Articles of Time Bomb - Page 8

Posted: 18 years ago
My Fundays
 
Kay Kay Menon
This young actor has made his name in the hindi film industry with powerful performances in such films as Sarkar and Main, Meri Patni aur Woh

I was born in Kerala but grew up in different parts of Maharashtra. My father had a transferable job, so I was used to shifting base during childhood. I'd keep changing schools — sometimes I was in Pune, at other times in Chandrapur, which is in interior Maharashtra. It used to be quite difficult to adjust to new environments.

I am an only child and used to be very shy. My father loved me a lot and never scolded me, but I was always closer to my mom. I'd play all by myself, going through the usual childhood blues.

I'd do things all by myself — I'd make a car, then make a road on my bed and make sounds like an engine — and that was all I needed to be happy. I liked all sports such as volleyball, cricket, football and I'd play these with a group of friends. But since we kept shifting house, I never developed a strong friendship with anyone. I had no long-term school friends.

I have semi-fond memories of my school days. I was an average student. My English was good but my Hindi was absolutely atrocious. In Pune, I was in a boys' convent, but when I shifted to Chandrapur, I was put in a co-ed school. This came as a culture shock because I wasn't used to seeing girls in class.

In Chandrapur my Hindi improved. Since the beginning of my school life, I always stood first, though I really don't know how it happened. I never tried that hard. There was a tradition that the principal would come into each class and hand out report cards to the first five students and I always featured on this list.

Then on one ocassion, the principal came to give out the report cards but my name was not there on the list. I was taken aback — I had come tenth. After that, I never stood first again.

I remember a classmate of mine in Chandrapur who was very good in Hindi and poor in English. Once, during an exam, he copied from my paper verbatim and obviously, we were caught. Our papers were exactly the same and we were called out and given one slap each!

AS TOLD TO LATA KHUBCHANDANI

 

 

Posted: 18 years ago

although this article is a bit old, (October 30 2005), but its about the serial we all loved so much and whose climax we are most impatiently waiting for. This is a fabulous review on Time Bomb in the Tribune. It proves what a big hit it was in big cities although it could not garner that much TRP's in the small cities.

Sunday, October 30, 2005


Television

Slick but not too original
Randeep Wadehra

Terrorism related movies and telefilms have been in fashion in the West for quite some time now. In India these have arrived a bit late. In the earlier terrorist plots, Libya's Muammar al-Gaddafi used to be the arch villain out to nuke the United States. Now it is Osama Bin Laden's menacing spectre that looms large on the civilised world's horizon. Pakistan and Iraq too feature some thrillers, though Osama remains the star baddie — at least for now. The story of Time Bomb 9/11 begins when the US President is informed about Operation White Light, which would wipe out Osama. In PoK, Osama's son Usman gets to know about the imminent US attack. Osama, Usman and Zafar, Osama's right hand man, escape with a few others. But Zafar has been badly injured in the attack. In India, Varun Awasthi, an ace RAW agent attached to the Agency to Counter Terrorism, or ACT, is on his way to capture a terrorist in a hotel room. He learns of a plot to assassinate the Prime Minister, who is engrossed in fighting off a no-confidence motion against his Government.

Using this as a basic premise, the story line races from one lead to another, one suspect to another and one shootout to another. It is one exciting narrative that has several strings depicted simultaneously in each episode. Since the entire serial describes 24 hours in the real time life of the various characters, one is shown the passage of time during the narrative — one hour of episode time equals one hour of the characters' life too. 24 hours is significant, as that's the time-span within which Osama's cohorts would trigger off the portable nuclear device, nicknamed "dirty bomb", simultaneously in Washington, London, Tel Aviv and New Delhi. Kidnapping of the PM's daughter, exposure of a senior sleuth to radioactive rays during an encounter with the bomb carrying terrorists and close encounters between bad guys and the good ones keeps the viewer on the seat's edge. The denouement is not far off.

There is a bit of symbolism used in the serial. Osama's son Usman rapes Saira after killing her husband. The Kashmiri couple had given shelter to the aliens who pay back in this bestial manner. This is exactly what's happening in Kashmir, Pakistan sponsored terrorists of such diverse nationalities as Sudan, Afghanistan and, of course, Pakistan, have been provided support by a section of Kashmiri separatists.

