Tintin's Top Ten: Most Anticipated Bollywood Films of 2015

Tintin's Top Ten

Most Anticipated Bollywood Films of 2015

Wow, it's been long hasn't it?

I'm really sorry, that I haven't blogged anything for a long time due to my inherent laziness. Well it's a triple bonanza for not only my return to the blog but also to celebrate my birthday (which was yesterday) as well as the birthday of this blog. 

Now on 17th of this month, my blog will be two years old. Unfortunately I will be busy and with no internet to support my blogging needs, forcing me to celebrate its birthday a week earlier. 

Okay so let's just get on with the post. 

As the year wraps, it's time to whip up awards season predictions, my own blog awards and more importantly best of worst of lists for Bollywood films. 

I'd like this post to be a bit lengthier, so not only will I include the most anticipated releases for next year but also give two major things;

A short analysis on the top ten films I had anticipated for 2014. I'll decide whether despite my anticipation, they were disappointing, great or even a bigger surprise then I thought. 

My next part will also be a vague analysis of Bollywood in the year 2014. I'll try my best not to give spoilers for my best or worst of the year list. 

Did My 2014 Predictions Come True?

So last year, I was excited for quite a number of films but more importantly the early comers that included the likes of hair brain comedies, to big masala movies and some really deep films. Sadly due to the nature of productions and date releases, I chose quite a few films I was partially excited for but for the most part turned out to be duds or no shows, completely. 

So here goes, 

At number 10...was Dedh Ishqiya!

Dedh Ishqiya was a sequel to the 2010 sublime black comedy crime thriller; Ishqiya. The sequel bigger in ambition and bolder in tone, became an examination of aristocracy in modern India and culture of poetry related to it. It also became a sarcastic look at the waning wealth of old money and a softer tale of romance juxtaposed with an edgier one, all tumbling together in a film about identity, woman empowerment in dozes and true love. 

You'll be seeing this film, quite a lot of times on my end of the year lists. But rather than be as good as the first one, this sequel blew me away with it's focus on finer details especially continuity. Continuity, the one thing Indian sequels just don't get. 

Verdict: Surprise! (A Good one that is)

At number 9...was Total Siyapaa

The biggest disappointment out of Total Siyapaa was my realization, that maybe just maybe Ali Zafar cannot act. Even when laced with a straight man character, Zafar should still be able to display a charismatic edge if not rip roaring comic timing. Like the dullness of the films itself, he looks perpetually bored. 

 It's not even one of the worst films of the year, but this sporadically declining comedy never manages to even illicit a laughter or provide a point of entertainment. It's not purely slapstick or subtle, it's just bland. With Neeraj Pandey writing it, much better was expected. 

Verdict: Disappointment

At Number 8...was Shaadi Ke Side Effects

Despite the combined might of two of the best actors working in Bollywood today; Vidya Balan and Farhan Akhtar, and a host of amazing supporting actors from Vir Das to Ram Kapoor. Somehow, Shaadi Ke Side Effects (A quasi-sequel to Pyaar Ke Side Effects) turned out to be an even more boring mess than the film above it. 

There was no redeeming quality to any of the stories, dull direction and phoned in performances from the cast. After stunning us with her subtle, layered, natural performance in Kahaani, Vidya Balan is sinking a bit too fast. On the other hand Farhan Akhtar coming of a bonanza award winning season, decided to pull an Oscar winner feat a la Halle Berry, Adrien Brody and the likes, and feature in a dud after a masterful performance. 

Oh and Pritam was also down, unable to copy any good music this time round. 

Verdict: Huge Disappointment (Look at the Cast!)

At Number 7...was Roy

Sadly Roy never released, but a lot of information regarding the film came out including set pictures which has reduced my anticipation for the film. First of all Ranbir Kapoor, my reason to watch this film stated that he is only in a cameo. 

This means, he would be leaving the film to Arjun Rampal. Rampal despite not being as good, is the Colin Farell of Hindi cinema; good enough as a character actor in a supporting role, terribly bland as a leading man. 

Along with him will be the charisma vacuum Jacqueline Fernandez, and while looking at one of her is appealing enough...seeing two of them in a double role 'acting' will be a pain in the ass. 

Still it's that word may lie and romantic thriller idea that enthralls me most about his shrouded film. 

