The trailer of Thugs of Hindostan is all set to touch 6
crore plus views. In just about one week
of its release. You can call this phenomenal anticipation of the movie for one
simple reason Amitabh and Aamir coming together for the first time in what has
been a three decade long wait for audiences.
There is something else too which has happened post the
release of Thugs Of Hindostan. The equal amount of ridicule the trailer
received from those who expected better.
What better they expected is not yet known but they expected better.
This is the irony of all major entertainment movies. Deep
down we love them. We enjoy them but somehow we are made to feel guilty about
enjoying them. These are not intelligent films we are told and what exactly is
an intelligent film nobody knows. For the time being let us stay focused on the
criticism of the movie.
The critics told us this one looks heavily inspired from
Pirates of The Caribbean. They probably had a point. Sure the movie looked
visually inspired from that movie or was it? The movie tells the story of
pirates who ruled the sea against the Britishers. So while we can see
inspirations the story is different. The larger question is how much of our
cinema is original ? Sholay , Deewar, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge all drew
inspirations from yesteryear movies.
There was another bunch which was not very happy about how
Aamir came out in the trailer. The complain was he was loud, he was trying
heart. That if you ask me is a brilliant stroke by the director. Aamir’s
loudness will blend superbly with Amitabh’s cold ruthless Khudabaksh Azaad in
the movie. Remember how Veeru’s flamboyancy was such a perfect foil to Jai’s
cold thinker in Sholay ? IF the director has written a good screenplay there
will be sparks when such contrast characters will clash on screen. You will
also have to understand that sometimes it is a loud character which makes a
movie work, you might want to think of Kareena Kapoor in Jab We Met to
understand my point.
Trust the women’s equality brigade to take potshots at a new
big bollywood release and this one was no different. This time the criticism
was the women did not speak in the trailer. Sure they did not but at least one
had shooting arrows and fighting man to man and did not come across as a
decorative material. Amitabh teaching archery to one young girl also was
comfortably ignored a man teaching use of a weapon to a girl is liberating
enough, no ? More importantly when exactly did the director tell or claim that
he is making the next Arth or Mother india ? a masala entertainer it is and
there ends the matter.
Then came the never satisfied with the plot brigade. True
the trailer did not give much of a glimpse but did it cross us that could
exactly be strategy? Give us the grandeur of the movie but do not reveal the
plot?. That is a reasonably perfect strategy because when a movie so
anticipated as Thugs Of Hindustan is coming up hiding the actual content is the
best bet to keep the aura and ensure that the first reactions build on ground
spiral of feedback for a film.
Sometimes criticism is executed largely because we the
audiences and observers fail to control our expectations. Else look hard what
was so great about the teaser of SRK’s Zero but the audiences loved it. For
that matter I recall the trailer of Ayaary which promised great things but what
a cold bhatoora in the freezer the movie turned out to be. Worse is we did not
know what to expect but would want to be politically correct and say oh the
trailer was just about ok.
Am for sure counting days to November 8th. I want
to see who will win the most anticipated battle of histrionics. Before the
bachchas came to the party the big daddy of action was Amitabh. In this trailer
he is kicking ass with such flair that you remember the chair kicking Vijay of
Zanjeer.
Thugs Of Hindostan is that full of cheese hot burger not
meant for those who are scared of living life. Am going to dig in day one.
Sword to the critics Azaad !
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