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Empire Magazine has done it, Roger Ebert published his. iRohit is now doing it. Yup, following is the list of the most memorable movies of this decade. Only twist being this is exclusively a bollywood list.

This list consists of the movies that I have enjoyed over the last 10 years. These are the movies that remain with me after I have left the theatre. These have great characters, great stories, great lines, great lyrics, great music. It is complied by sheer power of recollection, and hence in essence are the movies of the decade for me.

1. Lage Raho Munnabhai [2006] This is what I would describe as a flawless movies. It was funny, serious, inspirational, all and all total paisa vasool film. In my opinion this is the best movie released in my lifetime.

2. Rang De Basanti [2006] An intense movie, great parallel narrative. One documenting the youth of the past and one echoing the youth of today, using great camera work and great casting. Superp music, great acting.

3. Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi [2003] Another intense cinema, I for one could not believe that bollywood could make such a movie. Splendid music and lyrics and truly great casting, with a screenplay that explores characters to the core. Set against the backdrop of the Naxalite movement, this is a story of passion, beliefs, spirit.

4. Dil Chahta Hai [2001] First and still one of the best movies to capture the young india and its multicultural identity, adaptability. Most thoughtful use of a foreign location so far.

5. Mr. and Mrs. Iyer [2002] This movie was a breath of fresh air in a industry that is dominated with happy, pretty people doing song and dance, falling in love and living happily ever after. Set against a backdrop of riots and curfews, this movie presents a tale of how two characters from diametrically opposite cultures come together and help and care for each other.

6. Lagaan [2001] A very rare period film, which went to Oscars. Tale of people from varied backgrounds coming together contrary to the norms of the Indian society to fight and eventually triumph against oppression. Well, that’s Lagaan for you. Amazing sets, music by A R Rahman, Aamir in the lead, directed by a new comer Ashutosh Gowariker.

7. Omkara [2006] An adaptation of Othello by an Indian. That’s something never heard of in India. Vishal Bhardwaj masterfully brought the epic Shakespearean tragedy to the Indian cinema draped in indian colors. Set up in rural northern india, splendid performance by Saif, Vivek, Kareena and Ajay managed to pull off this tale of love, jealously and deceit.

8. Wake Up Sid [2009] 2009s best movie. Careless, rich boy finds love in a friend and career in what he loves. Simple story, but portrayed in a super charming way by Ranbir and his most unlikely belle Konkana Sen. Movie was all about the characters and how the Ranbir and Konkana played them.

9. Jhankar Beats [2003] A very diverse cast comes together to make a movie which centers around a music competition. Great story, good laughs, good music, great performances. A very enjoyable film.

10. Taare Zameen Par [2007] 4th Aamir starrer movie in my top 10. But so unlike all the others he has done. This is a story of a dreamy boy and his life around his family, friends, teachers. Sensitive, warm movie with great music, one of the best hindi song ever written, maa,

So there you have it folks. My top ten bollywood movies of the decade. Though I loved many more, since Top 10 just means just 10, not all could be a part of it. Nonetheless, these 10 are the undisputed movies of the decade. I have to mention a few others that could not be a part of this but were very close. Swades, surprisingly the only SRK movie I liked. Rock On, a more trendy movie about friends and music. Khosla ka Ghosla, movie that captured the soul of Delhi. No Amitabh movie in my top 10 which i realised after making the list. And the very recent 3 idiots.

So there it is. Tell me what you think I missed, or overrated.

Ciao!

Well, of course it’s easy to choose one (hopefully) after you seen the movies, but are you willing to stick your neck out for either, today? Well, I, for once am willing to go with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, for the sole reason of his past track record. He has made 4 movies - Black, Devdas, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Khamoshi. I have enjoyed all of them, with Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, and Devdas being my favorites. Infact Devdas, is one of the handful Shahrukh Khan(SRK) movies that I actually like. Earlier Sanjay was involved in the screen-writing for 1942: A Love Story too. Another beautiful movie. So basically, an almost 100% track record.

The things about his movies that I love are the vivid imagery of his settings, locales, the music, the color, lively vibe that it permeates on the silver screen. Even though Devdas is a tragedy, the colorful sets made it so breathtakingly spectacular, a visual delight…

Not many people I know liked Devdas, they said it was overdone, SRK over acted, so did Jackie and Aishwarya was there only for her dances… but I loved it. I had never seen any of the earlier takes one the novel by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. The songs and dances, the big houses, the rich, colorful costumes, drapes all around, the traditions, the characters, this was Bollywood at its mesmerising best. And the famous quote, “Gaonwalon ne kaha gaon chhod do, Bauji ne kaha Paro chhod do, Paro ne kaha sharab chhod do, Ma ne kaha ghar chhod do. Ek din woh kahega (pointing heavenwards) duniya chhod do” summarized the despair of the lead character… Of course, the original story has to be given its due credit, but one also has to give it to Sanjay too.

