Totally Filmi

Totally Filmi Episode 016 - A Tribute to Raj Kapoor

Episode 016 - A Tribute to Raj Kapoor (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 1:29:49 [h:mm:ss] - size: 123.4 MB)

Shownotes:

Once again for December 1st, the boys over at the Canadian Podcast Buffet invited Canadian podcasters to dust off their microphones, record an episode, and, well, just generally come on out to the barn and put on a show.

The podcast side of Totally Filmi, unlike the blog, has again been languishing a bit as I deal with a very busy workload, but I couldn't resist the invitation.

I've had a number of interesting bits of audio lying around that I've been meaning to do something with, including the one that I'm sharing in this episode:  a tribute evening devoted to the legendary showman of Indian cinema:  actor, producer, and director Raj Kapoor.

(And a huge thank you to Bob Goyetche and Mark Blevis for giving us all a huge kick in the tush to go out and get an episode done!)

Totally Filmi Episode 015 - World AIDS Day 2010

Episode 015 - World AIDS Day 2010 (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 11:25 [mm:ss] - size: 15.8 MB)

Shownotes:

This December 1st, the boys over at the Canadian Podcast Buffet invited Canadian podcasters to dust off their microphones, record an episode, and, well, just generally come on out to the barn and put on a show.

The podcast side of Totally Filmi, like the blog, has been languishing a bit as I deal with a very busy workload, but I couldn't resist the invitation.

However, December 1st is also World Aids Day, and I decided that I wanted to do something today to mark that.  So -- today -- an episode devoted to the Aids Jaago project.  Four films, from four distinguished directors:  Mira Nair, Farhan Akhtar, Vishal Bhardwaj, and Santosh Sivan.

You can watch three of the films at Jaman, and you can find the Vishal Bhardwaj film "Blood Brothers" here.

And as the song "Fatak" says:  "Lock your doors, get rid of this villain."

 

 (And a huge thank you to Bob Goyetche and Mark Blevis for giving us all a huge kick in the tush to go out and get an episode done!)

---

 

Attributions:

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

 

Totally Filmi Episode 014 - Do You Wanna Partner? Shola Aur Shabnam and Aankhen

Episode 014 - Do You Wanna Partner? Shola Aur Shabnam and Aankhen (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 09:44 [mm:ss] - size: 13.5 MB)

Shownotes:

Yes, the podcast is back!  Govinda Week was the perfect opportunity to try and revive it, though I must admit, this episode is pretty much rubbish because I'm really out of practice doing audio stuff and need a lot more work.  Also, because I say precious little about the films, mispronounce stuff, and give some spoilers.  So here's a little value added stuff here on the blog to try to round it all out.  Warning:  spoilers in the audio, and likely spoilers here on the blog, so don't listen/read if you really haven't watched the films yet.

First up, Shola Aur Shabnam from 1992.  David Dhawan directs, and Govinda and Divya Bharati star.  Essentially, my feelings about this film are that the first half is a lot of fun, and the second half is very dark and takes a long time to get where it's going, not to mention making me a little troubled about Divya's character.  I'm not being coy, I'm just not sure what to say about the film, especially since my version has no subtitles.  But compare this first half number, with this one from the second half (which in the context of the film I find a little troubling, not to mention the fact that the poor woman is dancing barefoot on what looks like dry scrub).

And then, Aankhen from 1993, a film I have now seen four times, all without subtitles, and I am now desperate to find a copy of it with them, because I cannot believe how much this film has grown on me through four viewings of it.

Essentially, it's the story of brothers Bunnu (Govinda) and Munnu (Chunky Pandey), a couple of good-hearted ne'er-do-wells and practical jokers who are the bane of their father's (Kader Khan) existence.  The first half of the film takes rather a lot of time establishing Bunnu and Munnu's characters and following their endless hijinks, until finally they stumble across the plot of a bunch of baddies (led by Shakti Kapoor, who I actually might not mind in this negative role if it were not for too many shots of him wandering around shirtless in leather bondage outfits, and I will spare you any screencaps of that) to substitute a look-alike for a Chief Minister for nefarious purposes the subtleties of which escape me due to lack of subtitles.

