DD 5.1

Built around a brilliant idea, Derrick Borte's debut plays like The Truman Show in reverse. Whereas Jim Carrey's Truman had no idea his life provided fodder for a TV show, the upper-crust enclave that welcomes the Joneses has no idea they're a marketing unit in disguise. One day, Steve (David Duchovny, more Californication than The X-Files) and Kate (Demi Moore, whose businesslike demeanor serves the premise well) arrive with teenagers Jenn (Amber Heard) and Mick (Ben Hollingsworth) and a moving van full of luxury goods.

Life in the 1990's was remarkably different for the average Indian. Consumerism had not set in. It was devoid of most of the luxuries of the West. In fact everything "imported" was good, and everything Indian, passe. Badmaash Company is an extraordinary story set in the 1990's in middle class Bombay (as it was known then), of four ordinary youngsters Karan (Shahid Kapoor), Bulbul (Anushka Sharma), Chandu (Vir Das) and Zing (Meiyang Chang) who came together to start an import business of things longed for by yuppie Indians!

Like a story from classical mythology. A boy's mother dies at a very young age and he is heartbroken. His father remarries and the boy is introduced to her on his birthday. For him, his mother had returned. One problem, his mother is out to get the family fortune, because as in all Bollywood movies, the family is very wealthy. This is a long term scam though and will take years to pull off. The boy is so infatuated with his mother that he takes every word of hers as gospel. She has him work in the fields like a peasant and denies him an education.

Dil To Pagal Hai is the short form used for this film. The film is from the most successful Yash s production. The film stars Shah Ruck Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Karishma Kapoor. The film is about the incidents that happen in a dance team. Shah Ruck Khan and Karishma Kapoor form the dancing pair. They are close friends. Slowly Karishma falls in love with Shah Rukh. Meanwhile Shah Rukh falls in love at first sight with the Madhuri who arrives to their dance studio. Because of friendship Karishma sacrifices her love on learning that Shah Rukh loves the other and helps him in his love.

Major Jaidev Rajvansh (Anil Kapoor) and his fellow officer Hussein (Om Puri) manage to rescue a leading politician as well as capture his kidnapper, Abhrush (Danny Denzongpa). The terrorist has been wanted for years and he is finally captured by the two officers. Jai returns to a joyous welcome, and is declared a national hero. He takes a break from the army and returns to his hometown. There he meets his childhood friend Anjali (Madhuri Dixit) who has always harboured love for Jai. Anjali is determined to make sure she and Jai stay together 24/7.

Vanaja, a beautiful and heart-touching film from India, represents a miracle of casting. Every role, including the challenging central role of a low-caste 14-year-old girl, is cast perfectly and played flawlessly, so that it is a continuing pleasure to see these faces on the screen. Then we learn their stories. The actors, naturally and effortlessly true, are all nonprofessionals who were cast for their looks and presence, and then trained in an acting workshop set up by the director, Rajnesh Domalpalli.

Director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra merges two plots in Rang De Basanti. The first is about a group of friends, their bonding, the carefree lifestyle they lead. The second plot pertains to the past, when freedom fighters sacrificed their lives during the pre-independence era. Without doubt, Mehra's intentions are noble, since portions in the film do succeed in pricking your conscience. Mehra draws parallels between Indians ruled by the British and Indians ruled by corrupt politicians today. The message is subtle at first, but echoes piercingly before it reaches its finale.

Director Vishal Bhardwaj's first foray into the world of Shakespeare is nothing short of astounding--Maqbool is one of the finest adaptations of 'Macbeth' ever produced. His interpretation, while faithful to the story, is no slave to it, and he spins an enthrallingly distinct version of the Scottish play. The elderly king here is an Indian mob boss called Abbaji, Macbeth is his underling Maqbool, and Lady Macbeth is Abbaji's wicked mistress Nimmi, who goads Maqbool into supplanting Abbaji and claiming her as the reward. And instead of three witches, there are two comical astrologers.

Omkara is a compelling adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello, with standout acting by all involved. The film is set in rural Uttar Pradesh, almost a modern "wild west" with its depiction of a hardscrabble life ruled by lawlessness and political corruption. Omkara is gripping from beginning to end as you watch Omkara's suspicion grow, fed by Langda's need for revenge. Ajay Devgan is at his smoldering best as Omkara/Othello and you will hardly recognize Saif Ali Khan in the Langda/Iago role; he excels in this villainous part, the kind of thing he does not usually play.

Siddu is the son of an over-protective business man. Every decision of his is made by his father, which leads him into frustration. He half-heartedly agrees to become engaged to a rich man's daughter, but then falls for a middle-class man's daughter called Hasini. The film focuses on his realization that he has to stand on his own and come out of his father's protective shell- and try to succeed in love.