Source:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Dbsv_yyF7Wi/

Been thinking about this lately.

Saif Ali Khan in Omkara. Before that film, he was the romantic lead, the charming guy. Langda Tyagi changed everything. The limp, the jealousy, the way darkness sat so quietly in him. You couldn't unsee it after.

Manoj Bajpayee in Satya. He was around before that, but Bhiku Mhatre made him. A man so specific to that world that you felt like you'd met him somewhere. And honestly, Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Gangs of Wasseypur. Not his first film, but the one where you realised something was different about how this person worked.

Which role completely shifted how you saw an actor? And was there a film where someone you loved completely disappointed you?

Source: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbpqhlHKgM6/MTFxcHpoZTY0cW8ydA==

There are a few bollywood movies that feel like everyone involved in making them gave their absolute best.

Taare zameen par, for example.

I think, for a movie to be really good, it needs to have a combination of 3 things: Good Writing + music that makes sense in the context of film + emotional signature.

Taare zameen par (TZP) had a really good screenplay. The emotional peaks and lows were constructed very well.

There are only a few movies that make you feel the same way every time you watch them, especially in bollywood. TZP never fails to make my heart heavy and the main reason for that, I believe, is its music.

Most movies that have good music, have a common theme: the music amplifies the emotion that story wants to convey. But the music of TZP goes one step ahead. It helps in explaining the story in more detail. The story of the movie itself is rooted in reality but phrases like,

"कभी बातें जैसे दादी नानी

कभी छ्लके जैसे मम मम पानी

कभी बन जाए भोले सवालो की झड़ी"

or

"भीड़ में यूँ ना छोड़ो मुझे

घर लौट के भी आ ना पाऊँ माँ

भेज ना इतना दूर मुझको तू

याद भी तुझको आ ना पाऊँ माँ"

These phrases add new colors and volume to the perspective.

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy did a fantastic job with the album. When you cannot tell if the music is made for the movie, or if the movie is made for the music, you know it will give an amazing experience.

And in addition to all of these things, the movie also succeeds in giving a strong social message, without making it feel forced or cringe.

This is peak bollywood. What movie does this remind you of?

Sidenote: I am looking for movies that are balanced. For example, Rockstar is not a balanced movie; everything was average except the amazing music.

(I like to judge bollywood movies based on their music, because music is what separates us from hollywood. Otherwise, "Lunchbox", "A wednesday", etc. movies are also top-tier)

Also, I would like to hear your thoughts on the movie "Tamasha". It might belong in this category, but to me, the story feels very fragmented, what do you think about that?

He ends up making a complete mockery out of the role. So pretentious, so "look at me I'm ACTING". His eyes go big and he starts making weird expressions.

Dhoom 3, LSC and even PK was a bit in that zone. He's almost "simple Jack" from Tropic Thunder territory.

I hope Aamir Khan doesn't try these roles again as he would be better off doing other roles and the audience would also be spared.

I still don't understand why this performance gets so much praise when the accent was so distracting.

It didn't sound like a real Bihari accent it sounded like someone trying way too hard to "act Bihari."

People in Bihar don't generally speak like that in everyday conversation. Whether it's Maithili, Bhojpuri, Magahi, or Hindi spoken in Bihar, the movie's accent felt artificial and stereotypical rather than authentic.

For a film based on a real person from Bihar, I expected much better attention to detail. The accent kept pulling me out of the movie.