Type-e-Ishq Redux: मिल गयी!

Saw Bhumika DVDs in Mustafa's last Friday and I knew for certain that the Daawat-e-Ishq title typeface isn't a custom-designed one ...

So I ran a quick Google search and found Benguiat Caslon:

My god, I think I have a crush on it. It's so sexy and beautiful!

LOL V.D.

Saw a tweet today which pointed out that Valentine's Day has the same initials as the other thing that "V.D." is more known as ...

And Vasantham decided to screen ... Shaadi Ke Side Effects. LOL your programming is hilarious and slyly subversive!

I watched Shaadi but it didn't help me figure out why straight people marry and breed. I actually like Pyaar Ke Side Effects quite a bit, but however much I adore Vidya and think she and Farhan Akhtar look so cute together, I like Shaadi less than I perhaps should. (Pyaar > Shaadi!)

I found the acting and the music both decent and likeable; guess it's just the story that didn't do much for me. I guess its premise is too 'grown up' for me for something.

But, yeah, thanks for scheduling a movie on V.D. that validates and strengthens the commitment-phobes' collective resolve to never marry.

This is truly a great public service for us all!

Goat Biryani & Philosophy

After I skipped out of the office at 13.30, I headed straight for Little India. Threading took less than three minutes and then I was walking around looking for that famous biryani place I've read about, called Bismillah.

Well, you know, with that name, I should've known I could expect a side dish of wisdom and philosophy with my delicious goat biryani and mango lassi because that was exactly what I got. As I was settling my bill, I fell into conversation with one of the proprietors who was at the cash register.

We talked mostly about food — his philosophy on food (although he didn't call it 'philosophy') — then veered into the general topic of living. It was a truly interesting conversation; there were many points I hope to remember and put into practice.

For instance, he said (something like): if you focus only on one thing in life, then you're like a horse with blinders. If you're obsessed with one thing, your life is just a dot. Life goes every which way — horizontally, vertically, diagonally, etc. — so why spend your time on earth remaining static in that dot?

Towards the end of our conversation (I mainly contributed by listening), he suddenly reminded me of Sergio. Sergio always emphasized logic; he said everything we do follows (or should follow) logic. The proprietor said everything we do has meaning. When he said that, I remembered Sergio's dimly lit office, my sitting in front of his desk, Sergio with his beloved Diet Coke, a glass, and a coaster, Sergio's illustration of logic using the glass and the coaster ...

The proprietor also said, avoid collisions with other people — it's better to walk away and avoid clashing with someone than get drive headlong into a crash because bad thoughts and words will only sour your day. Why choose to make life bad for yourself? This made me think of work, how I always get angry because I don't agree with the way things are and how things are done. I know, it's really not worth it; I should never get mad at work.

Then the proprietor asked, what is happiness? What is hell? Happiness the period between bad things happening in your life; hell, the period between good things happening. (I might've also read this somewhere else.) What is life but a cycle, no?

This lovely little interlude in the afternoon makes me think that I should do more things on my own. Serendipity finds me only when I'm on my own and I meet such lovely people. This was like that time when I stumbled upon a beautiful shop of statues and other artworks somewhere in Left Bank/Cuba Mall while I was waiting on my takeaway. The owner, who had been smoking outside his antique/art shop, started chatting with me and it ended with an invitation to dine with his wife on "authentic" Indian food.

I must really be out there on my own more often. Friends proffer buffer and safe spaces, but, as the proprietor had said, why remain in one spot when you can go anywhere, in every different direction?

Type-e-Ishq

I found a couple of unfavorable reviews for Daawat-e-Ishq and both said something about how the romance between Gullu and Taru is unrealistic because it took place over three days. I suppose they could be right; I mean, it is wholly believable that that two people could fall in love in three days, but perhaps not as realistic that they decide to marry within/after a week of meeting. Then again, stranger things have happened.

For viewers like me, because I found the two leads so lovable, it easy to accept Gullu's and Taru's relationship (and subsequent marriage). Of course, I'd have loved to have the courtship/getting-to-know-you bit stretch a little longer. In fact, I wish the script had sacrificed the Amju-Gullu thing in favor of Taru-Gullu. Like, I didn't need to know Amju and Gullu had been crushing on each other for a month, how they appear to be diametrically different people (veggie vs non-veg). I would prefer to have more Taru-Gullu conversations.

Anyway, I still like Daawat and 'Mannat' has become my earworm du jour. (It's the somewhat incantatory nature of the chorus, I think, that I like so much.)

