Taj Mahal
Yesterday my movie-buddy and I watched "Taj Mahal" at the local multiplex. Since I don't have access to the Indian satellite channels, I am no longer bombarded with trailers and songs from movies before they are released. This means everything is fresh and new. I don't know how much "Taj Mahal" was hyped in India ...... from what I could see, the actors were not big stars and yahoo mail did not show me any ads .... so I went in without expecting much at all. Just a few hours with Indian visuals for my eyes and Hindi in my ears. I was pleasantly surprised by the movie. The story held my interest throughout (although my mind did wander during the songs). Its true that I am a sucker for historical tales :) The costumes and sets were beautiful. I was able to connect the Agra Fort in the movie with my memories of the real structure and that was just awesome. I remember how I felt walking accross the cool floors of the fort ...... like the silence was just about to burst with voices and sounds from the past. I imagined the royal women ..... in happy times and in sad. Watching this movie brought all those memories back.
There is something very relaxed about the pace of this movie. Kim Sharma annoyed me somewhat but the others were very convincing. Pooja Batra and Zulfi Syed (Sigh! :D) in particular were the highlights of the film. I have seen Zulfi on screen before and didn't think much of him ........ this role changed all that. Sort of like Ajay Devgan after Booth. Kabir Bedi, Manisha Koirala, Milind Gunaji, Arbaaz Khan ..... good performances all around.
Still, I must nitpick here ...... I wonder if its possible to make a visually captivating, opulent film about a bygone era without over romanticizing the characters. This movie is able to do that to some extant ..... with Aurangzeb for example ..... but Khurram and Arjumand seem so perfect. Even when they are not perfect (Like when Khurram slaps his lover), the scene still has an ethereal quality about it. I found that a little jarring. All those pigeons in Khurrams room - how did he deal with the pigeon crap ?
There is something very relaxed about the pace of this movie. Kim Sharma annoyed me somewhat but the others were very convincing. Pooja Batra and Zulfi Syed (Sigh! :D) in particular were the highlights of the film. I have seen Zulfi on screen before and didn't think much of him ........ this role changed all that. Sort of like Ajay Devgan after Booth. Kabir Bedi, Manisha Koirala, Milind Gunaji, Arbaaz Khan ..... good performances all around.
Still, I must nitpick here ...... I wonder if its possible to make a visually captivating, opulent film about a bygone era without over romanticizing the characters. This movie is able to do that to some extant ..... with Aurangzeb for example ..... but Khurram and Arjumand seem so perfect. Even when they are not perfect (Like when Khurram slaps his lover), the scene still has an ethereal quality about it. I found that a little jarring. All those pigeons in Khurrams room - how did he deal with the pigeon crap ?