Verdict: Not Too Excited/Never Released

At number 6...was Finding Fanny Fernandez

 

The films name changed to just Finding Fanny. 

It was touted as one of the best films of the year, with it's brilliant comedic edge and sweet message and characters. 

Sadly I haven't watched it yet, hopefully before the big run of lists starts I will able to do so. 

Verdict: Unwatched

At number 5...was Gunday

I can't even tell you how embarrased I feel for thinking this movie would be any good. 

An electric trailer is let down by a sluggish and been there done that film. 

Ali Abbas Zaffar's Gunday was a terrible film, with the most banal scripts and over the top acting including a clearly disinterested Irrfan Khan. 

Even despite it's historical inaccuracies (which for a while won the film the top slot as the worst film in IMDB), it would have been complete mess. Yet buried within it could have been something great if the writers and director hadn't made a hash of it. 

Rest assured, Gunday will appear on another one of my lists very soon.

Verdict: Major Disappointment

At number 4, 3, 2, 1...were 

A bunch of films that never released in the year.

Bombay Velvet requiring tons of production development due to its period setting was delayed to early next year. Although rumor has it, that star actor Ranbir Kapoor is disappointed with Anurag Kashyap's final cut and has stalled it, to make it better. 

The next one was is the Anup Singh directed, German produced, Punjabi film partition drama Qissa. A film about identity, manhood, homosexuality, gender change and gender birth issues. It's been rocking festivals but there's no idea when it could release, hopefully somebody picks it up soon for distribution. 

The teaser is already out for Dibakar Banerjee's magnum opus, a fantasy/noir detective thriller based on the literary figure Detective Byomkesh Bakshi. It looks stunning to say the least and despite Banerjee warning that the film set in World War 2 India will not be historically accurate, it will have a uniquely amazing flavor to it. 

Finally Ugly. Anurag Kashyap's return to a much smaller scaled film has been marred by controversy, the kind his earlier films such as Paanch, Black Friday, Gulaal and No Smoking obtained. His hesitance left a question mark on the films release date. 

Has it released, has it not? No Idea!

Verdict: Very Much Anticipated/Not Released

Sad to say not many of the films released that I wanted to see this year. Anyways, let's go onto a small summary of the Bollywood film year of 2014. 

2014 In Hindi Cinema

It's hard to assess a whole year of films, without it even having ended. The last big films left to see are Rajkumar Hirani's Aamir Khan starer PK, which look quite intriguing yet also something to be wary off. On the other hand there's the anticipated release of India's official Oscar entry; Liar's Dice and Kanu Behl's festival favorite Titli. 

There's quite a few films, due to my busy and hectic schedule this year I haven't been able to catch. 

The big news that can be said is that for films overall there's a huge divide that is constantly increasing in terms of well appreciated, top content films and ooversaturated mainstream movies that are beggining to stink at a whole new level, yet still managing hefty box office revenue. 

Profits for such films have always been up in the past half decade. Even prior to its release, a big film's satellite rights are sold at big bucks, in some cases already recuperating its budget. It's sad, because the more the hint that these films are working, means the more lazier film makers get. 

While there has been an indication that the bubble of mainstream masala could burst, it's more likely that it will simply have a few holes poked in it to stabilize. 

The big problem on this side of the fence, is the audience. I'm not talking about the masala consuming, single screen masses. There are a lot of lower class people who will go watch these films due to the power of star value, yet a film of such a nature cannot make the money it does on their shoulders alone. 

A classier section of audiences (for a lack of a better word) of the upper middle class and middle class variety are prone to have family outings for such 'entertaining' fluff piece. Yet the bigger problem is, that most of this area of the audiences are not only the biggest consumers but the biggest complainers of these type of films. 

It's why, when in my personal interaction I learn how a section of people feel Bollywood is going to dumps. Yet it's a section that fails to notice the low key Indie cinema and the better content that certain films and filmmakers are providing. 

The second big issue, this time pertaining to content driven cinema is; distribution. There are tons of producers such as Phantom Productions (Anurag Kashyap, Vikas Bahl and Vikramaditya Motwane) and Gurmeet Monga are trying their best to get cinema out there but not all forms can get the kind of distribution the deserve. 

Most distribution also pertains to the promotion of a film and the viability of box office depending on producers, investment but more importantly star value. It's why a Shahrukh Khan film can gain a massive amount of screens and show times where as a smaller film starring an indie actor and an indie subject get only two showtimes in a day. 

