Khoya Khoya Chand

Khoya Khoya Chand - Its an attempted journey into the film world of 60s when writing was an important aspect of films and many writers became directors of their movies. The ambiance of the 60's film industry is captured rightly to some extent as its all mostly indoors and vintage cars. But the film does not impress and fails to make an impact. The viewer does not relate to the happenings and cannot feel anything for the characters. The story has its plots pointing towards the life of Guru Dutt & Gulzar. The script till the interval seems like pieces joined together. It only gets its grip after the interval but till then the audiences have lost hopes. Its as if we are watching a well made documentary on how the films were made in the 60s and how the artists related in their personal lives. After seeing the flick one is forced to believe that the casting couch existed in the film industry long time back too and everybody had illegitimate relations around them. Performances wise Soha Lai Khan tries her best which shows from her effort but she look too young and immature to play the role. Her act is satisfactory but she lacks the depth demanded by the script. Shiny Ahuja is impressive but gets loud at some places. The best act comes from Saurabh Shukla as the punjabi producer and he looks superb and very enjoyable. The music is good but doesn't have any memorable song. Only the title song scores the highest among the all.

Overall its an average movie with insights on the Indian Film Making System. But surely much more was expected from Sudhir Mishra who gave us "Hazaron Khwaishen Aisee" & "Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin"

Ratings : 2 Stars (Go for it if you want to take a look how films were made in the 60's)

It is difficult to fathom the minds of Indian directors - what drives them to create period movies with stories that are still relevant in 21st century. Whether it is Vidhu Chopra's "1942 - A Love Story" or Sudhir Mishra's "Khoya Khoya Chand". With too much focus on recreating the past, the story takes a back seat and as a result, the movie fails to impress.

Time to time, Bollywood keeps making movies about itself - mainly the struggle for new comers and its dirty ongoings, right from Guru Dutt's "Kaagaz Ke Phool" to Zoya Akhtar's "Luck By Chance" (Best among the crop being Hrishikesh Mukherjee's "Guddi"). Sudhir Mishra takes one step further - he makes a movie about 1950's Bollywood. He tries to cram everything into a story - new comer struggle, casting couch, art v/s mainstream cinema, etc., etc. But while putting so much efforts to recreate that "magical era", the story, the dialogues and the character development takes a back seat. The result is just a movie that seems to be going nowhere.

The movie centres around Nikhat, an actress, played by Soha Ali and Zafar, a script writer/novelist/director/producer played by Shiny Ahuja. The movie centres around the ups and downs in their relationship, and between other characters along a time period. However, crammed with corny dialogues, annoying stereotype characters and clichéd situations, the movie drags right from the start. After a while, you just don't care what happens to the characters. Inconsistencies and loopholes are galore. Since the main characters have a Muslim background, it is customary to speak "khalis Urdu" and observe that "tehzeeb". However after few scenes, all that mannerism seems to disappear in thin air. The height of ridiculousness comes when to show her alcoholism, the director shows Soha Ali in a car parked on Bombay street side and Soha enjoying a glass of hooch.

The character of Shiny is supposed to be some kind of deep brooding, which he plays to an annoying extreme. It reminds me of similar character played by Akshay Khanna in "Dil Chahta hai". But speaking in a slow baritone voice doesn't make you an intellectual, it just makes you look a phony.

This movie somehow reminds me of Scorsese's "The Aviator". In "Aviator" however, with emphasis on recreating past, the director did not lose focus on the basic element for a good movie - a strong solid storyline. With "Khoya Khoya Chand" however, no such hope exists,sadly. The only positive aspect that I did not spend any money to watch this drivel, a simple walk to public library is all the effort that I put in watching this movie. I still gave 4 starts to the movie, as there are still movies that are worse than this and are still popular and made big monies at box office.

Expectations that were never met - that is the sad story of Khoya Khoya Chand. Who would think that the man who gave us the mesmerizing Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi would now try to foist this film on us? This is a story of a greedy grabbing star actor, Rajat Kapoor, playing yet again an oily villainous type, the vulnerable and abused actress, Soha Ali Khan playing Nikhat, the dreamy idealistic poet, Shiny Ahuja playing the novelist/script writer. There are casting couches, there is crude (sorry, blunt) language, there is simulated sex with lots of oohing and aahing while clothes do not come off, and there are interminable scenes of films being shot. But somewhere along the line the filmmakers lose the plot and forget that in this collage of events they are also obligated to have a thread of a story. There is the thinnest of tales and unengaging at that.

The movie is visually stunning, an excellent period piece, also interesting for how it hints at real life stories like Guru Dutt and Waheeda and those countless women who were sent to earn a living in the biz at a very young age. The direction is sub-par, in the multitude of bodies milling about the key elements are never really isolated well enough, and the leads are quite wooden most of the time. Rajat Kapoor is great, as is Vinay Pathak. Sonia is quite good too. But Soha and Shiny disappoint hugely. In the hands of a more experienced pair of actors this could have risen to greater heights. As is, this is no Kagaz Ke Phool, but rather Kahan Hai Phool.

