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This is bad timing and Bad Trailer for Abhishek…
all the jale -kate , hakke- bakke , hatash SRK fans will maul the trailer and Abhi baby with vengeance……
think it’s par for the course for Abbas-Mustaan. It’s Race on steroids (only in the stunts sense)! As for the anti-Abhishek folks they’ll maul him in any case. The thing is if you want to look at it purely on the aesthetic merits Don 2 is way ahead as a slick, cool trailer with truly fine visuals. Never expected this to be otherwise! On the other hand Abbas-Mustaan never attempt more than the Fast and Furious deal. As a fan of Italian Job (though more the first version than the second and of course this will be more of the latter..) I do expect this to be significantly better than Race which had a rather absurd series of twists (enjoyable as the film was). As in the rather corny ‘go for gold’ line this film has been designed for box office gold. Let’s see how it goes. don’t think there’s anything wrong with the trailer. Do I get excited about this sort of thing? Not from Bollywood as much unless it’s well done. But in any case with Abhishek I get excited with stuff like d6 and Raavan and DMD. So I might not be in the majority evidently!
Will say this though.. two films in a somewhat similar genre are releasing two weeks apart. Players has a three week unopposed run before Agneepath/Tezz. However it could be ‘too much’ for the audience following Don 2 (irrespective of how this does). Hard to be sure about this stuff specially given Abhishek’s very shaky box office form currently. But as I said this has been designed and certainly selected by him for big numbers. That’s really the only standard here. For the ‘finer’ visuals one should turn to Don 2 or the upcoming Agent Vinod. This is just a Hollywood kind of joyride. My only metric here is whether it can be good enough like the Hollywood film. Since this is an official remake this is not an unfair expectation.
Left to myself I would have suggested remaking the older Italian Job which though not as exciting a film as the newer version had far more cultural references and a more tongue-in-cheek tone. The whole end-of-swinging-60s-in-London mood. I would have dispensed with the tongue-in-cheek but set it in Bombay of the 70s. This would have offered interesting possibilities. But be it from Bollywood to be ‘interesting’ in this sense. Still expect three times the enjoyable film that Ra One was if Abbas-Mustaan just stick to Race levels of competence!
Don’t disagree with the politics you raise though. But the media negativity is something he just has to live with unless and until he gets enough box office success to reduce it (not that his father succeeded on this score!). It might offer the more ‘fun’ antidote to Don’s auteurism.
They should have waited for the buzz of Don-2 to die down…..
Unlike Race They don’t have Katrina as an asset, on top of that they have Bobby Deol as a Liability……
iskeee tau Namastey ho gayee deekh rahee hai……
yeah Bobby is definitely a sore thumb here.. but they can’t wait for Don 2 as it releases on Christmas! Doesn’t leave much time for a Jan 6 release. But I think this is fine. You have to launch a credible campaign for a big film and these days it just means lots of volume. Agreed on Katrina though. It didn’t obviously work out. But this film definitely needed another Bipasha-like ‘babe’! Preetam has apparently claimed somewhere that he’s produced better music for this than Race. of course you and I could do that in our sleep!
Pretty much what I expected. Race was unwatchable for me and this will be the same.
I really don’t like these wannabe HW films. I didn’t even think much of the Don 2 trailer.
‘Wannabe’ sells in Bombay from Race to ZNMD. Regrettably it is the authentic that doesn’t!
Don 2 was definitely a notch or more above everything else in this genre in terms of the pure visuals. Doesn’t mean there’s a great film out there necessarily as we witnessed with the first one.
On Abhishek doing this it is obviously a less ‘neutral’ gesture than Saif doing Race. However even I cannot blame him at this juncture of his career for thinking in box office terms. Whether it’s this or the bargain basement masala that’s currently hot I don’t think either one of us would find any of it very exciting (a Ghajini sort of deal would be something else)! Which is why my best hope here simply is that he get the grossers here and return to a more meaningful mix.
But as I’ve said before the anti-Abhishek partisans might regret any important success he has here less than I (or you) end up doing if it eventually means ‘more of what works’!
Speaking of which wasn’t the Brazilian Job supposed to release this year?
how many italian job remake they will come … the recent one of hollywood( not so recent) was itself a remake of classic and now one see brazilian job and even indian remake
well the Hollywood version was indeed a remake of an older Michael Caine film. The Brazilian Job is a sequel. And Abbas-Mustaan’s film is incidentally an official remake which also means they can’t deviate much from the script as a legal matter. This actually gives me more hope than would otherwise be the case even if I’m a big fan of this genre in Hollywood.
btw the guy who was villain did commendable job in fight club ( along with brad pitt) … and ya karthik calling karthik was loosely inspired by it (infact loose is very generous term for that )
of course and I’ve made this point before that sometimes when Abhishek does this sort of thing he attracts more negative attention than many other stars because he seems too ‘serious’ or ‘genuine’! So the Abhishek fans have the greatest objections and the others don’t see a complete willingness on his part to sign onto the scenery!
part of a comment from yesterday that might be relevant:
“what I dislike in this context is the lack of introspection. The colonization on its own is a fact of life, a product of history, one cannot walk away from this. We are all ‘colonized’ to various degrees. But the question is whether one ever has a questioning stance in terms of this heritage. So for example you see the average Hollywood star or actor being taken far more seriously than the Indian counterpart. The same for films. A Hollywood movie might be very professional in terms of the SFX or what have you but otherwise be as mediocre at its core as a number of Bollywood films (and incidentally I’m a great consumer of Hollywood junk in the thriller/disaster movie and so on formats). Leaving this aside the other thing that happens is that people in the same ‘colonized’ sense either overrate every little multiplex film because they can identify the same Hollywood residues in them or else are simply too harsh on a number of ‘guilty pleasures’. On the other hand the very same guilty pleasures are happily consumed out of Hollywood. I found Race reasonably enjoyable despite its absurd plot and I am also happy to check out every new Fast and Furious installment. Obviously the SFX are just way better in the latter but that’s not a philosophical difference! In each case it’s about how entertaining each film can be given that this is the extent of each work’s aim. So Race is more enjoyable than many other Abbas-Mustaan films. Similarly within the Fast and furious franchise some parts are better than others. But getting back to the larger point I don’t have a holier-than-thou ‘I am not colonized’ approach. I think we’re all in the same boat. All I expect is a little bit of introspection. Similarly purely within the Indian tradition (where we forget that older ages of cinema were more rooted because the mix was decidedly Indian, not because there weren’t Hollywood influences.. in fact decade by decade one could identify these.. what’s different today is that one rarely sees the Indian ‘particular’ in these films.. most of the time they’re like Hollywood genres in Hindi) there just isn’t enough ‘respect’ for want of a better word for the riches of the past. In fact even without being exposed to these the default view is one of condescension. All these attitudes are part of a certain continuum which happens to be the privileged perspective of ‘new India’ audiences. The BJP couldn’t convince everyone that India was shining. But in the major metros there are very many takers for this view and in the Johar scheme of things you just focus on those aspects that confirm the narrative and ignore the rest. This is what I am arguing against most often.”
I’d add here that the very ‘wannabeness’ that makes many kinds of films unattractive to a certain segment of the multiplex audience also makes the very same attractive for the majority when done right. Here this older post is also relevant:
though when I said ‘majority’ there I was still referring primarily to the multiplexes. It’s true that Abbas-Mustaan can often get smaller centers on board but the gross is still generated by multiplexes. You don’t get the Race sort of opening without these.
Let me put it differently. If Players gets half the positive reviews DMD did it will open vastly bigger than the latter. DMD had the sort of trailer we all (rightly so) got excited about. Players is at the opposite end of the spectrum (we all rightly find it wannabe). And we are all representative of the multiplex audience here. But when you look at the results all else being equal there’s no comparison the numbers. What that tells me is that many find the ‘wannabeness’ problematic as a genuine matter while many simply don’t want to be seen as liking this sort of thing. Similarly for many DMD isn’t really their kind of thing but they can’t admit this either.
ZNMD didn’t excite anyone on the trailers, or very few. It still had a strong enough opening. And it was primarily the multiplexes and a somewhat younger demographic driving this.
Now this is not to ignore the star factor at all. As I said earlier Abhishek’s going through some shaky times and really needs to establish things all over again. With some other stars leading this film I wouldn’t even have an iota of a doubt about the initial and final gross (assuming just a Race level film) whereas with Abhishek there are multiple possibilities. But that isn’t about how the film looks.
Re: “eg.-you can NOT compare Greater Kailash multiplex to a Rajoauri Garden Multiplex……”
Completely agree; and I think this sort of reminder is always needed, lest we forget that whenever we use terms like “multiplex film” or “multiplex audience” or any other kind of audience, we are referring to abstractions/generalizations — it’s a short-hand one uses for ease of discussion, but sometimes one can get so caught up with the shorthand that one mistakes the term for the thing itself!
Really? had no idea. Don’t even remember that film. Just checked on Netflix, it isn’t available unfortunately but I am not even sure if I’ve ever seen it. So it is an exact copy? Because some of the plot twists seemed pretty absurd to me in Race, not sure if this was true of the original as well. Anyway the only reason I brought up the official remake is that according to Abhishek they’re contractually required not to deviate much from the original which makes me believe that if Abbas-Mustaan are kept in check this way they might make a better film on the merits and not just purely enjoyable junk. For example the Mini cars used are exactly the same as both original films. The train sequence seems to have no equivalent in either Hollywood version but I suspect it will be there in place of the Venice sequence in the new version. The NZ stuff will come later on with the tunnel sequence of the earlier film and so on. So it seems to be closely aligned based on the shoots. But I never knew this about Race. Perhaps this was a close remake also. You could tell me. Anyway interested in watching this and it’s also by Joffe but as I said it isn’t available.
It is like primal fear(deewangee)..Till the point you can make sense it is copied from english movie. *Spoilers*They don’t have that rope trick and changing of dead person 🙂 .
Utterly predictable stuff
Heck bipasha seems to have a “birthright patent” for certain scenes–others should be given a chance
The budget of this one also seems to have gone overboard…
Ha ha GF…
your comment as well as the state of RA1 reminds me of a Brilliant line in Black Friday ( SRK fans please do not misunderstand , I am NOT equating SRK to terrorists)
precisely my point.. if one wants the luxury of never having to do this sort of stuff (fair enough ambition!) then one must make Raavan and D6 work.. can’t have it both ways.. so as Abhishek fans we can be disappointed that he’s doing this and not those other films but if anyone has an excuse to do this for box office reasons.. and ultimately it’s not as if something like Dhoom barring the success of the franchise and all the stars and so on is really ‘better’ than this stuff (though I expect something better with Aamir on board).
Given what this genre is about even in Hollywood, given the ‘wannabe’ nature of all these films in India, given that Abbas-Mustaan are at the helm here this is in my view par for the course. You could have bigger stars but not a better trailer. And again Don 2 obviously looks better than this but if SRK were starring in both films the Abbas-Mustaan would undoubtedly gross more all else being equal.
And so I disagree with some of the responses to this extent — it looks sharper than the Game trailer or stuff like Luck or Cash or whatever other films thrown up by the genre. But obviously not at all in Don 2’s league. Maybe one dislikes the entire genre. That’s fair but it is a fairly effective trailer for the genre.
Don’t think it’s sharper than the Game trailer. This looks more energetic but the Game trailers had a Bond-like slickness (which eventually became a bit corny) to them that at least to me was more appealing than this thing.
And of course one expects this sort of trailer from these filmmakers. But to be honest I might have been less disappointed in this if I thought it was going to change Abhishek’s fortunes at the box office and buy him some more mileage to do more of the D6s and Raavans. But it really doesn’t look appealing in this sense either. There’s nothing to differentiate this from any number of Bollywood thrillers, at least on evidence of what’s come out. I’m not the best prognosticator on these matters but staleness never seems to be the way to attract commercial attention and this looks quite stale. I’ve always suspected that Abhishek’s gateway to commercial success was to exploit his obvious comic talent in lighter material. This role and this context looks like it’s giving off the same grim, I’m-too-cool-for-this-shit vibe that people have (by now rightfully to some extent) taken him to task for. So yes you can’t have it both ways but when you go the other way make sure you’re walking straight!
I too didn’t think the Game trailer was bad at all but do believe that this one will persuade far more people! You do have a point at the end here. Abhishek never looks like he’s completely buying this stuff!
I am surprised though that generally people don’t seem to be all that impressed by the don trailers. Or at least not proportionate to the visuals on display. Perhaps it’s the residue of the older film. No one remembers really enjoying it!
I’m going to be harsh here, not because I need to balance certain narratives, but because this needs to be said — Abhishek looks so out of place in a slick, stylish caper film that it becomes unintentionally funny! He’s got fat all over his body, half of a double chin and he’s playing the lead role in a film that ought to drip with style? What’s this, some kind of thriller for ugly people?
Having said that, I’m with you on Game. He looked better, at least in the posters there. Maybe they did a photoshop job or something, but he did look slimmer at least in the main poster.
I’m pretty sure he was slimmer when he did Players and since than when he shot for Game.
I’ve always felt though that the reaction to his physicality in these sorts of films is much more about the point just made. That he is a bit of a reluctant warrior on this terrain. Not that he’s disinterested but he just cannot seem completely invested in it whereas many of his peers cannot imagine being on better terrain in terms of the whole wannabe deal. And it’s a signal that the audience can pick up. which is why this element must be factored into the film. Rohan Sippy understood this quite well, especially in BM where he had to be a more suave character. and in fact the one thing that Goldie Behl got right in Drona was the whole ‘reluctant warrior/superhero’ deal. Abhishek has always been this with respect to the principal forces that animate Bollywood. And again the audience gets this. He doesn’t quite enjoy strutting around in this sort of scenery but the films are also not deep enough to allow for the world-weariness or introspection (of any sort) that Rohan’s film did. But the wannabe stuff is also about a set of values that the multiplex audience loves. They might pretend not to but this is what they reward most often in all sorts of genres. No star can have a career doing only Rathnam or Mehra or RGV. You need solid commercial fare from time to time. But the ‘Bollywood’ values have never been his. Take the whole gym body phenomenon. every star has signed onto this including relative old-timers like Aamir and SRK. When you look at these guys the message is ‘we belonged to an older generation but we’re still on board’! Salman was there earlier anyway. Hrithik and after everyone has defined themselves this way. Whether you’re a major star or a supporting player you’re going to the gym. With Abhishek one can clearly sense a distaste with this mode of becoming a star. But this is unfortunately for cinema has become. Simply about consumption. And providing the right stimuli to the audience which includes the ‘ideological’ ones. When audiences note that Abhishek though willing to get toned down and so on is not really willing to go the whole distance they sense him to be opposed to their values. And what complicates things here is the fact that he cannot be condescended to in class terms. So if you have a Govinda or someone doing this it doesn’t really bother you. You can explain it away rather easily. But Abhishek becomes a ‘traitor to his class’ in a sense by not being ‘with the program’. It’s about something far more important than the obvious. Abhishek is the ultimate insider and yet a strange kind of outsider too, almost ‘alone’ in his choices. This ‘divergence’ was very neatly illustrated in D2 where what secretly enraged people, specially the male viewers, was that forget trying to match upto Hrithik’s gym body and so on, he wasn’t even willing to look as sharp as his own character in the first installment! But also his other ‘different’ choices are problematic not because these ‘flop’ but because these argue against the values of the present. Note this wasn’t always the case. when they thought he was on board with them or when he did films that could be minimally read in conformist ways they were very happy with him.
Abhishek essentially provokes unease in the multiplex audience. If it were purely about not doing well or not acting well or whatever he could simply be dismissed. No one cares how Bobby Deol is faring. But it’s precisely because he is taken seriously at one level or the other than the unease is also attendant! But I also think this aspect of his persona and equally his signature is about a larger ‘confusion’ in his multiplex audience. Those who are all the while getting more colonized even as they’re secretly filled with self-loathing for being so very colonized. Or in a connected sense those who see enough of ‘old India’ values in themselves to disturb their ‘new India’ complacency. This is also parallel to the ‘split’ in his father’s own history. the ultimate rebel of Indian cinema, the guy who used to give the Rajesh Khanna audience nightmares (!) becomes with time the ultimate icon of this consumerist Indian age, its most transcendent cultural figure. This way the audience gets the legend of Bachchan without the disturbing, subversive Vijay. It is the very same divide. Here Abhishek’s response to all these histories has been underestimated. Note how it’s not just about the Dhoom kind of deal, his constant avoidance of masala even post Ghajini or Wanted or whatever when he had the best genes for the job (!) means that he has a certain inner resistance (at the very least) to his father’s 80s career. If you thought there was no problem with Yaarana or Khuddaar or Kaalia or whatever you probably would not have a problem with a great deal of mindless masala today. It’s not exactly the same thing, obviously Bachchan makes a massive difference, everyone loves him in those roles but what if one believes that only Bachchan could make that stuff work? A perfectly reasonable conclusion. And so if he gets the script-oriented deal he’s happy to do it, not otherwise. But only someone like Rathnam gives him such scripts. Similarly the politics of much of his interesting work (box office failure or not) shouldn’t be missed. One cannot accidentally venture into such films in a consistent sense. And Rathnam in my view has explored all these histories in the three films he’s made with Abhishek.
What the future holds is hard to tell. If he gets a lot of success doing stuff like Bol Bachchan and Players and whatever it’s not clear whether he returns to more meaningful cinema as a pattern or just as a one off from time to time or else tries out a pragmatic mix. for now he’s been pushed to the wall and hence he’s doing this stuff. I don’t otherwise sense any great belief on his part in these ventures (by the way note how this affects the choices as well. he’s much more likely to try the somewhat meaningful in the junk genre than simply the most obvious deal.. and so even if one doesn’t like Abbas-Mustaan the Italian Job is easily one of the better films from Hollywood in its terrain and if they have to stick relatively close to the script one would expect it to make more sense than Race! But even Game.. this was another wannabe film if ever there was one but it wasn’t a stunt oriented thriller.. much more of a whodunit deal with some frills thrown in.. a bit of a mixture.. it certainly was way better than the likes of Luck and Chance.. sometimes though trying to be sane on this terrain is worse than simply going with the show!). Nonetheless the trope of the ‘reluctant warrior’ I think holds for him in more ways than one.
I read some article on TOI which says that Abhishek has lost 9 Kgs and is working out for Dhoom 3! Really hope and wish that story is true.
If he wishes to go commercial, he needs to ‘look’ commercial as well! And contrary to what people think, he’s not going to ossify his brain cells if he tones up a little…
It’s not his physicality that I have a problem with as much the been-there-done that sense of his badass-act. There’s nothing new here, which again no one expected with Abbas Mastan, but one could hope for something engaging in Abhishek. Going commercial doesn’t mean one has to go stale.
Having said all of this if Abhishek gets a hit here, more power to hiim. Hopefully he’ll use that to continue to “buy” the movies that have defined his unique place in the industry. That’s the larger thing at risk for him. He can play the game of “one for them, one for me” but the risk is that if you’re not Aamir Khan, the “one for them” usually ends up being something that muddles your identity as an actor who actually means something more than a BO statistic.
this is a something that I’ve always been nervous about. Because I never underestimate the pressure of real box office success. And I do agree that his difference gets canceled out if he’s merely in it for box office receipts over the long run.
I would actually watch Players if it’s just ridiculous, preposterous entertainment but I wouldn’t be interested in Don 2, even with all its aesthetics, if it turns out to be anything like the first one – leaden and boring.
I expect it to be better than the first one because this should be liberated from the whole remake burden. There’s nothing more to do with the original Don! I fully expect some silly twists but on its own it should be fine. But yes I do hope Farhan Akhtar makes a more dynamic film. One of the problems here is that his visual style is almost too ‘cool’ to allow for that sort of kinetics. In other words he shoots the film like an auteurist offbeat thriller (you have these in Hollywood) but the expectations are for a mass entertainer. Interestingly Don really goes from one extreme to the other in a technical sense. The original film was campy and this was part of its charms. It doesn’t however get the Abbas-Mustaan or Dhoom sort of upgrade but the Farhan Akhtar ‘high art’ (for want of a better term!) one. And therein lies the problem. The velocity of the Don narrative runs counter to the aesthetics. In essence the film becomes very different tonally. Quieter but also operating at a much more ‘relaxed’ pace in every sense. But if there is no rush to get anywhere or do anything you kind of lose the high drama and hence the point of the narrative.
i somehow never have liked farhaan akhtar as an actor or a director….DCH was more of an aamir’s touch kind of product…there is a very false notion of pride and vanity in this guy
Don’t agree on DCH.. Farhan has always been distinctive on the visual side of things.. I’m not saying he’s a great director or anything.. he just hasn’t demonstrated much beyond the strengths I’ve been referring to. I wish he’d do more and give up on the acting where I do find him relatively useless but part of the problem for him besides the fact that he’s distracted with this other career is that his films are usually quite expensive because he takes great care on the technical side. And the kind of director he otherwise is means his films can’t be huge successes even if they do well (leaving aside the DCH kind of genre). But he should really develop himself more in this area. The problem is these guys are all very lackadaisical in this sense and it’s much easier to act! I actually doubt he would have even done a Don sequel but for SRK’s great impetus.
“The whole end-of-swinging-60s-in-London mood. I would have dispensed with the tongue-in-cheek but set it in Bombay of the 70s”
But then how would Abbas-Mustan show Sonam Kapoor giving the middle finger? Blame them all you want for their ridiculous twists, but they don’t do anachronisms 🙂
For all those guys who are hating on Bobby Deol, let me tell you he is a favorite of Abbas-Mustan. So much so that they even got Bobby to Cannes in Naqaab (yes, I have seen it), where he ends up winning the biggest awards for some snuff film he directed.
Posters are good, But i agree .. Trailer is underwhelming .. Visually and characters are not properly introduced .. they could have make better promo .. atleast after DON .. this should have been more kick-ass.
Visually and stylistically, Don2 is streets ahead of anything else in that genre from Bollywood. But my hunch says it won’t hold together at the script level. will have some clever bits. But not real soul like the first one had. Though it’s just my hunch, I have a fling that both Farahan and Zoya are too much Hollyowood films driven to be able to write a good script. Dil Chahta Hai was a one-off exception. Reema Kagti, with an equal amount of Hollywood influence, but also with a large dose of world cinema exposure as well, and her small town North-East background has some real sparks as evidenced in Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd. and ZNMD. Dhuan may surprise for sure. From among the films in the action thrills genre, , I do not have much hopes from any of these except Agent Vinod., which has the potential to turn out something substantial.
yes Agent Vinod should also be a great visual experience though I suspect won’t be much at the box office. Hope I’m wrong. The director deserves some serious success.
Shridhar really deserves great success .. Ek Hasina Thi and Johny Gaddar .. both were excellent thrillers, but failed at boxoffice .. I hope Agent Vinod to be blockbuster success for sake of director only.
Abbas-Mustan are very good with this genre. And for all the great visuals of Don 2, Farhan failed in keeping the spectator engaged in Don. There were moments of boredom and moments when the film’s pace dropped too much before picking up to then drop completely again.
Abbas-Mustan are the masters of this genre. They’ll keep it at a frenetic pace and throw in some light entertainment, quotients of glamour and drama when needed to keep the audience engaged. They are very good at this. They’ve been usually getting the mix quite right and expect them to indianise the concept so that it will still look like an Indian flick. They gave us Khiladi, Baazigar, Soldier, Humraaz and Race and they really are the masters of this genre. I don’t know how good Don 2 will be, but the first part really disappointed me. I still think that Farhan is at his best with the Dil Chahta Hain-kind of genre and he still has to convince me if he can deliver in the thriller kind of genre. It will require a huge improvement on Don.
This is what Abbas Mustan are best at and they are navigating in waters they are extremely comfortable in. I expect it to be good. I just hope they go all out for the promotions to get a good opening. It will then come good for sure.
I also don’t think that Bobby is a liability here. He is a decent action hero and he is in a supporting role here. He certainly won’t hurt the film. His presence will help. The only doubt I have right now is Neil Nitin Mukesh as the villain.
Crap, by the time I got around to clicking on this youtube had removed the video. On the bright side, the TV premiere is tonight on a bunch of channels (9-10 PM)…
The website is up, Lot more pics, profiles etc. Was not able to catch the trailer there (think they have a different one on the website). Not for US region I assume.
With the tagline of “go for gold” there is alot that can be done with the promotional strategy here, They can do a scavenger hunt, contest to win gold coins. Also, they can have a lucky ticket # or something win gold coins etc (considering how expensive gold is now a days). A lot can be done here if done correctly.
Thanks Satyam, Feel a little Sane now. LOL. Btw watched a few of Vikram movies (nothing from the list though, couldnt find them) Saw “I am Sam” inspired (a tad bit overboard, wish he had underplayed the part just a bit)but nonetheless a much better version then “Main Aisa Hi Hoon”. Also, kanthasamy – good time pass (nothing too great about it) felt it was a bit too long.
Sounds really interesting from what I get from wiki, Always enjoyed shankars movies (not sure how I missed this). Enjoyed Nayak as well, (really bad release date). Wonder, he is not making any HIndi movies since.
you should check out the original on Nayak, Muthalvan. Also Gentleman (original) and of course Kamal’s Indian (though you might have seen the Hindi version here). I haven’t been a great Shankar fan or anything but I love Anniyan and then Robot even more.
Cool, Will check em all out. Just found out that he is remaking 3I in tamil with that guy Vijay. Honestly, god knows who made that guy into an actor. I prefer Rahul Roy over him man. Such a horrible actor and not only that. He talks a lot of smack about Hindi movie/film industry (in movie via songs, interviews etc) for not having anything to show for. Such a turn off to hear that he is playing Aamir’s role. The actor who is known for underplaying his roles oppose to the person who does not even know A for acting. BAD casting.
Yeah that 3I remake with that cast is a terrible idea. Worse still it isn’t even Shankar’s kind of deal. I was hoping he was just producing this. Do think that Shankar’s brand of cinema has really reached its final conclusion first with Anniyan and now especially with Robot (where the Rajni saga comes full circle too). Really not sure what he can add to his legacy in terms of the masala genres. Do think though that he could do a complete period piece. Other than this there’s no possibility left for him.
Agreed Satyam, He should challenge himself with a period piece, having said that it does not need to be a serious drama, A period masala can do wonders too if well made. He should try something like “Maghadheera”. Many south films are copying that trend for now (if i am right). Badri Nath, 7 aum etc.
A decent trailer, visuals look good but if movie has to have any Box office chances it all depends on how the music is recieved by the audience as there is absence of any star power.
this looks too good…..although nothing new but the usp of the film is abbas-mastan……this promo is 10 times better than any of the don-2 promos….i wish this works well for abhi and the entire team….bipasha never stops looking stunning and hot….
This doesn’t ‘look’ better than the Don 2 promos Idea.. Abbas-Mustaan just do more of the adrenalin.. but Don 2 has some really fine visuals.. not talking about what’s more enjoyable here.. I was bored in the earlier Don though looks like they’re going in for more of an MI sort of deal here.. but at any rate Abbas-Mustaan can push the right buttons. that’s a different thing.. but the theatrical Don trailers do have great visuals.. in the auteurist sense that one also sees from some Hollywood films. I haven’t really liked any Furhan film after DCH but he can produce some dazzling visuals. These unlike the SFX of Ra One are upto ‘international’ standards.
I really think the trailer looks very action packed, exciting, and entertaining. I love all types of action films (Hollywood and Bollywood) that provide adrenaline thrills, good visuals, some humor, and a few twists to the plot. This looks like a complete entertainer with mass appeal.
As an AB fan, I’m worried about this movie. The trailer didn’t do anything for me. I somehow get the feel that this is going to go the “Game” way. AB needs to deliver big really soon.
Bol Bachchan and Dhoom3 at this time seem to be the best shot.
“As an AB fan, I’m worried about this movie”–relax
In a “normal” setting, there is always the “law of averages” and the “silver lining”
But with some1 like abhishrek, one never knows how “deep” the bottom will be…
The directors abbas mastaan here know the “indianisation/accessible thriller” like the back of their hands
Let’s see where abhishrek takes them
Don’t know why we make AB so big ??? Look at filmography of Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgan .. these guys has delivered 20-22 Flops/Disasters in a row .. but no one noticed or care about .. but it seems every Abhishek flop is closely watched and sensed by everyone .. Abhishek has not given more flops than Sanjay dutt or Ajay devgan .. this is #FACT.
Hmm, looks good for me!
But I doubt with such a flop cast this film will succeed, also theres’s no Katrina but flop actresses like Sonam and Bipasha!
Well I hope this film helps Abhishek in this stage of his career, because he needs BO success badly.
To be 100% honest, I enjoyed Race more than Don with SRK. And I enjoyed Humraz to0o. Abbas-Mustan may not be sleek, but like Rakesh Roshan, they know how to tell a story well. I am not a big fan of AB Jr, in fact, I think he is among the worst, or perhaps THE worst actor around today ( though, I don’t know how, he was truly great in Guru) and find Sonam uterly boring, yet I might watch this over Don 2. ( great visuals , yes, but zero souls, as far as I can see so far.)
I didn’t see Race in the theater, saw it on video and thought it was ok though I was also with some friends and I wasn’t giving it total attention. Revisited it a year or two later on Netflix and found it quite enjoyable. Still thought the twists were absurd but it was a guilty pleasure. Saw Don in the theater and leaving aside the remake politics was quite bored. Saw this recently again (wanted to refresh myself before Don 2!) and had to forward my way through bits. Could still only admire the visuals at points. Otherwise didn’t like it even this time. But Don 2 looks like a Bourne or MI deal. They too are going in for stunts and explosions and constant chase scenes and so forth. The problem with Farhan though is that his cool visuals and almost dispassionate style in this genre is not very conducive to the right kind of adrenalin pump that this genre otherwise has to offer. In fairness Bourne isn’t necessarily that either which is why those films don’t put up really big numbers even when they do well.
I have been however surprised to learn over the years the extent to which it’s very hard to find someone who didn’t enjoy Race. This is not odd in itself but it’s not that special a film even for its genre that one it has that sort of recall. Better than everything else other than Dhoom. Have been surprised on this score but perhaps Bollywood hasn’t done a good enough job of staying just at this level. You’ve had stuff like Chance and Luck and what not. Similarly with the Players trailer I have noted more gung-ho responses even from those who are indifferent to Abhishek (at best) than with the Don 2 trailers (where it was the usual.. it will be big with SRK and so on). This too I have been a bit surprised about.
Just as I enjoyed race, andw as bored by Don, Was left quite cold by Dhoom 2 too. Only liked the dancing of Hritik and Ash and some comedy bits with Uday. The central narrative left me as cold as the narrative of Don. ( I really don’t know what Aamir sees in the franchise, unless the script this time is total departure.) Coming to Bourne Identity and Don @, I think the similarity lies only in the edgy visuals. But Bourne is genuinely edgy in spirit too… while Don 2 seem slikea parody. This is where I totally disagre with Rangan.. a movie must take itself seriously ( Or why will anybody else? ) This is where Aitabh scored in the 70’s, putting his passion into the most inane projects, an compelling us to watch. Shahrukh did just the opposite in Ra One. … and likely to do so again in Don2, though it may not have the other negatives of Ra One like a limp narrative, sick and unfunny jokes, bad performance, and bad song placements.
“Run, Jason, run. The Bourne films have taken chases beyond a storytelling technique and made them into the story. Jason Bourne’s search for the secret of his identity doesn’t involve me in pulsating empathy for his dilemma, but as a MacGuffin, it’s a doozy. Some guy finds himself with a fake identity, wants to know who he really is and spends three movies finding out at breakneck speed. And if the ending of “The Bourne Ultimatum” means anything at all, he may need another movie to clear up the loose ends.
That said, so what? If I don’t care what Jason Bourne’s real name is, and believe me, I sincerely do not, then I enjoy the movies simply for what they are: skillful exercises in high-tech effects and stunt work, stringing together one preposterous chase after another, in a collection of world cities with Jason apparently piling up frequent-flier miles between them…”
I doubt Don 2 has than much raw action. Just as Ra One did not really have that much VFX sequences. That’s the problem. Neither a great soulful script, nor edge-of-the-seat, jaw-dropping action. If anything, the car chases in Players will be more thrilling than those in Don 2, I can bet.
Yeah, on evidence of the first Don I think it’s safe to say Farhan isn’t exactly Paul Greengrass! But the second Don does seem to be more energetic than what I remember from that turgid first attempt.
they are releasing three thrillers in a short gap which will be very interesting
agent vinod again looks to desi version of bond and whatever has come from don 2 it don has the same hangover and again players is an official remake
anyway thriller as an genre is ignored for to long
on recent time sridhar raghvan handled it brilliantly in johnny gadaar and that makes agent vinod interrsting similarly abbas mustan has mastered this genre for long
and i still think farhan is to dicey for thrillers as his strength lies mostly in light films
“I am not a big fan of AB Jr, in fact, I think he is among the worst, or perhaps THE worst actor around today ( though, I don’t know how, he was truly great in Guru) “—haha utkal– some tough words….
Dont think he is the worst actor
He just doesn’t have the street level sense and connection with public taste and nor does he have the ability to learn from mistakes adequately
“This is where Aitabh scored in the 70′s, putting his passion into the most inane projects, an compelling us to watch”—agree
If the audience sees someone taking things casuallty and sometimes laughing at them—the results can be surprising
Today, no actor is known to green-light a project without a thorough narration and/or a bound script. But Abhishek Bachchan made an exception for director duo Abbas-Mustan when they approached him for a key role in Players. He signed on the dotted line only on the basis of a one-line story that he was told.
Abhishek Bachchan“Abhishek agreed to do the film after just hearing the basic premise. Not too many actors would do run such a big risk. He did it because he’s a huge Abbas-Mustan fan and had complete faith in their work. They were pleasantly surprised too,” says a source close to the film.
Abbas confirms and says, “When we insisted on a complete narration, he just asked us to start shooting directly. It was reassuring because he decided to work with us following our previous work. He said he had full faith in us and didn’t need a narration to come on board.”
Ironically, even to this day, Abhishek’s father, superstar Amitabh Bachchan, supposedly, doesn’t agree to work in a movie without a narration and a bound script. Considering it was Abbas-Mustan’s first outing with Abhishek, Abbas is all praises for AB Jr: “He is a director’s actors. He did everything with commitment and passion.”
Players, also toplines Bipasha Basu, Bobby Deol, Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Omi Vaidya and Sikander Kher and releases on January 6. It’s the official remake of the Hollywood crime thriller The Italian Job. The movie was filmed across India, New Zealand and Russia.
Abhishek does a Phool Aur Kaante, but on two trains
By: Subhash K Jha Date: 2011-11-06 Place: Mumbai
Bored of regular stunts, Bachchan Jr balances himself atop two speeding trains for an upcoming film
Remember how everyone was amazed by Ajay Devgn’s now legendary split on two bikes in his debut film Phool Aur Kaante? Well, Abhishek Bachchan has just gone ahead and done a similar stunt, but this one is on two trains speeding at 60 miles per hour (96 kmph).
Abhishek Bachchan is lowered between two trains in Russia that were
running at a speed of 96.5 kilometres per hour
The stunt, which was performed last month in Murmansk, Russia for Abbas-Mustan’s Players, was apparently Bachchan’s own idea, and was so dangerous that both the stunt director of the film and the Russian stunt coordinator shot it down. Eventually the actor is learnt to have got his way.
According to a source from the unit, who believes the actor should not have been allowed to perform such a dangerous stunt, “He balanced himself on two speeding trains. We shouldn’t have allowed Abhishek to attempt it.”
According to the source, the actor was initially supposed to shoot a sequence in which he balanced himself on a speeding train. But because similar scenes were performed in recent films like Luck, Bodyguard and Robot, Bachchan suggested they try something better. The source said, “Abhishek then suggested he balance himself on two trains just like Ajay Devgn did in Phool Aur Kante. But bikes are one thing, trains another.”
When contacted, Abbas, one half of the duo Abbas-Mustan, said, “Everyone, including the Russian stunt coordinator and our own action director Allan Amin, rejected Abhishek’s idea. But he was adamant.”
According to Abbas, to make the stunt safer, it had been agreed upon that the trains’ speed would be brought down to 40 miles per hour, instead of the regular 60 miles per hour. But secretly, Bachchan had instructed the train drivers to keep to their regular speeds. Abbas said,
“We had no idea that the trains were moving at a much faster speed. I don’t know how we managed it. When my brother Mustan and I looked at the stunt’s rushes, we were stunned. It was a miracle nothing happened.” He added, “Of course we took all precautions, including the use of harnesses, etc. But still ¦.” According to sources, the filmmakers are now worried if the stunt will be viewed as a contravention of safety rules.
glad the directors confirmed it.. in the past what’s happened is that when he does a stunt either it isn’t covered or it’s called exaggeration and so on.