Last year I complained about my trip to the cinemas. It seems even with one showtime, theaters can refuse to show the film at all, losing even a small amount of money that could cause the film to gain a profit. 

It's a truly sad thing, that both audiences and distribution are the reason fo the great divide between content driven and commercial cinema. Yet those two are the main aspects as distribution brings the film and audiences see the film. 

Yet there are some really great films in between that gain mainstream exposure. 

While the big Bollywood stars may stick to the kind of films showcase their star power, the crop of youngsters are banging on doors by doing different things and juggling some commercial hits with some finely scripted films. 

If the big stars are trying to appeal to the masses in cheap fashion, to keep control over their status so be it. By romancing women half their age and doing things that no mainstream movie star should be doing, these stars are simply reassuring the fact that they are stuck in the past and in a deep mid-life crisis while fueling their own egos. 

The young ones are stopping at nothing, to provide some meaningful but entertaining cinema. Just look at this years list; From Kangana Ranaut in Queen to Alia Bhatt in Highway and from Shahid Kapur in Haider to Arjun Kapoor in Finding Fanny. Their pushing the envelope in safe ways, which will provide a great alternative to small art house cinema and big masala movies.

Another big reassurance is film festivals. India has seen a resurgence in film festivals, this year's MAMI (Mumbai International Film Festival) itself saw promotion from big Bollywood stars. It might not be what the festival going movie buffs want, but it puts more eyeballs on an important showcase for Indian Indie films amongst strong films from around the world such as Boyhood. 

Also there's a stronger push by film boards and film studios from Hollywood, to force Hindi filmmakers hands to buy rights for their films if they are going to remake them. This year alone saw the release of Fox Studios Hindi film venture Bang Bang, a remake of their own Hollywood Tom Cruise/Cameron Diaz vehicle; Knight and Day. 

These might not be original or even good films, but it at least warns film makers not to rip-off Hollywood scripts like they would have done a decade ago. Still hacks like Mohit Suri with his shameless rip-off of Korean Masterpiece I Saw The Devil into Ek Villain, still persist. 

Overall, the future seems bright for a wide boom of great content driven cinema is outpouring into theaters. However the line between Commercially successful and Critically successful might be fading, but the gap between Mainstream and Indie cinema isn't closing up any sooner. If only a large number of audiences could stop watching shitty films. 

Also a short note on how well regional cinema is shaping up to be. I was lucky to catch some scintillating works from cinema of different languages within India; the likes of Fandry (Marathi), Jaatishwar (Bengali) and Lucia (Kannada) are examples of how above and beyond regional cinema is to Hindi cinema. 

Now let's go to my most anticipated releases of next year...

Top Ten Most Anticipated Movies of 2015

 

10. NH10

Director: Navdeep Singh

Cast: Anushka Sharma and Neil Bhooplam

The Navdeep Singh (Manorama: Six Feet Under) directed road movie thriller; NH10, is the debut of Anushka Sharma as producer. That's a big feat, considering she's the youngest ever to do that in Hindi cinema. 

The film promises to be an edge of your seat thriller, and in the hands of a director like Singh it's bound to have potent drama as well as some nail biting moments. Anushka Sharma doing something different is a welcome relief and while she might not have secure National Award winner Rajkumar Rao as her leading man, she's got someone quite reliable in the under seen Bhooplam. 

I love Navdeep Singh's woefully underrated cult classic Manorama and I have had faith that Sharma is one of the finer female actors working today. 

9. Piku

Director: Shoojit Sircar

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Irrfan Khan 

If it weren't for the ingenious business acumen of John Abraham, we might never have seen the brilliant resurgence of Yahaan director Shoojit Sircar and his two gem of films Vicky Donor and Madras Cafe. With his next it seems Sircar returning to the more lighter fare of Vicky Donor, with his family drama Piku. 

With his sensibilities you can bet this wont be your typical run of the mill Hindi film family drama and instead a much more sophisticated indie styled take on relationships. It will mainly revolve around a quirky father-daughter duo played by the evergreen Amitabh Bachchan and the sensational Deepika Padukone. 

