Fashion

Have been down with cough n cold n fever this weekend. On such days, when I am feeling so blah, I take a dose of my good ole Benadryl, pop a DVD into the player, n just chill out on the sofa under my comforter.

This time, I chose to watch Fashion – the much hyped expose of the fashion and modelling industry by Madhur Bhandarkar. The movie stars Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut, and Mugdha Godse. The movie is good in places, the film drags a bit and could have done with a lot more editing. Having said that, these are the things I liked about the movie:

• Fabulous performances by Priyanka and Kangana. In fact, Kangana has done a really good job, she overshadows everybody else who is sharing the frame with her. One very well-enacted scene was the way she reacts on the ramp when the wardrobe malfunction happens – with a lot of dignity, and then the breakdown off-stage just moments later.
• Good music that does not interfere with the tempo of the film. Mur Jawan is pretty haunting, and Jalwa is pretty good too.
• Nice to see a totally woman-oriented movie 🙂

Where the movie could have been better:

• The movie is about fashion, but the clothes are really atrocious. They could have really shown the people dressed up really well, and showcased some designers. This was a missed opportunity; they could have so done Sex and the City with the clothing. See one especially awful dress below :

• The supporting actors are not very good. Arbaaz Khan who plays Priyanka’s married boyfriend is atrocious. He is wooden throughout. They really should have chosen someone else.
• None of the heroines look like models. Kangana acts well enough to overcome this liability. However, Priyanka should have made some changes to her look. She looks the same as always. She is supposed to have lost weight for this movie- but she still does look bigger than the other girls. Her hairstyle is also too Bollywood. However, I must admit that I am prejudiced against her. The thing is – I.just.don’t.like.Priyanka. I don’t know what it is, she does a decent job in all her movies, there is nothing overtly wrong with her. But somehow, she just doesn’t work for me (and for quite a few of my friends n family as well). Kalyan saw Dostana and his report was “she is not as annoying as she usually is”. He preferred Shilpa Shetty to her ! This is the case with quite a few of my friends as well.
• When talking about so many ills of the fashion industry, the director could have also pulled out some positives. The whole thing was a bit too negative for me.
• How come there was no mention of any eating disorders ? I thought this was one of the major issues affecting models ?

Anyway, the movie was good enough for me not to fall asleep while watching it (even after a Benadryl !), so this does go into the Good to Watch movie category.