8x10 Tasveer - why isn't Akki given more props?

This past weekend was a horror/thriller filmfeset. On Saturday, I re-watched the Korean horror classic, A Tale of Two Sisters. Then on Sunday, I watched 8x10 Tasveer. Just wanted to keep in the similar genre. Honestly, I did not hear anything about this film. There was not much publicity and promotion for it.



Jai (Akshay Kumar) has a gift, a special power. If a tasveer (photo) is given to him, he is able to to look at the it and become that person, at that place, at that time. He sees the world through that person's eyes who he enters into.



Having powers is great, right? It could be. But to use it because your father accidently died? Wait, a minute...what if he was murdered? Now, Jai must find the truth!



Akshay Kumar, aka Mr. Khiladi, is in a handful of movies yearly. Does this guy ever take a break? Sadly, with all these films, only a few are memorable. Regardless I think he's awesome. I'm not a huuuge fan of his but I do appreciate his work.



Jai loves his job. He works for the EPS (Environmental Protection Society). He also has powers that not a lot of people are aware of, or would ever believe



Since this film was low budget, I did not pay much attention the cast, except knowing that Akki was in the film. It was a pleasant surprise to see Ayesha in the film! I almost forgot she got married. Thought it was cute she used her marital surname as well :)



Sheila (Ayesha Takia Azmi) is Jai's girlfriend.



Jai keeps having this dream? What does it mean?





Why does Jai keep having these dreams? Must he find out what really happened to his father? It wasn't an "accident" like everyone claimed? Was he murdered? He keeps ending up at his parents' home.



Jatin Puri (Benjamin Gilani) is Jai's father who died on the boat.



Jatin and his business partners were drinking on the boat, Golmaal, when he died.



The last time Jatin was alive. The photograph of the business partners. Jai has to, no, he must enter the photo.



Savitri (Sharmila Tagore), Jai's mother, and one of the last ones to see her husband alive. She was the one who took the picture on the boat. Is she the murderer? Or any part of it?



Sundar (Anant Mahadevan) is one of the business partners and one of the last ones to see Jatin alive. Is he the murderer? Or any part of it?



Anil (Girish Karand) is one of the business partners and one of the last ones to see Jatin alive. Is he the murderer? Or any part of it?



Adit (Rushad Rana) is one of the business partners and one of the last ones to see Jatin alive. Is he the murderer? Or any part of it?

Doesn't he look like Saif, mix in with a little of Sharman Joshi? I looked at his filmography, he was in Super Star? I don't remember him at all.



Happibullah aka Happi, with an I (Javed Jaffrey). Ex-cop who believes that Jatin was murdered. Plus he has a special place for Jatin in his heart since Jatin took him in and helped him when he first came to Canada.



Jai must find the truth! It doesn't hurt to find out, right?



Even though the film had a full soundtrack, only one song made it in the movie. I'm glad it was only one and no more. In addition, it was only a background score.



"Kuchh Is Tarah"
Jai and Sheila, deeply in love













Watch Below



But there is the ending credit, which is also the promotional music video for the film. Song is by Bohemia, with Akki in a hip hop avatar who is looking really yummy.







Watch Below



Overall, I thought it was a very entertaining film that kept me wanting to know what will happen next. I watched it with a few friends and all of them enjoyed it. In addition, I converted a few more Bollywood watchers :)

Now, why isn't Akki given more props? Just because he doesn't play the same roles over and over like some of the other stars doesn't mean he has that star quality. I've always found him underrated. And I stand by that. Still. Mr. Khiladi deserves more than what he is given. Of course, like all stars, he has his share of films to stay away from. But in all, he has variety in his work.

Welcome - mafia comedy

Welcome is a mafia comedy about finding the right mate for Rajiv (Akshay Kumar). Rajiv a bachelor because his uncle Ghunghroo (Paresh Pawal) is still looking for a girl from a decent family due to his promise to his sister before she passed away. Don Uday Shetty (Nana Patekar) is still looking for a good guy to marry his sister Sanjana (Katrina Kaif). Confusion sinks but finally Rajiv and Sanjana get engaged to find out that Ishika (Mallika Sherawat) is engaged to Rajiv already? What is the real deal?

There were so many trailers of Welcome when I went to watch Om Shanti Om and Saawariya in the theater! Definitely looked like a movie I didn't want to waste my money on the big screen so I decided to wait for it on dvd. I have to be in the mood to watch some comedies. A lot of non Desi people I know don't like Indian comedies too much.

Akshay Kumar - I'm liking him more and more. Underrated and sexy. He's a natural at comedies. He used to star in action flicks, then dramas, and now comeides. So versatile. Aaahhh yes, he's an underrated dancer too! The Khiladi No 1. Akki plays Rajiv, the dork (ooops) who is wooed by Sanjana (Katrina Kaif). The glasses and nice outfits make him look a bit like Clark Kent aka Superman.

Well, not exactly huh? Too bad Sanjana is the Super Woman instead carrying around the dork who fainted when seeing her instead of rescuing her. Hahaha. Such a cute and funny scene.

Katrina is gorgeous, no doubt about that. Her dancing has improved. Her acting is still questionable. I give her props for being smart starring in Akki films and getting hits.

Paresh Rawal is great as always. I loved him since him playing Ilias in Aankhen. He's been in so many films before but it was Aankhen who made me take notice of him. So happy to see him and Akki in another film together because both have natural instincts for comedies.

Wow! Anil Kapoor has been in a lot of films I've been watching lately, huh? Anil was great like always. So funny. He's one of the few actors who I saw as a hero in the 80s and is still going strong! Go Anil! He rocks as Majnu Bhai.

Nana Pataker is soooo good. He's so hilarious. He has this funny look to him to like him even more. Just seeing him look cool in the beenie cracks me up!! When he smiles, he looks adorable. He totally fit the role as Don Uday Shetty.

Feroz Khan plays RDX. Just seeing him in his bald head creeps me out. No wonder he plays RDX well. He's suppose to be a scary don. I watched a few of his films when he was younger. My favorite is Qurbani. RDX didn't have a lot of scenes but he was just there.

Mallika Sherawat is so underrated. I wish people would stop looking at her as this sex icon. Why do she and Bipasha get bashed for being sexy and talented? Mallika was the best thing in Welcome. Although I liked her ever since Khwahish, seeing her in comedies is better. Pyaar Ke Side Effects is a must see for Mallika haters. Whoever thought she will be great opposite Rahul Bose (I need to review this since it's been a while since I've seen the film). Anyways Mallika is sooooo funny in Welcome. She had me cracking up especially getting the two Don brothers falling in love with her and them not knowing. Love it!

Lastly...I have to mention my favorite item girl Malaika Arora-Khan in the song "Hoth Rasiley." I love her and had to mention her. Sexy!

Welcome is a confusing, fun comedy if you like that kind of stuff. If not, skip it. You'll dislike Welcome and no use wasting your time to watch it.