Rang De Basanti (2006)
Aamir Khan … Daljeet ‘DJ’ / Chandrashekhar Azad
Siddharth … Karan R. Singhania / Bhagat Singh
Sharman Joshi … Sukhi / Rajguru
Kunal Kapoor … Aslam / Ashfaqullah Khan
Atul Kulkarni … Laxman Pandey / Ramprasad Bismil
Alice Patten … Sue
Soha Ali Khan … Sonia / Durga Vohra (as Soha Ali Khan Pataudi)
Steven Mackintosh … Mr. McKinley
Madhavan … Flight Lt. Ajay Rathod (as R. Madhavan)
Waheeda Rehman … Mrs. Rathod
Anupam Kher … Rajnath Singhania
Kiron Kher … Mitro / DJ’s Mother
Om Puri … Amanullah Khan / Aslam’s Father
Lekh Tandon … DJ’s Grandfather
Cyrus Sahukar … Rahul
Director: Rakesh Omprakash Mehra
Release Date: 26 January 2006 (UK)
Stroryline: Rang de Basanti’ is a film about awakening. About standing up for ones beliefs. Where the spirit of rebellion transcends time and age. A young idealistic English filmmaker, Sue, arrives in India to make a film on Indian revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad and their contemporaries and their fight for freedom from the British Raj. Owing to a lack of funds, she recruits students from Delhi University to act in her docu-drama. She finds DJ, who passed out five years back but still wants to be a part of the University because he doesn’t think there’s too much out there in the real world to look forward to. Karan, the son of Industrialist Rajnath Singhania, who shares an uncomfortable relationship with his father, but continues to live off him, albeit very grudgingly. Aslam, is a middle class Muslim boy, who lives in the by-lanes near Jama Masjid, poet, philosopher and guide to his friends. Sukhi, the group’s baby, innocent, vulnerable and with a weakness for only one thing – girls. Laxman Pandey, the fundamentalist in the group, the only one who still believes that politics can make the world a better place and finally Sonia – the sole girl in the group, tomboy and vivacious spirit, engaged to Ajay – the dashing air pilot. These youngsters could be anyone of us today and their lives mirror the kind of lives the youth of today lead – namely a self centered and materialistic existence where ideas like patriotism and making a change are strictly the stuff history books are made of. Through her film, Sue wishes to showcase to the world the efforts of these young revolutionaries and the enormity of their contribution to the freedom movement in India. What unfolds is the inspiration behind Sue’s passion for bringing their story to the world. The twist in the tale is of course the fact that more than just telling the world, Sue’s film makes DJ and his friends stop and stare at themselves for being the actual descendants of these great men and never recognizing and celebrating their courage and spirit. The film thus doubles as a narrative on the changes in perspective and values the young boys and girls acting in her documentary go through as they shoot for the film. Few scenes from the past and present are juxtaposed against each other, which renders a unique slick treatment, which serves to showcase the slow change in mindset and attitude that overcomes the group through the process of the film. ‘Rang de Basanti’ is a youthful drama, yet light hearted in the moments that the group shares amongst themselves… before some incidents effect a serious change…which ends in the climax.
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Taare Zameen Par (2007)
Darsheel Safary … Ishaan N. Awasthi
Aamir Khan … Ram Shankar Nikumbh
Tanay Chheda … Rajan Damodaran
Sachet Engineer … Yohan N. Awasthi
Tisca Chopra … Maya N. Awasthi
Vipin Sharma … Nandkishore Awasthi
Director: Aamir Khan
Release Date: 21 December 2007 (Canada)
Stroryline: Ishaan Awasthi is an eight-year-old whose world is filled with wonders that no one else seems to appreciate; colours, fish, dogs and kites are just not important in the world of adults, who are much more interested in things like homework, marks and neatness. And Ishaan just cannot seem to get anything right in class. When he gets into far more trouble than his parents can handle, he is packed off to a boarding school to ‘be disciplined’. Things are no different at his new school, and Ishaan has to contend with the added trauma of separation from his family. One day a new art teacher bursts onto the scene, Ram Shankar Nikumbh, who infects the students with joy and optimism. He breaks all the rules of ‘how things are done’ by asking them to think, dream and imagine, and all the children respond with enthusiasm, all except Ishaan. Nikumbh soon realizes that Ishaan is very unhappy, and he sets out to discover why. With time, patience and care, he ultimately helps Ishaan find himself.
