Depressing

But the pictures are striking.

Yeh Hai Dilli Meri Jaan?

I intentionally waited to watch Dilli 6. I like to get updates from friends and read reviews before I watch a movie. Most anecdotal observations I received from friends and family was that they hated the movie and it was no RDB (Rang De Basanti - Mehra's last release that had a huge youth cult following). I do want to remind my readers that while Mehra did come up with RDB which was fabulous he also made Aks which was a great concept but a cringe worthy movie.

Maybe because my expectations were low or maybe because hubby is in India and I was terribly bored I enjoyed the movie somewhat. There were huge loopholes, lot of cliched characters, Rahman's music beautiful otherwise did not look that great in the movie.

First the negatives - the movie had so many characters and delved on so many issues that after a while it was hard to focus on what was good about the movie. The feuding brothers, the caste system, of course the obligatory Hindu Muslim riots, the NRI who fixes most things, the young adult who wants to be an Indian Idol, the kids thrown in God knows why, the corrupt policeman and the politician trying to incite religious fervor. As if that wasn't enough Mehra also threw in an invisible monkey man that was harassing the neighborhood and became the enabler to move the story forward

And now the positives - The narration of the movie is from the NRI's point of view and that amused me immensely. Specially the scene where the MLA walks up on the stage while the Ram Leela is going on, the expressions of the characters on stage was priceless. The shots of Old Delhi looked beautiful. It was Delhi as I remember from my trips to India. You could almost feel the crowd, smell the food, touch the history and get absorbed by the city. I also liked how the movie used the backdrop of Navratri and Ram Leela to introduce the characters.

Most characters were perfectly cast. You did see some of Mr. Mehra's regulars - Atul Kulkarni, Divya Datta, Waheeda Rahman. Sonam as Bittu was very appealing. The girl has great screen presence. Abhishek was quite competent in his role. But I wish Mr. Mehra had kept Abhishek's role only as a narrator and not tried to inject him into solving the issues. Indians after all over the years have been coming up with solutions on their own while NRIs more often than not stand on the side lines.

The Red Carpet at the Filmfare Awards

India hosted its own Filmfare awards a week after the Oscars. While Bollywood stars are definitely paying attention to their choices these days and a plethora of designer wear is seen on the red carpet, there are still some "What were they thinking?" moments.

Best Dressed:

Aishwarya Rai looked totally resplendent in a Sabyasachi saree. She tied her hair in a bun to go with her traditional look. This was Aishwarya at her best. Indian look always suits her.


Kareena chose to wear a saree as well. No surprises on the designer. Both sisters favour Manish Malhotra. The dramatic hair and makeup went very well with the event and Kareena looked happy to be with her boy candy Saif.



In a first for Bollywood industry, Chanel approached Sonam Kapoor to wear their one-shouldered gown on the red carpet. Sonam kept it simple accessorising it with a black Bottega knot clutch, jewels in her hair and some dramatic makeup.


Katrina Kaif looked comfortable and beautiful in this orange number. Plus she looked fresher and slimmer since her last outing. Her new hair cut with bangs makes her look younger.


Priyanka Chopra looked gorgeous in an Alberta Ferretti gown. For once PC changed her hairstyle and makeup and gets full marks.



Tabu wore the color of the season and looked beautiful in a Gavin Miguel gown. She kept the focus on the gown with minimal accessories.


Worst Dressed:


Sushmita Sen also wore a Gauri and Nainika gown. This former Ms. Universe is so beautiful that she can carry pretty much anything but it wasn't this gown. The color was too dark and dreary.

Genelia D'Souza is a cute new face in bollywood. But this Just Cavalli gown did not do her justice. The dress is too unforgiving.

What happened to my resident fashionista Priety Zinta. This Gauri and Nainika gown makes her look hip heavy. The lace, the embroidery, the mermaid fish tail and the netting in the bottom - there is just too much going on in this gown and not all good.


Bipasha Basu looked beautiful and sexy as usual but her OTT sexiness is totally unncessary most of the time. Plus I don't like the trend of velvet blouses. This Sabyasachi saree is beautiful and her look would have been perfect with a better blouse.


Asin got her first filmfare award as a promising debut this year and chose to wear a DVF gown. Loved the color but the way she draped it and her hair and makeup left lot of room for improvement. She did pair is with a yummy silver Bottega clutch.