Abhishek has never been the most athletic guy and in terms of the stunts that are usually done in today’s films, a certain athleticism is required. Stunts call for a certain kind of choreography. Generally those who are trained for action at some point are best suited for this or those who have athletic postures for some other reason (a dancer like Hrithik). But it’s important to stress that this is a contemporary standard. Not one action hero from the past would have been great at stunts in today’s sense and vice versa. Because today a certain ‘plasticity’ is considered desirable in terms of pulling these things off. The stunt becomes part of the overall aesthetic of the sequence. Once upon a time though the ‘epic’ masala hero often moved at a somewhat difference pace. Now someone like Bachchan was incredible at fights, he seemed choreographed in a different sense the way someone like Dharmendra wasn’t. But still there wasn’t a sense of ‘weightlessness’. The hero’s physical strength required a certain level of violence to the action which is always diluted when the action/stunts became an extension of choreography. Could you imagine someone like Vinod Khanna (quite effective at action) having to do stunts?! Even the thought seems absurd. Today however it’s about choreography but also the athletic body presented as aesthetic object even during such sequences. In this kind of universe Abhishek can never be completely ‘at home’ the way Hrihtik can. However the right director can I think present this as an advantage by tinkering with things a bit. You don’t set up action scenes for Tom Cruise the way you would for Stallone. The same principle applies. Bachchan was fantastic at action but could you imagine him doing D2?! Because again in addition to everything a certain kind of physicality that cannot simply be rendered as part of the scenery and tends to stand out for one reason or another has to be ‘respected’ at every point. In Bombay cinema we are at a stage where Hollywood-like filmmakers know how to do a certain kind of stunt-oriented cinema but not all kinds for all sorts of physicality (which Hollywood can still do).
But yes all said and done Italian Job should be interesting to watch and figure out how Abhishek handles it. The most recent Hollywood version didn’t quite have this sort of stunt (i.e. with trains and so on).
The other interesting distinction between an older masala action aesthetic and that of the present is that in the former the hero even though so much a ‘master’ of everything else never quite overpowers nature. In fact the contact with nature often involves a sort of tussle. Similarly even with physical objects things are not necessarily ‘easy’. And so in the Burning Train you have so much action taking place on top of the train but there is a lumbering quality to the action. Because of course it is that way on a fast moving train. However today the very same thing would be rendered with the star pretty much dancing on the train with ease! ‘Force’, for want of a better word is never felt in the D2 kind of deal (the exception being when Abhishek jumps after hrithik without a parachute, this was what the film needed more of on Abhishek’s side). And here a film like Inception with its necessarily ‘plastic’ ordering of the world renders more plausibly what is already the logic of other Hollywood stunt-oriented films. There is never ‘difficulty’ or ‘struggle’ and so on. People glide across surfaces, speed across others, etc. The natural world or the universe of ‘objects’ doesn’t really pose an obstacle in any sense.
In any case I don’t think it’s about ‘stunts’ in a generic sense and more about a certain dominant way of handling stunts today where ABhishek might not necessarily be the best-suited guy for the terrain.
‘The stunt, which was performed last month in Murmansk, Russia for Abbas-Mustan’s Players, was apparently Bachchan’s own idea, and was so dangerous that both the stunt director of the film and the Russian stunt coordinator shot it down. Eventually the actor is learnt to have got his way.’
i dont buy this pr crap – not just for abhi but for any actor
‘According to Abbas, to make the stunt safer, it had been agreed upon that the trains’ speed would be brought down to 40 miles per hour, instead of the regular 60 miles per hour. But secretly, Bachchan had instructed the train drivers to keep to their regular speeds.’
ROFL…..train drivers were there only to take such secret orders…..
Yeah it seems like one of those bizarre Abhi claims where he supposedly jumped from a 90-foot- high cliff for a scene in the film Raavan.
Later Abhi ate shit when it was proved that it was not Abhi but a body double MS Balram, a Bangalore-based former national diving champion, who actually did that death-defying stunt
that’s not really true.. as with other things the media created hysteria about this too but even later Abhishek was clear that he had made the jump but that the diver had made it too. He’d also said earlier that he saw local kids do it and decided he could too. Now what’s probably a bit disingenuous here is the suggestion that he doesn’t know what shot was used and similarly he was probably misleading about this earlier too. The posture of the diver is so perfect that it’s not likely that someone trained for a little bit could have achieved it. Nonetheless the jump was made and at 90 ft I think the posture is the last thing one would be worried about! Anyway here’s one of those interviews where he’s explicit about it after the controversy broke:
Not sure about the speed of the train and whether the drivers would just listen to the actor. However I don’t find the rest particularly implausible. Stars do these things at times. Bachchan at the age of 50 or so hung from a helicopter mid-air. Remember reading a Mukul anand interview where he said he was frantically worried as even though there was a rope around Bachchan it was a very dangerous thing to try and specially at that age. So they eventually had the helicopter hover over a swimming-pool just in case there was an accident of any kind.
But also remember that when stars do these things unlike with professional stuntmen there are lots of extra harnesses and support of all kinds. It’s still obviously dangerous but it’s not like a professional doing it. Speaking for myself I’d rather try out this sort of thing than take a dive at 90 ft!
i’ve never understood this kind of PR exercise – audience know that majority of stunts are performed by stuntsmen and evenif some star has performed it himself – in present times, it hardly adds to the curiosity factor – they tried this during Raavan – didn’t work, they have tried this for many other films of other stars – hasn’t worked – so why continue with such stuff? it looks childish. Akki has been claiming to have done is stunts himself in CCTC and many other recent disasters – such PR has never helped him.
Abhishek Bachchan admits that one of the thrills of featuring in the official Indian remake of the British film, The Italian Job, was the prospect of getting to do some of the cool car stunts. “I love driving cars and the 1969 classic is memorable as much for Michael Caine’s dialogue (The line, “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!” was voted favourite film one-liner in a 2003 poll) as it was for the Mini Coopers Ss that were an integral part of the action,” says the actor.
During pre-production talks with the makers of Players, Abbas and Mustan, Abhishek was adamant about having the original Minis. It was easier said than done. When the producer-director duo started looking out for the iconic cars, they discovered there was one in Pune and a couple of them in Bangalore. Three cars were not enough. What if one of them got banged up or busted! So then they turned their attention to New Zealand where a large chunk of the film has been shot.
In the picturesque country they found 23 Minis. “We bought three each in red, blue and yellow and all nine cars were on the sets during a chase sequence,” informs Mustan.
For Abhishek, however, the excitement of driving a Mini Cooper that he had so far only watched zipping around on screen in one of his favourite films quickly ebbed. He realised that it was easier standing besides the car than sitting in one.
“Three of the tallest actors in the unit—Sonam (Kapoor), Sikander (Kher) and me — were driving these cars. It would take us five minutes to get into one and another five to get out. Our knees would bump against the steering wheel and our heads would hit the roof. But once you got going, it was a dream ride,” beams the star.
The original Mini Coopers had been upgraded about a decade ago and now the manufacturers are coming up with a newer version of the cars next year. Since Players is pencilled for a January 6, 2012, release the timing couldn’t have been better though there is no tie-up so far. From becoming the getaway vehicle of the players, the Minis could soon be plying on Indian roads.
btw why do people think that satyam would know intimate details about ash’s child and pregnancy lol
if i remember correctly, with the announcement of a pregnancy many were congratulating satyam!!
ps–havent seen many promos, but is Sonam trying to look different ie glamorous here…..
Watched thetrailer again and must say not bad at all.
Though a touch less slick than Don 2, seems more testosterone driven. Still cant find anything redeeming in Deol tho.
actually those films (and one could throw in some others) don’t really disprove my point. A prediction always assumes basic acceptance for a film. Obviously when people hate a film the biggest stars can have the biggest flops (and we know all the examples). But before KHJJS Abhishek showed a good enough initial even with disasters. So for example the pretense with JBJ was that it didn’t open well and then it flopped big time. But then it opened to 20 crores in 2007 which was more or less the Guru initial. This after tanking beyond the weekend. What happens is that when a film flops no one is interested in the details and vice versa. And the trade has always had this game with Abhishek where when the film works decently call it a failure, when it works better call it ok. when it’s a superhit call it some kind of success, when it fails completely call it a massive disaster but in any given scenario the implicit argument is that there’s no initial. The problem is that precisely the numbers on many of the flops cannot be explained. We know what happens when no one shows up. It’s KHJJS and Game! Or when people don’t show up in enough numbers for an overall liked film (DMD). Look at it another way Raavan, D6, DMD all more or less grossed the same! when Tashan flopped it made less than JBJ, when CCTC flopped it too made less given the time period separating the two. I could keep multiplying these examples. Drona, a bigger disaster than which is hard to imagine as a film, itself had a pretty solid first day though it was pretty much over after this. Still it made more than KHJJS and Game put together two years before those films! DMD was the one film where it didn’t do as much as I thought it would especially given the critical response and so on. Here I perhaps underestimated the damage Abhishek had suffered as a star by then. But otherwise the prediction is always based on the assumption that a film is minimally passable. And so with Italian Job it’s not too hard to imagine a film just at Race level! Surely not a high bar specially when they have to stick pretty close to the script of the original?
On the question of a ‘jinx’ can’t say I have a superstitious bone in my body! But the other thing is that success or failure I am constantly testing my own assumptions, recalibrating my own sense of these things. So I wasn’t predicting this kind of stuff for Game. But even with Players I didn’t make these predictions until the trailers released and I got a sense of how the trailer had been received and so on (online, in conversations with people in India.. some other stuff) in addition to the fact that I am confident this will have a high profile campaign which is necessary for this kind of genre. It’s not the static thing it might seem like at times. It’s just that Abhishek has had enough high profile projects where most of the time one could reasonably predict important things. And here with all the criticisms that could fairly and unfairly be leveled against him the fact is that he’s also had some bad luck. You don’t get all your big ones to fall at the same time even if many of these are risky. It’s just sometimes the draw you get. When he signed onto Guru with Rathnam for example he looked like a genius, when it was Raavan’s turn he looked like the biggest idiot. That’s just the way it works.
Satyam, this will not do 100 Crore. 100 Crore figure in today scenario is possible only of movie get Huge initial weekend, atleast 35-40 Crore weekend and great trending. I don’t see initial here because curiosity factor and Hype is almost missing till this point … and Abhishek has become such a bad name that without hype and excellent promos, no one will go to see his movies.
I would love you to relax your expectations for this movie.
The promotions campaign has only just started. It’s not even 1 week since the first trailer was released. But the campaign has started well and it does seem that the Abbas Mustan and the cast will go all out for it. Compare it with Game where the pre-release promotions were non-existent. Only Abhishek looked bothered enough to promote the movie.
I’m actually kinda pleasantly surprised with the promotional campaign of The Players. They’ve not just begun early, but they’ve started in all earnest… hoardings on Juhu, etc. and this when the release is in Jan 2012! I hope they phase themselves correctly though. The Burmawala Brothers are also producing this, so they most definitely believe in the commercial prospects of this one.
The hoardings have been up but also they had heavy volume in the 9-10 PM slot on Nov 3 when they introduced the trailer. And of course they had 4 pre-teasers just announcing this. So think they’re going all out on this one.
This is by far the most exciting trailer for an Abhishek film in a while. The GAME trailer, despite the flashy look and feel, had too much of a “slow paced” feel to it while this is action-packed! DMD i had a huge bias from right away as it was Rohans next, but the fun begins now with this and BOL BACHCHAN as well as the masala ventures.
The cast is definetly not the best, and Akshaye Khanna in place of Bobby Deol would’ve been a lot better, however all said and done, this is a Abbas Mustaan film, if it’s as likeable as AJNABEE this could work in both the multiplexes and single screens in todays times. The fact that it’s an official remake plus the budget makes me thing this is Abbas Mustaans most ambitious film to date. As a huge fan since the KHILADI and BAAZIGARR days (and someone who doesn’t mind stuff like NAQAAB, HUMRAAZ, AJNABEE, AITRAAZ etc) this is going to be a lot of fun to watch and could achieve what a lot of other films *cough RA ONE* have failed to achieve in recent times (a desi film which impresses the non indian overseas audience too).
Now if Abbas Mustaan could just rope in Akshay-Abhishek-Akshaye Khanna for a film….
I couldn’t agree more. Abbas-Mustan could have introduced a few fresh male faces (and god knows the industry desperately needs a few new male faces) instead of hiring these men….they really lower the ‘prestige’ of the film. Neil Nithin, Sikandher, Bobby and Omi- is this a charitable venture to provide employment for struggling actors in the industry? Then again, with a title track like this, there is no saving the film.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the really obvious ‘cheapness’ of the whole thing- judging by the vibe from the title track- ends up alienating today’s multiplex audience who patronise movies like Rockstar and ZNMD. I mean Ra.One had a similar vibe- ‘international slick’ action/ sleaze and it crashed despite having several other factors in it’s favour- SRK, Chamak Challo and the special effects.
I think that today you either need to do a full-on masala or a proper multiplex kind of film if you want a big hit without a superstar. Films like Thank You, Double Dhamaal and Rascals have not worked in a big way this year. If you are relying on the sleaze/ skin factor to sell your film, the only way is to go all the way, like Murder 2.
And if the film ends up being badly made then all of the massive pre-release hype and extended campaign will only hurt it. Over exposure is not a hood thing.
“Is this a charitable venture to provide employment for struggling actors in the industry? Then again, with a title track like this, there is no saving the film.”–agree
I mentioned earlier: all actors make or female in this movie should be thankful for another chance of salvaging their career
I was the oroducer , would make all the male and female actirs here pay to be in the movie –most by cash…
I think Bipasha is actually the perfect fit for a film like this. Sonam and Abhishek have not had a hit in a long time and they are not the first people you think of for a film of this genre but they still cannot be compare to Neil, Sikandher, Bobby and Omi who are all quite miserable in my opinion (as stars, not as human beings, nothing personal against them).
For me Bobby Deol is the only guy who stands out in a truly negative sense. Sikandar Kher and Omi are relatively minor players here. The last is just there for comic relief. Neil is fine for this terrain in my view. Of course it’s certainly true that if I were casting for this movie Bobby Deol, Sikander would definitely not be there. Omi probably because I’m unsure who would be better with the comic routine here. For the other two I’d just take unknown actors if I had to. And certainly Akshaye Khanna would have had a part here, either as the villain or in the Statham role.
What directors often forget in these matters is that somewhat known stars sometimes send out negative vibes where unknown faces are neutral. But leaving this aside Bobby Deol is even worse as he gives a ‘washed out’ vibe.
Having said that if people are not showing up for Abhishek and Sonam and Bipasha and abbas-Mustaan’s track record don’t think the rest are the biggest issue!
Talking of bipasha–have no interest somehow…
Inspite of the strategically placed pic by satyam…lol
“legs” or not !!!
As for sonam–yes she is better than the rest here..
That’s why I said —won’t make everyone pay “by cash “to do this movie. Lol
Lately she is doing the “simple damsel in distress ” routine too commonly
Couldn’t see Mausam
As for abhishrek –think he needs to
Come out of a certain “comfort zone” & not only by signing “different ” films but by being visibly seen as exerting out of the way
He needs a “guru/yuva” performance (or better) ASAP
There is a certain “lethargy /stiffness” he needs to shake off
Someone who needs a “real kick on the backside ” ie real hardship to “wake him up”— unfortunately he hasn really faced it (though those repetitive flops weren’t pleasant…)
While we are all dissing the promos for Players, the movie is tracking upwards according to trade figures.
Trade Trac – 19th November, 2011
by Box Office India (November 20, 2011)
This Friday saw the release of two small-budget films, Pammi Somal’s Na Jaane Kabse and Shubh’s Shakal Pe Mat Ja. Both films failed to capture the attention of the audience and went unnoticed at the ticket counter across the country. All eyes are on the next release which is Desi Boyz and shows upward trend in the chart. Even Dirty Picture , Don 2 and Players show an upward trend in the chart.
Anurag, amongst the Rast cast only Katrina and Saif (to an extent) had some kind of box office pull. While Katrina certainly has it, Saif doesn’t really guarantee you a great initial. And he had a half-baked role in the film. Akshaye Khanna had the meatier role. Anil Kapoor isn’t going to ensure a great opening by hilmself these days.
I think that Bobby Deol will be alright here. And I do believe he will get a good, strong, supporting role under Abbas-Mustan. Look, Bobby is ok in action thrillers and it’s been his main strength. He did well in Soldier, Bichoo, Gupt, Badal and Humraaz. The success of YPD (even he was only part of an ensemble) will do him some good. I think that Bobby will very much be in his element here.
If I have some doubt, it is Neil as the main villain. It is a strong negative role and I have doubts if he can carry it out well. If there is a potential weak link in the casting, it is Neil.
Oh man
Just mentioned the “legendary” oldgold few
Minutes ago
Thought she was underground and we could “gossip ”
But she’s back
Have I for “special powers or what ”
Ra2 !!
People are acting like Race was some masterpiece film. How quickly everyone forgets that before Race Saif was coming off 3 big flop films from YRF. Akshaye Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Sameera Reddy, and Anil Kapoor have no real box office power or star power on their own as well. The only one in Race that was a big star in the making was Katrina Kaif who’s career was on the definite upward track to super stardom when Race came along. Also Race’s soundtrack and videos were subpar complete with bad to cheesy choreography.
However Race became a big hit at the box office because Abbas-Mustan know how to make entertaining action thrillers that hit the bulls eye with their target audience. Abbas-Mustan seem to know how to make their films accessible to the masses and classes in India by putting in the right amounts of action, suspense, glamour, sexiness, foreign locales, music, and masala. I think Players will be a hit at the box office for the same exact reasons that Race become a hit film 3 years ago. The Players theme song is a very decent and adequate song and video to continue to help promote the film to its target audience. Its very positive news that Players is still showing an upward trend and gaining much more interest(buzz) with the paying public in India which is where it counts.
I completely agree. At the end of the day Race was pretty much unanimously given a hit (successful) tag by all of the major players in the Indian trade. It was a hit film. I think Players will be a hit film as well. As long as Players is a hit (success) at the box office then that’s all that counts.
Italian Job will have to trend a lot better than Race. The latter got off to a flying start but did a relatively quick fade in week 2. Didn’t even double it’s week 1 number (of course this has been true for a number of ‘hits’ since). Somehow the perception here has been way ahead of the box office. It’s hard to talk to anyone who 1)didn’t think Race was enjoyable 2)didn’t think Race was a hit. But the economics you’ve pointed out is quite right.
My own standard (and I’ve said this before too) for Players is 100 crores (give or take some). At that point it should be a success in every sense (assuming it’s also doubling its gross or more). If it just matches the Race numbers and trending it should be able to do this in today’s money. and that’s not too much to ask for. I’m assuming a lesser initial but more stability accounting for Abhishek’s box office damage. Here I will disagree with Annihilator to this extent. Saif is not the same as Abhishek irrespective of how many flops he (saif) has. Because he’s not the same kind of threshold star and hence no one carries ‘negativity’ from Saif’s prior failures. If the project seems right the audience is in. With Abhishek it’s the opposite and specially given a lot of the ‘weird’ stuff (not my characterization but the audience’s sentiment) he’s done. and so an audience is quite likely to say ‘Players looks great but with Abhishek you never know’. With saif they wouldn’t have that second clause there. I’ve said this many times. Abhishek cannot just fall under the radar as a star. He has to be a certain kind of star or he’s nobody. He can’t say ‘I’m happy to be in the second tier and let’s just take it from there’. It doesn’t work that way with him.
And leaving aside all this the producer or director or whoever’s invested money here did not launch this sort of project on this scale just to get minimal numbers. The business model would make no sense in that case! So the bar here has to be a higher one. The question becomes: how much can Abhishek pull in in the initial stages assuming a campaign that keeps the momentum going? Specially since these days without a big enough first weekend it’s very hard to pull in the audience later. Especially so for this sort of genre where it’s really all about the initial box office high. Abbas-Mustaan look to have pulled out all the stops here in terms of stunts and so on. They have a better narrative to work with as well within the genre. It’s a question of delivering at this point.
I’ve bet on a 100 crore total here. But I’ve often been more brave than right in the past! Let’s see!
“”‘by the way the trade won’t be as kind on Abhishek film. so actually it will have to do better than race even here! LOL!”‘”
Oh yeah, I know how very biased the Indian trade is about Abhishek and his films. Its always an upward battle for him. I’m just saying that whatever the box office numbers will be for Players that as long as the film is a hit (success) at the box office then that is really all that matters. IMO
I hope Players is a hit for all of the cast. I think it will be. Players being a hit will be some nice success for Abhishek in which he can continue to build on with Bol Bachchan, Dhoom 3, and his other upcoming films.
Honest to honest, I’m simply seeing nothing, but, a non-thriller thriller from the trailer. Everything in the movie seems so WEIRD… Almost everybody’s a misfit here. The only thing I could see that’s actually kinda in a way working for this film is Abhishek. And that too, not a lot. Abhishek seems, I dunno, “confused” in the trailer.
A few more facts on the Race casting. In fact, Akshay Kumar was initially signed for the lead role. He was a Abbas Mustan regular and he initially agreed to it. Fardeen was signed for the negative role.
Akshay was riding high at that time and it was reported that he didn’t find the lead role good enough and he kindly opted out of the film. Saif then came in for him. There was then a reported fall out between the directors and Fardeen and they then opted to bring in one of their favourites, Akshaye Khanna for the negative lead.
Akshaye has been one of Abbas Mustan’s favourites and they did not let him down as he got a quite strong negative role.
When the producers watched the finished product, they did not like the fact that the most saleable actors (Katrina and Saif) got raw deals. Katrina was playing second fiddle to Bipasha while Saif disappeared for nearly an hour during the second half of the movie. So, they told the directors to add a song featuring both of them while the movie was due to release in a few weeks time and while the film’s soundtrack album was already out. Abbas-Mustan gave in and a new song was recorded, shot and added to the movie.
Is race the movie whereIn EVERY human being that existed on screen ( even for a few seconds) acted as a potential “suspect” to keep the “suspense” going
Is it also the film that where a bevy of “hot looking girls ” ie bipasha katrina etc couldn’t provide real “oomph”
Is it also the movie where a stubble laden saif mistook that for some sort of neo-Italian “European” avant garde style(&failed)
Is it also the film wherein akshaye khan as trademark smirk caused him a permanent muscular spasm (affecting distant organs as well….)
But having said this–the directors know their job nd audience well and stick to that–hence it “works” somewhat
LOL, true on everyone being a suspect in Race. It had the most absurd twists imaginable. However I didn’t know until recently that this too was at least a partial copy of a Joffe film (which I hadn’t heard about).
Bipasha worked on Joffe’s film Singularity, and he once asked her about her favourite films of her own. She told him about Dhoom 2 and Race- which are her biggest hits. He thought that Race sounded a bit like Goodbye Lover (his film that was plagiarised by Abbas-Mustan) so he was interested and asked her about the plot – when she described it to him in detail he got really angry and actually called up Abbas-Mustan and had a word with them about it. Apparently they were quite rattled and that is why- for the first time in their career- they decided to get remake rights, although most of their previous movies are plagiarised.
I saw this on a gossip website, so I have no idea how true it actually is. But I thought it was really funny 😀 “Tell me about your previous work-wait, WTF? That is MY movie!”
LOL, that’s a great anecdote, true or not! On Italian Job I think it’s also harder for Bollywood to do things the old-fashioned way because some of the major studios have now set up shop in India and they can engage in litigation quite easily.
Liked Viva Riva reasonably. Perhaps more the feel than anything else.
Checked a bit of ” 7 years in Tibet”
Will have to revisit properly
Surprised how brad Pitt got the Austrian – German accent
Btw certain people are stars and Pitt is one of them
Somehow when the “actor” in him tried to take centre stage didn’t really accept it
That’s the paradox of a true “star”
“Tell me about your previous work-wait, WTF? That is MY movie!””–haha
Amy comes up with really entertaining “scoops”
She has been appointed the official “special news analyst” hereon for this site lol
The Tamil film industry = Kollywood. But I am going to stop now-I do not want Satyam’s serious cinema blog to degenerate into a celebrity gossip blog. 😛
Haha
Oh I see
Buck how is “k”ollywood=”t”amil industry
Btw feel free –quite a few south Indian movie fans here (though I’m more than ignorant unfortunately )
“feel free… we love our sleaze around here..”—good to see the “real” satyam speak up (unafraid of “dangers “at his home lol)
Anyhow this link has been noted and maybe used later haha
It’s just where those industries have been historically centered. It doesn’t always go by the name of the city or the language. So you have Bollywood for Bombay (though I guess this deserves a name change given the city’s own! a worthy cause for the Shiv Sena) but Mollywood for Malayalam cinema. But it doesn’t end here. There’s Sandalwood (Kannada.. quite literally sandalwood here!), Tollywood also refers to the Telugu industry though the Bengali name is more well known, Dhallywood (Dhaka), Kollywood (Nepal’s industry centered in Kathmandu) and then the truly LOL Lollywood (Lahore)!
Yeah, he is the anti-thesis of what you expect a celebrity son to be. He wrote a pamphlet on communist politics that was pretty well-received I believe. And also a piece on Dravidian politics through the prism of Tamil cinema. If you are interested in that kind of thing, you could google it, it’s available online I think.
“I love the attitude Caine carried in all his films. I have lost count of how many times I have seen The Italian Job. I have watched Caine’s version more times than (Mark) Wahlbergs’. It’s a cult film,” Abhishek said.
Judging Pritam is always a low bar and this soundtrack certainly isn’t DMD by a long shot (itself hardly the touchstone in these matters though Pritam cannot do too much better than this.. LAK might be the very best he’s capable of) but this current track (on the preview) for what its worth is probably the best one here. The abhishek number sounds fun and somewhat traditional but Pritam’s music gets in the way. Overall can’t imagine anyone wanting to listen to 5 remixes of the same track as there seem to be on this album (though I’ve been thinking this for years on many counts). But let’s say Abbas-Mustaan have decided to keep things at the lowest denominator level in terms of the music and the music videos! Hardly a huge surprise coming from them but one wonders sometimes why it isn’t possible to do a bit better even allowing for the genre and so forth.
Re:Seems to be a bit of a triangle here in this video.
I am a little confused. Are you talking about the lower half of the bikini ( swim wear) or a romantic triangle?? Cant access the video .So cant say if it is a bikini or a monokini.
don’t know why both song previews so far are so garishly green! They have footage from the film interspersed with later footage (Abhishek has a very different look in these portions). If I were them I wouldn’t focus on the entire gang very much from hereon. They’ve been introduced. Now it should just be about the action, Abhishek-Sonam-Bipasha and to an extent Neil Mukesh. Of course Abbas-Mustaan are keeping it even more simple. The bikini pops up (bad choice of words I know..) everywhere!
Wowwwww .. Abhishek is looking Rockstar here .. After watching this trailer i felt bollywood underestimated Abhishek and not able to utilize his talent .. He is truly looking Rockstar here ..
ALthough admire her fitness regime, but find Bipasha ultra repetitive in the bikini–MEH
She may well be the brand ambasadoress for a few bikini brands though
Not sure what fetishes you’re referring to (I thought I had exercised great caution in terms of keeping these secret) but yes I do find Deepika quite beautiful though she doesn’t have enough ‘character’ at this stage if you know what I mean. Kind of like an earlier Ash in this respect ( at least when she wasn’t doing Rathnam).
“I thought I had exercised great caution in terms of keeping these secret) but yes I do find Deepika quite beautiful…”—hehe
thats what “uncovering” means..
“Not sure what fetishes you’re referring to …”—-dont think i need to teach you the meaning of “fetish”…lol
Lets say: the type GF has for “beefcake” dutt–(though he may deny vehemently) hahaha
(also for the sake of his multiple “GFs”…)
I like the new Players song promo for Jhoom Jhoomta Hun Main. It looks cool. Abhishek really looks cool in the promo. Sonam and Bipasha are also looking very good as well. I agree that the marketing and promotions should just focus on Abhishek, Sonam, Bipasha, and Neil for the next 5 weeks or more.
Vinod Khanna makes a ‘powerful’ comeback with Players
By Joginder Tuteja, December 2, 2011 – 16:37 IST
Vinod KhannaPromotion of Players may be currently centred on Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu and Sonam Kapoor but not many are aware that there is a surprise element in store as well. This remake of The Italian Job required a veteran actor to play a very important part in the film and directors Abbas-Mustan were convinced that Vinod Khanna was the man for the job. The veteran actor isn’t known for doing too many films but Players turned out to be one of those films to which he couldn’t refuse.
“Amongst the senior actors, the ones who are still active are Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor and Dharmendra. Though Abbas-Mustan have worked with Rishi Kapoor earlier in Daraar, they are yet to rope in the other two. However, they threw a surprise by reaching out to Vinod Khanna instead. The senior actor has been on a retirement of sorts and seldom does any films. The only films that he has done in recent times are Tell Me O Kkhuda that started two years back while he had a miniscule role in Dabangg. It was a gamble to zero down on him for a role as one should be prepared to hear ‘no'”, says a source.
Still, Abbas-Mustan took a chance and were totally convinced that Khanna senior was the man for the job due to his debonair conduct and a stylish persona. They felt that for a film with gold heist as the central element, the master mind had to be a powerful personality who also had an air of mystery around him.
“When you plan something with Vinod Khanna, the role has to be all powerful”, says Abbas, “In fact he was very happy with the story and immediately agreed to do the film. He feels that the role really goes well with his age and personality.”
There was a hiccup though in this association to turn into reality. As luck would have it, Khanna fell ill at the same time when he was required for the shoot. Resultantly, he requested Abbas-Mustan to excuse him from Players since he didn’t want to hold up the shoot due to his illness. He also promised them that he would do their next film for sure.
Vinod Khanna”We just told him ‘nothing doing'”, says Mustan in an animated tone, “For this pivotal character it had to be him and only him. He has this action hero image for decades and audience have seen his intensity. We altered the schedule by shooting other portions of the film first. We also requested him to let us know whenever he is fine so that we can plan a schedule with him.”
For the suave actor, it was an emotional moment for sure since in Bollywood today, one can hardly be seen waiting for an actor, especially when there is a multi star cast involved.
“Once he was fine, he called to say that he was all set for the shoot and was also glad that we waited for him. Now you have to watch his performance in the film. We are sure the audience would end up remembering the Vinod Khanna of yore after seeing what he has done in Players”, concludes Abbas.
Well, with sons of Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra already as the younger players, one wouldn’t mind seeing a senior player to be driving the show here.
It is rather farcical as always to see a scale where something like Players gets 3.5 stars and a Rahman falls in the same range (higher or lower depending on the album) or even on the same scale at all! Players is another Synthesizer 101 of a soundtrack (believe it or not Pritam can sometimes go upto 102 or 103 on a really bright day!) from this ‘composer’ (to be extremely generous to him). This soundtrack gets the job done which by the standards of contemporary Bollywood is even lower down the food chain than the films I routinely criticize. If the writing in Hindi cinema is largely a thing of the past the music of yesteryear probably belongs to a different phase of ‘civilization’! Barring Rahman who cannot be classified as a ‘Hindi’ composer. It is not even the case that there is good music to be had in the manner of Western pop music and so on. Because we just get the catchy tune hastily arranged into something that insults the intelligence but that nonetheless is designed for consumption usage, which is to say the all too common ‘song’ that becomes part of the general ‘noise’ level of contemporary culture (and in a global sense) and with enough repetition becomes part of the bloodstream. One does not ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ such music, one is assaulted by it at every corner and on every bandwidth and every technology suitable for ‘sound’ and one succumbs. By these distastefully low standards Pritam does the job. If such a film aims for nothing more than a joy-ride the music manages to fall at a level even below this! And I could say the same for a number of film-soundtrack combos in contemporary Bollywood. More to the point here is Race which thrived with the same sort of choices. Having heard the songs a few times it’s clear that most of these will go well with the film. Pritam reaches back to his Mahesh Bhatt days for the Jhoom jhoom moment with the whole ‘aggressive love’ deal, possibly the best track on the album. On the Abhishek number he does something interesting as he uses the actor’s voice almost as ‘bass’ accompaniment but he could have done far better to achieve the same effect, nonetheless this is a somewhat traditional tune (specially with the lyrics) where despite all of Pritam’s ‘bastardization’ some of the source-virtues come through. Ho gayi tun is passable as is the theme song. And finally Pritam produces another soporific love duet here (evidently he has many fans on this front as well). Now of course I have a low opinion of pritam for many reasons but on some days he can at least produced the very inspired ‘copy’ (the Bhool bhulaiya title song) or ‘rehash’ from a dozen sources (the LAK end credits number). The rest of the time Kiss me qualifies as the ‘bar’ to which he has to live upto or surpass. This industry is even beyond a god’s help! While this entire set of opinions might seem harsh I am actually commending Pritam! For once again only staying at the level most of his audience desires! But reviewers (and so far the soundtrack is not surprisingly getting good reviews) should at least have the decency to invent a separate scale for Rahman. I am not sure what it ‘means’ to say that Players is a 3.5 star soundtrack and Rockstar is 4 or 4.5 stars (whatever it got).
” should at least have the decency to invent a separate scale for Rahman. I am not sure what it ‘means’ to say that Players is a 3.5 star soundtrack and Rockstar is 4 or 4.5 stars (whatever it got).”——agree
I have always maintained that rahmans music starts from where others end
pritam though has a very high “hit rate” and hence it better than the other mortals
HAve enjoyed many of his hits since Im not into “looking down” upon anything—its just that the “scale” and “realms” one prowls in becomes different when dealing with non-rahman music
the only exception have been SEL
Infact SEL may have given much lesser blokcbusters than pritam or vishal shekhar—-but their background and sensibilities shows thro
On any scale, would give 4.5–5 out of 5 to rockstar!
ps–have no inclination to even try out players or even don2—unless my “assistant” spoon feeds me lol
SELs pinnacle was DCH and now it seems this may remain their alltime best
SInce they seem to have collectively hit the male “menopause” together lol
ANyhow–one can remember their ultimate cult creation imo
Talking of pritam–yes it i easy to look down upon him and he has a tradition of plagiarism but dont believe in this policy and believe in not being snobbish…..”give eveyone a chance “philosophy
some of Pritams “hits” are catchy and meant to be consumed and forgotten. Even there, the ones i find slightly better are not “big hits”
a few i remember off hand (not sure if they are pritam)
really like saif here—nobody can touch him in these sort of turns—doens have to try too hard and is smooth
Hmm, who is this girlvvv
and what is she doing in this dodgy company—btw the song is not bad
didnt think much of this song earlier but just noted that its not bad–and perhaps this was a hit
It’s not about being snobbish. pritam is just ‘sub-standard’. But I’m willing to admit his songs nonetheless catch on. He has more hits than anyone else currently working in his industry. APKGK was one of his better soundtracks.
One of the complaints that I had with D6 was that the lead pair really should have been explored more by Mehra. Obviously Players isn’t the subject to balance things in this sense (!) but I do like this pair and await a proper film with these two. Much as I also think the Abhishek-Balan pair should be taken further after Paa.
I kind of like this latest song.
Best part of the video is the rain sequence.
Don’t think much of Abhishek/Sonam pairing. She’s too girlish, young for him. I’d much rather see him with someone closer to his age.
Though I know in BW there are hardly any options.
don’t like the song.. prefer Jhoom jhoom, the Abhishek number and even the Tun song. But I am not the target Pritam listener in any case. There’s not a single soundtrack of his I truly like including the stronger ones. Was quite addicted to his Bhool Bhulaiya title track for a while (I know it’s lifted) and in more recent time his strongest number in my view is the LAK end credits song. Getting back to the video the only thing that interests me here is the location. Wonder where they’ve shot this.
I agree Sonam is far too girlish for most of the men she is paired opposite, there is something about her which is very naive and childish- not child-like but childish. I’ve only liked her pairing with Imran Khan so far- because he is very boyish too.
In Delhi 6 I got serious protective big brother vibes from Abhishek. I think she might work better with Farhan Akhtar in their next movie because he sometimes has that childish aspect to him as well.
I like Ahsihek’s pairing with Rani the best- and Vidya has potenial but even if he cannot be paired with some one his age- I think he would suit a younger woman as long as she seemed more mature. I would like to see him opposite Radhika Apte or Illena D’Souza.
I think it wasn’t live in the US as they claimed.. a bit absurd but it was supposed to be around 7:30 PM in India.. however their clock showed it would start at 7:30 PM EST. I didn’t watch it though so don’t know what actually happened.
Abhishek, Bipasha perform stunts at ‘Players’ music launch
Agencies Posted online: Sat Dec 10 2011, 11:23 hrs
Mumbai : Lead actors of upcoming movie ‘Players’ performed live stunts at an event to launch the music of the film.
The Abbas-Mustan directed action-thriller stars Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Omi Vaidya.
Riding a pillion on a stuntman, Bipasha took a 360 degree turn before an explosion went off. Then, Sonam came in a truck and broke a gold-brick wall, while driving a red car, Abhishek smashed a glass frame and took a 360 degree turn before two explosions.
“I thank one and all for the love and support for the film. We hope you all like it,” Abhishek said.
Other stars — Bobby, Neil and Omi — came on stage and spoke about their respective roles in the film.
Film’s director duo Abbas-Mustan, music director Pritam, Bhushan Kumar of T-Series and others were present on the occasion.
