#Copycat If the opening shot of the trailer of Happy New Year tricks you into believing that Sanjay Leela Bhansali might have ghost directed Farah Khans Happy New year,but he hasnt If the trailer is any indication, Farah Khans much awaited film seems like a recycled version of her older films — Main Hoon Naand Om Shanti Om. At the end of the trailer ofHappy New Year, Shah Rukh Khan announces ominously, Picture abhi baki hai mere dost — its not deja vu, you arent watching Om Shanti Om again — blame it on SRKs self-referencing syndrome which showed its first sign in Rohit Shetty Chennai Express (which was full of Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayengereferences). In fact, it seems his obsession with referencing is contagious and his very good friend Farah Khan has already picked it up. While we all know Bollywood directors are often accused of taking a bit of inspiration from fellow filmmakers in the industry and their Hollywood counterparts, the Happy New Years trailer seems like a montage of many inspirations. Beginning with aerial shots of grand celebrations (think of any Bhansali film), then the tilted camera angles to show Khans golden highlights and then side profile (remember Ram Gopal Vermas old films?Satya, Company, Shool?) and Sonu Soods shirts being ripped out of his body (that looks like something a character from a Prabhu Deva film would do). It is not just the style of filmmaking that seems unoriginal, the story too sounds like a hotchpotch of the Dhoom films. Picture this: A motley group of men and one hot woman, each with a specialised skill set plans a high profile heist on the New Years eve in a casino. The robbery however begins with a dance sequence because thats what people do in Goa casinos on New Years eve. Now, switch the venues — from casino to dance competition stage — and voila! From Dhoomyou have landed yourself into the Happy New Year universe. The lack of originality is not just limited to the films story and direction. Deepika Padukone seems to be stuck in the inertia ofChennai Express, with her not-so-Tamilian accent being replaced by a crass Hinglish. She plays the role of a dancer called Mohini, which means she will try everything to outdo Katrina Kaifs acrobatic stunts fromDhoom:3. While we dont regret her pole dancing in a carousel in the trailer, it does make you cringe a bit when she channels Kirron Kher (of all people) and says, dance ek art hai, art. If the trailer is anything to go by, Khan as Charlie debuts a golden highlight. However, thats the only thing new about him and the film. Sood does what he does in every film: rips his shirt off and shows off his six-pack abs. Abhishek Bachchan successfully goes unnoticed in the trailer (just like he did in his last films, Dhoom:3). And for some strange reason, Vivaan Shah who plays the role of a young hacker, looks like he has just been dumped and is about to cry. The trailer indicates that like most of Farah Khans films, Happy New Year too is flashy with a bit of nationalistic sentiments thrown in (Indiawaale keeps reoccurring in the trailer). It also seems borderline absurd because if you have to make a list of all the ridiculous things youve seen in Bollywood films, five grown up men in pink tulle skirts, dressed up as ballerinas would definitely be one of them. However, lets just hope that cFarah Khan has not crossed the line of absurdity (that Sajid Khan and Shirish Kunder so often do). But, with a blonde Shah Rukh who has baby blue eyes in the trailer, perhaps the answer is there in the trailer of Happy New Year itself
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 02:45:15 +0000
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