SUNDAY, JANUARY 29, 2017 (PAGE 4)

MOVIE-REVIEW A sure-shot hit Gripping, gut-wrenching

HOON BHARI MAANG [1988] -- helmed by Rakesh Hrithik, on a few occasions, take an easy route to depict that scope for the song and dance routine here. ‘Laila Main There’s something about films based on Roshan soon after his directorial debut the protagonist has an upper hand. Laila’ and ‘Zaalima’ have already proved to be a favorite K [1987] -- ranks amongst the best vendetta sagas I had The soundtrack [] gels beautifully with the gangsters, criminals and underworld… amongst the audience/listeners. In fact, ‘Laila Main watched in the 1980s. Although one knew what was in store vis- mood of the film. In fact, the film borrows two evergreen com- Laila’ comes at a crucial juncture of the film and carries A majority of films that highlight the lives of crimi- à-vis its plot, Roshan Sr. made sure the storytelling was most positions from the past [‘Saara Zamana’ and ‘Dil Kya Kare’], but the story forward. Background score is effectual, espe- nals/gangsters have a set template vis-à-vis the plotline: effectual and efficient, holding your attention [and breath] till the accomplished composer garnishes them delightfully. The cially the signature tune that has been used generously in An ordinary person takes to crime, becomes a hotshot the penultimate moments of the enterprise. other tracks are harmonious as well, especially the title num- the narrative. criminal, hobnobs with the rich, influential and powerful, Almost three decades later, Roshan Sr.’s production outfit ber and ‘Mon Amour’. Choreography [Ahmed Khan] of ‘Saara but, eventually, the law decides to get even with him. The DoP [K.U. Mohanan] captures the locales won- Filmkraft delivers yet another riveting revenge saga. This time, Zamana’ and ‘Mon Amour’ in particular is fantastic. Back- RAEES follows a similar graph as well… the only differ- derfully on celluloid. Editing [Deepa Bhatia] is taut. is entrusted the responsibility of infusing life into ground score [Salim-Sulaiman] is beautifully integrated in the ence being, this one is more realistic in approach than Dialogue are aimed at the masses. Lines like ‘Baniye Ka characters that appear on screen. Much like the trailers of narrative, enhancing the impact of several pertinent episodes. several films of this genre. Dimaag Aur Miyanbhai Ki Daring’ and ‘Ammi Jaan Kehti then, too spells out a bit of Cinematography [Sudeep Chatterjee, Ayananka Bose] is top Director depicts the power play and Thi, Koi Dhanda Chota Nahi Hota Aur Dhande Se Bada its plot in its assorted trailers, with the viewers having a fair notch. The film is visually stunning. Action [Sham Kaushal] the cat and mouse chase idea of what to expect in the film. provides ample exhilarating moments to get the adrenaline between Raees and the Known for technically slick films, Gupta delivers a smart and pumping -- something that the moviegoers relish. Editing [Akiv honest cop Jaideep with enthralling revenge fest in KAABIL. flourish and that, in my The screenplay is beautifully construct- opinion, is the mainstay of ed… the twists and turns are attention the enterprise. Having said grabbing… the nail-biting episodes that, I must admit, what grab you by your throat and you are takes the film notches high- trapped in the goings-on till the final er is the terrific portrayal by credits roll. Actually, you know the plot, SRK and Nawazuddin but what Gupta doesn’t tell you what’s Siddiqui, who breathe fire around the corner. Additionally, KAA- in their respective parts. BIL doesn’t insult one’s intelligence and More on that later! what emerges is a motion picture that’s Here’s the plotline in visceral and intelligent at the same succinct…Set in 1980s, time. Raees [] is Let’s divulge the gist of the story, trying to beat the system without revealing much… KAABIL nar- and succeed on his terms. rates the story of Rohan [Hrithik His natural flair for entre- Roshan] and Supriya []. preneurship and never-say- In each other’s company, they find hap- die determination while piness and joy. Life is a bed of roses for achieving his goals makes the much-in-love couple till tragedy him both loved and feared. strikes. Rohan decides to fight it out, Enter Jaideep [Nawazuddin Siddiqui], a cop, who vows Koi Dharam Nahi Hota’ have found resonance amongst but his opponents are the powerful and to eliminate crime… and Raees’ empire. viewers already. I must draw attention to the lines deliv- influential Madhav [] and his Recreating the bygone era is a Herculean task, but the ered to Nawazuddin too; they will bring the house down, brother Amit []. Will he be toughest part is to involve the present-day audience especially in the first half. Action sequences pack a solid able to settle scores? that’s clueless about the characters and ambience of that punch. The performances in RAEES are consistently Gupta is known for western influences in his films, but in Ali] is sharp for most parts. era. While the production design recreates the atmos- remarkable. Shah Rukh is the scene-stealer as well as the KAABIL, the emphasis tilts heavily towards emotions than the inhabits the part. As a matter of fact, he phere flawlessly, Dholakia and his team of writers [Harit show-stealer. Cast in a character that has grey