I like Sanjay’s movie making style. He tells stories using the full spectrum of human emotions… from the outrageous, Salman to the serious and introvert Ajay in HDDCS, the quirky, Jackie, the hopeful and charming Madhuri, and the tragic SRK in Devdas, the unconventional in Amitabh and Rani in Black and the real Nana Patekar in Khamoshi… His sets are huge, elaborate and brilliant. He goes all the way! So I expect another delightful work from him in Saawariyan. And from the promos that I have seen, it seems to be another visual treat…

Om Shanti Om, though with SRK, and teaming up once again with Farah Khan, seems to be a big budget, stylish, expensive, loud, bollywood’s ‘it’s very different‘ masala movie which boast of having everybody who is anybody doing some cameo appearance to create a buzz around the film. This movie seems to be more of a reason to have a prolonged get-together of the elite personalities in Bollywood today, than bringing a script to life on a screen. Most likely, it too will do very well at the box office.

I wish I could ask you to quantify your expectation and then your experience after watching the movie, but wouldn’t that be too easy a question Well these are my view on the two of the biggest movies coming out this Diwali… Happy viewing … and have a blast, and lots of sweets during this Diwali!!!

With Anton Ego’s thoughts at the back of my mind, “In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. Last night, I experienced something new, an extraordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source. To say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions is a gross understatement. They have rocked me to my core. In the past, I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau’s famous motto: Anyone can cook. But I realize that only now do I truly understand what he meant. Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere. It is difficult to imagine more humble origins than those of the genius now cooking at Gusteau’s, who is, in this critic’s opinion, nothing less than the finest chef in France. I will be returning to Gusteau’s soon, hungry for more.” I post my first blog on movie recommendations.

Ratatouille
A delightful movie!
The stellar scene is the one where after sampling Remy’s ratatouille, Anton is reminded of his childhood. I have a feeling this will be added to the list of most memorable movie scenes

The Simpsons Movie
A laugh riot!
The whole spider-pig act was absolutely awesome!

The transposition of Bheja Fry from the tattered menu of a sleepy Irani restaurant to your chosen multiplex is no small tale. A (French) inspired tale of an upscale Mumbai socialite bringing along a local idiot for dinner was made at a miserable budget and laughed its way to surplus profits and is still adding to the sum total through DVD sales.

Enough statistics of the movie. I was not overtly impressed by the movie on the whole; it, of course, had its moments with the protagonist Bharat Bhushan (played brilliantly by Vinay Pathak) pulling the movie away from mediocrity.

The movie, largely, talks about a typical Indian middle class citizen being constantly abused, unbeknownst to him, by a rich snobbish socialite via innumerable contorted funny situations. Which led me to think about the typical mould into which the middle class has been cast into, both in media and in society in general. The urban middle class, which by reports, has been constantly burgeoning and being empowered over the last decade is, by far, the most abused caricature or social model that is thriving out there.

Beginning the last decade, the unknown Indian, created ingeniously by Laxman, has been used as an excuse for sympathy and grit time and again by movies and media. Be it socialist movies like Main Azaad Hoon or the media reporting on tragedies, the common man has been the showcased as the model of identity for his only attribute: being common. Till the late nineties, politicos and media used the tag to narrate heart pulling incidences and swell the pride of the common man.

The scenario changed early this century with the boom in disposable income that broadened the spectrum inhabited by the middle class and saw them making their way to malls and multiplexes enjoying their popcorns and plastic money. Again, the media kicked in singing hosannas about the common man and the power he now holds to change the destiny of the country. It is painful to realize how such marketing gimmicks seem to influence sane people into getting classified as the “common” man. If anything, I hate the tag and though I, by broad classification, fall into that category, I would refuse to called “common” by anyone.

The common man, if such a myth exists, is that individual who wants to up himself into the upper crust by munching the Big Mac, forming the bee hive on weekends at your neighbourhood mall and sporting the latest smart phone gadget in the hopes that he be recognized differently. Sadly, however, the common man remains common.. all alone in ever broadening spectrum…

Sometimes.. probably ignorance is bliss..

Get ready for some of the biggest, most anticipated sequels in 2007. They are everywhere. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End”, “Shrek the Third”, “Live Free or Die Hard”, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.”, Oceans 13 and the one I am looking forward to the most… (drumrolls) Spiderman 3.
What a line up! Off this list, four are the biggest movies ever. And all 4 have had sequels before. And all of these have not disappointed. So what can we expect this time around? I have seen the trailers and they look pretty interesting. I personally think Spiderman 3 and the POTC: At World’s End would do well, but I won’t be surprised if all do well at the box office. But what is interesting is how the critics will receive them. Not that I care a lot about it, but I find it interesting to see the movies from their perspective. They look for so much in a movie. Sometime I wonder whether they miss the most important part, which is to just relax and enjoy!
I am rooting for Spidey 3. Spidey 2 just was so brilliant. I really liked the way the story revolved around the human emotions in Spidey 2 rather than bigger and outrageous FX, like in most sequels.
Ciao!