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  HINDI MOVIE RELEASES EXPECTED THIS MONTH
By SHEPHALI J. RELE



Sushmita Sen and Anuj Sawhney appear together in “Chingaari.”
“Chingaari”: Starring Sushmita Sen, Mithun Chakraborty, Anuj Sawhney; directed by Kalpana Lajmi; music by Aadesh Srivastava.

The trials and tribulations of women in Indian society have long been a central point in director Kalpana Lajmi’s films. She has directed “Ek Pal” with Shabana Azmi, “Darmiyaan” with Tabu and “Daman” with Raveena Tandon. Based on a short story by noted Assamese signer Bhupen Hazarika, “Chingaari” tackles the issues of illiteracy, religious double standards and the resulting exploitation of women. Set along the Bhutan-Assam border, this film is based on three characters. Sushmita Sen plays Basanti, a prostitute who falls in love with a young postman played by Anuj Sawhney but is not allowed to dream of a relationship with him. Mithun Chakraborty plays a village priest named Bhuvan Panda who misuses his powers and happens to fall in love with Basanti. Basanti revolts against her circumstances and this creates the spark that is “Chingaari.”



Dino Morea and Onjolee Nair join hands in “Holiday.”
“Holiday”: Starring Dino Morea, Onjolee Nair, Gulshan Grover, Nauheed Cyrusi, Anahita Uberoi; directed by Pooja Bhatt; music by Ranjeet Barot.

Reminiscent of the 80s American hit, “Dirty Dancing,” Holiday is a coming of age story of an ordinary young girl. Newcomer Onjolee Nair stars as Muskaan, a college student, who goes on a month long family vacation to Goa. With her are father Dr. Daksh Suri played by Gulshan Grover, mother and sister Samara. Muskaan's holiday is uneventful until she sees a mesmerizing dance performance at the hotel one night. Dino Morea plays trained dance performer, Dino who lives in Goa and leads a happy carefree life. Dino is the dance instructor at the holiday resort where Muskaan and her family are vacationing. Muskaan is fascinated by this unique and rebellious dance, and finds herself drawn to Dino’s free spirited lifestyle. Dino helps Muskaan realize confidence and self-esteem through dance. Morea reportedly trained in Latin American dance for eight months for this role.



Urmila Matondkar stars in “Banaras.”
“Banaras - A Mystic Love Story”: Starring Urmila Matondkar, Ashmit Patel, Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia, Raj Babbar; directed by Pankuj Parashar; music by Himesh Reshammiya.

This film deals with religion, family and love set in the historical town of Banares. Urmila Matondkar plays Swetambari, the bright daughter of rich Brahmin parents who studies at the local university. She falls in love with a university music teacher, Soham, played by Ashmit Patel who is an avid follower of Buddhism and his guru Babaji, played by Naseeruddin Shah. Because of caste differences their young love sparks outrage in the town causing a clash of society uprights. Swetambari’s powerful parents chose to support their daughter. Despite that, destiny forces her to make a difficult choice and leave her beloved home. She becomes a successful philosophy professor and, years later, is called back to Banaras by her dying father. Will the chaos resurface and destroy Swetambari’s life?



HINDI MOVIE RELEASES PREVIOUS MONTH
By SHEPHALI J. RELE



Aamir Khan plays DJ in “Rang De Basanti.”
“Rang De Basanti”: Starring Aamir Khan, Waheeda Rehman, Om Puri, Kirron Kher, Atul Kulkarni, Soha Ali Khan, Madhavan; directed by Rakeysh Mehra; music by A.R. Rehman.

If you thought Aamir Khan was featuring in another period drama, guess again. “Rang De Basanti” is a film about contemporary youth set in modern India. After reading the diary of her grandfather, who served in the British police in India during the freedom struggle, an English filmmaker named Sue arrives in India to make a film about Indian revolutionaries. She recruits students from Delhi University to act in her docu-drama. The group includes DJ, played by Aamir Khan, who chooses to stay in the college scene even though he graduated five years earlier. Kunal Kapur plays Aslam, a philosopher and guide to his friends. Karan is the son of a wealthy industrialist; Laxman is a fundamentalist of the bunch; Soha Ali Khan plays Sonia, the vivacious tomboy engaged to the dashing air pilot Ajay. The film shows 1930s India side by side with today’s India and reveals the change in attitude that overcomes the group as they see a country they haven’t acknowledged before. The makers say “Rang De Basanti” is a film about the awakening of a generation. It features a catchy soundtrack by A.R. Rehman.

“Shikhar”: Starring Ajay Devgun, Jawed Sheikh, Shahid Kapoor, Bipasha Basu, Amrita Rao; directed by John Mathew Matthan; music by Viju Shah.



Shahid Kapoor and Ajay Devgun star in “Shikhar.”
How far can greed take a man? Can nature ever win the battle with the bulldozer? Director Mathew Matthan explores the theme of man versus nature in his follow-up to the 1999 hit “Sarfarosh.” Ajay Devgun plays Gaurav Gupta (GG), a self-made man, who dreams big and lives life to the fullest. He uses money to realize his ambitions. Jawed Sheikh plays Guruji of Rishivan Ashram, who believes wealth must be used for the good of society. Caught between the two is Guruji’s son, Jaidev, played by Shahid Kapoor. Simple by nature, Jai respects his father’s philosophy but falls prey to GG’s trap and his dreams change. Bipasha Basu plays glamorous Natasha, she loves GG and is willing to do whatever he says. GG uses her to lure Jai into his world. Amrita Rao plays Jai’s childhood friend Madhavi, who tries to warn him but he refuses to listen. She must watch helplessly as Jai gets tangled in GG and Natasha’s deadly web.



Not To Be Missed: Khaas Baat picks the 12 best movies of 2005.
By Shephali J. Rele

Each of these films presented something special to the audience, whether it was sheer entertainment, unique storytelling, inspiring performances or a combination of these qualities along with memorable music. (listed alphabetically)

“Black”

“Bunty aur Babli”

“Dus”

“Hazaaron Kwaishein Aisi”

“Iqbal”

“Morning Raga”

“My Brother Nikhil”

“My Wife’s Murder”

“Page 3”

“Paheli”

“Parineeta”

“Sarkar”



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