Fashion

Madhur Bhandarkar is known for his seemingly realistic, dramatic, often shocking and often women-oriented films. He always takes a medium and tries to expose the reality behind it on film. This time he chose to depict the world of fashion in a film called... well, Fashion. And yes, it's a partly interesting film that might work for the audience. However, it has one main problem: It is stereotypical and overly pessimistic to be called realistic, and in that aspect falls flat. I don't say Bhandarkar's previous works were any different or were particularly optimistic as his films generally present the dark side of his subjects, but this one goes one step down. We learn from the film that everything, sorry, EVERYTHING is bad in the world of Fashion - it is a terrible world of sex (not that it's bad, but this movie is all about infidelity and promiscuity), alcohol, drugs, grief and loneliness. There's nothing good about it - and it is clearly a wrong presentation and far from reality. If you want to make an issue-based film, you should present both sides, and this is not done here. It is also mostly stereotypical in its general portrayal of gay men, which is amusingly exaggerated. Above all, Priyanka's character in the first portions of the film is annoying. She is not presented as an innocent girl, she is presented as a complete, ignorant idiot which is odd for someone who wants to enter the world of fashion and says she wants to be a "supermodel". I don't think a girl who wants to be a supermodel can be that shy. Some other flaws include the sudden way the director shows the girl smoking and drinking without any prior indication to it. This transformation was far too quick to be believable.

Anyway, the film is well executed from the technical point of view. Well, relatively. It's quite well shot, but even technically, there are huge faults, the biggest of them all being the terrible sound and the poor dubbing. Other than the problems mentioned above, however, the film moves at a steady pace. The script is decent, and although the dialogue is sometimes quite cliched, the drama is not completely overdone. At the end of it all, the ending provides a well-deserved sigh of relief, although it's not completely positive. That said, visually it is quite impressive, the music is outstanding ("Maar Jaawan" and "Kuch Khaas Hai" are two of my favourite Hindi songs in recent times), the costume design seems appropriate, the actors are well-cast, and the entire concept of following one model's way to the top, her rise and her fall, is interesting. Priyanka Chopra is impressive. One of her best, though considering her body of work it does not really mean much as of now. She acts with aplomb and looks very attractive which is very important in this kind of roles, and even does well emotionally although far from perfect. The real winner, the real show-stealer, however, is Kangana Ranaut who delivers a knock-out performance. Her confidence, hysterics, good looks, arrogance and confusion are superbly acted. This is not the first time she plays damsels in distress, but she is just too brilliant at it, so I salute it. 'Fashion' may show only one side throughout and may be a bit disturbing at some points, but towards the end it shows a brighter, more optimistic side, which was missing during the entire show and is reasonably worth the wait. Prepare yourself for an entertaining flick about a girl who tries to make her dream come true, but don't expect to see a fair representation or even a remotely correct depiction of the fashion world.

With 'Fashion' Bhandarkar, quite obviously, takes us to the world of fashion. The storytelling falls on the same line as his previous films like 'Corporate', 'Page 3' and 'Chandni Bar'. In a way this is a strength and weakness. The good thing about it is that it shows a darker side of the fashion industry, though Bhandarkar does not go as extreme like he did in 'Page 3'.

The problem with his portrayal is that there is no good side. The fashion industry is portrayed as hell. Clearly it couldn't be that bad for every model. I'm not saying that Bhandarkar needs to balance both the good and the bad in his film (as his focus is on the negative) but a glimpse of the positive would have been interesting. Bhandarkar's own 'Satta' is an example (and I believe it is his best film to date).

What is it that attracts people about becoming a part of the fashion industry? Is it just the glitter and glamour? What is it that attracts Meghna to become a supermodel? These are things I would have liked to see in the film but Bhandarkar pretty much follows the 'small-town girl enters hell' routine. This was also the same problem with 'Page 3' (where all the rich and wealthy are portrayed as bad), 'Corporate' (ditto) and 'Chandni Bar' (society is bad). What Bhandarkar does is simply throw the negative in the audience's face and let the 'heroine' suffer.

