Maska | |
---|---|
Directed by | Neeraj Udhwani |
Written by | Ishita Moitra Neeraj Udhwani |
Produced by | Seher Latif Shivani Saran |
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Eeshit Narain |
Edited by | Farooq Hundekar |
Music by | Akshay Raheja Mikey McCleary Ketan Sodha |
Production company | Mutant Films [1] |
Distributed by | Netflix |
Release date |
|
Running time | 112 minutes [2] |
Country | India |
Language | Hindi |
Maska is a 2020 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Neeraj Udhwani. [3] It stars Manisha Koirala, Javed Jaffrey, Nikita Dutta, Prit Kamani and debutant Shirley Setia. [4] The film follows a guy who sets out to fulfil his dream of becoming an actor until he meets a girl who helps him discover the reality. [5] Maska was released on Netflix on 27 March 2020. [6]
Rumi Irani is the successor of Rustom Irani, his father, who used to run the Rustom Cafe, in South Mumbai. His mother, Diana Irani, runs the cafe with basic menus. After the death of his father, Diana is hopeful of Rumi taking over the business and revamping it, when he completes his undergraduate studies. One day, he wins the Mr. Feroz Shah Bag award, alongside Persis Mistry, who wins the Ms. Feroz Shah Bag Award. There, he develops a passion for becoming an actor. He enrolls himself in an acting school and starts a relationship with his fellow acting peer, Mallika, a Punjabi divorcee.
On their graduation day, Rumi does not get the Best Actor award that he had anticipated of winning. Whereas, Mallika receives the Best Actress award. She convinces Rumi into a live-in relationship, and Rumi takes her to introduce his mother, who immediately disapproves her, for being a divorcee. She also tells him that he would not have her blessing, if he wishes to proceed with the relationship. In desperation, Rumi sells his father's watch and flees with the money.
He starts living in Andheri, with Mallika, and starts giving auditions. His acting, not being up to the mark, is rejected everywhere. Meanwhile, Mallika gets the lead role in a web series. Fed up, Rumi is about to get over his dream, when he learns about a director, who does not have funds for a film he wants to make. Anybody who brings him enough funds, will be the main lead for the film. Desperate of landing the lead role, Rumi decides to sell his father's cafe. Meanwhile, Persis is making a coffee table book on the Irani cafes of Mumbai. She spends time with Rumi, as she does her research and writing, in his cafe. She eventually falls in love with him and asks him to take her virginity. Hesitating, he decides to accept her proposal. Later, they make love at his cafe.
When the day of the sale of the cafe arrives, Diana gets to know about why he came back from Andheri. She signs the papers, transferring the power of the attorney to him, allowing him to sell the cafe, legally. At the time of the deal, he changes his mind and decides to give up his dream of acting, as it was only a delusion. He breaks up with Mallika and reconciles with Persis. Later, along with Diana, the both of them are seen celebrating the centenary of the cafe with Boman Irani, as their chief guest.
Maska | |
---|---|
Soundtrack album by Akshay Raheja, Mikey McCleary and Ketan Sodha | |
Released | 16 March 2020 |
Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
Length | 12:51 |
Language | Hindi |
Label | Netflix |
The soundtrack album is composed by Akshay Raheja, Mikey McCleary and Ketan Sodha with lyrics written by IP Singh, Mikey McCleary, Shirley Setia, Jonita Gandhi and Neeraj Udhwani. [8]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Singer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Majja Ma Re Tu" | IP Singh | Akshay Raheja | IP Singh | 01:32 |
2. | "Down on the Street" | Mikey McCleary, Enkore | Mikey McCleary | Mikey McCleary, Enkore | 03:07 |
3. | "I Wanna Hang With You" | IP Singh, Shirley Setia | Akshay Raheja | IP Singh, Shirley Setia | 02:15 |
4. | "Chuney Chuney" | Jonita Gandhi | Ketan Sodha | Jonita Gandhi | 03:11 |
5. | "Back To You" | Neeraj Udhwani | Mikey McCleary | Mikey McCleary, Neeraj Udhwani | 02:44 |
Total length: | 12:51 |
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 17% of 6 critics' reviews are positive. [9] The Indian Express's Shubhra Gupta in her two star review wrote, "The best parts of Maska are filled with food, the cooking and eating of it: the textures of baking fresh bread, the buttery ooze of the maska, the other classic dishes you may find in an Irani establishment, and the golden lights that fill up the kitchen." [10] Rohan Naahar writing for Hindustan Times stated, "The film has such as an endearing charm that it becomes virtually impossible to hold a grudge against it, even when you realise that Maska (like the hundreds of chefs who’ve tried to mimic Manish Mehrotra’s Daulat Ki Chaat) is essentially scene-for-scene rip-off of the 2009 film Today’s Special, starring Aasif Mandvi and Naseeruddin Shah. [11]
Vibha Maru of India Today wrote, "Maska is an age-old-story told in the most colourful way. Manisha and Jaaved's shoulders bear the burden of the entire film. Watch the film for them, they will make you miss your parents a little less and get through this time in quarantine." [12] The Hindu's Namrata Joshi wrote, "In these home-bound times, the film does leave you feeling nostalgic for old Mumbai houses you used to encounter on walks. Most of all, it ignites a craving for those soft buns slathered with mounds of butter and the extra sweet tea at Irani cafés. And also those small cups of Bournvita, tea and coffee sold on cycle-carts late into the night and the wee hours of the morning in a city that never sleeps. Rather never used to sleep. Hope it soon wakes up again." [13] The New Indian Express's Sudhir Srinivasan stated, "Given its deceptively interesting beginnings, you’d never guess how low Maska would go on to fall. The conflict is straightforward and one milked for decades in our cinema." [7]
Manisha Koirala is a Nepali actress who works in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi and Tamil. Known for her work in both commercial and independent cinema, she is the recipient of several accolades, including three Filmfare Awards and one Filmfare Awards South. In 2001, the Government of Nepal awarded her with the Order of Gorkha Dakshina Bahu.
