Bollywood Diaries Review
Expectations
We all love films and films stars, but films and stars are not made overnight. Behind the success of every film and the stars there is a back story of struggle and hard work. It's said that every day hundreds of people come to Mumbai only to fulfill their dream of becoming an actor. Out of which only a few of them manage to get some decent work in this mad world of Bollywood. Every day, hundreds of hopes and dreams gets shattered. It’s sad that despite of being one of the largest film industry in the world, very few film-makers have tried making films on such topics. Zoya Akhtar tried exploring into this world with her debut film 'Luck By Chance', which got critical acclaim but failed to meet its expected level at the box office. 'Bollywood Diaries' also seems to be one such film which displays the dreams and passion related to the struggle of all those people. There are some expectations related to this film as the songs and promo both look appealing. Sadly, there is no big face attached to the film due to which the expectation level gets diluted.
Story
'Bollywood Diaries', is a story of Imli (Raima Sen) (A prostitute who dreams of becoming a top heroine), Rohit (Salim Diwan) (A call center employee who keeps trying his luck by giving multiple auditions to directors and reality shows)and Vishnu (Ashish Vidyarthi) (who after his retirement wants to go to Mumbai and try his luck as an actor). The movie deals with all the hardship and struggle these three deal with in order to pursue their passion of becoming an actor.
Positive Points
The story is different and has been presented in an intriguing manner. The story of Ashish Vidhayarthi and Salim Diwan manages to keep your interest alive in the film. There are many good scenes related to both these actors which will keep you glued to your seat. Music by Vipin Patwa is superb. Songs such as 'Titli', 'Mann Ka Mirga' and 'Manwa Behrupiya' are outstanding. Writer director K.D Satyam narrates an unusual tale related to madness for cinema. He comes up with different and never seen tales, which highly works in the favour of the film.
Raima Sen looks stunning and does full justice to her role. Ashish Vidhyarthi is simply outstanding. Salim Diwan is perfect for his screen role and shines out in those scenes. Karuna Pandey, Vineet Kumar Singh lend good support.
Negative Points
The narrative pattern is slow in the first half, the story also takes time to connect. Raima's track in less engaging and predictable in comparison to others. The climax is dragging and over stretched. Connect between these three characters keeps fading in and out. The movie ends up being very dark and depressing. Scenes such as Ashish Vidhyarthi doing all sorts of Poojas to get reborn in a big celebrity’s house, Salim's over the top reaction in the finale and a few more are over the top. Raima Sen's character required more detailing. At many times the passion of these protagonists seemed fake and artificial.
Two Line Review
'Bollywood Diaries' is dark and lacks the star value. But is a decent watch for all those who like such small meaningful films.