June 2017 – Page 7

Tubelight Review: This Eid Salman Khan Is All Set To Disappoint Us

Jun 232017

For Indians, Salman Khan isn’t just a superstar. He’s a demigod. His fans worship him. Bhai is more than just a craze, who makes it big at the box office with every film. ‘Dabangg’, ‘Sultan’, and ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ left everyone impressed but can the same be said about his most-anticipated film ‘Tubelight’?

This Bollywood adaptation of ‘Little Boy’ is set in Jagatpur, a small town in North India. The plot revolves around the two brothers with the Indo-China war as the backdrop. Laxman (Salman Khan) is a simple gold-hearted man but people call him ‘Tubelight’ due to his low IQ and child-like behaviour. Narayan (Mohd Zeeshan) is one of the locals who poke fun at him and even slaps him without any reason. Bharat (Sohail Khan) is Laxman’s brother whom he loves immensely. However, Bharat has to leave the village as he joins the Indian Army during the Indo-China war. Manne Chacha (Om Puri), during that time, teaches Laxman about the importance of Gandhi’s philosophy and ideology. Liling (Zhu Zhu) and Guo (Matin Rey Tangu) play the Chinese immigrants who are obviously the reason for the problems as per the villagers.

Tubelight Movie Review And Rating Featuring Salman Khan © Salman Khan Films

Playing on the Hindi-Chini sentiment, the film tries to make a point that love conquers all if you have hope. But does the film conquer reviewers as well?

Kabir Khan and Salman Khan mess it up BIG TIME

Even a filmmaker like Kabir Khan can have his bad days and ‘Tubelight’ is one such proof for him. The director, who is known for creating films that have a much deeper meaning and leave a great impact on his viewers, leaves us heavily disappointed with this film. Remember ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’, which made us so emotional that we couldn’t help but shed some tears? Well, ‘Tubelight’ is nowhere close to it.

This Eid, give this a miss!

In B-town, Eid belongs to Bhaijaan. In fact, #SalmanKiEid starts trending before the release of his films. But unfortunately, this Eid doesn’t belong to Sallu. ‘Little Boy’ failed to impress its viewers in the West and similarly, ‘Tubelight’ has all the elements of disappointment for us this side. So how about you spend some time with your family instead of heading to the theatre this Eid?

Tubelight tries to emotionally manipulate you

Kabir Khan uses emotion as a tool to move Indian viewers. And certainly, Indians do love their emotions, drama, and tears. We definitely love a fully packed film that makes us shed tears but that doesn’t mean we will shed tears seeing Salman cry every other second in the film! The makers shamelessly try to turn you into a sentimental wreck who will sob looking at Salman breaking down but it ain’t happening this time, Kabir!

Half a star for trying but that’s it

‘Tubelight’ flickers and flickers and flickers, but fails to light up even at the credits. By the intermission you are left bored and beaten. This is certainly not what you envision when you think about Salman and Kabir, as the two of them have worked their charm before. The whole problem with the film is its plot– it’s unpolished, where either things fall out of context or they fail to make any point. But still, we’ve got to give the makers of the film half a star for at least trying.

The tagline ‘Kya tumhe yakeen hai?’

The tagline of the film is ‘Kya tumhe yakeen hai?’, (Do you have hope?). Well, we guarantee you by the end of the film, you will lose all hope and wonder what did you just watch.

Matin Rey Tangu, Zhu Zhu, and late Om Puri are the stars

Matin, the little boy in the film, takes away all the focus from Salman. In fact, when he shares on-screen space with Salman is the only time you feel for the main hero of the film. Matin is extremely cute and shines throughout the film, making tons of fans in the process. Zhu Zhu has limited screen presence but makes it a point that you fall for her every time she appears on screen. The late Om Puri’s performance is spot on as well, and will stay with us for a very long time.

Well, Sohail Khan proves his acting skill

When one Khan brother lets you down, another shines, taking you by surprise. Salman’s delivery and acting in the film is too difficult to digest. In fact, he gets on your nerves with his child-like acts. To put it mildly, and to quote ‘Tropic Thunder’, he went ‘full retard’. Every time he cries, you feel exhausted, it’s something to do with that face he makes that annoys you. Putting it simply, Salman’s shoddy performance works in favour of his brother Sohail, giving him the space to shine.

The Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai sentiment

Well, who doesn’t love it when it all ends well? Using the Hindi-Chini relationship to make a concrete point, Kabir Khan tries his level best. But leaves you with the only sentiment that is Hindi-Chini Bye Bye. The entire thing backfires, big time.

MensXP verdict

What happens when the main hero isn’t convincing enough? A film like ‘Tubelight’ is born. It is an obvious fact that the ardent fans of Salman may forgive him and the maker for delivering such a film, but not EVERY person is a Salman fan. Please note that the 1962 war was a lost cause for India and so is the film. And you don’t have to be a ‘Tubelight’ to figure this one out. Watch this film only if your love for Salman is unconditional.

P.S. Wondering why a cameo by Shah Rukh Khan was required in the film? Well, we will get back to you once we figure it out!