“It is a smart intelligent, stylish and entertaining movie. We hope everyone enjoys it,” the director duo told reporters here after the music launch.
‘Players’, a remake of Hollywood film ‘The Italian Job’, releases on January 6.
Posted On Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 01:32:13 PM
Abhishek Bachchan and the entire gang of Players, had the audience in trance as they performed live stunts during the film’s music launch.
They thrilled the crowd who turned up in overwhelming numbers, to catch their favourite stars do some never-seen-before stunts in front of a live audience.
Leaving behind the conventional dance and music routine, the music launch was planned on a magnanimous budget and orchestrated by the film’s action director, the renowned Allan Amin.
Players music launch saw an introduction to each character in the film in a novel, never-seen-before manner with high definition explosions, shattering glass and breath taking fireworks that had the audience holding on to their seats.
The ultimate Player- Abhishek Bachchan drove through a life-size glass wall in a high-end sports car in which he did a series of 360 degree turns amidst detonations .The gorgeous Bipasha Basu had everyone shocked with her dare-devil act on an ATV bike.
Says an onlooker “This was possibly the biggest event of the year.”
Players is the official remake of the Hollywood crime thriller The Italian Job filmed across India, New Zealand and Russia.
Massive disappointment. I was expecting this latest song to be coolest one, and it turned trash. Why they chose to skip Abhishek’s voice version ? That was way better. And abhishek act in this song is underwhelming.
From Rufugee till now, i never able to understood Abhishek completely. He improved his acting skills post Rann and Yuva, but never able to come up with complete confidence in entire movie. Some scenes he do with complete conviction and confidence, and some time he become so alien to acting. This song is latest example of his alien towards acting .. What he is doing seriously ??
His father created magic in fun songs like these. Check Amitabh charismatic act in “Chal mere bhai tere hath jodta hun”, “Jaa jaldi bhaag ja nahi baba nahi”, “Lambu ji lambu ji”, “Tu mayke mat jayio” … and numerous others. He was so magical and magnetic.
What Abhishek is doing here putting me in shame. I always wanted him to do well and he from time to time, come up with fine performances, But boy, he need to work on all his weakness. He dance very bad and sometime he looks not comfortable on screen, felt like shying away from camera. But never understood, why all of sudden sometimes he come up with great performances ?? I mean either you remain good, or remain bad .. why switch between these two always and confuse others ?
I actually liked it more than the previous one. Because I always find him a bit self-parodying and zany in this sort of thing. In the last one I liked the sets (modeled on Hampi) but otherwise it was regular (do like the pair though). More generic if you will. This too is obviously generic but Abhishek never does these completely seriously. There’s a certain Idea ad tone here which has always been true for him in these situations. So I find the ‘mismatch’ quite appealing in this sense.
I think Abhishek is fine in this song. It’s more about his attitude and it works for him.
Sonam on the other hand doesn’t really work because she lacks the dance skill and she doesn’t pull off the sexy image.
The thing is whether one likes it or not this is the persona Abhishek has always had in these songs. But also people tend to be confused about this. His style has always been a kind of Bombay-cool (people from the city know what this means in a very specific sense… Abhishek in many of his metro-sexual outings typifies that attitude far more than any of his peers which is why in Bombay this sort of thing plays very differently than in Delhi for example) which is to say a laid-back ‘not taking it too seriously’ kind of deal. But that self-parody element is always there. Leaving this aside it’s less about ‘style’ and more about the fact that he’s simply too ‘authentic’ to seem completely at home in this sort of genre and terrain.
But again and with due respect to some of the fans they’re always for the film and role he isn’t doing. When he does it they’re never satisfied. Either they’re upset about the box office returns or even otherwise the film doesn’t please them. So when he tries purely commercial stuff it’s again about never being satisfied with what is and always looking for that elusive ‘other’ one that would be perfect for him.
This is partly Abhishek’s own doing because he has not created a sustained narrative in any one direction (this is just a characterization, not a judgment here) which is the life-blood of any star. When you keep repeating yourself in a certain genre even the less convincing gets normalized over time. On the other creating ‘uncertainty’ more often than not is worse than doing something that people find bad in an obvious sense. His issue hasn’t been the latter, it’s been that people find a lot of the work (rightly or wrongly) ‘incomprehensible’. This is a dangerous zone for a star to be in.
But there is always a symbiotic relationship between a star and his fans and I’d repeat again that the fans are at least as much all over the place as they think he is.
still haven’t figured out the mystery of the voice.. unless they’re bringing out a music video (for the end credits) later but there isn’t an alternate version on the album unlike something like Jhoom which absurdly has 3-4 versions (Pritam ‘remixing’ a song is an example of unintended hilarity!).
because it seemed to work in all the films that did work when he was doing the same stuff.. BM is one of his more important films and it exemplifies this style and rhythm.. it’s had a shelf life beyond the gross but also I’d say it’s arguably his most important film with his female audience.
In this interview, he has clearly mentioned bluffmaster is not Players. The attitudes are different, he has to show the difference in dances and style. To me,that is missing….
I think it’s two different things.. obviously Abbas-Mustaan are nothing like Rohan Sippy! We don’t need him to tell us this. But whenever this kind of song occurs in any film he’s likely to do it this way because that’s just his way of doing things. And this applied to any star. When songs or situations are ‘generic’ in films that might otherwise be very different stars do them in similar ways. In BM though he didn’t do songs this way, there he was more in keeping with the overall tone of the film because that was a well-defined film in a tonal sense. He had to stay in character throughout. when I introduced the BM example yesterday though what I meant what that BM exemplifies in certain ways Abhishek’s pace and rhythm and instincts as a star. But this is also something that cropped up in Dhoom or Dus bahane. There is always in him a laid-back sense on these occasions (which is not a negative in my book as surely as Clint Eastwood’s ‘lazier’ rhythm wasn’t one either) which is also always twinned with a certain mock or self-parodying tone. which is why I mentioned the Idea campaign as well. All of these things are part of the same deal for me no matter how differently configured. But of course when he does something like DMD or Guru or whatever where he’s required to be a completely different character and consistently so throughout the film he does so. An even better example in this regard is Dostana where he just needed to be more energetic and even over the top and he was this in the film. There you didn’t see the BM sort of vibe. But in Players he is kind of like the Dhoom guy in the sense that on a terrain of stunts and action he is the guy who’s nonetheless ‘too cool’ to alter his pace. This is a stance which works well when done right. Yes it’s Abbas-Mustaan, it’s not rocket science but one of the things about having an actor like Abhishek is that he’s not going to just fit into the scenery. He’s going to introduce a more serious dimension to the film by way of his persona or performance. Now many are not looking for this in this sort of ‘nothing’ film. But again it’s something he’s always done.
Whether one agrees with me or not my disagreement here is that there is nothing metaphysically different between what he is or is doing now compared to what he was or did when he was far more successful or even when he’s had the odd success in recent years. Forgetting my examples most people liked him in Dostana, Paa, DMD. He’s the same guy. Similarly in earlier hits he still had the same pace and so on. What happens is that when a star starts failing everything can be defined as part of the problem. The idea that all of his peers at every level are on one side of the equation in doing something right while he is on the other all alone getting it all wrong is frankly something I find absurd. Specially when I don’t see most of those peers becoming more successful than him doing supposedly the right things. But even most of the ones who are weren’t doing anything different for the longest time in terms of their physicality or gesturality when they were out in the cold (Salman or Devgan).
I’d say (and this gets back to my older point) that Abhishek can never really pass under the radar for a whole host of reasons and so a lot of stuff he does is micro-analyzed. But also there is a certain confusion among even his fans that parallels many of the tentative decisions he himself has made career-wise at many points. All of this coalesces into a ‘reaction’ where one is not even clear about what one is objecting to. I am not suggesting one cannot have problems with Abhishek. But I think his choice of films offers such an obvious ‘dull’ truth about why he really failed that to go in for more fancy or metaphysical explanations misses the point. Unless one is willing to assert that a superfit, super-aggressive Abhishek would have made D6 work!
And to be very clear about something related to this I am not at all suggesting that physicality does not matter. It absolutely does. But these ‘expectations’ are graded differently depending on the star and it’s also about the genre of the film. In other words looking like John Abraham matters less if you’re doing D6 as opposed to Dhoom. Because the audience in one example does not go in primarily for the eye candy reasons. Now it is also true that stars have to minimally offer that eye-candy in film after film irrespective of the genre. Which for Abhishek then doesn’t imply working out like John or Hrithik but just looking enough of the guy audiences loved in some of his prior films or since. In other words the star never has the luxury to just be the character unless the ‘character’ then becomes the point of the film like Guru. But even here the star has to be minimally ‘attractive’ when he’s not the older, heavier guy and even as the latter he has to suggest attractive physicality in a different sense (he has to look more imposing or whatever). But all of this is not physicality understood in the usual sense of the ‘standards of the age’ or ‘what audiences want’ and so on. Because this reading is to my mind always a reductive one for movie stars.
The pure body which is inextricably linked with the visual medium is also given new life by the same. A physicality which is extremely effective for a model is more often than not less so for the same when he or she becomes an actor. Because cinema does not rely in the flicker of a moment or an instant through which a flash of the ‘beautiful’ might appear. It calls for a kind of ‘beautiful’ that can be sustained for a much longer period and one which ‘traffics’ with the person/character on screen. In other words the structure of the model depends on the effacement of character. In cinema it’s much more complicated. Here even the most alluring physicality still has to be ‘supported’ by a whole set of ‘personality’/character codes. Which is why despite accepting Aishwarya Rai as the most beautiful woman around the audience never loved her the way they loved Madhuri. In cinema one has to explain why Katrina excites people so much and Priyanka cannot even begin to compete with the latter. Or one could use other examples. Physicality cannot be divorced from the gestural in cinema but it also cannot be removed from the ‘substance’ of the star-actor.
The reason why so many stars seem less problematic in the ‘substance’ sense is because most of them are utter mediocrities. Which is to say they might look great, they might be beautiful or attractive, fine physical specimens if you will, but they don’t necessarily have the intangibles that can buttress their physicality. They are in a sense replaceable. Sure Priyanka Chopra is an attractive, alluring woman. But she isn’t distinctive in any true sense. Madhuri (or I would say Rani Mukherjee) weren’t the most beautiful people imaginable, not the greatest sex symbols certainly but they had more intangibles (Rani of course for a much briefer period before she destroyed her career..). Similarly take John Abraham. Many models in India and globally are ‘like’ him. So unless he’s bringing something else to the table he’s just that — a ‘beautiful’ body. Now this doesn’t mean they’re all the same. priyanka Chopra can still act better than many others but she isn’t good enough on that score and she isn’t distinctive enough in terms of her physicality. She’s fine in the right film but so are many others. It’s then a question of one’s career choices and luck and so on.
Getting back to Abhishek his unique signature always means that he can never be identified with the ephemeral or the instant ‘fix’. He can try this from time to time or for moments in a film but his career can never be ‘about’ this. In other words as a combination of who he is and the choices he’s made he can never be just the guy doing lots of chick flicks no matter how good or fit he looks. In other words Dostana can never be his permanent career. On the flip side for some of the same reasons he cannot also just be ‘ordinary’ in a film. He has to be ‘the man’ if you will in a very precise symbolic sense or the audience doesn’t like it (I’d say this is true for just about every film where he’s been critically and/or commercially appreciated). With hrithik it’s the opposite. The audience doesn’t expect a Guzaarish or a JA from him. If they’re entertaining films they’ll work but that’s not what he’s perceived to be about. He could go through an entire career doing Krrish or Dhoom or some genre that simply accenting his physicality and dancing skills and so on without the audience ever objecting to it. Abhishek wouldn’t have that option even if he were that much of a gym body.
The audience ultimately and whatever they might say at a conscious level have some inner sense of what a star is about. No one objects to Akshay doing a 100 comedies. They dislike so many bad attempts these days but they don’t have the feeling that he should be doing more meaningful cinema. When he does no one turns up! Because they don’t have the perception that he’s a serious actor who’s somehow lost in the maze of meaningless stuff or whatever. With Aamir it’s the opposite. At least over the last decade the way he’s built up his career the general sense is that there should always be some measure of ‘meaning’ to his choices, even the most commercial ones. And Aamir provides precisely this in every film. These examples could be multiplied. But the point once more is that with Abhishek his choices specially the Mehra-Rathnam stuff coupled with the Sarkar kind of deal or on the other side a BM kind of thing and so on was what the audience expected. In other words the narrative more defined by those ‘serious’ choices but with enough interludes of the more escapist kind. Irrespective of how many of the choices turned out that was the paradigm. The Players terrain isn’t most naturally suited for him but if the film is right and if there’s enough symbolic weight to his part he can get by doing it with the right song and dance thrown in (people forget that some of the most iconic such moments in recent memory have involved him from BnB to BM through Dostana).
The right physicality matters for all of this but that doesn’t mean he has to become a gym body. Because again the audience doesn’t expect it. By the way note that when even the fans sometimes react negatively to his doing something like Players they’re reacting to the incongruity of it. But this comes about because of the image he’s created with the audience or the path he’s mostly walked away from after having a first flush of success with it. If he had stuck to endless clones of BnB or BM or Dus or whatever no one would have found Players odd. At the same time because he is mentally as an actor not where he was when he did that earlier stuff he invests some of these roles with even more ‘gravitas’ than is necessarily required. This creates the incongruity, not the lack of a gym body or thereof.
In any case my larger point is that certain stars are more attached to economies of ‘permanence’ and ‘substance’ while others profit from the ‘instantaneous’ and the ‘replicable’. A star is minimally good looking, goes to the gym and works out like crazy, there is nothing not to like! But cinematic ‘effectiveness’ is a different deal. It is for these reasons that John has never had much of a career. hrithik is the only truly top bracket star who depends on being ‘the body’. salman has been at it much longer and he too has mixed it up over time with a very zany sort of persona that in someways undercuts what would otherwise come across as ‘earnest’ (as it does with Hrithik). It’s true that other than Abhishek every major or minor star aims for that gym body (with the exception of akshay Kumar who works out like crazy but who nonetheless is not in the 6 pack game (and aims for a much more ‘natural physique’.. in fact he is the best model for Abhishek on this score) or the waxed chest stuff or whatever. But with all the other stars their careers are not better for their having been on steroids (there was that piece some months back which suggested that just about every major star, the top 7-8, had taken steroids at some point or the other, with the exception of Abhishek of course and, I would think, Ranbir). I find Deepika to be the most beautiful actress of the current lot but that does not help her gain over her rivals in the absence of other ‘cinematic’ strengths. Again all of these examples could be multiplied.
Aditya Chopra in a well known and oft-quoted moment once told Abhishek that the audience rarely loves a star in the true sense and when a star had that thing going for him he should try hard not to lose it. Abhishek one way or the other didn’t follow that advice! But the point here is that the audience that loved him in 2005 (most of all) was doing so when gym bodies were every bit the norm that they are today. Sure he was younger and leaner (though I think he’s currently as lean as he was then) but still hardly like John or Hrithik or whoever. To reduce cinematic presence and effect to textbook notions of physicality is I think a completely misplaced sense of the medium. Not just in India but anywhere in the world.
also think we’ve lost all notion of distinctive physicality and/or screen presence that isn’t tied in with notions of fitness and gym bodies. As if films were no more than an extension of workout videos! Even in these ‘plastic’ times there is more to it than that!
Abhishek has to work on his dances which is his main weakness. Katrina used to be a horrible dancer few years back. After worked with Farah Khan and other good choreographers, atleast she is dancing the way how masses like,.
Abhishek has to work with PrabhuDeva/Farh Khan to just prove that he can do better than his signature moves.
In the twitter, there is no buzz about Players. It is really a concern for an actor and the producer..
yes this trailer is in the post.. I was surprised to hear a different voice here.. I can only assume that they’re making a proper music video with Abhishek’s version.
though abbas mustan have shamelessly copied they allmost made the career of every one ( srk big ticket after bazigar , akshay-khiladi and in second half of his career to establish him ajnabee, priyanka’s main recognition aitraz, some of akshay khanna’s best commercial roles, saif’s highest grosser and his revival race etc
rohan sippy’s movie are technically far superior but will always have urban niche audience …though this guy is very talented and some of his movie in dvd circuit have great shelf including his latest dmd which did’t do that well commercially
surprising, the album got positive reviews everywhere. In any case these new tracks won’t be in the film (maybe part of the BGM). So it’s going to be more of an advertising gimmick. But odd to say the least.
Taking on from ricky bahl—hope Dipanitas “style sense” rubbed onto ABhishrek a bit more
My related note elsewhere
to add–liked some of the (clothing)designer work on dipanita and ranveer
Now recall that Dipanita had an abhishrek connection–news for satyam…
DIpanita was the girl who abhishrek “used and dumped” apparently—just as per reports.
Used to wonder whats the big deal with her
In this movie–thought Dipanita was good—seems abhishrek has a good choice with women (obviously ash)
(though karisma remains a “blot” in his womanising “career” lol imo)
“Ladkee hai nadaan” is pretty crappy…exactly what one might expect from Pritam-in-an-Abbas & Mastan film…
I do like the look of the Abhishek/Sonam pair, although only wish we had better roles than I expect these to be — Abhishek brings a certain playful skepticism to these sorts of songs, and Sonam has one of the more distinctive looks among contemporary Bollywood heroines (as does Deepika Padukone).
Not Himesh, but Pritam
By Taran Adarsh ,Dec 20, 2011 – 08:51 hrs IST
Everyone in the industry is talking about Himesh Reshammiya recording two additional songs for Abbas-Mustan’s PLAYERS. The music of this much-awaited film was launched with fanfare a few days ago [Pritam is the music composer], hence this latest development of including two songs by another music composer [Himesh] does raise eyebrows.
But Abbas of Abbas-Mustan duo denies they are hiring the services of Himesh to record the additional songs. “Two things need to be clarified. One, we are recording just one song. Two, Pritam, not Himesh is recording this track. The additional song will be filmed on Abhishek Bachchan and an actress [under finalization] on 23rd/24th December. The song in question will be placed towards the end of the film,” Abbas divulges.
So how did the rumor originate? “We share a terrific rapport with Himesh. He has composed the music of our films. We do meet occasionally and I presume, people must’ve thought we’re working together. It’s not true,” Abbas adds.
But I wonder now if they’re doing a different track with Abhishek for the end credits. One would assume it’s the buddhi do bhagwaan song which has a different voice on the trailer. It would be fairly predictable then to have his version on the end credits in a music video. However this Abhishek version is already present on the soundtrack (CD). So I’m not sure what’s up here. If they’re going in for a new track hopefully it’s a much better one (though I have taken a liking to buddhi do bhagwaan, i.e. with Abhishek’s voice)!
It does not matter if they add one song or two. Unless Bobby Deol’s (playing the bad guy) role is bigger and has more impact than the commercial compromised lead, the movie is doomed. Bobby needs to do a Roshan (a la Dhoom II). On Booby will depend Dhoom or Doom.
Such movies require a strong/charismatic bad guy. Neil definitely is way better than say Abhishek on the looks front, but acting wise he is about just as much a dud as Abhishek. Hence anyone bank rolling a movie like Players with Neil as the effective lead role is committing a grave & fatal error.
Abbas-Mastan claim that they have adapted Italian Job and taken some creative liberties. I believe they have rearranged some characters and thereby given the effective lead role to Bobby. This seems like a better bet. I believe they have incorporated some from “The Score” into the “Italian Job”.
neil became biggie last heard he played second fiddle to john and here to abhishek and acting wise the kid shown some potential in johnny gaddar to( in negetive role)
its ironical the guy supposed to have lead role is neither part of promotion nor getting so called footage
My point is that Neil is still not big enough to warrant a huge investment.
Hence I am suggesting that perhaps Abbas-Mastan have reworked things to make Bobby the effective lead.
In any case I don’t think the movie will work unless the negative character is awesome (as in the Dhoom series). A movie like Players needs a charismatic bad guy.
Abbas-Mustan To Add Jumma Chumma Remix To Players
December 22nd, 2011 by Komal Nahta
It’s official now. Because the music of Players has not caught on, it has been decided to add a song to give the much needed boost to the audio sales. Abbas-Mustan’s films have generally boasted of hit music but Pritam Chakraborty’s score in Players has not quite lived up to the audience’s expectations as well as the director duo’s reputation. What started as nagging by the audio company, T-Series, ultimately ended in a consensual understanding between the music company, the producers (Viacom 18 Motion) and the directors (Abbas-Mustan). Pritam himself will now remix the super-hit Jumma chumma de de song from the Amitabh Bachchan starrer, Hum (1991), which will be added in the Players album.
Hopefully, the music of the multi-starrer will get the much needed boost, so necessary to ensure that the film gets a decent opening on 6th January 2012. At first the directors, who are known to be fiercely protective about their films, were not happy with the creative interference but they finally relented.
Players: Most Difficult Film To Edit
Incidentally, Players could well go down in cinema history as the film which has taken the longest time to edit. Reveled, Abbas-Mustan “Our brother (editor) Hussain Burmawala too six-and-a-half months to finish the editing. This was our most difficult film to edit.” Believe it or not, the film was always shot with multi-camera setups. At times, there used to be six and even seven cameras capturing the action scenes.”
Players is the official remake of the Hollywood film, The Italian Job, which was made in 1969 (starring Michael Caine) and again in 2003 (starring Mark Wahlberg).
while I don’t trust Nahata’s commentary here (he’s been negative on the film throughout, either highlighting the negative or not talking about the film at all when things are positive.. won’t get into all his agendas here.. for example I never heard him talk about the Don soundtrack!) I do find the Jumma Chumma choice an odd one to say the least. Not sure where it fits into the film at such a late stage. Beyond this I assume he means a cover version here and not a remix. Would be odder still to have the original song! Have the gravest doubts about this story though.
Trust Abhishek Bachchan to be a pro whether he is shooting a movie or promoting it. While marketing his upcoming movie, Players, the official Hindi remake of The Italian Job, he has set himself up for a stunt. He will tear through the posters of the Abbas-Mustan directed thriller that revolves around a gold heist, along with the film’s tagline, Phata poster nikla player. (Tear the poster and a player emerges)
The promotional gimmick was flagged off in Jaipur yesterday. The director duo credits the marketing team with the idea and says everyone, including ‘hero’ Abhishek loved it.
Point out the striking resemblance to the line, Phata poster, nikla hero from Naseeruddin Shah’s 1988 comic caper Hero Hiralal and the makers shrug off any connection with Ketan Mehta film.
“I don’t exactly remember any such dialogue from the film, there’s no co-relation between the two,” asserts Abbas but admits that maybe someone from the marketing team was inspired by Naseer’s line.
While promoting the film, Abhishek will mouth different lines from Players in every city after his ‘tearing’ entry. “The idea is to convey the basic idea of Players through the dialogue,” adds Abbas, adding that Abhishek will be traveling to Ahmedabad, Delhi, Pune and Indore among other cities. “Mustan bhai and I won’t be accompanying the stars to all the cities because we are busy with the last minute post-production. The film will be wrapped up in the next five-six days.”
Abbas admits that Players has taken a lot of time and effort, but agrees that it’s understandable for a film made on such a grand scale. The film also stars Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Omi Vaidya and Sikandar Kher.
Hi All, first post here. Heard about this site/blog from a friend of mine who spoke very HIGHLY about Satyam and his command of the language, his analytical skill and deep undying love for the Bachchans.
I love Big B… Who doesn’t. But Junior B just plain scares me. Barring 1-2 films be has THOROUGHLY and HUGELY dissapointed. I don’t think he EVER will be in a “superstar” class EVER. He, however, outside of films comes across as a very down to earth and well educated person… Good head over his shoulders. Unfortunately so NOT star material.
I think PLAYERS is gonna bomb big time… Probably open in the 20% -25% range that too in multiplexes and lower in the interiors. The star cast sucks, music hasn’t caugh on, promotions subpar both in India and overseas. Nothing is going in its favor. Honestly looks to cheap and cheesey. No hot item number … just nothing going for it that would pull in audiences.
It’s game over for Junior. He should just hang it up and focus on production etc. At this point I don’t think he is even cut out for TV. No looks, no dancing skills, mediocre acting at best. Heck even Tushaar Kapoor is ahead of him. It’s really sad. And it appears as thought he is not taking this seriously. He has to look presentable in this day and age when looks matter… He has to be lean and build a 6 pack… I bet you that will draw in the crowds more than his ability… People would just line up to see that. Really don know why he doesn’t. Has the same stubble a d double chin look in film after film. I was honestly really hoping Raavan and D6 would tal him to another level but it pushed him back even further. He is finished IMHO. Dhoom3 has a chance but we know why. I think Bol Bachchan too and we know why.
I REALLY feel bad because he genuinely seems like a nice guy, has humility like his dad and comes across as a fun dude…. But STAR material he is not.
Oh well I pray that BetiB changes his luck for the better.
i think you are an astrologer, who predicts everything about abhishek, i think this is your personal opinion, and you have the right to have your opinion, but that is not the ultimate truth, i have followed abhishek since his debut, with every film, he has improved a lot, anyone can’t call him mediocre after films like guru, yuva, raavan, sarkar, sarkar raj, dostana, phir milenge, dmd, delhi 6, paa etc, don’t be so harsh on anyone, you might have to eat your own words
The promos of Players have been doing the rounds for a few days now and one obvious thing which a lot of people noticed was the fact that most of the songs were picturised on Sonam Kapoor leaving us wondering whether the other actress Bipasha Basu had any song picturised on her. Well, all you fans of Bips can now heave a sigh of relief as the song featuring Bipasha called ‘Ho Gayi Tun’ is now rocking the airwaves. The song features Bipasha dancing in a club and also has Abhishek, Bobby, Sikander, Neil and Omi.
Director Abbas (of Abbas-Mustan duo) said that they had asked choreographer Bosco-Caesar to refer to veteran actress Helenji’s dance moves. A major part of the song has been shot in a Moscow night club. The song has Bips trying to seduce a Russian Army officer. The story doesn’t end here. Abbas also added that since the said night club was open from 5 pm to 4 am only, it gave the crew very little time for retakes and set ups. That’s why they shot the major portions there while the rest of the song was shot at an identical set that was erected in Chandivili studios in Mumbai.
The eagerly awaited Players will hit the cinemas on January 6. And besides the film’s star-studded cast – Abhishek Bachchan, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonam Kapoor and Bipasha Basu – director duo Abbas Alibhai Burmawalla and Mustan Alibhai Burmawalla have been busy promoting their film. In a career spanning more than 25 years, the directors have made 20 films, most of which have been adventure rides. Their latest venture too promises plenty of thrills and chills. Travelling across the country to endorse the film, the duo squeezes out time for a Q&A session…
Is it true that you initially wanted Ranbir Kapoor for Players?
Abbas (A): Not true at all!
Mustan (M): We always had Abhishek Bachchan in mind.
A: You won’t believe this, but we have been in talks with Abhishek Bachchan for eight years. We were all keen to work together but could not come up with a subject that would suit his personality till Viacom 18 approached us to remake the Hollywood hit, The Italian Job. The first actor that came to our mind was Abhishek.
M: We felt he was perfect for the part.
A: The same goes for Neil (Nitin Mukesh). He was keen to work with us and kept insisting, ‘Whenever you start a film, I would like to be part of it’. This time, we had an interesting role for him too and he readily came on board.
M: As for Bobby (Deol), he did not even ask for a narration. He considers us family. We have already done five films with him, and he was game for this one too.
What do you feel about today’s generation of actors?
A: Well, they are very professional. They have a great respect not only for their own time but also for other people’s time.
M: They are very punctual. I feel they are technically sound too. Even the actresses are aware of things outside their purview. We found Sonam Kapoor very fashion-conscious, with a good dressing sense. Ditto for Bipasha Basu.
How different is Players from The Italian Job?
A: We have seen both the 1969 and 2003 versions of The Italian Job and thoroughly enjoyed them. And though we have retained the visuals as they were in the original film, it was still a challenge to make it in Hindi.
M: And we are sure you will find Players very different from The Italian Job.
A: There are enough twists and turns to keep the viewer hooked.
Then, why add a song at the last minute?
A: What song? We have not added any new song to the film.
M: All the songs were conceptualised long ago.
You are releasing a film after a long time. Your last release Race was in 2008.
A: These things happen.
M: There are several reasons. Sometimes, the script is not ready or is not up to the mark and needs to be reworked. At times, actors’ dates are a problem and we have to postpone shooting. It’s all part of this profession.
Yet you have made 20 films in the last 25 years.
A: I wish we had made 25 films. That would have given us an average of one film a year (Laughs). I feel a director should release at least one film a year.
M: But it still feels very good to have made 20 films in 25 years. It makes us feel proud.
A: Do you know that we started our career with Gujarati films in 1986? A producer called Pravin Patel asked us to make two Gujarati films for his banner. Both films did well at the box office but we still had to struggle a lot to establish ourselves in the Hindi film industry.
M: The only two actors who supported us then were Raj Babbar and Jeetendra.
A: We made Agneekal with them.
M: We then made Khiladi with Akshay Kumar and haven’t looked back since.
Interestingly, you will have two releases in 2012, Players and Race 2.
A: Yes, Players on January 6 and Race 2 on November 30.
M: We aren’t taking anything for granted. The week after Players is released; we will begin shooting for Race 2. We have already completed a 15-day schedule of the film in Mumbai studios.
What about your role as producers? There hasn’t been another venture after Life Partner.
A: We have not given up on being producers.
M: We have roped in directors like Nishikant Kamat and Rohit Jugraj to helm projects for our banner banner. In fact, we even want our brother, Hussain Burmawalla, to debut as a director under our banner.
A: We keep pestering him (laughs). He says he will direct a film when he is ready. Earlier, he was busy editing films made by other directors. Today, he is busy editing films made by us.
M: He is always with us on the sets. I am sure he will make a good director.
You are often accused of lifting plots from Hollywood films.
A: We depend entirely on our writers. We listen to their narration. We have trusted our scriptwriters and have given their scripts our interpretation and vision.
M: Had we to watch A Kiss Before Dying then I don’t think Baazigar would have shaped out the way it had.
A: Even for Daraar, we heard the late Sachin Bhowmick’s script and were impressed. He had said he was strongly motivated by a film called Sleeping With The Enemy and thought it would make a good Hindi film. We liked the idea of a woman killing her obsessed husband.
What about Race 2?
A: Well, like Race, the plot is very intriguing. There are shades of grey to all the characters in the film.
M: That is what makes the plot interesting.
Oddly, you have been steadfastly loyal to the thriller genre and to negative characters.
A: We are known for our thrillers. The corporate house that approaches us expects us to make interesting thrillers for them.
M: We have carved a niche for ourselves in that area and we have never thought of experimenting with family drama or comedy. We are happy making edge-of-the-seat entertainers.
What is it that keeps Abbas-Mustan united?
A: Our unity (laughs)! Seriously, we have no ego hassles and we understand each other well.
M: Though we are two different individuals with different minds, we think alike.
Actors Sonam Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan will be part of a mock train robbery on Delhi Metro as part of their promotional campaign for their upcoming film. Filmmaker duo Abbas-Mustan has secured the permission from the Delhi Metro authorities to break into a vault in a Metro to expose the security loopholes on the train.
“Abhishek and Sonam, leading the gang consisting of Bipasha Basu and Neil Nitin Mukesh will try to break into a vault of a Metro train as part of the promotional campaign for Players, since there is a similar kind of a sequence in the film and it goes with the plot. Also, this will expose the security gaps in the system and will serve as a mock drill for the security forces responsible for the Metro in Delhi,” says an official on why the permission was granted for this activity in such a sensitive zone in Delhi. The Delhi Metro authorities have never given such a permission, given the sentitive nature of the government property and keeping in mind the bomb blasts that had happened this year.
“Abhishek and Sonam will be conducting the mock security drill where they would get into a train and would open a security vault inside the train. The security personnel would be told not to stop them by the senior official accompanying them, but an advance alert about it is not being sounded to everybody. They also need to see how they alert the central system and react to the situation even though they see a few stars doing things on the train that they normally shouldn’t have done,” the source added.
The ‘robbing time’ has been fixed at half an hour where Sonam and Abhishek will try the break-in. “The moment an alert is sounded, the activity will stop. So, it would be a maximum of fifteen minutes and after that the stars will meet the security personnel and interact with them. It is of course a publicity stunt, but it will be of mutual benefit both to the Delhi Metro and the film,” the source ends.
From there, the actors are supposed to move to a nearby multiplex to interact with their fans.
He’s gone all out this time around. While he’s done extensive media rounds in the past this time it’s this stuff too. The mock robbery is a good idea. But also the volume is high on TV (which hasn’t always been the case in the past) and they’ve done every kind of teaser-promo at every stage. As I said yesterday I saw a new dialog promo on Sony a couple of days ago that isn’t yet available online. Will be interesting to see the initial here.
New Delhi, Dec 29: Abhishek Bachchan-Bipasha Basu took on Neil Nitin Mukesh-Sonam Kapoor in a bowling competition here Thursday which ended with their opponents being roundly pipped, much to the delight of the large crowd that had gathered to watch the rivalry unfold.
The competition for the Golden Bowling Trophy was staged at the PVR BluO at the Ambience Mall in Vasant Kunj to promote their film “Players”.
As the foursome started playing, the alley was filled with the sounds of cheering and clapping.
Although Abhishek pretended he didn’t know much about the game, he kickstarted the match by striking out hard and roared: “Bring it on guys. I am ready to play.”
Neil gave Abhishek tough competition, while Sonam most of the time ended up hitting loose shots. She later showed improvement, eliciting praise from Bipasha, who said: “You are improving Sonam.”
Bipasha, however, refused to play. The reason? Eyesight problems.
“I would need my specs to get the right shots,” she said jokingly.
All in all Abhishek emerged the winner with the maximum number of points, though Neil too fought hard. (IANS)
Abhishek Bachchan is a huge fan of the original Italian Job and the actor says he jumped at the chance to star in the Bollywood remake as he was bored of doing experimental films.
The actor says he has seen the Michael Caine starrer many times and enjoyed doing the Abbas-Mustan’s Hindi remake ‘Players’, all set to hit theatres on January 6. “I enjoy doing action films. Actually, in the last two-three years I have done more experimental films and I was really looking forward to get back to my original love,” Abhishek told PTI.
“When Abbas narrated the film, I was all excited to start it. I knew he is the man who can handle the remake properly. Being from a British boarding school, Michael Caine used to be my hero. I have watched his ‘The Italian Job’ many times. There was a time when I used to know all the dialogues by heart,” the 35-year-old actor added.
The film was again made in 2003 by F Gary Gray, starring Mark Wahlberg and Abhishek is confident that it will be third time lucky for him.
“Mark Wahlberg did a superb job as he portrayed a completely different character of what Caine had done. He gave his own spin to the character.
“Similarly, when I approached the film, I also tried to do something different. I took it as a challenge to portray the character in my own way but by maintaining the essence of the originality in it. Usually in our films we see thieves steal either for greed or money. But there is an emotional reason attached to it,” Abhishek said.
Starting his career with cross-border love story ‘Refugee’, Abhishek has often been criticised by the critics for the kind of films he has done. But he says he has always taken criticism positively.
“People often compared me with dad (Amitabh Bachchan). But I have never felt low in my life. Rather I have looked at the other side of the criticism. People criticise me because they feel I am worth the comparison with my dad,” he said.
The actor, who has become a proud father of a baby girl with wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, said the presence of the baby did not stop him from promoting the film.
“Promoting my film is my priority at this moment as there are other people to look after the baby. That’s a part of one’s job. My family completely understands it. The actor said they are yet to come up with a name for the child.
Agreed buzz seems to be improving which is good and heartening to see Abhishek and Players team going all out to promote it. Players must have the best buzz of any of recent Abhishek movies I can think off. They have covered lot of ground on marketing front in last week and must continue to up the ante in these 4-5 days before release.
I saw this whole episode yesterday and must say Abhishek maintained his composure unlike many. He was unperturbed by the constant criticism and attacks on his fitness as well as acting by this girl. He was a true gentleman and heard her out. Infact, he went on to declare tht this episode was a good learning experience for him and took it positively. Must say he is quite a cool head inspite of all the pressure in the world and recent debacles behind him.
Talks about the next Ab Corp production. Earlier he mentioned it would have a much bigger budget and of course there was talk of an Amit Sharma project. What I didn’t realize was that this is the guy behind the Idea ads. If this tone is brought to an entire film with father and son in it (Abhishek’s saying it’s out and out masala) I think it will be something special and quite possibly a massive grosser.
NEW DELHI: Players may have big names like Bipasha Basu, Bobby Deol and Neil Nitin Mukesh but Sonam Kapoor says the multi-starrer film belongs to her and co-star Abhishek Bachchan.
The 26-year-old actress, who will be seen opposite Abhishek after Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s ‘Dilli 6’, said she plays the lead in every multi-starrer.
“I have always been the lead in my multi-starrer films. Abhishek and I were the lead in ‘Dilli 6’, ‘Thank You’ was about me and Akshay, ‘Aisha’ was all me and even now ‘Players’ is about Abhishek and I. The onus is on me as a lead. But at the same time there are so many supporting people in the film who help you make it a better product,” Sonam told PTI.