Bunnu and Munnu spend a lot of time in the first half getting up to hijinks in identical outfits:

We're a couple of swells...

We stop at the best hotels...

In June, July, and August, we look cute when we dress in shorts!  (Not to mention, kinda hot when we wear navy shirts and pants):

 
(Rowrrr)

Did I mention the monkey?  The monkey plays a key role in all their hijinks, not to mention the film's ending, and he's always dressed like them, too:

(Spot the monkey) 

(Awww...is that not a face only a masala film-maker could love?)

I have to say, Govinda just shines in this film, and poor Chunky, well -- he does an admirable job keeping up with him, but the second half of the film just belongs to Govinda, probably right from the moment he's captured by the gang and tortured:

(Yes, yes, that is wet Govinda.) 

And most especially when he turns up as his second avatar, Gauri Shankar:

...and then just rips through the rest of the film in a terrific dual performance:


 

(Okay, yes, even more wet Govinda.  I take back what I said.)

Any wonder why this was the biggest hit of 1993?  No longer any doubt in my mind, at all.

---

Attributions:

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 013 - Do You Wanna Partner? Swarg

Episode 013 - Do You Wanna Partner? Swarg (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 14:50 [mm:ss] - size: 20.4 MB)

Shownotes:

In this episode, I continue the journey through the David Dhawan/Govinda filmography with a look at Swarg.

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Attributions:

Hadiqa
"yaad Sajan" (mp3)
from "Rung"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Amazon MP3
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 012 - Do You Wanna Partner? Taaqatwar

Episode 012 - Do You Wanna Partner? Taaqatwar (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 13:00 [mm:ss] - size: 17.8 MB)

Shownotes:

It's been twenty years since director David Dhawan and actor Govinda made their first film together -- and since then, they've come together a total of 17 times -- and their 18th film, Do Knot Disturb (also starring Riteish Deshmukh, Lara Dutta and Sushmita Sen) will be released on October 2nd.

Regular blog readers/podcast listeners know that I have a massive crush on Govinda, but I also have a soft spot for David Dhawan's films.  So in preparation for the release of Do Knot Disturb, I've been revisiting the films they've made together over the last twenty years.  No in depth analysis here -- though I am planning on looking at the films in greater depth in the future -- but just some thoughts from a fan.

In this episode, I look at the first film, 1989's Taaqatwar (starring Govinda, of course, but also Sanjay Dutt, Neelam, Anita Raj, Shakti Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Anupam Kher, Tanuja, Anil Dhawan and Gulshan Grover, and with music by Anu Malik)

And one of my favorite Govinda/Neelam moments, "Chadgayi Chadgayi":

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Attributions:

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 011 - Do Knot Disturb (Music Edition)

Episode 011 - Do Knot Disturb (Music Edition) (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 52:05 [mm:ss] - size: 71.6 MB)

Shownotes:

So, I listen to the Do Knot Disturb soundtrack.  And I think, "Hey, maybe I should do a quick episode, play a game of "what if?", and speculate on the connections between the songs and the film.

A week later?  The episode is almost an hour long, and features a discussion with a good friend and someone more expert than me in the ways of music.  I say "discussion", because if there's one thing I'm not, it's an interviewer, so John Meadows and I rambled over a lot of ground (well, I rambled, and John illuminated me) before the lightbulb finally went off for me.  I'm grateful for his knowledge.  Mostly I'm grateful for his patience.

However, I can state, unequivocally, that after setting the soundtrack aside for a bit, and coming back to it with fresh ears and fewer expectations -- I actually *really* love the song "Mere Naal" now.  Seriously. I know I said that I thought "Bebo" was my favourite, but nope, "Mere Naal" has displaced it.

If this actually whets your interest in buying the CD, it's available from both Nehaflix and Induna.

The soundtrack is also available on iTunes, where you can purchase the whole thing, or individual tracks.