What's not to love about the movie, really? Besides really adorable leads, Lucknow tourism and food porn, and music, there's a whole lotta kohl. Dude wore guy-liner the whole time — even when Pari's character wasn't wearing any! Eye-liner/kohl is totally my favorite thing to see on both genders.

One other thing I love about Daawat: the title typeface. God, I've always been a sucker for ball (and teardrop) terminals and there are some fucking gorgeous beauties in the titles:

It looks similar to Elephant but with customized swashes. (I actually don't think this typeface was customized for Daawat; I seem to recall seeing a typeface like this before).

WHAT IS THIS TYPEFACE — I HAVE TO KNOW!

(>_<)

So, today, another blood letting, another set of pills, and a day off work. Can't complain!

Finished Happy Ending this morning. I don't know what to think about this movie. Maybe a list will help:

Plus Side

• It's kinda interesting — the title-over of scenes; I'll like to see that used in other films
• Saif Ali Khan as the slobby schlubby The Dude-ish alter-ego — what can I say, I adore the Nitin-types. I would love to fill my life with at least one such guy so I'll always have someone to binge-watch movies and binge on junk food. And it'll always be the films I want to watch because he's too fucking lazy to fight my selection. What a perfect platonic life-mate!
• Kalki Koechlin!
• Laughs — I did get a few laughs in, although I'm not sure the laughs came where they were supposed to.

Down Side

• Casting — yeah, not sure Ileana d'Cruz was the right choice. I'd think maybe Kareena should be in that role but I'm afraid she'd've overdone it like she did in Jab We Met.
• A somewhat meta-story/story of a story of a story? Yeah ... No. I still cringe when I read back at my old stuff in which I employed what I now think is a rather lazy narrative structure.
• Govinda. UGH. No. Not even if he's parodying a has-been movie star. NO. Because Govinda.
• The story itself is a little weak, I think. Can't rom-coms be smarter? Maybe the scriptwriters should look to Shakespeare (10 Thing I Hate About You <3), Austen (Clueless; can't comment on Aisha since I've yet to watch it), or other classic stories (Easy A).

After Happy Ending, I decided I wanted something less ditzy, so I started watching Ek Villain because I thought it has garnered good reviews.

Yeah ... No. My bad.

First off, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS CIVILIZED AND DECENT, PUT A FUCKING WARNING IN THE OPENING TITLES IF KR-BLOODY-K IS THE DAMN SHOW. He is pestilence. I'd rather watch Vijay Raaz pour out Nitin's stool sample on a continuous loop than that fuckwit KRK in any scene, however short.

Two: Sidharth Malhotra. First time I saw him, it was in Hasee Toh Phasee. I didn't know who the leads were but fell in love with Parineeti Chopra straightaway. The male lead I hardly registered because he was hardly noticeable. Then I read a review which praised his "understated" performance and I was like, okay, maybe his character isn't a very flashy one. (And tbh, when Pari is on, she really just grabs my eyeballs and attention.)

Then I saw him again in that dumbass SOTY. Because I was so appalled by the amount of pecs and biceps flaunted and the lack of a homoerotic storyline between the two male leads, I didn't pay any attention to the acting. (I mean, it's really hard to watch the flick fully when I kept having to roll my eyes.)

Now Ek Villain. I can confirm that Sid Malhotra as an actor is about as emotive as a kettle.

Thirdly, Shraddha Kapoor had very little screen time. I don't know why I find MPDGs in Indian movies so ... exaggerated. Aisha is a bit of a MPDG and I could only tolerate it because she's easy on the eyes and had very few scenes (and a lot less shrill than Bebo as Geet).

The plot, acting by the lead, and KRK combined is making it a struggle for me to continue with the film. In fact, thanks to them, I'm now watching the original from which Villain was copied — I Saw The Devil (which, being a Korean revenge flick, is scarring me psychologically).

If Villain is remaking Devil, then the former made very. very, very, very fucking poor use of good materials. I mean, when Aisha died (I watched until the 56 min mark, having forwarded through the songs), I was too busy wondering why she had lived long enough to be killed by Rakesh to feel any sympathy for Guru. Didn't she say right at the beginning that she was dying (as a lazy way to explain the MPDG-ness of her character, because of course all dying people are immensely perky and cheery)? What was she dying of?

Also, let's face it: Sid doesn't do forcibly repressed emotions and clenched jaws anywhere as well as Lee Byung-hun in Devil. Hell, I'm rooting for Soo-hyun. In fact, I'm hoping Devil ends with the villain with amputated hands, legs, and tongue. Also, I was mightily impressed by Soo-hyun's cutting of Kyung-chul's Achilles tendon.