The music is mediocre (except the title number) and the sound is one of the most annoying parts of the film. The director wanted realism in the form of the hustle and bustle of a real set, but what we get is a background of cacophony in every scene, so much so that it is hard to hear what is going on. The story moves in fits and starts. The leading lady suddenly develops a hole in her heart, and the director has to go on blogs to tell us that the final shot is her orgasm! What the fish? Then we are told the rest of the tale in a written narrative - as if we cared by then what happened to this tepid tale.

The title "Khoya Khoya Chand" is a song which was sung in a 1950's movie "Kaala Bazaar" by the late Mohd Rafi for Dev Anand. This is an indication that this movie, by Sudhir Mishra is based during that era - 1950's to 1960's. In fact, in a recent interview, he said that this film was his way of paying a tribute to those in that era.

Nikhat, daughter of a well known actress, Sharda, is keen to join the movie industry and does so by learning to dance and catches the eye of the top actor Prem Kumar with whom she falls in love with. She later finds out that he is getting married to someone else, even though he has proclaimed his love for her. This is when script writer Zaffar liberates her from the actor's stranglehold but then events take another turn for Nikhat and she's left alone again.

Soha Ali Khan, sister of Saif Ali Khan and daughter of the legendary actress, who herself was a excellent actress, Sharmila Tagore and also daughter of the famous Cricketing legend, the Nawab of Pataudi, has given an excellent performance in this movie. She, also, looks gorgeous. The other cast include Shiny Ahuja, who has also performed well, Rajat Kapoor,Sushmita Mukherjee and Vinay Pathak. The music director, Shantanu Moitra, has set a very good example of recreating the music style of the 1950's and the 1960's and not to mention the jazz genre in it, which makes the songs worthwhile listening to. Finally, the director, Sudhir Mishra, no doubt has created and directed a speciality movie by recreating the 1950's and 1960's era for the screen. Also what has made this movie interesting are the songs that are being played in the background - many of which were, and still are, most memorable tunes from that era. Soha Ali Khan, recently said that her mother helped her with the dressing for the movie. This is not surprising because Sharmila Tagore was a fashion icon at the time as well being a excellent actress of the 1960's. There were rumours that this movie was based on the romance between Waheeda Rehman and the late Guru Dutt,who was married to the singer, Geeta Dutt and who directed movies such as the classical "Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam" and "Pyasa". But the director, in no certain words, has denied this. However, there may be certain parts that some viewers, and especially those of the elder generation, may consider the rumour to be true.

Conclusion: Those who like to watch movies from the 1950's and 1960's - a worthwhile movie to watch and enjoy. But those who do not like such movies, or are not very keen on such genres, may not find it worthwhile.

Sudhir Mishra's 'Khoya Khoya Chand' is his tribute to the classic Hindifilms of the 1950s-1960s which is considered the golden era of Hindi cinema. It takes at the behind the scenes looks in the lives of actors, writers and filmmakers. It's not a voyeuristic satire of any sort and though one might notice the references from the lives of Guru Dutt, Waheeda Rehman, Dev Anand, Madhubala, Meena Kumari and even Hollywood stars like Dorothy Dandridge and Marilyn Monroe. The characters themselves are not based on any specific person. The title is derived from a famous song (of the same title) from the 50's film 'Kaala Bazaar'.

I liked Mishra's attention to detail both as writer and director. The costumes, props, colourful sets, mannerisms of the actors, choreography, the popular classic songs playing in the background and hummed by the actors, contribute very well. The art direction is just superb. Shantanu Moitra, recreates the whimsical jazz style of the 1950's and the 1960's which add to the atmosphere. Cinematography is solid, especially the long shots.

The characters are very well written. Even the supporting characters have a strong presence with little screen time (of course credit goes to the actors as well). Even though the film moves at a slightly slower pace than one prefers, there are several standout moments such as the exchange of glimpse between Nikhat and Ratanbala when Prem Kumar's engagement is announced. Nikhat catching Zaffar red handed with Ratanbala, the bond between Shyamol and Nikhat after Zafar's departure....and many more.

Soha Ali Khan is a bit inconsistent in the beginning but she embraces the character as the film proceeds. Perhaps a more experienced actress would have been more suitable for the role. Nonetheless, this is her best performance after 'Antarmahal'. Shiny Ahuja is brilliant as the tormented Zafar. Rajat Kapoor is a scene stealer. Ditto Sonia Jehan who is wicked, seductive and vulnerable as the sensual Ratanbala. Vinay Pathak is sublime. Sushmita Mukherjee and Saurabh Shukla provide some comic relief.

'Khoya Khoya Chand' was a visual treat for me and seeing current actors in this period piece made me feel as though I too had moved back in time and was watching a movie sometime in the 1960s. It might not be a film that adhere's to everyone's taste but it is a wonderful film to watch.