Q-tiyapa, an interview with The Viral Fever founder Arunabh Kumar

An interesting interview I did recently
http://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/television/how-mtv-s-rejection-created-q-tiyapa/article1-1165973.aspx

R...Rajkumar: death of the mass entertainer

Critics may have panned movies like Dabangg, Rowdy Rathore and Boss but they went ahead too earn hundreds of crores, mainly because the action-comedy works with the masses. Prabhudeva's latest film, however, brings the Bollywood masala several degrees lower.


Watching Prabhudeva's R...Rajkumar, I thought what has gone wrong with Hindi film industry! 
Just because a Dabangg becomes a hit, we get a flood of similar films, only getting worse in the repetition of matter, locations and now even the actors (read Sonakshi Sinha). R...Rajkumar is the worst of the lot. 

Right from the beginning of the film, the characters and dialogues irritate you. Each moment in the plot is completely predictable since you have already watched things like Rowdy Rathore and other Prabhudeva remakes made by the master choreographer-dancer himself. 

Another mistake Prabhudeva seems to have made is that he has tried to portray Shahid Kapoor as an action hero, beating up goons ten-times his size. Now, what else do you call unconvincing? A lean, stout man - Shahid - beating up tens of villians at one go is such an unbelievable scene, you feel Prabhudeva has made a spoof of Hindi films. Dear Prabudeva, Shahid is no Rajinikanth, he ain't even Akki!

In films like Rowdy Rathore, Wanted and Dabangg, the saving grace was the comedy. The, worst of Hindi films are passable in the name of entertainment. Sadly.even a tag like masala entertainer does not work for this Sonakshi Sinha,Shahid Kapoor-starrer, The comedy here is irritating and an abuse to the comic sense of the audience. 

Even actors like Sonu Sood, who emerge wonderful performers from such antics have failed to save the movie. 
Perhaps, Salman Khan foresaw the insult Prabhudeva was preparing in the name of R...Rajkumar when the Dabangg actor said that such entertainers will die soon. Khan said, "This space will die totally. I think this was a beautiful format where we had films like Wanted, Dabangg etc. Now everybody has overdone it so much that it might die away." 

Boss Review

Boss Review

Akshay Kumar-starrer Boss releases in theatres today. Riding high on the success of films like Rowdy Rathore, Kumar is expected to entertain the masses with his latest venture. The movie also boasts of promising actors like Ronit Roy, Danny Denzongpa, Pankaj Tripathi, Mithun Chakraborty, Johnny Lever and Parikshit Sahni. Have they met the expectations? Read on. 

Anthony D'Souza utilises Akshay's star power to his best in his latest venture Boss. The dialogues are flattering to the actor. Having chosen to watch this movie after watching the trailers, you cannot possibly have expected a thought-provoking experience. This is a typical action-comedy that Akshay carries off with ease - one that entertains the masses. 

The film is a remake of Malayalam film Pokkiri Raja. Script-writers Farhad-Sajid, who have also written the dialogues, may not have presented us with an interesting story but they have given us some witty and sharp lines peppered well with humour. 

There are few funny scenes and a few that touch an emotional chord. In a sequence, Satyakant Shastri (played by Mithun Chakraborty) arrives at the doors of Boss (Satyakant's son whom he had abandoned almost several years ago and who has turned into a Robin hood style goon, essayed by Akshay Kumar). When Akshay is told his father has come to meet him, he stands in front of the mirror, combs and puts on a formal blazer over the typical-goon-style black kurta and jeans he was wearing. This one is actually a blend of funny and emotional... it's cute. 

In another comic scene, the guards that accompany Boss (Akshay Kumar) everywhere arrange themselves to make a giant sinhaasan (throne) sort of chair for the Big Boss (Boss's mentor and uncle, essayed by Danny Denzongpa). To add to the humour, the guards even make synchronised movements so that Big Boss enjoys the fun of a rocking chair!

  

The action sequences are impressive. 

There are two fight sequences that qualify for special mention for the fun quotient they add to the movie. At one point, Shiv and Akshay (who are brother) are supposed to fight in order to put the enemies off guard. Scared that he may spoil the act, Shiv says he does not know dialogues and Akshay retorts, "Yai to tum newcomers ki problem hai." (pun being in the fact that Shiv Pandit is actually a newcomer with only Shaitaan and Chashme Baddoor)

In another sequence, Akshay accompanies his father and brother (Mithun and Shiv) to a dargah in Delhi (apparently Nizammuddin) and their enemies decide to attack the trio at the dargah. To avoid the father's fury over violence, Akshay needs to fight off the enemies and save his family even as he ensures that the dad does not get to see the blood-shed.

The film has several sequences that are nonsensical and mindless, yet funny - sequences that Akshay carries off wonderfully.

As for the performances, Akshay Kumar takes the trophy but others actors score no less. While Akshay does his Rowdy bit to perfection, 

Ronit Roy effortlessly plays the utterly negative character of Ayushmann Thakur. His screen presence adds to the movie's charisma and he certainly stands parallel with Akshay's stature

For Aditi Rao Hydari, the film was a sheer waste of her talent as she did not have much to do.

In one scene, Aditi's misogynistic brother advises the girl to stay indoors and watch television. "Tata Sky has 200 channels," he tells her. "If you, too, have a DTH connection, stay home and watch AXN."  

One interesting dialogue Ronit mouths is worth mentioning. The actor says in a sequence: "Bharosa to mai apne baap ke baap hone ka b nai karta. (I do not even trust my dad to be my father!)"

You may not find a serious, intelligent plot here but you will certainly have fun watching the gravity-defying fight sequences. As Akshay claimed at a promotional event for the movie, "Boss is one of the best Indian action movies as there are no graphics or VFX that were used. Here, you see real, man to man fight." 

Watch it for Akshay's style, comedy and the other actors' performances. Watch it for fun, but if intellectual stimulation if what you are looking for, skip Boss.