I wonder if I should finish Villain even if I have to hate-watch the rest of it. I suppose it'll make a good mental cleanser after the gore-rific Devil since Villain is so bland. (Oh lord, this is going to be like that time I watched Ichi the Killer in the uni library and then was terrified when walking home at sunset.)

Aww

Even though I was in Little India yesterday (with Geeta, at our regular, eating our regular) and visited Mustafa, I didn't buy any DVDs — I couldn't find A Wednesday! and couldn't think of what else to buy — which felt weird. Weird because it's become a habit for me to savor my new DVDs as I have my lunch after Sunday aerial yoga class. It's such a treat.

So I was completely lost today because I didn't know what to watch.

Finally settled on Daawat-e-Ishq (streamed, thank you anonymous uploader) which I'd been meaning to buy ... except I realize I make very poor choices when it comes to rom-com, resulting in my buying things like Yeh Jaawani Hai Deewani, Love Aaj Kal, and Teri Meri Kahani (I have still yet to unwrap the former two).

But Daawat-e-Ishq: awww. It' so sweet! I wonder why it's a flop at the box office. Is it the somewhat preachy tone at the start of the movie, or the slightly weak ending? Parineeti and Aditya Roy Kapur are so cute together, but then again Pari looks great with all her male co-stars so far (unlike Ileana d'Cruz whom I've found to not look compatible with any of her male co-stars in the two and a half movies I've watched of hers: Barfi!, Main Tera Hero, and Happy Ending).

For a movie with younger actors, I was surprised there was no kiss. I found the lack of at least one kiss at the denouement a little odd. Surely after saving each other from thugs, apologizing, forgiving, confessing your true love's passion, and finding your love reciprocated, a kiss wouldn't be amiss? (Does Aditya have a no-kiss clause? 'Cuz Pari definitely doesn't.)

Daawat-e-Ishq has a decent story — better than Main Tera Hero or SO-fucking-TY — and a likable and wholly competent main cast. The music is also decent, and, hello, FOOD PORN. On top of all that, it's at least a little educational, no? Teaching women about section 498A, letting everybody know women are fucking trash that can only be accepted if money is given, nor are men chattel to be auctioned off to the highest offer.

Hell yeah I'm definitely buying this the next time I'm at Mustafa!

(The word daawat is also the name of one of my favorite Indian eating places in Welly. One year, my girl friends arranged a surprise birthday dinner for me there and gifted me a gorgeous bag from Trade Aid with pretty embroidery and Rajasthani mirror work. So, yeah, I guess the word daawat has only very positive connotations for me.)

Reads & Flicks of the Month: January

Sadly, just finished one book (a short one, really) which I started last December or even before: The Daydreamer by Ian McEwan.

Flicks of the month:

• Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
• Salaam-e-Ishq
• Badmaa$h Company
• Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana
• Raat Gayi, Baat Gayi?
• Ishqiya
• Dedh Ishqiya
• Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania
• Jodi Breaker
• Finding Fanny
• Cheeni Kum
• Straight
• 7 Khoon Maaf
• Fashion
• Student of the Year
• Chennai Express
• Fatso!
• Teri Meri Kahani
• Kahaani
• Mardaani
• Main Tera Hero
• Nautanki Saala
• (Kick — actually, I fast-forwarded a lot because I was watching this for Nawazuddin Siddiqui)

I also watched the AIB Roast — I waited for it the entire day then watched it way past my bed time even though it was a work day the next day. I laughed a lot; I also thought a lot of the jokes were going for the lowest common denominator, but that's not actually offensive. The fact that K.Jo joined in on the gay jokes about himself raised my opinion of him — this I blame on AIB. I'm just really sorry they got into trouble for making people laugh and raising money for charity.

Who could've anticipated that good things could be deemed so bad, that there were so many nincompoops in the world?

Anyway, I waited again for 'I Am Offended' yesterday (or was it Wednesday?) and watched it way, way, way past bed time. It's worth it. I think everybody should watch it, regardless of whether or not they know who the folks in the video are; whether or not they are from/in India.

Because, for me, it is ultimately about how we can't have nice things because of selfish and ignorant and insecure assholes who make fucking loud stinks.

