Purab Aur Paschim(1970)

I want to see this for two reasons: Saira Banu's and Barbara Lindley's horrible blonde wigs. Seriously. There's just something disturbingly fascinating about their obviously fake hair. (Yes, I need help.)

However, the more I read the plot, the more I think it might be interesting, particularly this part: "Preeti agrees to travel to India with Bharat to meet his family but only if they can return to the UK afterwards..Predictably, she has an awakening of sorts and agrees to stay, although she never renounces her miniskirt." And probably not that wig, either. Bad wig + miniskirt = worth a watch, Y/N?

My Mother's Laptop(2008)

I started watching this about a month ago with the intention of later coming back and viewing it in its entirety. I never got around to doing that. I will probably forget about it again after posting this entry, so my only hope for a rewatch is if it gets released on DVD(assuming it hasn't already and I just don't know about it). Anyway...

I saw only the first fifteen minutes, and it felt like half of those minutes were spent on the prolonged shot of Suresh Gopi's eyes in the rearview mirror. Then there were the relentless...jump shots? of Suresh and Padmapriya hugging on the beach. And then the empty house with Suresh just standing, staring, standing, staring, and Padmapriya smiling, smiling, smiling. And the ocean, which I guess represented the mother's womb, or something. Oh, and I must mention one of the opening scenes where Suresh and Padmapriya are in a grave yard, with Suresh typing on his laptop while Padmapriya places flowers on the graves. Fun times.

Scarily enough, I found Suresh quite appealing. His bulky frame and bearded face reminded me of Mohanlal. I wasn't wild about that ponytail, however. It, too, reminded me of Mohanlal, but not in a good way. (Cue flashback to Mo's hairstyle in Rock N Roll.) Padmapriya was lovely, although her incessant perkiness kinda got on my nerves. But I suppose her sunny demeanor was meant to be the yang to Suresh's glum-faced yin. Or maybe I'm reading too much into this. I dunno. **shrug**

The scene I most want to watch is the one "where [Suresh] hugs a container holding his mother's uterus for biopsy, all the while muttering, 'My first home'"(source). I find that description both endearing and darkly humorous, mainly because it sounds like something I would do. **shifts eyes**

In spite of the slow pace and repetition, I actually liked what little I saw. At the time, however, I wasn't mentally prepared for the absence of fights and songs, so I had to rectify that by watching Attagasam. **smile** But now I'm ready to give it a second look. I just have to remember to do that.

Kaun Sachcha Kaun Jhootha(1997)

I came across these caps while going through my Photobucket album. It's been ages since I've watched it, and I remember only bits and pieces: Rishi Kapoor pretends to be a psych patient obsessed with his lost love, Madhu, who looks exactly like Sridevi. He breaks into her house one night, threatening her with a knife, she sedates him by mixing sleeping pills into the glass of water she gives him. Rishi's father wants Sridevi to pretend to be Madhu and after some hesitation, she agrees. It turns out the whole thing was a ploy to trap Sridevi into confessing to a crime she committed a while back, she accidentally killed some guy, some big muckety-muck, I think. She goes to jail. Rishi helps her to escape. They're on the run. There's also a conspiracy to murder a politician or something. And Sridevi's greedy...assistant? wants to kill her, and imagines doing so at the beginning of the movie.

When someone asked me if this was any good I replied, "I would describe it as 'watchably bad', but only if you're a die-hard Sridevi fan." And she was, so if she ever sees this film, she might like it.

NFR: Mallika Sherawat

Per Bollywood Hungama, Mallika Sherawat 'tweets' at Twitter's Head Quarters at San Francisco.

I've always assumed that most of the celebrities on Twitter are imposters, but these pics prove it really is her--or her rep--posting those Tweets.

She looks great, BTW. I'd love to swap places with her for a day or four.

Current SLO: Farheen

I want to thank this clipping that I found on Indomania for making me aware of her existence. I may get Kalaignan after all.