‘Players’, which is a remake of the Hollywood action thriller ‘The Italian Job’, will see Sonam in a rebellious avatar after playing a demure role in her last film ‘Mausam’.
“My character Naina resembles what I am in my real life. She is rebellious but at the same time she is nice. Just out of college, she is a computer whiz-kid who agrees to be the part of a gold heist, where she has to hack the system to get valuable information, just because she is crazy for Abhishek in the film,” she said.
Her co-star Bipasha’s bikini shots in the film are being talked about and Sonam too has got a funky wardrobe designed by her younger sister Rhea Kapoor.
“I feel Rhea has done a fabulous job in the film. Her garments have done wonders to my character. She has understood my character quite well and have designed clothes accordingly,” Sonam said.
She had to lose weight to look more edgy for the character and soon Sonam will be seen donning a bikini for an upcoming project.
“This year my audience will see me in a sexy body. I had to undergo a particular weight training for ‘Players’. I am also taking classes for power and vikram yoga because I want to have the best body,” she added.
“30 to 40 percent of the movie is the same, but at the same time we have adapted the movie keeping in mind the Indian audience. We have a love triangle, whereas in the Hollywood flick there was only one lead actress.
We like to surprise our audiences and I am sure Players will blow your mind away. It’s our best work to date.”
Sometimes I feel very sad for Abhishek. The poor guy tries hard but unfortunately has very little talent. He is like an “Accidental Tourist” in Bollywood. He has to grasp at straws in the wind to stay in the limelight. Here he is using the crutch of “Daddyhood”, I bet it must hurt.
My sympathy.
I recomend he takes a page out of the Aamir Khan playbook. When Aamir found he could not compete with SRK, he created an alternate universe, a world of “Hatke” movies (which then became a stepping stone for something larger). Likewsie Abhishek should create his own universe, a world where he can stand up like a man, on his own two litte feet, without the aid of crutches. Larger than life, hero type roles don’t suit him. He does not have the personality, physique nor charm for that. He should play an everyday man like Sanjeev Kumar. He should be shown having the boy next door type hobbies, flying kites, playing with marbles. A job of entry level clerk or middle management (Suri of Punjab Power). There is scope to fill the vacum of Amol Plaekar type movies. No shame in being the modern day Amol, as long as it allows him to be in on the center stage. He should should go for a more suitable image rather than fall back on reflected glory of Daddyhood etc.
Thats preposterous, karan. How do you define, by your admission, a ‘hero type’ personality? Six packs? 42 inch biceps? Its coz of parameters like these and the general obsession about such gym bodies that is ruining Hindi cinema.
Abhishek’s got a personality. This guy does have a fair enough screen presence And though I do not really find him extraordinary, I think he’s competent enough in the acting department, at least much better than many of the other so-called stars around..
not gym bodies but the guys high on steriods have taken this to other level and are very bad models for youth
only person who is bollywood has fot body is akshay kumar( and thats a lean body with no tamasha of hulkness or six pack around
original six pack trend in india was started by surya only ( and others copied him…dutt and sanju where body builders but this six pack phenomenon was unleashed by surya in original ghajini ) and look how he moved away to different genre
A hero type personality can be defined in many ways, let use one such definition, Hero type is a larger than life type personalities. A personality that makes the not possible also appear plausible (e.g. a guy beating up 10 persona). Every time Abhishek tries to be that hero, he falls short. Hence, I suggest he should just move on and do something where he is likely to be accepted. Ergo, be the boy/man next door, be average Joe, be Amol Palekar.
Needless to say, then you add the poor physique it only hurts. At least don’t compound the absence of 6 packs with a bad posture. Would it hurt to suck up the gut and stand up straight.
See there are others who also don’t exude the SRK type confidence, they cannot play Don (or make 200 Cr world wide while playing Don) but still these guys can pull it off because of their acting talents. Abhishek cannot even claim acting talents, see Raavan Vs Raavana the difference is obvious. See Maadhav Vs Abhishek as Laanan, even a semi-blind can see the difference. There are actors in Bollywood and there are accidental tourist, Abhishek is an accidental tourist.
Now I have heard a handful of people on this blog claim that that Abhishek exudes “Bombay Cool”. All I want to ask these people is what wrong have guys from Bombay done to you. Why tarnish Bombay just to make Abhishek look good (as if that was even possible).
rather than a hero type personality a hero have to first connect and so called gym bodies restrict your forays into different role
thats the reason why ab or dlip connected as they played every role from kuli. nariyalwala to polished one( infact they have played all with hardly anything left)…impressed with ranbir though as he is not into gimmicks so far and allready he is exhibiting range and ya srk is stlll misfit for don type role …looks what so called six pack has done to his face and how much weight he has lost …these are not ideal fitness regime
no body is detesting mumbai and again you are wrong with analogy infact mumbai is not limited to polished south mumbai disconnected from rest of india…dude horizon even in mumbai is very vast
“A personality that makes the not possible also appear plausible (e.g. a guy beating up 10 persona). Every time Abhishek tries to be that hero, he falls short.”
Watch Yuva, Dum Maaro Dum, Sarkar, Dus .. The guy in action applauded most …
Alright, the most focused on thing it seems from the trailers is the stunts aspect. Another one that many modern Bolly- films focus majorly on is skin-show. I’m not seeing much of a story. So, it’s a bank robbery. The dialogues seem just cheesy and cliched. These dialogues would sound cool if they were in english, but, in Hindi, ends up being lame.
{Something not TOO related, but, the thing is…now i’m kinda starting to see trailers critically…and I probably always will be in denial of an SRK movie trailer being bad, even though Don 2 had a couple of those that I didn’t like…anyhow…with RA.One, I was kinda in denial, but, lol, that was bad. I’m sensing crapola here too b/c it seems like a mix between Race and Fast ‘n Furious}
Why is Bobby Deol missing from Players promotion?
By Joginder Tuteja, Jan 4, 2012 – 12:42 IST
Bobby Deol Promotional tours of Players are on and one man who is conspicuous by his absence is Bobby Deol. Though Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor and Neil Nitin Mukesh are making the most of the weeks leading to the film’s release by travelling across the length and breadth of the country, Bobby is hardly been seen or heard about. Even though the ‘players’ are now all set to visit Dubai and London for the film’s premiere, one wonders whether Bobby would be joining the team internationally at the least.
“It is rather surprising”, says a PR expert, “In the times when every actor, whether a superstar or someone who has just started off, is going all out to promote a film, Bobby is relatively quieter. In fact even when it comes to media interviews, everyone is happy to give sound bytes though Bobby has kept a low profile. One can understand if Sikandar Kher is not being heard about much because he is the junior-most in the team and there are other far established actors around him. But Bobby is the senior-most here so his words would have definitely counted.”
In fact amongst all the actors in the film, Bobby is the only person whose last two films had actually done some credible business at the box office. While Thank You was an average fare, Yamla Pagla Deewana was the first big hit of the year.
However, an insider spills the beans around Bobby. He says on condition of anonymity, “Bobby is the surprise element of the film. It is a newly written part which was not there in The Italian Job. Abbas-Mustan too feel that revelation around Bobby’s character in the film should hugely surprise the audience. No one wants any preconceived notion around what he is doing while playing the part of Ronnie.”
When contacted, Abbas Burmawala (of Abbas-Mustan duo) obviously kept tight lipped about the character of Ronnie. However, he did confide by stating, “There are a lot of surprise elements in Players and Bobby contributes to them. With twists and turns in the film, there was a requirement to have a character which was very intense. Of course the first choice was Bobby.”
Further commenting on the choice, Mustan Burmawala adds, “When it comes to Bobby, there is no talk of story and all. We just explained in nutshell what he has to do and he was on. We have worked together in four films before (Soldier, Ajnabee, Humraaz, Naqaab) and understand his performance and style. We knew that he has it in him to play such a role. Now how much is it going to surprise you is something that you would know when you watch the film.”
We do hope that the silence so far on the ‘suspense quotient’ is indeed worth it!
ya as long as abhishek carries the turkeys around it seems to go like that …there is sikander kher again after khjjs( so called smaller brother) and brother bobby ( after jbj and dostana)
one wonder when mr tuteja make some sense …. abbas mustan son’s mustafa is making debut with this movie( only few sequence) and abhishek is doing jumma chumma ( one of the most iconic song and i guess a so called surprise factor which article want to portray)
It really annoys me that he shows up on this guys show.. I’ve said this many times before on his blog and so on.. what’s the point of appearing on a show when the guy is otherwise taking you down in the most insulting ways?! And it’s not as if one needs the platform as there are a million others these days. So either way it makes no sense. I understand it’s a haze of exposure these days and one goes through the motions but there still have to be consequences for certain kinds of behavior. Nahata however mild he might seem in the interview (and it’s almost like he’s another guy) haven’t seen it yet) will go back to the same old stuff after this. He’s been this way for years. What will change suddenly?! It’s not even like Obama on Fox News. Because there might be some persuadable voters there but I don’t think there are those who would only encounter the Players advertising or Abhishek on Nahata’s show!
yeah I don’t like that he feels he has to do these shows but it seems like Abhishek’s personality that he feels he has to play the game like everyone else. Or feels that he’ll eventually win these guys over or that its important somehow.
btw, he confirms the Santoshi film with Aish is not happening now.
I am appalled however at Raavan being discussed in that context..
LOL, he’s saying he’d be happy with 20-30 crores in week 1. In other words he just expects DMD! This is too much even for Nahata. Says the film is getting hot by the end though he said something different in his online piece.
Actually LOVED AB in the interview..so poised and together and totally comfortable and also intelligent..(loved his analysis of his movies and where they went wrong). If he had same “comfort” level in movies, he would be super-duper hit…just matter of time. I think even Salman khan became bigger hit hero only in his 40s..so there is hope for ab jr.
I disagree with Satyam. He should do interviews with all his critics and when he is successful he should give those people run around. I remember ready VB interview that some malayali producer told her that she was unlucky. After DP success, same south industry is running after her.
Good point Diana
Actually salman at the stage of ‘yuvraj’
Was at an ALLTIME low
Kat was giving hits with Akshay left rite n centre
But with her real life ‘?bf’, the movie failed
It was unthinkable at that time and even at veer stage
And then wanted/dabang happened
Instead of revelling in his preconceived notions of NOT paying need to physicality, maintaining a double chin and refusing to learn the street rules –he should take it positively
Even if players does par business, and Bol bachchan does above par business, he will be back in the game
He will gain From dhoom3-period .
And from then on-it’s he and his choices
Also there should be positivity and an end to the ‘era of cool complacence’
“Instead of revelling in his preconceived notions of NOT paying need to physicality, maintaining a double chin and refusing to learn the street rules –he should take it positively”
Actually it doesn’t matter. Lot of heroines used to be fat and are still fat (successful Vidhya Balan). Lot of hero(s) look ugly (e.g. Hrithik’s nose is disgusting to me and salman/Sunny bald patches or bags under eyes can be seen clearly on big screen). Yes, ABjr can make himself even more competitive. His dad works towards perfection at all times. So can junior. But those are not the catalyst. In fact if he had same comfort on interview camera in movie (camera) and had confident performances, he can make it double chin and all. However dump/silly/stupid stuff bachchan sr did on screen, he did with lot of confidence and full faith and belief (talking of his over the top commercial cinema here where he was loud and sometimes outregeous). Camera catches your lack of confidence or discomfort, VERY easily. Most Hema malini used to have constipated looks on her face..speaking hindi in heavy southern accent, she looked uncomfortable but I guess her beauty/looks overcame that hurdle and gradually those expressions on her face became her USP (lol). One never knows where success can come from or When.
I think AB jr is pure lucky. Lot of star sons didn’t make it or get so many chances like our junior (especially in present times when industry is so competitive).
Players is The New Release Next Week. The Film Comes From the Director Duo Abbas Mustan and Has Great Expectations from the critics point of View.
The Advance Bookings for the Film Opened Today and had no Response. The Audience Still Seems to Be Interested in Don 2. Players Has All hopes from Current And Word of Mouth.
Since, There aren’t any Chartbusters in the film and the promos are not so attractive. So It will be very difficult for the first day collections to be even average.
But, Only Time Can tell what is Going to Happen. Although this Release Has Been Given Decent Screen Space in the Multiplexes.
How can BOI decide three days before Friday that its going to be difficult for the first day to be even average? I think its the sort of film that audience might turn up for on the first day.. M expecting decent multiplex business over the weekend. SS – Im not much sure about
People (left, right and center) are saying that Don 2 will eat into Player’s business. How can we decide for ourselves whether those statements are justified or not. ?
It is said that the proof is in the pudding.
Hence if Don 2 in its third weekend, in a limited engagement (yesterday we were informed that Don 2 is still playing in some Multiplex but just one show per day), can do 20% of the business that Players does that weekend, than without a doubt Don 2 has eaten Player’s lunch. Therefore 20% is the benchmark. Between 15 to 20% it is debatable, but advantage Don 2 .
Needless to say if Don 2 is less than 5% of Players than most definitely we can say that Don 2 had no effect on Players. Between 5 and 10% it is debatable, but advantage Players.
Given how limited Don 2’s exposure is in its third weekend, I sense that it should not pose any threat to Players. But Players is about a heist and Don 2 is a successful heist movie. Hence some spill over is possible. A bad WOM for Players may translate into additional footfalls for Don 2. Players is the catalyst that could push Don 2 beyond ATBB. Therefore Don 2 is perhaps the right movie in the right place.
shelf life of movie has gone(so has holiday period and movie hardly sustained inpite of media gimmics ….its not znmd in trending) infact its the other way around if players is good enough it will make way for don2 exit quickly and if it is not it may sustain for a week or two but agneepath is looming large even for that
indicine Indicine Quite a few asking about Players – All india rights sold for 35 crores. It needs minimum 70 crores to break-even. Difficult! Favorite Retweet Reply
with a so called new business model taking into account suddenly ( for a certain star ) with satelite rights , subsidy and what other rights it makes that no big film has lost money in last 5 year or so….
rampalarjun arjun rampal
@
@juniorbachchan just got back home, an absolutely phenomenal response to your episode on #love2hateu you rocked it bro. Thanks a ton.
Satyam Amod Mehra has tweeted “Your PLAYERS (actors music) at present maybe weak.. But all one needs to win is a pair of Aces.. Abbas Mustan.. Hit.” may be he has liked it
think he directed that to Abhishek but messed up somewhere.. anyway Abhishek has responded..
of course note even here the narrative that they’ve been developing for a while. If it’s a hit it’s only about Abbas-Mustan! When it’s a flop it’s never just about the director!
Di- some interesting points there
Actually the word u are looking for is ‘conviction’
Bachchan sr did the most insanely nonsensical role with such conviction that the audience gets willing to tag along
Just saw a song promo which is supposed to be a fast beat where abhishrek is supposed to be jamming with sonam /bipasha
But even here : there is a ‘lethargic inertia’ of motion
This is all covered with a ‘coolness’ coefficient wherein the ‘manly’ guy doesn’t really give it his all in dance steps and so on….
The ‘continued’ innings of abhishrek remains a unique case study …
Thiugh one can’t deny he has acting talent And screen presence besides the best background for Bollywood
As I said : am surprised to see players being shown in certain resolvers was multiplex.
Btw now somehow -have a feeling that this may be the beginning of abhishreks ‘good ‘ phase
If players performs respectably atleast, bol Bachan and dhoom3 already taking care of the box office–
Then he is back in the business and has another chance
Hope he doesn’t mess it Up again ….also for satyams sake
Not sure if actors are actually “convinced” on playing those loud characters. They just follow or have faith in director’s word/vision. Personal convictions don’t matter.
On the latter note, I feel the same way, for Satyam-sake. I think he is even more worried than Mr Bachchan Sr!!!!
Truely, actor’s job is to act. Whether the final product is good or not or hit or flop…doesn’t matter. What matters is your work getting appreciated even in a lousy movie. I remember VB had to (poor thing) act in a movie where she is over powered by a bhoot/spirit and she lifts bed (the ghost inside her). It was so insane but everyone praised her acting even though the movie was BAD-BAD-BAD.
Must hand it to Abbas Mustan. they’re no refined craftsmen. But they’re probably the only ones in Bollywood who copy well. Apart from Race (havent seen Naqaab), I have enjoyed every film of theirs. Even Soldier and Daraar
I recently caught the Abbas-Mustaan works over the break period from BAAZIGAR, KHILADI, SOLDIER, CHORI CHORI CHUPKE CHUPKE, HUMRAAZ, AITRAAZ, BAADSHAH, AJNABEE, NAQAAB, RACE and tomorrow PLAYERS!
They are truly directors who have their fingers on the audiences pulse at the best of times, and know how to make a Masala Indian Thriller…and make most of them a hit!
Johnny Lever is most definetly their lucky icon and he saves their best for AM films. Another common trait is the manner in which they bring out the negative elements of their villain or anti-heroes character whether it’s SRK in BAAZIGAR, Khanna in HUMRAAZ and RACE, Priyanka in AITRAAZ etc. Their music is bang-on and they bring a distinctive tone and look to each of their films. MOST of them age better than other films release in that year and some (like HUMRAAZ and RACE) age better.
A lot of PLAYERS will rely on heavy WOM and trending across 3 weeks.
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
Hearing fab reviews of #Players & specially about @NeilNMukesh & @juniorbachchan in it! May not get the biggest opening, but will sustain!
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
@juniorbachchan @NeilNMukesh praying for it mate! Im quite confident ul have a biigger smile on you face on monday eve than tomorow! 😉
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
@rajivvijayakar @NeilNMukesh @juniorbachchan hope so sir! Want to see more hits come by! Besides, #Players is playing at my cinemas! 😉
It’s Abhishek Bachchan’s turn to show daredevilry and he did it in Players, the actor performed some risky stunts in the forthcoming action-thriller all by himself and it impressed the director duo Abbas-Mustan. During the action sequence, the actor balances himself atop two trains, running at the speed of about 100 km an hour. Abhishek admits it was tough.
“Hanging between the trains…good fun, though it was a bit tough. To get the right positioning was tough but ultimately it was done, we got what we wanted so we are happy,” the 35-year-old actor has said in the Making of Players released recently.
The action stunts, directed by Allan Amin, see Abhishek hanging through a harness and fighting for the gold. The actor even hit his head on one of the rods on the train but it didn’t deter him from completing the scene.
“Abhishek has given a good shot. The trains are running parallel and he hung between the trains and gave a very real shot. We were a bit tensed as well as Abhishek struck his head on a rod,” said the director.
The heist flick, releasing Friday, also stars Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Sikander Kher, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Omi Vaidya.
check it out..documentary on big b on french tv in 1985..much b4 when srk was in his Chaddi!!and his so called “living with a superstar” episode on TLC.
Spoilers here. Not that the one offered is a surprise if one has seen the older versions and also knows what Neil’s character is. Bobby and Sikander Kher have cameos according to her.
Kazmi’s ratings tend to be unpredictable though. She gives this 3.5 stars. Also gave the same to Ra One and Raavan, DMD, Ghajini and I think Desi Boyz. Then she gave 4 stars to Don 2 and Dostana & DB & TZP. Gave 3 to D6. Her ratings seem to be on the kind side in this sense but what I like about her is that she doesn’t have a bias toward or against one kind of cinema. She gave Dev d & 3I 5 stars incidentally. It’s hard to go through her complete list but many of the ratings jump out.
I won’t blame him this time for indulging in this.. Abhishek has faced such a trying time in every sense of the word that I can certainly understand the father in him celebrating the positivity.
SATYAMSHOT 
November 2, 2011 at 5:13 PM
This is bad timing and Bad Trailer for Abhishek…
all the jale -kate , hakke- bakke , hatash SRK fans will maul the trailer and Abhi baby with vengeance……
LikeLike
November 2, 2011 at 5:23 PM
think it’s par for the course for Abbas-Mustaan. It’s Race on steroids (only in the stunts sense)! As for the anti-Abhishek folks they’ll maul him in any case. The thing is if you want to look at it purely on the aesthetic merits Don 2 is way ahead as a slick, cool trailer with truly fine visuals. Never expected this to be otherwise! On the other hand Abbas-Mustaan never attempt more than the Fast and Furious deal. As a fan of Italian Job (though more the first version than the second and of course this will be more of the latter..) I do expect this to be significantly better than Race which had a rather absurd series of twists (enjoyable as the film was). As in the rather corny ‘go for gold’ line this film has been designed for box office gold. Let’s see how it goes. don’t think there’s anything wrong with the trailer. Do I get excited about this sort of thing? Not from Bollywood as much unless it’s well done. But in any case with Abhishek I get excited with stuff like d6 and Raavan and DMD. So I might not be in the majority evidently!
Will say this though.. two films in a somewhat similar genre are releasing two weeks apart. Players has a three week unopposed run before Agneepath/Tezz. However it could be ‘too much’ for the audience following Don 2 (irrespective of how this does). Hard to be sure about this stuff specially given Abhishek’s very shaky box office form currently. But as I said this has been designed and certainly selected by him for big numbers. That’s really the only standard here. For the ‘finer’ visuals one should turn to Don 2 or the upcoming Agent Vinod. This is just a Hollywood kind of joyride. My only metric here is whether it can be good enough like the Hollywood film. Since this is an official remake this is not an unfair expectation.
Left to myself I would have suggested remaking the older Italian Job which though not as exciting a film as the newer version had far more cultural references and a more tongue-in-cheek tone. The whole end-of-swinging-60s-in-London mood. I would have dispensed with the tongue-in-cheek but set it in Bombay of the 70s. This would have offered interesting possibilities. But be it from Bollywood to be ‘interesting’ in this sense. Still expect three times the enjoyable film that Ra One was if Abbas-Mustaan just stick to Race levels of competence!
Don’t disagree with the politics you raise though. But the media negativity is something he just has to live with unless and until he gets enough box office success to reduce it (not that his father succeeded on this score!). It might offer the more ‘fun’ antidote to Don’s auteurism.
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November 2, 2011 at 6:08 PM
Re.-It might offer the more ‘fun’ antidote to Don’s auteurism.
hope so, but based on the trailer seems wishful thinking as of now.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:16 PM
They should have waited for the buzz of Don-2 to die down…..
Unlike Race They don’t have Katrina as an asset, on top of that they have Bobby Deol as a Liability……
iskeee tau Namastey ho gayee deekh rahee hai……
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November 2, 2011 at 5:33 PM
yeah Bobby is definitely a sore thumb here.. but they can’t wait for Don 2 as it releases on Christmas! Doesn’t leave much time for a Jan 6 release. But I think this is fine. You have to launch a credible campaign for a big film and these days it just means lots of volume. Agreed on Katrina though. It didn’t obviously work out. But this film definitely needed another Bipasha-like ‘babe’! Preetam has apparently claimed somewhere that he’s produced better music for this than Race. of course you and I could do that in our sleep!
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November 2, 2011 at 5:23 PM
Pretty much what I expected. Race was unwatchable for me and this will be the same.
I really don’t like these wannabe HW films. I didn’t even think much of the Don 2 trailer.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:31 PM
‘Wannabe’ sells in Bombay from Race to ZNMD. Regrettably it is the authentic that doesn’t!
Don 2 was definitely a notch or more above everything else in this genre in terms of the pure visuals. Doesn’t mean there’s a great film out there necessarily as we witnessed with the first one.
On Abhishek doing this it is obviously a less ‘neutral’ gesture than Saif doing Race. However even I cannot blame him at this juncture of his career for thinking in box office terms. Whether it’s this or the bargain basement masala that’s currently hot I don’t think either one of us would find any of it very exciting (a Ghajini sort of deal would be something else)! Which is why my best hope here simply is that he get the grossers here and return to a more meaningful mix.
But as I’ve said before the anti-Abhishek partisans might regret any important success he has here less than I (or you) end up doing if it eventually means ‘more of what works’!
Speaking of which wasn’t the Brazilian Job supposed to release this year?
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November 2, 2011 at 5:35 PM
how many italian job remake they will come … the recent one of hollywood( not so recent) was itself a remake of classic and now one see brazilian job and even indian remake
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November 2, 2011 at 5:37 PM
well the Hollywood version was indeed a remake of an older Michael Caine film. The Brazilian Job is a sequel. And Abbas-Mustaan’s film is incidentally an official remake which also means they can’t deviate much from the script as a legal matter. This actually gives me more hope than would otherwise be the case even if I’m a big fan of this genre in Hollywood.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:45 PM
i meant ” they will make”
btw the guy who was villain did commendable job in fight club ( along with brad pitt) … and ya karthik calling karthik was loosely inspired by it (infact loose is very generous term for that )
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November 2, 2011 at 5:35 PM
of course and I’ve made this point before that sometimes when Abhishek does this sort of thing he attracts more negative attention than many other stars because he seems too ‘serious’ or ‘genuine’! So the Abhishek fans have the greatest objections and the others don’t see a complete willingness on his part to sign onto the scenery!
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November 2, 2011 at 5:39 PM
part of a comment from yesterday that might be relevant:
“what I dislike in this context is the lack of introspection. The colonization on its own is a fact of life, a product of history, one cannot walk away from this. We are all ‘colonized’ to various degrees. But the question is whether one ever has a questioning stance in terms of this heritage. So for example you see the average Hollywood star or actor being taken far more seriously than the Indian counterpart. The same for films. A Hollywood movie might be very professional in terms of the SFX or what have you but otherwise be as mediocre at its core as a number of Bollywood films (and incidentally I’m a great consumer of Hollywood junk in the thriller/disaster movie and so on formats). Leaving this aside the other thing that happens is that people in the same ‘colonized’ sense either overrate every little multiplex film because they can identify the same Hollywood residues in them or else are simply too harsh on a number of ‘guilty pleasures’. On the other hand the very same guilty pleasures are happily consumed out of Hollywood. I found Race reasonably enjoyable despite its absurd plot and I am also happy to check out every new Fast and Furious installment. Obviously the SFX are just way better in the latter but that’s not a philosophical difference! In each case it’s about how entertaining each film can be given that this is the extent of each work’s aim. So Race is more enjoyable than many other Abbas-Mustaan films. Similarly within the Fast and furious franchise some parts are better than others. But getting back to the larger point I don’t have a holier-than-thou ‘I am not colonized’ approach. I think we’re all in the same boat. All I expect is a little bit of introspection. Similarly purely within the Indian tradition (where we forget that older ages of cinema were more rooted because the mix was decidedly Indian, not because there weren’t Hollywood influences.. in fact decade by decade one could identify these.. what’s different today is that one rarely sees the Indian ‘particular’ in these films.. most of the time they’re like Hollywood genres in Hindi) there just isn’t enough ‘respect’ for want of a better word for the riches of the past. In fact even without being exposed to these the default view is one of condescension. All these attitudes are part of a certain continuum which happens to be the privileged perspective of ‘new India’ audiences. The BJP couldn’t convince everyone that India was shining. But in the major metros there are very many takers for this view and in the Johar scheme of things you just focus on those aspects that confirm the narrative and ignore the rest. This is what I am arguing against most often.”
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November 2, 2011 at 5:47 PM
I’d add here that the very ‘wannabeness’ that makes many kinds of films unattractive to a certain segment of the multiplex audience also makes the very same attractive for the majority when done right. Here this older post is also relevant:
and this comment:
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November 2, 2011 at 6:12 PM
that is a very good point satyam, Abbas -Mastaan have a great following at the smaller centers and they understand the Nabz of these centers…..
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November 2, 2011 at 6:32 PM
though when I said ‘majority’ there I was still referring primarily to the multiplexes. It’s true that Abbas-Mustaan can often get smaller centers on board but the gross is still generated by multiplexes. You don’t get the Race sort of opening without these.
Let me put it differently. If Players gets half the positive reviews DMD did it will open vastly bigger than the latter. DMD had the sort of trailer we all (rightly so) got excited about. Players is at the opposite end of the spectrum (we all rightly find it wannabe). And we are all representative of the multiplex audience here. But when you look at the results all else being equal there’s no comparison the numbers. What that tells me is that many find the ‘wannabeness’ problematic as a genuine matter while many simply don’t want to be seen as liking this sort of thing. Similarly for many DMD isn’t really their kind of thing but they can’t admit this either.
ZNMD didn’t excite anyone on the trailers, or very few. It still had a strong enough opening. And it was primarily the multiplexes and a somewhat younger demographic driving this.
Now this is not to ignore the star factor at all. As I said earlier Abhishek’s going through some shaky times and really needs to establish things all over again. With some other stars leading this film I wouldn’t even have an iota of a doubt about the initial and final gross (assuming just a Race level film) whereas with Abhishek there are multiple possibilities. But that isn’t about how the film looks.
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November 3, 2011 at 10:21 AM
re.-though when I said ‘majority’ there I was still referring primarily to the multiplexes
Just as within Blacks there are different Shades , within Multiplex audience there are different tastes…..lol
eg.-you can NOT compare Greater Kailash multiplex to a Rajoauri Garden Multiplex……
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November 3, 2011 at 11:19 AM
Re: “eg.-you can NOT compare Greater Kailash multiplex to a Rajoauri Garden Multiplex……”
Completely agree; and I think this sort of reminder is always needed, lest we forget that whenever we use terms like “multiplex film” or “multiplex audience” or any other kind of audience, we are referring to abstractions/generalizations — it’s a short-hand one uses for ease of discussion, but sometimes one can get so caught up with the shorthand that one mistakes the term for the thing itself!
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November 3, 2011 at 11:46 AM
agree Q….aajkal anyone who has the easy access would prefer going to the Multiplex with his family……
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November 2, 2011 at 5:25 PM
Really ? 🙂 only Bobby as a liability ? :)?…..( take what you may from that since I know will be slammed here if I say more).
In all seriousness the trailer simply makes the movie seem jaded.
I hope the music is good, however fact that’s it been sold to pen audio doesn’t bode well!!
Good luck, 🙂 at least not coming out on Dec 26.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:29 PM
climax of race was totally lifted from fast and furious and this one now is remake of italian job
those who have can seen it can allready see the many similarities
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November 2, 2011 at 10:19 PM
Well the movie was a copy of “Goodbye Lover” including carrot eating Anil Kapur.
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November 2, 2011 at 10:37 PM
Really? had no idea. Don’t even remember that film. Just checked on Netflix, it isn’t available unfortunately but I am not even sure if I’ve ever seen it. So it is an exact copy? Because some of the plot twists seemed pretty absurd to me in Race, not sure if this was true of the original as well. Anyway the only reason I brought up the official remake is that according to Abhishek they’re contractually required not to deviate much from the original which makes me believe that if Abbas-Mustaan are kept in check this way they might make a better film on the merits and not just purely enjoyable junk. For example the Mini cars used are exactly the same as both original films. The train sequence seems to have no equivalent in either Hollywood version but I suspect it will be there in place of the Venice sequence in the new version. The NZ stuff will come later on with the tunnel sequence of the earlier film and so on. So it seems to be closely aligned based on the shoots. But I never knew this about Race. Perhaps this was a close remake also. You could tell me. Anyway interested in watching this and it’s also by Joffe but as I said it isn’t available.
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November 2, 2011 at 10:46 PM
It is like primal fear(deewangee)..Till the point you can make sense it is copied from english movie. *Spoilers*They don’t have that rope trick and changing of dead person 🙂 .
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119219/reviews
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November 4, 2011 at 4:06 PM
thanks for recommending climax was totally lifted fast and furious
also carrot eating spy in india was somewhat associate more with pankaj kapoor in famous serial karamchand
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November 2, 2011 at 5:33 PM
Utterly predictable stuff
Heck bipasha seems to have a “birthright patent” for certain scenes–others should be given a chance
The budget of this one also seems to have gone overboard…
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November 2, 2011 at 5:48 PM
Just adding kindling at this point but wow what a stale affair…just about everyone looks out of place here.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:52 PM
Incidentally Sonam didn’t have to give us the finger here. The trailer pretty much does that on its own.
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November 2, 2011 at 5:56 PM
LOL!
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November 2, 2011 at 6:10 PM
LOL GF….
Aside – I thought you would have been first in line to see Ra-1.. as it was named RA1 -antithesis to Ram…lol
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November 2, 2011 at 6:23 PM
There are some demons too foul for even my taste, Rocky…
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November 2, 2011 at 6:25 PM
Ha!
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November 3, 2011 at 10:18 AM
Ha ha GF…
your comment as well as the state of RA1 reminds me of a Brilliant line in Black Friday ( SRK fans please do not misunderstand , I am NOT equating SRK to terrorists)
Iss Baar Allah Hamare saath hai………
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November 2, 2011 at 5:51 PM
Looks really really dated. And pretty much identical to all other films in this genre. *yawn*
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November 2, 2011 at 6:39 PM
Hmm..dated and jaded. And cant hold a candle to Don2, which I again repeat will beat MI4 !!! (hehehehe).
But seriously, wont audiences be already having a Don2 hangover on Jan 6th? Whats with the release date strategy?
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November 2, 2011 at 9:23 PM
business strategy for Abhishek’s films?
— IPL season or one week after big star’s movie.
I never had any hope on this movie and promo proved it.
Waiting for Bol Bachchan.
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November 2, 2011 at 9:54 PM
Looks good. This is a sure shot hit. But the release time is important here.
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November 2, 2011 at 10:22 PM
Not a bad trailer at all. What were you guys expecting from Abbas-Mustan?
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November 2, 2011 at 10:31 PM
precisely my point.. if one wants the luxury of never having to do this sort of stuff (fair enough ambition!) then one must make Raavan and D6 work.. can’t have it both ways.. so as Abhishek fans we can be disappointed that he’s doing this and not those other films but if anyone has an excuse to do this for box office reasons.. and ultimately it’s not as if something like Dhoom barring the success of the franchise and all the stars and so on is really ‘better’ than this stuff (though I expect something better with Aamir on board).
Given what this genre is about even in Hollywood, given the ‘wannabe’ nature of all these films in India, given that Abbas-Mustaan are at the helm here this is in my view par for the course. You could have bigger stars but not a better trailer. And again Don 2 obviously looks better than this but if SRK were starring in both films the Abbas-Mustaan would undoubtedly gross more all else being equal.
And so I disagree with some of the responses to this extent — it looks sharper than the Game trailer or stuff like Luck or Cash or whatever other films thrown up by the genre. But obviously not at all in Don 2’s league. Maybe one dislikes the entire genre. That’s fair but it is a fairly effective trailer for the genre.
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November 2, 2011 at 10:38 PM
I found it rather plain and nondirectional…Trailer talks about India and show all foreign locations…But then I am hardly persuaded by any trailer.
ps – Race was ably supported by good soundtrack.
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November 3, 2011 at 4:39 PM
Don’t think it’s sharper than the Game trailer. This looks more energetic but the Game trailers had a Bond-like slickness (which eventually became a bit corny) to them that at least to me was more appealing than this thing.
And of course one expects this sort of trailer from these filmmakers. But to be honest I might have been less disappointed in this if I thought it was going to change Abhishek’s fortunes at the box office and buy him some more mileage to do more of the D6s and Raavans. But it really doesn’t look appealing in this sense either. There’s nothing to differentiate this from any number of Bollywood thrillers, at least on evidence of what’s come out. I’m not the best prognosticator on these matters but staleness never seems to be the way to attract commercial attention and this looks quite stale. I’ve always suspected that Abhishek’s gateway to commercial success was to exploit his obvious comic talent in lighter material. This role and this context looks like it’s giving off the same grim, I’m-too-cool-for-this-shit vibe that people have (by now rightfully to some extent) taken him to task for. So yes you can’t have it both ways but when you go the other way make sure you’re walking straight!
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November 3, 2011 at 4:44 PM
I too didn’t think the Game trailer was bad at all but do believe that this one will persuade far more people! You do have a point at the end here. Abhishek never looks like he’s completely buying this stuff!
I am surprised though that generally people don’t seem to be all that impressed by the don trailers. Or at least not proportionate to the visuals on display. Perhaps it’s the residue of the older film. No one remembers really enjoying it!
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November 3, 2011 at 4:46 PM
I’m going to be harsh here, not because I need to balance certain narratives, but because this needs to be said — Abhishek looks so out of place in a slick, stylish caper film that it becomes unintentionally funny! He’s got fat all over his body, half of a double chin and he’s playing the lead role in a film that ought to drip with style? What’s this, some kind of thriller for ugly people?
Having said that, I’m with you on Game. He looked better, at least in the posters there. Maybe they did a photoshop job or something, but he did look slimmer at least in the main poster.
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November 3, 2011 at 4:48 PM
I’m pretty sure he was slimmer when he did Players and since than when he shot for Game.
