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By Joginder Tuteja, December 8, 2008 - 11:57 IST
MOVIE DETAILS
Cast: Introducing Farhan Akhtar & Prachi Desai, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Luke Kenny, Shahana Goswami
Director: Abhishek Kapoor
Producer: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar
Music: Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyrics: Javed Akhtar
THE FILM
Now this is one film which really-really surprised. Frankly, not many out there were optimistic about the film's run till the day of its release. The promotion was relatively low key, the (rock) genre unexplored, the hype around a debutant actor (Farhan Akhtar) being subdued, the music (Shankar Ehsaan Loy) meeting with a mixed response, not many aware about the subject of the film, the director coming with a 'flop' tag (after Aryan - The Unbreakable)! The odds were pretty much against the film.
And then the first show of the film commenced and everything just changed about Rock On. The entire perception factor went for a toss and the very same factors which were seemingly against it turned added on to the list of the positives.
Low key promotion meant that audience was surprised with what they saw since they didn't go with too many expectations, the freshness of a new genre drove audience in hordes, Farhan making an unannounced entry meant that his performance came across as a 'bandh muththi', music turned out to be a rage as it was THE narrative rather than a part of it, the subject ended up reminding patrons of Dil Chahta Hai and Jhankaar Beats, Abhishek Kapoor, the film's director was reborn and lo, Rock On suddenly found itself being one of the top contestants for India's nomination for Oscars. Of course, Taare Zameen Par ended up being the chosen one but a journey from obscurity to being in the shortlist for the highest honor was something that would have pleasantly surprised even the makers!
If Abhishek Kapoor has to be lauded for some excellent direction that made audience laugh, cry as well as sing along at numerous junctures of Rock On, the actors deserve a pat on the back as well. Farhan Akhtar proves in his very first outing that he is a very good actor with certain naturalness to his performance. He will be seen in many more movies to come. On the other hand, Arjun Rampal is a revelation as he shows the sensitive side of his. Purab Kohli is likeable as well while Luke Kenny shows that how an actor can create a space for himself with sheer performance in spite of the name coming last in the credits. Same holds good for Shahana Goswami and Prachi Desai as well who are bound to have a good future ahead.
To the film's credit, it did bring in good bucks as well. The film about four youngsters who come together to form a band, only to end up separating from each other due to circumstances where no one could be placed as right or wrong. Rock On enjoyed repeat audience for itself, something which is a rarity in current times. Of course, the usual adage of 'this is movie only for urban centers' is attached to Rock On as well but then 90% of the movies that cater to so-called A, B or C centers are seen falling left, right and centers. Looking at the fate of such films, one can't help but only appreciate the efforts of the people behind Rock On who at least showed conviction in putting together a tale, the narrative of which was truly experimental but a fruitful one at that.
PACKAGING
The DVD comes in an attractive thick paper packaging that gives a classy feel to the product, just like the film. There is also an exclusive note by Abhishek Kapoor on the DVD cover.
DURATION
The film comes in a two DVD pack with the film's duration being 144 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Audio commentary with Abhishek Kapoor, Farhan Akhtar and Jason West [DOP]
- The Making Of Rock On
- 'Pichle Saat Dino Mein' music video
- Bonus Tracks - 'Zehreelay', 'Dandia', 'Musafir' [Radio Band], 'A New Day' [Shaa'ir + Func]
- Deleted Scenes
- Karaoke Tracks For All Songs
- Mobile downloads
Rock On's DVD is a complete package as it gets so much stuffed in it for a viewer to relish. The entire 'audio commentary' is a delight to hear as Abhishek Kapoor, Farhan Akhtar and Jason West come together to talk about the movie. And no, they don't get into self congratulatory calls or pat on each other's back, as witnessed in quite a few audio commentaries where film makers are simply in love with their film. Instead, the three merely have a chat with each other, a jovial one at that, where as a viewer you seem to be pretty much involved with them, something which is akin to sharing a mug of coffee as you chat away about the film.
There are quite a few anecdotes that are shared in the commentary section. An error in lighting during the picturisation of a song has been showcased as a special effect during the filming, Purab has been shown to be bullying Luke on screen when the fact is that he was the butt of everyone's jokes, Farhan's comment on Luke being almost angelic with just a halo missing from the top, his dig upon himself with the body display during the shower scene being a VFX in play etc. What is also revealed is many a cameo by the crew members on screen as well, most notably being Abhishek Kapoor himself who appears during a rock concert! Also, one of the best made points is around editor Deepa Bhatia smartly juxtaposing the flashback scenes with the current times and rotating the actors in a way that the jump is always on a different character! Play the commentary section and you would certainly not be disappointed!
'Making of Rock On' is an interesting section as well since the cast and crew refrains from getting into the standard interview mode. Instead there is quite a lot of behind-the-scenes footage shown that makes for an engaging viewing. Of course the cast and crew does talk about the film as well but it is more about an experience sharing and the effort that went into making Rock On a unique experience rather than 'how we loved working with so and so actor'. Watch out for some friendly banter in this section as well that adds on to the 'paisa vasool' quotient of Rock On DVD.
But wait, there is more to come! The promotional music video of 'Pichle Saat Dino Mein' has been added on in the film's DVD. As also the full length version of songs like 'Zehreelay', 'Dandia', 'Musafir' [Radio Band], 'A New Day' [Shaa'ir + Func] - the ones that only appeared in bits and pieces in the film. The one that makes the most impression here is 'Musafir' which was missed during the film as well. Remember the song which was picturised on the young boys towards the climax of the film before the band 'Magik' started spinning its magic?
There are 10 minutes of deleted scenes in the movie as well and the unique factor about this segment is that snippets from the scene preceding and following these deleted scenes have been added as well to give audience a complete context of the scene. So there are extended versions of the scenes where Farhan looks at a bunch of youngsters having fun as he drives away in his car, Shahana looks at Arjun teaching their son how to play a guitar, Luke sees his phone ringing away, some romantic moments between Farhan and his girlfriend and a lot more. However, let's admit it, except for the one where Farhan's transition into a businessman is shown (especially after his claim that his dad would be able to make him wear a 3 piece suit only after his death) these scenes are best left edited since presence of most of them wouldn't have made any difference to the film's narrative!
For those who fell in love with the film's songs, there is an option of singing along with the Karaoke tracks for all songs. The subtitles appear as well to facilitate the good experience further. In addition, ring tone download details for each of the songs across all mobile networks ensures that the popularity of the songs is kept alive for months to come.
TECHNICAL DETAILS
- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo
PRICE
Rs. 399/=
CONCLUSION
Rock On is a film that clearly stands today as one of the best films to have come out of Bollywood in the year 2008. While it is comfortably placed as amongst the Top-5 of the year when it comes to audience liking, it won't be surprising to see it as one amongst the Top-3 as well when the awards come calling down early next year. A film which was pure, unadulterated, came with wholesome entertainment quotient and yet wasn't frivolous at all, Rock On brings with it sheer class that has been abandoned by many a film makers in pursuit of mega bucks.
 
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