A few caps from Nazar Ke Samne:

Anjaneya(2003)

I have no idea what this movie is about. I've watched it at least thirty times, I've read this review and yet, I still draw a blank whenever I try to come up with something to type. After the first five minutes my brain shuts down and I spend the remaining 2 1/2 hours staring at the TV screen in a haze. It is my dream that one day, someone will sit me down and very carefully explain to me what the hell is going on. Until then...


Oh Ajit, how I love thee!

Jaan Tere Naam(1992)

I wish this DVD were part of Nehaflix's $5 sale. While I'm in love with Farheen's resemblance to Madhuri Dixit, I'm not in love with the possibility that I will watch this only once and forget about it, thus not getting my $10 + s&h worth. If only I could find it online so that I'd have a better idea of whether or not I should buy it.

Songs on YouTube: "Kal College Band Ho Jayega", "Romance Ka Bhi Ek Lecture", "Maine Yeh Dil Tumko Diya", "Rone Na Deejiyega", "First Time Dekha Tumhe Love Hogaya", "Hum Laakh Chupaye Pyar Magar", "Ek Mahine Ki Hi Baat".

NFR: Deepika Padukone

Unveiling the July 2009 Vogue India.

Her personality bores the hell out of me, but she's nice to look at.

Kayva's Diary(2009)

No, I haven't seen this, but my hopes of patiently waiting for the DVD to get marked down to $4.99 have been dashed. When I read this review I thought, "OMG! So-bad-it's-good territory!" Any review that suggests I might need "intensive therapy" for being interested in "screechy women, catfights, [and] painfully happy families" makes me wanna rush out and watch the movie, just to see how awful it really is. But then I read this review and I was like, "Oh, it's a remake of The Hand That Rocks The Cradle." I thought that film sucked, mainly because of my irrational dislike for Rebecca DeMornay. I'm in no hurry to watch the Tollywood version, even if it does star Charmi.

Then again, it does star Charmi, and the last movie of hers I saw was Nee Thodu Kavali, and that was a few months ago. (I might have to watch it again, just to refresh my memory.) Even if her acting isn't up to par, she's still an improvement over whatsherface. Maybe there's hope after all, especially if I can find it online first; that way, I'll know for certain whether or not I want to spend even $4.99 on it.

Prema Katha(1999)

Or, "The Things You Discover When You're Looking For Something Totally Different".

I was trying to find songs and/or scenes from Miss Julie Prema Katha, the Telugu remake of the Malayalam film Chattakari(see previous post) and stumbled across songs from this movie. As soon as I saw the words "Antara Mali", I figured this must be the Telugu flick that was mentioned in an old online article about her. What's more, right at the 1:17 mark of "Nee Kosam Nireekshana" I thought, "Hey, I've seen that expression before!" It turns out that shot was used for the cover of the DVD, which is currently in stock. I may order it since it's only $4.99.

Another song: "Devudu Karunisthadani". She appears heavier compared to the lean, toned physique she had in Road and Naach. And the thick makeup and colored lenses don't really suit her.

A mostly instrumental tune until 2:50. Antara's dubbing artist sounds familiar. I think she's dubbed for Jyothika and maybe Ileana, and quite possibly for Trisha and/or Asin.

Chattakkari(1974)

Seeing yesteryear actress Lakshmi in Chintakayala Ravi reminded me of this film. I wish I had been able to watch it when it was available online. I became interested in it after learning that the 2006 Kannada movie Julie was one of the three remakes of this. (The Hindi Julie and the Telugu Miss Julie Prema Katha were the other two, with Lakshmi reprising her role in both.) Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be commercially available on even VCD :(

The "Julie, I Love You" song from this movie used to be on YouTube, but has since been removed. I managed to find these songs, however: "Mantha Sameeranil Ozhuki", "Narayanaya Nama", "Yuvakkale Yuvathikale".

