Vidya Balan Movies
- 2007
When the ancestral palace of the Brahmin family becomes the site of some seriously unsettling events, it's up to a psychiatrist from America to determine if the house is truly haunted in this comic thriller from director Priyadarshan. Badri is the family patriarch who presides over the sprawling family estate. When Badri's nephew Siddharth and his wife Avni return to their native village following an extended stint in America, it begins to appear that the rumors about their family palace being haunted are true. Soon everyone is wondering if there is a more logical reason for the strange events unfolding, and suspicions fall upon Badri's adopted daughter Radha. Later, Siddharth's friend Dr. Aditya arrives from America on a mission to solve the supernatural mystery and reveal the culprit responsible for the bizarre ruse. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Akshay Kumar, Vidya Balan, (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)
Six couples, all from different parts of the world and different walks of life, are all brought together by destiny, fate, and the power of love in director Nikhil Advani's heartfelt tale of romance. Tehzeeb (Vidya Balan) and Ashutosh (John Abraham) have been married for two years and are still deeply in love. When Tehzeeb is involved in a tragic accident, Ashu finds her devotion to her husband put to the ultimate test. Raju (Govinda) is a New Delhi taxi driver who has picked up passengers from the international airport for 15 years, all the while waiting for the appearance of his blonde-haired dream girl. When the woman finally does emerge from the bustling airport one day, Raju finds just how different fantasy and reality can truly be. Every day is the same for London-based PR worker Vinay Malhotra (Anil Kapoor). Awakening sunrise after sunrise in a picture-perfect suburban home, and always returning to a family that is happy to see him at the end of the day, Vinay discovers just how unpredictable the world can be when the beautiful and capricious Anjali (Anjana) determines to seduce the devoted family man and teach him the true definition of passion. Kkamini (Priyanka Chopra) is the bad girl of Bollywood cinema. Upon deciding to change her image for the better, this beautiful young actress finds her plans suddenly thwarted by the mysterious Rahul (Salman Khan). When consummate New Delhi bachelor Shiven (Akshaye Khanna) realizes that he is about to make the ultimate commitment in just ten days, the panic that follows finds him weighing the coming commitment against his much-valued freedom. Finally, newlyweds Ramdayal (Sohail Khan) and Phoolwati (Isha Koppikar) are eager to fulfill the lust that has been gradually building in each of them for years, yet their quest to satiate their driving desire is steadily thwarted by a series of tragicomic events. Eventually, each couple will come together to discover just how the purity of love can make even the most mundane of events both magical and ethereal. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vidya Balan, John Abraham, (more)
Mani Ratnam teams with Aishwarya Rai, a woman considered by some to be the most beautiful actress of her time, in the Bollywood musical Guru. The film concerns a man, Gurukant Desai, from an average village who, starting from very modest means, attempts to build a successful business in Bombay. His troubled private life includes with his frustrated wife, Sujata, who must adjust to being in a marriage she never really wanted. He must overcome a number of personal and professional problems in order to fulfill his ambitious dreams of success. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mithun Chakraborty, Abhishek Bachchan, (more)
- 2007
As a whimsical 21st Century update of Coline Serreau's 1986 arthouse hit Trois Hommes et un Couffin and its blockbuster American remake, the 1987 Three Men and a Baby, Sajid Khan's Heyy Babyy preserves the premise of those earlier films but (per its Bollywood production) gives the story an Asian cast, dramatically extends the length of the picture by an hour, fills its frames with acrobatic Indian dancers, and adds a broad array of musical numbers. Akshay Kumar, Fardeen Khan and Ritesh Deshmukh star, respectively, as club manager Aroush, gambler Ali and amusement park employee Tanmay, three Indian bachelors sharing an apartment and enjoying swinging playboy lifestyles in Sydney, Australia. Their worlds are turned on end when an unknown woman leaves an infant girl on their doorstep, and the boys rifle through lists of past lovers to determine the child's parentage - all to no avail. In seemingly no time at all, matters grow from bad to worse when Aroush and Tanmay lose their jobs and Ali loses a substantial amount of money; in desperation, the men collectively decide to abandon the baby on the steps of a church - only to experience a sudden change of heart and to take her back. They soon fall helplessly in love with the child, and name her Angel. But when the mother (Vidya Balan) unexpectedly shows up with the authorities to reclaim the baby and insists that she long thought the child dead, the thought of losing Angel is simply too much for the fathers to bear. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Akshay Kumar, Fardeen Khan, (more)
After a seven-year self-imposed exile from cinema, acclaimed filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra returns to the director's chair for this tale about a Royal Guardsman and expert marksman whose loyalty to the crown is the stuff of legend. Eklavya (Amitabh Bachchan) lives for one reason and one reason only: to protect Devigarh at all costs. For nine generations, Eklavya's family has protected Rajasthan's centuries-old citadel, and Eklavya's staunch dedication has even inspired loving ballads by the people of the kingdom. Whether guarding the royals themselves or just their secrets, Eklavya could always be counted on to see his job through to the bitter end. These days, however, Eklavya is getting old and his eyesight is failing. Though royal heir Prince Harshwardhan (Saif Ali Khan) had once fled to London in hopes of escaping the suffocating customs of his land, the death of Rani Suhasinidevi (Sharmila Tagore) has now prompted him to return to Devigarh and embrace his true fate. As new royalty comes in and old loyalty clings to life, Devigarh is about to experience one of the most sizable shifts the kingdom has ever witnessed. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, (more)
- 2006
- PG
Bombay thug Munnabhai and his loyal pal Circuit are back in this blockbuster sequel to the popular hit Munnabhai M.B.B.S. Smitten by the voice of popular radio jockey Jhanvi, Munna sits by the radio all day long as dreams of marriage and romance drift through his restless mind. When Jhanvi invites Munna to meet her family under the false pretences that the lovable goon is actually a history professor, the prospect of giving a history lecture to her unsuspecting parents proves even too devious for a seasoned deceiver who thrives on misleading others. Though his "dadagiri" business is flourishing, Munna must now enlist the aid of his trusted friend Circuit in coming up with a solution to get his love life back on track with his professional life. Just when Munna thinks he's got his pressing problem all worked out, the arrival of a figure from history finds this phony history professor facing a most unusual case of the past catching up with the present. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, (more)
- 2005
Sarat Chandra Chattopadhye's beloved novel is brought to the screen in this lavish adaptation, which moves the story to the heady days of 1962 in Calcutta. Lolita (Vidya Balan) is a beautiful young woman who is taken in by her uncle after the tragic death of her parents. She grows up in a household of love and support despite her unfortunate circumstances, and as a child she makes friends with Shekhar (Saif Ali Khan), a boy from the neighborhood. Shekhar wants to be a musician and has plenty of talent, but he lacks the courage to go against the wishes of his father, who wants Shekhar to go into business. Lolita and Shekhar remain close friends and confidantes over the years, but it isn't until Girish (Sanjay Dutt), a wealthy and charismatic man, comes into Lolita's life that Shekhar comes to realize that he's deeply in love with his childhood pal, and wants to have her as his own. Parineeta is the first feature film from director Pradeep Sarkar, who previously earned his reputation directing commercials and music videos. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sanjay Dutt, Saif Ali Khan, (more)
