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Chi Chi

@Cheetara

Voyager

Posted: 16 years ago

#41

(http://passionforcinema.com/delhi-6-reviews/).......I don't whether Abhishek Mande (Buzz18) even watched the movie or not…even if he did…he just didn't get it…Here are the international reviews and they both praise the movie whole heartedly…

http://www.villagevoice.com/2009-02-18/film/delhi-6-represents-the-enigmatic-india-of-today/

Delhi-6 Represents the Enigmatic India of Today

By Michelle Orange

Tuesday, February 17th 2009 at 5:17pm

Addressing the crowd gathered for the world premiere of Delhi-6 at MOMA, Indian actor Abhishek Bachchan announced that the film we were about to see "truly represents the India of today and the youth of today." "The India of today" (and spurious representations thereof) is a concept currently under review; by the time a grudging consensus is reached, the India of next week will have crowded in.

But in his claim, Bachchan (nicknamed "Little B"—he is the son of "Big B," Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, whom my seatmates, aisle-mates, and adjacent row-mates concurrently agreed is the greatest actor in history, an assertion supported by a certain sewage-covered, autograph-seeking boy early in Slumdog Millionaire) had posed an intriguing question: Could a true-blue Bollywood film ever represent something other than the highly referent, tightly clockworked chaos of Bollywood cinema?

While Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Delhi-6—the story of an American-born Indian who accompanies his ailing grandmother (Waheeda Rehman) to Delhi and, duly appalled and enchanted by what he sees, undergoes a cultural conversion and rather brutal baptism—attempts to address the generational, economic, and religious problems dividing modern India, it does so in an unapologetically broad, whacked-out way, with each of Bollywood's four food groups (corn, cheese, treacle, and nuts) present and accounted for.

Which is to say, of course, that it's pretty much irresistible and, in that sense, represents the enigmatic India of today as well as anything ever could.

http://worldfilm.about.com/od/bollywoodfilms/fr/delhi6.htm

Delhi 6-Sonam Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan Present Delhi 6 World Premiere at MoMA

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From Jrgen Fauth, for About.com

Manhattan's Museum of Modern Art served as the glamorous venue for last night's world premiere of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's much anticipated Bollywood spectacular Delhi 6, starring Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor. In addition to the director and composer A.R. Rahman (who is currently being showered with awards for his score for Slumdog Millionaire), the luminous stars were on hand to greet the crowd.

Though the film is a love letter to the Chandni Chowk area of Old Delhi, New York City was chosen for the premiere because Delhi 6 opens on the Brooklyn Bridge, and one of its best sequences is set in a Delhi-fied Times Square of the mind.

Sonam Kapoor at the New York premiere for Delhi 6

Jrgen Fauth

But the story of Delhi 6 moves east swiftly: when his beloved Grandma (veteran actress Waheeda Rehman) resolves to return to India, the amiable Rochan (Bachchan) decides to go with her. His homecoming to Delhi's zip code 6 is an opportunity for a colorful portrait of both the area and its inhabitants: Rochan discovers an extended family with competitive uncles and prankster kids, neighbors separated by thin walls, the local town idiot, the money lender, the lower-caste prostitute, the abusive police chef, the mad fakir -- and a mysterious threat known only as "the black monkey."

And of course, there's the girl. Lovely Bittu is played by newcomer Sonam Kapoor, daughter of Anil Kapoor (whom you may know as the game show host in Slumdog Millionaire.) With dreams of appearing on Indian Idol and an arranged marriage in the works, Bittu likes to escape to the roof, where she occasionally performs song-and-dance numbers with the pigeons. All ten songs by Golden Globe and BAFTA winner and Oscar nominee A.R. Rahman are joyful and diverse, partaking from a wider number of styles than his Slumdog soundtrack.

Whimsy and a generally warm mood inform most of the character sketches and handsomely shot vignettes of local life during Delhi 6's first half: reverse-culture-shock jokes, a lavish production of the story of Ram and Sita, a visit to the Taj Mahal, and a cow giving birth in the street. In the film's final hour, more serious themes -- unwelcome traditions and smoldering religious hatred -- come bubbling to the surface and erupt into a Do the Right Thing climax that took me by surprise.

Maybe the runaway success of Slumdog Millionaire will inspire western audiences to sample more authentic Bollywood fare; with its first-rate music, world-class stars, and postcard-ready views of India (not to mention the relatively reasonable running time), Delhi 6 presents an especially welcoming option.

