Kirron Kher Movies
- 2008
A Punjabi do-gooder sets out on a quest to track down the king of the Australian underworld, only to find that a positive attitude and a sense of basic human dignity will get him further in life than he ever could have imagined. Everyone in Happy Singh's small village is sick and tired of the boundless enthusiasm displayed by this optimistic youngster. In order to get rid of Happy, the villagers send him to bring back the nefarious head of the Australian underworld, who just so happens to be from the same village. Not only is the crime kingpin ruining his village's reputation from abroad, but his ailing parents are deeply concerned about his livelihood as well. After missing his flight to Australia, Happy winds up finding love amongst the Egyptian pyramids and is crowned king of Kangaroo Land. Though numerous other obstacles may appear in his path, Happy always manages to overcome the odds thanks to his proverbial heart of gold. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, (more)
Love and dreams follow two starry-eyed actors across three decades and two incarnations in this splashy Hindi musical. It's the early Seventies, and Om Prakash Makhija (Shah Rukh Khan) is a young would-be actor who has been playing bit parts in Bollywood musicals while looking for his big break. Om's ambition is to become a film star and win the heart of beautiful screen siren Shantipriya (Deepika Padukone), and his pal Pappu (Shreyas Talpade) and his mother Bela (Kirron Kher) both encourage him not to give up on his dreams. One day, Om meets Shantipriya on a movie set, and he feels as if destiny is finally smiling on him, but when he overhears her having an argument with studio chief Mukesh Mehra (Arjun Rampal), Om senses things are not as they should be. Before Om can decide what to make of his misgivings, the studio burns to the ground, claiming the lives of Om and Shantipriya. Thirty years later, a bit of Om's spirit seems to live on in Om Kapoor (also played by Shah Rukh Khan) a popular film actor with a large ego and a fear of flame who was born the day the old studio burned down. Despite his fame, Om is lonely, at least until he meets Sandhya (also played by Deepika Padukone), a shy but eager would-be actress looking for her chance to become a star. Om Shanti Om was directed and co-written by Farah Khan, who was a top choreographer in the Indian film industry before moving up to the director's chair, and features guest spots from a number of Bollywood's greatest stars, a few appearing in the form of digital recreations taken from films of the Seventies. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Arjun Rampal, (more)
A blind Kashmiri girl venturing out into the world for the first time on her own discovers a love with the power to either transform or destroy her in director Kunal Kohli's scenic romance. Zooni Ali Beg (Kajol) is a young girl teetering on the verge of womanhood. As Zooni prepares to fly from the safety of her parent's comfortable nest, her father instills her with the sound wisdom that a person is not defined by their ability to choose between right and wrong, but instead their ability to distinguish between the lesser of two evils or the greater of two goods. When Zooni's journeys lead her into the arms of flirtatious tour guide Rehan Qadri (Aamir Khan), she willfully ignores the warnings of her well-intending friends and embraces her newfound love wholeheartedly. Though their precious time together finds both Zooni and Rehan transformed by the power of love, Rehan harbors a deadly secret that could prove fatal for the innocent and trusting Zooni. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rishi Kapoor, Aamir Khan, (more)
- 2006
Indian director Karan Johar's three-hour feature Never Say Goodbye (Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna) utilizes and celebrates the common Bollywood practice of combining multiple genres and elements - comedy, drama, romance and flashy musical numbers - into one picture of epic length, to maximize cinema's capacity for entertainment. The story concerns two Manhattan couples. Soccer player Dev (Shah Rukh Khan) and his magazine editor wife, Rhea (Preity Zinta) are happily married despite occasional stress on the relationship; PR executive Rishi (Abhishek Bachan) and preschool teacher Maya (Rani Mukherji) feel their marriage strained by her inability to conceive. But the couples' worlds are turned upside down when Dev and Maya meet and fall hopelessly -- wondering how they ever lived without one another. Meanwhile, Dev's father Samarjit (Amitabh Bachchan) - who lives for pleasure and satisfaction at the expense of others' feelings - complicates matters by encouraging his son's new relationship. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, (more)
- 2006
For those who date before marriage, one's wedding day can be viewed as the perfect culmination of an ideal romance; when it comes to couples engaged in an arranged marriage, however, exchanging vows is simply the first step of a hopeful romance. Abhay Sachdeva and Ritika Khanna may have been virtual strangers when they found out they would be spending the rest of their lives together, but over the course of their five-day honeymoon, the couple that had never so much as held hands is about to get a crash course in the true meaning of commitment and togetherness. Upon departing from their hometown of Bangalore for the rolling hills of Ootay, Abhay and Sachdeva will come into contact with a number of people who have strong opinions concerning the institution of marriages. While most movies end with the ringing of wedding bells, Just Married begins with that familiar sound and follows the newly united couple to find out if two people who have never met can forge a lifetime of happiness together. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fardeen Khan, Esha Deol, (more)