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Shriman Shrimati (1982)
Director: Vijay Reddy
Release Date: 5 March 1982 (India)
Stroryline: A rich and wealthy couple, Shankarlal and Parvati (Sanjeev Kumar & Raakhee) are appalled at the problems of the world, especially in households, so they decide to try and make things right – one household at a time. They first go the household of alcoholic Rajesh (Rakesh Roshan); his domineering mom (Lalita Pawar); and uneducated wife, Veena (Deepti Naval). Their second task takes them to the household of Vishwanath Gupta(A.K. Hangal); his son, Madhu (Amol Palekar) who has taken to drinking; and his attractive, outgoing, and wealthy wife, Aruna (Sarika). The couple go to work on these families to turn them around and improve and better their relations with each other.
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Auzaar (1997)
Director: Sohail Khan
Release Date: 28 February 1997 (India)
Stroryline: Yash Thakur (Sanjay Kapoor) and Suraj Prakash (Salman Khan) are two inseparable friends. After completing their studies, they go their different ways. Yash takes over from his father’s (Paresh Rawal) nefarious and mafia-like business, while Suraj becomes an officer of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Yash’s dad is attacked by a rival, and he loses the use of his leg and is confined in a wheelchair. Yash marries his sweetheart Prathna (Shilpa Shetty). After completing his training successfully, Suraj is assigned the investigation against his friend, Yash, which shocks Suraj, but which he accepts. Yash’s dad’s contacts are many, and soon Yash also comes to know of Suraj’s job, and his assignment. Suraj must now convince Yash that his father is not what he appears to be, and at the same time take criticism and pressure from his superiors for not proceeding with the investigation against Yash.
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Raqeeb (2007)
Director: Anurag Singh
Release Date: 18 May 2007 (India)
Stroryline: Siddharth Verma lives a middle-class lifestyle in Mumbai, India, along with his near-comatose mom. He works as a Legal Advisor with Jain Software which is owned by his friend, Remo Matthews. Remo is single and eligible but is not seeing anyone as he has relationship problems ever since his parents passed away in a car accident several years ago on July 25. Siddharth sets him up with one of his Internet chat buddies, Sophie, they meet, fall in love and get married. Shortly after their marriage, Siddharth throws a party and invites them both, but Remo is unwell and unable to attend. Sophie attends and after the party is over she confides in him that before her marriage, she was in love with an aspiring Bollywood actor, Sunny Khanna, but their relationship did not last long. Now Sunny is back in her life and she fears for Remo’s life. Siddharth and Sophie return to her home only to find Remo’s lifeless body as he has been shot dead. An employee of Remo’s, Sharma, witnessed a man running away from the crime-scene, through him they identify the assailant as Sunny. When Sunny goes to meet Sophie, Siddharth entraps him, leading to a physical confrontation which results in Sunny being arrested by CBI Inspector Pradhan. With Sunny behind bars Sophie decides to re-locate to an undisclosed location with over 500 Crore Rupees, little knowing that Siddharth has doubts about her and may follow her to find out what the real motive was behind Remo’s death.
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Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Director: Danny Boyle, Loveleen Tandan
Release Date: 9 January 2009 (UK)
Stroryline: The story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions. Each chapter of Jamal’s increasingly layered story reveals where he learned the answers to the show’s seemingly impossible quizzes. But one question remains a mystery: what is this young man with no apparent desire for riches really doing on the game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out. At the heart of its storytelling lies the question of how anyone comes to know the things they know about life and love.
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Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008)
Director: Aditya Chopra
Release Date: 12 December 2008 (USA)
Stroryline: SHAHRUKH is married to ANUSHKA but there is a huge age gap between them. There is no real romance in the marriage. Then, a dance reality show called “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi” airs and ANUSHKA wants to participate but can’t because her husband is not hip and happening, she has a fear of losing and she also fears that her friends will laugh at her. SHAHRUKH overhears this problem and decides to go in for a makeover. He watches some movies and learns to dance in order to woo his young wife. Throughout the show ANUSHKA keeps falling in love to with this ‘new and improved’ SHAHRUKH KHAN without once realizing that he’s her husband. In the end, a justified title “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi”
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