A Year in Review

Ok, so I got behind and Filmfare already happened, but IIFA is yet to come! Lo and behold, my Top 10 Films of 2008, IN ORDER OF RELEASE, i.e. NOT RANKED IN ANY ORDER.

Jodhaa Akbar
Ashutosh Gowarikar may have tried to recreate a Lagaan period piece, but it’s no epic, this. Instead, the easily irritable (Star Screen Awards, anyone?) but talented director served up an homage to Akbar the Great vis-à-vis a nearly four-hour enterprise that must at least be lauded for its technical achievements, as well as extracting surprisingly confident performances from Hrithik Roshan and a more expressive-than-usual Aishwarya Rai. Said lead pair’s chemistry picked up from where Dhoom 2 left off, and Rahman’s music also was suitable enough.

Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
Every now and then a film comes along that redefines a generation, and Jaane Tu… achieved the rare feat of reigniting the sort of post-college fervor that only Dil Chahta Hai managed in the recent past. No prizes for guessing then that Aamir Khan was at the producer’s helm, launching his affable nephew Imran opposite the ever-likable Genelia D’Souza. Fun, frivolous and all the while insightful, who would have thought so much fun could be had in a film where a certain Pappu just can’t seem to dance.

Mumbai Meri Jaan
I said these are not ranked, but if I were to award the ‘Best Picture’ to any one Hindi film of 2008, this would be it. A heartbreaking, thought-provoking account of Mumbai’s train attacks in 2006, it’s rare that you see such an intriguing narrative structure laced with fine acting and crisp editing all in the space of a 2.5 hour Hindi film. If you haven’t seen it, you are doing a huge injustice to meaningful cinema.

A Wednesday
Interestingly tackling a subject very similar to Mumbai Meri Jaan and releasing all of a week or two later, A Wednesday was more of a critics/crowd/award favorite. This is not to say that it is undeserving of the recognition, but this gritty take on domestic terrorism played between two central characters was only marred by the fact that it read more like a sermon than a script. Thus while Anupam Kher and Naseeruddin Shah served up the goods, at times it felt more like a documentary than an actual film, and the characters became borderline caricatures. But having said that, it remains superior to 99% of the films that release nowadays.

Rock On!!
If there was a Slumdog Millionaire of Indian cinema, it would probably be in the form of this low-budget film centered around a wannabe Indian rock band by a debutante director and starring no real big names (save for Arjun Rampal who, while incredibly underrated, has never been a crowd puller). The result was somewhat of a cult phenomenon that catapulted Farhan Akhtar into a new kind of super stardom; and, much like the aforementioned Slumdog, it swept the award season by storm, while people either loved it or they hated it.

Welcome to Sajjanpur
No one does it like Shyam Benegal. After a hiatus of several years, it’s almost uncanny how one of India’s all-time great directors can come back, cast two young and underused stars in the form of Shreyas Talpade and Amrita Rao, and make it work in a small village by the name of Sajjanpur. It’s a comedy of nuances and subtlety, a far cry from the Singh Is Kinng (Read: overrated, self-indulgent absurdity), and entirely worthy of far more accolades than it actually received.

Fashion
This was a tough one. While Fashion did receive a generally favorable review by Yours Truly, in retrospect it was not nearly as good as people have made it out to be. But women-centric films are like diamonds in the rough, and only Madhur Bhandarkar has really been open to exploiting the superficiality of several high-power industries (Corporate, Page 3…). Priyanka Chopra may largely be playing herself, but then few of the younger lot can act half as convincingly (point in case her ever-shrieking co-star, Kangana Ranaut), and it also came at a time when films like God Tussi Great Ho, Drona and Love Story 2050 almost indefinitely ruined her career.

Dostana
Until now, no film on this list has been truly ‘commercial’. Jaane Tu... is about as close as it’s gotten to safe, song-and-dance territory, but no one would call it an out-and-out entertainer. Dostana, on the other hand, is the stuff NRI dreams are made of. Foreign locales, designer clothing, flippant music, three A-list stars and plenty of skin show, of course Karan Johar would be an integral part of the proceedings. Debutante director Tarjun Mansukhani looks like the new protégé Yashraj Films was looking for, and Abhishek Bachchan – like his good old friend Piggy Chops – breathed some remarkable (and much-needed) new life into his also sinking career. Drona really was kind to no one.

Dil Kabaddi
It went a little unnoticed, but if you are an art house junkie like myself, the ensemble cast was simply too delicious to ignore: Konkona Sen Sharma, Irfan Khan, Rahul Bose, Soha Ali Khan and Rahul Khanna all in one film? So the film is entirely awkward, embarrassing and inappropriate (i.e. NOT one to watch with the parents, younger siblings, unsuspecting cousins…hi guys!), but it is also hilarious and well-acted, albeit a little too inspired by Woody Allen.

Oye Lucky Lucky Oye
Before the more hyped up Delhi 6 came to fruition at the start of 2009, another film that tried to and admirably captured the culture of Delhi was this small, unassuming film starring Abhay Deol, the leading candidate to join the aforementioned art house brigade. It’s light and simple, sometimes slow but also charming and, well, just about ‘lucky’ enough.

Before You Complain: Ghajini would have made the cut if it were not so over-the-top, full of plot loopholes and had Aamir not been surrounded by a plethora of idiots; Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi would also have come close had Aditya Chopra not missed the boat this time by casting the next Gracy Singh in the form of Anushka Sharma, on one hand making Shahrukh Khan irresistibly sympathetic as Suri but then simultaneously insufferable as Raj and had the film just been better than the equivalent of a Hollywood rom-com with a little more heart and plenty more Shiamak Davar routines.

