Opening Doorz

By Martin D’Souza | Opening Doorz Editorial | November 21, 2016

This may sound funny, almost unreal, but it’s true. Agreed, stars pull in the crowds and rake in the moolah and are the so-called money-spinners of the films they appear in. But there are times when the big stars with their big following are not able to bring in the big bucks because of the weak script. However hard they try, they are not able to rise up above the ordinary. This is when ‘madness’ steps in to raise the standard of the film and give the stars their due. The ‘madness’ that stepped in will modestly admit that it was the star and not ‘madness’ that got the moolah in.

But we, at Opening Doorz beg to differ. It’s time we celebrate the actors who save a sinking ship!

These were the times when the stars were Forced to take a back seat as the ‘madness’ Kicked the fortunes of the film upwards.

Ladies and Gentlemen, presenting Vidyut Jamwal, Tahir Raj Bhasin and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, not necessarily in that order.

A Force to reckon with
Four years ago, Vidyut Jamwal stormed onto the scene with his villainous act in the Nishikant Kamath directed John Abraham-starrer Force.

The script was tight and Johnny boy was doing a good job. But once Vidyut came onto the screen, everything else paled in comparison. I felt a chill down my spine. Never had a villain been portrayed so fearless, so evil and so high on raw exuberance.

Two years later, he came in to salvage Bullett Raja. Slick action, stylish moves and an impressive screen presence. He dwarfed Saif Ali Khan, literally. It was a pity that their fight scenes had to be botched so badly to make Saif emerge the winner; it actually ended up looking silly. With a ‘winning presence’ it’s a pity that Vidyut has not yet gotten his due.

May the force be with you, Mr. Jamwal!

Another force that stormed the screen
Tahir Raj Bhasin is another actor who has excelled in his display of a negative character. First seen in the Rani Mukherjee-Starrer Pradeep Sarkar-directed Mardaani, Bhasin literally saves Force 2 from being a total washout.

John Abraham and Sonakshi Sinha are on the screen alright, but Abhinay Deo has forgotten to arm them with a script. The two end up acting out their scenes as the background score tries in vain to pep up the proceedings. Then, they walk into Shiv (Tahir Raj Bhasin) and then Force 2 begins to resemble its name!

I shudder to think what would have happened if Bhasin and his character were never there. It was a tailor-made role for the young actor who won plaudits for his killer act in Mardaani.

I only hope Bhasin is not typecast in negative roles or else he will end up like Ronit Roy. He should put his foot down and now wait for roles that challenge him, allowing him to satisfy the actor within.

Bhasin, brother, I hope you are listening?

Now, for that maniacal laughter!
If Box Office figures are to be believed, then Kick, released on July 25, 2014, grossed Rs 231.85 crores.

Salman Khan was the hero of that film. But who or what really got those figures rolling in? According to me it was Nawazuddin Siddiqui and his maniacal laughter. Aslam, the character he plays in Kick, is wheeled in to the ER just after the interval. He is declared dead. But Aslam, who has the knack of playing dead for 15 minutes, revives himself and the fortunes of film to bring it alive.

The first half was getting unbearable, Nawazbhai walks in and the rest, as they say, is history. Unlike Vidyut Jamwal and Tahir Raj Bhasin, Nawazuddin has had his struggling years in the industry and is now reaping the fruits of his hard work. Moreover, he has experimented with diverse roles and has come up trumps in every one of them.

Taimur from Talaash, Sonu from Miss Lovely and A Khan from Kahaani got a different shade. Not to mention Dasrath Manjhi from Manjhi, Liak from Badlapur, Raman Raghav from Raman Raghav 2.0 and the many other characters he has portrayed.

Nawazbhai may not admit that his presence in a film makes a difference. He would rather let the bigger names walk away with the credit and concentrate on his performances. But the fact remains, he changed the fortunes of Kick!