I’ve always felt though that the reaction to his physicality in these sorts of films is much more about the point just made. That he is a bit of a reluctant warrior on this terrain. Not that he’s disinterested but he just cannot seem completely invested in it whereas many of his peers cannot imagine being on better terrain in terms of the whole wannabe deal. And it’s a signal that the audience can pick up. which is why this element must be factored into the film. Rohan Sippy understood this quite well, especially in BM where he had to be a more suave character. and in fact the one thing that Goldie Behl got right in Drona was the whole ‘reluctant warrior/superhero’ deal. Abhishek has always been this with respect to the principal forces that animate Bollywood. And again the audience gets this. He doesn’t quite enjoy strutting around in this sort of scenery but the films are also not deep enough to allow for the world-weariness or introspection (of any sort) that Rohan’s film did. But the wannabe stuff is also about a set of values that the multiplex audience loves. They might pretend not to but this is what they reward most often in all sorts of genres. No star can have a career doing only Rathnam or Mehra or RGV. You need solid commercial fare from time to time. But the ‘Bollywood’ values have never been his. Take the whole gym body phenomenon. every star has signed onto this including relative old-timers like Aamir and SRK. When you look at these guys the message is ‘we belonged to an older generation but we’re still on board’! Salman was there earlier anyway. Hrithik and after everyone has defined themselves this way. Whether you’re a major star or a supporting player you’re going to the gym. With Abhishek one can clearly sense a distaste with this mode of becoming a star. But this is unfortunately for cinema has become. Simply about consumption. And providing the right stimuli to the audience which includes the ‘ideological’ ones. When audiences note that Abhishek though willing to get toned down and so on is not really willing to go the whole distance they sense him to be opposed to their values. And what complicates things here is the fact that he cannot be condescended to in class terms. So if you have a Govinda or someone doing this it doesn’t really bother you. You can explain it away rather easily. But Abhishek becomes a ‘traitor to his class’ in a sense by not being ‘with the program’. It’s about something far more important than the obvious. Abhishek is the ultimate insider and yet a strange kind of outsider too, almost ‘alone’ in his choices. This ‘divergence’ was very neatly illustrated in D2 where what secretly enraged people, specially the male viewers, was that forget trying to match upto Hrithik’s gym body and so on, he wasn’t even willing to look as sharp as his own character in the first installment! But also his other ‘different’ choices are problematic not because these ‘flop’ but because these argue against the values of the present. Note this wasn’t always the case. when they thought he was on board with them or when he did films that could be minimally read in conformist ways they were very happy with him.
Abhishek essentially provokes unease in the multiplex audience. If it were purely about not doing well or not acting well or whatever he could simply be dismissed. No one cares how Bobby Deol is faring. But it’s precisely because he is taken seriously at one level or the other than the unease is also attendant! But I also think this aspect of his persona and equally his signature is about a larger ‘confusion’ in his multiplex audience. Those who are all the while getting more colonized even as they’re secretly filled with self-loathing for being so very colonized. Or in a connected sense those who see enough of ‘old India’ values in themselves to disturb their ‘new India’ complacency. This is also parallel to the ‘split’ in his father’s own history. the ultimate rebel of Indian cinema, the guy who used to give the Rajesh Khanna audience nightmares (!) becomes with time the ultimate icon of this consumerist Indian age, its most transcendent cultural figure. This way the audience gets the legend of Bachchan without the disturbing, subversive Vijay. It is the very same divide. Here Abhishek’s response to all these histories has been underestimated. Note how it’s not just about the Dhoom kind of deal, his constant avoidance of masala even post Ghajini or Wanted or whatever when he had the best genes for the job (!) means that he has a certain inner resistance (at the very least) to his father’s 80s career. If you thought there was no problem with Yaarana or Khuddaar or Kaalia or whatever you probably would not have a problem with a great deal of mindless masala today. It’s not exactly the same thing, obviously Bachchan makes a massive difference, everyone loves him in those roles but what if one believes that only Bachchan could make that stuff work? A perfectly reasonable conclusion. And so if he gets the script-oriented deal he’s happy to do it, not otherwise. But only someone like Rathnam gives him such scripts. Similarly the politics of much of his interesting work (box office failure or not) shouldn’t be missed. One cannot accidentally venture into such films in a consistent sense. And Rathnam in my view has explored all these histories in the three films he’s made with Abhishek.
What the future holds is hard to tell. If he gets a lot of success doing stuff like Bol Bachchan and Players and whatever it’s not clear whether he returns to more meaningful cinema as a pattern or just as a one off from time to time or else tries out a pragmatic mix. for now he’s been pushed to the wall and hence he’s doing this stuff. I don’t otherwise sense any great belief on his part in these ventures (by the way note how this affects the choices as well. he’s much more likely to try the somewhat meaningful in the junk genre than simply the most obvious deal.. and so even if one doesn’t like Abbas-Mustaan the Italian Job is easily one of the better films from Hollywood in its terrain and if they have to stick relatively close to the script one would expect it to make more sense than Race! But even Game.. this was another wannabe film if ever there was one but it wasn’t a stunt oriented thriller.. much more of a whodunit deal with some frills thrown in.. a bit of a mixture.. it certainly was way better than the likes of Luck and Chance.. sometimes though trying to be sane on this terrain is worse than simply going with the show!). Nonetheless the trope of the ‘reluctant warrior’ I think holds for him in more ways than one.
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November 3, 2011 at 4:51 PM
I was talking about this poster here:
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November 3, 2011 at 5:22 PM
he wasn’t quite this slim in the film!
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November 3, 2011 at 4:55 PM
I read some article on TOI which says that Abhishek has lost 9 Kgs and is working out for Dhoom 3! Really hope and wish that story is true.
If he wishes to go commercial, he needs to ‘look’ commercial as well! And contrary to what people think, he’s not going to ossify his brain cells if he tones up a little…
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November 3, 2011 at 5:17 PM
LOL, on the last bit!
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November 3, 2011 at 5:01 PM
It’s not his physicality that I have a problem with as much the been-there-done that sense of his badass-act. There’s nothing new here, which again no one expected with Abbas Mastan, but one could hope for something engaging in Abhishek. Going commercial doesn’t mean one has to go stale.
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November 3, 2011 at 5:10 PM
Having said all of this if Abhishek gets a hit here, more power to hiim. Hopefully he’ll use that to continue to “buy” the movies that have defined his unique place in the industry. That’s the larger thing at risk for him. He can play the game of “one for them, one for me” but the risk is that if you’re not Aamir Khan, the “one for them” usually ends up being something that muddles your identity as an actor who actually means something more than a BO statistic.
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November 3, 2011 at 5:17 PM
this is a something that I’ve always been nervous about. Because I never underestimate the pressure of real box office success. And I do agree that his difference gets canceled out if he’s merely in it for box office receipts over the long run.
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November 3, 2011 at 5:39 PM
No one should tell Saket about the Bourne Identity remake starring Mohanlal.
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November 3, 2011 at 6:29 PM
heh heh..
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November 3, 2011 at 5:48 PM
Yes, but the ‘reluctant warrior’ will get his arse handed over to him if he doesn’t fight…in the battleground!
On a sersious note, you make a lot of interesting points and I indeed need to address them in detail. Will do so, ‘itminaan se’…
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November 3, 2011 at 6:30 PM
“Yes, but the ‘reluctant warrior’ will get his arse handed over to him if he doesn’t fight…in the battleground!”
true.. one cannot be tentative on the battlefield..
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November 3, 2011 at 5:50 PM
LOL, GF!
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November 2, 2011 at 10:48 PM
I would actually watch Players if it’s just ridiculous, preposterous entertainment but I wouldn’t be interested in Don 2, even with all its aesthetics, if it turns out to be anything like the first one – leaden and boring.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:47 AM
I expect it to be better than the first one because this should be liberated from the whole remake burden. There’s nothing more to do with the original Don! I fully expect some silly twists but on its own it should be fine. But yes I do hope Farhan Akhtar makes a more dynamic film. One of the problems here is that his visual style is almost too ‘cool’ to allow for that sort of kinetics. In other words he shoots the film like an auteurist offbeat thriller (you have these in Hollywood) but the expectations are for a mass entertainer. Interestingly Don really goes from one extreme to the other in a technical sense. The original film was campy and this was part of its charms. It doesn’t however get the Abbas-Mustaan or Dhoom sort of upgrade but the Farhan Akhtar ‘high art’ (for want of a better term!) one. And therein lies the problem. The velocity of the Don narrative runs counter to the aesthetics. In essence the film becomes very different tonally. Quieter but also operating at a much more ‘relaxed’ pace in every sense. But if there is no rush to get anywhere or do anything you kind of lose the high drama and hence the point of the narrative.
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November 3, 2011 at 3:58 PM
i somehow never have liked farhaan akhtar as an actor or a director….DCH was more of an aamir’s touch kind of product…there is a very false notion of pride and vanity in this guy
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November 3, 2011 at 4:05 PM
Don’t agree on DCH.. Farhan has always been distinctive on the visual side of things.. I’m not saying he’s a great director or anything.. he just hasn’t demonstrated much beyond the strengths I’ve been referring to. I wish he’d do more and give up on the acting where I do find him relatively useless but part of the problem for him besides the fact that he’s distracted with this other career is that his films are usually quite expensive because he takes great care on the technical side. And the kind of director he otherwise is means his films can’t be huge successes even if they do well (leaving aside the DCH kind of genre). But he should really develop himself more in this area. The problem is these guys are all very lackadaisical in this sense and it’s much easier to act! I actually doubt he would have even done a Don sequel but for SRK’s great impetus.
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November 2, 2011 at 10:57 PM
“The whole end-of-swinging-60s-in-London mood. I would have dispensed with the tongue-in-cheek but set it in Bombay of the 70s”
But then how would Abbas-Mustan show Sonam Kapoor giving the middle finger? Blame them all you want for their ridiculous twists, but they don’t do anachronisms 🙂
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November 2, 2011 at 11:00 PM
For all those guys who are hating on Bobby Deol, let me tell you he is a favorite of Abbas-Mustan. So much so that they even got Bobby to Cannes in Naqaab (yes, I have seen it), where he ends up winning the biggest awards for some snuff film he directed.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:42 AM
true!
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November 2, 2011 at 11:33 PM
Satyam ji Great to see the promo of Players. Thanks for sharing.
Waiting for watch the film. I see the awesome film The Italian Job of 2003.
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November 2, 2011 at 11:50 PM
Posters are good, But i agree .. Trailer is underwhelming .. Visually and characters are not properly introduced .. they could have make better promo .. atleast after DON .. this should have been more kick-ass.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:43 AM
Visually and stylistically, Don2 is streets ahead of anything else in that genre from Bollywood. But my hunch says it won’t hold together at the script level. will have some clever bits. But not real soul like the first one had. Though it’s just my hunch, I have a fling that both Farahan and Zoya are too much Hollyowood films driven to be able to write a good script. Dil Chahta Hai was a one-off exception. Reema Kagti, with an equal amount of Hollywood influence, but also with a large dose of world cinema exposure as well, and her small town North-East background has some real sparks as evidenced in Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd. and ZNMD. Dhuan may surprise for sure. From among the films in the action thrills genre, , I do not have much hopes from any of these except Agent Vinod., which has the potential to turn out something substantial.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:49 AM
yes Agent Vinod should also be a great visual experience though I suspect won’t be much at the box office. Hope I’m wrong. The director deserves some serious success.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:19 AM
Shridhar really deserves great success .. Ek Hasina Thi and Johny Gaddar .. both were excellent thrillers, but failed at boxoffice .. I hope Agent Vinod to be blockbuster success for sake of director only.
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November 3, 2011 at 2:25 AM
Abbas-Mustan are very good with this genre. And for all the great visuals of Don 2, Farhan failed in keeping the spectator engaged in Don. There were moments of boredom and moments when the film’s pace dropped too much before picking up to then drop completely again.
Abbas-Mustan are the masters of this genre. They’ll keep it at a frenetic pace and throw in some light entertainment, quotients of glamour and drama when needed to keep the audience engaged. They are very good at this. They’ve been usually getting the mix quite right and expect them to indianise the concept so that it will still look like an Indian flick. They gave us Khiladi, Baazigar, Soldier, Humraaz and Race and they really are the masters of this genre. I don’t know how good Don 2 will be, but the first part really disappointed me. I still think that Farhan is at his best with the Dil Chahta Hain-kind of genre and he still has to convince me if he can deliver in the thriller kind of genre. It will require a huge improvement on Don.
This is what Abbas Mustan are best at and they are navigating in waters they are extremely comfortable in. I expect it to be good. I just hope they go all out for the promotions to get a good opening. It will then come good for sure.
I also don’t think that Bobby is a liability here. He is a decent action hero and he is in a supporting role here. He certainly won’t hurt the film. His presence will help. The only doubt I have right now is Neil Nitin Mukesh as the villain.
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November 3, 2011 at 5:20 AM
Crap, by the time I got around to clicking on this youtube had removed the video. On the bright side, the TV premiere is tonight on a bunch of channels (9-10 PM)…
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November 3, 2011 at 6:48 AM
it was a proper ‘official’ trailer.. anyway will turn up again sooner or later..
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November 3, 2011 at 11:52 AM
Quite impressed with the trailer. This should be fun courtesy abbas mustang. They will defn make sure u stick to ur seat.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:00 PM
The website is up, Lot more pics, profiles etc. Was not able to catch the trailer there (think they have a different one on the website). Not for US region I assume.
playersgoforgold.in.com
check it out.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:32 PM
yeah that’s weird..
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November 3, 2011 at 12:01 PM
the trailer’s up again. Abhishek’s put it up too so hopefully this should stay.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:36 PM
With the tagline of “go for gold” there is alot that can be done with the promotional strategy here, They can do a scavenger hunt, contest to win gold coins. Also, they can have a lucky ticket # or something win gold coins etc (considering how expensive gold is now a days). A lot can be done here if done correctly.
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November 3, 2011 at 12:41 PM
What ya’ll think? Or am I just going crazy..lol?
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November 3, 2011 at 12:48 PM
that is a good idea..
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November 3, 2011 at 12:54 PM
Thanks Satyam, Feel a little Sane now. LOL. Btw watched a few of Vikram movies (nothing from the list though, couldnt find them) Saw “I am Sam” inspired (a tad bit overboard, wish he had underplayed the part just a bit)but nonetheless a much better version then “Main Aisa Hi Hoon”. Also, kanthasamy – good time pass (nothing too great about it) felt it was a bit too long.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:11 PM
the better version of Kanthasamy is Shankar’s Anniyan. I’m a great fan of the latter.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:16 PM
Sounds really interesting from what I get from wiki, Always enjoyed shankars movies (not sure how I missed this). Enjoyed Nayak as well, (really bad release date). Wonder, he is not making any HIndi movies since.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:23 PM
you should check out the original on Nayak, Muthalvan. Also Gentleman (original) and of course Kamal’s Indian (though you might have seen the Hindi version here). I haven’t been a great Shankar fan or anything but I love Anniyan and then Robot even more.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:39 PM
Cool, Will check em all out. Just found out that he is remaking 3I in tamil with that guy Vijay. Honestly, god knows who made that guy into an actor. I prefer Rahul Roy over him man. Such a horrible actor and not only that. He talks a lot of smack about Hindi movie/film industry (in movie via songs, interviews etc) for not having anything to show for. Such a turn off to hear that he is playing Aamir’s role. The actor who is known for underplaying his roles oppose to the person who does not even know A for acting. BAD casting.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:44 PM
Yeah that 3I remake with that cast is a terrible idea. Worse still it isn’t even Shankar’s kind of deal. I was hoping he was just producing this. Do think that Shankar’s brand of cinema has really reached its final conclusion first with Anniyan and now especially with Robot (where the Rajni saga comes full circle too). Really not sure what he can add to his legacy in terms of the masala genres. Do think though that he could do a complete period piece. Other than this there’s no possibility left for him.
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November 3, 2011 at 1:54 PM
Agreed Satyam, He should challenge himself with a period piece, having said that it does not need to be a serious drama, A period masala can do wonders too if well made. He should try something like “Maghadheera”. Many south films are copying that trend for now (if i am right). Badri Nath, 7 aum etc.
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November 3, 2011 at 3:20 PM
Did mean period masala!
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November 3, 2011 at 3:01 PM
A decent trailer, visuals look good but if movie has to have any Box office chances it all depends on how the music is recieved by the audience as there is absence of any star power.
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November 3, 2011 at 3:53 PM
this looks too good…..although nothing new but the usp of the film is abbas-mastan……this promo is 10 times better than any of the don-2 promos….i wish this works well for abhi and the entire team….bipasha never stops looking stunning and hot….
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November 3, 2011 at 3:58 PM
This doesn’t ‘look’ better than the Don 2 promos Idea.. Abbas-Mustaan just do more of the adrenalin.. but Don 2 has some really fine visuals.. not talking about what’s more enjoyable here.. I was bored in the earlier Don though looks like they’re going in for more of an MI sort of deal here.. but at any rate Abbas-Mustaan can push the right buttons. that’s a different thing.. but the theatrical Don trailers do have great visuals.. in the auteurist sense that one also sees from some Hollywood films. I haven’t really liked any Furhan film after DCH but he can produce some dazzling visuals. These unlike the SFX of Ra One are upto ‘international’ standards.
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November 3, 2011 at 4:47 PM
I really think the trailer looks very action packed, exciting, and entertaining. I love all types of action films (Hollywood and Bollywood) that provide adrenaline thrills, good visuals, some humor, and a few twists to the plot. This looks like a complete entertainer with mass appeal.
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November 3, 2011 at 7:01 PM
As an AB fan, I’m worried about this movie. The trailer didn’t do anything for me. I somehow get the feel that this is going to go the “Game” way. AB needs to deliver big really soon.
Bol Bachchan and Dhoom3 at this time seem to be the best shot.
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November 3, 2011 at 7:16 PM
“As an AB fan, I’m worried about this movie”–relax
In a “normal” setting, there is always the “law of averages” and the “silver lining”
But with some1 like abhishrek, one never knows how “deep” the bottom will be…
The directors abbas mastaan here know the “indianisation/accessible thriller” like the back of their hands
Let’s see where abhishrek takes them
Yes–where they havent gone before—lol
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November 4, 2011 at 12:58 AM
Don’t know why we make AB so big ??? Look at filmography of Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgan .. these guys has delivered 20-22 Flops/Disasters in a row .. but no one noticed or care about .. but it seems every Abhishek flop is closely watched and sensed by everyone .. Abhishek has not given more flops than Sanjay dutt or Ajay devgan .. this is #FACT.
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November 4, 2011 at 3:31 AM
Satyam Players promo original song they have brought the rights of ths song:
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November 4, 2011 at 9:42 AM
juniorbachchan Abhishek Bachchan
Wow! Thanks a lot guys. NEVER had such a unanimously positive reaction to any promo of mine. Big love
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November 4, 2011 at 11:22 AM
Checked the voting on rediff a few mins ago for the first promo liked or disliked, It was liked at 80 %.
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November 4, 2011 at 11:31 AM
Hmm, looks good for me!
But I doubt with such a flop cast this film will succeed, also theres’s no Katrina but flop actresses like Sonam and Bipasha!
Well I hope this film helps Abhishek in this stage of his career, because he needs BO success badly.
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November 4, 2011 at 3:08 PM
To be 100% honest, I enjoyed Race more than Don with SRK. And I enjoyed Humraz to0o. Abbas-Mustan may not be sleek, but like Rakesh Roshan, they know how to tell a story well. I am not a big fan of AB Jr, in fact, I think he is among the worst, or perhaps THE worst actor around today ( though, I don’t know how, he was truly great in Guru) and find Sonam uterly boring, yet I might watch this over Don 2. ( great visuals , yes, but zero souls, as far as I can see so far.)
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November 4, 2011 at 3:16 PM
I didn’t see Race in the theater, saw it on video and thought it was ok though I was also with some friends and I wasn’t giving it total attention. Revisited it a year or two later on Netflix and found it quite enjoyable. Still thought the twists were absurd but it was a guilty pleasure. Saw Don in the theater and leaving aside the remake politics was quite bored. Saw this recently again (wanted to refresh myself before Don 2!) and had to forward my way through bits. Could still only admire the visuals at points. Otherwise didn’t like it even this time. But Don 2 looks like a Bourne or MI deal. They too are going in for stunts and explosions and constant chase scenes and so forth. The problem with Farhan though is that his cool visuals and almost dispassionate style in this genre is not very conducive to the right kind of adrenalin pump that this genre otherwise has to offer. In fairness Bourne isn’t necessarily that either which is why those films don’t put up really big numbers even when they do well.
I have been however surprised to learn over the years the extent to which it’s very hard to find someone who didn’t enjoy Race. This is not odd in itself but it’s not that special a film even for its genre that one it has that sort of recall. Better than everything else other than Dhoom. Have been surprised on this score but perhaps Bollywood hasn’t done a good enough job of staying just at this level. You’ve had stuff like Chance and Luck and what not. Similarly with the Players trailer I have noted more gung-ho responses even from those who are indifferent to Abhishek (at best) than with the Don 2 trailers (where it was the usual.. it will be big with SRK and so on). This too I have been a bit surprised about.
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November 4, 2011 at 3:35 PM
Just as I enjoyed race, andw as bored by Don, Was left quite cold by Dhoom 2 too. Only liked the dancing of Hritik and Ash and some comedy bits with Uday. The central narrative left me as cold as the narrative of Don. ( I really don’t know what Aamir sees in the franchise, unless the script this time is total departure.) Coming to Bourne Identity and Don @, I think the similarity lies only in the edgy visuals. But Bourne is genuinely edgy in spirit too… while Don 2 seem slikea parody. This is where I totally disagre with Rangan.. a movie must take itself seriously ( Or why will anybody else? ) This is where Aitabh scored in the 70’s, putting his passion into the most inane projects, an compelling us to watch. Shahrukh did just the opposite in Ra One. … and likely to do so again in Don2, though it may not have the other negatives of Ra One like a limp narrative, sick and unfunny jokes, bad performance, and bad song placements.
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November 4, 2011 at 3:46 PM
Roger Ebert on ” Bourne Ultimatum”:
“Run, Jason, run. The Bourne films have taken chases beyond a storytelling technique and made them into the story. Jason Bourne’s search for the secret of his identity doesn’t involve me in pulsating empathy for his dilemma, but as a MacGuffin, it’s a doozy. Some guy finds himself with a fake identity, wants to know who he really is and spends three movies finding out at breakneck speed. And if the ending of “The Bourne Ultimatum” means anything at all, he may need another movie to clear up the loose ends.
That said, so what? If I don’t care what Jason Bourne’s real name is, and believe me, I sincerely do not, then I enjoy the movies simply for what they are: skillful exercises in high-tech effects and stunt work, stringing together one preposterous chase after another, in a collection of world cities with Jason apparently piling up frequent-flier miles between them…”
I doubt Don 2 has than much raw action. Just as Ra One did not really have that much VFX sequences. That’s the problem. Neither a great soulful script, nor edge-of-the-seat, jaw-dropping action. If anything, the car chases in Players will be more thrilling than those in Don 2, I can bet.
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November 4, 2011 at 3:50 PM
Yeah, on evidence of the first Don I think it’s safe to say Farhan isn’t exactly Paul Greengrass! But the second Don does seem to be more energetic than what I remember from that turgid first attempt.
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November 4, 2011 at 4:01 PM
Fair enough..
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November 4, 2011 at 4:35 PM
they are releasing three thrillers in a short gap which will be very interesting
agent vinod again looks to desi version of bond and whatever has come from don 2 it don has the same hangover and again players is an official remake
anyway thriller as an genre is ignored for to long
on recent time sridhar raghvan handled it brilliantly in johnny gadaar and that makes agent vinod interrsting similarly abbas mustan has mastered this genre for long
and i still think farhan is to dicey for thrillers as his strength lies mostly in light films
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November 4, 2011 at 6:04 PM
“I am not a big fan of AB Jr, in fact, I think he is among the worst, or perhaps THE worst actor around today ( though, I don’t know how, he was truly great in Guru) “—haha utkal– some tough words….
Dont think he is the worst actor
He just doesn’t have the street level sense and connection with public taste and nor does he have the ability to learn from mistakes adequately
“This is where Aitabh scored in the 70′s, putting his passion into the most inane projects, an compelling us to watch”—agree
If the audience sees someone taking things casuallty and sometimes laughing at them—the results can be surprising
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November 5, 2011 at 12:46 PM
Abhishek agreed for Players without script
Today, no actor is known to green-light a project without a thorough narration and/or a bound script. But Abhishek Bachchan made an exception for director duo Abbas-Mustan when they approached him for a key role in Players. He signed on the dotted line only on the basis of a one-line story that he was told.
Abhishek Bachchan“Abhishek agreed to do the film after just hearing the basic premise. Not too many actors would do run such a big risk. He did it because he’s a huge Abbas-Mustan fan and had complete faith in their work. They were pleasantly surprised too,” says a source close to the film.
Abbas confirms and says, “When we insisted on a complete narration, he just asked us to start shooting directly. It was reassuring because he decided to work with us following our previous work. He said he had full faith in us and didn’t need a narration to come on board.”
Ironically, even to this day, Abhishek’s father, superstar Amitabh Bachchan, supposedly, doesn’t agree to work in a movie without a narration and a bound script. Considering it was Abbas-Mustan’s first outing with Abhishek, Abbas is all praises for AB Jr: “He is a director’s actors. He did everything with commitment and passion.”
Players, also toplines Bipasha Basu, Bobby Deol, Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Omi Vaidya and Sikander Kher and releases on January 6. It’s the official remake of the Hollywood crime thriller The Italian Job. The movie was filmed across India, New Zealand and Russia.
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November 6, 2011 at 9:44 AM
Abhishek does a Phool Aur Kaante, but on two trains
By: Subhash K Jha Date: 2011-11-06 Place: Mumbai
Bored of regular stunts, Bachchan Jr balances himself atop two speeding trains for an upcoming film
Remember how everyone was amazed by Ajay Devgn’s now legendary split on two bikes in his debut film Phool Aur Kaante? Well, Abhishek Bachchan has just gone ahead and done a similar stunt, but this one is on two trains speeding at 60 miles per hour (96 kmph).
Abhishek Bachchan is lowered between two trains in Russia that were
running at a speed of 96.5 kilometres per hour
The stunt, which was performed last month in Murmansk, Russia for Abbas-Mustan’s Players, was apparently Bachchan’s own idea, and was so dangerous that both the stunt director of the film and the Russian stunt coordinator shot it down. Eventually the actor is learnt to have got his way.
According to a source from the unit, who believes the actor should not have been allowed to perform such a dangerous stunt, “He balanced himself on two speeding trains. We shouldn’t have allowed Abhishek to attempt it.”
According to the source, the actor was initially supposed to shoot a sequence in which he balanced himself on a speeding train. But because similar scenes were performed in recent films like Luck, Bodyguard and Robot, Bachchan suggested they try something better. The source said, “Abhishek then suggested he balance himself on two trains just like Ajay Devgn did in Phool Aur Kante. But bikes are one thing, trains another.”
When contacted, Abbas, one half of the duo Abbas-Mustan, said, “Everyone, including the Russian stunt coordinator and our own action director Allan Amin, rejected Abhishek’s idea. But he was adamant.”
According to Abbas, to make the stunt safer, it had been agreed upon that the trains’ speed would be brought down to 40 miles per hour, instead of the regular 60 miles per hour. But secretly, Bachchan had instructed the train drivers to keep to their regular speeds. Abbas said,
“We had no idea that the trains were moving at a much faster speed. I don’t know how we managed it. When my brother Mustan and I looked at the stunt’s rushes, we were stunned. It was a miracle nothing happened.” He added, “Of course we took all precautions, including the use of harnesses, etc. But still ¦.” According to sources, the filmmakers are now worried if the stunt will be viewed as a contravention of safety rules.
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November 6, 2011 at 9:46 AM
Remarkable!
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November 6, 2011 at 12:36 PM
This sounds like a pretty bad ass action stunt. I want to see how this looks in the film. Sounds cool.
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November 6, 2011 at 12:45 PM
glad the directors confirmed it.. in the past what’s happened is that when he does a stunt either it isn’t covered or it’s called exaggeration and so on.
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November 6, 2011 at 7:17 PM
I never found him comfortable doing stunt scenes. Let us hope it changes my opinion.
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November 6, 2011 at 8:38 PM
Abhishek has never been the most athletic guy and in terms of the stunts that are usually done in today’s films, a certain athleticism is required. Stunts call for a certain kind of choreography. Generally those who are trained for action at some point are best suited for this or those who have athletic postures for some other reason (a dancer like Hrithik). But it’s important to stress that this is a contemporary standard. Not one action hero from the past would have been great at stunts in today’s sense and vice versa. Because today a certain ‘plasticity’ is considered desirable in terms of pulling these things off. The stunt becomes part of the overall aesthetic of the sequence. Once upon a time though the ‘epic’ masala hero often moved at a somewhat difference pace. Now someone like Bachchan was incredible at fights, he seemed choreographed in a different sense the way someone like Dharmendra wasn’t. But still there wasn’t a sense of ‘weightlessness’. The hero’s physical strength required a certain level of violence to the action which is always diluted when the action/stunts became an extension of choreography. Could you imagine someone like Vinod Khanna (quite effective at action) having to do stunts?! Even the thought seems absurd. Today however it’s about choreography but also the athletic body presented as aesthetic object even during such sequences. In this kind of universe Abhishek can never be completely ‘at home’ the way Hrihtik can. However the right director can I think present this as an advantage by tinkering with things a bit. You don’t set up action scenes for Tom Cruise the way you would for Stallone. The same principle applies. Bachchan was fantastic at action but could you imagine him doing D2?! Because again in addition to everything a certain kind of physicality that cannot simply be rendered as part of the scenery and tends to stand out for one reason or another has to be ‘respected’ at every point. In Bombay cinema we are at a stage where Hollywood-like filmmakers know how to do a certain kind of stunt-oriented cinema but not all kinds for all sorts of physicality (which Hollywood can still do).
But yes all said and done Italian Job should be interesting to watch and figure out how Abhishek handles it. The most recent Hollywood version didn’t quite have this sort of stunt (i.e. with trains and so on).
The other interesting distinction between an older masala action aesthetic and that of the present is that in the former the hero even though so much a ‘master’ of everything else never quite overpowers nature. In fact the contact with nature often involves a sort of tussle. Similarly even with physical objects things are not necessarily ‘easy’. And so in the Burning Train you have so much action taking place on top of the train but there is a lumbering quality to the action. Because of course it is that way on a fast moving train. However today the very same thing would be rendered with the star pretty much dancing on the train with ease! ‘Force’, for want of a better word is never felt in the D2 kind of deal (the exception being when Abhishek jumps after hrithik without a parachute, this was what the film needed more of on Abhishek’s side). And here a film like Inception with its necessarily ‘plastic’ ordering of the world renders more plausibly what is already the logic of other Hollywood stunt-oriented films. There is never ‘difficulty’ or ‘struggle’ and so on. People glide across surfaces, speed across others, etc. The natural world or the universe of ‘objects’ doesn’t really pose an obstacle in any sense.
In any case I don’t think it’s about ‘stunts’ in a generic sense and more about a certain dominant way of handling stunts today where ABhishek might not necessarily be the best-suited guy for the terrain.
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November 7, 2011 at 1:16 PM
‘The stunt, which was performed last month in Murmansk, Russia for Abbas-Mustan’s Players, was apparently Bachchan’s own idea, and was so dangerous that both the stunt director of the film and the Russian stunt coordinator shot it down. Eventually the actor is learnt to have got his way.’
i dont buy this pr crap – not just for abhi but for any actor
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November 7, 2011 at 1:20 PM
‘According to Abbas, to make the stunt safer, it had been agreed upon that the trains’ speed would be brought down to 40 miles per hour, instead of the regular 60 miles per hour. But secretly, Bachchan had instructed the train drivers to keep to their regular speeds.’
ROFL…..train drivers were there only to take such secret orders…..
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November 7, 2011 at 1:29 PM
Yeah it seems like one of those bizarre Abhi claims where he supposedly jumped from a 90-foot- high cliff for a scene in the film Raavan.
Later Abhi ate shit when it was proved that it was not Abhi but a body double MS Balram, a Bangalore-based former national diving champion, who actually did that death-defying stunt
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November 7, 2011 at 2:36 PM
that’s not really true.. as with other things the media created hysteria about this too but even later Abhishek was clear that he had made the jump but that the diver had made it too. He’d also said earlier that he saw local kids do it and decided he could too. Now what’s probably a bit disingenuous here is the suggestion that he doesn’t know what shot was used and similarly he was probably misleading about this earlier too. The posture of the diver is so perfect that it’s not likely that someone trained for a little bit could have achieved it. Nonetheless the jump was made and at 90 ft I think the posture is the last thing one would be worried about! Anyway here’s one of those interviews where he’s explicit about it after the controversy broke:
http://news.taaza.com/source/318000-abhishek-caught-in-a-stunt-trouble.html
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November 7, 2011 at 2:40 PM
Not sure about the speed of the train and whether the drivers would just listen to the actor. However I don’t find the rest particularly implausible. Stars do these things at times. Bachchan at the age of 50 or so hung from a helicopter mid-air. Remember reading a Mukul anand interview where he said he was frantically worried as even though there was a rope around Bachchan it was a very dangerous thing to try and specially at that age. So they eventually had the helicopter hover over a swimming-pool just in case there was an accident of any kind.
But also remember that when stars do these things unlike with professional stuntmen there are lots of extra harnesses and support of all kinds. It’s still obviously dangerous but it’s not like a professional doing it. Speaking for myself I’d rather try out this sort of thing than take a dive at 90 ft!
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November 8, 2011 at 1:20 PM
i’ve never understood this kind of PR exercise – audience know that majority of stunts are performed by stuntsmen and evenif some star has performed it himself – in present times, it hardly adds to the curiosity factor – they tried this during Raavan – didn’t work, they have tried this for many other films of other stars – hasn’t worked – so why continue with such stuff? it looks childish. Akki has been claiming to have done is stunts himself in CCTC and many other recent disasters – such PR has never helped him.
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November 8, 2011 at 2:30 PM
Akshay Kumar is trained for stunts though.. he does a lot of stuff himself..
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November 6, 2011 at 9:55 AM
Iconic Minis Coopers drive into Bollywood
Abhishek Bachchan admits that one of the thrills of featuring in the official Indian remake of the British film, The Italian Job, was the prospect of getting to do some of the cool car stunts. “I love driving cars and the 1969 classic is memorable as much for Michael Caine’s dialogue (The line, “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!” was voted favourite film one-liner in a 2003 poll) as it was for the Mini Coopers Ss that were an integral part of the action,” says the actor.
During pre-production talks with the makers of Players, Abbas and Mustan, Abhishek was adamant about having the original Minis. It was easier said than done. When the producer-director duo started looking out for the iconic cars, they discovered there was one in Pune and a couple of them in Bangalore. Three cars were not enough. What if one of them got banged up or busted! So then they turned their attention to New Zealand where a large chunk of the film has been shot.
In the picturesque country they found 23 Minis. “We bought three each in red, blue and yellow and all nine cars were on the sets during a chase sequence,” informs Mustan.
For Abhishek, however, the excitement of driving a Mini Cooper that he had so far only watched zipping around on screen in one of his favourite films quickly ebbed. He realised that it was easier standing besides the car than sitting in one.
“Three of the tallest actors in the unit—Sonam (Kapoor), Sikander (Kher) and me — were driving these cars. It would take us five minutes to get into one and another five to get out. Our knees would bump against the steering wheel and our heads would hit the roof. But once you got going, it was a dream ride,” beams the star.
The original Mini Coopers had been upgraded about a decade ago and now the manufacturers are coming up with a newer version of the cars next year. Since Players is pencilled for a January 6, 2012, release the timing couldn’t have been better though there is no tie-up so far. From becoming the getaway vehicle of the players, the Minis could soon be plying on Indian roads.
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November 6, 2011 at 11:09 AM
just out of curiosity, satyam, do you know the gender of aish’s soon-to-be born baby? figured you’re the best person to ask this question, lol.
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November 6, 2011 at 11:49 AM
were I regressive enough I might be interested in this question! LOL!
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November 6, 2011 at 3:17 PM
brilliant answer there satyam ^^^
just for fun–if i were to guess, i feel it will be a “boy” (disclaimer: have nothing against the girl child)
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November 6, 2011 at 3:21 PM
btw why do people think that satyam would know intimate details about ash’s child and pregnancy lol
if i remember correctly, with the announcement of a pregnancy many were congratulating satyam!!
ps–havent seen many promos, but is Sonam trying to look different ie glamorous here…..
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November 6, 2011 at 6:09 PM
yeah she’s gone in for that sort of thing here.. check out the image thread..
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November 6, 2011 at 12:13 PM
expected more from the trailer!!!
lets see what kind of music it has!!!
liked the theme background music though!!!
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November 6, 2011 at 1:33 PM
Watched thetrailer again and must say not bad at all.
Though a touch less slick than Don 2, seems more testosterone driven. Still cant find anything redeeming in Deol tho.
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November 6, 2011 at 6:08 PM
Haven’t made one of these predictions in a while (!) but I’m going to say this will do 100 crores or more.
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November 6, 2011 at 9:29 PM
u were almost correct on Ra1 first week prediction though;-)
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November 7, 2011 at 9:46 AM
Man..your jinxing Abishekh again wtih your lofty predictions. Haven’t you learned anyting from DRONA and RAAVAN?