Musical Greats of 2008

Award season may be verging upon completion in Hollywood, with the mother of all ceremonies falling this Sunday in L.A. (the Oscars, for those of you perhaps living on another planet), but they are all but halfway done over on the other side of the world. The Hindi film industry’s two main ceremonies, Filmfare and IIFA, are in fact yet to occur, and hence I will be taking you along my Top 10 lists for the year 2008.

Given music really is the first thing that attracts us to – or in some cases detracts us from – many a Hindi film, it only makes sense that I begin by outlining my Top 10 Songs of the year. Let it be known that these songs are chosen based on a combination of lyrics, melody and vocal performance rather than anything else, which is also why you will not see foot-tapping chartbusters along the lines of Maa Da Laadla, Talli Ho Gayi and Pappu Can’t Dance. It’s not that those songs are not enjoyable in their own right, but rather the fact that there is a huge dearth of the classic, Indian music that once defined Indian cinema – a genre of music that did not have to rely on 2/3 of a song being in English rather than just about every participant’s mother tongue…

Top 10 Songs of 2008, in Order of Release

1. Jashn-e-Bahara (Jodhaa Akbar)

It makes all too much sense that A.R. Rahman kicked off 2008 with a stellar album for Ashutosh Gowarikar's magnum opus. While Khwaja Mere Khwaja may be the most unique and inspired track on the album, the soft sweetness of this ditty and Mr. Javed Akhtar's incredible lyrical imagery leave it with a much wider appeal than any of the other tracks can boast of.

2. Pehli Nazar Mein (Race)

The term ‘overplayed’ was no match for Atif Aslam in what could very well be termed the love anthem of the year. The lyrics may be nothing spectacular, but it’s the melody and Aslam’s soulful singing that rendered this song a favorite for slow dances, Valentine’s Day surprises, long drives and even entrances/first dances at weddings. Who knew a simple song could go such a long way?

3. Falak Tak (Tashan)

In the midst of the loud, borderline strange music of Tashan that could probably serve as a pinnacle for how Hindi music has changed over time, this Udit Narayan/Kavita Krishnamurthy duet almost seemed recycled from the 90s. But let’s face it: Wouldn’t it be nice if those hilltop love songs weren’t so few and far between? We did, after all, listen to them for the last 60-odd years.

4. Zara Si (Jannat)

Love him or hate him, Emraan Hashmi never ceases to deliver at least one chartbuster per film. Kay Kay’s crooning could easily be confused for the aforementioned Aslam, as could this song for Hashmi’s own Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai (Gangster). Nonetheless, it’s devotional enough for girls to wish a guy would sing it to them, and for guys to wish they were clever enough to do so.

5. Kabhi Kabhi Aditi (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)

This Top 10 may not be ranked in any particular order, but you better believe if there was a song of the year, this would be it right here. It’s an unconventional song with an equally unconventional singer and alarmingly has nothing to do with romance. But who said a song about embracing the concept of loving, losing and moving on in life would have no takers? Even if in the end it was all about a cat.

6. Bakhuda Tumhi Ho (Kismat Konnection)

Some people referred to this album as a meek attempt to recreate the success of Jab We Met. Those people may be on to something, but on that same token so were the music directors. In another album full of club-like, Hinglish numbers (what else would Shahid Kapur gyrate to?), what really stood out was a song that utilized the Urdu of yore and called upon magic man Aslam yet again, and the now sadly underexposed Alka Yagnik.

7. Khuda Jaane (Bachna Ae Haseeno)

Real-life lovebirds Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone may have failed to live up to on-screen chemistry expectations in the majority of the film, but somehow they absolutely sizzled in this song more or less akin to a breath of fresh air. With unusual lyrics and the picturesque backdrops of Venice and Capri, to see it was to further appreciate it. If there would be one complaint, it’d have been to find a better singer than the rather one-tone Shilpa Rao.

8. Tu Muskura (Yuvvraaj)

It was a near two-way tie between this and Tu Meri Dost Hai, but then I decided not to be as accommodating as our desi awards sadly are in reality. The album as a whole may have been a disappointment from the Rahman-Subhash Ghai (read: Taal) combination, but it was a sincerely welcome return to classical music. You know, the one that makes use of an orchestra and lives on for generations? It was also nice to hear Alka Yagnik back in full form, after having sadly been replaced with the Shilpa Rao’s of this world.

9. Haule Haule (Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi)

Again, I was tempted to create a tie between this one and Tujh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai. The latter may have superior wordings, but it’s Sukhwinder Singh’s rustic outline of slowly falling in love that was as infectious as they come. The accordion base that also made up a large part of the background score could not have added a better touch.

10. Guzarish (Ghajini)

If Rahman kicked off the year, he also rounded it off. The sad case of Guzarish is that it maybe promised more in the promos than it turned out to be as a full song, but that does not take away from the fact that this series of ‘requests’ from a love-stricken Aamir Khan were all that disappointing. We do wish Sonu Nigam had sung it instead of Javed Ali, because what we ended up with was Ali putting on his best Nigam impression. That notwithstanding, it is the one song you truly take away from the film.

Honorable Mention: Teri Ore (Singh Is Kinng)

The song is very much as pretty as can be, but what prevented it from making the list was: a) the idea of anyone lip-syncing to Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, especially Akshay Kumar in a pagdi b) the video’s attempt to unsuccessfully do its own Suraj Hua Maddham and c) the fact that for all the nice little wordings in there, 80% of the song still passes with nothing but the words ‘teri ore’ on repeat, at times making you wonder if it was your track that was skipping.