8. Baby

Director: Neeraj Pandey

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Anupam Kher, Danny Dezongpa

Neeraj Pandey's next once again reunites him with Anupam Kher and Akshay Kumar, promising to be a tense espionage thriller and another patriotic step forward for Kumar after Holiday. As long as it isn't tonally inconsistent like that film, Baby despite its odd title could be one heck of a thrill ride. 

Pandey has yet to disappoint, after both his debut and sophomore efforts have gained enough traction to become big remakes even in Hollywood. His A Wednesday! was remade with Ben Kingsley in it. 

The trailer looks equally thrilling as it does somber and methodological. While Akshay Kumar proves to show, that when paired with a competent director he can give a scintillating performance. 

7. Fan

Director: Maneesh Sharma

Cast: Shahrukh Khan

Despite my great love for Sharma's previous works Band Baaja Baraat and Shuddh Desi Romance. My anticipation for this film rides on one thing, could this finally be a good film and a great performance from Shahrukh Khan in a long time. 

Sure Khan isn't the greatest actor in Hindi cinema, nor are his best films the best films. But there is one thing I have always maintained and I will always maintain; when pushed and out of his comfort zone, Khan proves to be a fascinatingly great actor who can fit naturally into the skin of his character while holding the audiences with the sheet force of his charisma. It shows that if he and filmmakers didn't take his stardom for granted, he'd be considered a wonderful actor.

Fan sees him in a dual role, as a fan of a famous actor and the famous actor itself. The film is set to have an intriguing production with make-up artist Greg Cannom at it's helm. The former Academy Award winner is physically set to change the perception of King Khan and let's hope Shahrukh himself can complement that change emotionally and spiritually. 

It's high time Khan awarded us with a better performance that he is capable of giving. My Name Is Khan was the last bit of acting you could say Shahrukh Khan did in this decade. 

6. Dil Dhadakne Do

Director: Zoya Akhtar

Cast: Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shah, Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh, Farhan Akhtar, Anushka Sharma, Rahul Bose

In a spate of two films, Zoya Akhtar has become one of my favorite directors and writers. She's one of the few in Bollywood today who can take an eclectic ensemble of actors and thread out narratives that pertain to each character and make them feel fleshed out. 

Her debut Luck By Chance is a fun insider scathing remark at Bollywood and the ideas of stardom and the struggle of attaining it. Her sophomore effort Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara is the most enjoyable immersive film in Hindi cinema, this decade. 

One of the things I commented on in my overview of 2014 Bollywood, was that certain breed of young actors are unafraid of taking roles that a conventionally established star would not in Bollywood. Both Anushka and Priyanka are established A-Listers and in the latter's case a veteran of sorts. 

Yet Anushka seems unfazed in not only sharing the spotlight, but being a supporting role to Priyanka's designated lead female in this ensemble. Priyanka Chopra will be seen doing the same, playing a clear cut supporting actress to Deepika Padukone in next year's Bajirao Mastani. 

Such things haven't happened between established actors for the last five years, and it's good to see happening now. 

But that's not the main point. The main point is Zoya Akhtar's film is about a dysfunctional family on a cruise ship. It's as Indie as mainstream content driven Hindi cinema can get, and it promises to be another joy ride. 

One thing I would love to see Zoya Akhtar do next, is a minimalist one man/woman film in the vein of like a Gravity except not in space. Just a small one character based existential drama, something out of her comfort zone. 

5. Margarita With A Straw

Director: Shonali Bose

Cast: Kalki Koechlin, Revati

Already garnering ton of buzz at film festivals and applause for Koechlin's heart wrenching performance, Margarita With A Straw will most likely get a release in 2015 hopping on the smaller circuit value of its lead actress. 

The film is about Laila, a University student with Cerebral palsy who gets a chance to study abroad in America. There she falls in love with Khanum and begins to explore her sexuality causing friction between her and her family, mostly her own mother. 

Bose has mentioned, that she has based the character on herself and her cousin afflicted by cerebral palsy. The showcase for me though is Kalki Koechlin getting to really flex her acting muscles, her talents are neither appreciated by the content viewing cinema crowd or the internet movie buffs, and this looks like a film that will turn heads. Hopefully this one gets a release. 



4. Badlapur

Director: Sriram Raghvan

Cast: Varun Dhawan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Huma Qureshi, Divya Dutta, Yami Gautam, Vinay Pathak, Radhika Apte

I'm a bit wary about Badlapur after watching the trailer on an infinite loop. There's of course questions raised as to whether this will be another Korean rip-off like Ek Villain, or if Dhawan at such a young age and inexperience has the ability to match the intensity of a grey shade character. 