Moreover, Bhandarkar infuses some deja-vu and clichéd plots such as Meghna getting pregnant (a la Tara Sharma in 'Page 3'). The homosexual characters are stereotypically portrayed (with the exception of Samir Soni's character). Perhaps a more satirical approach could have made this a better film. Where editing is concerned, there are too many walk-on-the ramp scenes. Alright so it's a movie about fashion so that is expected but overdoing commercial isn't necessary (though it is not as bad as 'The Devil Wears Prada') Yet, 'Fashion' isn't all that bad. It does make one aware of the kind of darkness that taints the industry. The storytelling is compelling in parts as I liked the idea of showing the rise of one model leading to another's fall from grace.

The performances are good. It's been a long while since Priyanka Chopra's been in a role of substance and she does a good job of carrying the film. Mughda Godse makes a confident debut and definitely does a fine job. Kangana Ranaut is a little too loud and is clearly getting typecast as the damsel in distress. Samir Soni too does a fine job and Ashwin Mushran performs adequate as Meghna's supporter. Kitu Gidwani and Arjan Bajwa make their presence felt and Arbaaz Khan is sufficient.

Overall, 'Fashion' is certainly no bad watch. I like that Bhandarkar attempts different kinds of films and the risky subject matters that scare away other filmmakers. There may be a little pretension and one-sidedness but in the end it's the story of an individual trying to make it and then losing herself in an albeit exaggerated biased ruthless bad world.

Madhur Bhandarkar is known for revealing the stark truths of various facets of the Indian society. And this definitely doesn't change with Fashion as well. A well told story of a small town girl with big aspirations, who loses herself to the devouring fashion industry only to re discover herself at the end of it all. Your routine run of the mill story? Not quite. Madhur has picked up important events in India's fashion industry (wardrobe malfunction, the demented model found in the markets etc.) and shown what all models go through. The identities of various designers, how the industry REALLY works and how a fashion career is to be perceived are very well told. The music is awesome, and the ramp scenes are truly genius.

The downside? the movie is too long, could be cut short by half an hour at least. Priyanka Chopra doesn't always look as glamorous as she should, but Kangana Ranaut justifies her role completely and pulls of a good show. All in all, definitely not to miss, what with the lean bollywood season going on, fashion is definitely a'show stopper'

Bollywood movie industry has started making realistic films. This movie explores the world of fashion and all those who wish to be model won't get inspired after watching this film. "In the world of fashion you have to compromise more than just your morals." Models here are alcoholics and drug addicts.

Meghna Mathur (Priyanka Chopra) is a small town middle class girl who wants to be a model, especially after winning a beauty contest. After many procedures she becomes one and many problems starts to occur.

Movie is directed well with lots of effort from the cast and the crew. Costumes are all nice showing the present day fashion. Priyanka Chopra surprisingly delivered a good performance. She has taken a lot of effort for role. Kangna Ranaut's role was more challenging and she pulled it off easily. The newcomer Mugda Godse also did her part well.

The songs are good and the background score is excellent. The title music of fashion is stupendous. Overall it is a good movie especially towards the end. The last one hour is the best in this film.

7/10

I hate when a good story line is stretched out to a point where it starts feeling painful. Sadly, Fashion is one of those films. It starts out well, absorbs you for one and a half hour , but after that the story gets far too complicated and loses it's charm.

Madhur Bhandarkar films have a lot of sadness attached to it. This one starts on a positive note but when the real Madhur Bhandarkar wakes up, it becomes a true sadist film. Meghna's life becomes more and more sad with each passing minute. I know it's about exploring the dark sides of modeling industry, but there was too much of sadness here. There was a comeback part as well, though.

I would have loved it if it ended under 2 hours and there was no need of dragging it to three more quarters.