A sworn bachelor falls head over heels in love with a woman whom only he can see, only to find himself on a lifesaving mission in director Vivek Agrawal's ethereal, supernaturally themed romance. Everyone loves Raj Jaiswal (Arjun Rampal). The host of a popular television talk show called "British Raj," Jaiswal is an unrepentant womanizer who proposes marriage to nearly every woman he meets. Despite his insatiable appetite for flirting, however, Raj has secretly sworn to remain a bachelor until the day he dies. Everything changes for Raj when he meets a mysterious and beautiful stranger named Shivani Dutt (Vipasha) in his bedroom, and the woman makes the curious claim that Raj's apartment is, in fact, hers. Instantly smitten with the curious woman, Raj is deeply disturbed to discover that he is the only person who can see or touch Shivani. Though his friends do their best to convince Raj that Shivani is nothing more than a figment of his imagination, Raj knows that he has stumbled upon something much deeper, and remains convinced that his questioned sanity is still well intact. Upon discovering that Shivani is actually lying comatose in a hospital and that her life support is about to be disconnected, Raj enlists the aid of London's only Hindi-speaking policeman to save his one true love before it's too late. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arjun Rampal, Vipasha Agarwal, (more)
- 2005
- Add The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey to QueueAdd The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey to top of Queue
One of the earliest salvos of Indian militancy before the nation won its freedom from the British Empire is recounted in grand scale in this historical drama. In the 1850s, Great Britain held both political and economic sway over India, and the East India Company was one of the most powerful English firms trading there -- so powerful that they had their own private army to help enforce the laws as they saw fit. Mangal Pandey (Aamir Khan) was a "sepoy" (local slang for an Indian soldier) in the East India Co. militia who became friendly with British officer William Gordon (Toby Stephens). Gordon had a great deal of respect for Padney, unlike many of his fellow British soldiers, who regarded their Indian colleagues with little more than contempt. While Padney's commitment to his duty was genuine, he became increasingly aware of the disrespect shown to Indians by the British, and when word began to spread that the powder cartouches being given to sepoy gunmen were greased with animal fat, making them taboo for Muslim and Hindu soldiers, long-simmering anger in the ranks began to boil over into open rebellion, and in time Padney was charged with mutiny for defending himself and other sepoys against their British superiors. Adapted from a true story, The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Padney features dialogue in both Hindi and English, unusual for most Bollywood films. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aamir Khan, Toby Stephens, (more)
A star-crossed love affair has political as well as emotional repercussions in this Bollywood romantic drama. Veer Pratap Singh (Shah Rukh Khan) is an officer and pilot in the Indian Air Force who one day meets a beautiful Pakistani heiress, Zaara Hayaat Khan (Preity Zinta), as she travels to a small Indian village to scatter the ashes of one of her family's loyal servants. Veer has family in the village, and while most Indians show no affection for Pakistanis, his aunt and uncle are willing to take Zaara in for the night. It isn't long before Veer finds himself falling for her; however, Veer learns that Zaara is engaged to another man, Raza (Manoj Bajpai), a cruel and humorless Pakistani. A friend of Zaara contacts Veer and tells him that Zaara wants out of her engagement and has strong feelings for him, but when he comes to her rescue, matters take a turn for the worse and Veer winds up in jail. Twenty years later, Veer is still behind bars, and finds that his case is being given a new trial, but while he has a new chance at freedom, he discovers his lawyer will be going up against a state attorney who has never lost a case. Veer-Zaara was one of the first Indian blockbusters to open in India, the United States, and the United Kingdom at the same time. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, (more)
Acclaimed Bollywood choreographer Farah Khan (Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge, Monsoon Wedding) makes her directorial debut with Main Hoon Na, a mix of action, comedy, and romance. Shah Rukh Khan (Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham...) stars as Ram, a straight-laced action hero and major in the Indian army. When General Bakshi (Kabir Bedi) proposes a plan to release 50 harmless Pakistani POWs as a gesture of goodwill, he draws the ire of terrorist Raghavan (Sunil Shetty), a former army officer with a deep-seated hatred of the Pakistanis. Raghavan and his well-trained crew invade a television studio where the general is being interviewed, despite the efforts of Ram's father, Shekhar (Naseeruddin Shah of Monsoon Wedding), who is Bakshi's head of security. Ram intercedes and nearly captures the masked terrorist, but Shekhar is killed trying to protect Bakshi. With his dying words, he tells Ram his shameful secret. Shekhar was never married to Ram's late mother. Shekhar's wife and son left him when Ram, his illegitimate son, came to live in their home. Shekhar's dying wish is to have their forgiveness. Ram gets an opportunity to look for his long-lost stepbrother when General Bakshi assigns him to guard his estranged daughter, Sanjana (Amrita Rao), who goes to the same college as Ram's stepbrother. In order to stay close to Sanjana, Ram has to pose as a student. Being much older and far more conservative than most of the students, Ram immediately stands out, and is mercilessly mocked by the coolest guy on campus, Lucky (Zayed Khan). Sanjana wants nothing to do with him, making his job difficult. Things become more complicated when Ram learns the identity of his stepbrother, and finds himself falling for his sexy chemistry teacher, Chandni (Sushmita Sen). ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Sunil Shetty, (more)
