Devane

I don't think Aaja Nachle was meant to be a groundbreaking movie with the coolest screenplay. On a whole its even somewhat uninspired and not entirely original but its a good movie nonetheless. In the context of Bollywood however, it's actually is pretty original. Which was the last big-scale female-fronted Bollywood movie there was? Frankly, I can't think of anything in the past two decades. Nothing from of the large scale, Yash Raj fame.

To the critics who think this movie wasn't even worth a watch, I think you've got the point wrong. Well sure it is a bit too polished- a bit too commercial and "safe" but what choice do the producers have? I don't think the Indian film industry is ready for something more experimental and adventurous. There had to be some trade off.

Even then, some of that commercialised coat melted with Madhuri's charm. Yes, I think Madhuri played her "magic" well in this movie. She sunk her teeth into the role and exuberanted her charm so well, I think she alone added a lot more colour to the movie. She almost overshadows the second and third lead in the film- Konkona Sen and Kunal Kamar. Both of them played their roles well and did a commendable job at that.

To sum it up, I think most critics of this movie expected too much from the comeback of the lady who's been hailed as Bollywood's greatest actress. As it is, she shone brightly in a movie that's decent. Its storyline may be somewhat predictable from the onset but its still an untapped genre in Bollywood.

I'd say, sit back, relax, don't think too much and watch it for what its worth.

I'd give it 7.5/10

Here's a movie that was directed not quite in the typical Bollywood fashion. Rajkumar Santhoshi quite blatantly tried to give it more of a Hollywood feel (perhaps with the exception of the few random song sequences).

Like a previous user commented, the storyline isn't totally airtight but that's just a minor flaw.

Pukar presented quite well a story of how a naive woman went too far with getting the man she loves. She lived in her happy little world were she thought she'd be marrying him someday but she gets crushed when she realised he's in love with another woman, albeit a top-line model. Politics sets in when some high profile criminals bank in on her love for him. She unrealisingly sets him up...

Madhuri sinks her teeth into her role! She was nominated for Best Actress at the Filmfare awards 01 for her role here and you'll see why after you watch it. The movie is a little long and gets a bit draggy in the second half but Madhuri truly captives here, in a character that is naively possessive but whole-heartedly loving. She shinned throughout this movie.

To sum it up, Pukar could have been a mind-blowing romantic thriller, but it falls a little short. Still, its definitely worth watching. Rent it at least

Firstly, an assumption is made in this film on the role of woman. Nothing surprising, its very Indian culture really. Its probably argued to be functional but for women to strive to be mothers and wives to their husbands all their life isn't something I agree with. Anyway, that was the assumption made here and from there... its taken well.

Swati is a story of a girl and her mother who are in a big problem. Theirs is a family that isn't looked upon well in the society they live in. Its not like it's their fault but that society doesn't care less. Its ruthless but Swati is determined to go all out, she stands up for what she believes in and kicks down any barrier that comes in her way. She's determined to stop all the hypocrisy, prejudices and lies that engulf her and her mother's happiness But things weren't so simple. The story takes a big (and sad) twist.

I was only attracted to this story because of Madhuri Dixit. I never liked Bollywood except her. Its strange. Madhuri plays Swati's friend in the movie but their relationship eventually melts into something closer. Madhuri was great here. Who'd have thought that this woman would eventually become the industry's (arguably) greatest? She shone in this movie. This being one of the earlier movies she did, she wasn't quite as powerful as she was in a movie like Devdas but she was still really good and brought a lot of life and color to the girl she was playing. An otherwise 1-dimensional and shallow character. And god she was skinny in this movie! She was so young and skinny. A startling contrast to her 11 years later in Dil To Pagal Hai (= The lead actress was stunning though. Her piercing eyes are piercing, almost making her look like a goddess of sorts. She's a strong person, rational and with a great love for her Mother. Even without the good storyline I daresay Swati's character alone was so well played and intriguing it would make the movie worth a watch