Baahubali 2 Creates History By Becoming The First Movie To Open The Moscow Film Festival

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Jun 222017

After breaking all records within the first few days of its release, ‘Baahubali: The Conclusion’ has now added another feather to its hat of achievements. SS Rajamouli’s magnum opus will now be screened as the opening movie at this year’s Moscow International Film Festival in Russia that starts today. This development has filled both Rajamouli and Baahubali’s fans’ hearts with pride, joy and excitement.

Baahubali 2 To Open The 39th Moscow Film Festival in Moscow © arka media works

Feeling like a proud father, Rajamouli shared this news on Twitter and all we are left with now is to see Moscow shout “Jiyo re Baahubali” or cry at the scene where Katappa killed him. In fact, Rajamouli is currently in Russia to attend this 8-day event that will end on 30th June.

Very excited to be in Russia for Moscow international film festival. Proud that #Baahubali2 is selected as the opening film.

— rajamouli ss (@ssrajamouli) June 22, 2017

This movie has already broken records at the international level and garnered over Rs. 1500 crores worldwide within 22 days. The movie is now looking forward a China release and the people are hoping for it to break Dangal’s mega records. Baahubali’s popularity is no joke and by this time we are sure that even Bollywood will agree with the charm of Prabhas, especially after he became the first South Indian actor to get his own wax statue at Madame Tussauds in Malaysia. Apart from ‘Baahubali 2′, movies like ‘Badman’, ‘A Death in the Gunj’, ‘U Turn’ and ‘Kothanodi’ will be screened at the festival too.

Here is the reason why Chinese actress Zhu Zhu away from Tubelight’s promotions

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Jun 222017

tubelight-still3 With Salman Khan, Sohail Khan and Kabir Khan putting immense effort in making sure Tubelight gets a massive opening, the Hindi film industry saw some of the most innovative and unusual promotional gimmicks.

Tubelight themed emojis, GIFs, child actor Matin Tangu stealing the spotlight with his innocence and a jovial Salman Khan cycling on the streets of Mumbai – all these have been a part of a larger exercise, aimed at creating as much buzz about the film as possible.

However, Chinese actress Zhu Zhu, who stars in the film opposite Salman, has not been part of the promotions. According to Bollywoodlife.com, the Chinese government has its reservations about the film since it is based on the Indo-China War.

Earlier, there were many conjectures about Zhu Zhu’s absence from the promotional events.

It was being said that the actress is busy with other films in China. However, as per the same Bollywoodlife report the Chinese officials are unsure about their country being projected in the right light in the Kabir Khan film. Therefore, Zhu Zhu has been asked to not participate in the film’s promotional activities.

This move comes as a surprise after Chinese President Xi Jinping told Narendra Modi that he watched the film and liked it. After Dangal’s humongous success in China, it will be interesting to see how Tubelight is received by the Chinese. The film releases on 23 June, 2017.

Salman Khan Calls Akshay Kumar The Biggest Superstar In Bollywood andamp We Cant Agree More

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Jun 222017

Salman Khan, who is among the three biggest Khan Superstars in the Bollywood industry, doesn’t shy away from answering questions about his contemporaries and giving them credit for their hard work. He calls Akshay Kumar a bigger star than all the three Khans.

Salman Khan Calls Akshay Kumar The Biggest Superstar In Bollywood © Bigg Boss 9

Akshay Kumar does more films and earns a lot more than the Khans, he says to DNA, “Today, when they say (superstars) I think there is Aamir, Shah Rukh, me, and Akshay Kumar. We do fewer films — I do two films a year, Aamir does one film in three years, Akshay does four-five films a year. So you do the math. The man who works that hard and makes the maximum amount of money, and supports those many production companies, those many units, and those many directors every four months is a bigger star.”

When asked if he could do as many films as Akshay does in a year, he replied, “I used to do that. I think Akki is the only one who understood that back in the day, char-paanch lakh ke liye itni jyaada mehnat kar rahe the, ab crores ke liye utni mehnat nahi kar rahe hain. When we were paid so little per film, we did more films. Now we get paid so much more for a film, and we are doing fewer films.”

Salman Khan Calls Akshay Kumar The Biggest Superstar In Bollywood © filmibeat

Well, if we actually get down to the maths, it makes sense. Last year, four films of Akshay were released and all the films made between Rs 100 and 150 crores. So in one year, he delivers more than Rs 400 crores. Wow!

Movie Review: Tubelight (2017)

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Jun 222017

4 out of 5 stars
Box Office: TBA

Tubelight-2017 In Tubelight, Salman is seen to be a simpleton (yet again after Bajrangi..) and is a happy-go-lucky guy, who is close to his brother Bharat (Sohail Khan). His world sort of falls apart when Sohail, as part of the Army, has to go away, and doesn’t return.

Laxman (Salman), called Tubelight lovingly by the kids in his neighborhood, vows to find his brother under any cost. What we see over the film, will be his journey — good, bad and ugly.

The first thing to hit you as you watch the first few moments of Tubelight is how the atmosphere of the film is that of happiness.