1942: A Love Story, also known as 1942 A Love Story, is a 1994 Indian Hindi-language patriotic romantic drama film, directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. It stars Anil Kapoor, Manisha Koirala and Jackie Shroff, with Anupam Kher, Danny Denzongpa, Pran and Brian Glover. The film revolves around lovers Naren (Kapoor) and Rajjo (Koirala), who come from contrasting family backgrounds and depicts how their relationship is threatened owing to the outbreak of the Indian revolutionary movement.
Syed Jaaved Ahmed Jaffrey is an Indian actor, dancer, and comedian who has appeared in Hindi films and television shows. He is the son of the comedian Jagdeep. He joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in March, 2014 and contested the 2014 Indian general election from the Lucknow constituency, finishing fifth.
Calcutta Mail is a 2003 Indian action thriller film starring Anil Kapoor, Rani Mukerji and Manisha Koirala. It was directed by Sudhir Mishra. The film is a remake of the 1998 Telugu film Choodalani Vundi.
Maharaja is a 1998 Indian Hindi superhero film directed by Anil Sharma. It stars Govinda and Manisha Koirala in the title roles. It is about the struggle of a prince with supernatural powers to get his kingdom back.
Dhanwaan (transl. Wealthy) is a 1993 Indian Hindi-language romance film directed by K. Vishwanath. Ajay Devgan, Manisha Koirala, Karishma Kapoor, Avinash Wadhawan are in lead roles.
Chaahat – Ek Nasha is a 2005 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Jai Prakash. It premiered on 11 February 2005. The film stars Manisha Koirala, Sharad Kapoor, Aryan Vaid and Preeti Jhangiani.
Irani cafés are Iranian-style cafés in the Indian subcontinent. They were originally opened by Zoroastrian Irani immigrants to British India in the 19th century, fleeing Safavid persecution or looking for better economic prospects. In India, Mumbai, Pune and Hyderabad boast a number of Irani cafés, which are very popular for Irani chai (tea). In the 1950s, there were 350 Irani cafés; today, only 25 remain. Karachi, Pakistan, was also home to many Irani cafés.
Daddy Cool is a 2009 Bollywood comedy film directed by K. Murali Mohana Rao and cinematography by T. Surendra Reddy. The film stars Sunil Shetty, Jaaved Jaaferi, Aashish Chaudhary, Aftab Shivdasani and Aarti Chabria amongst many others. The story is based on the crazy things that happen all in one day at one funeral. It is an unofficial adaptation of the 2007 British-American comedy Death at a Funeral.
Elektra is a 2010 Malayalam psychological drama film co-written and directed by Shyamaprasad, starring Nayanthara, Manisha Koirala, Prakash Raj, Biju Menon, and Skanda Ashok. It was produced by N. B. Vindhyan, who also produced Shyamaprasad's Ore Kadal.
Do Paise Ki Dhoop, Chaar Aane Ki Baarish is a 2009 Indian film written and directed by Deepti Naval, starring Manisha Koirala, Rajit Kapur and Sanaj Naval.
Jajantaram Mamantaram is a 2003 Indian fantasy action comedy film written and directed by Soumitra Ranade and produced by Arunima Roy. The film is based on Jonathan Swift's 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels.
Manisha Koirala is a Nepalese actress known for her work in Hindi and Tamil films.
Nikita Dutta is an Indian actress who primarily works in Hindi films and television. After participating in Femina Miss India 2012, she made her acting debut with the romantic drama Lekar Hum Deewana Dil (2014). Dutta made her television debut with Dream Girl (2015) and achieved recognition with Ek Duje Ke Vaaste (2016).
Shirley Setia is a New Zealand singer and actress known for her work in the Indian film and music industries.
Nikamma (transl. Useless) is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language action comedy film directed by Sabbir Khan. It is a remake of the 2017 Telugu film Middle Class Abbayi and stars Abhimanyu Dassani, Shirley Setia and Shilpa Shetty. Nikamma was released theatrically on 17 June 2022 and received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics and audience. The film was also a box-office bomb.
Meezaan Jafri is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. The son of actor Jaaved Jaaferi and grandson of comedian Jagdeep, he made his acting debut in Malaal (2019), which earned him critical praise for his performance. Jafri has since starred in Hungama 2 (2021) and Yaariyan 2 (2023).
Escaype Live is an 2022 Indian Hindi-language television series created and directed by Siddharth Kumar Tewary. It is written by Jaya Misra and Siddharth Kumar Tewary, with dialogues by Vinod Sharma, Amol Surve and Ranveer Pratap Singh. Produced by Siddharth Kumar Tewary under the banner of One Life Studios, the series stars Siddharth, Jaaved Jaaferi, Shweta Tripathi, Sumedh Mudgalkar, Waluscha De Sousa, Plabita Borthakur and Ritvik Sahore. Escaype Live 9 episodes were launched on Disney+Hotstar in two instalments within a week of each other. Episode 1- 7 were dropped on 20 May 2022 and the two - part finale a week later, thereby successfully engaging their viewers and building curiosity over its content within the week.
Jaadugar (transl. Magician) is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language sports drama film directed by Sameer Saxena and written by Biswapati Sarkar and produced under the banner of the new established Production company Posham Pa Pictures. The film features Jitendra Kumar and Arushi Sharma in the lead role, alongside Jaaved Jaaferi.
Neeraj Udhwani is an Indian screenwriter and film director.