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Attributions:

Malkit Singh
"Mere Naal Mere Naal Nach Kurriyie" (mp3)
from "Put Sardaran De"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Puretracks
Buy at Amazon MP3
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 010 - Love Love Love Love Love Aaj Kal

Episode 010 - Love Love Love Love Love Aaj Kal (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 34:15 [mm:ss] - size: 47.1 MB)

Shownotes:

WARNING:  This episode contains spoilers.

In this episode, I look at the Imtiaz Ali directed film "Love Aaj Kal" ("Love Now and Then"), starring Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Rishi Kapoor, and Giselle Monteiro.

This is an episode that leaves me somewhat troubled, questioning my own thought processes.  Which, you know, is not a comfortable feeling; yet, probably not such a bad thing in the end either, because how else do we learn and grow except by exploring those things that leave us feeling uncomfortable or lacking in skills.

I do want to refer you to three reviews that have made me think rather a lot lately -- both before writing the episode (in the case of the first one), and after writing it (in the case of the two others).

First, that review from Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN.  I know I took Masand to task a little bit in this episode, but after thinking about it, I'm wondering about some of his criticisms.  I've been reading Robert McKee's most excellent book, "Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting" (New York:  HarperCollins, 1997), and thinking even more.  It's too early to have any sensible thoughts on this yet, but Masand's review makes me want to revisit the film at some point once I've digested what McKee has to say.

Secondly, Aspi of Aspi's Drift asks an interesting question regarding "Love Aaj Kal":  Can a Movie Coast on Hipness?  Again, it's not a question I can answer without seeing the film again.  And I think I won't be able to really answer it right away either -- I think it's a question that makes you wonder whether the film is just too hip to be timeless or memorable, something I think Rajeev Masand was trying to get at as well in his review.  But again, I think it's absolutely something worth thinking about further. 

Finally, Beth of Beth Loves Bollywood has a very balanced view of the film, I think.  She doesn't entirely like it; nor does she entirely dislike it, either, but she presents a balanced discussion.  I was delighted to find she'd also picked up on the professions of the various characters -- though I missed out on Veer entirely, and ultimately, I think her take might be more satisfying on the whole than mine is.  We disagree regarding Deepika -- in fact, I think I may be entirely alone in my feeling that Deepika showed improvement in this film -- however, we both agree on the absolutely splendid cameo (yes, I spoil it for you in the podcast, but I do warn you when the time comes) courtesy director Imtiaz Ali.

Now, as to that question:  did we all see the same film?  As I indicated in a previous post here on the blog, no, we didn't.  We each brought different experiences and expectations to the film, and we each got something different out of it. 

If I'm honest, I was, after four absolute duds, ready for a good film.  Too ready, perhaps.  I may have been just so relieved that "Love Aaj Kal" lived up in some way to the hype that came before it, in a way that no other film had done in the previous month.  I was, honestly, rather worried about Deepika Padukone, so maybe I grasped at any small improvement and made more out of it.

Or maybe not.  But who can know, really?  I am old fashioned and I love a love story, so perhaps I got exactly what I needed from this film.  And now that I've got all the love for "Love Aaj Kal" out of my system, I'll be able to watch it a second time and see what Rajeev Masand or Aspi or Beth saw, too.

The Scarborough Dude responds in Episode 209 of the DicksnJanes Podcast , in his own wise, elder-statesman way, to Julien Smith's blog post about long distance relationships.

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Attributions:

Abrar - Ul - Haq
"Cycle" (mp3)
from "Bay Ja Cycle Tay"
(OSA)

Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
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More On This Album

Naseebo Lal
"Kadi Te Has Bol" (mp3)
from "Kadi Te Has Bol"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Puretracks
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Loud thunderclap" recorded by Pingel and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 009 - No Shortcuts

Episode 009 - No Shortcuts (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 28:30 [mm:ss] - size: 39.2 MB)

Shownotes:

WARNING:  This episode contains spoilers and a couple of bits of language that are NSFW/NSFK.  No, I won't make a habit of it, but I think it was warranted, in this case.

