Saif and Deepika to play in a celebrity cricket match for Love Aaj Kal

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The IPL in South Africa may just be the reason why the following news carries so much star power. 'Cricket Aaj Kal toh kaafi news mein hain.' But so is Imtiaz Ali's next biggie Love Aaj Kal, starring Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone.

The film which highlights the difference between love today and love during the yesteryears is in for some good promotional activities we hear in the overseas. And what better way to promote your film when the whole world will be present in the U.K to watch the world's top cricketing geniuses battle it out in the T20 World Cup. Not to forget, India, the reigning champions will be the ones to watch out for. So when you have the cricketers, frenzied crowd, crisp warm weather and strawberries with cream, and well, Bollywood stars promoting their film, what more can you ask for?

But we did miss out the commentators, didn't we? We at Bollywood Hungama bring one for you, not from the cricketing world though...but from the filmy world. A reliable source has just confirmed the latest news from London that Deepika Padukone will be joining in the commentary team for next month's 'T20 World Cup' as a guest commentator. The actress who was previously linked with the likes of Indian cricketing heroes, M.S. Dhoni and Yuvraaj Singh will now be sharing the same field as them once the match begins. But we'll have to wait and watch whether her 'Love Aaj'- Ranbir Kapoor will be a mere spectator to this exciting event. That was match one.

Match two brings you a special celebrity cricket match with teams headed by Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone which will be covered by the local and world journalists along the lines of Veteran (KAL) cricket team (1st & 2nd generations) Vs Novice (AAJ) cricket team (3rd and 4th generations). Again to wait and watch whether Rishi Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor will play opposite each other in this much awaited cricket match. Our sources have confirmed that Deepika and Saif will be in London during the first week of June. Time for some commentary lessons and net practice Deepika! That's all we have from the centre.

DVD Reviews Delhi 6

MOVIE DETAILS

Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman, Deepak Dobriyal and Rishi Kapoor
Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Music: A.R. Rahman
Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi

THE FILM

Before the release of Videsh - Heaven On Earth, if there was one movie that won hands down in terms of being the strangest and most exasperating affair of 2009, it was Delhi 6. The film had a 'bandar' as the central protagonist sans any head or tail. The film tried to be all intelligent and message oriented but in the final run, it failed on both the accounts. Also, throughout its two hour odd duration, it could never make up its mind around the genre it belonged.

Ok, so the makers may argue that the subject of Delhi 6 is such that it couldn't be categorised as per a genre. Well great, that's fine but only for the creative (?) brains that have gone into making the film. For an average audience which walks in to watch a movie like Delhi 6 that boasts of an 'A' star cast and production values, one does go in with certain expectations of a concrete storyline to be told. If there is no storyline then the treatment has to be engaging enough to keep the audiences entertained. And if treatment is also an issue for the entire duration of a film, then the last resort is presence of some non-stop gimmicks that could ensure some 'paisa-vasool' moments.

In case of Delhi 6, the movie failed on all accounts. Neither did the entire metaphor of 'kaala bandar' work (makers may come back and say that 'aajkal ki audience ko yeh movie samajh nahi aayi' but that's not really the case as there was no hidden treasure to be unearthed throughout the film's length) nor did a huge ensemble cast that gathered to get some magic rolling but succeeded only in bits and pieces and that too only in the first half.

In fact Delhi 6 too got beaten up most due to the horrible 'second half syndrome' as the film started meandering in all directions. 'Pyaar-mohabbat' between Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor could hardly develop beyond a point, the story ceased to move forward even as Abhishek jumped from terrace to terrace in pursuit of a 'kati patang' and dozen odd other characters kept coming in and out of the scene. Deepak Dobriyal's 'jalebi-waala' act was fine but where was Rishi Kapoor gone after being his charming best in the opening reels of the film?

The worst is kept for the last 30-45 odd minutes of the film where the proceedings get truly unbearable. Introduction of a 'baba' who creates a rift between Hindus and Muslims appears to be totally unwarranted and this is the point where one starts wondering if Delhi 6 actually had everything bound, clear, checked and rechecked before it came on floors? The sequence of events from here keep taking the movie to an all time low and what hits most is Abhishek Bachchan's transition into a 'kaala bandar'. Oops, now where did this one come from? Hold on, there is one more place where you would repeat the same question. And that's the climax sequence where all of a sudden Amitabh Bachchan meets Abhishek in a 'Chandni Chowk' ishtyle heaven and shares 'jalebis' with him on a rooftop.

It's bad enough to make a monkey out of an audience!