shades, the color tone or camera angles. KAABIL has compelling emotion- delivers his career-best performance and is the film’s biggest Mehta, Ashish Vashi, Niraj Shukla and Dholakia himself] film brings back memories of his award-worthy acts at al content and the intent is crystal clear as the story advances: strength, no two questions about it. He astounds you on varied ensure that the written material has the power to keep the commencement of his career. Nawazuddin matches the storyteller wants the moviegoer to root for the protagonist occasions, especially when he’s most vulnerable after catastro- the viewer engaged and engrossed. Resultantly, the his co-star’s brilliance and delivers a magnificent per- [Hrithik] and despise the antagonists [Ronit Roy, Rohit Roy]. phe strikes and his life goes topsy-turvy. Yami Gautam is unmis- movie not only brings back memories of the 1980s, but formance. Both, SRK and Nawazuddin’s performances Although the plot may appear conventional, Gupta and writer takably earnest and catches you unaware with a tremendous also gives you the feel of the days gone by thanks to the keep you invested in the storyline as well as the charac- Vijay Kumar Mishra avoid the clichés and standard techniques act. Her innocence and simplicity act as a magnetic charm. characters and episodes highlighted in the narrative. ters. Mahira Khan looks gorgeous and handles her part that you often encounter in movies of this genre to take the sto- Ronit Roy is at his vicious best here. Absolutely menacing as Dholakia is not really known to be a hardcore com- with confidence. ry forward. In KAABIL, the villains are as smart as the hero, but the conniving politician. Rohit Roy is intimidating and leaves mercial film-maker. One look at his body of work and you more merciless, and how the hero overpowers and outsmarts Mohd. Zeeshan Ayyub sinks his teeth into a solid role a strong impression. Need to see him more in movies! realize he tilts more towards realism than make-believe. them eventually is its USP. Narendra Jha is first-rate, enacting his part with complete But he does an about-turn with RAEES, for the film mar- [SRK’s confidante] and makes a big impression. Atul KAABIL never fails to involve and entertain the moviegoer Kulkarni makes his presence felt with a committed per- understanding. Girish Kulkarni, seen recently as the coach in ries realism and masala wonderfully. The narrative and if I may say so, it contains enough worthy material to hold DANGAL, is hugely competent. Suresh Menon springs a pleas- moves seamlessly from romance [SRK-Mahira] to the formance. Sheeba Chaddha [SRK’s mother] shines in a the moviegoer’s attention for most of its run time. The emotion- ant surprise in a non-comic character. The actor enacting the game of one-upmanship as the criminal and cop collide. brief role. Narendra Jha [Musa Bhai], Jaideep Ahlawat al component is well balanced with low-key humor, tension- part of Wasim, Ronit Roy’s friend, is commendable. Akhilendra This is a big ticket film with SRK and Dholakia knows [Nawab], Utkarsh Mazumdar [doctor], Pramod Pathak filled moments, energetic action pieces [fist fights, shootouts, Mishra is alright. sparkles in the . that the stakes are high. He maintains the realism, [Chief Minister] and Uday Tikekar [Pasha Bhai] are per- explosions] and of course, some razor-sharp and punch-packed On the whole, KAABIL is gripping, gut-wrenching and is like- ensures that the pace and energy seldom dip… but, most fect in their parts. Sunny Leone sizzles in the ‘Laila Main dialogue in dramatic sequences [penned by Sanjay Masoomm]. ly to stay with you for a long time. Now that DANGAL has almost importantly, he makes sure SRK’s legion of fans aren’t Laila’ number. In the end, it’s the emotional journey of the protagonist that exhausted its run at the ticket windows, the box-office is quiet disappointed. He takes a leap as a storyteller, doing jus- On the whole, RAEES is a sure-shot hit. To state that acts as a hook and lingers in your memory. and subdued and KAABIL should have no difficulty filling seats tice to the written material and extracting bravura per- SRK is sensational would be an understatement. The Kaabil-2 at cineplexes, despite a strong opponent releasing alongside. formances from each and every member of the cast. love, adulation and stardom that he attained in his early There are minor hiccups in an otherwise smooth narrative. Rich in merits, this film has the power and potential to emerge Blemishes? Oh yes! The first hour unravels at a fever- films will be showered on him yet again in RAEES. A few The post-interval portions could’ve been slightly more persua- a success story at the box-office. Highly recommended! ish pace, making you thirst for the second half. But it’s more factors contribute too: Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s win- sive, from the writing point of view. The strategies adopted by Courtesy : http://www.bollywoodhungama.com here that the problem arises. The pace slackens soon ning act, the aimed-at-masses written material and of after the intermission and the romantic song and a few course, the gripping finale. As far as the BO is concerned, NATURE sequences act as spoilers. Thankfully, the film picks up when Raees’ life takes a dramatic turn, which