3 Idiots and Aamir for me!

I finally saw a good movie after a month of attempting to do so. The wait was worth it. Saw 3 Idiots last night and loved it completely. What worked for me in the movie were the perfect balance of emotions and the timing of it, the well etched characters and the right selection of actors especially ‘Chatur’! While the credit for the success of the movie has mostly gone to Aamir thanks to his publicity blitzkrieg, I do believe Chatur’s role in the movie was as important to bring Aamir’s role to life. The music was apt, woven well into the script and thankfully lacked the unnecessary commercialization that exists with it in the industry today. Boman Irani was classic and Kareena looked stunning yet simple in her portrayal, just like her Jab We Met performance.

After a thoroughly entertaining three hours, I did get a feeling of déjàvu with Aamir’s performance. The two movies of his I recall before this are Taare Zameen Par and Rang De Basanti and there are some similarities in those and 3 Idiots. All three portrayed students, had a social message, had a similar look and feel of a few locations and had Aamir’s character portraying a revolutionary preacher. Aamir’s look and feel were also similar - sporting short hair, jeans and t-shirt look, his eyeballs popping up and down in the sockets and mischievous smile to go with it.
While Gajjani was different, I didn’t dig the movie much personally, which lead me to my question – do I prefer Aamir a certain way; and the answer is YES! His chocolate boy looks and mischievous smile, playing the young romantic at heart whether it’s with a girl or a cause with his perfect comic timing – that’s quintessential Aamir for me. These attributes were also there in Lagaan, which is why I liked it and not Mangal Pandey.

For me, Aamir is no different from some of the other actors I like today in specific roles. I don’t think he is a league ahead as is portrayed by the media and some. He has intentionally positioned himself apart to stand out from the clutter and to his credit it’s worked. Doing one movie a year and having a social message in it seems to be his style and that’s fine. He seems to have exploited the demand and supply equation well. His economics tell him that doing a single blockbuster movie a year can rake in the same moolah as doing multiple movies with average performances and at the same time not fatigue the audience with his consistent acting style. The fact that no other top actor has taken his approach yet makes him stand out even further. That I guess leads to his being so intrinsically involved in the success of the movie as well because a few flops means a few years lost and he will require a completely new positioning then.

I do believe if Aamir was to do multiple movies a year he wouldn’t draw the same admiration from the audience and infact might be worse off compared to some of his peers like SRK, Salman and Akshay that have still managed to stay up there despite their overdose at times.

That said, I respect Aamir for his marketing acumen and love his on screen performances, but in a certain mould only.

Arsenal beats Liverpool at Anfield. Game changer in this year’s EPL maybe?

I have to admit that last night’s result at the Anfield was a bit of a shocker for me. Not because I don’t think Arsenal have it in them but because they were without their start striker RVP and Liverpool had their duo in the line-up! Hats off to Arsenal for further plunging Liverpool into crisis having won only 3 of their last 15 games in all competitions.

The weekend result keep the excitement in this year’s EPL simmering with Man United letting up against Aston Villa even after the Toffees did them a favour by holding up at Stamford Bridge. It is interesting to see how with a few players traded over the transfer window last year has made the EPL extremely competitive.

Chelsea while seeming indomitable (and their squad remaining the same from the previous year has a lot to do with that) seem to be held to draws by unexpected teams.

Manchester United despite losing two of their star goal getters – Ronaldo and Tevez, still seem to be in the hunt from time to time. Only if they had seized the opportunity the Toffees presented them they would have been level on points with Chelsea as I write this.

Arsenal despite losing some key players in Adebayor and Toure (even with them in the squad they didn’t get a trophy last year for that matter) seem to be bubbling under the hood from time to time. They have kept a low profile this season as title contenders but seem to be raking in the points from time to time to remain in hunt for title. 5Th time lucky they could get! The question remains though whether the Anfield win will provide Arsenal the necessary ambition to do better in the new-year. Going by the last few years performances, the Gunners tend to slip up in the second half of the competition.

Liverpool despite their strong squad and unquestionable faith in their gaffer Rafa seem to heading only one way this season – down! All the efforts made over the last two years by some to convince fans that Liverpool have it them to win the Premiership seem to have been shattered. I wonder whether the trio of Gerrard, Torres and Rafa will be at the Anfield next summer if Liverpool doesn’t qualify for the Champions League.

While Chelsea remain clear favourties to win, I believe in surprises. I do believe the top three teams will need to exit a few tournaments (between FA, Carling, Champions League etc) to win the premiership this year. I don’t see a team doing the treble and the double would also surprise me!

I could be wrong but then again it’s not a prediction, just my perspective 