My Thoughts on Santoshi’s Halla Bol

For someone who has been a keen follower of the Jessica Lal murder trial, right from its revival to the final verdict; a film like Halla Bol is an utter disappointment, something I am sure Sabrina Lal wouldn’t be proud off.

I see it as nothing but a waste - a waste of an opportunity - a powerful storyline which not only dealt with the “all that glitters isn’t gold” reality of the Hindi Film Industry but also jerked us with the inadequacies of the society we live in. Instead we were presented with an immature script, cliched dialogues (at times even ridiculous) and above all an in-competent direction.

And unfortunately the fault here lies with no one but Mr. Raj Kumar Santoshi himself. Seriously what was he thinking!

The film kicked-off heavily inspired by Madhur Bhandakar’s Page 3 but somewhere in the middle, it seems the director decided to switch back to old school of film-making (maybe a deliberate move, in order to maintain the film’s commercial viability); scenes from Santoshi’s previous flicks like Damini and Ghayal are so in your face that it’s difficult to shrug the eeriness off.

The final result, meaning Halla Bol comes across as mix-bread film - cross between reality and a masala film. A dangerous mix because only a handful have been successful at it, example Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra with Rang De Bansanti. And after this miserable attempt, it wouldn’t be wrong to say Raj Kumar Santoshi is definitely not one of them. Maybe, just maybe had it been released in early 1990s, Halla Bol would have been greeted with some appreciation.

As for others involved - Vidya Balan is time-pass. Pankaj Kapur is sheer delight; one can’t help but wonder how he manages to lift even a half-baked character to such brilliance. As for our leading man, Ajay Devgan, you can’t ignore his sincerity even though half way through the film I couldn’t get myself to see beyond his (very) thin waist-line. No really! I want to know what he is NOT having that I am. And talking of waist-line, super-young-veteran-actor Anil Kapoor also happened to be at the same cinema hall and by God’s kasam, his waist can give even the likes of Shettys and Chopras an inferiority complex.

But more than his sexy waist, what impressed me further was his selection of movie buddies – a couple of college-going boys, a well-known model and one (very cute) gay couple. Now don’t we all wish our dad’s to be as cool as Sonam’s, hai you lucky * bitch.

* was not meant in a derogatory way.

• Bollywood, Culture, Me, Mumbai, Random Thoughts, Review, Women
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