I know that Sridevi plays Lakshmi's kid sister in the Hindi version, and the Lakshmi-Sridevi combo should be enough to convince me to get it, but I'd rather watch the original first. I might break down and buy Julie, though, if I feel like I'll be retirement age before Chattakkari gets released on VCD or DVD.

Kasam Kali Ki(1991)

As soon as I spied Anita Raj on the cover I immediately hopped on Google to find additional information about this film. Unfortunately, I can't find anything. Not a plot summary, not a review, not a YouTube video, nothing. It must've slipped way under the radar when it was released to be such a non-entity on the 'net. I have a feeling this is one of those movies that sat on the shelf for years before it finally--and very briefly--saw the light of day.

I sort of want to order it just for the slapdash cover art and multilingual subtitles, but I'm afraid that I'll wind up disappointed with my purchase :(

I wonder if the song I watched last night is from this film since it features three of the people on the cover(Anita, Raj Babbar, and Shakti Kapoor).

SFR: Parveen Babi

I know I overuse the word "gorgeous", but she was gorgeous. I haven't seen any of her movies--well, I watched bits of Jaani Dost, but only the parts with Sridevi. I wish I knew where to begin. Deewar, perhaps? Or maybe Suhaag, or Razia Sultan?









She and Shashi look like a good onscreen pair

But of course

Anthu Inthu Preethi Banthu(2008)

While I'm on the subject of remakes, I suddenly remembered this Kannada remake of Aadavari Matalaku Ardhalu Verule. It's not yet available on DVD, but anytamil has the VCD listed, and since it stars Ramya/Divya, I will have to add it to my "may order at a later date" list.

At the moment, I have nothing else to say about this one. If/when I buy the VCD, I'll edit this post. Until then, here are the songs I found on YouTube: "Minugu Minugu", "Nee Chumu Chumu", "O Baby O Baby", "Modala Sala".

Snehana Preetina(2007)

The VCD has been listed on anytamil for ages, yet whenever I try to add it to my shopping cart I get a "movkan01514vcd could not be added" error message. The link for the DVD works, but I'm afraid that if I order it, it will show up on bhavanidvd a couple of months later. And while it stars the lovely Sindhu Tolani and Lakshmi Rai, the main reason I want it is because of the "Sakku Sakku Saku" song with Jennifer Kotwal. (0:28 - 1:24 is my favorite part. I love the tattered outfit she's wearing.)

I read that this is a remake of Ishq, which I haven't seen. Although I usually like to watch the original version of a remake, just to see how it compares, in this instance, I'll take a pass on the Hindi movie and stick with the Kannada one(if I decide to get it, that is).

Vaseegara(2003)

Try as I might, I just can't get into this movie. Every time I attempt to watch it, I get bored after a few minutes and direct my attention elsewhere. Jumping ahead to the second half doesn't help either. I doubt the fact that it's a remake has anything to do with my disinterest. Maybe some of it has to do with my not liking Vijay and Sneha as a romantic pair. Visually speaking, I don't think they make a good match.

Perhaps this is one of those films where I have to buy and watch the DVD before I begin to appreciate it. **shrug**

On a positive note, I like how the songs are picturised. Too bad I didn't view the movie long enough to get to any of them: "Oru Thadavai Solvaaiya", "Poopola Theepola", "Venaam Venaam", "Nenjam Oru Murai".

Kaun? Kaise?(1983)

I stumbled across this title while trying to figure out which movie this song is from(and if anyone reading this knows, please tell).

I want to see this solely for the awesome picturisations of the "Main Bhi Hoon Yahan", "Kyon Kaise Hua", and "Main Akela Aur Dilber" songs. I read here that it was a flop, but that doesn't deter me. While I'm not a Mithun fan, I figure watching him play a detective trying to solve a murder could be entertaining in a "so-bad-it's-good" kind of way. And Anita Raj looks so gorgeous in the first song that I seriously want to weep. Oh, how I long for the early eighties! Anyway...

The VCD is available from Induna. One day, I might have to actually place an order with them, seeing how they seem to have a decent selection of older Hindi films on VCD.