On-Spot: Filmfare Awards 2010 nominations bash

Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Asin, Imran Khan, Urmila Matondkar, Sameera Reddy, Kunal Khemu, Manoj Bajpai and other celebs were present at Filmfare Awards 2010 nominations bash.

Turning 30 online movie review

Cast: Gul Panag, Purab Kohli, Siddharth Makkar


Mid-life crisis or a much-needed metamorphosis: it's up to each individual on how they tackle the turning-thirty tumult in their life. For quintessential cosmo girl, Gul Panag, this turnstile threatens to end up as the biggest stumbling block in her life. Like a desi Bridget Jones, she swears and hollers at any and everybody who dares to cross her thorny path.

And thorny it is....Her love life's over; her job's in jeopardy; her boss is a jerk; her rival-at-work is an unethical bum who doesn't bat an eyelid before stealing her ideas and her awards; the glass ceiling never seems to lift; and the sun never seems to shine after all the endless whining and winesessions with a similar bunch of angsty friends. Yes, Gul's sisterhood has a history of existential angst with cheating husbands, alternate sexuality and heartbreak staring all of them in the face. So what does the swinging trio do to counter the big city blues? They cut their hair, paint their nails, splurge on showy lingerie and even have a shot of the half monty. Doesn't work. In fact, Gul even manages to hook up with her ex-boyfriend (Purab Kohli), while hoping the love of her life will get back to her. Still doesn't work. For, as the feisty protagonist finds out: you can't find love until you find yourself.

Turning 30 is truly a chick flick. It brings to life living, breathing, flesh and blood female protagonists who face real problems in a rat-race world. Of course, our hero here is the urbane, ambitious, independent woman who wants it all, like the man next door. Kudos to Alankrita Shrivastava who makes a refreshing debut with a film that looks at the world through the female gaze. And the fact that Gul Panag perfectly slips into the shoes of her balsy-batty female protagonist adds extra spice to the proceedings. Somewhere down the second half, the script does slip into cliches and the phobia of turning 30 gets a bit exaggerated, but that's okay. For in the end, the smart dialogues, the subtle humour and the fond look at female frailty/vanity in strong women characters makes for some fun viewing. Refreshing, unusual and unlike your typical women-oriented films, Turning 30 marks an addition to the increasing tribe of intelligent women directors.