Corporate

The cut-throat corporate wars, business tactics, strategies, sleazy deals, political paybacks, eroded business values, the soft-drink scandal.... you name it Corporate has it all... with a touch of realism.

Flip open a copy of The Economic Times, the headlines forms the backbone of the movie. In an attempt to incorporate all of them (which require background and screen time), the movie as whole does not get it right.

The snippets/ humour predominant in Page-3 are missing in Corporate.

Raj Babbar is perfect as Marwah, typical business dynasty. Its good to see Navni Parihar after a long time. The superstitious beliefs of Dharmesh Marwah are true-to-life.

Rajat Kapoor is a perfect cast for the Harvard graduate raring to be the nexgen entrepreneur.

Lillete Dubey as the media bookie is perfectly cast.

Minisha Lamba's role got chopped at the editing table big time.

Sandeep Mehta does the leachy Pervez with utmost perfection that you will hate the very sight of him.

Kay Kay Menon – this guy is a powerhouse of talent and no two ways about it. Very effective.

And finally Bipasha – in business suits she gets into the character of no nonsense Nishi. She portrays the softer side of the character equally well.

Thanks to real-life celebrity for this appearances in the movie.

Finally the end is similar to Chandni Bar – bit depressing, true-to-life.... reinforcing the fact that might is right.

After watching director Madhur Bhandharkar's Chandni Bar and Page 3, this was definitely a highly anticipated film by critics and fans alike. This time he was getting his hands dirty in the big bad world of corporate after tackling the dark world of bar dancers and celebrity-hood. The fact that this is the third installment of his trilogy, I was sure he will be dealing into the realistic topic of corporate firms and yet there was very little to predict or expect. The movie starts off on a nice solemn note as we are introduced into the rivalry of the 2 big enterprises. Do not expect any big twist or turns in the story, but the story just moves Madhur way. Performances by Bipasha and Kay Kay are on top note. Bipasha is impressive as hard-worker who will do anything to get her work done, and Kay Kay is very realistic. Short comedy and jokes scenes in between do not work. If he was trying to pull a Ram Gopal Varma, Madhur still needs to master the skill of developing character roles, however his effort is well appreciated and managed to keep me glued on my seat, regardless of the low quality VCD. Relating to the first 2 films, this film to does not end on a happy note... well just goes to say life goes on!!

I saw corporate on DVD one afternoon expecting to fast forward through most of it but I was pleasantly surprised as I hardly touched the remote. (I did use it to get fast forward through the songs though)

The actors were pretty good especially Rajat Kapoor who gave an excellent performance showing all the nuances of his character. Most actors even Shahrukh would have gone overboard playing the corporate leader but not Rajat. The ensemble cast all performed well underplaying their roles which is not usually a Bollywood preference with their larger than life characters. Bipasha, Raj Babbar and the actor playing the politician were quite good.

Songs were not really required, I preferred it when they were in the background.

Although i am sure this movie will not do well at the Box office but I found it intelligent and well made so do watch it.

While most people would go in with extraordinary expectations for Madhur Bhandarkar's follow-up to the National Award winner "Page 3," I decided to leave the expectations at home and watch the film as a stand-alone. Corporate follows the life of Nishigandha Dasgupta(Bipasha Basu) as a fast rising executive caught in a power struggle between two corporate giants.

The film is definitely worth one watch, and sadly worth only that. The Pros of the film include it's boldness and cynical humor. The sets and costumes are well designed and dialogues are crisp. The plot is a good power struggle with everyone trying to come out on top. Showing the fact that one individual can't beat the system is one of Bhandarkar's strengths. Bhandarkar craftily shows how each character manipulates and uses the others to his/her advantage. The helplessness and selfishness of each character is also well scripted.

As far as the acting goes, Bipasha Basu, Rajat Kapoor, Raj Babbar give lukewarm performances, and the underrated Kay Kay Menon outshines all by playing the character of a weak individual to perfection. Other subtle yet praise-worthy performances include that of Lilette Dubey and Harsh Chhaya.

Now the cons: Unfortunately most of who go to watch "Corporate" have already seen "Page 3." therefore, with identical plots of everyone out to stab each other in the back, Corporate is a poor cousin of Page 3. Another instance where Bhandarkar fails is taking liberties with the viewers willful suspension of disbelief. He has over simplified the business/political world to the point that it seems that a handful people are running the economy and the country. Overcasting and incomplete character sketches are also a problem (What Samir Dattani and Minisha Lamba were doing in the film I really wonder: They had all of 10 minutes screen time - combined! and with nothing to add to the plot)

Overall, If you see the film without watching Page 3, and letting go of your reality check, it is a lot more enjoyable. Otherwise exposing the same social evils that "Page 3" did, Corporate beats the same dead horse.

I found this movie to very entertaining. It could have been directed in the Ram Gopal Varma manner with nothing to disrupt the flow of the plot. Too bad that Bollywood fans only really reward masala movies. It dissuades people with good stories from relying solely on them. This was a serious role for Bipasha so they couldn't have doing her usual naach routine. But the main thread of the story, of the trench warfare between large corporations was gripping and well-presented. I think the fallout where assistants took the fall for policies they fought is quite realistic. Only in Japan do you ever seem to see the persons ultimately responsible taking their responsibility. Elsewhere the rationale seems to be "I don't have to, therefore I won't". The script didn't cop out on that point which earned it some respect.

I think this is the first meaty role I've ever seen Rajat Kapoor do, and he did it well. Bipasha's role was atypical, and she fit into it way better than I had any right to expect. Same with Kay Kay. I've worked for many decades in corporations, and the whole thing rang true to me.

I give it four out of five stars.