Best of Vishal Bhardwaj - Maqbool, Omkara, Haider - Page 5

Saif As Langda Tyagi is definitely in my Top5 Villain portrayals in bollywood.

Haider - I am sharing a IMDB Review which sums up all.

HAIDER to me is an acronym that means the following:

H. Haunting. Be it in its background score, music, lyrics, playback (especially Rekha Bharadwaj, Sukhwinder Singh, and Arijit Singh), cinematography, or backdrop of Kashmir in 1995, Haider is Haunting, and how! The film will stay with you long after you have left the theater.

A. Astounding. Haider is an astoundingly adept adaptation of a classic written almost 415 years ago that can be enjoyed irrespective of your knowledge about the Shakespearean Tragedy - Hamlet. If you don't know Hamlet, great! You do? Even better!

I. Incredible. Haider is incredible - in terms of its performances. Be it that of Shahid Kapoor (Haider/Hamlet) who performs a complex role with the kind of award worthy chutzpah that should silence all his detractors once and for all. Or for that matter the the triumvirate of Tabu (Halala/Gertrude) - ethereal, dauntless, and supreme, Kay Kay Menon (Khurram/Claudius) - terrific, resolute, and subtle or Irfan Khan (Rooh/The Ghost of Hamlet's father) - rudimentary and underplayed. Not to be forgotten is Shraddha Kapoor (Aarshi/Ophelia) who pitches in a performance that is 'picture'esque perfect and so full of finesse. And of course the two Salman Khan's who are fans of the superstar and who will surely gain some fans of their own post this film. In fact, every single member of the cast pitches in a perfect performance here, irrespective of the role and duration.

D. Daring. Haider is daring in talking about issues that many wouldn't touch with a bargepole and for the way it has juxtaposed a Shakespearean tragedy with a human tragedy - Kashmir. The valley is a character here that finally finds a voice of its own. The interpretations of that voice are truly brilliant.

E. Effective. Sometimes experimentation and reinterpretations fail. Not here. With layer upon layer waiting for the audience to be interpreted (for example the touch of Oedipal complex between a mother and son, the growing of guilt of a well meaning lover, the song of the gravediggers, the examples of 'Chutzpah' and its comparison with AFSPA etc). Haider is effective on multiple levels and truly faultless in its execution.

R. Rooh (Spirit/Soul). This is a film with an indomitable spirit that filmmakers would die to include in their body of work, and which Vishal Bharadwaj effectively manages to in this lifetime. This film has that which many a masterpiece may sometimes lack - a soul. A terrific triumph encompassing its soulful music, soul stirring performances, and soul warming message.

In short - watch Haider - in a theater. For Vishal Bharadwaj, the Director/Composer/Writer. For Shahid, the rising prince. For Tabu the eternal Queen. For Gulzar, the lyricist. For the cinematography by Pankaj Kapoor and the editing by Aarif Sheikh. And finally for Kashmir, the unforgettable voice of humanity.

Originally posted by: Tinkerbelle88

yeah I was very very young when Maqbool came out, I had zero understanding for good cinema but I’ll redeem myself and watch it soon.

Haider is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea the subject is very controversial. But it’s made with such conviction that you can’t help but feel connected to the story. I remember bawling while watching this movie that much it moved me.

And the music is just out of this world! What can I say Vishal is a genius and Gulzar along with him just creates magic. I was listening to it’s album today (thanks to this thread) and it has so many forms of music rock (aao na) love song (khul kabhi toh) folk (bismil) But they’re all well integrated into the story and the Kashmiri back drop, lots of Urdu shayari and beautiful words.While Omkara’s music has the rustic UP feel to it Naina and O Saathi re are my absolute favs. Also I would love to mention Rekha Bharadwaj here I just love her deep voice, I love her songs as well.

Like I said he should do more Shakespeare there is King Lear, Merchant of Venice and even Romeo and Juliet deserves a proper adaptation and only Vishal can do justice to it.

After I watched the trilogy, I thought King Lear would do so well as an Indian adaptation (overbearing father expecting singleminded devotion from his daughters, the filial child, the plotting two-faced sisters - perfect for Bollywood!). Another one I think would translate well would be Julius Caesar, the rural hinterland political setting would do well for this adaptation as well. We should send a petition😆

Originally posted by: GaramAloo

After I watched the trilogy, I thought King Lear would do so well as an Indian adaptation (overbearing father expecting singleminded devotion from his daughters, the filial child, the plotting two-faced sisters - perfect for Bollywood!). Another one I think would translate well would be Julius Caesar, the rural hinterland political setting would do well for this adaptation as well. We should send a petition😆

You know, I haven't seen a single play or anything regarding Shakespeare. I have seen only these 3 films.

Originally posted by: Guddu.Pandit

You know, I haven't seen a single play or anything regarding Shakespeare. I have seen only these 3 films.

I have seen a lot of Shakespearean performances - live plays, operatic versions, movie versions. If someone was only going to see one adaptation of Shakespeare's plays, these three films are a pretty darn good representation.

Originally posted by: GaramAloo

I have seen a lot of Shakespearean performances - live plays, operatic versions, movie versions. If someone was only going to see one adaptation of Shakespeare's plays, these three films are a pretty darn good representation.

I can watch comedy plays, like the ones we use to see those pakistani plays, but english play I can't sit.

Originally posted by: Guddu.Pandit

I can watch comedy plays, like the ones we use to see those pakistani plays, but english play I can't sit.

For me, seeing Shakespeare performed was quite a revelation after being forced to read the plays with their dry archaic English in classes. He was a very witty writer, Macbeth and Hamlet have some good comedic elements, especially in the hands of competent actors.

I've seen Hindi plays when I was younger but not Pakistani plays.

Originally posted by: GaramAloo

After I watched the trilogy, I thought King Lear would do so well as an Indian adaptation (overbearing father expecting singleminded devotion from his daughters, the filial child, the plotting two-faced sisters - perfect for Bollywood!). Another one I think would translate well would be Julius Caesar, the rural hinterland political setting would do well for this adaptation as well. We should send a petition😆

I hate Julius Caesar (and Macbeth) from the bottom of my heart (thanks to my board years) 😆. But I would love to see VB's take on it. It has all the tropes for a VB movie. Backstabbing, guilt, remorse, revenge, flawed idealism, tragic hero/anti-hero dying at the end etc. Pretty sure his Mark Antony's speech will be 🔥.

And Merchant of Venice coz it's not a tragedy, so it would be something new from him.

Although at this point, I just hope he picks something (anything) up.

Haider's Music-

1.

https://youtu.be/-i3_S7AhEc4

2.

https://youtu.be/tugB6k0KHlE

3.

https://youtu.be/ynWAfb1yKU8