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Drushyam 2 Is A Faithful Remake
Drushyam 2 (Telugu, Amazon Prime Video)
Starring Venkatesh, Meena, Nadhiya, Naresh, Kruthika, Esther Anil
Rating: ***
Drushyam 2: A diligently faithful remake of a cult film that I felt was overrated, is not quite what one needs at the moment. Nonetheless, as far as faithful remakes go, Drushyam 2 reprising in Telugu, pretty much the whole scenario, lock stock and barrel, from the original Malayalam film, is a job competently done.
Veteran Venkatesh has lately been seen in some socially relevant films, notably Narappa(also on Amazon) which was a more flexible remake of a Tamil film Asuran.
Drushyam 2 doesn’t budge an inch from the Malayalam original. Which is not a bad thing, considering the plot’s watertight alibi for a remake is its protagonist’s watertight alibi for a murder that he committed six year earlier, in the first part of the Drushyam /Drishyam franchise.
For Rambabu(Venkatesh) it is still family first.He will do anything to protect his wife and daughters from harm even if it means killing and burying a boy who harassed Rambabu’s daughter.
I have never been too fond of the plot’s Good Murderer –Bad Murderer distinction that writer Jeetu Joseph makes .The thesis of Joseph’s dubious morality gets an even thornier thrust in Part 2 with cops who are made to feel guilty for trying to trick Rambabu and his family into a confession as he gets away with murder, quite literally.
The end-game in Drushyam 2 is all about moving around the pieces on the chess board until the law enforcers are check mated. In keeping with the law-is-an-ass spirit of the original here too the investigating cop is left fuming and swearing to get Rambabu the next time.
Sampath Raj as the investigating cop is a welcome addition to the original cast in a film that adheres stubbornly to the original’s (twisted) mindbend to the extent of seeming like a blind copy. We can mute the dialogues of this Telugu version and it is interchangeable with the Malayalam original.
For me the main attraction of the unadventurous transition from the Malayalam original to Telugu is the lead performance. While Mohanlal in the Malayalam version played the reluctant killer as an inscrutable genius of sorts, Venkatesh is a more flustered guilt-ridden protagonist, a common man wondering how he got into this uncommon situation.They are both film buffs.But in the Malayalam original Mohanal seemed a fan of Mohanlal only. Vankatesh plays the secret killer with a lack of smugness.
The supporting cast is adequate though unremarkable , with a bevy of junior artistes behaving as if they are street loiterers caught behaving like a Shakespearean chorus. Finally Drushyam 2 feels like it’s too clever for its own good. Getting away with murder is all very fine. Gloating about it is something else.
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Jamuna Had A Love-Hate Relationship With Bollywood

Veteran Telugu actress Jamuna who passed away on Friday, shared an uneasy relationship with the Hindi film industry.She did eleven Hindi films including the iconic Milan in 1967 where Jamuna agreed to play the second lead, or the supporting role if you will, to Nutan.
Jamuna as Gauri was the Other Woman who craved for the hero Sunil Dutt’s attention whereas he had eyes and devotion only for Nutan. In later years Aruna Irani played a similar role in Caravan.
In Milan Jamuna was not keen to do a supporting role. Producer L V Prasad tempted her with three chartbusting songs. Besides, Jamuna had played the same role in Mooga Manasulu, the Telugu original of Milan. But it was the songs composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal which convinced Jamuna to take up the second lead in Milan.
While Nutan had no solo songs in Milan, she did have the chartbuster duet Sawan ka mahina . Jamuna on the other hand, had two splendid Lata Mangeshkar solos: Tohey saawariya naahin khabariya and the magnificent Ghazal Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin.Not only these, Jamuna also had a hit duet with Mukesh based on her character Gauri: Bol Gauri bol tera kaun piya.
But then, fate intervened. After the film released one of Jamuna’s solos, the poignant and memorable Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin was snipped out of the film.
Here is what happened: the Ghazal , one of Lataji’s all-time greats, was very much a part of Milan when it released on 17 March 1967. But then it was seen to hamper the flow of the film and edited out. The beautiful song occurred right after intermission. Producer Prasad, a shrewd filmmaker, got to know that audiences prolonged their loo breaks as there was a song after the break. Hence the sacrifice of a seriously sonorous melody.
Jamuna hardly did Hindi films after Milan. Her last Bollywood appearance was in Raj Kumar Kohli’s Raj Tilak where she was lost in a multistarrer as the royal queen.
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Karan Johar Moves Alia Song From Switzerland To Kashmir

