Rock on!
Hindi (U)
Cast: Farhan Aktar, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Shahana Goswami
Direction: Abhishek Kapoor
Here's the gist of it: Four friends, part of a college band, reunite ten-years later to have a second go at a rock competition.
Aditya (Farhan Aktar) is the lead singer and lyricist of the group, while Joe (Arjun Rampal) is the lead guitarist. KD (Purab) plays the drums, while the clearly-not-made-for-acting Luke plays Rob, the keyboardist.
All goes fine until ego clashes break the group up. A decade later Aditya’s wife attempts to reunite the band with the hope of shaking him out of his depression, but Joe’s wife (played with amazing conviction by Shahana Goswami) refuses to let it happen. Of course its obvious how movie will end. And somewhere, from the 90th minute perhaps, the movie really beings to drag. Too many sub-plots are stretched (directorial masturbation if you ask me!) - like Jenny (Joe’s wife) visiting him in his apartment. Yea, we get the contrast of lifestyle between the two, but you got to accept that there is only so much 200 minutes can take. Oh, and Aditya’s reasons for breaking up with his girlfriend is just too stupid. His friend thinks he’s hogging the limelight so he break-ups with his girlfriend? Huh?
The team has worked hard to keep the college rock scene as real as possible, though they could have gone with a less adolescent name for the band than Magik (what were they thinking?!?). Anyhow, Remo’s choreography ensures that the actors look like rockers on stage. Strangely though, the crowd in Pichle Saat Dinon Mein sing amazingly well when the mic is turned to them. Also, when did college crowds so enthusiastically cheer a band? Last I remember from my days, every band was religious boo-ed until they proved their mettle. I think it would have great if they had recorded a real crowd trying to sing with them.
Music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is good, no doubt. But it sure isn't going to appeal to die-hard rock fans. It’s way too mainstream for that. Plenty of electric riffs don’t make rock, guys. But that said, the music by itself (I mean without thinking of it as the product of true-blood rockers) is foot-tap worthy. Loved Farhan’s crooning Tum ho to, though Javed Akhtar’s lyrics just don’t seem ‘rock’ enough. It great, however, that all the guys sing their own songs.
Arjun Rampal greatly suits the aging hippy-biker look he wears in the movie. In fact all (minus Luke - who looks positively blind in his shades) do phull justice to their roles. Must mention: Purab’s go at the drums in the end is pretty good.
Farhan of course looks the best - on stage and off. He combines coolness and intensity so well, he’s sure to be Bollywood’s next teen heart throb.
I doubt this movie is going to produce/ encourage any sort of a rock culture. Nor is it any ‘coming of age’ kind movie, like they claim it to be. It has no depth for that. What it might is produce a million wannabes who’ll abuse rock motifs for that rebel look.
Rating: 3 stars.
Hindi (U)
Cast: Farhan Aktar, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Shahana Goswami
Direction: Abhishek Kapoor
Here's the gist of it: Four friends, part of a college band, reunite ten-years later to have a second go at a rock competition.
Aditya (Farhan Aktar) is the lead singer and lyricist of the group, while Joe (Arjun Rampal) is the lead guitarist. KD (Purab) plays the drums, while the clearly-not-made-for-acting Luke plays Rob, the keyboardist.
All goes fine until ego clashes break the group up. A decade later Aditya’s wife attempts to reunite the band with the hope of shaking him out of his depression, but Joe’s wife (played with amazing conviction by Shahana Goswami) refuses to let it happen. Of course its obvious how movie will end. And somewhere, from the 90th minute perhaps, the movie really beings to drag. Too many sub-plots are stretched (directorial masturbation if you ask me!) - like Jenny (Joe’s wife) visiting him in his apartment. Yea, we get the contrast of lifestyle between the two, but you got to accept that there is only so much 200 minutes can take. Oh, and Aditya’s reasons for breaking up with his girlfriend is just too stupid. His friend thinks he’s hogging the limelight so he break-ups with his girlfriend? Huh?
The team has worked hard to keep the college rock scene as real as possible, though they could have gone with a less adolescent name for the band than Magik (what were they thinking?!?). Anyhow, Remo’s choreography ensures that the actors look like rockers on stage. Strangely though, the crowd in Pichle Saat Dinon Mein sing amazingly well when the mic is turned to them. Also, when did college crowds so enthusiastically cheer a band? Last I remember from my days, every band was religious boo-ed until they proved their mettle. I think it would have great if they had recorded a real crowd trying to sing with them.
Music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is good, no doubt. But it sure isn't going to appeal to die-hard rock fans. It’s way too mainstream for that. Plenty of electric riffs don’t make rock, guys. But that said, the music by itself (I mean without thinking of it as the product of true-blood rockers) is foot-tap worthy. Loved Farhan’s crooning Tum ho to, though Javed Akhtar’s lyrics just don’t seem ‘rock’ enough. It great, however, that all the guys sing their own songs.
Arjun Rampal greatly suits the aging hippy-biker look he wears in the movie. In fact all (minus Luke - who looks positively blind in his shades) do phull justice to their roles. Must mention: Purab’s go at the drums in the end is pretty good.
Farhan of course looks the best - on stage and off. He combines coolness and intensity so well, he’s sure to be Bollywood’s next teen heart throb.
I doubt this movie is going to produce/ encourage any sort of a rock culture. Nor is it any ‘coming of age’ kind movie, like they claim it to be. It has no depth for that. What it might is produce a million wannabes who’ll abuse rock motifs for that rebel look.
Rating: 3 stars.
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