I mean, holy shit, nobody's putting a gun up your ass to force you to watch something on YouTube or get gay-married or whatever. Just because you don't want to do it doesn't mean you stop others from doing it, especially if whatever the others are doing isn't murdering, raping, maiming, robbing (etc.) anybody.

ARGH. SO. INFURIATING.

Wanted: Bee Charmer

Recently found out what "bee charmer" means — apart from charming actual bees ... and Nellie McKay's duet with Cyndi Lauper suddenly makes sense, because I could never figure out why that song was called 'Bee Charmer'.

Episodes is back! I was going to delay watching the new season but, having seen on AfterEllen talk of a lesbian affair (Carol! With her new boss!), I hurriedly started on season four.

Sigh, why couldn't I have a smart, funny, and kind boss who'd hit on me like Helen did Carol? Sure would be nice to have a bee charmer in my life ...

Weekend

Ek Tha Tiger the Hindi film on the free-to-view channel yesterday, so of course I headed to Mustafa again to buy DVDs and medjool dates before meeting Auntie Al, her client, and her girlfriend for dinner. I bought Dil Kabaddi, Special 26, and Mirch.

After I came home from aerial yoga today, I watched Dil Kabaddi. Since I haven't watched Husbands and Wives (and will never), I found Dil Kabaddi decent because I love the main cast. I didn't quite get the couple played by Rahul Bose and Konkana Sen Sharma, but I understood how problems came to be in relationships. Had I watched this film earlier in my life, I would've felt validated in my staunch belief in never ever getting (hetero) married for love. For anything else — economic, financial, legal reasons etc. — yes, go ahead and have your marriage of convenience.

The casting is lovely — Irrfan Khan, Rahul Bose, Konkana, Soha Ali Khan, and Rahul Khanna — I never thought I would be able to catch Irrfan, Rahul B., and Konkana together in a movie that won't make me cry and my heart ache! This is also the first time I saw Soha Ali Khan in a movie and I think she's a rather decent actor.

Anyway, 6.5/10 from me for Dil Kabaddi! (Can I please see Monty and Shruti again in another comedy?)

Next thing I watched was Special 26.

THANK GOODNESS I only took a glance through the sea of text that is its Wiki synopsis. I was on tenterhooks for second half of the film, wishing so hard there would be an ending that didn't consist of a poor girl waiting pointlessly at the airport and everybody else in jail. THANK YOU SCRIPTWRITER-DIRECTOR! (Mental note: Neeraj Pandey's other films to be on must-watch list.)

Special 26 is the Ocean's Eleven of Hindi cinema. Forget all the other shitty "(loosely) based on" ripoffs. Special 26 had as much cojones and kept me wondering how the hell they would get out of the situation with the loot. Hell yeah, Akshay Kumar made a great mastermind figure. AWESOME FILM! 8/10!

Currently rewatching Special 26. Less stressful because I now know I can expect a happy ending!

Bridges & Shit

I know you shouldn't burn bridges when you leave because you never know when you might need help or to return, but what if burning ALL the bridges meant whatever nightmare and horror on the other side of the bridges won't be able to distress you ever again?

How bad must things get so that the burning of bridges is justified?

... I'm sure I'm just being impulsive as usual. Hopefully sleeping on it will bring about some sense and sensibility.

Sigh.

Weekend of Female Vengeance

One of my favorite genre of movies is the one where a wronged woman gets her revenge, served cold but deliciously punchy. For that reason, I only rewatch Ek Hasina Thi when Urmila's character starts toughening up, first by beating the shit out of her bully; then by fucking Karan over until she leaves him to the rats.

It's not really the schadenfreude I enjoy; it's watching women beating the ever-loving shit of out their attackers or whoever wronged them, get their revenge.

Yesterday, I finally saw Kahaani (which I bought on Friday). I'd put off watching it because I'd read the Wiki synopsis (spoilers and all), so I'd thought I'd not find the movie engaging. Boy, was I ever wrong ... (I only bought the DVD because I wanted to see Nawazuddin Siddiqui in a movie in which he has at least a supporting role; the kinda films in which he has a leading role are usually not my cuppa).

In fact, I found it very engrossing (despite Wiki's spoilers). Vidya Balan is just phenomenal in it. The three best things about Kahaani are: Vidya Balan, Nawaz (who was scary-intense; to watch Vidya calmly asserted herself, throwing his arrogant words back at him, was sweet as), and the sweet, shy Rana's crush on Vidya. My favorite scene is the rise of Durga in Vidya. The moment she opened her eyes and directed at Milan Damji a stare that burned with a thousand fires ...