The characterisation is superb. Varun Awasthi, superbly portrayed by Rajeev Khandelwal, is the action-oriented RAW agent who is rather stingy with words, but explodes into action at a frenetic pace. On the one hand he's fighting the charge of having a hand in the assassination attempt on the PM, and on the other he's trying to save his marriage that's already hit the rocks. He remains steadfastly patriotic. The role of PM Anirudh Prakash has been essayed by the redoubtable Kay Kay Menon. Honest and upright, the PM has to counter the machinations of his opponents, even as he has to keep the chin up on learning of his daughter's abduction.

The best scene is when he tries to convince the leaders of the other three countries that Osama is alive and planning to set off nuclear devices in their capital cities. Their disbelief leaves him dumbstruck. Kay Kay's understated emoting lends authenticity and dignity to the character.

Akashdeep Sehgal as the ruthless and brash Usman is quite convincing. Vallabh Vyas as Osama Bin Laden and Amrita Saluja as Roma Awasthi impress. Camera work is good but Ketan Mehta's direction has done wonders to the quality of the serial. It is slick and absorbing. It's a rare experience to have such an entertainer on our small screens. The only fly in the ointment was the plagiarism controversy raised by Fox Network — part of the 20th Century Fox group. However, the legal spat is over. The fly has been taken out and discarded. At least one fly.

There may be another if Dominique Lapierre & Larry Collins, the authors of Is New York Burning? have been watching the serial's September/October episodes. Some of these look 'inspired' by the best-selling novel. The post-explosion scenario, the spat between Usman and Ashraf over the exploding of the bomb, resulting in the latter's death. Instructions to the police to use special vans fitted with censors to sniff out the bomb and not revel to the public the real purpose behind this hectic search are some of the examples. But then great minds do think alike, what?

Now, this is called a review. The writer has seen the serial from the beginning, so she understands the plot well and seems to have enjoyed it. This Subhash K. Jha never took it seriously.

Posted: 18 years ago

Zee TV's Time Bomb has received an extension, but actor Rajeev Khandelwal is out of the show.

Ketan Mehta, who is currently in charge of the show, will give way to Gulshan Sachdeva (Mehta's last episode will air on November 28th).

The serial will now be shown thrice a week, and each episode will be of 30-minute duration.

But why is Rajeev out? "Judging by his popularity, he should have remained. Well, I did speak to him. But there were some issues and we did not meet at a common point. The story will now revolve around a Punjabi family, and Rajeev doesn't look like a Punju, so it's okay. I am auditioning many people and will zero in on someone in a week." Rajeev says he did not like the role much, and decided not to do it. "The adrenaline didn't flow, and I told Sachdeva then and there."

source TV GuideIndia

Posted: 18 years ago

 

well they r going to perform together i am so exicited

Posted: 18 years ago
Sujal yes, Captain Varun no!
   By: Tushar Joshi
   November 24, 2005

Brand recall: Rajeev Khandelwal

Even though Rajeev Khandelwal is making efforts to get over the Sujal tag, the public thinks otherwise.

A recent study conducted by the first year management students of Welingkar College indicates that audiences favour the actor in mature, romantic roles, and not action parts.

A group of 13 students conducted a research study involving 500 people, including those from the industry, to evaluate the brand value of Rajeev Khandelwal as an actor.

Ashish Kalani, one of the participants involved in the project says, "We not only traced Rajeev's career path, but also looked into the future by giving him suggestions as to what the audience wants from him."

Even though Khandelwal took on the role of Captain Varun in Zee's Time Bomb, viewers still want to see him in fluffy, romantic roles. "The study clearly indicates that Rajeev is more popular as a romantic hero. Viewers want to see the actor in a role similar to Ajay Devgan's, in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam."

Controversies helped

Has his popularity dwindled in the last few months? "Not really, in fact, all the controversies surrounding him have kept him in the limelight, making him more identifiable with the masses." Interestingly, the study also reveals that Rajeev, as an actor, has high recall value.

"Ninety-two per cent of respondents identified the character Sujal, while 74 per cent could only recall Rajeev Khandelwal. That is a high number in television standards, as in most cases, viewers react to screen names and not to people playing them."

More endorsements

Commenting on what the audience expects from the actor, Ashish says, "Fifty-three per cent want him to act as a lead in serials; 24 per cent want him to get into anchoring; while 13 per cent see him endorsing products." What about his relationship with co-star Aamna Shariff? "Yes, most participants want to see him go back to Kasshish (Aamna) and work with her."

After the presentation, Rajeev was impressed, but said he didn't feel such reports really made difference to his career.

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