Cut the crap, cut the gyan-baazi, cut the will-it-won't-it work naatak.

Shah Rukh Khan and Farah Khan's OM SHANTI OM is a true-blue masala entertainer. If MAIN HOON NA was a chauka, this one hits a sixer! Wait, a word of advice to all netizens/readers across the globe. Don't, for God's sake don't, raise exclamations like kab?, kyun? kahan? as OM SHANTI OM begins to unravel. This is atypical Manmohan Desai film presented in a novel avtaar by Farah Khan. It's definitely not for pseudos or advocates of arthouse cinema. Now let's clear some myths surrounding OM SHANTI OM. Is it the 2007 adaptation of Subhash Ghai's immensely likable reincarnation film KARZ? Does it have traces of KUDRAT? Or MADHUMATI? Or MILAN? Or KARAN ARJUN? Hold on, there's a dash of KARZ, a bit of KARAN ARJUN, a sprinkling of KUDRAT, but beyond that it's a film that makes you nostalgic about 1970s Bollywood. To sum up, OM SHANTI OM is paisa vasool entertainment. We haven't seen SRK in a hardcore masala film since quite some time. He had drifted to other genres, which proved his range as an actor of repute and cemented his status further. With OM SHANTI OM, he gives back to the audience what he himself grew up on -- a thorough entertainer that will have the audience thirsting for more. This Diwali, have a blast! OM SHANTI OM tells the story of Om [Shah Rukh Khan] and Shanti [Deepika Padukone]. Om is a junior artist in the 70s. Shanti is the reigning superstar. He is her biggest fan. He is in love with her. Om dreams of being a superstar, but an incident changes his life forever. Om dies in a mishap, but is reborn into the present day. He attempts to discover the mystery of his demise The general feeling is, Farah Khan has remade Ghai's KARZ from Frame A to Z. False! There're similarities, but it's not a rehashed version of Ghai's film. For, OM SHANTI OM takes you by complete surprise at several points. The first twist in the tale [Arjun - Deepika's heated confrontation, with SRK listening to this important conversation] comes as a bolt from the blue. The second jhatka comes slightly before the intermission, when Arjun takes Deepika to the set of his film 'Om Shanti Om' and the entire episode that follows, right till the intermission, is spellbinding. That's a brilliant stroke from the writing [screenplay: Mushtaq Shaikh and Farah Khan] as also the execution point of view. When the opulent set is set to flames, it leaves you wide-eyed and awe-struck. Such is the impact! The post-interval portions only get better and better! If the initial portions are laced with humour [the premiere of 'Dreamy Girl', the Manoj Kumar episode, Ghai directing Rishi on 'Om Shanti Om' song, et al], the second half moves into a new zone completely. It's punar-janam now, but thankfully, there're no lightening, no fireworks, no zooming of the camera on the idols of Gods. The drama builds up gradually. The voices that SRK keeps hearing, the 'fire' soon after the 'Dard-E-Disco' track, the mother [Kirron Kher], an old lady now, chasing Om's car [reminds you of Raakhee of KARAN ARJUN], the flashes of SRK's earlier birth while receiving the Filmfare Award -- the incidents that make him realize that his life was cut short in his earlier janam have been well structured. When Deepika re-emerges as well, the viewer is confused, but the mystery is resolved towards the end, which, again, takes you by complete surprise. Given the fact that OM SHANTI OM is a Manmohan Desai kind of a film set in the present-day, it would be foolhardy to ask questions, raise eyebrows and look for logic. But the second half could've been crisper [length: 18 reels/2.46 hours], although Shirish Kunder's editing is perfect.

