AR Rahman's Jayahe

Before the screening of Chak De, there was a screnning of an AirTel promo of the new national anthem version of AR Rahman. When it said, please stand up for the national anthem, almost 100% of the audience at Sathyam Cinemas stood up in obeisance. Patriotism still runs high in the country. Instead of getting infuriated with the handful who did not stand up, I would rather feel happy with the majority's act. Chak de India...

Hear this exclsuive tune at http://www.airtel.in/jayahe/JayaHeyJanaGanaMana.mp3
Or watch the video in You Tube.

Check out this old promo video on the national anthem. This will stand the test of times any day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L46pziPTYH8

Happy Independence Day!

Chak de SRK

Watching Chak De on the first day of release let loose a whole lot of thoughts:

- SRK donning the role of Kabir Khan and starring in a film that signals the birth of a new age Bollywood. SRK excels in his department. No overdrama but just the right emotions in a measured manner.

- How the media these days are really taking things to the extreme-taking a sportsperson to the top one day and dropping him the very next day.

- Success will ensure that the past failures are short lived and erased from people's memory

- Story and screenplay can definitely make a movie sail through smoothly without a star studded cast.

- Whats more, there was no need for dupes and long shots as the main characters themselves looked like convincing hockey players. Are they hockey players who acted or were they actors trained in hockey? Either way it is thoroughly appreciable.

- Shimit Amin, who I thought was best directing violence-filled movies such as Ab Tak Chappan, excels and gets a new fan by directing a true-blue sports film

- The live hockey shots looked really convincing, making you wonder how they managed to do it.

- Finally, the thought that a sports movie can be really interesting without any song and dance sequence, makes you realise that there are directors who trust the Indian audience. While Lagaan was more of an emotional drama with cricket as a main theme, this is a sports movie with hockey scenes dominating almost half the movie.

Chak de truly rocks, more so if you are a SRK fan like me.