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November 7, 2011 at 10:02 AM
actually those films (and one could throw in some others) don’t really disprove my point. A prediction always assumes basic acceptance for a film. Obviously when people hate a film the biggest stars can have the biggest flops (and we know all the examples). But before KHJJS Abhishek showed a good enough initial even with disasters. So for example the pretense with JBJ was that it didn’t open well and then it flopped big time. But then it opened to 20 crores in 2007 which was more or less the Guru initial. This after tanking beyond the weekend. What happens is that when a film flops no one is interested in the details and vice versa. And the trade has always had this game with Abhishek where when the film works decently call it a failure, when it works better call it ok. when it’s a superhit call it some kind of success, when it fails completely call it a massive disaster but in any given scenario the implicit argument is that there’s no initial. The problem is that precisely the numbers on many of the flops cannot be explained. We know what happens when no one shows up. It’s KHJJS and Game! Or when people don’t show up in enough numbers for an overall liked film (DMD). Look at it another way Raavan, D6, DMD all more or less grossed the same! when Tashan flopped it made less than JBJ, when CCTC flopped it too made less given the time period separating the two. I could keep multiplying these examples. Drona, a bigger disaster than which is hard to imagine as a film, itself had a pretty solid first day though it was pretty much over after this. Still it made more than KHJJS and Game put together two years before those films! DMD was the one film where it didn’t do as much as I thought it would especially given the critical response and so on. Here I perhaps underestimated the damage Abhishek had suffered as a star by then. But otherwise the prediction is always based on the assumption that a film is minimally passable. And so with Italian Job it’s not too hard to imagine a film just at Race level! Surely not a high bar specially when they have to stick pretty close to the script of the original?
On the question of a ‘jinx’ can’t say I have a superstitious bone in my body! But the other thing is that success or failure I am constantly testing my own assumptions, recalibrating my own sense of these things. So I wasn’t predicting this kind of stuff for Game. But even with Players I didn’t make these predictions until the trailers released and I got a sense of how the trailer had been received and so on (online, in conversations with people in India.. some other stuff) in addition to the fact that I am confident this will have a high profile campaign which is necessary for this kind of genre. It’s not the static thing it might seem like at times. It’s just that Abhishek has had enough high profile projects where most of the time one could reasonably predict important things. And here with all the criticisms that could fairly and unfairly be leveled against him the fact is that he’s also had some bad luck. You don’t get all your big ones to fall at the same time even if many of these are risky. It’s just sometimes the draw you get. When he signed onto Guru with Rathnam for example he looked like a genius, when it was Raavan’s turn he looked like the biggest idiot. That’s just the way it works.
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November 7, 2011 at 9:48 AM
add JBJ to the list….
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November 6, 2011 at 9:51 PM
Satyam, this will not do 100 Crore. 100 Crore figure in today scenario is possible only of movie get Huge initial weekend, atleast 35-40 Crore weekend and great trending. I don’t see initial here because curiosity factor and Hype is almost missing till this point … and Abhishek has become such a bad name that without hype and excellent promos, no one will go to see his movies.
I would love you to relax your expectations for this movie.
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November 6, 2011 at 11:45 PM
I stand by what I said..! Let’s see..
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November 7, 2011 at 12:29 AM
The promotions campaign has only just started. It’s not even 1 week since the first trailer was released. But the campaign has started well and it does seem that the Abbas Mustan and the cast will go all out for it. Compare it with Game where the pre-release promotions were non-existent. Only Abhishek looked bothered enough to promote the movie.
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November 7, 2011 at 2:20 AM
I’m actually kinda pleasantly surprised with the promotional campaign of The Players. They’ve not just begun early, but they’ve started in all earnest… hoardings on Juhu, etc. and this when the release is in Jan 2012! I hope they phase themselves correctly though. The Burmawala Brothers are also producing this, so they most definitely believe in the commercial prospects of this one.
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November 7, 2011 at 6:46 AM
yeah they seem to be concentrating on the volume as well..
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November 7, 2011 at 9:08 AM
actually i thought the same
it has time for the release but i can also see the hoarding so early in delhi as well…have never see so early promotion for an abhishek film
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November 7, 2011 at 9:41 AM
The hoardings have been up but also they had heavy volume in the 9-10 PM slot on Nov 3 when they introduced the trailer. And of course they had 4 pre-teasers just announcing this. So think they’re going all out on this one.
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November 7, 2011 at 2:45 AM
This is by far the most exciting trailer for an Abhishek film in a while. The GAME trailer, despite the flashy look and feel, had too much of a “slow paced” feel to it while this is action-packed! DMD i had a huge bias from right away as it was Rohans next, but the fun begins now with this and BOL BACHCHAN as well as the masala ventures.
The cast is definetly not the best, and Akshaye Khanna in place of Bobby Deol would’ve been a lot better, however all said and done, this is a Abbas Mustaan film, if it’s as likeable as AJNABEE this could work in both the multiplexes and single screens in todays times. The fact that it’s an official remake plus the budget makes me thing this is Abbas Mustaans most ambitious film to date. As a huge fan since the KHILADI and BAAZIGARR days (and someone who doesn’t mind stuff like NAQAAB, HUMRAAZ, AJNABEE, AITRAAZ etc) this is going to be a lot of fun to watch and could achieve what a lot of other films *cough RA ONE* have failed to achieve in recent times (a desi film which impresses the non indian overseas audience too).
Now if Abbas Mustaan could just rope in Akshay-Abhishek-Akshaye Khanna for a film….
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November 7, 2011 at 8:34 AM
‘Akshay-Abhishek-Akshaye Khanna for a film….’
This would have been ideal cast for Players.
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November 20, 2011 at 12:17 AM
Bunch of wannabes, expecting under 50 crore final cume if it get’s lucky off-course.
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November 20, 2011 at 2:24 AM
who u nosterdamus jnr?
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November 20, 2011 at 2:48 AM
No, you can consider me chengez khan Sr
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November 20, 2011 at 7:09 PM
say Hello to ur better half..she was my first exploration on bed…unlucky you (and its not a consideration).
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November 20, 2011 at 3:41 AM
Casting is all wrong except for abhi-sonam imo.
Bobby takes on jason stathom role?
Kher son as computer genius??
Bipasha as ??
Neil is good.
but subcast is pathetic imo,
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November 20, 2011 at 4:14 AM
I couldn’t agree more. Abbas-Mustan could have introduced a few fresh male faces (and god knows the industry desperately needs a few new male faces) instead of hiring these men….they really lower the ‘prestige’ of the film. Neil Nithin, Sikandher, Bobby and Omi- is this a charitable venture to provide employment for struggling actors in the industry? Then again, with a title track like this, there is no saving the film.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the really obvious ‘cheapness’ of the whole thing- judging by the vibe from the title track- ends up alienating today’s multiplex audience who patronise movies like Rockstar and ZNMD. I mean Ra.One had a similar vibe- ‘international slick’ action/ sleaze and it crashed despite having several other factors in it’s favour- SRK, Chamak Challo and the special effects.
I think that today you either need to do a full-on masala or a proper multiplex kind of film if you want a big hit without a superstar. Films like Thank You, Double Dhamaal and Rascals have not worked in a big way this year. If you are relying on the sleaze/ skin factor to sell your film, the only way is to go all the way, like Murder 2.
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November 20, 2011 at 4:15 AM
And if the film ends up being badly made then all of the massive pre-release hype and extended campaign will only hurt it. Over exposure is not a hood thing.
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November 20, 2011 at 5:11 AM
here abbas mastan have to carry too many liabilities- abishek, boobby, neil etc. with Race atleast the actors had some starpower
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November 20, 2011 at 7:59 AM
Did they release the music? I am getting same vibes as Game.
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November 20, 2011 at 9:19 AM
“Is this a charitable venture to provide employment for struggling actors in the industry? Then again, with a title track like this, there is no saving the film.”–agree
I mentioned earlier: all actors make or female in this movie should be thankful for another chance of salvaging their career
I was the oroducer , would make all the male and female actirs here pay to be in the movie –most by cash…
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November 20, 2011 at 10:00 AM
I think Bipasha is actually the perfect fit for a film like this. Sonam and Abhishek have not had a hit in a long time and they are not the first people you think of for a film of this genre but they still cannot be compare to Neil, Sikandher, Bobby and Omi who are all quite miserable in my opinion (as stars, not as human beings, nothing personal against them).
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November 20, 2011 at 10:09 AM
For me Bobby Deol is the only guy who stands out in a truly negative sense. Sikandar Kher and Omi are relatively minor players here. The last is just there for comic relief. Neil is fine for this terrain in my view. Of course it’s certainly true that if I were casting for this movie Bobby Deol, Sikander would definitely not be there. Omi probably because I’m unsure who would be better with the comic routine here. For the other two I’d just take unknown actors if I had to. And certainly Akshaye Khanna would have had a part here, either as the villain or in the Statham role.
What directors often forget in these matters is that somewhat known stars sometimes send out negative vibes where unknown faces are neutral. But leaving this aside Bobby Deol is even worse as he gives a ‘washed out’ vibe.
Having said that if people are not showing up for Abhishek and Sonam and Bipasha and abbas-Mustaan’s track record don’t think the rest are the biggest issue!
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November 20, 2011 at 10:14 AM
Talking of bipasha–have no interest somehow…
Inspite of the strategically placed pic by satyam…lol
“legs” or not !!!
As for sonam–yes she is better than the rest here..
That’s why I said —won’t make everyone pay “by cash “to do this movie. Lol
Lately she is doing the “simple damsel in distress ” routine too commonly
Couldn’t see Mausam
As for abhishrek –think he needs to
Come out of a certain “comfort zone” & not only by signing “different ” films but by being visibly seen as exerting out of the way
He needs a “guru/yuva” performance (or better) ASAP
There is a certain “lethargy /stiffness” he needs to shake off
Someone who needs a “real kick on the backside ” ie real hardship to “wake him up”— unfortunately he hasn really faced it (though those repetitive flops weren’t pleasant…)
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November 20, 2011 at 2:31 PM
Man you’re a real jilted lover where Abhishek is concerned!
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November 20, 2011 at 9:35 AM
Is it possible to DONATE Ted and Kassam to Team SRK??
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November 20, 2011 at 11:55 AM
Is it possible to DONATE you to to Team Can’t Stop *itching About SRK???
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November 20, 2011 at 12:50 PM
LOL!! Good one!
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November 20, 2011 at 12:58 PM
But no need to donate, he’s the co-owner of that team.
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November 21, 2011 at 12:21 AM
I heard he’s trying for the Owner position…
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November 20, 2011 at 1:20 PM
what does it mean, donating Ted?
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November 20, 2011 at 1:35 PM
You have not to ask the meaning, which is clear…it’s meant to rebuke you by associating you with the low/untouchable cast people on this blog.
Instead, you have to ask what your crime was. LOL!!
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November 20, 2011 at 1:45 PM
don’t worry, I was already in SRK team. I used to watch all his movies in 90s’ ( not any more). i still prefer him compared to other khans.
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November 20, 2011 at 3:04 PM
>I used to watch all his movies in 90s’ ( not any more). i still prefer him compared to other khans.
Now that’s a good example of what paradox is.
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November 20, 2011 at 12:13 PM
While we are all dissing the promos for Players, the movie is tracking upwards according to trade figures.
Trade Trac – 19th November, 2011
by Box Office India (November 20, 2011)
This Friday saw the release of two small-budget films, Pammi Somal’s Na Jaane Kabse and Shubh’s Shakal Pe Mat Ja. Both films failed to capture the attention of the audience and went unnoticed at the ticket counter across the country. All eyes are on the next release which is Desi Boyz and shows upward trend in the chart. Even Dirty Picture , Don 2 and Players show an upward trend in the chart.
http://www.boxofficeindia.co.in/trade-trac-%e2%80%93-19th-november-2011/
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November 20, 2011 at 1:13 PM
Anurag, amongst the Rast cast only Katrina and Saif (to an extent) had some kind of box office pull. While Katrina certainly has it, Saif doesn’t really guarantee you a great initial. And he had a half-baked role in the film. Akshaye Khanna had the meatier role. Anil Kapoor isn’t going to ensure a great opening by hilmself these days.
I think that Bobby Deol will be alright here. And I do believe he will get a good, strong, supporting role under Abbas-Mustan. Look, Bobby is ok in action thrillers and it’s been his main strength. He did well in Soldier, Bichoo, Gupt, Badal and Humraaz. The success of YPD (even he was only part of an ensemble) will do him some good. I think that Bobby will very much be in his element here.
If I have some doubt, it is Neil as the main villain. It is a strong negative role and I have doubts if he can carry it out well. If there is a potential weak link in the casting, it is Neil.
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November 20, 2011 at 3:14 PM
Oh man
Just mentioned the “legendary” oldgold few
Minutes ago
Thought she was underground and we could “gossip ”
But she’s back
Have I for “special powers or what ”
Ra2 !!
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November 20, 2011 at 7:27 PM
People are acting like Race was some masterpiece film. How quickly everyone forgets that before Race Saif was coming off 3 big flop films from YRF. Akshaye Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Sameera Reddy, and Anil Kapoor have no real box office power or star power on their own as well. The only one in Race that was a big star in the making was Katrina Kaif who’s career was on the definite upward track to super stardom when Race came along. Also Race’s soundtrack and videos were subpar complete with bad to cheesy choreography.
However Race became a big hit at the box office because Abbas-Mustan know how to make entertaining action thrillers that hit the bulls eye with their target audience. Abbas-Mustan seem to know how to make their films accessible to the masses and classes in India by putting in the right amounts of action, suspense, glamour, sexiness, foreign locales, music, and masala. I think Players will be a hit at the box office for the same exact reasons that Race become a hit film 3 years ago. The Players theme song is a very decent and adequate song and video to continue to help promote the film to its target audience. Its very positive news that Players is still showing an upward trend and gaining much more interest(buzz) with the paying public in India which is where it counts.
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November 20, 2011 at 7:42 PM
Race even with decent NETT (like SIK was losing in some circuits) was not a winning proposition for its distributor. It costed them 60 crore + PP.
http://www.businessofcinema.com/news.php?newsid=6434
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November 20, 2011 at 7:48 PM
I doubt it.Even Players is sold for 35 crores- several years later.
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November 20, 2011 at 8:14 PM
I completely agree. At the end of the day Race was pretty much unanimously given a hit (successful) tag by all of the major players in the Indian trade. It was a hit film. I think Players will be a hit film as well. As long as Players is a hit (success) at the box office then that’s all that counts.
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November 20, 2011 at 8:17 PM
by the way the trade won’t be as kind on Abhishek film. so actually it will have to do better than race even here! LOL!
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November 20, 2011 at 9:10 PM
Tips made profit but UTV was in red. Budget was 35 crore.
http://www.radiosargam.com/films/archives/11193/race-sold-for-a-whopping-rs-7-crore.html
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November 20, 2011 at 7:56 PM
Italian Job will have to trend a lot better than Race. The latter got off to a flying start but did a relatively quick fade in week 2. Didn’t even double it’s week 1 number (of course this has been true for a number of ‘hits’ since). Somehow the perception here has been way ahead of the box office. It’s hard to talk to anyone who 1)didn’t think Race was enjoyable 2)didn’t think Race was a hit. But the economics you’ve pointed out is quite right.
My own standard (and I’ve said this before too) for Players is 100 crores (give or take some). At that point it should be a success in every sense (assuming it’s also doubling its gross or more). If it just matches the Race numbers and trending it should be able to do this in today’s money. and that’s not too much to ask for. I’m assuming a lesser initial but more stability accounting for Abhishek’s box office damage. Here I will disagree with Annihilator to this extent. Saif is not the same as Abhishek irrespective of how many flops he (saif) has. Because he’s not the same kind of threshold star and hence no one carries ‘negativity’ from Saif’s prior failures. If the project seems right the audience is in. With Abhishek it’s the opposite and specially given a lot of the ‘weird’ stuff (not my characterization but the audience’s sentiment) he’s done. and so an audience is quite likely to say ‘Players looks great but with Abhishek you never know’. With saif they wouldn’t have that second clause there. I’ve said this many times. Abhishek cannot just fall under the radar as a star. He has to be a certain kind of star or he’s nobody. He can’t say ‘I’m happy to be in the second tier and let’s just take it from there’. It doesn’t work that way with him.
And leaving aside all this the producer or director or whoever’s invested money here did not launch this sort of project on this scale just to get minimal numbers. The business model would make no sense in that case! So the bar here has to be a higher one. The question becomes: how much can Abhishek pull in in the initial stages assuming a campaign that keeps the momentum going? Specially since these days without a big enough first weekend it’s very hard to pull in the audience later. Especially so for this sort of genre where it’s really all about the initial box office high. Abbas-Mustaan look to have pulled out all the stops here in terms of stunts and so on. They have a better narrative to work with as well within the genre. It’s a question of delivering at this point.
I’ve bet on a 100 crore total here. But I’ve often been more brave than right in the past! Let’s see!
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November 20, 2011 at 8:53 PM
“”‘by the way the trade won’t be as kind on Abhishek film. so actually it will have to do better than race even here! LOL!”‘”
Oh yeah, I know how very biased the Indian trade is about Abhishek and his films. Its always an upward battle for him. I’m just saying that whatever the box office numbers will be for Players that as long as the film is a hit (success) at the box office then that is really all that matters. IMO
I hope Players is a hit for all of the cast. I think it will be. Players being a hit will be some nice success for Abhishek in which he can continue to build on with Bol Bachchan, Dhoom 3, and his other upcoming films.
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November 21, 2011 at 12:24 AM
Honest to honest, I’m simply seeing nothing, but, a non-thriller thriller from the trailer. Everything in the movie seems so WEIRD… Almost everybody’s a misfit here. The only thing I could see that’s actually kinda in a way working for this film is Abhishek. And that too, not a lot. Abhishek seems, I dunno, “confused” in the trailer.
Overall, this doesn’t give me a good feeling!
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November 21, 2011 at 1:38 PM
A few more facts on the Race casting. In fact, Akshay Kumar was initially signed for the lead role. He was a Abbas Mustan regular and he initially agreed to it. Fardeen was signed for the negative role.
Akshay was riding high at that time and it was reported that he didn’t find the lead role good enough and he kindly opted out of the film. Saif then came in for him. There was then a reported fall out between the directors and Fardeen and they then opted to bring in one of their favourites, Akshaye Khanna for the negative lead.
Akshaye has been one of Abbas Mustan’s favourites and they did not let him down as he got a quite strong negative role.
When the producers watched the finished product, they did not like the fact that the most saleable actors (Katrina and Saif) got raw deals. Katrina was playing second fiddle to Bipasha while Saif disappeared for nearly an hour during the second half of the movie. So, they told the directors to add a song featuring both of them while the movie was due to release in a few weeks time and while the film’s soundtrack album was already out. Abbas-Mustan gave in and a new song was recorded, shot and added to the movie.
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November 21, 2011 at 2:53 PM
Is race the movie whereIn EVERY human being that existed on screen ( even for a few seconds) acted as a potential “suspect” to keep the “suspense” going
Is it also the film that where a bevy of “hot looking girls ” ie bipasha katrina etc couldn’t provide real “oomph”
Is it also the movie where a stubble laden saif mistook that for some sort of neo-Italian “European” avant garde style(&failed)
Is it also the film wherein akshaye khan as trademark smirk caused him a permanent muscular spasm (affecting distant organs as well….)
But having said this–the directors know their job nd audience well and stick to that–hence it “works” somewhat
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November 21, 2011 at 3:13 PM
LOL, true on everyone being a suspect in Race. It had the most absurd twists imaginable. However I didn’t know until recently that this too was at least a partial copy of a Joffe film (which I hadn’t heard about).
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November 21, 2011 at 4:03 PM
There is quite a hilarious story related to this:
Bipasha worked on Joffe’s film Singularity, and he once asked her about her favourite films of her own. She told him about Dhoom 2 and Race- which are her biggest hits. He thought that Race sounded a bit like Goodbye Lover (his film that was plagiarised by Abbas-Mustan) so he was interested and asked her about the plot – when she described it to him in detail he got really angry and actually called up Abbas-Mustan and had a word with them about it. Apparently they were quite rattled and that is why- for the first time in their career- they decided to get remake rights, although most of their previous movies are plagiarised.
I saw this on a gossip website, so I have no idea how true it actually is. But I thought it was really funny 😀 “Tell me about your previous work-wait, WTF? That is MY movie!”
BTW did you like Viva Riva?
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November 21, 2011 at 4:32 PM
LOL, that’s a great anecdote, true or not! On Italian Job I think it’s also harder for Bollywood to do things the old-fashioned way because some of the major studios have now set up shop in India and they can engage in litigation quite easily.
Liked Viva Riva reasonably. Perhaps more the feel than anything else.
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November 21, 2011 at 3:17 PM
Checked a bit of ” 7 years in Tibet”
Will have to revisit properly
Surprised how brad Pitt got the Austrian – German accent
Btw certain people are stars and Pitt is one of them
Somehow when the “actor” in him tried to take centre stage didn’t really accept it
That’s the paradox of a true “star”
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November 21, 2011 at 3:19 PM
Talking of Pitt in tree of life vs 7 years
Btw who is the closest Pitt analogue in Bollywood
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November 21, 2011 at 3:37 PM
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November 21, 2011 at 4:14 PM
“Tell me about your previous work-wait, WTF? That is MY movie!””–haha
Amy comes up with really entertaining “scoops”
She has been appointed the official “special news analyst” hereon for this site lol
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November 21, 2011 at 5:16 PM
Haha Alex. I actually have excellent firsthand sources for Kollywood gossip but nothing like that for Bollywood I am afraid.
And Satyam – the feel of Viva Riva was what drew me in as well. I usually never watch films of that genre, so I did really enjoy it as a novelty.
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November 21, 2011 at 5:22 PM
What’s kollywood
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November 21, 2011 at 5:28 PM
The Tamil film industry = Kollywood. But I am going to stop now-I do not want Satyam’s serious cinema blog to degenerate into a celebrity gossip blog. 😛
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November 21, 2011 at 5:32 PM
feel free… we love our sleaze around here..
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November 21, 2011 at 5:36 PM
Haha
Oh I see
Buck how is “k”ollywood=”t”amil industry
Btw feel free –quite a few south Indian movie fans here (though I’m more than ignorant unfortunately )
“feel free… we love our sleaze around here..”—good to see the “real” satyam speak up (unafraid of “dangers “at his home lol)
Anyhow this link has been noted and maybe used later haha
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November 21, 2011 at 6:05 PM
It’s just where those industries have been historically centered. It doesn’t always go by the name of the city or the language. So you have Bollywood for Bombay (though I guess this deserves a name change given the city’s own! a worthy cause for the Shiv Sena) but Mollywood for Malayalam cinema. But it doesn’t end here. There’s Sandalwood (Kannada.. quite literally sandalwood here!), Tollywood also refers to the Telugu industry though the Bengali name is more well known, Dhallywood (Dhaka), Kollywood (Nepal’s industry centered in Kathmandu) and then the truly LOL Lollywood (Lahore)!
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November 21, 2011 at 6:16 PM
“though I guess this deserves a name change given the city’s own! a worthy cause for the Shiv Sena”
Ha!
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November 21, 2011 at 5:34 PM
yup Kollywood for an area called Kodambakkam in Chennai much as Tollywood (Bengali industry) is for a locality called Tollygunge.
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November 21, 2011 at 5:49 PM
Cool it satyam: joking: we won’t send any links anywhere hahaha
And Amy :more gossip the better
And more exclusive the gossip: will give u more “points” & “favours” hahaha
Cheers
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November 21, 2011 at 6:44 PM
[edited]
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November 21, 2011 at 7:55 PM
thanks for sharing.. amusing stuff! On the rest I wouldn’t have expected less from Rathnam..
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November 22, 2011 at 10:04 AM
I remember Mani Ratnam’s kid was working as an usher at a Communist party event; can’t imagine too many celeb kids doing that…
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November 22, 2011 at 2:13 PM
Yeah, he is the anti-thesis of what you expect a celebrity son to be. He wrote a pamphlet on communist politics that was pretty well-received I believe. And also a piece on Dravidian politics through the prism of Tamil cinema. If you are interested in that kind of thing, you could google it, it’s available online I think.
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November 21, 2011 at 6:51 PM
Now that’s a real life scoop Amy^^^^ brilliant
I’m sure the likes of satyam and gf will appreciate…
Anyhow –Ranbir replaces SRK in 2 states
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Entertainment/Bollywood/Ranbir-Kapoor-confirms-2-States-offer/Article1-771971.aspx
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November 21, 2011 at 7:56 PM
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November 26, 2011 at 8:48 AM
“I love the attitude Caine carried in all his films. I have lost count of how many times I have seen The Italian Job. I have watched Caine’s version more times than (Mark) Wahlbergs’. It’s a cult film,” Abhishek said.
http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report_admiration-for-michael-caine-led-abhishek-bachchan-to-do-players_1617686
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November 30, 2011 at 8:07 AM
It might be the odd trailer here that doesn’t have Bipasha in that swimwear!
Seems to be a bit of a triangle here in this video.
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November 30, 2011 at 8:24 AM
soundtrack:
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/audiolisting/14227/index.html
didn’t know Abhishek was singing one here.
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November 30, 2011 at 8:57 AM
Judging Pritam is always a low bar and this soundtrack certainly isn’t DMD by a long shot (itself hardly the touchstone in these matters though Pritam cannot do too much better than this.. LAK might be the very best he’s capable of) but this current track (on the preview) for what its worth is probably the best one here. The abhishek number sounds fun and somewhat traditional but Pritam’s music gets in the way. Overall can’t imagine anyone wanting to listen to 5 remixes of the same track as there seem to be on this album (though I’ve been thinking this for years on many counts). But let’s say Abbas-Mustaan have decided to keep things at the lowest denominator level in terms of the music and the music videos! Hardly a huge surprise coming from them but one wonders sometimes why it isn’t possible to do a bit better even allowing for the genre and so forth.
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November 30, 2011 at 8:44 AM
Re:Seems to be a bit of a triangle here in this video.
I am a little confused. Are you talking about the lower half of the bikini ( swim wear) or a romantic triangle?? Cant access the video .So cant say if it is a bikini or a monokini.
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November 30, 2011 at 8:46 AM
heh heh…
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November 30, 2011 at 11:17 AM
I don’t mind this latest promo. Nothing great to it but it doesn’t make me cringe. That’s a good thing 😉
Abhishek and Sonam both looking good.
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November 30, 2011 at 11:27 AM
don’t know why both song previews so far are so garishly green! They have footage from the film interspersed with later footage (Abhishek has a very different look in these portions). If I were them I wouldn’t focus on the entire gang very much from hereon. They’ve been introduced. Now it should just be about the action, Abhishek-Sonam-Bipasha and to an extent Neil Mukesh. Of course Abbas-Mustaan are keeping it even more simple. The bikini pops up (bad choice of words I know..) everywhere!
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November 30, 2011 at 11:29 AM
Wowwwww .. Abhishek is looking Rockstar here .. After watching this trailer i felt bollywood underestimated Abhishek and not able to utilize his talent .. He is truly looking Rockstar here ..
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November 30, 2011 at 11:37 AM
Budhi do Bhagwan looks catchy and funny song .. will be SuperHit.
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November 30, 2011 at 11:42 AM
yeah it sounds enjoyable except that at least online there’s an imbalance between the music and the voice (one comes in at a higher level).
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November 30, 2011 at 1:10 PM
ALthough admire her fitness regime, but find Bipasha ultra repetitive in the bikini–MEH
She may well be the brand ambasadoress for a few bikini brands though
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November 30, 2011 at 1:15 PM
agreed..
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November 30, 2011 at 1:17 PM
but satyam does have a secret fetish here—and also wrt deepika
am i not rite?
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November 30, 2011 at 1:44 PM
Not sure what fetishes you’re referring to (I thought I had exercised great caution in terms of keeping these secret) but yes I do find Deepika quite beautiful though she doesn’t have enough ‘character’ at this stage if you know what I mean. Kind of like an earlier Ash in this respect ( at least when she wasn’t doing Rathnam).
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November 30, 2011 at 1:50 PM
“I thought I had exercised great caution in terms of keeping these secret) but yes I do find Deepika quite beautiful…”—hehe
thats what “uncovering” means..
“Not sure what fetishes you’re referring to …”—-dont think i need to teach you the meaning of “fetish”…lol
Lets say: the type GF has for “beefcake” dutt–(though he may deny vehemently) hahaha
(also for the sake of his multiple “GFs”…)
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November 30, 2011 at 5:01 PM
I like the new Players song promo for Jhoom Jhoomta Hun Main. It looks cool. Abhishek really looks cool in the promo. Sonam and Bipasha are also looking very good as well. I agree that the marketing and promotions should just focus on Abhishek, Sonam, Bipasha, and Neil for the next 5 weeks or more.
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November 30, 2011 at 10:40 PM
The songs and picturization are pathetic here.
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December 1, 2011 at 8:39 AM
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December 2, 2011 at 7:03 AM
good promotion, this movie is looking promising with each passing day…
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December 2, 2011 at 10:24 PM
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December 3, 2011 at 12:22 AM
Vinod Khanna makes a ‘powerful’ comeback with Players
By Joginder Tuteja, December 2, 2011 – 16:37 IST
Vinod KhannaPromotion of Players may be currently centred on Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu and Sonam Kapoor but not many are aware that there is a surprise element in store as well. This remake of The Italian Job required a veteran actor to play a very important part in the film and directors Abbas-Mustan were convinced that Vinod Khanna was the man for the job. The veteran actor isn’t known for doing too many films but Players turned out to be one of those films to which he couldn’t refuse.
“Amongst the senior actors, the ones who are still active are Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor and Dharmendra. Though Abbas-Mustan have worked with Rishi Kapoor earlier in Daraar, they are yet to rope in the other two. However, they threw a surprise by reaching out to Vinod Khanna instead. The senior actor has been on a retirement of sorts and seldom does any films. The only films that he has done in recent times are Tell Me O Kkhuda that started two years back while he had a miniscule role in Dabangg. It was a gamble to zero down on him for a role as one should be prepared to hear ‘no'”, says a source.
Still, Abbas-Mustan took a chance and were totally convinced that Khanna senior was the man for the job due to his debonair conduct and a stylish persona. They felt that for a film with gold heist as the central element, the master mind had to be a powerful personality who also had an air of mystery around him.
“When you plan something with Vinod Khanna, the role has to be all powerful”, says Abbas, “In fact he was very happy with the story and immediately agreed to do the film. He feels that the role really goes well with his age and personality.”
There was a hiccup though in this association to turn into reality. As luck would have it, Khanna fell ill at the same time when he was required for the shoot. Resultantly, he requested Abbas-Mustan to excuse him from Players since he didn’t want to hold up the shoot due to his illness. He also promised them that he would do their next film for sure.
Vinod Khanna”We just told him ‘nothing doing'”, says Mustan in an animated tone, “For this pivotal character it had to be him and only him. He has this action hero image for decades and audience have seen his intensity. We altered the schedule by shooting other portions of the film first. We also requested him to let us know whenever he is fine so that we can plan a schedule with him.”
For the suave actor, it was an emotional moment for sure since in Bollywood today, one can hardly be seen waiting for an actor, especially when there is a multi star cast involved.
“Once he was fine, he called to say that he was all set for the shoot and was also glad that we waited for him. Now you have to watch his performance in the film. We are sure the audience would end up remembering the Vinod Khanna of yore after seeing what he has done in Players”, concludes Abbas.
Well, with sons of Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra already as the younger players, one wouldn’t mind seeing a senior player to be driving the show here.
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December 3, 2011 at 12:45 PM
Joginder:
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/musicreview/14227/index.html
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December 5, 2011 at 4:47 PM
It is rather farcical as always to see a scale where something like Players gets 3.5 stars and a Rahman falls in the same range (higher or lower depending on the album) or even on the same scale at all! Players is another Synthesizer 101 of a soundtrack (believe it or not Pritam can sometimes go upto 102 or 103 on a really bright day!) from this ‘composer’ (to be extremely generous to him). This soundtrack gets the job done which by the standards of contemporary Bollywood is even lower down the food chain than the films I routinely criticize. If the writing in Hindi cinema is largely a thing of the past the music of yesteryear probably belongs to a different phase of ‘civilization’! Barring Rahman who cannot be classified as a ‘Hindi’ composer. It is not even the case that there is good music to be had in the manner of Western pop music and so on. Because we just get the catchy tune hastily arranged into something that insults the intelligence but that nonetheless is designed for consumption usage, which is to say the all too common ‘song’ that becomes part of the general ‘noise’ level of contemporary culture (and in a global sense) and with enough repetition becomes part of the bloodstream. One does not ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ such music, one is assaulted by it at every corner and on every bandwidth and every technology suitable for ‘sound’ and one succumbs. By these distastefully low standards Pritam does the job. If such a film aims for nothing more than a joy-ride the music manages to fall at a level even below this! And I could say the same for a number of film-soundtrack combos in contemporary Bollywood. More to the point here is Race which thrived with the same sort of choices. Having heard the songs a few times it’s clear that most of these will go well with the film. Pritam reaches back to his Mahesh Bhatt days for the Jhoom jhoom moment with the whole ‘aggressive love’ deal, possibly the best track on the album. On the Abhishek number he does something interesting as he uses the actor’s voice almost as ‘bass’ accompaniment but he could have done far better to achieve the same effect, nonetheless this is a somewhat traditional tune (specially with the lyrics) where despite all of Pritam’s ‘bastardization’ some of the source-virtues come through. Ho gayi tun is passable as is the theme song. And finally Pritam produces another soporific love duet here (evidently he has many fans on this front as well). Now of course I have a low opinion of pritam for many reasons but on some days he can at least produced the very inspired ‘copy’ (the Bhool bhulaiya title song) or ‘rehash’ from a dozen sources (the LAK end credits number). The rest of the time Kiss me qualifies as the ‘bar’ to which he has to live upto or surpass. This industry is even beyond a god’s help! While this entire set of opinions might seem harsh I am actually commending Pritam! For once again only staying at the level most of his audience desires! But reviewers (and so far the soundtrack is not surprisingly getting good reviews) should at least have the decency to invent a separate scale for Rahman. I am not sure what it ‘means’ to say that Players is a 3.5 star soundtrack and Rockstar is 4 or 4.5 stars (whatever it got).
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December 5, 2011 at 5:03 PM
” should at least have the decency to invent a separate scale for Rahman. I am not sure what it ‘means’ to say that Players is a 3.5 star soundtrack and Rockstar is 4 or 4.5 stars (whatever it got).”——agree
I have always maintained that rahmans music starts from where others end
pritam though has a very high “hit rate” and hence it better than the other mortals
HAve enjoyed many of his hits since Im not into “looking down” upon anything—its just that the “scale” and “realms” one prowls in becomes different when dealing with non-rahman music
the only exception have been SEL
Infact SEL may have given much lesser blokcbusters than pritam or vishal shekhar—-but their background and sensibilities shows thro
On any scale, would give 4.5–5 out of 5 to rockstar!
ps–have no inclination to even try out players or even don2—unless my “assistant” spoon feeds me lol
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December 5, 2011 at 5:42 PM
SEL had one of the best non-Rahman moments with the JBJ soundtrack.. but they too have vanished somewhere..
Don 2 is completely boring..if you like Pritam’s ‘hits’ you’ll find a few on the Players soundtrack as well.
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December 5, 2011 at 6:20 PM
SELs pinnacle was DCH and now it seems this may remain their alltime best
SInce they seem to have collectively hit the male “menopause” together lol
ANyhow–one can remember their ultimate cult creation imo
Talking of pritam–yes it i easy to look down upon him and he has a tradition of plagiarism but dont believe in this policy and believe in not being snobbish…..”give eveyone a chance “philosophy
some of Pritams “hits” are catchy and meant to be consumed and forgotten. Even there, the ones i find slightly better are not “big hits”
a few i remember off hand (not sure if they are pritam)
really like saif here—nobody can touch him in these sort of turns—doens have to try too hard and is smooth
Hmm, who is this girlvvv
and what is she doing in this dodgy company—btw the song is not bad
didnt think much of this song earlier but just noted that its not bad–and perhaps this was a hit
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December 5, 2011 at 7:18 PM
It’s not about being snobbish. pritam is just ‘sub-standard’. But I’m willing to admit his songs nonetheless catch on. He has more hits than anyone else currently working in his industry. APKGK was one of his better soundtracks.
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December 6, 2011 at 10:56 AM
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December 8, 2011 at 10:28 PM
One of the complaints that I had with D6 was that the lead pair really should have been explored more by Mehra. Obviously Players isn’t the subject to balance things in this sense (!) but I do like this pair and await a proper film with these two. Much as I also think the Abhishek-Balan pair should be taken further after Paa.
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December 9, 2011 at 1:28 AM
agree 100 %.
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December 9, 2011 at 11:15 AM
I kind of like this latest song.
Best part of the video is the rain sequence.
Don’t think much of Abhishek/Sonam pairing. She’s too girlish, young for him. I’d much rather see him with someone closer to his age.