And a couple of funny things happened in the ten days since I recorded this episode:  first, I did manage to rent a copy of the Steve Martin/Eddie Murphy starrer "Bowfinger" -- and it is a good film.  So good, in fact, that I'll be buying my own copy for our collection.  As for what it inspired in either of today's films, well, not a lot -- oh, well, I can imagine Sreenivasan wondering how to finish up his own movie, and watching "Bowfinger", and thinking, "My climax!  I've got my climax!" much as his character Udayan does, but beyond that?  Not much.

Nor does "ShortKut: the Con is On" share much with "Bowfinger", either, beyond that tag line.

Now, the second thing:  I flipped on the television last Sunday to find the film "Phir Hera Pheri" on OMNI2's Bollywood Freetime Cinema.  The thing that struck me?  It was directed by Neeraj Vora, who also directed "ShortKut".

And had I seen that film before going to the cinema to see ShortKut, I would have realized two things:  Neeraj Vora makes noisy films full of caricatures, and I am probably not in the target market for a Neeraj Vora directed film.

Okay, so time for a little bit of "compare and contrast".  Two videos.  The first, "Penne en Penne" is from the Malayalam film "Udayananu Thaaram", and features Sreenivasan and Meena.  The premise is that they're filming a picturisation from that fateful first film they're working on together, and captures a lot of what's going on in the film, from Rajappan's inability to dance, his awful costumes, and his sessions with his acting guru, all while poor Udayan is working hard, not realizing his film has already been stolen out from under him:

And the equivalent moment in "ShortKut", the song "Kyun Hota Hai Dil Deewana":

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Attributions:

Adnan Sami Khan
"Lift Kara De" (mp3)
from "Kabhi To Nazar Milao/Bheegi Bheegi raton Mein"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
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More On This Album

Hadiqa
"Dupatta" (mp3)
from "Roshni"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
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More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Cartoony sound from stretched steel wire" recorded by bahgheera and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Cartoon style whoosh sound" recorded by man and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Cartoon headshake" recorded by Cartoonguy11 and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Sad trombone sound" recorded by Benboncan and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 008 - East Coast/West Coast

Episode 008 - East Coast/West Coast (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 11:40 [mm:ss] - size: 16.0 MB)

Shownotes:

The Hindi film producer/distributor strike is finally over, and the films begin to stream into the cinemas.  The first two films released here were "New York" and "Kambakkht Ishq", and we went to see both to celebrate.

Both films have their good points; both have flaws.  Today's episode just skims the surface of both -- time will tell if my opinion of either will change, for better, or (more likely, I suspect) for worse.  It's probably damning "Kambakkht Ishq" with faint praise by saying it was better than CC2C -- not hard to do, alas, but probably the best I could offer in a film where the best bits (and there are some very choice best bits) were marred by cringe-worthy moments of true vulgarity and misogyny.  Okay, it has to be argued that some level of vulgarity and misogyny was necessary to establish Akshay Kumar's character -- who is, when we first meet him, well, vulgar and misogynistic.  But it might also be argued that the film went a little too far.

I doubt either of these films will end up breaking into my top ten films of 2009, but so much will depend on the rest of this year's releases.  The trailers promise much, but the films may fail to deliver.  Time, and cinema-going, will tell.

---

Attributions:

Panoramic Utopia - DJ Drez & Zaire Black
"Sah Jahta" (mp3)
from "DJ Drez & Zaire Black Are - Panoramic Utopia"
(Say It Loud Music)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Puretracks
More On This Album

"Hallelujah chorus - Messiah" performed by: Oratorio Chorus; Composed by: G.F. Handel - public domain recording from the Internet Archive

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 007 - The Heart Is Canadian

Episode 007 - The Heart Is Canadian (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 16:65 [mm:ss] - size: 22.8 MB)

Shownotes:

Today, a Canada Day episode, inspired by the Six String Nation project, via the film "Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani".

