21. Parineeta

Another master piece from Vidhu Vinod Chopra.

Vidhu Chopra has mastered the art of creating blockbusters out of stories that involves a love story surrounded by mega events, scandals; with spices of jealousy, hatred, love-triangles and the most important element of all; the story is from past India. Let the theme be the Quit India Movement as in "1942 - A Love Story" or a classic Calcutta as in Parineeta.

His movies bring out the beauty of the classic Indian women, saree clad, long hair, a big dot on forehead, that of a common woman to the front.

Parineeta is story picturizing a 1962 Calcutta involving a boy and a girl from a rich Calcutta neighbourhood. Shekhar (Saif Ali Khan) is son of a growing business tycoon Navin and Lalita (Vidya Balan – a newcomer) is niece of a poverty struck royal family heir Gurucharan Das whose only wealth is his decades old Haveli. Shekhar’s father seeks to snatch the Haveli from his Gurucharan by hook or by crook. Gurucharan is indebted to Navin for 1.5Lakh rupees having the Haveli at mortgage. Gurucharan is in no situation to repay Navin and Navin has already made big plans for the Haveli and small plans for its current occupants. Navin also wants to have family ties with the Tantiya family, another rich Bangla entrepreneurs.

Twist in the story is arrival of Girish (Sanjay Dutt) from London. Girish is a wealthy young industrialist brother of one of the neighbours and comes forward to help Gurucharan Das by offering him partnership in his new venture in India. He does all this out of love for Lalita.

When Navin finds his plans of owning the Haveli failing, he is furious and in absence of Shekhar he abuses Lalita and Gurucharan. There are twists and turns in story and with the new angle in the love story, Shekhar is trapped between his father and Lalita and Lalita between Shekhar and Girish who helped her family in times of needs.

A well paced movie with melodious songs remind us the modern India of olden times; the modern Calcutta which we at one time way ahead of the rest of the country because of the long and oldest British influence in the region. Surprise packages of the movie are opening and closing narration by Amitabh Bachchan and a Moulin Rouge Act (of old times) by evergreen Rekha :D

A definitely must watch movie and also a collector’s item if one are interested in collecting family movies.

20. Bride and Prejudice

Ever since I started watching Hollywood movies, and learnt about Oscar awards, I wondered if Bollywood could produce a Hollywood grade movies (which lately one see being produced) or if Hollywood can produce a Bollywood style movie ? :)

Bride and Prejudice was the answer to my latter part of the question. Though the movie is not made in Bollywood - rather I wonder which *lywood this movie should fall in (because the production team is all international) - the movie has got all the essence of a charming English movie and at the same time enough masala from a Bollywood family movie.

At one end, the movie has got international location, international star cast, American, and English people in lead roles too and on the other hand it has all the masala from a Bollywood movie like drama, a little fight, former title holders of Indian beauty pageants (Aishwarya and Namrata) some senior actors of Bollywood (Anupam Kher), songs (most of which are wonderful to listen), and the list can go on and on.

Mrs Bakshi is tensed all the time about getting married two of her four daughters that are beautiful, and eligible for marriage. She is seeking international (read UK settled) sons-in-law.
At an marriage occasion in Amritsar, the Bakshi family comes across Balraj who is an Britisher of Indian origin, barrister in London. Balraj is in love with Jaya Bakshi (Namrata), the eldest of the Bakshi sisters. Balraj is accompanied by an American friend and hotelier William Barcy, who has been to an Indian wedding and India for the first time. He is awestruck by the ceremonies of Indian marriage and more by the beauty and intelligence of Lalita Bakshi (Aishwarya). However Aishwarya terms him as "". Will Darcy is however, reluctant to convey his feelings freely (though he does send across signals that Lalita is not ready to accept.

The bad character in the movie is Johnny Wickham, another Britisher who was Darcy's nanny's son. He had left William Darcy's sister pregnant when she was 16 and now in India, he came in touch with the Bakshis and had evil intentions towards Lalita and Lakhi (third of the Bakshi sisters). Various combinations of events and turns and misunderstanding in the story at a stage, Mrs Bakshi finds none of her sisters getting married.

How do the things get sorted out? Does Johnny manage to achieve his ill-intentions? Does Will Darcy manage to ignite love for himself in Lalita's heart? Does Balraj-Jaya love come to a happy conclusion?

Bride And Prejudice - a must watch movie - a family entertainer. The English lyrics on Indian music tunes create a magic - simply awesome. And an occasion of marriage is always an entertaining plot in Indian cinema :) (Remember the "Monsoon Wedding"?)