News

Dhanak

Starring Hetal Gadda, Krish Chabria,

Written & Directed by Nagesh Kukunoor

With all attention on the hyper-controversial drugged drama this week, this silent killer of a gem sneaks up on us, with the minimum of fanfare and maximum impact.

Dhanak is a very rare product of a breed of cinema where simplicity and intelligence come together in an unlikely marriage of excellence. The main characters are a bright little blind boy Chotu who is a brat like his idol Salman Khan, and a whiner and a drama king playing the blind card when it suits him, and his sister Pari, wiser beyond her years, endlessly exasperated by her kid-brother’s antics but committed to being his support and anchor as they set off to meet, hold your breath, Shah Rukh Khan who is committed to restoring his eyesight.

The journey is interspersed with an endearing array of encounters with characters...

Nagesh Kukunoor’s Dhanak is a heartwarming story of the unconditional love between two siblings, who are traveling the deserts of Rajasthan to fulfill their fandom dream of meeting Shah Rukh Khan. The movie trailer recently crossed 1 million views on YouTube channel and the first song was a huge hit.

We now have a brand new song from the film titled ‘Jeene Se Bhi Zyada’. Nagesh Kukunoor is known for including heartfelt music in his movies and ‘Jeene Se Bhi Zyada’ is no exception, it is a soulful anthem of optimism and hope!

Sung by Shivam Pathak and composed by Tapas Relia with lyrics by Manoj Yadav, this chirpy and happy number gives out a very positive message about not giving up in life and chasing your dreams, reflecting the core theme of Dhanak. Nagesh Kukunoor ability to beautifully capture the bond between Chotu and Pari reflects in the official...

Filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor has brought us another soul-stirring rendition of the popular Sufi song ‘Dum-a-Dum Mast Qalandar’ in his upcoming film ‘Dhanak’. The ever-green soulful number has been picturised on the eight-year visually-impaired old Chotu, who is travelling across the Rajasthan desert with his elder sister Pari to meet Shahrukh Khan, in the hope that the superstar will help him get his eyesight back.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCzPm0Ww4cc

Kukunoor has been extremely involved in all aspects of the film, including the music, and reveals that the song is his personal favourite. “In India, we are very proud of this classic melody that has always had a universal appeal over the years, and that comes across in the film as well.” Composed by Tapas Relia, the song has been sung by powerhouse performer Devu Khan, the young protégé of Indian Idol runner-up Swaroop Khan, from the folk...

Nagesh Kukunoor, who has been keeping a low profile of late, will now be seen doing what he is best at - making 'offbeat' films. His latest film, which has been tentatively titled Music Men, will feature five real life musicians. The five musicians are Shankar Mahadevan, Papon, Sunidhi Chauhan, Salim Merchant and Sivamani. The film's plot revolves around five musicians who are losers in life, and who come together to form a band with a sole aim to prove that music never dies. Speaking about the film, Nagesh Kukunoor said that he wanted to make a film about music with musicians whom he respects a lot. And when he bounced the idea to Shankar Mahadevan around a year back, Shankar got so excited that he called the renowned percussionist Sivamani and got him on board. On the other hand, while it was relatively easy to get Salim and Papon on board,...

New Delhi, April 8: The sounds of new voices and composers are being heard in the Hindi film industry more than ever before, but tackling filmmakers' rush for "established" names as well as dodging the chance of getting stereotyped is a challenge that many face, says a Bollywood music director.

His association with Bollywood dates back to the early 2000s, but Tapas Relia has come to understand that "you can be a decade old in the industry with 15 small films under you, and still go unnoticed by the big banners".

"The industry today has a lot of independent producers/directors who are always on the lookout for fresh talent,.

Lakshmi, written and directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, Produced by Satish Kaushik, Elahe Hiptoola, Jayantilal Gada and Nagesh Kukunoor, under the banner of Pen films, Uv News Media & Communication Limited, Sic productions and A Kukunoor Movies Production is slated for 21st March 2014 release.

Lakshmi starring Monali Thakur, Shefali Shah, Ram Kapoor, Nagesh Kukunoor, Satish Kaushik, Flora Saini, Vibha Chibber and Gulfam Khan is a true story of heroism and untold courage, a story of a child whose spirit could not be broken. A hero in a land filled with cowards, whose courage and determination finally triumphs over evil. The film has also won Audience award at Palm Springs International Film Festival.

The other credits on the film include Cinematographer – Chirantan Das, Editor – Sanjeeb Datta, Art director – Haris Umar Khan, Costume – Aparna Shah, Sound designer – Vipin Bhati, Lyrics – Manoj Yadav and Music & Background score – Tapas Relia.

Lakshmi to release on 21st March...

New Delhi, Jan 23: For a film as sensitive and serious as "Lakshmi", where the protagonist is a minor violently forced into sex trade, "cinematic" songs, which were "not grand" were needed, says composer Tapas Relia, who was asked by filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor not to worry about the album's commercial viability.

"The very first thing that Nagesh told me was that the songs need to express the emotions of the film, vulnerable when needed and with power when the script demands. The songs needed to be organically attuned to the emotions of the protagonist, a minor violently forced into sex trade," Relia recalled.

"I was given.

Music can make an average ad great. So why, Robin Hicks asks, is music the last thing a creative thinks about when writing an ad?

My favourite TV ad of the year so far is the Let Yourself Go spot for Kangaroo Island.

When it didn’t win Mumbrella’s Ad of the Month for March (it came third) I felt aggrieved for the agency that made it. But less so a week later when it emerged that the agency had paid celebrities to tweet nice things about its work.

Let Yourself Go is a stunning spot with lots of pretty images. But it would probably have had a similar effect on me if I’d watched a blank screen for 60 seconds.

John Baker of Adelaide ad agency Kwp!, which made the ad, told me that the music (Rise by Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder) “is 50% of the communication”. For me,...

After Aashayein, which disappeared rather quickly, Nagesh Kukunoor is back with his latest offering Mod, starring Ayesha Takia (Wanted and Dor) and VJ turned actor Ranvijay Singh.

The music of Mod has been composed by Tapas Relia (Hanuman) while Mir Ali Husain has penned the lyrics. It features the vocal talents of Shreya Ghosal (Bahara – I Hate Luv Storys), Shankar Mahadevan (Desi Girls – Dostana), Vijay Prakash (Fikrana – Blue) and Shivam Pathak (Indian Idol 5).

Mod turns to audiences 14 October 2011.

The album commences begins with Tu Hi Tu, a romantic duet between Shreya and Shivam Pathak. It is a melodious, evenly paced contemporary number sung to perfection by young Shivam, whose vocals are a nice blend between Javed Ali and Mohit Chauhan. He sings with Shreya who is many years his senior but he shows no signs of this. Shreya has previously excelled in numbers such as these and Tu Hi Tu is no exception.