The film begins with lovely music, and a look into Laxman’s life. We are told why he is called Tubelight. Let me tell you at the onset that this introduction is nothing like we’ve seen in Salman’s earlier films. The whole vibe is different. It’s like a crash course on Laxman’s childhood, and the innocence continues.

We are immediately thrown into the camaraderie shared between Laxman and Bharat (Sohail Khan). This is possibly a basis being established for the departure we are going to see soon (Bharat will join the army).

They’ve been thick from the very beginning, and we are shown how Laxman has been a source of strength for Bharat. They have been each other’s constants since they lost their parents at a young age. They are raised by an uncle (Om Puri) but both have helped each other grow, and overcome bullying as kids — this is all portrayed through a song montage, Naach Meri Jaan.

You can tell they’re both extremely co-dependent, and life is all fun and games, until the Army comes around for a recruitment drive.

This is when the tone changes, but the brothers’ love doesn’t dampen. When Bharat gets chosen for the army, the gravity of the situation hits them. Bharat keeps up a farce of being happy and even does their favourite dance step to cheer him up. You can seen the sadness in Salman’s eyes though.

It is important to note that for someone who is as bulky and toned up like Salman, it takes some time for us to get used to him playing a role of someone who is considered slow, childlike and emotional.

Sohail’s screen time is restricted to the first few scenes. We now see a lot of Laxman grieving about his brother leaving, while we are also shown Bharat at war, where his regiment catches fire.

It’s all about Laxman. Even for someone who doesn’t watch Bollywood, it is easy to notice that this is a kind of character that Salman has never played before. He is not playing a macho, heroic role (what he is known for). In Tubelight, he plays a very vulnerable role and it is refreshing.

When Matin Rey Tangu’s character is introduced in the film, Laxman has a mental block against him (because his brother has gone for the war against China. Tubelight is set against the 1962 Indo-China war). He almost creates a havoc because of his prejudice, but his uncle (played by Om Puri) stops him from making a further fool of himself. Later he finds out Matin’s character is not Chinese.

This is actually a very interesting scene, because Salman’s prejudice is similar to what most Indians have towards our Northeastern friends. The scene with Om Puri and Salman gives an insight into how we as the audience also should open our mind.

It also helps that Matin is adorable. He almost steals the show everytime he is on screen.

Halfway through the film and it is evident that Salman Khan is at the centre of Tubelight. Care to detail can be seen. Salman sports the same clothes more or less through the film, and Om Puri has been cast to perfection as a wise, old uncle.

A note about the visual effects: it’s unlike what we’ve seen in Bollywood so far. The way the shots have been framed and conceptualised is interesting to see.

Laxman’s point of view changes in the second half of the film. He is now made to believe, “fear is our enemy, and to face our enemy is the biggest challenge.” Without giving much of the plot away, while Sohail’s fate is still tied to the war, the next few scenes show Salman’s character to be more proactive in getting to his brother.

There’s a heart-warming speech about futility of war that Laxman helms, where he talks about how he wishes all this violence stops.

Through this backdrop, we find out more about Matin and chinese actress Zhu Zhu’s characters. They both have lost someone in the same war, and hence establish a bond with Laxman. Zhu Zhu is refreshing to see on screen. She keeps wishing for the war to end so her father can return (if he’s alive).

The one constant of the film is Laxman’s ability to have faith: that everything will be alright, and his brother will return. And guess who makes that happen? Shah Rukh Khan. The famous scene itself was a tad underwhelming, but SRK’s act brings Laxman a much needed boost of confidence.

If you’re wondering how it ties up in the end, there’s a major plot twist that brings everything together. It takes you on an emotional roller coaster ride. You expect such an emotional film to have a bittersweet ending, one that hammers home the point. But Tubelight does succumb to a cliched ending, pandering to the good old feel good factor.

Tubelight does have a great message: hope pulls us through in any situation we may find ourselves in. A worthwhile watch.

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10 Things We Can Expect From Game Of Thrones Season 7 After Watching The Latest Trailer

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Jun 222017

Last night, just as I was about to close my eyes, they opened wider than ever before; courtesy of the latest Game of Thrones trailer that is going to give us sleepless nights and restless days till 16th July 2017.

The trailer starts with Sansa walking and the voice of Petyr Baelish, saying, “Don’t fight in the north, or the south. Fight every battle everywhere. Always… in your mind.” And you noticed that Sansa is walking away from something, or someone and fighting the urge to turn around, just for one last look, or to save someone…? Then, there’s the background score. Who remembers the Season 6 finale, Light Of The Seven? I’ll jog your memory.

To say the least, the latest ‘Game of Thrones’ Season 7 trailer gives you goosebumps—the visuals, the characters, the scenarios that have been shown and through it all, the background score that never failed to raise our sense of alarm the last time we watched it. It only means one thing; that Game of Thrones Season 7 is, in a lot of ways, doom and it might be so for more than one characters. But, aside from all the speculation and theories we can’t wait to see proven true, or dispelled, what we can know for sure after watching the trailer is what follows.

1. The Identity Of Jon Snow