~tasha~
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'Salaam-e-Ishq' is just an entertaining ode to love: Advani
By Subhash K. Jha, Mumbai, Feb 10: "Salaam-e-Ishq" was inspired by "Love Actually" just like the editing of his first film "Kal Ho Naa Ho" took tips from "Sidewalks Of New York" and "Sex and the City", confesses director Nikhil Advani.
"I was inspired into making 'Salaam-e-Ishq' after watching 'Love Actually'... just like the editing of my first film 'Kal Ho Naa Ho' was like 'Sidewalks Of New York' and 'Sex and the City'. And the humour of Saif Ali Khan's character was reminiscent of Woody Allen's cinema," Advani told IANS.
"I've said time and again that my film is formatted like 'Love Actually'. But the individual tracks are very different... unless you count the fact that Anil Kapoor is going through a mid-life crisis just like one of the characters in 'Love Actually'."
"Salaam-e-Ishq" has been pretty much an uphill task for Advani, from battling unsavoury stories about disgruntled co-stars to getting his former colleague Karan Johar to dub a line where the super-director introduces himself to Priyanka Chopra who plays a Karan fan.
Advani earlier wanted Karan to make an appearance in the ensemble film, which has Salman Khan-Priyanka Chopra, Akshaye Khanna-Ayesha Takia, Anil-Juhi Chawla, Sohail Khan-Isha Koppiker, John Abraham-Vidya Balan and Govinda-Shannon Esrechowitz. The dates just couldn't be worked out. Finally, he had to be content with his voice.
"In spite of the hurdles, it has been a dream run to the release. Some power has been looking after me. The experience has been exhausting. We shot for 131 days. Since there're six couples and six romances in 'Salaam-e-Ishq', it was virtually like shooting six different films. And yet I'm only two films old and seven films young."
Advani says that two of his themes in "Salaam-e-Ishq" are infatuation and obsession and it doesn't have a social message like "Baabul".
"It doesn't go into deep issues. It's just an entertaining ode to love. In my film love is a problem. The words of the Beatles' 'All you need is love, love is all you need' is my theme."
The film's title is inspired from the chart-busting song "Salaam-e-ishq meri jaan" in Prakash Mehra's "Muqaddar Ka Sikandar".
"It's my wife's favourite song. And this is as much an ode to love as to my love for my wife. When she jokingly suggested it, I immediately registered the title."
Isn't it gimmicky to use a popular song's title?
"I agree. It's also gimmicky to make Shah Rukh Khan run in 'Kal Ho Naa Ho' when he's just out of hospital. The song title provides instant identification with the audience."
Of the vast cast, "Akshaye wanted to play another role initially. I wanted Saif in the project. But he wanted Akshaye's role. Salman's role was written for him. Sohail Khan is like the chipmunk in 'Ice Age'."
His favourite pair in the film?
"Anil and Juhi are so wonderful to watch. I really enjoyed working with them. And the one actor I enjoyed directing the most was Govinda. He's a phenomenon. My film will put him back on the map.
"The stars are not stars in the film. They're all characters. We made 'Salaam-e-Ishq' exactly the way we envisioned it. When Akshaye's shirt was lost one my assistants got one from his home."
Filmmaking process is evolving in Bollywood.
"Every production house is becoming more corporate and professional. I had planned the release in December 2005. Pre-production is the life of any film now."
--- IANS
~tasha~
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Salaam-e-Ishq (romance)
Cast : Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, John Abraham, Vidya Balan, Anil Kapoor, Juhi Chawla, Govinda
Direction : Nikhil Advani
Desperately seeking Edward Scissorhands... Will someone please find a suitable editor for this film and gift it to him on the chopping table. Let him do his gleeful bit and then, maybe then, the film might be about Love, Actually. In its current shape and form, it might just end up as the biggest disappointment of the year due to its sheer length which is in no way justified, neither by the story nor by the performances. The love stories are the most cliched romantic soirees you’d ever witness. Memory loss, accidents, overpowering ambition, commitment phobia, the east-west divide, the seven-year itch: so what’s actually new about these impediments to love? And if it takes nearly four hours for the couples to resolve their oh-so-familiar problems, rest assured, the movie sinks with the sheer weight of its banality.
But hey, for those who like love stories any which way, there are a few tracks to recommend. Primarily, it’s the Govinda and the firang girl (Shannon Esra) affair that stands out the most. There is a sweetness and a freshness in the taxi driver’s unconditional love for his ‘mydom’ who has come all the way from videsh to marry her boyfriend who has deserted her for an Indian wife. Even the ‘mydom’ makes a mark as the fiery American who keeps a jhat-phat Hindi book with her to become sufficiently Hindoostani and ends up giving a delightful speech to her prospective in-laws when love actually dawns.
