Permit me to start with a backstory. Way back in 1990, writer-director Deepak Shivdasani had introduced Nagma opposite Salman Khan in Baaghi: A Rebel for Love. Indeed, it was Shivdasani’s career-best work and a major hit.
Subsequently, he
gonged a hit with Julie some 13 years ago, featuring Neha Dhupia who welcomed
its success with the tangy statement, “Only sex and Shah Rukh Khan sell.” Is
that quote still en vogue? Debatable.
Now to cut to the
sexywaala chase. Shivdasani is back with Julie 2, clearly meant to be an
entirely-unrelated sequel as well as a wink-wink-nudge-nudge slice of erotica.
A hem and a haw, the second parter appears to be an unauthorised, faux biopic
partly sourced from the many ups and as many downs in the life and career
stretch of the now-retired from the movie studio whirligig Nagmaji. Whee.
Raai Laxmi In Julie 2
Hence, the
heroine (Raai Laxmi) is endowed with a killer instinct. Ahem, she doesn’t want
to be a star, she must be a superstar. On attaining ishtardom at the age of 25,
she has no compunctions about announcing that she was a ‘naajaayaz aulad’
(illegititmate child). And she’s uber cool about engaging in an affair with a
south Indian actor – shades of R. Sarathkumar enacted by Ravi Kissan with as
much relish as he would dig into an extra-spicy platter of farsaan.
And there’s the
link-up and break-up with a topnotch cricketer, harking back to Nji’s romance
gone sour with Saurav Ganguly. Reportedly so, check out the Internet guys if
you must.
Anyway in the
year of the exposes of Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and more, the
behind-the-sins look at Bollywood, would seem to have an unplanned relevance.
Does it? Don’t even ask. The screenplay or whatever there is of it, is a
drizzle of melodramatic cliches, those casting ouch rites, body display ops,
a conspiracy theory of sorts and threats of an acid attack.
A still from Julie 2 Featuring Raai Laxmi
And for the icing
on the duh doughnut, check
out the dialogue on the lines, “Yahan sirf body chalta hai, sirf garma garam
body” and “Yahan star banne ka hai toh caaampromize karne ka.” Wazzat!
Granted, that beyond worse chauvinistic gobbledygook is heard in reality, but
to talk about body shaming in a drool-drool, titillating way? Not done, please.
The Bollywood
stereotypes of financiers/producers and boudoir mates are caricatured
hideously. As for the victimised Julie, she just isn’t empathetic enough.
No shades, no nuances.
To her credit,
Raai Laxmi who has featured in several south Indian films, strives to maintain
her poise professionally. Whatever inspired her to make her debut in Bollywood
with J2, is beyond my comprehension.
Raai Laxmi And Ravi Kishan In Julie 2
By the way, if
you feel you’ve heard and seen all this before in Madhur Bhandarkar’s Heroine
(2012), which also leaned on the side of sensationalism, you’d be spot-on. Only
Kareena Kapoor didn’t parachute in and out of itsy-bitsy wardrobe (not
excessively anyway).
Oddly, Julie 2
was described as ‘clean-cut’ by Pahlaj Nihalani, the former chairman of the
Central Board of Film Certification. From which angle sir?
Unsolicited
suggestion: stay in bed.
Image Source: twitter/raailaxmi & youtube/triumphtalkies