Yet I can't help but feel excited by the trailer and the fact that Sriram Raghvan is at the helm. He has the uncanny abilities to take a perceived non-actor/okay actor and mold from them a stellar performance whether it be Saif Ali Khan in Ek Hasina Thi or Neil Nitin Mukesh in Johnny Gaddar. He also crafts these characters arc of an innocent protagonist falling into a world that will slowly corrupt them, like Urmila's character in Ek Hasina Thi or Neil in Johnny Gaddar. 

A lot of people have questioned the choice of Dhawan considering his softer voice and youthful look, yet it works in his favor because of the arc as aforementioned. A lot of people are wary of Raghvan after his disastrous Agent Vinod (which grows on you with subsequent viewings). 

Badlapur looks to have influences from films such as Oldboy, with the prominence of a hammer and the time it takes for Raghu (Dhawan) to reach his nemesis to seek vengeance. From the trailer alone I'm excited, in an age where older actors do the stupidest things to feel younger on screen, here comes a relatively new boy taking on the daunting task of playing a character through three timelines till the age of forty.

If nothing else, from the trailer it seems there's a kick ass soundtrack to look forward to. But I'm still crossing fingers that this isn't another Korean masterpiece rip-off.



3. Bombay Velvet

Director: Anurag Kashyap

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Karan Johar, K K Menon, Raveena Tandon

Now that it has a confirmed set release date; May 15 2015. We'll get to see the magic that Anurag Kashyap creates at a huge budget, as is necessary for a period noir historical film of this scale. Kashyap has always been known as an economical director, taking a film of Gangs of Wasseypur's scope and making it at a size able budget. 

Ranbir Kapoor is a star unlike another and a surprisingly great example of when nepotism works and works exceedingly well. His choices and performances are worth marveling at, and Velvet will most likely be an example of that.  

Cannot wait to see the grand vision, Anurag has in store for us. 



2. Tamasha

Director: Imtiaz Ali

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone

After the surprising drama that was Highway (now my fifteen favorite film of all time), Imtiaz Ali returns with another romantic film in Tamasha. This time he reunites with actor Ranbir Kapoor, who gave him the most awesome male performance in Bollywood of the decade in Rockstar, and Deepika Padukone, for whom he wrote her best performance in Cocktail. 

The film follows a Nomad in Kapoor and a traveller he meets (Padukone) forming a drama troupe along the way and entertaining people of their journey while falling in love. There's a certain earthy and spiritual feel to it, and correct me if I'm wrong, I've never heard of a love story plot like this. Hopefully it's more natural in it's scale and setting rather than the journey being mechanical and city based. 

A.R. Rahman and Mohit Chauhan also join Imtiaz, making it an emotional Rockstar reunion thus promising great music. Since Rockstar, Imtiaz despite still sticking to the romantic genre has done some is most heartfelt and unique work as a director and I'm hoping this one will be his hat-trick. 



1. Detective Byomkesh Bakshi

Director: Dibakar Banerjee

Cast: Sushant Singh Rajpur, Anand Tiwari, Swastika Mukherjee

I'll admit I have a little worries for this film, maybe it's just the fact the way the teaser looks and feels. I think from the teaser below, the film has the sort of mystical vibe that Guy Ritchie's Downey Jr. starer Sherlock Holmes had. 

Maybe it's just the promotion tactic by major studio YRF, to get more butts on the seat. Despite being set in Calcutta during WWII. Byomkesh Bakshi as noted by my favorite director Dibakar Banerjee, is going to have a more fantasy/noir vibe and that does come through from the color pallete and the samurai sword wielding menaces.  

It looks gritty and sensual, keeping the viewer transfixed. At the fore will be Sushant Singh Rajput, one of the few actors in India from modern day Indian television that is actually talented. 

I don't know much about the literary character, but this rock music and pop art feel gives the film a nice trippy vibe that should meld well with the noir trappings of the murder mystery and give us something very unique for Hindi cinema. Here's the teaser:




Let's hope that this year I'm right about all these films. 

Next: A new structure rises, my top ten best list gets a makeover with my new HIndie Awards. 

'Nuff Said

Aneesh Raikundalia