Vijay Krishna Acharya is considered a fine, young writer in Bollywood. I remember him for Just Mohabbat, a cute, clever and imaginatively written TV serial. The trouble with Tashan, Acharyas directorial debut, is that he lets the writer in himself go off to deep sleep. The beginnings of this somnolence may well have started with Dhoom. Acharya didnt really have a great story there but managed to tell it in a way that was fun. Tashanwell, what a great title (roughly translates as attitude) for a film, which aims to be the acme of masala genre! Sadly it doesnt live up to its name. Its bizarre, outlandish and a crashing bore; so over-smart, smug and self-indulgent that a viewer may well say, "To hell with it".
Acharya uses the Dhoom stock. Kareena in a pale green bikini reminding you of Ash and Bips. Then he garnishes the broth with Bunty Aur Babli, right down to the "Falak tak chal saath mere" song, an echo of "Chup chup ke" in B&B as well as the lovely "Bol na halke halke" in Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. The characters are a mix of B&B and Dhoomtwo Indian small-towners and a yuppie executive trying to outdo each other and a donbut the setting is wild, wild west. The soundtrack is quite nice, specially the song Chhaliya and Dildara with its catchy call-out "wo ho". But on screen they get destroyed by the weird, over-stylised choreography. The colours are kitschy, background score too loud and stunts over-the-top and so shoddily shot that you can actually make out the doubles.
Anil Kapoor as the irritating bhaiyyaji makes one of the worst villains in Hindi cinema, besides murdering the classic "Aaj khush to bahut hoge tum..." dialogue from Deewar. Kareena looks way too thin. Or perhaps we women are plain jealous because we can never reach size zero in this lifetime. Saif is his usual cool, laidback self, but gets relegated to the background. Akshay has by now become such a big star that his very entry into the film makes the audience go into a collective orgasm. And what an entry he makes here! Watch the film only for him as the 10-headed, begoggled Ravana riding the mobike. Otherwise just stay at home and listen to the songs.
Counterview:Bhaiyya'sRevenge
High Fives
1. Tashan
2. U, Me Aur Hum
3. Krazzy 4
4. Race
5. Khuda Kay Liye
Hollywood
1. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
2. The Forbidden Kingdom
3. Street Kings
4. Iron Man
5. 88 Minutes
Latino Albums
1. 95/08 (Enrique Iglesias)
2. Te Quiero (Flex)
3. Para Siempre (Vicente Fernandez)
4. Los Gabriel (Juan & Ana Gabriel)
5. La Mejor (Marco Antonio Solis)
Courtesy: Film Information
