Yuva

The problem with the Hindi Film Industry has been low life Johnny-come-lately directors and actors who has taken over the Industry with the help of the Media pied piper morons and they have been put on the pedestal and worshiped as if we need these morons. Here comes Mani Ratnam (Ram Gopal Varma, Vikaram Bhatt,etc) who know talent when they see one (Esha Deol and exception) and cast them irrespective of the the Box office predictions. This is one tightly packaged and past paced movie with some great dialog, acting and direction. Abishek performance should make his papa proud. This kid has come a long way and he is even beginning to look like his old man. Next comes Rani, Vivek. Of course the Veteran Om Puri, is a delight to watch no matter what he does. Esha Deol cannot act-period. Ratnam or a Varma cannot extract any acting from this lasse-it is like trying to get juice out of a scotch tape. The stories run parallel and concurrently which adds a mystery like quality to the narration and one of the staple of a good cinema-the dialog is superb. The action scenes are very authentic and not the cheap variety seen in the decadent and discrepit Sharukh Khan and Salman Khan films. Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma have elevated the Hindi Cinema to the level that an Indian should be proud of, in fact this film sounds like a fast version of a Satyajit Ray film and that is a compliment for a filmmaker.

To be honest, I was a bit let down when I read the reviews on the net from all the possible sites on net. I am great admirer of Mani Rathnam and his style, which is unique by itself - a great master in story-telling. With great reluctance I mustered up my courage to watch the movie - at least for Mani Rathnam's sake (and A R Rahman's songs). All the negative reviews in a way did a good thing - it lowered my expectations. And I did like the movie.

For reason unknown, looks like all the movie critics have joined hands and decided to have a go at Yuva. A lot has been criticised about the movie and to such an extent that Mani had to call for a press conference to ward off the negative publicity the movie was attracting owing to the film critics. From the promos and the songs, the audience were not expecting a movie on politics. Guess that added fuel to the fire.

The story is good - conveys a social message to the youth and its place in the society. Story telling format is quite intelligent - I mean in three independent chapters you will see bits and pieces of other chapters and you say "oh.... it makes sense and explains that bit from earlier chapter".

Abhishek-Rani track steal the show. Great performance from the two.

Vivek-Kareena track is sweet. Okay its not Karan Johar, Sooraj Barjatya or Ghai or Rai types but sensible. We need more of these. Vivek-Anant Nag relationship is portrayed well. Ajay-Eesha track is okay. Eesha should join acting classes.

Om Puri - first class. Vijay Raaz - should have been given more scope.

Its the fault of Indian audience as well who haven't matured yet and seek the same thrash every time. It strongly denotes that every Bollywood film should adhere to the formula or else face the wrath. I mean - seriously how many people have watched 3-Deewarien and Maqbool. I am tired of the positive and 5-star reviews given to movies of Johar's, Barjatya's, Chopra's, Ghai's and Dhawan's for their same old formula stuff.

Believe me folks, as other reviews state here, I reiterate - forget the critics reviews, watch the movie with a open mind and you will not be disappointed.

Yuva is a great comeback for Maniratnam as a Hindi film director after the unsuccessful Dil Se. His earlier regional language films like Velu Nayakan, Anjali, Roja, Bombay, Iruvar and many more have been highly successful all over India. Yuva is a thrilling story of three young guns of Calcutta whose stories get connected by a road mishap. The film is based upon college. Ajay Devgan (two time National Award winner) has given a fantastic performance as a college leader along with Vivek Oberoi. The actors are aptly casted and the film is technically very good. Cinematography is just out of this world. But the limelight is stolen by Abhishek Bachchan who has given the performance of a lifetime. His role of a street-side malefactor will surely win him awards. HATS OFF TO YUVA & MANIRATNAM!!!

Anurag Kashyap did a awesome job. Dialogue were tremendous. I would say Abhishek bachchan's best acting. Ajay is awesome in high performance. All female actress we're good.

Sonu sood did a good job.

The main reasons to watch this film are Mani Ratnam, A.R.Rahman, and Abishek Bachan.

There is not much of a story but the screenplay is awesome. The way Mani shows the three men from different walks of life meet on a bridge three times and their flashbacks is refreshingly new.

I think it should have been publicized well before they released this film. It deserved a hit.

I have also seen the Telugu version, in which Madhavan's performance is outstanding.

All in all, a new cinematic experience.