Though I know in BW there are hardly any options.
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December 9, 2011 at 11:22 AM
don’t like the song.. prefer Jhoom jhoom, the Abhishek number and even the Tun song. But I am not the target Pritam listener in any case. There’s not a single soundtrack of his I truly like including the stronger ones. Was quite addicted to his Bhool Bhulaiya title track for a while (I know it’s lifted) and in more recent time his strongest number in my view is the LAK end credits song. Getting back to the video the only thing that interests me here is the location. Wonder where they’ve shot this.
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December 9, 2011 at 11:28 AM
Players live audio launch here:
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/webcast
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December 9, 2011 at 4:04 PM
I agree Sonam is far too girlish for most of the men she is paired opposite, there is something about her which is very naive and childish- not child-like but childish. I’ve only liked her pairing with Imran Khan so far- because he is very boyish too.
In Delhi 6 I got serious protective big brother vibes from Abhishek. I think she might work better with Farhan Akhtar in their next movie because he sometimes has that childish aspect to him as well.
I like Ahsihek’s pairing with Rani the best- and Vidya has potenial but even if he cannot be paired with some one his age- I think he would suit a younger woman as long as she seemed more mature. I would like to see him opposite Radhika Apte or Illena D’Souza.
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December 9, 2011 at 3:28 PM
Satyamk Satyam
@juniorbachchan where was the Dil yeh bekarar video shot?
4 hours ago
juniorbachchan Abhishek Bachchan
@Satyamk on a set in filmcity
2 hours ago
@Satyamk Satyam
@juniorbachchan thanks.. do you by any chance know whether an actual site was used as a model here? Seems very familiar in some ways..
juniorbachchan Abhishek Bachchan
@Satyamk yes. Humpi
juniorbachchan Abhishek Bachchan
@Satyamk and some mohenjo daro refs
Satyamk Satyam
@juniorbachchan ah.. thanks again..
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December 10, 2011 at 7:24 AM
There was no webcast of Players music launch on Bollywood hangama.. anyway here is the link to gallery of that event.
http://www.nowrunning.com/event/bollywood/music-launch-of-players/46098/gallery.htm
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December 10, 2011 at 7:57 AM
I think it wasn’t live in the US as they claimed.. a bit absurd but it was supposed to be around 7:30 PM in India.. however their clock showed it would start at 7:30 PM EST. I didn’t watch it though so don’t know what actually happened.
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December 10, 2011 at 8:04 AM
Abhishek, Bipasha perform stunts at ‘Players’ music launch
Agencies Posted online: Sat Dec 10 2011, 11:23 hrs
Mumbai : Lead actors of upcoming movie ‘Players’ performed live stunts at an event to launch the music of the film.
The Abbas-Mustan directed action-thriller stars Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Omi Vaidya.
Riding a pillion on a stuntman, Bipasha took a 360 degree turn before an explosion went off. Then, Sonam came in a truck and broke a gold-brick wall, while driving a red car, Abhishek smashed a glass frame and took a 360 degree turn before two explosions.
“I thank one and all for the love and support for the film. We hope you all like it,” Abhishek said.
Other stars — Bobby, Neil and Omi — came on stage and spoke about their respective roles in the film.
Film’s director duo Abbas-Mustan, music director Pritam, Bhushan Kumar of T-Series and others were present on the occasion.
“It is a smart intelligent, stylish and entertaining movie. We hope everyone enjoys it,” the director duo told reporters here after the music launch.
‘Players’, a remake of Hollywood film ‘The Italian Job’, releases on January 6.
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December 11, 2011 at 1:50 PM
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December 14, 2011 at 5:09 PM
When Abhishek performed live stunts
Renuka Vyavahare | TNN
Posted On Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 01:32:13 PM
Abhishek Bachchan and the entire gang of Players, had the audience in trance as they performed live stunts during the film’s music launch.
They thrilled the crowd who turned up in overwhelming numbers, to catch their favourite stars do some never-seen-before stunts in front of a live audience.
Leaving behind the conventional dance and music routine, the music launch was planned on a magnanimous budget and orchestrated by the film’s action director, the renowned Allan Amin.
Players music launch saw an introduction to each character in the film in a novel, never-seen-before manner with high definition explosions, shattering glass and breath taking fireworks that had the audience holding on to their seats.
The ultimate Player- Abhishek Bachchan drove through a life-size glass wall in a high-end sports car in which he did a series of 360 degree turns amidst detonations .The gorgeous Bipasha Basu had everyone shocked with her dare-devil act on an ATV bike.
Says an onlooker “This was possibly the biggest event of the year.”
Players is the official remake of the Hollywood crime thriller The Italian Job filmed across India, New Zealand and Russia.
The film releases on 6th January,2012
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December 14, 2011 at 11:36 PM
What happened to the original sung by Abhishek? It’s a different voice here..
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December 14, 2011 at 11:40 PM
Ami:
Sonam is a cute/ classy kind of girl- she looks so out of place trying to be sexy/ trashy.And what is Abhishek doing in this song? Looks really silly.
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December 15, 2011 at 1:00 AM
Massive disappointment. I was expecting this latest song to be coolest one, and it turned trash. Why they chose to skip Abhishek’s voice version ? That was way better. And abhishek act in this song is underwhelming.
From Rufugee till now, i never able to understood Abhishek completely. He improved his acting skills post Rann and Yuva, but never able to come up with complete confidence in entire movie. Some scenes he do with complete conviction and confidence, and some time he become so alien to acting. This song is latest example of his alien towards acting .. What he is doing seriously ??
His father created magic in fun songs like these. Check Amitabh charismatic act in “Chal mere bhai tere hath jodta hun”, “Jaa jaldi bhaag ja nahi baba nahi”, “Lambu ji lambu ji”, “Tu mayke mat jayio” … and numerous others. He was so magical and magnetic.
What Abhishek is doing here putting me in shame. I always wanted him to do well and he from time to time, come up with fine performances, But boy, he need to work on all his weakness. He dance very bad and sometime he looks not comfortable on screen, felt like shying away from camera. But never understood, why all of sudden sometimes he come up with great performances ?? I mean either you remain good, or remain bad .. why switch between these two always and confuse others ?
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December 15, 2011 at 7:03 AM
I actually liked it more than the previous one. Because I always find him a bit self-parodying and zany in this sort of thing. In the last one I liked the sets (modeled on Hampi) but otherwise it was regular (do like the pair though). More generic if you will. This too is obviously generic but Abhishek never does these completely seriously. There’s a certain Idea ad tone here which has always been true for him in these situations. So I find the ‘mismatch’ quite appealing in this sense.
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December 15, 2011 at 7:21 AM
Abhishek sholud not attempt this type of movies. Style is missing. It will be another game to me.
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December 15, 2011 at 7:56 AM
I think Abhishek is fine in this song. It’s more about his attitude and it works for him.
Sonam on the other hand doesn’t really work because she lacks the dance skill and she doesn’t pull off the sexy image.
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December 15, 2011 at 8:28 AM
The thing is whether one likes it or not this is the persona Abhishek has always had in these songs. But also people tend to be confused about this. His style has always been a kind of Bombay-cool (people from the city know what this means in a very specific sense… Abhishek in many of his metro-sexual outings typifies that attitude far more than any of his peers which is why in Bombay this sort of thing plays very differently than in Delhi for example) which is to say a laid-back ‘not taking it too seriously’ kind of deal. But that self-parody element is always there. Leaving this aside it’s less about ‘style’ and more about the fact that he’s simply too ‘authentic’ to seem completely at home in this sort of genre and terrain.
But again and with due respect to some of the fans they’re always for the film and role he isn’t doing. When he does it they’re never satisfied. Either they’re upset about the box office returns or even otherwise the film doesn’t please them. So when he tries purely commercial stuff it’s again about never being satisfied with what is and always looking for that elusive ‘other’ one that would be perfect for him.
This is partly Abhishek’s own doing because he has not created a sustained narrative in any one direction (this is just a characterization, not a judgment here) which is the life-blood of any star. When you keep repeating yourself in a certain genre even the less convincing gets normalized over time. On the other creating ‘uncertainty’ more often than not is worse than doing something that people find bad in an obvious sense. His issue hasn’t been the latter, it’s been that people find a lot of the work (rightly or wrongly) ‘incomprehensible’. This is a dangerous zone for a star to be in.
But there is always a symbiotic relationship between a star and his fans and I’d repeat again that the fans are at least as much all over the place as they think he is.
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December 15, 2011 at 8:30 AM
still haven’t figured out the mystery of the voice.. unless they’re bringing out a music video (for the end credits) later but there isn’t an alternate version on the album unlike something like Jhoom which absurdly has 3-4 versions (Pritam ‘remixing’ a song is an example of unintended hilarity!).
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December 15, 2011 at 9:12 AM
bBy this time,he should know that style doesn’t work with audience. Why can’t he change and more flexible with dance moves?
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December 15, 2011 at 9:31 AM
because it seemed to work in all the films that did work when he was doing the same stuff.. BM is one of his more important films and it exemplifies this style and rhythm.. it’s had a shelf life beyond the gross but also I’d say it’s arguably his most important film with his female audience.
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December 15, 2011 at 1:29 PM
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December 16, 2011 at 8:12 AM
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December 16, 2011 at 8:26 AM
In this interview, he has clearly mentioned bluffmaster is not Players. The attitudes are different, he has to show the difference in dances and style. To me,that is missing….
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December 16, 2011 at 8:39 AM
I think it’s two different things.. obviously Abbas-Mustaan are nothing like Rohan Sippy! We don’t need him to tell us this. But whenever this kind of song occurs in any film he’s likely to do it this way because that’s just his way of doing things. And this applied to any star. When songs or situations are ‘generic’ in films that might otherwise be very different stars do them in similar ways. In BM though he didn’t do songs this way, there he was more in keeping with the overall tone of the film because that was a well-defined film in a tonal sense. He had to stay in character throughout. when I introduced the BM example yesterday though what I meant what that BM exemplifies in certain ways Abhishek’s pace and rhythm and instincts as a star. But this is also something that cropped up in Dhoom or Dus bahane. There is always in him a laid-back sense on these occasions (which is not a negative in my book as surely as Clint Eastwood’s ‘lazier’ rhythm wasn’t one either) which is also always twinned with a certain mock or self-parodying tone. which is why I mentioned the Idea campaign as well. All of these things are part of the same deal for me no matter how differently configured. But of course when he does something like DMD or Guru or whatever where he’s required to be a completely different character and consistently so throughout the film he does so. An even better example in this regard is Dostana where he just needed to be more energetic and even over the top and he was this in the film. There you didn’t see the BM sort of vibe. But in Players he is kind of like the Dhoom guy in the sense that on a terrain of stunts and action he is the guy who’s nonetheless ‘too cool’ to alter his pace. This is a stance which works well when done right. Yes it’s Abbas-Mustaan, it’s not rocket science but one of the things about having an actor like Abhishek is that he’s not going to just fit into the scenery. He’s going to introduce a more serious dimension to the film by way of his persona or performance. Now many are not looking for this in this sort of ‘nothing’ film. But again it’s something he’s always done.
Whether one agrees with me or not my disagreement here is that there is nothing metaphysically different between what he is or is doing now compared to what he was or did when he was far more successful or even when he’s had the odd success in recent years. Forgetting my examples most people liked him in Dostana, Paa, DMD. He’s the same guy. Similarly in earlier hits he still had the same pace and so on. What happens is that when a star starts failing everything can be defined as part of the problem. The idea that all of his peers at every level are on one side of the equation in doing something right while he is on the other all alone getting it all wrong is frankly something I find absurd. Specially when I don’t see most of those peers becoming more successful than him doing supposedly the right things. But even most of the ones who are weren’t doing anything different for the longest time in terms of their physicality or gesturality when they were out in the cold (Salman or Devgan).
I’d say (and this gets back to my older point) that Abhishek can never really pass under the radar for a whole host of reasons and so a lot of stuff he does is micro-analyzed. But also there is a certain confusion among even his fans that parallels many of the tentative decisions he himself has made career-wise at many points. All of this coalesces into a ‘reaction’ where one is not even clear about what one is objecting to. I am not suggesting one cannot have problems with Abhishek. But I think his choice of films offers such an obvious ‘dull’ truth about why he really failed that to go in for more fancy or metaphysical explanations misses the point. Unless one is willing to assert that a superfit, super-aggressive Abhishek would have made D6 work!
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December 16, 2011 at 1:21 PM
And to be very clear about something related to this I am not at all suggesting that physicality does not matter. It absolutely does. But these ‘expectations’ are graded differently depending on the star and it’s also about the genre of the film. In other words looking like John Abraham matters less if you’re doing D6 as opposed to Dhoom. Because the audience in one example does not go in primarily for the eye candy reasons. Now it is also true that stars have to minimally offer that eye-candy in film after film irrespective of the genre. Which for Abhishek then doesn’t imply working out like John or Hrithik but just looking enough of the guy audiences loved in some of his prior films or since. In other words the star never has the luxury to just be the character unless the ‘character’ then becomes the point of the film like Guru. But even here the star has to be minimally ‘attractive’ when he’s not the older, heavier guy and even as the latter he has to suggest attractive physicality in a different sense (he has to look more imposing or whatever). But all of this is not physicality understood in the usual sense of the ‘standards of the age’ or ‘what audiences want’ and so on. Because this reading is to my mind always a reductive one for movie stars.
The pure body which is inextricably linked with the visual medium is also given new life by the same. A physicality which is extremely effective for a model is more often than not less so for the same when he or she becomes an actor. Because cinema does not rely in the flicker of a moment or an instant through which a flash of the ‘beautiful’ might appear. It calls for a kind of ‘beautiful’ that can be sustained for a much longer period and one which ‘traffics’ with the person/character on screen. In other words the structure of the model depends on the effacement of character. In cinema it’s much more complicated. Here even the most alluring physicality still has to be ‘supported’ by a whole set of ‘personality’/character codes. Which is why despite accepting Aishwarya Rai as the most beautiful woman around the audience never loved her the way they loved Madhuri. In cinema one has to explain why Katrina excites people so much and Priyanka cannot even begin to compete with the latter. Or one could use other examples. Physicality cannot be divorced from the gestural in cinema but it also cannot be removed from the ‘substance’ of the star-actor.
The reason why so many stars seem less problematic in the ‘substance’ sense is because most of them are utter mediocrities. Which is to say they might look great, they might be beautiful or attractive, fine physical specimens if you will, but they don’t necessarily have the intangibles that can buttress their physicality. They are in a sense replaceable. Sure Priyanka Chopra is an attractive, alluring woman. But she isn’t distinctive in any true sense. Madhuri (or I would say Rani Mukherjee) weren’t the most beautiful people imaginable, not the greatest sex symbols certainly but they had more intangibles (Rani of course for a much briefer period before she destroyed her career..). Similarly take John Abraham. Many models in India and globally are ‘like’ him. So unless he’s bringing something else to the table he’s just that — a ‘beautiful’ body. Now this doesn’t mean they’re all the same. priyanka Chopra can still act better than many others but she isn’t good enough on that score and she isn’t distinctive enough in terms of her physicality. She’s fine in the right film but so are many others. It’s then a question of one’s career choices and luck and so on.
Getting back to Abhishek his unique signature always means that he can never be identified with the ephemeral or the instant ‘fix’. He can try this from time to time or for moments in a film but his career can never be ‘about’ this. In other words as a combination of who he is and the choices he’s made he can never be just the guy doing lots of chick flicks no matter how good or fit he looks. In other words Dostana can never be his permanent career. On the flip side for some of the same reasons he cannot also just be ‘ordinary’ in a film. He has to be ‘the man’ if you will in a very precise symbolic sense or the audience doesn’t like it (I’d say this is true for just about every film where he’s been critically and/or commercially appreciated). With hrithik it’s the opposite. The audience doesn’t expect a Guzaarish or a JA from him. If they’re entertaining films they’ll work but that’s not what he’s perceived to be about. He could go through an entire career doing Krrish or Dhoom or some genre that simply accenting his physicality and dancing skills and so on without the audience ever objecting to it. Abhishek wouldn’t have that option even if he were that much of a gym body.
The audience ultimately and whatever they might say at a conscious level have some inner sense of what a star is about. No one objects to Akshay doing a 100 comedies. They dislike so many bad attempts these days but they don’t have the feeling that he should be doing more meaningful cinema. When he does no one turns up! Because they don’t have the perception that he’s a serious actor who’s somehow lost in the maze of meaningless stuff or whatever. With Aamir it’s the opposite. At least over the last decade the way he’s built up his career the general sense is that there should always be some measure of ‘meaning’ to his choices, even the most commercial ones. And Aamir provides precisely this in every film. These examples could be multiplied. But the point once more is that with Abhishek his choices specially the Mehra-Rathnam stuff coupled with the Sarkar kind of deal or on the other side a BM kind of thing and so on was what the audience expected. In other words the narrative more defined by those ‘serious’ choices but with enough interludes of the more escapist kind. Irrespective of how many of the choices turned out that was the paradigm. The Players terrain isn’t most naturally suited for him but if the film is right and if there’s enough symbolic weight to his part he can get by doing it with the right song and dance thrown in (people forget that some of the most iconic such moments in recent memory have involved him from BnB to BM through Dostana).
The right physicality matters for all of this but that doesn’t mean he has to become a gym body. Because again the audience doesn’t expect it. By the way note that when even the fans sometimes react negatively to his doing something like Players they’re reacting to the incongruity of it. But this comes about because of the image he’s created with the audience or the path he’s mostly walked away from after having a first flush of success with it. If he had stuck to endless clones of BnB or BM or Dus or whatever no one would have found Players odd. At the same time because he is mentally as an actor not where he was when he did that earlier stuff he invests some of these roles with even more ‘gravitas’ than is necessarily required. This creates the incongruity, not the lack of a gym body or thereof.
In any case my larger point is that certain stars are more attached to economies of ‘permanence’ and ‘substance’ while others profit from the ‘instantaneous’ and the ‘replicable’. A star is minimally good looking, goes to the gym and works out like crazy, there is nothing not to like! But cinematic ‘effectiveness’ is a different deal. It is for these reasons that John has never had much of a career. hrithik is the only truly top bracket star who depends on being ‘the body’. salman has been at it much longer and he too has mixed it up over time with a very zany sort of persona that in someways undercuts what would otherwise come across as ‘earnest’ (as it does with Hrithik). It’s true that other than Abhishek every major or minor star aims for that gym body (with the exception of akshay Kumar who works out like crazy but who nonetheless is not in the 6 pack game (and aims for a much more ‘natural physique’.. in fact he is the best model for Abhishek on this score) or the waxed chest stuff or whatever. But with all the other stars their careers are not better for their having been on steroids (there was that piece some months back which suggested that just about every major star, the top 7-8, had taken steroids at some point or the other, with the exception of Abhishek of course and, I would think, Ranbir). I find Deepika to be the most beautiful actress of the current lot but that does not help her gain over her rivals in the absence of other ‘cinematic’ strengths. Again all of these examples could be multiplied.
Aditya Chopra in a well known and oft-quoted moment once told Abhishek that the audience rarely loves a star in the true sense and when a star had that thing going for him he should try hard not to lose it. Abhishek one way or the other didn’t follow that advice! But the point here is that the audience that loved him in 2005 (most of all) was doing so when gym bodies were every bit the norm that they are today. Sure he was younger and leaner (though I think he’s currently as lean as he was then) but still hardly like John or Hrithik or whoever. To reduce cinematic presence and effect to textbook notions of physicality is I think a completely misplaced sense of the medium. Not just in India but anywhere in the world.
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December 16, 2011 at 1:41 PM
also think we’ve lost all notion of distinctive physicality and/or screen presence that isn’t tied in with notions of fitness and gym bodies. As if films were no more than an extension of workout videos! Even in these ‘plastic’ times there is more to it than that!
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December 16, 2011 at 8:06 PM
Abhishek has to work on his dances which is his main weakness. Katrina used to be a horrible dancer few years back. After worked with Farah Khan and other good choreographers, atleast she is dancing the way how masses like,.
Abhishek has to work with PrabhuDeva/Farh Khan to just prove that he can do better than his signature moves.
In the twitter, there is no buzz about Players. It is really a concern for an actor and the producer..
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December 16, 2011 at 8:51 PM
Let me talk positive.
Abhishek’s voice suited this song very well
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December 16, 2011 at 9:22 PM
yes this trailer is in the post.. I was surprised to hear a different voice here.. I can only assume that they’re making a proper music video with Abhishek’s version.
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December 16, 2011 at 3:10 PM
you can’t compare abbas mustan and sippy ever…
though abbas mustan have shamelessly copied they allmost made the career of every one ( srk big ticket after bazigar , akshay-khiladi and in second half of his career to establish him ajnabee, priyanka’s main recognition aitraz, some of akshay khanna’s best commercial roles, saif’s highest grosser and his revival race etc
rohan sippy’s movie are technically far superior but will always have urban niche audience …though this guy is very talented and some of his movie in dvd circuit have great shelf including his latest dmd which did’t do that well commercially
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December 16, 2011 at 10:08 PM
Maybe because the songs aren’t catching on?
amul_mohan
#no.1 @juniorbachchan ‘s #PLAYERS get #HimeshReshammiya to compose 2 new tracks. Promo out from next week. 1st is called Rani Tu Main Raja.
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December 16, 2011 at 10:41 PM
surprising, the album got positive reviews everywhere. In any case these new tracks won’t be in the film (maybe part of the BGM). So it’s going to be more of an advertising gimmick. But odd to say the least.
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December 16, 2011 at 11:04 PM
don’t even think they need to stress so much on the music. They should move on the final weeks to much more action oriented trailers.
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December 17, 2011 at 2:11 AM
Taking on from ricky bahl—hope Dipanitas “style sense” rubbed onto ABhishrek a bit more
My related note elsewhere
to add–liked some of the (clothing)designer work on dipanita and ranveer
Now recall that Dipanita had an abhishrek connection–news for satyam…
DIpanita was the girl who abhishrek “used and dumped” apparently—just as per reports.
Used to wonder whats the big deal with her
In this movie–thought Dipanita was good—seems abhishrek has a good choice with women (obviously ash)
(though karisma remains a “blot” in his womanising “career” lol imo)
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December 17, 2011 at 8:41 AM
“Ladkee hai nadaan” is pretty crappy…exactly what one might expect from Pritam-in-an-Abbas & Mastan film…
I do like the look of the Abhishek/Sonam pair, although only wish we had better roles than I expect these to be — Abhishek brings a certain playful skepticism to these sorts of songs, and Sonam has one of the more distinctive looks among contemporary Bollywood heroines (as does Deepika Padukone).
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December 17, 2011 at 12:53 PM
Abhishek on the film:
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/more/videos/view/id/1396840
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December 17, 2011 at 1:13 PM
so whats this about extra songs being recorded now…
Better is to have one item song with Katrina..lol
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December 17, 2011 at 1:17 PM
and make it nargis fakhri as well in addition to katrina…
and no bikinis please lol
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December 22, 2011 at 6:19 PM
Since you like Ayesha and her stuff so much…
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December 19, 2011 at 11:55 PM
Not Himesh, but Pritam
By Taran Adarsh ,Dec 20, 2011 – 08:51 hrs IST
Everyone in the industry is talking about Himesh Reshammiya recording two additional songs for Abbas-Mustan’s PLAYERS. The music of this much-awaited film was launched with fanfare a few days ago [Pritam is the music composer], hence this latest development of including two songs by another music composer [Himesh] does raise eyebrows.
But Abbas of Abbas-Mustan duo denies they are hiring the services of Himesh to record the additional songs. “Two things need to be clarified. One, we are recording just one song. Two, Pritam, not Himesh is recording this track. The additional song will be filmed on Abhishek Bachchan and an actress [under finalization] on 23rd/24th December. The song in question will be placed towards the end of the film,” Abbas divulges.
So how did the rumor originate? “We share a terrific rapport with Himesh. He has composed the music of our films. We do meet occasionally and I presume, people must’ve thought we’re working together. It’s not true,” Abbas adds.
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December 19, 2011 at 11:58 PM
So much for that rumor!
But I wonder now if they’re doing a different track with Abhishek for the end credits. One would assume it’s the buddhi do bhagwaan song which has a different voice on the trailer. It would be fairly predictable then to have his version on the end credits in a music video. However this Abhishek version is already present on the soundtrack (CD). So I’m not sure what’s up here. If they’re going in for a new track hopefully it’s a much better one (though I have taken a liking to buddhi do bhagwaan, i.e. with Abhishek’s voice)!
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December 20, 2011 at 12:29 AM
It does not matter if they add one song or two. Unless Bobby Deol’s (playing the bad guy) role is bigger and has more impact than the commercial compromised lead, the movie is doomed. Bobby needs to do a Roshan (a la Dhoom II). On Booby will depend Dhoom or Doom.
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December 20, 2011 at 6:04 AM
this is official remake of italian job :
from trailors it is clear neil nitin mukesh is playing negetive role …bobby is playing cassanova stathms role( again total misfit)
i guess vinod khanna is playing the role of the guy who was killed during operations
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December 20, 2011 at 7:53 AM
Such movies require a strong/charismatic bad guy. Neil definitely is way better than say Abhishek on the looks front, but acting wise he is about just as much a dud as Abhishek. Hence anyone bank rolling a movie like Players with Neil as the effective lead role is committing a grave & fatal error.
Abbas-Mastan claim that they have adapted Italian Job and taken some creative liberties. I believe they have rearranged some characters and thereby given the effective lead role to Bobby. This seems like a better bet. I believe they have incorporated some from “The Score” into the “Italian Job”.
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December 20, 2011 at 9:48 AM
neil became biggie last heard he played second fiddle to john and here to abhishek and acting wise the kid shown some potential in johnny gaddar to( in negetive role)
its ironical the guy supposed to have lead role is neither part of promotion nor getting so called footage
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December 20, 2011 at 3:27 PM
rockstar
My point is that Neil is still not big enough to warrant a huge investment.
Hence I am suggesting that perhaps Abbas-Mastan have reworked things to make Bobby the effective lead.
In any case I don’t think the movie will work unless the negative character is awesome (as in the Dhoom series). A movie like Players needs a charismatic bad guy.
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December 22, 2011 at 9:16 AM
Abbas-Mustan To Add Jumma Chumma Remix To Players
December 22nd, 2011 by Komal Nahta
It’s official now. Because the music of Players has not caught on, it has been decided to add a song to give the much needed boost to the audio sales. Abbas-Mustan’s films have generally boasted of hit music but Pritam Chakraborty’s score in Players has not quite lived up to the audience’s expectations as well as the director duo’s reputation. What started as nagging by the audio company, T-Series, ultimately ended in a consensual understanding between the music company, the producers (Viacom 18 Motion) and the directors (Abbas-Mustan). Pritam himself will now remix the super-hit Jumma chumma de de song from the Amitabh Bachchan starrer, Hum (1991), which will be added in the Players album.
Hopefully, the music of the multi-starrer will get the much needed boost, so necessary to ensure that the film gets a decent opening on 6th January 2012. At first the directors, who are known to be fiercely protective about their films, were not happy with the creative interference but they finally relented.
Players: Most Difficult Film To Edit
Incidentally, Players could well go down in cinema history as the film which has taken the longest time to edit. Reveled, Abbas-Mustan “Our brother (editor) Hussain Burmawala too six-and-a-half months to finish the editing. This was our most difficult film to edit.” Believe it or not, the film was always shot with multi-camera setups. At times, there used to be six and even seven cameras capturing the action scenes.”
Players is the official remake of the Hollywood film, The Italian Job, which was made in 1969 (starring Michael Caine) and again in 2003 (starring Mark Wahlberg).
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December 22, 2011 at 9:31 AM
while I don’t trust Nahata’s commentary here (he’s been negative on the film throughout, either highlighting the negative or not talking about the film at all when things are positive.. won’t get into all his agendas here.. for example I never heard him talk about the Don soundtrack!) I do find the Jumma Chumma choice an odd one to say the least. Not sure where it fits into the film at such a late stage. Beyond this I assume he means a cover version here and not a remix. Would be odder still to have the original song! Have the gravest doubts about this story though.
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December 23, 2011 at 10:21 AM
I doubt this is true… the story itself has the usual sneering tone we can expect when an Abhishek-starrer is about to release…
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December 23, 2011 at 10:33 AM
I don’t believe that story is true..
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December 22, 2011 at 9:23 AM
Abhishek Bachchan inspired by Hero Hiralal
Trust Abhishek Bachchan to be a pro whether he is shooting a movie or promoting it. While marketing his upcoming movie, Players, the official Hindi remake of The Italian Job, he has set himself up for a stunt. He will tear through the posters of the Abbas-Mustan directed thriller that revolves around a gold heist, along with the film’s tagline, Phata poster nikla player. (Tear the poster and a player emerges)
The promotional gimmick was flagged off in Jaipur yesterday. The director duo credits the marketing team with the idea and says everyone, including ‘hero’ Abhishek loved it.
Point out the striking resemblance to the line, Phata poster, nikla hero from Naseeruddin Shah’s 1988 comic caper Hero Hiralal and the makers shrug off any connection with Ketan Mehta film.
“I don’t exactly remember any such dialogue from the film, there’s no co-relation between the two,” asserts Abbas but admits that maybe someone from the marketing team was inspired by Naseer’s line.
While promoting the film, Abhishek will mouth different lines from Players in every city after his ‘tearing’ entry. “The idea is to convey the basic idea of Players through the dialogue,” adds Abbas, adding that Abhishek will be traveling to Ahmedabad, Delhi, Pune and Indore among other cities. “Mustan bhai and I won’t be accompanying the stars to all the cities because we are busy with the last minute post-production. The film will be wrapped up in the next five-six days.”
Abbas admits that Players has taken a lot of time and effort, but agrees that it’s understandable for a film made on such a grand scale. The film also stars Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Omi Vaidya and Sikandar Kher.
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December 22, 2011 at 9:40 AM
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December 22, 2011 at 11:04 AM
Hi All, first post here. Heard about this site/blog from a friend of mine who spoke very HIGHLY about Satyam and his command of the language, his analytical skill and deep undying love for the Bachchans.
I love Big B… Who doesn’t. But Junior B just plain scares me. Barring 1-2 films be has THOROUGHLY and HUGELY dissapointed. I don’t think he EVER will be in a “superstar” class EVER. He, however, outside of films comes across as a very down to earth and well educated person… Good head over his shoulders. Unfortunately so NOT star material.
I think PLAYERS is gonna bomb big time… Probably open in the 20% -25% range that too in multiplexes and lower in the interiors. The star cast sucks, music hasn’t caugh on, promotions subpar both in India and overseas. Nothing is going in its favor. Honestly looks to cheap and cheesey. No hot item number … just nothing going for it that would pull in audiences.
It’s game over for Junior. He should just hang it up and focus on production etc. At this point I don’t think he is even cut out for TV. No looks, no dancing skills, mediocre acting at best. Heck even Tushaar Kapoor is ahead of him. It’s really sad. And it appears as thought he is not taking this seriously. He has to look presentable in this day and age when looks matter… He has to be lean and build a 6 pack… I bet you that will draw in the crowds more than his ability… People would just line up to see that. Really don know why he doesn’t. Has the same stubble a d double chin look in film after film. I was honestly really hoping Raavan and D6 would tal him to another level but it pushed him back even further. He is finished IMHO. Dhoom3 has a chance but we know why. I think Bol Bachchan too and we know why.
I REALLY feel bad because he genuinely seems like a nice guy, has humility like his dad and comes across as a fun dude…. But STAR material he is not.
Oh well I pray that BetiB changes his luck for the better.
-Nirmala
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December 22, 2011 at 12:18 PM
good to see you here.. do keep visiting..
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December 27, 2011 at 11:59 AM
i think you are an astrologer, who predicts everything about abhishek, i think this is your personal opinion, and you have the right to have your opinion, but that is not the ultimate truth, i have followed abhishek since his debut, with every film, he has improved a lot, anyone can’t call him mediocre after films like guru, yuva, raavan, sarkar, sarkar raj, dostana, phir milenge, dmd, delhi 6, paa etc, don’t be so harsh on anyone, you might have to eat your own words
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December 23, 2011 at 8:51 AM
The promos of Players have been doing the rounds for a few days now and one obvious thing which a lot of people noticed was the fact that most of the songs were picturised on Sonam Kapoor leaving us wondering whether the other actress Bipasha Basu had any song picturised on her. Well, all you fans of Bips can now heave a sigh of relief as the song featuring Bipasha called ‘Ho Gayi Tun’ is now rocking the airwaves. The song features Bipasha dancing in a club and also has Abhishek, Bobby, Sikander, Neil and Omi.
Director Abbas (of Abbas-Mustan duo) said that they had asked choreographer Bosco-Caesar to refer to veteran actress Helenji’s dance moves. A major part of the song has been shot in a Moscow night club. The song has Bips trying to seduce a Russian Army officer. The story doesn’t end here. Abbas also added that since the said night club was open from 5 pm to 4 am only, it gave the crew very little time for retakes and set ups. That’s why they shot the major portions there while the rest of the song was shot at an identical set that was erected in Chandivili studios in Mumbai.
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/celebrities/features/type/view/id/2914/2914
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December 25, 2011 at 6:20 AM
Two’s Company
by Aatmi Doshi (December 24, 2011)
The eagerly awaited Players will hit the cinemas on January 6. And besides the film’s star-studded cast – Abhishek Bachchan, Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonam Kapoor and Bipasha Basu – director duo Abbas Alibhai Burmawalla and Mustan Alibhai Burmawalla have been busy promoting their film. In a career spanning more than 25 years, the directors have made 20 films, most of which have been adventure rides. Their latest venture too promises plenty of thrills and chills. Travelling across the country to endorse the film, the duo squeezes out time for a Q&A session…
Is it true that you initially wanted Ranbir Kapoor for Players?
Abbas (A): Not true at all!
Mustan (M): We always had Abhishek Bachchan in mind.
A: You won’t believe this, but we have been in talks with Abhishek Bachchan for eight years. We were all keen to work together but could not come up with a subject that would suit his personality till Viacom 18 approached us to remake the Hollywood hit, The Italian Job. The first actor that came to our mind was Abhishek.
M: We felt he was perfect for the part.
A: The same goes for Neil (Nitin Mukesh). He was keen to work with us and kept insisting, ‘Whenever you start a film, I would like to be part of it’. This time, we had an interesting role for him too and he readily came on board.
M: As for Bobby (Deol), he did not even ask for a narration. He considers us family. We have already done five films with him, and he was game for this one too.
What do you feel about today’s generation of actors?
A: Well, they are very professional. They have a great respect not only for their own time but also for other people’s time.
M: They are very punctual. I feel they are technically sound too. Even the actresses are aware of things outside their purview. We found Sonam Kapoor very fashion-conscious, with a good dressing sense. Ditto for Bipasha Basu.
How different is Players from The Italian Job?
A: We have seen both the 1969 and 2003 versions of The Italian Job and thoroughly enjoyed them. And though we have retained the visuals as they were in the original film, it was still a challenge to make it in Hindi.
M: And we are sure you will find Players very different from The Italian Job.
A: There are enough twists and turns to keep the viewer hooked.
Then, why add a song at the last minute?
A: What song? We have not added any new song to the film.
M: All the songs were conceptualised long ago.
You are releasing a film after a long time. Your last release Race was in 2008.
A: These things happen.
M: There are several reasons. Sometimes, the script is not ready or is not up to the mark and needs to be reworked. At times, actors’ dates are a problem and we have to postpone shooting. It’s all part of this profession.
Yet you have made 20 films in the last 25 years.
A: I wish we had made 25 films. That would have given us an average of one film a year (Laughs). I feel a director should release at least one film a year.
M: But it still feels very good to have made 20 films in 25 years. It makes us feel proud.
A: Do you know that we started our career with Gujarati films in 1986? A producer called Pravin Patel asked us to make two Gujarati films for his banner. Both films did well at the box office but we still had to struggle a lot to establish ourselves in the Hindi film industry.
M: The only two actors who supported us then were Raj Babbar and Jeetendra.
A: We made Agneekal with them.
M: We then made Khiladi with Akshay Kumar and haven’t looked back since.
Interestingly, you will have two releases in 2012, Players and Race 2.
A: Yes, Players on January 6 and Race 2 on November 30.
M: We aren’t taking anything for granted. The week after Players is released; we will begin shooting for Race 2. We have already completed a 15-day schedule of the film in Mumbai studios.
What about your role as producers? There hasn’t been another venture after Life Partner.
A: We have not given up on being producers.
M: We have roped in directors like Nishikant Kamat and Rohit Jugraj to helm projects for our banner banner. In fact, we even want our brother, Hussain Burmawalla, to debut as a director under our banner.
A: We keep pestering him (laughs). He says he will direct a film when he is ready. Earlier, he was busy editing films made by other directors. Today, he is busy editing films made by us.
M: He is always with us on the sets. I am sure he will make a good director.
You are often accused of lifting plots from Hollywood films.
A: We depend entirely on our writers. We listen to their narration. We have trusted our scriptwriters and have given their scripts our interpretation and vision.