Check out our photo gallery from the Delhi 6 premiere.

Delhi 6 (2009)

Starring: Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor, Om Puri, and Rishi Kapoor
Directed by: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Produced by:Alan G. Glazer, Ryan Kavanaugh, Chuck Roven
Music: A.R. Rahman
Language: Hindi and English with English subtitles
Running Time: 2 hrs. 20 min.
Distributor: UTV
Release Pattern: 90 theaters across North America
Manhattan Theaters: AMC Village 7 and ImaginAsian

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Hira

@friends_rock

Sparkler

+ 2

Posted: 16 years ago

#42

First Day First Show!

http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/broadband/video/First-Day-First-Show/JHf8jW75/3/First-Day-First-Show-Of-Delhi-6.html

Good Review! 2 were bad !

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Nupur

@Nupur9

Rocker

Posted: 16 years ago

#43

Originally posted by: friends_rock
^

oh my thats a very bad review!

You mean Raja sen........???

That guy is a total wannbe critic with no soul and perhaps no ethics either.

I wouldn't care what he thinks about most movies.

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Zareena

@Zareena

Stunner

+ 2

Posted: 16 years ago

#44

Delhi-6 is nowhere close to Rang De Basanti

Aniruddha GuhaFriday, February 20, 2009 10:06 IST Email

Rating: * 1/2

It's safe to say this: Delhi-6 doesn't work.Let's make one thing clear first: Rang De Basanti (RDB), by any standards, is a tough act to follow. Although expectations from Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's next film after RDB is bound to be tremendous, its only fair to judge Delhi-6 on its own steam rather than looking at it as a RDB follow-up. Ok, now that this point has been made clear, it's safe to say this: Delhi-6 doesn't work. Not because it pales in comparison to RDB, but because its nearest competitor would probably be Mehra's own Aks, which is saying something.

Why? The story is dated, the screenplay long-drawn - in spite of a short running time of 2 hrs 20 mins, the film stretches at a number of places - and the motive unclear. Roshan Mehra (Abhishek Bachchan) arrives in India because his grandmother (Waheeda Rehman) wants to spend her last days in the place she spent most of her life - Delhi -6. His father (junior artiste) refuses to come back to the place that he had to leave for marrying a woman of another religion. The half-Hindu, half-Muslim Roshan arrives to the chaos of Delhi and is amazed at the warmth of the people, the smells emanating from food stalls, the traffic and superstitions.

This is also the time the famous monkey man, or kala bandar, chose to haunt the lives of those living in small Delhi lanes. The incident, which made national headlines and is said to have gripped Delhi in fear for a while in 2001, has been juxtaposed by Mehra and his team of writers - lyricist Prasoon Joshi and Kamlesh Pandey - in what is really the story of a man coming back to his roots. Nothing new in that, with Swades having dabbled with the plot. But the Monkey Man episode is the 'novel' factor here. Does it work? Hell no.

Reasons are plenty. Firstly, for most part, the film is hardly going anywhere. Ever since Roshan arrives, the writers take their own sweet time establishing characters and their respective sub-plots. Roshan and the audience are meant to be 'observers' to it all and although Roshan doesn't, you do want to shake things up and ask them to 'Move on!'

When that happens, post-interval, the handling is so amateurish that what could have been an interesting finale turns into a bizarre mlange of disjointed events. In fact, after taking close to two hours to give the viewer some inkling of a plot, the film wraps up its multiple stories in no time. So Roshan expresses his love to neighbour Bittu (Sonam), warring brothers get over their differences, a sweeper gets accepted by a man of higher caste whom she has been in love with for a while and a Hindu-Muslim tiff, touched upon briefly, is sorted. In between all this, Roshan delivers a speech about how the 'kala bandar' is hidden in all of us and how we need to kill it so we can live in a peaceful and happy environment.Errr... haven't scores of heroes made that speech in a number of films? Remember Nana Patekar in Krantiveer with the 'yeh Hindu ka khoon, yeh Mussalman ka khoon' dialogue?

The Big B makes an appearance too, by the way. In one of the funniest sequences of the film, not intentional of course, Roshan goes to heaven for a very brief while, has a chat with his grandfather (Mr Bachchan himself) and returns back from the dead! They say Delhi-6 had two different endings - one happy, one sad and they chose to retain the happy one. The sad ending would have made some sense at least.