PACKAGING

The DVD comes in a regular plastic case though it is better than the usual Moser Baer 'thin plastic case' that had almost become a trademark for cheap priced DVDs over the years

DURATION

The film's duration is 135 minutes

SPECIAL FEATURES

Now this is a real fast one that has been pulled on the DVD buyer. The DVD box proudly declares Delhi 6 to be arriving in a 2 DVD pack. However, there is a mere 10 minutes of content available in the second DVD where one gets to see the making of three songs - 'Masakali', 'Arzian' and 'Yeh Delhi Hai Mere Yaar'. Hardly interesting stuff even as Rahman and Prasoon give a few titbits around the conceptualisation of the three songs.

Other than this 10 minutes segment, there are 7-8 minutes more spent on a few promos of the movie followed by audience response to the film after it's release. One wonders that for these few minutes of extra software which would have easily fitted into the first DVD itself, why has a buyer been forced to spend some precious money on an additional DVD?

TECHNICAL DETAILS

- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo

PRICE

Rs. 149/=

CONCLUSION

2009 was seeing one of the most disastrous times at the box office when Delhi 6 had released. The industry was reeling with the collective failure of Chandni Chowk To China, Luck By Chance, Billu and Delhi 6 was being looked as the saviour of Bollywood. However, it only added to the woes of the industry and was yet another unwelcome addition to the heap of disappointments. With a narrative that is neither engaging nor entertaining, Delhi 6 remains to be an absolutely un-engaging, pointless and self-indulgent exercise.

Bollywood Stars who gave Voting Day a miss

Thursday (30^th April) saw quite a few Bollywood bigwigs take out time from their busy schedule to cast their vote for the Elections. The ballot centres in Bandra, Juhu and Andheri areas of Mumbai saw stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, the Bachchan parivaar, Hrithik Roshan, Ranbir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, John Abraham, Vidya Balan, Farhan Akhtar etc. troop in to cast their vote. However, there were quite a few B-town celebs, who in spite of being pretty active in asking people to vote decided to give the V-Day (Voting Day) a miss themselves. Bollywood Hungama brings you a list of a few Bollywood stars 'Jo Bolte Kuch Hai Aur Karte Kuch Hain'

Kareena Kapoor

Kareena was part of the special video created by Karan Johar and Tarun Mansukhani encouraging citizens to go and vote. However, when the V-day came, Bebo was nowhere in the picture. Apparently, Kareena is shooting for Karan Johar's production along with Saif Ali Khan and Vivek Oberoi in the US of A and hence couldn't make it. Well, that certainly doesn't count as an excuse cos if Aamir and Shah Rukh could fly down from US and South Africa respectively for casting their Vote, Kareena surely could have. This is one Tashan of Bebo which failed to impress us one bit.

Shahid Kapoor

Kareena's once-upon-a- time 'good friend' Shahid Kapoor also didn't make it to cast his Vote and this despite him being in town. We really don't know the reason why but considering Shahid's 'good friend' Priyanka Chopra was also missing, we cant help but wonder if they were upto something Chup Chup Ke.

Priyanka Chopra

Priyanka Chopra was full of emotions encouraging people to go and vote in the special video created by Karan Johar and Tarun Mansukhani. However, when the V-Day came, the actress was conspicuous by her absence. PC…we all are keen to know more on What's your Reason rather than What's Your Raashee?

Salman Khan

Sallu was here, there and everywhere during the pre-election campaigning; hence it was indeed extremely surprising that the actor after encouraging people to go and Vote decided to give V-day a miss himself. The actor apparently was busy shooting in London for his film Veer at a time when he was most 'Wanted' in Mumbai to cast his vote.

Imran Khan

It was Imran Khan who came up with the idea of making a special video asking people to vote. Imran along with Karan Johar and Tarun Mansukhani gathered some of B-town's biggest stars for this initiative but when it was his time to Vote, Imran himself couldn't get his finger inked. The Reason: Imran was not eligible as he is an American citizen. Poor Imran indeed couldn't practice what he preached so hard.

Preity Zinta & Shilpa Shetty

Bollywood beauties Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty also didn't make it to cast their vote. They were busy cheering their respective teams 'Kings XI Punjab' and 'Rajasthan Royals' at the on-going IPL matches in South Africa. Looks like they didn't realize that the opportunity to vote comes only once in 5 years unlike the IPL which is an annual event

Deepika Padukone and Asin

The South Indian babes Deepika Padukone and Asin couldn't vote in Mumbai as Deepika is originally from Bangalore while Asin is from Kerala. Hope these two beauties at least have voted in their respective home town.

Akshay Kumar

Akki was among the other B-town celebs who gave Voting a miss. The star was busy shooting for Priyadarshan's film De Dhana Dhan in Singapore. Akki when you can travel from Chandni Chowk to China in 3 hours you surely could have come down from Singapore to Mumbai and exercised your right to vote as a responsible citizen.

Ajay Devgan and Kajol

Probably the biggest shocker comes in the form of Ajay Devgan and Kajol who were busy holidaying in Goa and didn't find it necessary to come down and cast their vote. Ajay what's the point in doing a film on Rajniti when you can't even come and vote for the leaders in whose hands lies the future of our country?

