Surprise! Encore to the Bollywood Movie Marathon: Mardaani

Dec. 27: Mardaani (2014). 113 min. Directed by Pradeep Sarkar. Produced by Aditya Chopra. Starring Rani Mukerji, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Anil George.

I originally chose to watch this movie because it was less than two hours long. I also wanted to watch it because I knew it had a woman in the non-sexualized lead role (wooo feminism!), and it dealt with child sex trafficking in India, which is a huge illegal industry in India and elsewhere. The main character was a strong, even-tempered woman named Shivani Shivaji Roy, the senior detective of the criminal branch of the Mumbai police. When her twelve-year-old niece's close friend goes missing, Shivani suspects that something sinister is afoot, and dives deep into the world of organized crime, drug kingpins, and sex trafficking. Mukerji's character was great because she was so bad-ass, so smart, so caring...she wasn't an "oversensitive" detective with "too much personal at stake to keep a level head," as many women are expected to be. Shivani was the most intelligent and calculating character in the entire movie. There's even a scene where she works out. I don't think Mukerji had any makeup on at all in this movie.

There was very little of the usual cheesiness of Bollywood cinema, with the exception of maybe a couple of characters and one or two scenes. I think that lack of ridiculousness added to the serious tone of the film. The filmmakers didn't sugarcoat sex trafficking.

There was one moment in this movie where I was like "hell yes." I almost screamed it. My hand was in a fist, I pulled my arm down in a victorious yessss like this meme child. 

 That  moment was around the middle of the movie, where detective Shivani Shivaji Roy told the head of the police force that waiting for rape to happen isn't the way to prevent it.

English translation of what they said:
Police chief: "You know what Shivani? You're being unnecessarily emotional."
Shivani: "So one should only get emotional after girls are raped? What's the point in holding a candle in the march after everything's over?...You know what sir? The day our police force gets emotional for these girls, no one will dare to harm them."
Police chief: "Enough Shivani!"

If anything, the police chief was being the emotional one. He was the one who shouted, "Enough!" after Shivani explained calmly and rationally that the police should care what happens to women and girls who are forced into prostitution. This scene was, hands down, my favorite part of the movie. Shivani's is such a powerful statement to make, because it reveals the lack of prosecution against crimes against women in India. The police chief's sense of security was threatened: Shivani's spiel made him uncomfortable, as it rightly should. You should feel uncomfortable, you should feel upset when oppressed groups don't get the justice they deserve. Men are more likely to believe a man when he says he was robbed than a woman who says she was raped/harassed/terrorized/etc. (#patriarchy) Men are more likely to take action in response to a robbery than to the violation of a woman, which the film sort of touches on.

Major "India is great" moment: uh...the end where the kidnapped girls (not going to spoil it). Maybe when Shivani says "This is India." I can't really say that India's image was portrayed in a positive light in this movie. 

Theme of the movie: Good vs. Evil; Corruption vs. Justice.

Bollywood Movie Marathon finale: Jab Tak Hai Jaan

NOTE: This post is as long as a Bollywood movie. Fair warning. However, if you read to the end, you get to see some very flattering pictures of my face.

I was hoping to end my movie marathon with 15 Park Avenue, but it isn't on Netflix and I have watched enough movies for one week. It is on YouTube...but again, that whole enough-TV-watching-for-one-week thing is still valid.



Dec. 17:  Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012). Directed by Yash Chopra. Produced by Aashish Singh. Starring Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma, Shah Rukh Khan, Anupam Kher.
Loose translation of the title: As Long as I Live
French translation of the title, which I think is more eloquent: Jusqu'à mon dernier souffle (Until my last breath)

This movie plays right into what I was talking about with being in love with Shah Rukh Khan and then female leads being ten or more years younger than he is. It actually addresses both those things.

