Time of India - Nikhat Kazmi

Direction: Chandan Arora
Duration: 2 hours
Critic's Rating:***

Story: Surya grows up as a skilled carrom player in the ghetto of Malvani, a Mumbai suburb which has remained free from communal tension, until December 1992. Chasing his dreams to lead a life free from crime, Surya watches his idyllic locality fall apart to the greed of local goons who are in league with corrupt cops. He fights back.


Movie Review: Okay, so this film does go back in time and picks up a story from Mumbai's dark night that followed the demolition of the Babri mosque on December 6, 1992. Under ordinary circumstances, it might have seemed dated. But today, with the city warding off another divisive and equally dark night that's dangerously looming on the horizon, this time due to the scourge of regionalism, Chandan Arora's Striker, acquires a whole new meaning. Don't divide our city, all you goons, goondas, politicos and administrators, it cries out aloud, through its moving tale of two young lads -- one Hindu, one Muslim -- who try to lead a life of normalcy, despite the shadow of crime and communalism. Childhood buddies, Surya (Siddharth) and Zaid (Ankur Vikal) not only end up toasting the undying bond of friendship, they also salute the spirit of communal harmony, characteristic of their city, through their carefree camaraderie.

But the real hero of the film is Malvani, the ghetto where the two grow up and dream of escape. The director captures the area with artistic detail and an edgy urgency that brings to life another compelling cameo of Mumbai, India's Maximum City. The crummy interiors of the claustrophobic dwellings where families may be low on money, but not on love and the violent alleys where death lurks round the corner in the guise of a naked sword, all coalesce as a perfect backdrop for the young and rebellious Surya to come of age. Although he discovers his skills at carrom at a young age, Surya first tries to find life beyond the grimy, crime-infested carrom clubs that dot Malvani. He wants to get away from the mach-mach (confusion) and make money in not-so-distant Dubai. But when an agent dupes him of his hard-earned money, he's forced to find sustenance in Jaleel's (Aditya Pancholi), the local goonda, carrom clubs where it isn't the striker alone that's at stake. Life's a risky business too, specially since Jaleel wants to take advantage of the communal tension rampant in the city to play his local politics.

Director Chandan Arora has already proved his desire to make different cinema with his earlier two ventures: Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon and Main, Meri Patni aur Woh. With Striker he continues to successfully strike out for new grounds. The high point of the film is its authenticity, its heartwarming tale and its performances. Siddharth's Surya is a fine follow-up act to his Rang De Basanti's new age revolutionary. Others to watch out for are Aditya Pancholi who reinvents himself as the local goon, Ankur Vikal, as Zaid, the spaced-out bird on a wire, Vidya Malvade as the understanding elder sister and Padmapriya, the tart with a heart.

Don't believe the lack lustre promos. The film has more meat -- and meaning -- than it promises.

Rajendra Prasad is playing a key role in Siddharth starrer Bava that is produced by ML Padma Kumar Chowdary and directed by Rambabu.

It is a pure love story that has a bit of naughtiness and romance. The scenes between Siddharth and Rajendra Prasad is going to be very touching says the filmmaker. The word Bava has a lot of sweetness in it and every frame would appear as a piece of painting. Music by Chakri and cinematography by Aravind Krishna.

Kannada heroine Pranitha and Kriti Kharbandha (of Boni fame) are strong contenders for Siddharth starrer Bava produced by Padma Kumar Chowdary ML, presented by Sandeep and directed by Rambabu.

Cinegoer

Chandan Arora's STRIKER may not be your typical Bollywood masala fare, but it certainly has what it takes to appeal to the Hindi film audience, and this confidence emanated from none other than the lead actor, Siddharth, while talking to India's leading trade expert.

While replying to a query as to why he chose Chandan Arora as the director of his launch as a solo hero in Bollywood, Siddharth replied that he was very happy and lucky to have Chandan as his director, and felt that working with the director of MAIN MADHURI DIXIT BANNA CHAHTI HOON and MAIN MERI PATNI AUR WOH has been an organic experience for him. Siddharth went on to term STRIKER as a classic, but humbly added that the fact that he has termed his own film a classic may sound arrogant, but that is because he had seen the film and hence the confidence!. He also made a proclamation (which he says might sound pompous!) saying that when his career will be analyzed in the future, STRIKER will be counted as the film which made him!

Well, that's called confidence, and after an incredible success rate of nine out of ten solo hits down south, its time for Siddharth to strike and make it a tenth with STRIKER, which is all set to release this Friday.

Glamsham

Cinemax held the premiere of Chandan Arora's upcoming film Striker, on Wednesday night. Siddharth, the film's lead actor, interacted with media and the fans, and there were quite a few others who had graced the red carpet.

Priyamani, Ravi Teja, Sunil, Nikhil and Suresh Babu were among the celebrities spotted at the glitzy do.

The movie is set in a Bombay slum Malwani in the mid '80s, where a young carom aficionado gets drawn into the sleazy underworld that causes much misery to his family as well. Striker is based on a real life story.

Apart from Siddharth, Striker also stars Aditya Pancholi, Padma Priya, Seema Biswas, Anupam Kher, Ankur Vikal, Vidya Malvade and Anoop Soni. [FullHyderabad]

Candids from the event can now be found in the gallery

Fortunately for us, Siddharth was not completely alien to playing carrom. He's played carrom while growing up with his family and friends like most of us. Whenever we were shooting the carrom sequences, we were shooting with actual carrom players and it was here that he had to make sure that he was on par with them in terms of getting the whole body language and mannerisms right. He worked really hard with a carrom coach that he had and used to keep practicing in between shots. The results are there for all to see.

Siddharth