... then proceeded to kick his fucking ass to hell. Yeah, asshole, you're fucking roadkill. That was when I tumbled over from mere admiration into devout worship of Vidya.

I mean, she stabbed him — twice! — with a fucking pencil. Who does that?! I love watching women kick ass, and Vidya did so with particular style. (That is prolly the scene I'll keep rewatching in days to come! I've already rewatched the entire film once today!)

And thank you for the sweet, sweet irony of a contract killer with a life insurance agent cover! Bob Biswas's unholy crossing of himself (with throat-slash motion) was also quite inspired. (The one aspect Kahaani failed in was everything that has do with computers and 'hacking' — couldn've been done better. Did the writers/director not have a consultant for this?)

So, after rewatching Kahaani today, after my Nautanki Saala (just bought on Friday, with Kahaani) failed to work, and I'd thrown a fit, I went in search of something that isn't an insipid love story ... Found Mardaani.

Mardaani I also avoided watching (even though I adore Rani Mukherji and read good reviews of the film) because I can't stand watching children get sex-trafficked and harmed in any way. But, today, watched it I did.

I like Rani in it; the film, on the other hand, is still a little too masala for the direction it tried to go. It was a little hard for me to completely believe Rani's character was able to physically kick ass because her face is so sweet and innocent. (By god, they gave her bangs and long hair for this — what?! Look, I'm not expected the tough-woman pixie cut nor G.I. Jane's crew cut, but bangs?! An easily grabbed long plait/ponytail?! The fuck ...)

But kick ass she did — and, by that part of the movie, I enjoyed the hell out of it (and also the fact that she wasn't afraid to hit below the belt). And hell yeah I enjoyed the girls venting their collective fury on the shithead. It was, for that moment, extremely cathartic (for me).

Because movies are vicarious for viewers, no?

Delhi Belly Prequel-Sequel: A Suggestion

Because I have yet to stop watching Delhi Belly (although I admittedly don't do it daily anymore), the more times I rewatch it, the more questions I have.

Like, why does the dudes' flat only get running water for two hours a day while their landlord's flat (below theirs) seems to have running water on demand?

Or, how did the two policemen, DIG Mohan Shrivistava and IG Phool Chand Jain, know which room everybody (Cowboy & gang, Tashi & gang, Sonia, and Vladmir) was squashed in and got the hotel staff to open the door to?

Anyway, those can be overlooked. Now, how about a prequel for a sequel?

How about a prequel that tells the story of:

• How the three dudes met and ended up living in such a crummy flat?
  My guess: Nitin and Tashi met at varsity and took pity on Arup after watching him get hazed. Since their professions have to do with newspapers, they might have shared a couple of classes as well. The crummy flat was in fact the least crummy of flats they viewed and could afford.
• How Tashi hooked up with Sonia?
  My guess: Tashi had to cover a stupid story (like what he had done with VJ Sophaya) in high society — maybe he interviewed Sonia's mom about her fucking stupid clock collection. Sonia made the first move and Tashi just went along because, hey hot chick who will bone me!, and also because he seems to be the kind that would go with, rather than against, the flow.
• How Nitin started using corpses as models and talked Leena into letting him photograph her johns for blackmailing purposes — and WHY?
  My guess: Maybe he's always had weird (and prolly socially-unacceptable) taste and was derided by his professors at varsity. When he graduated, prospective employers blanched at his portfolio. Left with no choice, Nitin attempted to hawk his photographs in the bazaar and was laughed out of town. Hanging out with Tashi one day he tagged along when Tashi got a call about a scoop. It was a particularly gruesome and bizarre murder and dismemberment but Nitin's aesthetics worked for him in this case and he managed to bagged a freelance position at Tashi's workplace.
  I like to think Nitin doesn't frequent brothels, so maybe Nitin was hired by an jealous wife (wife of his and Tashi's boss) to snap shots of her no-good philandering bastard of a husband who happens to be a frequent visitor at a brothel and Leena's number one customer. A one-off freelance gig turned into something more consistently lucrative ...
  OR Nitin was Leena's number one customer until he arrived too early for his 'appointment'. As he waited for his turn, he noticed, through Leena's never-closed windows that Tashi's boss was getting serviced ...
• How Cowboy come to import black market diamonds?
  My guess: Hm, I actually don't have a clue for this one, except that maybe his less-than-competent subordinates managed to inadvertently foil every single attempt by Cowboy to engage in gangsterism. Finally, Cowboy's dying grandfather (the biggest, baddest badass to ever badass) bequeathed his antique/handicraft shop and underworld business to Cowboy, with instructions to marry and produce an heir for the family business. So, basically, Cowboy took over gramps' business, managed to grow it despite his bumbling lackeys, and then had to start bride-shopping. He was besotted with Leena until he discovered she was his grampa's favorite prostitute ...

