Why Is Tubelight Being Slammed?
- Because it’s Eid and the Salmaniacs want to see a happy film which Tubelight is not by any stretch of the imagination. This is film about losers.Every major character in the film has lost something or someone. And from initial trends it seems the distributors would be the biggest loser.
- Because it has too much of a Bajrangi Bhaijaan hangover. Salman as the do-gooder here protects the traditional enemy, a Chinese boy, from harm . In the earlier film it was the Pakistani girl. That connected better with audiences. Though China is actually a much bigger threat to India we somehow prefer to see Pakistan as the mischievous neighbour.Image se majboor.
- Because Bhaijaan gets roughed up once too often . In one sequence a side actor Mohammad Zeeshan Ayyub slaps him repeatedly.I distinctly heard the Salmaniacs muttering under their breath.Some of them even left the theatre. You don’t do do this to the believers during the holy month.
- Because Bhaijaan has no romantic interest this time. Not even with the pretty Chienese actress Zhu Zhu who was publicized as Salman’s leading lady. Even Sohail Khan has a love interest played by Isha Talwar. But Salman is without romance in Tubelight. The Salmaniacs feel cheated.
- Because Salman and his real-life brother Sohail gets very little together-time . This is unforgivable. If the Khan brothers are cast together as brothers the least we expect is for them to occupy some solid screen time together. Here they sing a song together and then ge goes away to fight the war while poor Salman is left behind his own battles.
- Sadly for a film so gentle in tone and with music in its soul, not one song remains with us after the film. The songs are at the most, functional . Sajan radio doesn’t really herald back the era of the radio.
- Because Salman sheds too much tears. His character Laxman Bist cries at the drop of a hat. And now the distributors are crying.
Continue Reading