As with a large percentage of the films starring Shah Rukh Khan, this is a story of two women being in love with him, and him having to choose between them. The first is the woman from Major Samar Anand's past: a wealthy Christian businesswoman (Katrina Kaif) named Meera, his first love. Meera makes deals with Jesus, which is an unusual way to pray, and prays that if God keeps him alive, she will stay away from him. That's actually the the plot point that really keeps me from giving this movie five stars out of five like I definitely would have given Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham: the deals that Meera makes with God would have been less confusing to me if she had made them with the devil instead.

Praying in the church...or making a deal. Shah Rukh Khan as Samar Anand and Katrina Kaif as Meera.

This part was confusing. Image from anishok.wordpress.com

The second woman, Akira, is a young intern with the Discovery Channel in Delhi who happens to get rescued by Samar. This is in the present. He gives her his jacket and rides away on his motorcycle saying little more than goodbye. Akira finds his journal in the pocket of the jacket, reads the whole thing, and falls in love with him. She tracks him down and insists on interviewing him for a spot on the Discovery Channel.

Anushka Sharma as Akira

Here's an important tidbit about what Major Samar Anand does for a living: he is a soldier who diffuses bombs for the Indian military in Kashmir. He is known to some as "the man who cannot die."

"The man who cannot die"

In the film, Meera and Samar are about the same age, and Akira is about twenty years younger. Too young for Samar to take her seriously. In real life, Katrina Kaif is 18 years younger than Shah Rukh Khan, and Anushka Sharma is 23 years younger than Shah Rukh Khan. Younger fans of Shah Rukh Khan can relate to Akira in that she is much younger than the star she's in love with, and he will not love her back in the same way she loves him because he sees too large an age difference. She's not blind to it either. They both recognize that the difference in their age makes it hard for them to be lovers. They both know, however, that Samar tenders animosity toward Meera, despite her being his first love, for reasons I will not disclose. I've already said too much. Eventually, history repeats itself, testing Samar's feelings for the two women in (and no longer in) his life.

The cinematography in this movie was top-notch. You could really tell the influence of Hollywood cinematography on this film, although I would add that they probably had a really big budget and got some amazing cameras for this.  Additionally, the directing was phenomenal, though, sadly, Jab Tak Hai Jaan was Yash Chopra's last film before his death. He directed and produced almost one film per year from 1956 to 2012. There was a dedication to Yash Chopra at the beginning and the end of the movie.

Yash Chopra (1932-2012)

The sound mixing in this film was also incredible. There was this really dreamlike, ethereal sound that the filmmakers paired with awesome slow-motion pensive shots, suspenseful shots, and other really well framed shots. The song "Challa" is really catchy.

"Challa"

Major "India is great" moments: the scene in which Samar diffuses a bomb on a train in London; scenes of the Indian military.

Theme of the movie: living without love is a challenge to death each day. Something like that.


Dec. 18: I finished Jab Tak Hai Jaan today, but it was hard to concentrate on the subtitles because of headaches and jaw pain. Maybe I will watch some more Indian films later in the week.

This picture of a chipmunk accurately depicts how I feel.

Post-wisdom-teeth removal, day one:

At this point my lips are still numb.

Ice packs and pain meds.

Day two:

Hooray for chipmunk cheeks and general misery!

Day three: less cheek pain but I could barely stay awake all day. Also headaches.
Day four: taking less strong pain meds means more energy but also more pain. Why did the home phone ring at 2:45am last night?
Day five: the swelling has gone down considerably.

Bollywood Movie Marathon: Intermission

December 16: INTERMISSION. This is not the name of a film. If you need to go to the toilet, get a snack, or get a drink before you continue reading, now is the time. You have roughly fifteen minutes before the blog resumes.

 I didn't watch any Bollywood movies today. It was a nice day so I decided to go outside like a person who is taking care of their health and well-being. 

 Like...I know he's almost as old as my parents, but damn Shah Rukh Khan is fine. I mean, look at this selfie he posted on Twitter!

The man clearly knows how to use his front-facing camera. He could get me to sign up for Western Union (if you've seen any recent Bollywood movies, you probably know what I'm talking about). 