leads to a there’s no stopping this one. An outright winner. Just high-voltage climax. don’t miss it! The soundtrack is decent, although there’s minimal Courtesy : http://www.bollywoodhungama.com Fish feel pain HEALTHLINES Maneka Sanjay Gandhi tion of pain (noci is Latin for “hurt”) Nociceptors in fish are strikingly similar to those found in mammals, and The International Association for the Study they respond to heat, pressure and noxious chemicals of Pain defines pain as “an unpleasant such as acid and bee venom. Female Infertility In 2004, physiologist Lynne Sneddon published a sensory and emotional experience associated study saying that fish can detect and feel pain. Sneddon Dr Arvind Vaid with actual or potential tissue damage. The discovered 58 pain receptors, called nociceptors, along Hostile cervical mucus is one of the inability to communicate verbally does not the trout's lips resembling those in amphibians, birds and mammals including humans. She did so by injecting many causes for female factor infertility, negate the possibility that an individual is bee venom and acetic acid into the mouth area. The though it accounts for only 15-20 percent experiencing pain.” affected fish exhibited behaviour that clearly showed extreme stress, such as rubbing their noses into gravel only. In a normal cycle, the cervix It seems extraordinary produces watery mucus just prior to that it has taken us so long to ask the question - do fish ovulation. Normally, this mucus feel pain. Accepting that an protects the woman's reproductive animal has the ability to suffer pain, changes the tract from invasion of foreign particles. way we choose to interact However, at the time of ovulation, the mucus transforms with it. It should influence into a "friendly" path through which sperm can travel safe- the moral and ethical ly. Also, under the influence of estrogen the thick and sticky judgements we make. mucus becomes clear and stringy. Victoria Braithwaite, in FUNCTION OF CERVICAL MUCUS her book “Do Fish Feel The primary function of cervical mucus is to protect the Pain”, presents scientific sperm on their journey to Fallopian tubes and help to keep evidence that fish are smart them safe from the naturally acidic environment of the and cognitively competent vagina. It aids the sperm to reach safely to the egg, which beings. This coincides with causes fertilisation, thereby, making a woman pregnant. hundreds of studies show- But, sometimes the cervical mucus does more harm than ing that fish are intelligent good and therefore, instead of protecting sperms during and have both accurate and long lasting memories, which and shaking their bodies. Fish demonstrated a 'rocking' conceiving, it turns "hostile" or unfriendly. Also, some- in some cases, such as migrating salmon, can span years. motion, strikingly similar to the kind of motion seen in times antisperm antibodies are present in cervical mucus Fish don’t audibly scream when they’re impaled on stressed higher vertebrates like mammals. Since mor- due to which the immune system mistakes sperm for a for- test indicates if the chemical composition of the mucus is hooks, or grimace when the hooks are ripped from their phine appeared to ease the discomfort, Sneddon con- eign invader and thus, it either blocks the sperm's passage appropriate for sperm survival and any dead or slow mov- mouths, but their behaviour offers evidence of their suf- cluded that the trout's reactions weren't simply reflexive or damages the sperm so severely that they can no longer ing sperm found indicates that the mucus is hostile. fering—if we’re willing to look. but genuine displays of pain response. The fish injected function. During the test, following points have to be kept in mind: Fish have all our senses and more. A thin lateral line with venom and acid also took almost three times longer Hostile cervical mucus can also cause secondary infer- * If the sperm delivered to the cervix is of good quality runs along the flank, with special sensory receptors, to resume feeding than the control groups. tility, or the inability to conceive after previously success- and quantity which allow the fish to detect nearby objects. Blind-cave Trout are “neophobic,” - they actively avoid new ful pregnancies. * If the sperm mobility through mucus is vigorous fish, living in underground caverns in Mexico, use this objects. But those injected with acetic acid showed no for ‘seeing’. The electric eel, with a specialised organ The aim of fertility treatment is to restore the quality of * If there's indication of any kind of infection in either reaction to a brightly coloured Lego tower placed in their located towards the end of the tail, can generate enough the mucus so it can: partner tank, suggesting that their attention was focused instead electricity to stun prey. Knife-fish, or elephant-nose fish, * Facilitate sperm transport at appropriate times of the And, even if the results of the test show presence of hos- on the pain. In contrast, trout injected with saline — as tile mucus, the success rate of pregnancy can be improved generate weaker electric signals used for communication. well as those who were given painkillers following acid month Are fish so different from humans? Conspicuous par- * Protect the sperm from the