India Masala

Agent Vinod: The spy who disappointed me

Perhaps the most surreal moment in Sriram Raghavan‘s “Agent Vinod” is during a shootout at a seedy hotel in Latvia, when there’s a horde of gangsters chasing the protagonists.

Instead of filming the scene like a regular action sequence, with lots of gunfire, smoke and action, Raghavan turns it on its head — filming the scene almost entirely in slow motion and to the tune of the “Rabta” song.

It’s one of the inspired moments that take “Agent Vinod” to another level altogether — only to have it come crashing down a few scenes later when we are subjected to a long, emotional and implausible monologue about how India and Pakistan must come together to fight terror. And that remains the tenor of the film throughout — the flashes of brilliance don’t add up to a great film.

Raghavan’s protagonist is Agent Vinod, an Indian intelligence officer, played by Saif Ali Khan. We are introduced to him in a fast-paced sequence in the arid Pakistani desert, where he escapes from the clutches of a battalion of guards with panache. Raghavan gets you hooked immediately, and the first half is a jumble of names, characters, random numbers but nothing is what it seems.

But it’s all too good to last. The second half drags on interminably, defeating the very purpose of a spy thriller and by the time the credits roll, you are just glad it’s over. The intentions of the characters seem a bit too simplistic, and even his protagonists don’t seem to appear as interesting as they did in the first half.

The film makes the classic mistake of trying to spell out everything to the audience, underestimating their intelligence and weighing the film down. Raghavan succumbs to a lot of stereotypes, and simplifies a lot of situations — and no amount of style can make up for that.

There are, of course, some moments that make the film worth watching, like the shootout scene I mentioned earlier, and some of the dialogue is brilliant, playing on many day-to-day phrases we all use. Saif Ali Khan pulls off the suave spy act very well, and Kareena Kapoor is, as always, excellent.

Kurbaan: Old wine, better packaged

If you watched Kabir Khan’s “New York” this summer, you won’t find much novelty in Rensil D’Silva’s “Kurbaan”. The storyline is pretty much the same, except for a few cosmetic differences.

There is an educated, suave man living a double life as a terrorist, his beautiful wife who doesn’t know about his identity and the “third man” who tries to help the family.

However, D’Silva still manages to draw you into his story, thanks to some taut moments, a fast-paced first half, and some slick packaging.

Kareena Kapoor plays Avantika, a New York professor who falls in love and gets married to colleague Ehsaan Khan (Saif Ali Khan).

They buy a house in an Indian neighbourhood and on their first night there, are introduced to their neighbours, a group of conservative Muslims — who seem to be hiding something.

Avantika soon realises she has to make a choice between her marriage and what is right.

She meets Riyaz Masood (Viveik Oberoi), a reporter with a local channel who helps her expose the truth, but they both find they are pawns in a larger game. The film maintains a tight pace in the first half but slackens in the second, when all the surprises in the story seem to die out.

Saif Ali Khan: A true professional in Bollywood?

When I think of a Bollywood media interview, what pops into my mind are — long waits, filthy sets, stars with a lot more attitude than they should have and clichéd answers I could have predicted long before I met them…

But Saif Ali Khan proved me wrong on all counts. He turned out to be a thorough professional.

Khan was very ‘corporate’ in his demeanour, taking us in for the interview as soon as we got there, giving us candid answers about his experiences as a first-time producer with “Love Aaj Kal”, being open about his relationship with Kareena Kapoor and making no bones about us appearing unannounced with a camera.

Perhaps Khan’s most interesting response was when we asked him about working with other production houses after he has worked on his own.

Khan compared it to a ‘dinner party’.

Working in your own production is like hosting a dinner, he said, while working in other films is like being a guest at somebody else’s party where you pick up tips (or not) for your next do…

Love Aaj Kal: Not very original but it works

There’s one thing about an Imtiaz Ali film — it may not have the most original storyline or cutting-edge techniques, but it sure has the best dialogues. And that, in my opinion, is the USP of his films.

Director Ali is telling you a regular love story, where you know immediately that the two lead characters are going to end up with each other, but his treatment is fresh and the people in the film don’t act filmy (which sounds like a paradox, but isn’t).

“Love Aaj Kal” begins with the story of Jai Vardhan Singh (Saif Ali Khan) and Meera Pandit (Deepika Padukone), who in London and in love with each other, but are “practical” enough to realise that their relationship can’t take priority over their careers.

So when Meera decides to move to India to pursue a career in conservation architecture, the duo decide to break up, albeit amicably. There are no tantrums, no tears and instead of being sad about it, they decide it’s best to be practical, even throwing a “break-up” party to celebrate the event.

In New Delhi, Meera starts going out with her boss (Rahul Khanna) while Jai falls for a Swiss girl called Jo. He also meets a café owner called Veer Singh (played endearingly by Rishi Kapoor) who narrates his own love story to him, which we get to see in flashback.

Saif plays the younger Rishi Kapoor and is noticeably uncomfortable in his role as a Sikh man in love with Harleen (played by newcomer Gisele). This love track lends to some tender moments in the film, especially the one where Saif’s character lands up in front of Harleen’s balcony one fine morning.

Both the stories play out almost parallel to each other, and while both “styles” of love are diametrically different, they end almost identically, which makes for a nice touch.

A film that means so much more

Deepika Padukone is one of the most charming actresses you could hope to meet.

I have spoken to her several times and she has always been extremely polite, composed and not given to overt displays of emotion.

That is why, at a Mumbai event to unveil the first look of her forthcoming film “Love Aaj Kal”, I was surprised to see the 21-year-old at a loss for words.

She barely managed to speak more than two sentences when asked to do so by co-star Saif Ali Khan, and even while speaking those she stumbled.

“I am really nervous today, I don’t know why,” Padukone said.

Later, the actress confessed that if she hadn’t stopped talking then, she probably would have broken down.