Point of contention: 
All the leading women cast across from Shah Rukh Khan are at least ten years younger than him or more. Why can't women who are roughly the same age as the men be cast? Better yet, why not cast a younger man? 

I know why neither of these things happen: ageism (discrimination based on perceived or actual age) and sexism. Older women "just aren't beautiful enough" to be leads, but they can be mothers or grandmothers. No one--ahem, men--wants to see older women in a lead role, right? Not enough eye candy, too old to sell to the audience. And yet we don't bat an eye when 50 year old men like Shah Rukh Khan or Aamir Khan are cast as men half their age, those golden oldies. I could go on and on about the disparities, which have an equal presence in American, British, and other cinemas, but I'll hold off for now. There's not enough time before the end of the intermission to get much farther.

Bollywood Movie Marathon: Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

December 15: Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). 177 min. Directed by Karan Johar. Produced by Yash Johar. Starring Kajol, Rani Mukherjee, Sana Saeed, Farida Jalal, Reema Lagoo, Shah Rukh Khan, Anup Kher, Salman Khan, Johnny Lever.
Loose translation of the title: Something Happens

Thoughts while watching Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, one of the classic Shah Rukh Khan + Kajol films:
I sent my friends this message:  "For three of the last ten minutes of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai I totally thought the movie was going to turn into the family/pg version of Devdas and I was about to be like, wow that's dark for a family movie."

See all those actors' names from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham that are also in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai? Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Rani Mukherjee, Johnny Lever, Farida Jalal... They're all there and they all made another movie together.

Major "India is great" moment of the movie: Daadi at summer camp, taking down the British flag and the portrait of Mary Queen of Scots, and having the children at the summer camp perform Hindu prayers and sing India's national anthem.

Theme of the movie: You never forget your first love.


Quote from my Facebook Page:"[Today] I watched Kuch Kuch Hota Hai for the first time. I really liked Kajol's character as a college student because she refused to wear a dress or a sari, played better basketball than her best friend (who was a man), and saw people for who they were. I wish as an adult she stayed more unconventional. I honestly felt that the movie was pretty tame for Bollywood (though it was a must-see because of all the famous actors in it). I would be more critical except halfway through it, a friend told me it was supposed to be a family movie, and suddenly it made sense: that's why there were so many children in it, why the songs were so extra cheesy, and why there was so little conflict to drive the plot. Oh well. I can say I've seen it now. I guess it was cute for a family movie. Waaaay better than "RA One." 

I could not finish this movie. It was actually terrible. Great poster, though.

Bring on the next heart-wrenching, four hour long Bollywood movie!

Bollywood Movie Marathon: Queen

December 14: Queen (2014). Directed by Vikas Bahl. Produced by Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, and Madhu Mantena. Starring Kangana Ranaut, Lisa Haydon, Rajkummar Rao, Mish Boyko, Jeffrey Chee Eng Ho, Marco Canadea.

Characters Vijaylaxmi and Rani

Thoughts while watching this: from my Facebook post: "Today's Bollywood movie was Queen, about a woman who goes on her honeymoon alone after her fiancé decides he doesn't want to marry her---two days before their wedding. The beginning was slow, and the whole idea of "self discovery through travel" was kind of cliché, but what I liked about this non-mainstream Bollywood movie was that the main character was so relatable. Plus, she had all these funny discoveries about sex which continuously surprised her and kept the movie interesting." They really were funny. One of my favorite lines was "You mean...a lip-to-lip kiss?"

(In case you are not an avid watcher of Indian films, kissing on screen is a taboo practice due to censorship early in the Indian film industry, though it has become increasingly common, especially in the past ten to twenty years. There are other reasons, like it's just not something that <older generations of> Indian people do to display affection, but that's a sweeping generalization that I  hesitate to make.)