acidic vaginal environment through the Intrauterine Inception (IUI). injection — displayed the usual degree of caution regard- TREATMENT allels emerge. Apart from the backbone, their ‘stress * Preserve the sperm in the cervical canal and release ing the new object. Similar results have been demonstrat- For normal fertility, sperm must be able to survive com- response’ is strikingly similar to that of mammals. ed in human patients suffering from painful medical con- them in a steady stream over a period of time The fish brain also has a forebrain, midbrain and * Filter out abnormal or unhealthy sperms fortably for a couple of days within the cervical mucus. But ditions. We all know that pain interferes with our normal hindbrain. However, fish do not have a neocortex. This thinking abilities. * Protect the sperm from white blood cells which may at times cervical mucus can become abnormally acidic and plays a central role in the fish pain debate – even those destroy them this change in pH can severely limit sperm survival. So, if Researchers at Purdue University in Norway reported who argue fish cannot feel pain consider the neocortex that goldfish experience pain consciously. Goldfish * Provide nutrients to the sperm for some reason cervical factor disease is the only causative essential for an animal to experience feelings. MRIs show injected with saline solution, and exposed to a painful * Prevent bacterial contamination of the uterus factor, then Intrauterine Inception (IUI) is often recom- us that the neocortex isn't the only part of the brain that CAUSES level of heat in a test tank, “hovered” in one spot when mended as the first treatment of choice. During the treat- is active during painful events. Many other parts of the placed back in their home tank. Fearful, avoidance There are several causes responsible for hostile cervical brain overlap and take on functions. Dr. Ian Duncan ment, sperms can be placed above the cervical mucus inside behaviour is rational — not involuntary. Other fish, after mucus. Some of the common causes include: reminds us that we “have to look at behaviour and phys- a woman's uterus and closer to the fallopian tubes to facil- receiving a morphine injection, showed no such fearful Poor Diet: This is one of the most common causes for iology,” not just anatomy. “It’s possible for a brain to itate fertilisation. It is cost-effective and time saving treat- behaviour. hostile cervical mucus. For a woman it is important to have evolve in different ways. That’s what is happening in the ment and the goal of IUI is to increase the number of sperms Commercial fishing frequently depends on gill nets - a balanced, nutrition rich diet and have enough water dai- fish line. It’s evolved in some other ways in other parts of walls of fine netting in which fish become snared, often ly so as to keep hydrated. Also, if you eat a lot of dairy prod- that reach the Fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the brain to receive pain.” by the gills. They may suffocate in the net, because with ucts you may find that your cervical mucus becomes very the chance of fertilisation. IUI is often combined with ovu- Fish, like “higher vertebrates,” have neurotransmit- their gills constricted, they cannot breathe. The first ever thick lation inducing medicines such as follicle stimulating hor- ters, such as endorphins, that relieve suffering. systematic estimate of the size of the yearly global cap- Medications: Another reason for hostile cervical mone which further increase the success rate. Researchers have created a detailed map of pain recep- ture of wild fish is about 1 trillion - 2.7 trillion; about 150 mucus can be some specific group of medications. For However, if for some reason IUI treatment fails to show tors—which includes those very areas where an angler’s times the number of mammals and birds killed for con- instance, Antihistamines are said to be responsible for cre- any positive results, then the couple may consider in-vitro barbed hook penetrates. As Dr. Stephanie Yue writes, sumption. ating hostile cervical mucus in many women. fertilisation in which ovaries are fertilised with sperm in a “Pain is an evolutionary adaptation that helps individuals POSTCOITAL TEST survive. A trait, like pain perception, is not likely to sud- Can a planet survive after so much pain has been gen- laboratory and then after accessing the embryo quality erated? There is so much violence in the air that we The postcoital test is the primary tool to access sperm- these are placed in the uterus through the cervix. denly disappear for one particular taxonomic class.” A nociceptor is a sensory nerve cell that responds to breathe it. Can we be happy if every being around us is mucus interaction. It's the test to diagnose cervical mucus Other line of treatments may include Estrogen therapy unhappy? The miasma of viciousness hangs like a black problems especially if results for other tests are normal and so as to improve the quality of mucus. damaging, or potentially damaging, stimuli by sending signals to the spinal cord and brain. It initiates the sensa- pall over us. No wonder we are so miserable ourselves. there still persists an unexplained cause of infertility. The (The author is IVF expert, Indira IVF Hospitals, New Delhi )