh (Anil Kapoor), a runaway criminal from a village near Allahabad, has built an empire in Al-Shifa Island in the Middle East, which was bought by his elder brother for difficult days. Sikander alias Sikku (Salman Khan) is Shamsher’s stepson who runs his illegal arms’ business. Sanjana (Daisy Shah) and Suraj (Saqib Saleem) are Shamsher’s other kids. There is an intra-family rivalry going on among all of them for the control of business and assets. But they don’t know ‘iss khel ka asli Sikander kaun hai (who is the real boss of this game)’. You have seen the trailer, right?

Let’s get back to the race, I mean the story, which starts, speeds up and finishes with black SUVs, airborne fighters and a barrage of bullets.

Consider this example: Sanjana, the cool-headed MMA champ, and Suraj, a mostly screaming psychotic gangster who likes to break beer bottles on his own head, are trapped in the den of an adversary. Shamsher isn’t worried about his children because “Sikander tak message pahuch chukka hai (The message has reached Sikander).” You know what that means?

This means the killing of more than 10 dozen weapon-wielding trained bodyguards and a song thrown in between. The icing on the cake is Saqib’s reaction to his rescue, “What the hell bro!” Exactly, what the hell!

No wonder, Salman introduces himself as, “My name is Sikander, Sikander Singh.” He is James Bond with tonnes of extra confidence. Before I forget, he is Oxford-educated as well.

Dialogues in the film play on a different level altogether. Just when you thought nothing could surpass ‘My business is my business, none of your business,’ Daisy Shah comes up with another gem: ‘Isko dil nahi Dell khol ke dikhao (Don’t open your heart, switch on your Dell laptop)’.

Lamborghini, Ferrari, Bentley -- you name it and D’Souza will blow it up for you. He is so obsessed with blasts in the film that he doesn’t mind blasting a tree if he doesn’t find anything else.

Not that Race and Race 2 were classics, but Race 3 has taken things too far. Remo D’Souza’s idea of a dysfunctional family is far more juvenile than Abbas-Mustan’s.

Then there are shirtless people, undercover agents with outrageously simple plans and a twist that does more harm than help. By the end of it, Race 3 turns so bad that you can’t help but laugh nervously.

Let me simplify it for you: A bad guy, who was initially presented as the most powerful person on the planet, challenges Sikander in dual. After being punched for a couple of times, he is lying in the pool of blood. Sikander, meanwhile, is taking care of other business. The fallen guy says something from behind a big black car. Of course, Sikander doesn’t like it, so what does he do? He simply pushes the car and it crushes the previously powerful guy. So simple.

Race 3 is anyway no ordinary film, it is an iteration in a popular action-thriller franchise – Race. Ten years after the first Race hit theatres, the third film in the series comes loaded with big stars like Salman, Anil Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bobby Deol and others.

Releasing on the joyous occasion of Eid, the Remo D’Souza directorial should earn around Rs 30 crore on the first day. Trade analyst Girish Johar had earlier said, “Eid hasn’t been announced as of now still Salman’s charm is working on his fans. Also, Anil Kapoor has left the audience excited for the film and Race 3 is expected to earn Rs 30 crore on its opening day,” he said. He also predicted that the film should cross the Rs 100 crore mark over the opening weekend. Race 3 is releasing on 3500 screens.

When asked if Race 3 will be able to best Salman’s last film Tiger Zinda Hai, Johar said, “It cannot be said as the advance booking for the Ali Abbas Zafar film began much before the release of the film but bookings for Race 3 have just begun.”

The record for the highest opener this year goes to Disney and Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War at Rs 31.3 crore. Race 3 has a good chance at beating the Marvel tentpole superhero film.

“Race 3 is nothing but a recycled bin of too many car chases, explosions, buffed up characters strutting in slo-mo, and wilted lines. The same character who had a ‘bad feeling’, also uses the word ‘so tacky’. Well, what else would you call a film which doesn’t do justice to its finest asset, Anil Kapoor? The superbly fit Kapoor is a left-over from the previous Race flicks, and he was an absolute hoot in both.”

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