The editing's too slick for its own good and the background score by AR Rahman doesn't go with what's happening on screen. He, of course, can't be blamed for this. If there's anything worth mentioning in Delhi-6, it's Rahman's highly superior music. Genda Phool, in fact, is one moment you want to take away from the film. Sadly, most songs appear one after the other and then disappear as suddenly. Besides, the effort to make the initial reels 'musical' seems forced.

The performances are all good, but with actors like Rishi Kapoor, Om Puri, Supriya Pathak, Pawan Malhotra, Atul Kulkarni and Divya Dutta, you can hardly go wrong. Sonam Kapoor is adorable - sweet and sexy - and with better screen time, she could have done wonders to the film. Abhishek Bachchan is just about okay. The film required him to carry the story on his shoulders and he strictly disappoints on that front. And what's with the accent?! Very uncool.

Rakeysh Mehra shouldn't be worried. After Aks, he gave Rang De Basanti. May be Delhi-6 will ensure Rakeysh gives something more superior the next time round

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1232599

Edited by Zareena - 16 years ago

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Zareena

@Zareena

Stunner

+ 2

Posted: 16 years ago

#45

Atleast Sonam getting good reviews😃

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lavienrose

@lavienrose

Sparkler

Posted: 16 years ago

#46

omg Delhi6 is getting really bad reviews

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Raiinie2

@Raiinie2

Rocker

Posted: 16 years ago

#47

Originally posted by: friends_rock
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/broadband/video/First-Day-First-Show/JHf8jW75/3/First-Day-First-Show-Of-Delhi-6.html

Whoah. Such mixed reviews but the public seems to be loving the film. Great stuff! 👍🏼

Edited by raiinie - 16 years ago

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Raiinie2

@Raiinie2

Rocker

Posted: 16 years ago

#48

Delhi-6 - A Masterpiece indeed

IndiaGlitz [Friday, February 20, 2009]

Well, 'Rang De Basanthi' was about embellishing the young rebels with spirit-of-patriotism that had a very colorful appeal. Yippee!! Rakeysh Mehra is back with a bang emblazoning Delhi fantastically. Trust us; it's an unforeseen 'Wall of Old Dilli' where nothing rules, but everyone is surmounted with humanity. Of course, the auteur unravels the beauty of not just the street corners, jelabi shops, but heart-binding relationships' An appealing relationship between various communities has been decorously depicted that draws us straight into streets of Chandni Chowk. Perhaps, it's not 'too-sweet-for-the-heart' moments as there are peculiarities of caste-communalism differences that get us through a chain of unexpected sequences.

Precisely, the film possesses the best attributes of getting ennobled as 'World Cinema'. Maybe, the plot is a bit clichd to 'Swadesh' where an NRI makes his way to India getting adhered to scenario bounded with happiness and tribulations.

So if you are guessing what could be the common traits between 'Rang De Basanthi' and 'Delhi-6' here we have it for you in a platter. An enriching characterization with the finest narration is what you will witness. Rakeysh brings in a couple of metaphors that goes more relevant across the characters; 'Kaala Bandhar' and Stage Play of 'Ramayana'. Indeed, Rakeysh deserves special applause for these exceptional motifs'

When his Naani (Waheeda Rehman) loves to breathe her last not in New York, but in her hometown Chandni Chowk of Delhi, her grandson Roshan (Abhishek Bachchan) fulfills the wish. But sooner, he gets more glued to the new land of fun, frolic and happiness where everyone is blessed with a good heart and his friend. He finds elated amidst the kites, pigeons, sporting snookers with Uncle Ali (Rishi Kapoor) and tasting jelabis. On the pars, he is stuck with puzzling thoughts about witnessing untouchables, an arrogant police officer (Vijay Raaz), and his uncles (Om Puri, Pawan Malhotra) who've risen within their house. And finally, the sweet Bittu (Sonam Kapoor) caged in a circle of ancient-culture.