The romantic duet in Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani which was to be shot in Switzerland and which was delayed due to the film’s leading lady Alia Bhatt’s motherhood, is now being relocated to Kashmir.
Purely out of the love for new mom Alia.
Says a source in the know, “Karan loves Alia like his own daughter. He would do anything for her. He postponed the release of Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani as the love duet could not be shot before Alia’s maternity leave. Karan had decided to shoot the song in Switzerland after Alia’s maternity love. But now he has relocated the song to Kashmir as Alia doesn’t want to leave her baby girl behind for long stretches.”
And as Karan Johar argued, snow is snow. How does it matter whether it is Switzerland or Kashmir?
This song would be Karan Johar’s tribute to his idol Yash Chopra. Alia would be dressed in chiffon sarees while Ranveer, for a change, would be seen in formals.
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Bobby Deol’s Switchover To Villainous Roles

After Prakash Jha’s webseries Ashram where Bobby played a sleazy godman, and Love Hostel where he was a ruthless assassin, he is playing the villain to Ranbir Kapoor in Sandeep Vanga’s Animal.
Bobby says it is not conscious career decision to play negative characters but a conscious decision to play interesting characters. “ I don’t look at characters as positive or negative.When I watch films there is always one character that stays with you. I want to play that character.”
Prakash Jha’s Ashram proved a gamechanger for Bobby. He admits finding challenging roles is tough. “I am trying. I am doing Sandeep Vanga’s Animal with Ranbir Kapoor , Parineeti Chopra. Then I am doing the family film Apne 2 which I am very excited about.”
In an earlier interview with this writer Bobby spoke about his long absence from screen before Prakash Jha’s Ashram. “My fans would ask why I wasn’t being seen on the screen.And I couldn’t tell them it was because I wasn’t getting good roles. But my fans stood by me. They gave me the strength to keep looking for the right roles. Thankfully I found the roles I liked. My new films have given me some new fans. I am thankful I am still here. Yeah , I am in a good space right now.”
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Pathaan Collects 55 crore nett in India On Day 1

YRF’s Pathaan has apparently wiped out all previous records as it collected 55 crore nett in India and recorded the biggest ever Day 1 for a Hindi film. The total collections of Pathaan on Day One is 57 crore nett (Hindi – 55 crore and dubbed versions 2 crore).
It is the widest Hindi release of all time in India and also the highest grossing 1st Day for a Hindi film.It is also the highest grosser on the first first for a non-holiday release. Pathhan is also the highest opener for Shah Rukh Khan.
Akshaye Widhani, CEO of Yash Raj Films, says, “It is a historic day for Indian cinema and we are humbled to see the love and appreciation that is flowing for Pathaan globally. For Pathaan to shatter records in this fashion on a non holiday, just proves that the theatrical business is here to stay, provided we make films that entice people to come to the cinemas to witness a never seen before experience that entertains them thoroughly.“
He adds, “We, at YRF, are thrilled with the start that the film has got across India and we are hopeful that Pathaan brings joy to cine-goers globally in the days to come! Pathaan is the fourth film of our YRF Spy Universe and we are thrilled that we have been able to elevate the cinematic experience of audiences with each film from this franchise. We humbly share this moment with all the stake-holders of the film who have given their blood, sweat and tears to give people a movie-going experience like never before.”
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