Links:

Six String Nation

"Letter from British Columbia:  The Golden Bough" by John Vaillant (author of "The Golden Spruce")

Baba's Beach podcast

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Attributions:

"Someday Soon" by Great Big Sea from Podsafe Music Network a.k.a. Music Alley from Mevio

Jay Moonah of the Media Driving podcast "noodling" on Voyageur, the Six String Nation guitar, recorded at Podcasters Across Borders 2009 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada and generously shared with me by Daniele Rossi of the Stuttering Is Cool podcast.

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 006 - Riding With The King - Part 1

Episode 006 - Riding With The King - Part 1 (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 16:45 [mm:ss] - size: 23.0 MB)

Shownotes:

In January of 2009, Newsweek magazine included Shahrukh Khan as one of 50 people on its list of the Global Elite, the only actor to make the list.  I mean, I love him, and I know lots of Bollywood fans who do, too, but his inclusion in the list made me curious, and that got me thinking.

Which led to the start of what will be a recurring series on the podcast:  Riding With The King (of Bollywood).  I'm going to watch every one of his films (okay, there are a few I can't find yet, but I'll get to most of them) and I'm going to try to figure out at the very least how I went from someone who rather likes him to someone who won't miss a single film he's in.

Special Thanks:

This episode wouldn't be what it is without the participation of three people:

First, John Meadows of the On The Log podcast, who not only offers up moral support for the podcast on a regular basis, he also contributes enthusiastically to it, as he did for this episode.  I'm starting to think of him as Totally Filmi's MacGyver, the guy who, when I need something a little different, is prepared to MacGyver it.

Bruce Murray of The Zedcast and The Running Shoe podcast.  Think of him as the SRK of the podcasting world.  I am honoured he agreed to be part of this episode.

Finally, my Tech Guy.  He never speaks, he never takes off his helmet, but the podcast wouldn't be what it is without him.  Think of him as the Stig. 

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Attributions:

Manjit Rupowalia
"Akh Mastani" (mp3)
from "Loud 'N Proud"
(Saint Records UK)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
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"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Walking on small pebbles" recorded by hazure and uploaded to The Freesound Project

"Shop-door, with bell, open/close" recorded by shall555 and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music, RWTK series bumper and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

References:

"King of Bollywood: Shah Rukh Khan and the Seductive World of Indian Cinema" by Anupama Chopra (New York:  Warner Books, 2007.  ISBN:  978-0-446-57858-5)

Totally Filmi Episode 005 - 99

Episode 005 - 99 (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 13:03 [mm:ss] - size: 17.9 MB)

Shownotes:

The tagline for the film "99" is:  "Part Fact.  Part Fiction.  Pure Fun."  And it is -- it's one of the most entertaining films we've seen in a while.  In fact, if you're reading this or listening to this episode in May, 2009, you should be running to a cinema to see this film.

 

"99" (2009) Directed by Krishna DK and Raj Nidimoru.  Written by Raj Nidimoru, Krishna DK and Sita Menon.  Music by Ashu.  Starring Kunal Khemu, Cyrus Broacha, Soha Ali Khan, Boman Irani, Mahesh Manjrekar, Vinod Khanna, Amit Mistry and Simone Singh.

(Seriously, did I not say you should run to see this film?  You should...)

---

Attributions:

Soundtrack for the movie "99" on iTunes Music Store  (I'd like a copy of the CD, myself, but it's NOT available through my usual source for CDs and DVDs.  What's up with that?  It's a terrific soundtrack, and I'm grateful I found it on iTunes, but really, I'm old-fashioned, yaar.)

Interval music:

Pardesi
"Pardesi Pind Wich Ageya" (mp3)
from "Pump Up The Bhangra"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
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Radio promo clips are from the media kit at 99 - The Official Website.

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 004 - Luck By Chance

Episode 004 - Luck By Chance (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 11:10 [mm:ss] - size: 15.3 MB)

Shownotes:

In this episode, an insider's look at the Hindi film industry with Zoya Akhtar's directorial debut, "Luck by Chance".  And although I mentioned that she's the daughter of famed dialogue writer Javed Akhtar, I failed to note that Javed Akhtar penned the dialogues and song lyrics for this film, so it's no surprise they are as sharp as the story itself.

 

The songs in "Luck By Chance" integrate seamlessly into the plot, since they're all from the film that Romy Rolly is producing.  One of the film's particularly visually stunning moments is this number, "Bawaare", performed by Hrithik Roshan:

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Attributions:

1001 Ways
"Dream Come True" (mp3)
from "Gandhi"
(1001 Ways Productions)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Puretracks
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 003 - Cupid, Stupid

Episode 003 - Cupid, Stupid (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 17:05 [mm:ss] - size: 23.4 MB)

Shownotes:

Today, Bollywood meets Hollywood in the first of what I'm hoping to turn into a series of episodes comparing films and their remakes.  In this episode, find out what happens when the Hollywood film "Hitch" is remade as "Partner".

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Additional Information and Links:

As I mentioned in the episode, the brief dance scene in "Hitch" becomes the full blown "Soni de nakhre" in "Partner":

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Attributions:

"Asereje" by Abdel (from Jamendo)

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 002 - Aaja Nachle

Episode 002 - Aaja Nachle (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 14:55 [mm:ss] - size: 20.5 MB)

Shownotes:

I was asked my opinion of the 2007 film "Aaja Nachle" ("Come, let's dance") directed by Anil Mehta, starring Madhuri Dixit, with Konkona Sen Sharma, Kunal Kapoor, Akshaye Khanna, Ranvir Shorey, Divya Dutta, Ragubhir Yadav, Vinay Pathak, Irrfan Khan, Akhilendra Mishra, Sushmita Mukherjee.

Music by Salim-Suleiman; Choreography by Vaibhavi Merchant

The twitter summary (ie, the plot in 140 characters):   Shamli-born, NY dancer Dia goes home, and makes deal with local MP:  she'll teach the locals to perform, he’ll stop destruction of theatre.

 

 Care for a taste of the film?  Check out the videos for my three favorite songs from the movie:  "Show me your Jalwa" (Dia's plea to the locals to come show her their talent), "Soniye Mil Ja" (which is part of the show that they finally manage to pull off, and my favorite song in the movie), and finally the title song, "Aaja Nachle", which shows Madhuri's dancing at its finest:

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Attributions:

Khalil Haider
"Dil Mein Tumhara Pyar" (mp3)
from "Tumhara Pyar"
(OSA)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 001 - "The Wheel of Life"

Episode 001 - "The Wheel of Life" (audio file format: 192 Kbps mp3 - duration: 23:35 [mm:ss] - size: 32.4 MB)

Shownotes:

In this episode, I get to see a Bollywood film on the big screen for the first time, an experience that can be summed up in one word:  "Wow!"

"Om Shanti Om" -- the "making of"

"Dhoom Taana" -- promotional clip featuring bits from the song

"Ajab Si" -- promotional clip featuring bits from the song

The Making of Deewangi (the star-studded song and dance number)

The Theatrical Trailer

And, if you've been bitten by the Bollywood bug, a good source for DVDs and movie soundtracks is Nehaflix.

Don't forget to check out Episode 63 of Valerie's excellent podcast Description:  Valerie In Toronto, as well as her other podcast, Movies for the Blind.

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Attributions:

Dippa Satrang
"Dhola Ve Dhola" (mp3)
from "Mick St Clair's "Now That's What I Call Bhangra""
(Saint Records UK)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
More On This Album

"Tablas-Very Sharp" recorded by hammerklavier and uploaded to The Freesound Project

Theme music and intro voiceover by John Meadows, host of the podcast "On The Log"

Totally Filmi Episode 000 - "Lights, Camera, Masala"

Episode 000 - "Lights, Camera, Masala" (mp3 file - duration (mm:ss): 14:40 - size: 20.1 MB)

Today's episode is likely the closest thing you'll get to a FAQ around here.  There's a bit of an introduction to the podcast, some thoughts on expectations (or lack thereof), and a little bit about your host.  Next time, less about me, and more about the movies.