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DVD Review |
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By Faridoon Shahryar, October 4, 2008 - 11:23 IST
"Ise kehte hain asli sardaarni...face hai bhola, andar se bum ka gola," sighs Happy Singh while the Egyptian Pyramids squeal with delight. Anees Bazmi's Singh is Kinng is loaded with laughter-ammunition that keeps you in splits for most parts of the film. The DVD of the film (released by Studio 18) is a fine opportunity for you to feast on some expensive Diwali aatishbaazi (if not the Kinng sized entertainment as was promised) which is pretty good till it lasts. And yes, this is arguably the best, all round performance of Akshay Kumar.
Packaging
The cover is designed as if a hard-n-thick gifts pack. The golden photo frame enclosing Akshay-Katrina lacks the polished sheen. There are six picture post cards of various locales in the film like Australia, Egypt and Punjab. But both the size as well as the picture quality isn't impressive. The red Broach worn by Akshay on his turban in the film is a good catch while you shall surely see the Singh is Kinng car sticker staring out of many cars in the days to come.
What's Special?
The making of the film captures the entire process of filming at various locales in Punjab, Egypt and Australia. It gives you an opportunity to delve into the efforts that went into fine tuning several departments like costumes and action. The process of executing the daring sequence of Sonu Sood's jump from a multi story building startles you... with dangerous written all over it. Akshay, apart from giving insight into the mind-space of his character also chides Katrina with 'baby sitting' jokes and makes a perfect clown out of Ranvir Shorey.
The music of Singh is Kinng is its high point. It's melodious, hip-n-massy (simultaneously) and brimming with enormous joy. You can check out what went into making of the music (as well as the picturisation) of four songs 'Bhootni Ke', 'Jee Karda', 'Teri Ore', and 'Bas Ek Kinng'. The fun-n-laughter in the rustic fields of Punjab during 'Bhootni Ke' spills into the mirth-n-merriment of 'Jee Karda', which is shot in the heat-n-grime of Egypt. Although Katrina looks deliriously sensuous in the heart tugging romantic ballad 'Teri Ore' (shot again in Egypt) but when you come to know about the near-50 degree clime, you feel like saluting the glamour business for dishing out such chilled-out-fare in impossible circumstances. 'Bas Ek Kinng' is a Hardkaur favourite for its hip-hop-shakin fusion with Funjabi tadka. Pritam was asked to make a track that is heard over-n-over again. Well, he succeeded for sure (wonder who deserves the real 'credit' though?).
The video quality isn't impressive but this special feature is a testimony to Akshay Kumar's huge popularity overseas. He was there for the promotion of his film prior to its release. The hysteria caused by his presence has to be seen to be believed. The manner in which expatriate Asians reacted on seeing him is a telling statement on the massive popularity of Hindi films in all parts of the world.
- English/ Arabic subtitles
Almost every other film these days has its subtitles in English. But Arabic is a wonderful idea at piercing the middle-eastern market that adores commercial, larger than life escapist Bollywood cinema.
Other Features
- Bas Ek Kinng Remix
- Title track featuring Snoop Dogg
- Teri Ore full song
- Television Promos
- Theatrical trailer
What's Missing?
Deleted Scenes
A very significant part of the DVD of any big film is its special features. Many people have already seen the Making of Singh is Kinng on television and internet. The novelty value that the DVD of the film may have offered is its deleted scenes. But it's missing. The film had run into a controversy and maybe the DVD was an ideal platform to clarify by showing what had been canned earlier but not kept in the final cut.
Technical Details
- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen format
- Running time: 152 minutes
- Dolby Digital 5.1
Is Singh is Kinng a special film?
The plot is wafer thin and it's obvious at the outset that Bazmee-Shah enterprise, don't expect you to go expecting path breaking cinema. One's fine with that, for a vast majority of cine goers prefer 'paisa vasool' entertainment rather than cerebral bhel puri. And Singh is Kinng doesn't disappoint on that front for most parts. It's a simply woven tale of Happy Singh (Akshay Kumar) leaving his pind in Punjab for the blonde beaches of Australia in search of his gangsta-kinng cousin Lucky Singh (Sonu Sood). Break-neck paced circumstances force Happy to take up the mantle of being the Kinng of sardar gangsters. In between there's the overtly sentimental (and done to death) romantic plot with anglicized kudi Soniya (Katrina Kaif) who thinks she's in love with Puneet (Ranvir Shorey). You don't have to be an Einstein to guess where the story heads and you are subjected to a thanda climax as well (which is as tame as a pet puppy).
The best thing about Singh is Kinng is Akshay Kumar who injects life even in the most lifeless of scenes with his deadpan funny rejoinders. It's amazing how he so confidently makes a complete fool of himself and yet gets the maximum "seetees" from the audience. Some of the dialogues are riot-worthy-funny. It's been a long time since we heard coloquial terms like 'Bhasudi ke' or 'Tuchcha' which are commonly used in North India. And to Akshay's credit, the timing of his dialogue delivery is brilliant.
Katrina Kaif looks exquisitely pretty and wears gorgeous dresses. She doesn't have much to do in the acting department (maybe she should check out the Namastey London DVD and realize how an author backed role brings out the best in her as an actress). Most of the supporting cast has delivered competent performances (except for Javed Jaffrey whose Mika act is rather irritating).
Final Verdict
Singh is Kinng DVD is a must for Akshay Kumar fans and lovers of fun filled cinema.
 
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