Chammak Challo--full on!

Clearly on yesterday's post, I spoke too soon because here is a full 90 second promo of "Chammak Challo" from Ra.One!

Ok so I can't be the only one who's first reaction to this preview was "WTF." That Bharatnatyam by Shahrukh at the beginning really threw me off...and actually kind of scared me. But I quickly got over it because the rest of the promo is AWESOME.

I stand by pretty much everything I said about the 15 second teaser in my previous post. SRK and Kareena both look divine. I'm still getting used to the choreography of the whole thing but, hey, at least it's interesting.

Now on to the big issue--the lip synching. I admit, it's a little weird. Akon's voice doesn't really match Shahrukh...EXCEPT for the Hindi portions, which really do work. And by the time you get to the (extremely well pronounced) Hindi, you forget that SRK really just said "shawty." I do think it would've been best if Akon made an actual appearance in the song though. Also, where did the female voice come from? That definitely was not in the leaked version! I like it though. The female voice meshes with Akon's really well.

My favorite part of the trailer was what it revealed about Ra.One as a whole--it's actually going to be funny! That's something I wasn't really expecting. But this trailer shows that the movie is definitely going to have its goofy moments. And goofy is something Shahrukh definitely does best.

Ra.One: The Shortest Teaser Ever

Here's a teaser in true teaser fashion--a mere 15 second glimpse into arguably the most hyped up song (and movie) of the year. An early version of "Chammak Challo," sung by Akon, was leaked on the Internet a few months ago and ever since then, we've all been dying to know exactly how the song will be picturized. So it's only 15 seconds. At least it's something.

My first thought upon watching this (besides watching the time quickly run down) was how completely breathtaking Kareena looks. I was pretty surprised at the Indian-ness of her get-up. But her traditional look is so sexy! Then of course there's SRK, who looks as dashing as ever. We don't get a close up of him, but his hair is perfection. Seriously.

One of the things I was concerned about when "Chammak Challo" leaked was whether Shahrukh would actually be lip synching to the song--and how ridiculous that would be. From this trailer, it kind of seems like he is lip synching to it, but somehow it's not that bad! And on an unrelated note, the beat of this song is totally hot.

As time goes on, I'm feeling better and better about Ra.One. =D

An interesting forthcoming documentary

As an avid Bollywood fan, I admit that I tend to focus most of my attention on mainstream films and artists. Let's take a quick break from gushing about Mausam or counting down to Mere Brother Ki Dulhan and appreciate this upcoming documentary, called The Bollywood Project.

The film is currently in post-production stages, so it might be a while before we're actually able to watch it. The movie will take us behind the scenes and into the the lives of four Bollywood industry workers: a minor actor, a union leader, a makeup artist, and a backup dancer.

I hope the movie gets the money it needs to be completed, because it really would be nice to get an unbiased look into the industry we all know and love. Click here for an article about the film, and a trailer. What do you think? 

Hi! Magazine needs to say BYE to its photographer

Okay, not that I know anything about photography, but how does one manage to make such beautiful people look so hideous? Well Hi! Magazine can surely tell you how. I'm not sure if it's bad photography or bad photoshopping or even just bad makeup/styling to blame for this, but these August covers are not okay. First up is Saif Ali Khan on the cover of Hi! Blitz:

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The usually hunky and dashing Saif looks almost sickly in this picture. With a headline proclaiming that he's "back" he sure doesn't look happy to be so. The white background makes his skin look deathly pale (did the dementors get to him?) and that bad haircut isn't helping things. Add that not-so-sexy smouldering expression to the mix, and Saif pretty much looks like a creature of the night. Or an alcoholic that hasn't bothered to bathe in a while (Slouch some more, will you? It's really helping.).

Yeah, I'm definitely being way too harsh on one of my favorite actors in the industry but I'm not blaming him! I'm blaming the magazine for putting out this atrocious photo. That plain red shirt also looks like the magazine took their styling cues from the dying Aman of KHNH. 

Oh Saifu, don't worry, we know you're better than this! But, please, that haircut needs to go.

Then there's Sonali Bendre. Remember that bombshell beauty that never really made it that big even though she was absolutely gorgeous? She's 36 now (the last time we saw her was in KHNH about 7 years ago) but still shouldn't look this bad on the cover of Hi! Living:

First of all, that outfit is gorgeous and Sonali of all people should've been able to rock it. But it's not her fault that this is clearly a bad angle (Tyra would tell her to "find her light") and a botched photoshop job.

Seriously, why would you do that to her face? She looks kind of demonic and literally does not look like herself. I thought photoshop and airbrushing technology existed to "enhance" people's natural beauty (aka make them look better). This is a great example of when not to photoshop--Sonali is a natural beauty. Leave her alone! I realize that every photo probably needs a bit of alteration to reach today's impossible standards but this is ridiculous. Do these editors not have eyes?

Sonali, sign up for a new film and show the world how beautiful you really are.

As a side thought, are these even "original" Hi! Magazine pictures? We all know that magazines tend to recycle old pictures (especially magazines that aren't totally top tier) so maybe these pictures aren't actually Hi! Magazine's doing. In which case, the magazine fails even more. Why would you willingly choose these photos?