movie review : Rockstar (2011)

Jordan – the rockstar’s love saga cuddles up to your heart’s strings but the story has a few unanswered questions.

Imtiaz Ali‘s Rockstar begins in Prague, where the audiences are taken to a jam-packed venue ready to watch Jordan (Ranbir Kapoor) take the stage. He is emotionally troubled, dejected and has a lot of hate piled up within him.

Flashback – We are in Delhi, where a localite named Janardhan is not interested in anything else but music. The drive to fulfill his dreams is present in abundance but what’s lacking is that scar, a jolt that would make his passion even more believable. The storytellers thought it would be best to introduce a chick who would screw his mind, and this would allow rage to enter his music and at the same time would change the reason for his existence. Heer (Nargis Fakhri) – the hot and suave girl who studies in a neighbouring college and is supposed to be getting married in two months time rejects Janardhan’s proposal to be his girlfriend. Even though he tells her “tu aur main rock kar denge“. That’s our naive Jordan who wants to be the next Jim Morrison.

She wants to get her hands dirty and do all the crazy stuff that she can’t once she ties the knot. And that’s how Heer and Janardhan pair up to explore the unexplored. Jordan (that’s how she introduces him to her friends) forgets he was ever into music, gets thrown out of his house and spends two months in a dargah. This is where he rediscovers music. All this while Heer is married and has packed off to Prague. Ustad Jameel Khan (Shammi Kapoor) refers Jordan to a record company, and Janardhan a.k.a. Jordan receives a kick start to his career and also takes him to Prague. The lead-duo meet up again and this time things go as they had never planned it. They fall in love.

Heer is torn between marriage and love so she asks the to-be-rockstar to fuck off. Circumstances put Jordan in trouble, he ends up in jail and the small time singer returns home to India where the media has portrayed him as a notorious musician. Fame follows and despite having everything Jordan hates his life. He can’t get over Heer, even a kiss with journalist Sheena (Aditi Rao Hydari) does not give him an erection.

Two years pass by and in the meantime Heer has been diagnosed with some thing serious, has returned back to India as she tells her husband about her unfaithfulness. Her condition worsens with each passing day and she feels better only in Jordan’s presence. Isn’t that enough to conclude they are made for each other?

The movie does have loose ends with unanswered questions but the Kapoor lad has given a terrific performance and Nargis Fakhri is a gift to Bollywood. Hot, fresh and guess what – she can act! Several character actors play it real and Rahman‘s score makes the movie even more grand. All of Imtiaz‘s stories have a common theme – Complications in love. He tells love tales differently. With Rockstar, Imtiaz explains the loneliness that one has to deal with when s/he is up there on top. It’s not just sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. There is more to life than what meets the eye. Rockstar‘s not a winner all the way but I’m still going to watch it again for one of my favorite Bollywood directors Imtiaz, and of course for Ms. Fakhri!

Rating : 4/5

Read the music review for Rahman’s album Rockstar

music review : Rockstar (2011)

The Oscar-winning composer returns with an above average soundtrack and has pledged to make listeners of all genres happy.

From the rushes of the much-awaited flick Rockstar one cannot ignore the intensity the frames are throwing at us. Imtiaz Ali talks sense, for good Bollywood there is always a need for good music. And to handle the duties of making the backbone of Rockstar strong he gets on board the busiest Indian music composer. We all know him as A. R. Rahman. Rahman has been panned quite a lot of times after his first Oscar win for not having lived up to the expectations. If you expected yourself to shit properly every time you visit the loo then loose motions would not have existed. Give Rahman a break, for he is now being chased by Hollywood film-makers too and all this has come to this Indian only after he gave you and me more than just music for years.

The soundtrack for Rockstar belongs to two gentlemen – the undeniable A. R. Rahman and singer Mohit Chauhan. Here, it had to be tricky for the film-makers to narrow down someone for the protagonist’s voice and Chauhan gets to kick enough ass on this album where he fits the bill. Rahman’s sincerity shows in most parts because there is a soul carried by the songs. The respective character’s aura can be felt around you.

Phir Se Ud Chala and Jo Bhi Main (both sung by Mohit Chauhan) are breezy tracks that merit several plays. They aren’t one dimensional tracks. While Phir Se Ud Chala has electronic sections accompanying the soothing parts that maks sure blood flows to your head and relaxes it, Jo Bhi Main has a grungy appeal with heavy guitar rhythm. One of my favorite track is Katiya Karun sung by Sufi singer Harshdeep Kaur. It is interesting particularly because it encloses everything the female lead feels. The naughtiness, want, love and desires she is holding within her are let loose here. It has more than what reaches your ears.

Qawwali is like one of Rahman’s many fortes, and including one in Rockstar isn’t surprising at all. Can’t really say anything much about this track Kun Faya Kun as qawwalis have a richness that is incomparable to anything else that classifies to be called music. Sheher Mein is a situational track and wasn’t required on the compact disc. Then we are taken to a very funfair kind of setup through Hawaa Hawaa where all the artists sound high. There are two instrumentals  Tango For Taj and The Dichotomy of Fame. The former is a jingle that doesn’t go waste while the latter sends across the message.

On the downside we don’t have any compositions that would make you go weak in the heart. Tum Ho and Tum Ko come close but they lack the depth that I was looking for. But off the two the male version has an upper hand. Rahman also sings another track that is Nadaan Parinde, which again should be a chart buster and is another one of my best picks from the album.

What is being touted as the next Bollywood anthem, Saadda Haq is a very ordinary track with guitar arrangements that have been tried before. It is baffling to learn that some Australian artist Orianthi (who gained recognition for being Michael Jackson’s lead guitarist for his This Is It concert series) was brought on board to play such simple chords. Irshad Kamil pens lyrics that you can sing slong to, with several of them chasing issues the Rockstar wants to convey to his audiences.

Rockstar is a musical and there seems to be lesser potholes in the music department. The music on Rockstar doesn’t suck at all but it doesn’t rule either. All in all a very pleasant piece of work by Rahman. But given his vast diversity of work, one can always say he could have done better and Rahman has earned that right.

Rating : 3.5/5