I am incapable of writing an autobiography: Amitabh Bachchan

Blogging seems to have become a leading interest in your life. When and how did you develop an interest in it? It is not a leading interest, but one thing I can safely say blogging seeks my involvement every day. I had heard of the concept, but had no idea what it was and what it entailed. I heard of Aamir having one and during a discussion with BigAdda who were designing my website, I enquired after it. They happily put the whole concept together within days, trained me on some essentials for its operation and I made a soft beginning. It has been most enlightening since. What is it about blogging that you like the best? The ability to convey individually and personally my feelings to the reader, secure in the thought that it shall reach them without any corruption. You are an extremely private person. And yet you seem happy sharing your day-to-day activities with your bloggers' community. How and why did that happen? I think this is a completely erroneous notion in the minds of those that form opinions on me. What may I ask, leads one to believe that I am an ‘extremely private person’ ? Every day of my life for the last 40 years I have been going in front of the camera and exposing, or at least trying to expose, every possible emotion or attitude that I possess. Actors are indeed as transparent as they can possibly be when in front of the lens. You come to know how they speak, how they laugh, how they cry, how they dance and run and emote and.... What more would you want to know about them to declassify them from privacy? I lead a normal life, just as any other. If the media is not aware of it, or has failed to discover it, which in today’s very intrusive environment I find difficult to believe, then the onus is on them. Just because media is unable to gather much about you publicly, does not mean that you are private. How close do you feel to these faceless friends who visit you regularly on the blog? ‘Faceless’ is a harsh term. I refer to them as my ‘extended family’. They confide in me. They show affection and concern. They get upset at times and reprimand me. They share their dreams and ambitions with me. They seek answers and opinions from me. They show respect to me as an elder. They abuse me and most importantly, they miss me when I am not there on time. Are not all these wonderfully domesticated attributes ? And now very soon my server BigAdda is developing software when my readers will be able to put up their photograph on the blog against their name. So they shall no longer be ‘faceless’. Also as we go along, due to the massive patronage in numbers from the readers, many more exciting features are being developed to bring them closer to me. We already have the MoBlog feature functioning, which enables me to write onto the blog through my mobile. And soon I shall have the facility to be able to record on blog with my voice, or dictate a message to them and then finally for them, in time, to be able to communicate their response to me via the mobile. The numbers are quite phenomenal – 25, 000 number of visits per day, and over 100, 000 page views per day. Multiply and do some mathematics on this from April 2008, every day and the figure is quite amazing. So this shall become eventually a huge exercise in communication management !! My extended family extends further !! Are there any special friends /fans on the blog? To me they are all special. Each one of them. Unique and sincere in whatever they express. You've certainly enriched their lives by your presence. How have your blogging buddies enriched your life? Brilliant question !! And one that I am so happy to answer. They enrich my life by their honesty and frankness. By pulling me out of my closet at times and showing me a mirror. By critically analysing events and moments. By educating me on my faults. By acclaiming creativity, not just mine but wherever they see it ; a director, a film, an artist a colleague they admire and appreciate, or do not. A moment in time which requires attention and comment. Just such a vast library of information and expression. Some possess absolutely astonishing ideas and vocabulary. Distinct and classified. Others bring forth their personal problems and expect nothing more than a patient ear. Its like being in a closed room with each one of them. I follow them. At times correct myself through what they suggest. I disagree with them and explain why. A most enriching exercise all of it. Whether or not I enrich them is really for them to answer. Your command over the language is being oohed and aahed about. Has blogging polished up your writing skills? I have no writing skills. I write what comes to my heart when the computer is ready to digitize my thoughts. The ‘oohing’ and ‘aahing’ is more perhaps, I am certain, because of my inadequacy in the craft. Do you feel liberated of the need to put your thoughts and voice across on the media? Yes I do. Liberated to give my expression as opposed to that which is perceived. Liberated to contradict a mischievous and evil accusation. Liberated to be able to inform in the correctness of things. Liberated to spread the literary genius of my Father; a due that poets and writers never ever achieve in their lifetime. Liberated from the fear of that sensationalised ‘cut and paste’ headline the following morning, the following week or following month. Liberated to share a private moment with those that understand and show sympathy. Liberated to have a voice without ulterior benefit. Liberated to feel the warmth and love from those that express, instantly. Liberated to construct a passage into my heart and head. Liberated to be able to challenge. Liberated to accept defeat and to seek the strength to overcome it. Liberated to criticize criticism and to acknowledge acclaim. And finally, liberated to stand up to ‘wretched’ puerile kindergarten rhymed opinion makers and be able to exercise the constitutional right of every living Indian ; the freedom of my expression. Finally, has blogging freed you of the inhibitions regarding your privacy? Are you now more inclined to write an autobiography? I am incapable of writing an autobiography !