Rani goes to a nightclub in Paris with new friend Vijaylaxmi and dances like a wild woman to a Hindi dance song. One of the first poignant moments in the film was when Rani had a flashback in the night club to a scene in which Vijay reprimands her for dancing (too erotic?). There is also a scene in which Rani's fiancé told her she shouldn't take a job, even though she is educated and qualified, because he will earn enough money for the both of them. (I'm no expert, but that sounds sexist to me.)

I think one of the reasons I liked Rani as a character was because I had been in her shoes, traveling in Paris and Amsterdam alone. Traveling alone is lonely and can be scary when you have no one to share your experiences with and you don't really have a plan. While watching, I kept thinking, "I traveled in Paris that way. I met awesome people in Amsterdam too after a negative experience."

 Major "India is great" moment: Rani sells golgappa (panipuri) on the side of a canal in Amsterdam, and people can't get enough of it.

Theme of the movie: do not let the man who let you down dictate your life or your happiness.

As I was watching Queen, I realized that it is probably a more accurate depiction of what happens when real people in India arrange to marry than anything portrayed in the flashy movies. A lot of that has to do with the amount of wealth the characters have. Rani's family has nice things, but they are not enormously wealthy. Her family's wealth appears to be fairly modest. Her fiancé Vijay is better off, but his house is no mansion. There are certainly class differences that are apparent between Rani and Vijay, and their value is apparent in certain scenes. In nearly every film I have seen, with the exception of films where certain characters are intentionally impoverished, the main characters come from enormously wealthy families or have become fairly rich themselves. Extreme wealth is the dream, right? Not so much in this movie. The dream for Rani is to give herself opportunities to grow.

Bollywood Movie Marathon: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham

Two years ago, my friend/roommate and I decided to take a Bollywood cinema class together. It was this class that got me hooked both on filmmaking and on Bollywood cinema. I used to watch at least two movies per week for this class (which is six hours of movie-watching per week, on average--I had a lot of time on my hands that semester). 

What is always interesting to me about Bollywood movies, especially mainstream, high-budget Bollywood movies, is that they always manage to slip in two main ideologies: one about relationships with other people, and one about the greatness of India.

Temporarily having a TV and an absurd amount of free time, I will be having a week-long Bollywood marathon. And really, one single movie is as long as a marathon itself. Let it begin!!!

December 13: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001). 210 min. Directed by Karan Johar. Produced by Yash Johar. Starring Kajol, Kareena Kapoor, Jaya Badhuri, Farida Jalal, Rani Mukherjee, Shah Rukh Khan, Hritik Roshan, Amitabh Bachchan, and some other people, prominent actors and not.
Loose translation of the title: Sometimes Happiness Sometimes Tears

(Kareena Kapoor and Kajol)

Thoughts: This was a great movie to start off with. As I wrote on Facebook, "Today's movie was Kabhi Kushi Kabhie Gham, which was three and a half amazing hours of music and dance numbers, dramatic irony, and famous people crying in (literally) every scene. It was great. :D" I loved every second of dramatic irony in this movie, and every second of the dramatic irony was made extra dramatic because everyone was crying the whole time. It even made my dad cry. The title is completely accurate.
 I won't spoil them, but the plot twists were really well done. 

So much crying, so much heart-wrenching sadness. (Shah Rukh Khan and Jaya Badhuri)

Major "India is great" moment: Kajol's character always gripes about how her son will never know his country or his culture, and she sings India's national anthem every morning. She and her mother also make fun of English accents at every given opportunity. Then, at a school function, he surprises her by singing the whole thing in front of a crowd of parents. I don't know if that counts as a spoiler or not.

The love theme in this movie was familial: the meaning of a mother's love for her sons, the father's concern with his social status/reputation superseding all else, including his family's happiness.

Also damn Hritik Roshan and those turtlenecks. You can keep wearing turtlenecks if you want, but leave the leather shirts with the cut-off sleeves behind. 

Sweaters. (From left to right: Hrithik Roshan, Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan)