BEST HINDI FILMS 2009 FOR DUMMIES

Hindi cinema is such a vast universe that coming up with a hot list for 2009 seemed daunting (it would be even harder to come up with a "Films of the Decade" list, but we still have a couple of months to write that one).

We decided to concentrate on films that we believe would appeal to an international audience. If we were Hindi film "pushers", what would we show uninitiated and non-Indian friends in order to convert them? 

Here is the Hindi Cinema Blog's international pick for Best Hindi 2009 Film Releases:

Quick Gun Murugun: Be it as the first or last course of a filmi meal, 'Quick Gun Murugun' is a delicious satyre of everything a Hindi film virgin imagines Indian films are. Forget the difference between North Indian and South Indian films. The foreign common viewpoint is that Indian cinema is a mix of colours and dance, sprinkled with improbable script turns, action, love stories and a cheesy dialogue here and there. Well... 'Quick Gun Murugun' blends all these prejudices in a shaker and serves them as a clever and quirky cocktail, ensuring surefire entertainment for everyone: Hindi film buffs, Tamil film buffs and complete foreigners to the whole Indian film scene in general. Now that calls for one Masala Dosa with sambhar, I say!

Kurbaan: Do you want a full-fledged Hindi film experience? Despite a couple of loopholes here and there, particularly in the New York scenes, our vote goes to 'Kurbaan' for the beautiful visuals, performances, fabulous soundtrack, plot and climax. We believe it is one of the most honest attempts in mainstream Indian cinema to treat the delicate subject of terrorism and can definitely be considered international class entertainment.

3 Idiots: The year was marked by the undisputable victory at the box office of Rajkumar Hirani's '3 Idiots', which will undoubtedly continue collecting praise well after 2009 is gone and forgotten. Pulsating rhythm, optimism and a humanistic core give this film a high feel-good and entertainment quotient. There is something in it for everyone, whether it is great laughs or soul touching moments. Don't miss it. 

Kaminey: A two-hour ride of unpredictable violence and stirring action, featuring Shahid Kapoor in an extremely convincing double role and Priyanka Chopra looking (praise the lord) as the girl next door and thus finally allowing viewers to concentrate on her acting instead of her looks. Kaminey is what we can call "thinking cinema", with each minute sincerely serving its purpose. Add to that a magnificent soundtrack and... Dhan te nan! You've got hot film material.

Firaaq: Nandita Das paints a disturbing and thought-provoking canvas in 'Firaaq', giving us a fictionalized account based on the Gujarat riots (2002) between Hindus and Muslims. Marvellously well cast, the story entwines the lives of 6 normal people who are affected by the communal violence taking place around them. No rose-coloured glasses are used in this story, despite all the escapism preconceptions that are spread about Hindi films among foreign viewers. A must watch. 

Wake up Sid!: 2009 is the year that had us going back to school with '3 Idiots' and Dharma production's fresh, lively and youthful 'Wake Up Sid!'. Where other movies have failed to bring Ranbir Kapoor's full talent to the fore, this lighthearted film particularly succeeds. Is it the fact that they have cast him alongside a consistently excellent Konkona Sen Sharma? Is it the script? Who knows... but it works! Check out its soundtrack and the final hug scene (sorry guys, couldn't help it). You will come out of the cinema experience smiling, as if you had just received a big hug yourself.

Hopefully, this new year will bring plenty of amazing films, making more and more people abroad realize the international entertainment potential of Hindi films. Now that we have revealed our personal favorites, let us mention some of the films that made it to the 2009 runners-up list. Just in case your friends become as addicted to Hindi cinema as you are and are willing to take their experience a step further:

Luck by Chance (dir. by Zoya Akhtar, starring Farhan Akhtar and Konkona Sen Sharma) Insightful movie about the film industry in India. Mindblowing soundtrack.

Barah Aana (dir. by Raja Menon, starring Naseeruddin Shah, Vijay Raaz and Arjun Mathur) An unconvential view on the reasons behind organized kidnappings.

Videsh (Heaven on Earth): (dir. by Deepa Mehta, starring Preity Zinta) A beautiful Indian bride moves with her husband's family to Canada. She finds her inner self  and her strength when she is confronted to domestic violence and her new family's hostility.

Little Zizou (English language film by Indian film maker Mira Nair) A sweet and fun tale about a Parsi little boy who dreams of meeting football star Zidane.

KAMINEY

Kaminey, Vishal Bhardwaj’s newest venture, has left critics and audience expressing anything but indifference. This month, Pushker Awasthi, our Indian collaborator ever since Cinema Hindi’s inception, writes about his experience watching Kaminey on the silver screen. Thank you so much, Pushker for your contribution. Here is hoping we will have the pleasure of reading you more often.

Kaminey. After having been at loss of words I can simply express how much I loved it… It reflects a new type of cinema being made in India and, despite the fact that it does reflect Quentin Tarantino’s influence, its content is purely Indian as it presents a well executed Bollywood Masala. It is Vishal Bhardwaj’s first commercial movie and offers a brilliant direction, writing, acting, background score and photography to his audience.

With the release of Kaminey, Vishal Bhardwaj has proved to all that he is a cinema genius and that a good director will always be good, regardless of the kind of story that he wishes to unfold before his viewers. Vishal’s previous work consisted of serious films featuring realistic people and situations. He unhurriedly dissected and explored the darkness of the human mind and soul without ever succumbing to the temptation of becoming apologetic.

However, let us go back to Kaminey.

Kaminey might dissapoint some of Bhardwaj’s followers if they compare this film to the others he had directed so far. However, one must not forget that he has remained true to his essence with the slight difference of wholeheartedly embracing the Bollywood Masala genre. Kaminey is an all out masala film that strangely does not require the moviegoer to leave his brain at the theatre entrance, which is usually what the audience must do before it starts enjoying a regular Bollywood film. Vishal has definitely opened up a space for Quentin Tarantino in Indian cinema in the same way he saddled Shakespeare firmly into Indian soil. To his credit, he never copied him, as Sanjay Gupta did with Kaante based on Reservoir Of Dogs. No. He has made Tarantino’s influence his own.

It is fascinating to live every moment of the film and indulge in it. Kaminey breaks every rule as far Hindi Masala films are concerned and let me tell you how:

First of all, Masala cinema has a cardinal rule that says that if you have twin brothers, or even simply two brothers, one of them must be a good guy and the other must be a terribly bad guy. During the climax, the bad guy ends up paying for his sins and making a sacrifice. Kaminey displays another take on brotherhood. Guddu and Charlie are different. Neither of them is perfect, neither physically nor emotionally. Guddu is embarrassed about his stammering while Charlie has a pronunciation problem but never feels bad about it. Guddu is a good but weak man, almost ready to crawl under the circumstances but nevertheless having a gentle soul. Charlie has tasted life as it is and knows how to wriggle out of problems and never ever feels self conscious about lisping.

Another of Kaminey’s novelties is that it changes the type of language used by the story’s characters to communicate with each other. The Bengali Brothers, for whom Charlie works, communicate purely in Bengali without ever translating their conversation in Hindi or English. This is not customary in Hindi cinema, which tends to make the characters translate whatever is spoken in foreign or regional languages into Hindi, for the audience’s sake.

Moreover, Kaminey’s photography is extremely enthralling, making the audience jump! Even the background is so powerful that it sucks the spectator in with every single movie frame.

Last but not least, a special mention goes to the song 'Duniya Mein', in which Vishal gives tribute to legendary music director and genius, the late R D Burman. Never, at any point in time, is the audience left remembering that song pictured on Rajesh Khanna (in the film Apna Desh), as Bhardwaj greatly succeeds in attaching the same song to to the screen presence of the film’s main character, Shahid Kapoor.

TEXT BY: Pushker Awasthi

EDITING: Aline CineHindi