Thursday, July 30, 2009

Censor Board trips Kaminey

Mumbai Mirror reports
Vishal Bharadwaj’s Kaminey has run into trouble with the censors and even after the revising committee saw the film, they refused to give it the U/A certificate that he was hoping for. The options available to Vishal are that he can to go to the tribunal or seek legal help for his film. Apparently, the film has been given an A certificate due to its heavy dose of violence.
Hmmm, doesn't bode well for the box office colections of the film, if Vishal accepts the censor board decision. Not sure what Vishal will do - in the world where Bollywood megastars are ready to make concessions and apologize at the drop of a tantrum in order to avoid suffering the slightest pecuniary repercussions, it's become much more acceptable to make compromises with your craft.

The question is - How far back (or forward) can you bend?

Thursday, July 23, 2009

oil be damned!

Why am I not surprised that someone named Ramnarain Sahu, a Samajwadi party MP, who happens to be the president of the Rashtriya Teli Rathore Chetna Mahasangh, has decided to nurse objections to the use of the word telii in Kaminey's catchiest song. First the naaiis and now the teliis. All Gulzar needs for a hat-trick is to tickle the ire of another occupational sect. I can't resist thinking of maaliis.

Vishal on writing and casting

Nice interview with Vishal (from this article in The Times of India):


I was at the airport and a couple with their little boy recognised me and started talking to me. The boy asked me “Uncle, what is the name of your movie?” and the father immediately said, “I will tell you later. Not now.” I said, “Why will you tell him later? It’s not a maa-behan ki gaali.” And I told the boy that the name was Kaminey. That kid laughed aloud.


Plus more on his other films.

(H/T: Mohit Kataria on the Gulzar Fans group)

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Vishal to remake The Departed?

Subhash K Jha, writes about latest buzz that Vishal Bharadwaj is to remake "The Departed". He writes,

Apparently, a big production house has bought the copyright of Martin Scorsese’s 2002 American crime drama The Departed and has approached Vishal to direct it. Having directed dark gangster films like Omkara, Maqbool earlier, they have chosen Vishal to handle the desi Departed.


Considering that The Departed was a remake of Infernal Affairs, shouldn't they have brought the right from the makers of the original? Beats me.
Certainly, the Hindi version by Vishal would be something to look forward to. Wondering if Saif will be the vitriol spewing Det. Sgt. Dignam, played with a vile ferocity by Mark Walhberg. And will the censors allow Hindi versions of anything close to these dialogues?

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The story behind Dhan Te Nan

Dhan Te Nan (roughly translated in Marathi as Wealth is Flatbread) is definitely the best track for me in the album. Have heard all other tracks just once and none of them have really hit home (Marathi - मनात घर करणे).
Vishal provides insight about how the track came to being

Dhan te nan was not especially designed for Kaminey. I had first used the catch phrase and tune in a telefilm also titled Dhan te nan in 1998. It is a phrase that belongs to our film and music culture. For us Indians, cinema is the biggest cultural entity. We often borrow illustrations and speech patterns from our films. Dhan te nan is used during bedtime stories for dramatic effect. Whenever I used to tell my son, Aasman, stories, I’d go ‘Dhan te nan’ to create drama. The phrase remained with me.”

For a listen, the track is here. (see JR's post for full track listings). ऐका


Saturday, July 11, 2009

Burn while listening

Raja Sen does a long incendiary review of Kaminey music. Rates it blazing hot.
Kaminey, Bhardwaj's latest, marks a departure from both Bard and bachchas for the auteur, which is phenomenal news for music lovers as it lets the man really get into an edgy, whimsical and inflammable space. For this is a soundtrack ticking like a bundle of dynamite.

He heaps superlative praise on the wordsmith, Gulzar.
Trust Gulzar to artfully craft a really long fuse for the Kaminey bomb, making sure the tracks stay afire long before and after they actually go boom.

Go read and then listen. Add to global warming.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Kaminey's music out

I don't know if it is available in stores yet, but the music can be heard online here.

The music is different from Vishal albums of the past, with an emphasis on electronica and remixes. However, there a couple of ballad-like songs and the social message song is well orchestrated.

The poetry of some of the songs is very good, as you'd expect.

Don't go in looking for an Omkara or No Smoking, though.