Farah knows what her priorities are and most importantly, knows exactly what her target audience is. The execution of a number of sequences clearly shows Farah's growth as a storyteller. Mushtaq and Farah's writing works because the writers pull out several surprises in those 2.46 hours. V. Manikanandan's cinematography captures the gloss and grandeur to the minutest. The opulent sets [Sabu Cyril] deserve distinction marks. Dialogues [Mayur Puri] are witty and do raise a chuckle at several points. Background score [Sandeep Chowta] is effective. Vishal-Shekhar's music is first-rate. The score is in sync with the content of the film and what accentuate the goingson are the choreography and execution. Although every song is visually enticing, the 21-star track as also 'Dard-EDisco' will have the masses going into a frenzy. Now to the performances! SRK proves his supremacy yet again. If you thought that playing to the gallery came easy to certain actors only, watch SRK spin magic in OM SHANTI OM. He's magnificent, the star attraction, the soul of this film, the true baadshah. Deepika has all it takes to be a top star -- the personality, the looks and yes, she's supremely talented too. Standing in the same frame as SRK and getting it right is no small achievement. She comes as a whiff of fresh air! Arjun Rampal is a complete revelation. Cast in a negative role this time, he enacts his part with panache and style. Shreyas Talpade is another surprise. A complete natural, he stands on his feet all through, not getting swayed while sharing the screen space with the topmost star. Kirron Kher is superb as the over the top mom. Javed Sheikh is alright. Bindu adds to the funny moments. On the whole, OM SHANTI OM is Bollywood masala in its truest form and also, at its best. At the box-office, the film will set new records in days to come and has the power to emerge one of the biggest hits of SRK's career. Blockbuster hit! FILM REVIEW Love and dreams follow two starry-eyed actors across three decades and two incarnations in this splashy Hindi musical. It's the early '70s, 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 '70s. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi The first story draft of Om Shanti Om was written by Farah Khan on Andrew Lloyd Webbers letterhead. Farah had gone to London for the Bollywood-themed musical, Bombay Dreams, in 2002 and was staying in Andrews house. She penned down her thoughts on his letterhead. But she made Main Hoon Naa before Om Shanti Om. The complete screenplay, except for some portions was written by Farah in two weeks flat

Directed by Farah Khan; Produced by Gauri Khan and Red Chilies Entertainment Story: Farah Khan; Screenplay: Mushtaq Sheikh and Farah Khan; Dialogue: Mayur Puri; Lyrics: Javed Akhtar; Music: Vishal-Shekhar; Choreography: Farah Khan; Cinematographer: V. Manikandan; Sound Design: Nakul Kamte; Art Direction: Sabu Cyril; Costumes: Karan Johar, Manish Malhotra, Sanjiv Mulchandani Farah Khans second film as director is an extravagant tribute to the industry she grew up loving, and in which she hasafter the massive success of this filmconfirmed her position as a leading director (becoming the first woman to achieve this stature). Its complex and ingenious storyline manages to simultaneously succeed in three registers: as delicious parody, sincere homage, and (in its own right) powerfully engaging melodrama. Yet to say all this is barely to hint at the delights that OM SHANTI OM (hereafter OSO) offers to Hindi cinephiles. Liberally peppering the screenplay, from the get -go, with allusions to films, stars, and directors of the past, with witty double entendres, and with fullyacknowledged tropes, the director and her team seem to wink at us and declare, Now watch as, through the magic of Hindi cinema, we make you care about these timeworn clichs all over again! That they pull this off, in spades, to the accompaniment of a uniformly memorable score and gorgeous visuals, is an amazing achievement that results in one of the most exuberantly entertaining films in recent memory. generation!) performed by silver-lam suited Rishi Kapoor On the level of narrative, OSO is a story of betrayal, murder, and revenge featuring a and a bevy of item girls atop a giant rotating 33-rpm record, reincarnated hero. Merely to say this, in the Bombay being filmed by director Subhash Ghai (in a Ghai-like cameo cinematic context, immediately brings to mind (at as himself), and with both Farah and Shah Rukh placed least) two watershed predecessors: 1958s among the on-set crowd of adoring fan-extras singing along MADHUMATI, starring Dilip Kumar and with the songs chorus (which is, of course, the mantraVyjayanthimala, the most commercially successful film phrase Om shanti om), and then dissing each other about of the great Bengali director Bimal Roy; and 1980s the unlikelihood of one day becoming, respectively, a KARZ, with Rishi Kapoor and Simi Grewal, one of the director and a starand all this, mind you, in a five-minute biggest hits of Subhash Ghai; indeed, both films are teaser-plus-credit sequence. (Despite the Ghai tribute here, lovingly referenced. The latter was clearly a key text the film confirms that director Khans work so far may fit for director Khan as a youngster, and OSO opens with best in the cinematic lineage of the great Manmohan Desai, an imaginary and digitally-tweaked recreation of the and, as with one of his frenetic multi-starrers, you are well shooting of one of its most celebrated musical advised not to blink during OSOs opening sequence or numbers: the disco extravaganza Mere umar ke (O thereafter.) youths of my The theme of the recurrent recycling of lives and storylinesa reality of the modern film industry that echoes Indian metaphysics and folk narrative continues, and we will soon find our principal characters involved in shooting a spectacular movie titled Om Shanti Om, a drama involving rebirth, the production of which will be aborted and then resumed three decades later by the reincarnation of one of them. Given that the duplicate hero is named, in both births, Om, and is in love with/haunted by a single heroine named Shanti, the title formula acquires yet another layer of meaning.