If you're a good analyst of films, there's something uniquely trenchant with Rakeysh. Unlike other flicks that have carried on with the First-Second half, the director has inherited the narration with 3-Act formulas. Something that isn't common, right? Yeah, 'Delhi-6' is yet another example to suggest the changing face of Bollywood. Getting on with the metaphors of 'Kaala Bandhar' and 'Ramayana' stage plays, he tries pulling the realistic pictorials. When the throngs are bounded devotionally watching the mythological drama, politicians interrupt it. And again, watch the special performance of Lord Shiva's 'Rudra Thandava' for the politician.

It's all about ' Even Gods get down for the sake of politicians in the present world. Years back, one incident had really shaken not just the Dilliwalas, but the entire Nation and it was the 'Monkey Man' terrorizing the streets. Blending it to the script, the idea has worked out well. The director's portrayal of the Hindu-Muslim communal conflict and the solution drawn out it is quite appealing.

The characterizations have been brilliantly designed. Rightly as Sonam suggested 'it is Delhi who's the protagonist', it's true and we feel it too. There aren't too many locations, but patently the streets of Chandni Chowk have been decorously portrayed. Hats off to cinematographer Binod Pradhan for a spellbinding piece of work. You don't see Abhishek and Sonam alone presented with prominence, but everyone seems to have had a vital role to play. Be it Rishi Kapoor with his hidden love or the so-called untouchable Divya Dutta; they're top-notching with their performance. Abhishek Bachchan is up with his usual resplendence while Sonam seems to have matured up from her 'Saawariya' days.

The musical score by A.R. Rahman is 'wordlessly colossal', especially the number 'Masakali' is a rich fiesta offered to the audience. Don't miss his background score in the penultimate sequence where there's hunt for the 'Kaala Bandhar'.

Precisely, the screenplay is intricately beautiful that you don't feel like watching the film but taking a walk down 'Delhi-6'.

On the whole, 'Delhi-6' is an incredible flick in terms of all panoramas. The film is simply prodigious with flawlessness and a piece of work that takes Indian Cinema to the next level.

Verdict: The real taste of Delhi.

http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/hindi/review/10778.html

------

Delhi 6 Movie Review | Dilli 6 Movie Review | 4 Stars

It also serves as a good moral ending and could send viewers home in a happy mood.

Thousands of people in Chandni Chowk watch with intensity as the Ramayana unfolds on stage when their attention is suddenly jarred by the appearance of a local politician in saffron clothes, who makes a spirited speech and disappears. The sequence, shot by director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra in his consistently inventive, funny, entertaining and life-affirming cautionary tale Delhi-6, is highly comical.

But like most of the funny scenes in the film -- including the frantic search for the kala bandar (black money), who is reportedly harassing the citizens of Delhi -- the Ramayana scene is also linked to the darker situations that unfold in the film's last quarter.

Delhi-6, which had its world premiere in New York on Sunday, was greeted well by the audience. Word-of-mouth is crucial in letting the word spread when the film opens on February 20, that it rewards those who are not seeking instant gratification. All the episodes, which may seem isolated in the beginning, are seamlessly brought together in the second half.

Mehra says he wanted to show the film without an intermission but the distributors cautioned him that theatre owners would decide to have a break on their own.

The new film does not offer many complicated stories as those found in Mehra's previous hit, Rang De Basanti, but this film is a worthy follow up to its predecessor.

It may look like the film centres around Roshan (a thoroughly engaging Abhishek Bachchan), born and raised in America, who returns to Delhi to leave behind his ailing grandmother (Waheeda Rehman). He falls for a free-spirited but conflicted woman (Sonam Kapoor), who is preparing to become next Indian Idol.

But the film is not just about two young people. It seeks to capture the bigger picture of a neighbourhood. Its episodes capture a raft of conflicts involving families, politicians and two religious communities, Hindus and Muslims. The film creates a wonderful world of a vast neighborhood in old Delhi. But its concerns -- including how the fear of the black monkey is manipulated by one community to punish the minority community -- have wider implications.

As Mehra says of his episodical film (written with lyricist Prasoon Joshi) that while it is firmly centered in old Delhi and is filled with local colour, its concerns are universal.

Despite Abhishek and Sonam's romantic entanglement being a major part of the film, its appeal is enhanced by half a dozen glorious performances. Mehra deftly exploits the comic talent of Vijay Raaz, who is far more amusing here than in Monsoon Wedding, as the pompous, corrupt and opinionated police officer. And then there is Rishi Kapoor's character, who cannot forgive himself for not having had the courage to declare his love years ago and who will now make sure that Roshan won't make the same mistake.

