Bollywood - HollyWood

Bollywood looks up to Hollywood and it works !

There's nothing unusual about remakes and remixes in Hindi films. But the inspiration isn't confined to ripping off phoren movies and music alone. Our filmmakers find a muse in Hollywood film posters as well! But whatever it may be the formula works.

Please refer the Pics numbered 1-10

(1) The original : Sleepless in Seattle

The copy : Akele Hum Akele Tum

Mansoor Khan's relationship melodrama starring Aamir Khan and Manisha Koirala drew its plot from the Oscar-winning Kramer Vs Kramer and the poster from Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan romantic comedy, Sleepless in Seattle.
Other inspirations include The Godfather theme as Raja ko rani se pyaar ho gaya and George Michael's Last Christmas as Dil mera churaya kyon which was lifted by Anu Malik.

(2) The original : Collateral

The copy : Ek Ajnabee

Apporva Lakhia's Ek Ajnabee faithfully copied Denzel Washington's hit action vehicle, Man on Fire. But, inspite of Amitabh Bachchan's rocking act and sleek Thai locales, the movie wasn't a major money-spinner.
But that's not the point. What we can't help noticing is how much Tom Cruise (in Michael Mann's Collateral) and Big B's pensive-holding-a-gun pose (in Ek Ajnabee), happens to share in common.

(3) The original : Underworld

The copy : Krrish

What do Kate Beckinsale and Hrithik Roshan have in common? The answer: A black trench coat, which they love to model against the backdrop of a moon. Identical wallpapers, anyone?
So while Ms Beckinsale plays a vampire, hunting for Lycans, our Krrish plays the super hero to perfection

(4) The original : Unforgiven

The copy : Sarfarosh

John Mathew Matthan's nifty direction and Aamir Khan's powerful performance contributed highly to Sarfarosh being recognised as intelligent cinema.
Even so, Mathan couldn't help fashioning one of the movie posters after Clint Eastwood's Academy award winner, Unforgiven. The legendary actor's back-facing the camera with a gun pose was imitated by Khan as well.

(5) The original : Shrek

The copy : Koi... Mil Gaya

Remember that adorable moment in Shrek when the world's most famous ogre tells donkey how 'stars don't tell the future, they tell stories? The scene leads to both guys gazing at the big, glowing ball of moon in front of them.
Looks like Rakesh Roshan loved the scene too. So much so that he modified it into the poster of the ET-inspired alien flick, Koi... Mil Gaya with Hrithik, Preity Zinta and a bunch of kids.

(6) The original: Reservoir Dogs

The copy: Kaante

Shot extensively in the United States of America, Sanjay Gupta's Kaante borrowed liberally from Reservoir Dogs and The Usual Suspects with hints of Heat and Swordfish.
Like the above-mentioned crime dramas, this heist flick, too, featured an ensemble cast. Besides it's story, style and structure, the panelled collage of Quentin Tarantino's film too was adopted for its desi version.

(7) The original : When Harry Met Sally...

The copy : Hum Tum

Kunal Kohli's follow up to Mujhse Dosti Karoge saw Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji play the perfect Harry and Sally.
A loose remake of Nora Ephron's mush classic, Hum Tum tried hard to be different by introducing animation bits and a tragic twist (with Abhishek Bachchan's cameo).
But on poster level? Deja vu!

(8) The original : Cactus Flower
The copy : Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya

Okay, so what can we spot here?
There's a doctor, who doesn't quite dress up like one, a nurse in uniform and a hot girl in shocking pink.
That's Hollywood's Cactus Flower taking the form of David Dhawan's screwball comedy, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya for you!

(9) The original : The Fast and the Furious

The copy : Dhoom

It's all about undercover cops and car racing which had a little bit of The Fast and the Furious turned into full volume Dhoom.
Interestingly, both films were hits, enough to spin sequels like 2 Fast 2 Furious and Dhoom 2 respectively.

(10) The original : Oldboy

The copy : Zinda

Fine, this isn't exactly a movie poster. But the glaring similarity between the exactly reproduced scene of Zinda and its violent Korean inspiration, Oldboy is too much to ignore.

The Most Absurd Scenes

Anything can happen in a Hindi movie. While on one side Bollywood can produce films like Mother India, Do Aakhen Barah Haath, Mughal-E-Azam , Sholay most of our movies are far away from reality. Suspension of disbelief is a mere formality. An amnesiac can regain his memory in a jiffy. All he has to do is 'accidentally' bang his head against a hard object, and voila! Memory restored! And the less said about disguises the better.

Here are some of Bollywood's wackiest scenes

Avinash
Nothing, and I mean nothing can prepare you for this brand of bull. It also happens to be a crowd favourite. Mithun Chakravarthy plays the titular role of a man suffering from a brain tumour in this Umesh Mehra flick.
During one of the dishoom dishoom sequences, a gun is fired at our incredible hero. Defying all science and logic, the bullet passes through his head taking the tumour with it! And the most amazing is that he survives to tell the tale. That's Avinash, literally translated as indestructible, for you!

Giraftaar
Rajnikant takes ishtyle to another level altogether, whether it's spinning sunglasses in his characteristic manner or lighting up a cigarette, the superstar is a riot. Call it what you may, his antics are truly one of a kind.
In Giraftaar, he keeps the villains on hold to light a cigarette, which he tosses in midair and fires with a gun to light it up. He then grabs hold of the other end of the ciggie, takes a puff or two and then proceeds to break the bones of the obliging villains. Ciggie anyone?

Agneepath, Coolie
What's it about heroes, bullets and immortality? No matter how hard or strategically they're hit, nothing fatal happens. Big B, for one, has an exceptionally bullet-proof chest. Whether it's Agneepath or Coolie, the man can survive a succession of golis and yet possess enough strength to man handle every bully in the vicinity.

Dhoom 2
1) How can Hrithik steal such a huge diamond in broad daylight amid tight security?Uh, point taken. But then again who cares?
2) And who can forget the scene where Abhishek Bachchan jumps off a cliff (without a parachute) only to land right on top of the Krrish star, who's on a parachute?
3) In the chase sequence, Mr. A is on the roller skates and our poor heroes can't catch him in spite of travelling on a racer bike and the second one on a helicopter. (And I thought Indian filmmakers have become smart and are now closer to reality)

Gadar-Ek Prem Katha
Sunny is synonymous with wham bam and bashing up ten to 15 guys is a walk in the park for this action hero. But his record of human casualties in Gadar takes absurdity to new heights. Apparently this one man army takes on practically all of Pakistan and its armed forces with a single hand pump and an ear-splitting roar, to come out on top! (Why doesn't the government send him on the border? )

MARD
In this movie starring Amitabh, Amrita Singh, Dara Singh is shown as stopping a plane by a rope which he threw and which was caught in the tail of the plane (Send him to the Olympics)

Please use the COMMENTS section for your feedback and if you have more such stuff to share mail it to me at mandarghanekar@gmail.com