The other powerful track is the Anil-Juhi relationship which gets stormy as Anil finds a saucy distraction in the local train that takes him home every night. The excitement that’s dissipated from his ‘happily-ever-after’ marriage promises to return in an extra-marital affair, even as a restrained Juhi tries to cope up with infidelity and desertion.
A word on the other tracks... The most irritating affair: the Salman-Priyanka story. Why must Salman insist on using his fake accent with his Hindi dialogues too? The two of them simply ham their way through the film as the item girl and mysterious boyfriend from the past. Add to this, the ghost of Karan Johar which relentlessly breathes down on them, and you wonder why Nikhil Advani must pay such a heavy tribute to his mentor. The most underdeveloped track: the John-Vidya affair with John ending up gaping and gawking, with mouth open, once again (remember Kabul Express) and Vidya playing a de-glamourised, amnesiac wife, dressed in strange attire. The most incoherent track: the Akshaye-Ayesha affair with Akshaye scoring somewhat with his wisecracks and Ayesha being completely wasted as the girl who wants to get married, come what may. Finally, the most irrelevant track: the Sohail-Isha affair where Sohail, as the Haryanvi newly-wed groom who is desperate to consummate his marriage, has a one-word script. Each time he appears on screen, which isn’t too many times, he screams ‘hurr’. A euphemism for sex, Mr Advani?
And yes, somewhere down the excruciatingly long drama, you hear the dhak-dhak of Kal Ho Naa. Ah! the bitter irony of a big debut with a disappointing follow-up. This one’s meant for those who like a load of stars and lots of music and dance, story be damned.
~tasha~
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'Salaam-E-Ishq' Wholesome but Lengthy
The movie begins in a pretty interesting way and the director does a reasonably successful job of introducing each character as the story gains momentum.
Ashuthosh and Tehzeeb (John Abraham and Vidya Balan) are a young married couple deeply in love with each other. Things take a grave turn when Tehzeeb meets with an accident and loses her memory.
Raju Taxiwala (Govinda) a taxi driver from New Delhi lives with the hope that one day his dream "blonde" girl will walk straight into him. And the day does come when Stephanie (Shannon Esrechowitz) arrives in India looking not for Raju but for her boyfriend, who is about to marry an Indian girl.
Shiven and Gia (Akshaye Khanna and Ayesha Takia) are on their way to tie the knot but then Shiven breaks off their engagement having second thoughts about marriage. But soon enough he learns what he has just lost with second thoughts about committing to the relationship he just broke off.
Kkamini (Priyanka Chopra) is the typical girl who dreams big about bagging a role in a Karan Johar movie. She would give anything to make her dream come true but things take a different turn with the unanticipated arrival of her imaginary boyfriend Rahul (Salman Khan).
Vinay Malhotra (Anil Kapoor) realizes its been fifteen long years since he got married to Seema (Juhi Chawla). He finds his life too dull and boring and eventually gets hooked up to an attractive young woman. But soon enough Seema learns about her loving husband's extra-marital affair.
Ramdayal (Sohail Khan) is a village farmer who wants to spend every minute with his wife Phoolvati (Isha Kopikar), fulfilling the lust that has been building between them. But his desires are thwarted by a series of tragically and comically fatal incidents.
With a huge star cast that includes South African actress Shannon Esrechowitz, the movie does fairly well with all the story tracks, some of which get silly at times though.
The stories that feature Akshaye Khanna and Govinda are the most entertaining with the right balance of humour and drama. Akshaye Khanna's performance was simply superb and Govinda is once again back to do what he does best -- making your ribs tickle.
Salaman Khan and Priyanka's story track is a bit dull due to its fictious fairy-tale-style, lacking in reality. John Abraham and Vidya Balan played their characters with ease, while Shannon Esrechowitz was excellent in portraying her role.
Anil Kapoor and Juhi Chawla deliver a fair performance while Sohail Khan's character is quite humorous.
The music composed by trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is simply fabulous with fresh tracks like "Tenu Leke" and "Ya Rabba." I just loved the title track "Salaam-e-Ishq." The cinematography too is commendable.
On a negative note, the movie is a bit too long. In fact, way too long -- almost four hours. Well, cramming six different stories in one single movie is not an easy task. Agreed. But the movie would have done well with a few cuts.
Secondly, the second half of the movie is dull with too many complications. Some scenes go staggering beyond the point, much to the annoyance of the audience.
Unlike his 2003 blockbuster, "Kal Ho Na Ho," director Advani's "Salaam-e-Ishq" leaves little or no impact in terms of touching your heart and stirring your emotions. There are hardly any scenes that tug your feelings.
Neverthless, Advani manages to blend romance, drama and humour into one, thus, bringing wholesome entertainment.
poojasingh
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also funny 
vidya balan ko khuch na kaho yar
gud work