course, is to Raj Kapoors RK Studios of two decades earlier, and its campus is a wildly nostalgic evocation of the long-dead studio era in Bombay cinema, with fountains, gardens, and gorgeously-lit art-deco buildings and statuary: a pastel-tinted revivification of the Ajanta Studios of Guru Dutts KAAGAZ KE PHOOL (1959).

Hero number one is Om Prakash Makhija (Shahrukh Khan), a peppy, film-smitten junior artist (bit player Om and his indefatigable buddy Pappu (the charming or extra) in a late-70s film factory called RC Studios, Shreyas Talpade) wander blissfully through this theme-park the ostensible site of the soundstage location for the opening KARZ shoot. But the allusion, of course, is to in polyester-mod attire (Oms includes a Desai-like pendant of Hindu, Muslim, and Christian talismans), appearing as Raj Kapoors RK Studios of two decades earlier, and its campus is a wildly nostalgic evocation of the long- extras in parodied filmic scenes, while dreaming of stardom

dead studio era in Bombay cinema, with fountains, gardens, and housefly in Hindi) and he urges him to assume the moniker Kapoor, like that of their idol, the stocky and bouffant-coifed Rajesh Kapoor (Jawed Sheikh).

and, equally improbably, of a match-up for Om with his fantasied girlfriend, the starlet Shanti Priya (radiantly incarnated by newcomer Deepika Padukone, albeit this successful fashion model is a good ten kilos too light for a 70s heroine), and interacting-cum-overacting