There is hardly a character in the film who is not anchored to the film, and Mehra ensures that even a small gesture adds to the film's proceeding.

Sonam Kapoor, who showed ample promise in her debut film Saawariya, not only looks alluring but has also grown into an actress of subtle power. Whether she is doing a comic scene, or dancing to the feisty Masakali song or executing an act of rebellion against her family's plans for an arranged marriage, she hits the right notes. It is indeed not an easy thing to hold your own in a film filled with an admirable ensemble cast.

Among the many amusing scenes that are also illuminating is the one that begins with dadi (Waheeda Rehman) suddenly taking ill. She is being rushed to a hospital in a cycle rickshaw much to the frustration of her grandson Roshan who is perhaps thinking the care she would have gotten in America. The rickshaw is stalled as hundreds of people have gathered to see a cow in labour in the middle of a road. The event has religious significance. But Roshan is petrified; he wants to get his grandmother to the hospital the soonest. He sets out to disperse the crowd and by the time he manages to do it -- you have guessed -- the grandmother has disappeared. We then see her gingerly walking towards the cow. She has more than recovered, and her heart is full of piety.

Mehra and Joshi do not ridicule her faith. But the sequence also serves as a powerful reminder of generational and faith gap between two people who love each other, and who can indeed tolerate each other's opinion.

The climax, which also involves the black monkey, has been imaginatively devised but nevertheless, it is a bit labored. However, it also serves as a good moral ending and could send viewers home in a happy mood

http://www.bollyadda.com/2009/02/delhi-6-movie-review-dilli-6-movie.html

Edited by raiinie - 16 years ago

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Zareena

@Zareena

Stunner

+ 2

Posted: 16 years ago

#49

Delhi 6 Movie Review

Posted by: Indicine Team | February 20th, 2009 | Email This Post

With Delhi 6, Rakesh Mehra brings together Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor, son and daughter of two Bollywood superstars (Amitabh and Anil Kapoor) of the 80s. Mehra's last film, Rang De Basanti was critically acclaimed, raked in the moolah at the box-office and swept most awards. Undoubtedly the expectations are high, does Delhi 6 live upto it?

Delhi 6 is about Roshan (Abhishek Bachchan) a half-hindu half-muslim boy from US of Indian origin. He comes to India with his grandmother (Waheeda Rehman), who wishes to spend the last days of her life in her hometown. Roshan is amazed by the love, warmth and the sheer madness of the area. Soon he meets Bittu (Sonam Kapoor), who dreams of making it big at the Indian Idol and is quite desperate not to marry the guy her father chooses for her. What happens next forms the rest of the Delhi 6 tale!

10 things that didnt work in Delhi 6

The pace of the film is too slow. The first hour is a complete drag, it picks up slightly post interval but the last 20 - 30 mins is a let down.

The film lacks sense! There is something called Kaala Bandar in the area, which Abhishek explains (to the people) was seen, yet invisible! How can anything be seen, yet be invisible?

The film reminds you of Ashutosh Gowariker's Swades and Madhuri Dixit's Aaja Nachle at times

There is so much happening in the film and in the locality, add to it the many characters and stories that Mehra has squeezed into Delhi 6, it gets highly monotonous to sit through. You dont really know, what to see, where to see, what to understand or what to take out of the film!

Sonam Kapoor has limited screen-time. It takes about quarter of an hour, for the most relatable character in the film, to actually mouth her first dialogue.

The film ends up being too preachy.

Without revealing much, the typical happy-happy ending actually works against the film. Not to mention the over dramatic scenes involving Abhishek during the climax.

Abhishek Bachchan's performance was disappointing to say the least.

The cinematography was below average
The whole lovemaking scene involving Cyrus Sahukar. Pathetic! Was that meant to be funny Mr Mehra?

The 3 saving graces of Delhi 6

Sonam Kapoor - Brilliant as Bittu

The character actors - did a fantastic job. Especially Vijay Raaz and Pawan Malhotra. Aditi Rao, Sonam's aunt in the film, deserves a special mention - great screen presence.

The music - A.R. Rehman rocks!

Overall, Delhi 6 is one of the biggest disappointments of the year. A ludicrous film that's not worth the price of your ticket.

Rating: 2/5

http://www.indicine.com/movies/bollywood/delhi-6-movie-review/