Shorts

Decided to rewatch The Lunchbox last night because IRRFAN KHAN + NAWAZUDDIN SIDDIQUI = AWESOME POSSUM!

These are two actors I admire greatly even though I can't bear to watch most of their films — often on account of how 'dark' and 'heavy' I perceive them to be. They both are so great at comedies though; I hope they get to work together on an intelligent and funny movie soon, something like Delhi Belly without the farts and shits.

OMG I would love to Khan and Siddiqui together with Vijay Raaz — that might just be TEH BEST CAST & SHOW EVAR!!!

Anyway, The Lunchbox reminded me that I actually haven't anything else of Siddiqui's works, the small role in Peepli Live and the even smaller blink-and-you-miss-it role in Munna Bhai MBBS notwithstanding. So I did a random search and found treasures!

'Bypass' (Irrfan Khan is in it too!) is one of my favorite types of narratives — full-circle (quite literally) and neat (in every sense of the word). I don't think I have read/watched many books/films that do the coming-full-circle thing well and not lazily or unimaginatively.

'Bypass' is the circle of life: you get what you give — or, in this case, you give what you take. I like 'Bypass' so much more than 'Mehfuz' in Shorts (which I found dark, depressing, and quite incomprehensible). The actors — Siddiqui, Khan, and Sundar Dan Detha especially — are all so expressive in this wordless short.

I also found '"OP" Stop Smelling Your Socks'. I've always found the idea of being unable to wake from dreams terrifying. Happily, this one is funny and not at all scary — it also puts on display Siddiqui's great potential in comedy!

'Salt 'N' Pepper' was decent (having not read the synopsis, this short certainly didn't go the way I thought it would from its first few scenes); 'Recycle Mind' I watched without subtitles but it was easy enough to figure out the story which was engaging enough.

I hope Siddiqui won't get typecast as the poor/violent type; I mean, he's already the face of Gareeb Aadmi on Twitter ...

DD-Fucking-LJ

I honestly do not get Hindi movie scriptwriters' fascination with DDLJ. Fuck, what is it about that movie that has so many people seemingly in love with it? Why do films insist on inserting references or even blatantly lifting dialogues, scenes, and riffs from that show? What makes DDLJ so fucking iconic?

I get so mad at the scriptwriter and director whenever that happens, even in "tributes", like in Chennai Express — the ending, not the train scene at the beginning which is actually a decent parody — OMG why did I ever decide to watch it? I even saw this clip in which Sapan Verma was talking about Chennai Express (which should've served as warning that Chennai Express is not worth your time, classist joke about halwais aside):

Anyway, there are two positives in Chennai Express:

• DIMPLES! I spent a lot of time watching SRK's and Deepika's dimples. Strangely, Deepika's dimples were the only pair I've ever seen that didn't make its wearer cute. No, hers made her very pretty. And she can act! Consider me a new fan!
• SAREES! Wow, I like almost every single saree Deepika wore and I like how she looked fucking GORGEOUS in every single one! That lady can really carry a saree.

I also watched Fatso! today which I actually prefer to Chennai Express. To me, it's a gentle show which turned out really sweet, although I think maybe there might've been a missed opportunity for a couple twists in Navin's not reading the contract he signed, and in Sudeep's soul's sudden departure. The version I saw (which was uploaded by MyStarMovies) might also have cut out a couple of seconds, I dunno. Nandini and Navin-in-Sudeep talked about a kiss I never saw. How did that happen?

Last Monday I watched 7 Khoon Maaf (interesting and rewatchable; I liked the Irrfan Khan bit best because IRRFAN KHAN!) and Teri Meri Kahani which, I read on Wiki, is a remake of Hou Hsiao Hsien's Three Times. I bought the DVD despite not liking that particular jodi because I honestly thought the story/stories would be interesting, and because Kunal Kohli's Hum Tum was my go-to rom-com when it was released.

Unfortunately for me, Teri Meri Kahani isn't one of those DVDs I might ever watch again. (Also, watching 7 Khoon Maaf and Teri Meri Kahan back-to-back was what made me watch SOTY — only because I needed a cleanser from what was turning out to be a Priyanka Chopra-heavy day.)

What to watch next?