But Oms fortunes take a turn when he and Pappu, doubly impersonating Manoj Kumar (who briefly protested this satire of his patriotism and penchant for hiding his face behind one raised hand!), crash the premiere of Shantis new film Dreamy Girl. Becoming entangled in her diaphanous dupatta, Om gets to gaze close-up at his beloved to the accompaniment of the lovely ballad "Ajab si" (In your eyes, theres a strange magic). This is soon followed by the film-within-afilmsong "Dhoom taana," ostensibly from Dreamy Girl, but in fact a tour-de-force of period-parodying choreography and costumes, glittering sets, and digital effects that seamlessly pair Shanti with the appropriately youthful Sunil Dutt, Rajesh Khanna, and Jeetendrawhose place, in dressing-room conversation, that Shanti loves another: the dashing producer Mukesh Mehra (Arjun each sequence, is then assumed in fantasy by the Rampal), an ambitious cad to whom she has unwisely spectatorial Om. given both her heart and her body, though he has kept their marriage a secret in order to pursue a more advantageous engagement to a film-financiers daughter. And when he subsequently saves Shanti from an out-ofcontrol haystack conflagration during an outdoor shoot (recapitulating Sunil Dutts reputed rescue of Nargis on Mehboob Khans MOTHER INDIA set, which led to their love Mehra dreams of making Om OSO as narrative and later marriage), and then convinces her that he is a star and spectacle is such engrossing entertainment that of Tamil cinema (via a hilarious sendup of a Rajnikant-style its pure pleasure seemed, on my first few viewings, to western), she favors him with an evening of her company: overwhelm any critical reflection, yet some intriguing a dream date that he and Pappu mount on a soundstage to subtexts have since come to mind. Farah Khans rise the accompaniment of the romantic "Main agar kahoon" (If from innovative choreographer (e.g., of DIL SE and I say), offering up another lavish bouquet of cinematic numerous other films, and of the London and quotations (including, to my eyes at least, Gene Kellys Broadway musical Bombay Dreams) to leading similar wooing of Debbie Reynolds in SINGIN IN THE RAIN). director, has been brokered by her friend Shah Rukh Khan, whose production company financed both her films. Their close relationship is palpable in the films loving treatment of its star, and one may even detect Too soon, Oms romantic hopes are shattered by the a hint, in the respective incarnations of Om, of SRKs discovery, through an accidentally-overheard own biography: his metamorphosis from a Delhi-based unknown, lacking a film-dynasty pedigree, to King Khan, the dominant male star of Bombay since 1995. Then, too, the films insider Shanti Om, the most lavish Bombay talkie of all time, with a palatial set suggestive of the European baroque (and of Judge Raghunaths mansion in AWARA), but when this is thwarted by Shantis revelation that she is

pregnant with his child, the producer adopts the fiendish strategy of eliminating both her and the set of his now-doomed feature. In the truly breathtaking sequence that ends the first half of the film, Om tries heroically to save her, only to himself expire from multiple injuriesin the very hospital in which superstar Kapoors wife is simultaneously giving birth to a son. Amazingly, the Desai-like climactic collision of wildly improbable coincidence and high tragedy leaves both unscathed, and ready for more action thirty years later, after the Interval. Now, the hapless Om Prakash has become superstar Om Kapoor, a.k.a. ensconced in

Om Prakash Makhija (Shah Rukh Khan) is a junior artist in the 1970s Bollywood film industry. Om's mother, Bela Makhija, herself a junior artist, inspires and encourages her son to succeed. He is in love with film actress Shanti Priya (Deepika Padukone). One evening, Om views the premiere of Shanti's film Dreamy Girl, Om sees the studio burning and attempts to rescue Shanti, posing as Manoj Kumar. Later that night, Om becomes but Mukesh's guards attack him, and he is badly injured. Om drunk and describes his vision of himself as a famous, pursues despite this, and enters the burning building. He sees wealthy film star to Pappu and some local children. Shanti and runs towards her, but an explosion blasts him outside the building. Om is hit by a car owned by Rajesh While at the shooting of a film wherein Om is acting as a Kapoor, a well-known actor who is taking his wife to the scene-extra, he notices Shanti trapped in the middle of a hospital as she is in labour. Rajesh takes Om too, but fire scene where the fire has escaped control. He saves scenes that he subconsciously inherits Om Prakash's her and they become friends. One day, he accidentally overhears the conversation between Shanti and Mukesh memories, as well as his appearance. When making a speech Mehra, a film producer. Om is brutally shocked to learn of acceptance for an award, O.K. unexpectedly recalls the that Mukesh and Shanti had married in secret and that drunken speech that Om Prakash had made to Pappu, and Shanti is about to have a baby. Mukesh Mehra promises delivers the same to the assembly who have awarded him. to do something for Shanti. Pappu listens to O.K.'s speech on television and is One night, Om notices Mukesh escorting Shanti to the convinced that his friend has returned. At a celebration of his set of their soon-to-be-made film Om Shanti Om. Inside, award, O.K. is introduced by his father to Mukesh Mehra, who Mukesh tells Shanti that he will cancel the film, reveal has been producing films in Hollywood for the last twenty five their marriage to the public, and have a grand wedding years. Upon seeing him, O.K. recalls everything. He later reunites with Bela and Pappu and conspires to avenge on the spectacular set. Shanti is pleased, while Om returns, happy for her. However, now it is revealed that Shanti's death by making Mukesh confess his sin. O.K. convinces Mukesh to restart shooting of Om Shanti Om. Mukesh has no intentions of fulfilling his promise. He traps Shanti on the set and sets it on fire. Om succumbs to his injuries in the hospital itself and instantly. After looking at Sandy with confusion, the studio dies. Moments later, a son is born to Lovely and Rajesh, door opens forcefully. O.K. looks back to see Pappu and who is named Om, and implied to be Om Sandy.

