Life in a Metro

By - Md. Mudassir Alam

As I am a movie buff, so watching movies is a regular affair for me. This past week I saw Anurag Basu's new movie 'Life in a Metro'. The title of the movie is sufficient enough to define what the movie is all about, but seeing the story in silver screen is altogether a different experience. In the entire movie the life in a metro is portrayed in various ways such as the busy life of people, the crowded streets, packed buses and local trains.

In fact, almost everything shown in the film is very much close to reality and it presents the harsh truth of today’s India before us. Whether you take the character of Rahul (Sharman Joshi), a young guy from Bhilai came to Mumbai to fulfill his dreams or struggling youths like Akash (Shiney Ahuja) looking for a job or Shruti (Konkona Sen), an unmarried woman in film checking out guys on shaadi.com or Irfaan Khan staring on the legs of a girl in an autorickshaw. In addition to these, the characters played by Kay Kay Menon and Shipla Shetty depicts the problems faced by the couples who don’t have time for each other or to understand each others feelings. Beside, the characters of Dharmendra and Nafisa Ali add some more crisp in the story.

In one of his recent interview director Anurag Basu said, "The film is as real as it can get. I remember facing all kinds of problems like Rahul (Sharman Joshi) does in the movie when I came to Mumbai from Bhilai a few years back." Basu mentioned that "We have a flat owned by an NRI in our apartment block where we see people doing all those things that I have shown in the film. People in my building laughed when they saw the film; they knew wherefrom I got that idea"

Of course, whatever shown in metro is reel life not real, but you can’t deny it all. It’s happening today in metros like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore etc. where everybody is running behind the false name and fame. For getting the name and fame one can do everything, call centre culture has become a curse for today’s youth. In lure of earning quick money youths are attracting towards call centres, they use to work in night shifts and develop physical relation with their colleagues as well. Next for getting promotions employees concentrate more on pleasing their boss rather working. They can choose any way, either by offering gifts or the way Sharman Joshi has opted in the movie Metro. In contrast the bosses too, don’t hesitate to demand for one night stand or other means from their juniors.

What’s going in metros of India is a big threat for the cultural roots of the country. Now the big question is?Who is responsible for such acts? Of course, no one, we ourselves are responsible for this, the fascination for name and fame, running behind the big desires has blocked our mind totally. We have forgot the roots of our rich culture and don’t care about morals and ethics. Our relationships with our close ones are becoming worse day-by-day, husbands and wives are not understanding each other, youngsters have been trapped in false love affairs, fashion, night-club and pub culture, what will happen in next five or 10 years we can’t imagine.

Even today, if we Indians will not understand what Indian culture and traditions tell us, that day is not far when we will face the same problems what Western countries are facing such as frequent divorces, extra marital affairs, suicidal attempts and so on. Better we should discover and follow our own cultural roots, which makes India different from other countries of the world.

Oh! Metropolis

The Metropolis takes away more than it gives...agreed? Well! don't get offensive, I am in no mood of a survey. It is just that last week I came across Anurag Basu's latest flick "Life in a ...metro. I used to consider myself a marriage buff and a graduate of relationships, but believe me the impact that the film left on me has turned all the thoughts of my mind upside down. Is Life in a metro so rude, harsh and devastating? Love before marriage, Pre-marital sex, multiple sexes, extra marital affair....is this what a realationship brings with itself or is this the trendy definition of love?

The film Life in a metro.. in all the senses revolves around the real life, people and situations in a metro. Metros like Bangalore, Mumbai or Delhi bring with themselves multiplexes, skyscrapping shopping malls and great lifestyles but at the same time offers little time and space for love, trust and family. People in metro caught in the urban rat race tend to forget the very roots of love bondings and run after "casual love" (One night ---$ )that is easily accessible. People call this new culture as necessity but....in fact there may be hell to pay if this whole thing goes on. Be it Shikha alias Mrs. Ranjit Kapoor( Shilpa Shetty), Shruti ( Konkona Sen), Neha (Kangana Ranaut) or Rahul (Sarman Joshi)...everyone craved for love and struggled for it.

Wife gets her husband back accepting his alleged relationship with the other woman for the last two years and welcomes the 'pati parmeshwar' wholeheartedly forgetting his selfless love that she finds in a theatre actor, Shruit alias Ms. Virgin gets a x-rayed eyed bt caring husband, Neha and Rahul find solace in each other and the story ends thereafter.....leaving innumerable queries in mind.....

Do we really have to bear so much of pain to live with people whom we love and want to spend the whole life together........Well I am not ready for such a huge compromise.

As well goes a song of the film...

Berang si hai badi zindagi
Kuch rang to bharun
Main apni tanhayion ke vaaste, ab kuch to karun
zab mile thodi fursat
Khud se kar le mohabbat................

Bollywood takes a shy at Cricket

By - Md Mudassir Alam

Cricketers and Actors are the icons of todays’ youth. What a heady concoction if one crosses over to the other’s boundary. The mass goes gaga to watch it. Some Indian cricketers have had a shy at Bollywood, while some cricketers have married Bollywood beauties. Even Bollywood too has dished out movies on Cricket as a subject, let's take a trip down on the Cricket-Bollywood romance.

In the 70s and 80s cricketers Sandeep Patil, Salim Durrani and Sunil Gavaskar had a shy at films. Sandeep Patil was paired opposite Bengali beauty Debashree Roy in “Kabhi Ajnabee The.” The wicket-keeper batsman Salim Durrani made his Bollywood debut with B.R. Ishara’s Charitra opposite Parveen Babi. Sunil Gavaskar acted in two Marathi films and the end of his cricket career.

The latest Indian cricketers to make the celluloid debut are Ajay Jadeja and Vinod Kambli. Ajay Jadeja acted opposite Celina Jaitley in Khel and Vinod Kambli worked in Anarth. Both the films bombed at the box office and the acting career of the cricketers sank.

Cricketers from across the border also invaded the Bollywood Pitch. Director J.P.Dutta introduced Mohsin Khan in multi-starrer Batwara with stars like Dharmendra and Vinod Khanna. Mohsin Khan did not get any recognition in the film, but later on he got another chance in Saathi. Saathi failed at the box office and Mohsin's Bollywood career ended. For a brief while he was married to Bollywood beauty Reena Roy.

Last year Mahesh Bhatt offered Pakistani speedstar Shoaib Akhtar a role in his film. But the speedstar turned down the offer. Even the great cricketing hero Kapil Dev had a fling at Bollywood in director Bish Mehay 1985 film Cricket which also became of source of inspiration for Nagesh Kukunoor's film Iqbal.

Meanwhile, several Hindi films have been made with a plot inspired by cricket, which did good business. The popular films are All Rounder (1984), Awwal Number (1990), Chamatkar (1992), Lagaan (2001) and Iqbal (2006).

Uauallly the cinegoers has highly appreciated the cricket on screen. However, All Rounder and Awwal Number could not do well as the box office but Chamantkaar, Lagaan and Iqbal became a runway hit.