M: Had we to watch A Kiss Before Dying then I don’t think Baazigar would have shaped out the way it had.
A: Even for Daraar, we heard the late Sachin Bhowmick’s script and were impressed. He had said he was strongly motivated by a film called Sleeping With The Enemy and thought it would make a good Hindi film. We liked the idea of a woman killing her obsessed husband.
What about Race 2?
A: Well, like Race, the plot is very intriguing. There are shades of grey to all the characters in the film.
M: That is what makes the plot interesting.
Oddly, you have been steadfastly loyal to the thriller genre and to negative characters.
A: We are known for our thrillers. The corporate house that approaches us expects us to make interesting thrillers for them.
M: We have carved a niche for ourselves in that area and we have never thought of experimenting with family drama or comedy. We are happy making edge-of-the-seat entertainers.
What is it that keeps Abbas-Mustan united?
A: Our unity (laughs)! Seriously, we have no ego hassles and we understand each other well.
M: Though we are two different individuals with different minds, we think alike.
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December 25, 2011 at 6:21 AM
“Then, why add a song at the last minute?
A: What song? We have not added any new song to the film.
M: All the songs were conceptualised long ago.”
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December 26, 2011 at 3:36 PM
Top 10 Songs of the Week – 24 Dec 2011
Agneepath (2012) makes an entry but “Players” is rising fast up the charts !!
http://www.planetbollywood.com/top10Songs.php
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December 27, 2011 at 5:32 PM
LOVE2HateU Abhishek Bachhan does a Kolaveri Di
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December 27, 2011 at 5:38 PM
not familiar with this show..
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December 27, 2011 at 5:32 PM
LOVE2HateU Episode 7 promo – Abhishek Bachchan
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December 27, 2011 at 6:28 PM
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December 29, 2011 at 10:29 PM
saw a shorter dialog trailer on TV but it’s not yet available online.
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December 30, 2011 at 12:19 AM
Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor turn robbers!
Actors Sonam Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan will be part of a mock train robbery on Delhi Metro as part of their promotional campaign for their upcoming film. Filmmaker duo Abbas-Mustan has secured the permission from the Delhi Metro authorities to break into a vault in a Metro to expose the security loopholes on the train.
“Abhishek and Sonam, leading the gang consisting of Bipasha Basu and Neil Nitin Mukesh will try to break into a vault of a Metro train as part of the promotional campaign for Players, since there is a similar kind of a sequence in the film and it goes with the plot. Also, this will expose the security gaps in the system and will serve as a mock drill for the security forces responsible for the Metro in Delhi,” says an official on why the permission was granted for this activity in such a sensitive zone in Delhi. The Delhi Metro authorities have never given such a permission, given the sentitive nature of the government property and keeping in mind the bomb blasts that had happened this year.
“Abhishek and Sonam will be conducting the mock security drill where they would get into a train and would open a security vault inside the train. The security personnel would be told not to stop them by the senior official accompanying them, but an advance alert about it is not being sounded to everybody. They also need to see how they alert the central system and react to the situation even though they see a few stars doing things on the train that they normally shouldn’t have done,” the source added.
The ‘robbing time’ has been fixed at half an hour where Sonam and Abhishek will try the break-in. “The moment an alert is sounded, the activity will stop. So, it would be a maximum of fifteen minutes and after that the stars will meet the security personnel and interact with them. It is of course a publicity stunt, but it will be of mutual benefit both to the Delhi Metro and the film,” the source ends.
From there, the actors are supposed to move to a nearby multiplex to interact with their fans.
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December 30, 2011 at 7:24 AM
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December 30, 2011 at 7:46 AM
He’s gone all out this time around. While he’s done extensive media rounds in the past this time it’s this stuff too. The mock robbery is a good idea. But also the volume is high on TV (which hasn’t always been the case in the past) and they’ve done every kind of teaser-promo at every stage. As I said yesterday I saw a new dialog promo on Sony a couple of days ago that isn’t yet available online. Will be interesting to see the initial here.
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December 30, 2011 at 7:27 AM
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December 30, 2011 at 7:31 AM
When Abhishek-Bips outbowled Neil-Sonam
New Delhi, Dec 29: Abhishek Bachchan-Bipasha Basu took on Neil Nitin Mukesh-Sonam Kapoor in a bowling competition here Thursday which ended with their opponents being roundly pipped, much to the delight of the large crowd that had gathered to watch the rivalry unfold.
The competition for the Golden Bowling Trophy was staged at the PVR BluO at the Ambience Mall in Vasant Kunj to promote their film “Players”.
As the foursome started playing, the alley was filled with the sounds of cheering and clapping.
Although Abhishek pretended he didn’t know much about the game, he kickstarted the match by striking out hard and roared: “Bring it on guys. I am ready to play.”
Neil gave Abhishek tough competition, while Sonam most of the time ended up hitting loose shots. She later showed improvement, eliciting praise from Bipasha, who said: “You are improving Sonam.”
Bipasha, however, refused to play. The reason? Eyesight problems.
“I would need my specs to get the right shots,” she said jokingly.
All in all Abhishek emerged the winner with the maximum number of points, though Neil too fought hard. (IANS)
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December 30, 2011 at 7:34 AM
http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_story.aspx?Section=Movies&ID=ENTEN20110191217&subcatg=MOVIESINDIA&keyword=bollywood&nid=162183
Abhishek Bachchan is a huge fan of the original Italian Job and the actor says he jumped at the chance to star in the Bollywood remake as he was bored of doing experimental films.
The actor says he has seen the Michael Caine starrer many times and enjoyed doing the Abbas-Mustan’s Hindi remake ‘Players’, all set to hit theatres on January 6. “I enjoy doing action films. Actually, in the last two-three years I have done more experimental films and I was really looking forward to get back to my original love,” Abhishek told PTI.
“When Abbas narrated the film, I was all excited to start it. I knew he is the man who can handle the remake properly. Being from a British boarding school, Michael Caine used to be my hero. I have watched his ‘The Italian Job’ many times. There was a time when I used to know all the dialogues by heart,” the 35-year-old actor added.
The film was again made in 2003 by F Gary Gray, starring Mark Wahlberg and Abhishek is confident that it will be third time lucky for him.
“Mark Wahlberg did a superb job as he portrayed a completely different character of what Caine had done. He gave his own spin to the character.
“Similarly, when I approached the film, I also tried to do something different. I took it as a challenge to portray the character in my own way but by maintaining the essence of the originality in it. Usually in our films we see thieves steal either for greed or money. But there is an emotional reason attached to it,” Abhishek said.
Starting his career with cross-border love story ‘Refugee’, Abhishek has often been criticised by the critics for the kind of films he has done. But he says he has always taken criticism positively.
“People often compared me with dad (Amitabh Bachchan). But I have never felt low in my life. Rather I have looked at the other side of the criticism. People criticise me because they feel I am worth the comparison with my dad,” he said.
The actor, who has become a proud father of a baby girl with wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, said the presence of the baby did not stop him from promoting the film.
“Promoting my film is my priority at this moment as there are other people to look after the baby. That’s a part of one’s job. My family completely understands it. The actor said they are yet to come up with a name for the child.
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December 30, 2011 at 9:19 AM
i was searching for the dialouge promo of Players on the net..but is not available as yet 😦
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December 30, 2011 at 1:53 PM
New Players trailer not yet available online (though it’s been running on Indian TV for a couple of days) but check it out here at 32.35 mark:
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December 30, 2011 at 8:00 PM
preciate it..thought there was another with johny lever and vinod khanna?
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December 30, 2011 at 10:32 PM
might be, I just caught this one.. they might have a few short ones on TV..
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December 30, 2011 at 10:39 PM
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December 30, 2011 at 11:32 PM
another short preview at the 36.20 point here:
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December 31, 2011 at 9:27 AM
bring it onn….game on for Players now..things are getting heated up again for Abhishek..hope this one clicks big time..Abbas-Mustan style!!
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December 31, 2011 at 9:37 AM
scroll up the thread for another short trailer currently being shown on tv.
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January 1, 2012 at 11:49 AM
Agreed buzz seems to be improving which is good and heartening to see Abhishek and Players team going all out to promote it. Players must have the best buzz of any of recent Abhishek movies I can think off. They have covered lot of ground on marketing front in last week and must continue to up the ante in these 4-5 days before release.
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January 3, 2012 at 10:48 AM
I am not sure if they are promoting or not, but all buzz is futile if content of promotion is not impressive.
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January 1, 2012 at 1:27 AM
http://www.boxofficeindia.co.in/players-gaining-steam/
agneepath and this one are the big players for january
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January 1, 2012 at 10:46 PM
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January 2, 2012 at 1:21 PM
I saw this whole episode yesterday and must say Abhishek maintained his composure unlike many. He was unperturbed by the constant criticism and attacks on his fitness as well as acting by this girl. He was a true gentleman and heard her out. Infact, he went on to declare tht this episode was a good learning experience for him and took it positively. Must say he is quite a cool head inspite of all the pressure in the world and recent debacles behind him.
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January 2, 2012 at 11:34 PM
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January 2, 2012 at 11:38 PM
Talks about the next Ab Corp production. Earlier he mentioned it would have a much bigger budget and of course there was talk of an Amit Sharma project. What I didn’t realize was that this is the guy behind the Idea ads. If this tone is brought to an entire film with father and son in it (Abhishek’s saying it’s out and out masala) I think it will be something special and quite possibly a massive grosser.
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January 2, 2012 at 11:59 PM
‘Players’ is Abhishek and my film: Sonam Kapoor
NEW DELHI: Players may have big names like Bipasha Basu, Bobby Deol and Neil Nitin Mukesh but Sonam Kapoor says the multi-starrer film belongs to her and co-star Abhishek Bachchan.
The 26-year-old actress, who will be seen opposite Abhishek after Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s ‘Dilli 6’, said she plays the lead in every multi-starrer.
“I have always been the lead in my multi-starrer films. Abhishek and I were the lead in ‘Dilli 6’, ‘Thank You’ was about me and Akshay, ‘Aisha’ was all me and even now ‘Players’ is about Abhishek and I. The onus is on me as a lead. But at the same time there are so many supporting people in the film who help you make it a better product,” Sonam told PTI.
‘Players’, which is a remake of the Hollywood action thriller ‘The Italian Job’, will see Sonam in a rebellious avatar after playing a demure role in her last film ‘Mausam’.
“My character Naina resembles what I am in my real life. She is rebellious but at the same time she is nice. Just out of college, she is a computer whiz-kid who agrees to be the part of a gold heist, where she has to hack the system to get valuable information, just because she is crazy for Abhishek in the film,” she said.
Her co-star Bipasha’s bikini shots in the film are being talked about and Sonam too has got a funky wardrobe designed by her younger sister Rhea Kapoor.
“I feel Rhea has done a fabulous job in the film. Her garments have done wonders to my character. She has understood my character quite well and have designed clothes accordingly,” Sonam said.
She had to lose weight to look more edgy for the character and soon Sonam will be seen donning a bikini for an upcoming project.
“This year my audience will see me in a sexy body. I had to undergo a particular weight training for ‘Players’. I am also taking classes for power and vikram yoga because I want to have the best body,” she added.
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January 3, 2012 at 7:44 AM
http://www.rediff.com/movies/slide-show/slide-show-1-interview-with-abbas-mustan/20120103.htm
“30 to 40 percent of the movie is the same, but at the same time we have adapted the movie keeping in mind the Indian audience. We have a love triangle, whereas in the Hollywood flick there was only one lead actress.
We like to surprise our audiences and I am sure Players will blow your mind away. It’s our best work to date.”
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January 3, 2012 at 8:43 AM
Abhishek on Filmfare cover
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January 3, 2012 at 9:59 PM
Sometimes I feel very sad for Abhishek. The poor guy tries hard but unfortunately has very little talent. He is like an “Accidental Tourist” in Bollywood. He has to grasp at straws in the wind to stay in the limelight. Here he is using the crutch of “Daddyhood”, I bet it must hurt.
My sympathy.
I recomend he takes a page out of the Aamir Khan playbook. When Aamir found he could not compete with SRK, he created an alternate universe, a world of “Hatke” movies (which then became a stepping stone for something larger). Likewsie Abhishek should create his own universe, a world where he can stand up like a man, on his own two litte feet, without the aid of crutches. Larger than life, hero type roles don’t suit him. He does not have the personality, physique nor charm for that. He should play an everyday man like Sanjeev Kumar. He should be shown having the boy next door type hobbies, flying kites, playing with marbles. A job of entry level clerk or middle management (Suri of Punjab Power). There is scope to fill the vacum of Amol Plaekar type movies. No shame in being the modern day Amol, as long as it allows him to be in on the center stage. He should should go for a more suitable image rather than fall back on reflected glory of Daddyhood etc.
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January 4, 2012 at 1:03 PM
Thats preposterous, karan. How do you define, by your admission, a ‘hero type’ personality? Six packs? 42 inch biceps? Its coz of parameters like these and the general obsession about such gym bodies that is ruining Hindi cinema.
Abhishek’s got a personality. This guy does have a fair enough screen presence And though I do not really find him extraordinary, I think he’s competent enough in the acting department, at least much better than many of the other so-called stars around..
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January 4, 2012 at 1:39 PM
not gym bodies but the guys high on steriods have taken this to other level and are very bad models for youth
only person who is bollywood has fot body is akshay kumar( and thats a lean body with no tamasha of hulkness or six pack around
original six pack trend in india was started by surya only ( and others copied him…dutt and sanju where body builders but this six pack phenomenon was unleashed by surya in original ghajini ) and look how he moved away to different genre
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January 4, 2012 at 1:40 PM
“only person who is bollywood has fit body is akshay kuma”r
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January 4, 2012 at 3:50 PM
A hero type personality can be defined in many ways, let use one such definition, Hero type is a larger than life type personalities. A personality that makes the not possible also appear plausible (e.g. a guy beating up 10 persona). Every time Abhishek tries to be that hero, he falls short. Hence, I suggest he should just move on and do something where he is likely to be accepted. Ergo, be the boy/man next door, be average Joe, be Amol Palekar.
Needless to say, then you add the poor physique it only hurts. At least don’t compound the absence of 6 packs with a bad posture. Would it hurt to suck up the gut and stand up straight.
See there are others who also don’t exude the SRK type confidence, they cannot play Don (or make 200 Cr world wide while playing Don) but still these guys can pull it off because of their acting talents. Abhishek cannot even claim acting talents, see Raavan Vs Raavana the difference is obvious. See Maadhav Vs Abhishek as Laanan, even a semi-blind can see the difference. There are actors in Bollywood and there are accidental tourist, Abhishek is an accidental tourist.
Now I have heard a handful of people on this blog claim that that Abhishek exudes “Bombay Cool”. All I want to ask these people is what wrong have guys from Bombay done to you. Why tarnish Bombay just to make Abhishek look good (as if that was even possible).
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January 5, 2012 at 12:05 AM
rather than a hero type personality a hero have to first connect and so called gym bodies restrict your forays into different role
thats the reason why ab or dlip connected as they played every role from kuli. nariyalwala to polished one( infact they have played all with hardly anything left)…impressed with ranbir though as he is not into gimmicks so far and allready he is exhibiting range and ya srk is stlll misfit for don type role …looks what so called six pack has done to his face and how much weight he has lost …these are not ideal fitness regime
no body is detesting mumbai and again you are wrong with analogy infact mumbai is not limited to polished south mumbai disconnected from rest of india…dude horizon even in mumbai is very vast
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January 5, 2012 at 12:17 AM
“A personality that makes the not possible also appear plausible (e.g. a guy beating up 10 persona). Every time Abhishek tries to be that hero, he falls short.”
Watch Yuva, Dum Maaro Dum, Sarkar, Dus .. The guy in action applauded most …
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January 3, 2012 at 6:45 PM
My biggest surprise is -how come someone like abas mustan decide on Murmansk as the shoot location here.
Is it about some ‘subsidy’-unlikely
Anyhow: the train journey from Moscow to Murmansk is awesome
Will leave u to enjoy this
http://www.panoramio.com/m/photo/13635053
Hope this helps people get over the wierd ‘spectacle’ called bipasha … Totally unappealing
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January 3, 2012 at 9:13 PM
Alright, the most focused on thing it seems from the trailers is the stunts aspect. Another one that many modern Bolly- films focus majorly on is skin-show. I’m not seeing much of a story. So, it’s a bank robbery. The dialogues seem just cheesy and cliched. These dialogues would sound cool if they were in english, but, in Hindi, ends up being lame.
{Something not TOO related, but, the thing is…now i’m kinda starting to see trailers critically…and I probably always will be in denial of an SRK movie trailer being bad, even though Don 2 had a couple of those that I didn’t like…anyhow…with RA.One, I was kinda in denial, but, lol, that was bad. I’m sensing crapola here too b/c it seems like a mix between Race and Fast ‘n Furious}
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January 4, 2012 at 8:10 AM
Why is Bobby Deol missing from Players promotion?
By Joginder Tuteja, Jan 4, 2012 – 12:42 IST
Bobby Deol Promotional tours of Players are on and one man who is conspicuous by his absence is Bobby Deol. Though Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor and Neil Nitin Mukesh are making the most of the weeks leading to the film’s release by travelling across the length and breadth of the country, Bobby is hardly been seen or heard about. Even though the ‘players’ are now all set to visit Dubai and London for the film’s premiere, one wonders whether Bobby would be joining the team internationally at the least.
“It is rather surprising”, says a PR expert, “In the times when every actor, whether a superstar or someone who has just started off, is going all out to promote a film, Bobby is relatively quieter. In fact even when it comes to media interviews, everyone is happy to give sound bytes though Bobby has kept a low profile. One can understand if Sikandar Kher is not being heard about much because he is the junior-most in the team and there are other far established actors around him. But Bobby is the senior-most here so his words would have definitely counted.”
In fact amongst all the actors in the film, Bobby is the only person whose last two films had actually done some credible business at the box office. While Thank You was an average fare, Yamla Pagla Deewana was the first big hit of the year.
However, an insider spills the beans around Bobby. He says on condition of anonymity, “Bobby is the surprise element of the film. It is a newly written part which was not there in The Italian Job. Abbas-Mustan too feel that revelation around Bobby’s character in the film should hugely surprise the audience. No one wants any preconceived notion around what he is doing while playing the part of Ronnie.”
When contacted, Abbas Burmawala (of Abbas-Mustan duo) obviously kept tight lipped about the character of Ronnie. However, he did confide by stating, “There are a lot of surprise elements in Players and Bobby contributes to them. With twists and turns in the film, there was a requirement to have a character which was very intense. Of course the first choice was Bobby.”
Further commenting on the choice, Mustan Burmawala adds, “When it comes to Bobby, there is no talk of story and all. We just explained in nutshell what he has to do and he was on. We have worked together in four films before (Soldier, Ajnabee, Humraaz, Naqaab) and understand his performance and style. We knew that he has it in him to play such a role. Now how much is it going to surprise you is something that you would know when you watch the film.”
We do hope that the silence so far on the ‘suspense quotient’ is indeed worth it!
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January 4, 2012 at 8:12 AM
“While Thank You was an average fare, Yamla Pagla Deewana was the first big hit of the year”
Wasn’t Sonam in Thank You as well?
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January 4, 2012 at 1:26 PM
ya as long as abhishek carries the turkeys around it seems to go like that …there is sikander kher again after khjjs( so called smaller brother) and brother bobby ( after jbj and dostana)
one wonder when mr tuteja make some sense …. abbas mustan son’s mustafa is making debut with this movie( only few sequence) and abhishek is doing jumma chumma ( one of the most iconic song and i guess a so called surprise factor which article want to portray)
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January 4, 2012 at 10:11 AM
Not sure if this has been posted. Abhishek with Komal
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January 4, 2012 at 10:21 AM
It really annoys me that he shows up on this guys show.. I’ve said this many times before on his blog and so on.. what’s the point of appearing on a show when the guy is otherwise taking you down in the most insulting ways?! And it’s not as if one needs the platform as there are a million others these days. So either way it makes no sense. I understand it’s a haze of exposure these days and one goes through the motions but there still have to be consequences for certain kinds of behavior. Nahata however mild he might seem in the interview (and it’s almost like he’s another guy) haven’t seen it yet) will go back to the same old stuff after this. He’s been this way for years. What will change suddenly?! It’s not even like Obama on Fox News. Because there might be some persuadable voters there but I don’t think there are those who would only encounter the Players advertising or Abhishek on Nahata’s show!
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January 4, 2012 at 10:31 AM
yeah I don’t like that he feels he has to do these shows but it seems like Abhishek’s personality that he feels he has to play the game like everyone else. Or feels that he’ll eventually win these guys over or that its important somehow.
btw, he confirms the Santoshi film with Aish is not happening now.
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January 4, 2012 at 10:36 AM
wouldn’t have expected the film to happen anytime soon anyway..
watching the interview currently.. will say that it is entertaining leaving aside the political contexts.
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January 4, 2012 at 10:44 AM
LOL, Nahata asks twice about the Bol Bachchan title and twice Abhishek confirms that it is indeed his name for the title!
says he’ll be doing something else with Santoshi. Of course with the latter one can never count on these things!
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January 4, 2012 at 10:48 AM
I am appalled however at Raavan being discussed in that context..
LOL, he’s saying he’d be happy with 20-30 crores in week 1. In other words he just expects DMD! This is too much even for Nahata. Says the film is getting hot by the end though he said something different in his online piece.
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January 4, 2012 at 1:25 PM
Actually LOVED AB in the interview..so poised and together and totally comfortable and also intelligent..(loved his analysis of his movies and where they went wrong). If he had same “comfort” level in movies, he would be super-duper hit…just matter of time. I think even Salman khan became bigger hit hero only in his 40s..so there is hope for ab jr.
I disagree with Satyam. He should do interviews with all his critics and when he is successful he should give those people run around. I remember ready VB interview that some malayali producer told her that she was unlucky. After DP success, same south industry is running after her.
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January 4, 2012 at 1:38 PM
Good point Diana
Actually salman at the stage of ‘yuvraj’
Was at an ALLTIME low
Kat was giving hits with Akshay left rite n centre
But with her real life ‘?bf’, the movie failed
It was unthinkable at that time and even at veer stage
And then wanted/dabang happened
Instead of revelling in his preconceived notions of NOT paying need to physicality, maintaining a double chin and refusing to learn the street rules –he should take it positively
Even if players does par business, and Bol bachchan does above par business, he will be back in the game
He will gain From dhoom3-period .
And from then on-it’s he and his choices
Also there should be positivity and an end to the ‘era of cool complacence’
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January 4, 2012 at 2:12 PM
“Instead of revelling in his preconceived notions of NOT paying need to physicality, maintaining a double chin and refusing to learn the street rules –he should take it positively”
Actually it doesn’t matter. Lot of heroines used to be fat and are still fat (successful Vidhya Balan). Lot of hero(s) look ugly (e.g. Hrithik’s nose is disgusting to me and salman/Sunny bald patches or bags under eyes can be seen clearly on big screen). Yes, ABjr can make himself even more competitive. His dad works towards perfection at all times. So can junior. But those are not the catalyst. In fact if he had same comfort on interview camera in movie (camera) and had confident performances, he can make it double chin and all. However dump/silly/stupid stuff bachchan sr did on screen, he did with lot of confidence and full faith and belief (talking of his over the top commercial cinema here where he was loud and sometimes outregeous). Camera catches your lack of confidence or discomfort, VERY easily. Most Hema malini used to have constipated looks on her face..speaking hindi in heavy southern accent, she looked uncomfortable but I guess her beauty/looks overcame that hurdle and gradually those expressions on her face became her USP (lol). One never knows where success can come from or When.
I think AB jr is pure lucky. Lot of star sons didn’t make it or get so many chances like our junior (especially in present times when industry is so competitive).
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January 4, 2012 at 10:26 AM
This is exactly the right kind of trailer in these closing days.. presumably there will be one or two more along the same lines..
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January 4, 2012 at 11:23 AM
Players Advance Opens to a Terrible Start
Players is The New Release Next Week. The Film Comes From the Director Duo Abbas Mustan and Has Great Expectations from the critics point of View.
The Advance Bookings for the Film Opened Today and had no Response. The Audience Still Seems to Be Interested in Don 2. Players Has All hopes from Current And Word of Mouth.
Since, There aren’t any Chartbusters in the film and the promos are not so attractive. So It will be very difficult for the first day collections to be even average.
But, Only Time Can tell what is Going to Happen. Although this Release Has Been Given Decent Screen Space in the Multiplexes.
http://boxofficereport.net/players-advance-opens-to-a-terrible-start/
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January 4, 2012 at 11:43 AM
this is a very pro-SRK blog, their reports on Don 2 and Ra One, make the likes of BOI and Nahata seem restraiend, so not surprised!
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January 4, 2012 at 1:13 PM
That’s so unfair. I feel sorry for Abhishek.
How can BOI decide three days before Friday that its going to be difficult for the first day to be even average? I think its the sort of film that audience might turn up for on the first day.. M expecting decent multiplex business over the weekend. SS – Im not much sure about
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January 4, 2012 at 1:16 PM
that’s not BOI.. it’s a blog.
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January 4, 2012 at 1:24 PM
oops.. my bad ! They sound like BOI though..
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January 4, 2012 at 10:09 PM
People (left, right and center) are saying that Don 2 will eat into Player’s business. How can we decide for ourselves whether those statements are justified or not. ?
It is said that the proof is in the pudding.
Hence if Don 2 in its third weekend, in a limited engagement (yesterday we were informed that Don 2 is still playing in some Multiplex but just one show per day), can do 20% of the business that Players does that weekend, than without a doubt Don 2 has eaten Player’s lunch. Therefore 20% is the benchmark. Between 15 to 20% it is debatable, but advantage Don 2 .
Needless to say if Don 2 is less than 5% of Players than most definitely we can say that Don 2 had no effect on Players. Between 5 and 10% it is debatable, but advantage Players.
Given how limited Don 2’s exposure is in its third weekend, I sense that it should not pose any threat to Players. But Players is about a heist and Don 2 is a successful heist movie. Hence some spill over is possible. A bad WOM for Players may translate into additional footfalls for Don 2. Players is the catalyst that could push Don 2 beyond ATBB. Therefore Don 2 is perhaps the right movie in the right place.
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January 5, 2012 at 12:11 AM
do2 has effect on players?
shelf life of movie has gone(so has holiday period and movie hardly sustained inpite of media gimmics ….its not znmd in trending) infact its the other way around if players is good enough it will make way for don2 exit quickly and if it is not it may sustain for a week or two but agneepath is looming large even for that
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January 4, 2012 at 12:00 PM
indicine Indicine Quite a few asking about Players – All india rights sold for 35 crores. It needs minimum 70 crores to break-even. Difficult! Favorite Retweet Reply
https://twitter.com/#!/indicine
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January 4, 2012 at 12:33 PM
And DON-2 was required 150 Crore for break even, Impossible task now. DISASTER.
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January 4, 2012 at 1:26 PM
ha ha .. man you’re funny
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January 4, 2012 at 1:30 PM
with a so called new business model taking into account suddenly ( for a certain star ) with satelite rights , subsidy and what other rights it makes that no big film has lost money in last 5 year or so….
thats where whole scenario was/is faulty
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January 4, 2012 at 12:06 PM
rampalarjun arjun rampal
@
@juniorbachchan just got back home, an absolutely phenomenal response to your episode on #love2hateu you rocked it bro. Thanks a ton.
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January 4, 2012 at 2:12 PM
Satyam Amod Mehra has tweeted “Your PLAYERS (actors music) at present maybe weak.. But all one needs to win is a pair of Aces.. Abbas Mustan.. Hit.” may be he has liked it
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January 4, 2012 at 2:25 PM
think he directed that to Abhishek but messed up somewhere.. anyway Abhishek has responded..
of course note even here the narrative that they’ve been developing for a while. If it’s a hit it’s only about Abbas-Mustan! When it’s a flop it’s never just about the director!
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January 4, 2012 at 3:34 PM
Initial tweets are good, look like players is going to be big.
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January 4, 2012 at 3:37 PM
Di- some interesting points there
Actually the word u are looking for is ‘conviction’
Bachchan sr did the most insanely nonsensical role with such conviction that the audience gets willing to tag along
Just saw a song promo which is supposed to be a fast beat where abhishrek is supposed to be jamming with sonam /bipasha
But even here : there is a ‘lethargic inertia’ of motion
This is all covered with a ‘coolness’ coefficient wherein the ‘manly’ guy doesn’t really give it his all in dance steps and so on….
The ‘continued’ innings of abhishrek remains a unique case study …
Thiugh one can’t deny he has acting talent And screen presence besides the best background for Bollywood
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January 4, 2012 at 3:42 PM
As I said : am surprised to see players being shown in certain resolvers was multiplex.
Btw now somehow -have a feeling that this may be the beginning of abhishreks ‘good ‘ phase
If players performs respectably atleast, bol Bachan and dhoom3 already taking care of the box office–
Then he is back in the business and has another chance
Hope he doesn’t mess it Up again ….also for satyams sake
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January 4, 2012 at 8:12 PM
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January 4, 2012 at 8:46 PM
Not sure if actors are actually “convinced” on playing those loud characters. They just follow or have faith in director’s word/vision. Personal convictions don’t matter.
On the latter note, I feel the same way, for Satyam-sake. I think he is even more worried than Mr Bachchan Sr!!!!
Truely, actor’s job is to act. Whether the final product is good or not or hit or flop…doesn’t matter. What matters is your work getting appreciated even in a lousy movie. I remember VB had to (poor thing) act in a movie where she is over powered by a bhoot/spirit and she lifts bed (the ghost inside her). It was so insane but everyone praised her acting even though the movie was BAD-BAD-BAD.
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January 4, 2012 at 10:24 PM
More from player premiere..
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January 4, 2012 at 10:35 PM
LOL, Johnny Lever shows up after a while. Abbas-Mustan don’t leave anything out!
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January 4, 2012 at 10:47 PM
Now that Johnny Lever is in the movie also, Players is going to rock, why did they not tell us before ?
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January 4, 2012 at 10:38 PM
amul_mohan Amul Mohan
Players Rock!! A bit too long but a typical Abbas-Mustan flick. Endless twists and turns keeps you on the edge of your seat.
(he’s the editor of Super Cinema)
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January 5, 2012 at 12:07 AM
bring it onnnnn…realy excited for this now am sure the buzz will pick up by sunday.
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January 5, 2012 at 12:32 AM
I am planning to watch the first show Down Under ie tomorrow Friday evening 9 PM show.
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January 5, 2012 at 3:17 AM
Must hand it to Abbas Mustan. they’re no refined craftsmen. But they’re probably the only ones in Bollywood who copy well. Apart from Race (havent seen Naqaab), I have enjoyed every film of theirs. Even Soldier and Daraar
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January 5, 2012 at 7:49 AM
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January 5, 2012 at 7:50 AM
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January 5, 2012 at 8:00 AM
I recently caught the Abbas-Mustaan works over the break period from BAAZIGAR, KHILADI, SOLDIER, CHORI CHORI CHUPKE CHUPKE, HUMRAAZ, AITRAAZ, BAADSHAH, AJNABEE, NAQAAB, RACE and tomorrow PLAYERS!
They are truly directors who have their fingers on the audiences pulse at the best of times, and know how to make a Masala Indian Thriller…and make most of them a hit!
Johnny Lever is most definetly their lucky icon and he saves their best for AM films. Another common trait is the manner in which they bring out the negative elements of their villain or anti-heroes character whether it’s SRK in BAAZIGAR, Khanna in HUMRAAZ and RACE, Priyanka in AITRAAZ etc. Their music is bang-on and they bring a distinctive tone and look to each of their films. MOST of them age better than other films release in that year and some (like HUMRAAZ and RACE) age better.
A lot of PLAYERS will rely on heavy WOM and trending across 3 weeks.
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January 5, 2012 at 8:02 AM
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
Hearing fab reviews of #Players & specially about @NeilNMukesh & @juniorbachchan in it! May not get the biggest opening, but will sustain!
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
@juniorbachchan @NeilNMukesh praying for it mate! Im quite confident ul have a biigger smile on you face on monday eve than tomorow! 😉
akshayerathi Akshaye Rathi
@rajivvijayakar @NeilNMukesh @juniorbachchan hope so sir! Want to see more hits come by! Besides, #Players is playing at my cinemas! 😉
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January 5, 2012 at 8:48 AM
This guy wrote samething about raavan or Game. With low advances, we have to wait and see how it picks up..
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January 5, 2012 at 9:07 AM
Abhishek’s daredevilry impresses Abbas-Mustan
It’s Abhishek Bachchan’s turn to show daredevilry and he did it in Players, the actor performed some risky stunts in the forthcoming action-thriller all by himself and it impressed the director duo Abbas-Mustan. During the action sequence, the actor balances himself atop two trains, running at the speed of about 100 km an hour. Abhishek admits it was tough.
“Hanging between the trains…good fun, though it was a bit tough. To get the right positioning was tough but ultimately it was done, we got what we wanted so we are happy,” the 35-year-old actor has said in the Making of Players released recently.
The action stunts, directed by Allan Amin, see Abhishek hanging through a harness and fighting for the gold. The actor even hit his head on one of the rods on the train but it didn’t deter him from completing the scene.
“Abhishek has given a good shot. The trains are running parallel and he hung between the trains and gave a very real shot. We were a bit tensed as well as Abhishek struck his head on a rod,” said the director.
The heist flick, releasing Friday, also stars Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Sikander Kher, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Omi Vaidya.
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January 5, 2012 at 9:58 AM
check it out..documentary on big b on french tv in 1985..much b4 when srk was in his Chaddi!!and his so called “living with a superstar” episode on TLC.
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January 5, 2012 at 10:13 AM
wow, great stuff..
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January 5, 2012 at 1:16 PM
Just amazing. Thank U chengez.
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January 5, 2012 at 2:23 PM
bipasa looks stunning,
http://bollyspice.com/35424/players-play-it-large-never-seen-before-promotions
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January 5, 2012 at 2:31 PM
yup, it’s been one big campaign for this one..
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January 5, 2012 at 11:22 AM
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-reviews/hindi/Players/movie-review/11375842.cms
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January 5, 2012 at 11:27 AM
Spoilers here. Not that the one offered is a surprise if one has seen the older versions and also knows what Neil’s character is. Bobby and Sikander Kher have cameos according to her.
Kazmi’s ratings tend to be unpredictable though. She gives this 3.5 stars. Also gave the same to Ra One and Raavan, DMD, Ghajini and I think Desi Boyz. Then she gave 4 stars to Don 2 and Dostana & DB & TZP. Gave 3 to D6. Her ratings seem to be on the kind side in this sense but what I like about her is that she doesn’t have a bias toward or against one kind of cinema. She gave Dev d & 3I 5 stars incidentally. It’s hard to go through her complete list but many of the ratings jump out.
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January 5, 2012 at 11:41 AM
http://www.gomolo.com/players-movie-review/40222/1688365
Looks like players is going to score…
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January 5, 2012 at 11:44 AM
if you have this kind of guy who doesn’t like the leads and is skeptical in other ways falling for it things look good..
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January 5, 2012 at 4:40 PM
Bachchan has to stop retweeting.
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January 5, 2012 at 5:35 PM
I won’t blame him this time for indulging in this.. Abhishek has faced such a trying time in every sense of the word that I can certainly understand the father in him celebrating the positivity.
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January 5, 2012 at 11:24 AM
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January 5, 2012 at 12:30 PM
it looks good
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January 5, 2012 at 2:05 PM
what looks good..the cone bra outfit of sonam?
😉
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January 5, 2012 at 4:59 PM
Haha^^
Though cant see it clearly
Seems players has hit something -not sure how big
Might catch it this weekend now
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January 5, 2012 at 12:36 PM
Abhishek filmfare interview:
http://www.filmfare.com/articles/abhishek-bachchan-papa-kehte-hain-2882.html
not sure if this is the cover story.
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January 5, 2012 at 1:04 PM
its in dubai now,
its italian job..oops sorry “INDIAN JOB” the fim will do well
http://gulfnews.com/gntv/arts/abhishek-bachchan-and-star-cast-of-players-in-dubai-1.961647
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January 5, 2012 at 1:10 PM
Dubai viewer on Yahoo:
Just saw the movie…loved it!!
Awesome locations… tight script…terrific twists and turns..basically a typical Abbas-Mustan movie…
All actors contributed well…Abhi is in full form…loved him in few high octane scenes…good action…
Hard hitting climax!! With an awesome twist till the last shot!!
Less negatives… at times loses pace but gets back too quick!!
GoForGold!! Don’t miss it!!
Tejas
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January 5, 2012 at 4:42 PM
Seems like Players is a hit.
Satyam Dear , you can take a nap now.
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January 5, 2012 at 5:02 PM
Great Buzz in twitter, Abhi’s 100 cr movie?
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January 5, 2012 at 10:12 PM
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January 7, 2012 at 7:54 AM
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January 7, 2012 at 7:59 AM
Kaveree Bamzai (india Today):
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/players-movie-review/1/167536.html
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