Prakash's reincarnation.

Then he realizes this is not Sandy but actually the real Shanti's spirit.O.K. stares at her spirit and sees tears of love in The film then cuts to Om Kapoor's adulthood. her eyes.Om Kapoor reciprocates her love for him.Seeing that Nicknamed O.K., he is a popular movie star and lives he had realised who she was,Shanti returns to her place the extravagant, luxurious life that Om Prakash dreamt where she came from.Sandy apologizes to O.K. because she of. He experiences pyrophobia and it is shown through thought everything was gone in vain,but O.K. comforts her some Pappu and O.K. start a hunt for a girl who act as and says its okay.The film end with welcoming the cast of OM Shanti. The plan is to convince Mukesh that Shanti is SHANTI OM at a studio. haunting the set and scare him, so that he will confess. O.K. finds Sandhya, a.k.a. Sandy, a complete doppelganger of Shanti. Sandy is accordingly trained and the plan is finally put into action. Throughout the film shooting, O.K. and his friends arrange incidents to remind Mukesh of his crime, mostly by giving him startling glimpses of Sandy. However, Mukesh decides to go back to Hollywood. Realizing that Mukesh might try to make a run for it, O.K. tells him that the music launch is going to take place that night. Mukesh reluctantly stays, while O.K. has to make it look real to Mukesh. However, O.K.'s plan hits a snag when Mukesh examines the film reels and notices that something is wrong. During the music launch of the film, O.K. taunts Mukesh by revealing, through a song, the extent to which he knows the story of Shanti's death. Mukesh sees Sandy again, but this time he pursues her. Sandy bleeds after being scratched, thus confirming Mukesh's suspicions that she was not Shanti's ghost. Just as Mukesh is about to walk out, the chandelier nearly collapses on him. After some time, it is revealed that the chandelier didn't fall down fully. O.K. and Mukesh confront each other with their knowledge of each other's actions. An emboldened Mukesh tells O.K. that the charade is over. Mukesh also tells him that to prove that Shanti was murdered, her dead body has to be recovered. Here, Pappu who is listening to the conversation from the studio, tries to run to the set, but gets stuck in the studio itself. Meanwhile, O.K. sees Sandy making an entrance on the stage and confronting Mukesh. O.K. tries to stop her, but she ignores him, revealing that Mukesh came back after the fire extinguished naturally that night. She also tells him that she was still alive when he found her and buried her in the studio right

under where the chandelier is facing now. Mukesh realizes that only Shanti could have known this and attacks her in panic. O.K. enters into a scuffle with him, resulting in a fire on the studio. O.K. somehow fights his pyrophobia and shoots Mukesh in his leg. Just as he is about to kill Mukesh, Sandy stops him. She tells him that Mukesh will pay, but not through his hands. She looks at the chandelier, dangling precariously. The chandelier falls on Mukesh, killing him