Karan (Saif Ali Khan) is a cartoonist and a self-styled ladies' man. His daily comic, "Hum Tum," playfully explores the battle of the sexes. On a plane from Delhi to New York, he sits next to Rhea (Rani Mukherjee), and she doesn't seem the least bit interested in him. His feeble attempts at flirting go nowhere, but when they have a stopover in Amsterdam, she agrees to spend a few hours exploring the city with him. Karan quickly learns he has little in common with the feisty but proper Rhea, but he won't give up. He ends their contentious time together with an unwelcome kiss. Rhea is outraged and storms off, but Karan insists they'll meet again. And he's right. Months later in New York, he spots her in the park, and she causes a scene with his girlfriend. They don't see each other again until three years later, when Karan is helping his mother plan a wedding that turns out to be Rhea's. They bicker again, but this time, they part on good terms. Years later in Paris, Karan is visiting his father (Rishi Kapoor), when he runs into Rhea again. He learns from Rhea's mother (Kiron Kher) that a tragedy has befallen the girl, and he sets out to help her reclaim her positive outlook on life. Sensing that she needs to be with a straight-laced, boring guy, he conspires with Rhea's mother to fix her up with his shy best friend, Mihir (Jimmy Shergill). Things don't go as planned, and Karan and Rhea find themselves forced to confront their feelings for each other. Former film critic Kunal Kohli wrote and directed Hum Tum, his second feature. The score is by Jatin-Lalit, with lyrics by Prasoon Joshi. The film features animated sequences and a few surprise "guest appearances." ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Saif Ali Khan, Rani Mukherjee, (more)
Pakistani filmmaker Sabiha Sumar directs the political drama Khamosh Pani (Silent Waters). Set in a small Pakistani village in 1979, the film follows widowed family matriarch Ayesha (Kirron Kher) as she struggles under the martial law that declares her country a Muslim state. Her teenage son Saleem (Aamir Malik) is encouraged by his wealthy girlfriend Zubeida (Shilpa Shukla) to get a job. However, he ends up hanging out with a bunch of Muslim fundamentalists and causing trouble for the Sikh pilgrims. Meanwhile, Ayesha remembers secrets from her past awakened by the arrival of the Sikh pilgrim Jaswant (Navtej Johar). Silent Waters won the Golden Leopard award at the 2003 Locarno International Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirron Kher, Aamir Malik, (more)
- 2002
Set in the early 1900s, this film follows a young man named Devdas (Shah Rukh Khan) on his way home to India after having spent the past ten years in London. As the news reaches Devdas and his ex-love Paro's (Aishwarya Rai) respective households, the family matriarchs remember when the young couple were still children. When Devdas' mother found out the two wanted to get married, she refused to give her consent, and in doing so, set off a sequence of events which would lead Devdas into alcoholism. Though Paro has agreed to an arranged marriage with a wealthy landowner, she still loves Devdas, and is determined to lure him away from his constant drinking. Devdas is based on a classic Indian novel by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhye, and is the third feature directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, (more)
- 2000
Recalling the subtle, understated films of master director Satyajit Ray, this is a quiet drama about a lonely, unfortunate middle-aged woman. Banalata (Kiron Kher) has lived a solitary existence since her husband-to-be died the night before their wedding from a snake bite. Never having quite gotten over the tragedy, she rarely ventures out and is clearly very lonely. This changes when she agrees to allow a film production to shoot in a wing in her sprawling estate. Suddenly her house is filled with movie stars and glamorous people, including the beautiful actress Sudeshna (Rupa Ganguly) and charming director Deepankar (Chiranjeet Chakraborty). Though she knows that not only is Deepankar married but that his former lover Sudeshna still holds a torch for him, the lonely widow finds herself drawn to the director. He is exactly the sort of worldly character whom she has always longed to meet. The rakish man flirts back and even persuades Banalata to appear in a bit part in the movie. Yet once the film crew decamps, things at the estate return to the same grinding tedium as before, though the woman feels her isolation all the more acutely. The letters that Banalata writes to Deepankar go unanswered, and her bit part in the movie ends up on the cutting-room floor. This film was screened at the 2000 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirron Kher
- 1997
Set in the walled North Indian city of Delhi, this lavish melodrama of a popular thumari singer's life and accidental death is based on a true story. Her tragic tale is framed by that of newspaper reporter Tehzeeb Abbasi, who has come near the singer's home to investigate a terrible riot between Hindus and Muslims during which singer Sardari Begum was fatally injured with a flying rock. Abassi is shocked to discover that Begum was her father's sister, and this compels her to change the focus of her story from the riot to that of the victim. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rajeshwari Sachdev, Kirron Kher, (more)
