Please contact us if you have any feedback, comments or copyright complaints. We take the copyright complaints seriously and take action immediately.
Critic Review
Calendar Girls (2015)The film starts off with the introduction of Nandita Menon from Hyderabad (Akanksha Puri), Nazneen Malik from Lahore (Avani Modi), Sharon Pinto from Goa (Kyra Dutt), Mayuri Chauhan from Rohtak (Ruhi Singh) and Paromita Ghosh from Kolkata (Satarupa Pyne). Fighting all the odds, these five girls become the chosen ones for the flamboyant industrialist Kumar (Suhel Seth)'s 'passion' project of the annual 'calendar girls'. These five girls are greeted with all the paparazzi and media attention on the night of the calendar launch. It is this big night which they all have been waiting for. The next morning brings all these five girls inroads to a new life full of opportunities. Paromita Ghosh accidentally meets up with her long lost (overambitious) boyfriend Pinaki (Keith Sequeira) in a social function in Mumbai. Unaware of his motives, she continues to love him unconditionally. So much so that, at his behest, she becomes the honey-trap to do match fixing with cricketers for the cash-rich cricket league matches. Things soon go downhill for her when the cops corner her. On the other hand, because of the anti-Pakistan movement in Mumbai, the Pakistani model Nazneen Malik is forced to return the signing amount that she had taken from a leading filmmaker for her debut film. Left with no option now, she lands up being a high-society escort, courtesy 'broker' Ananya (Mita Vasishth). Thirdly, the effervescent Sharon Pinto, who gets signed up by a leading talent management agency gets to hear some fictitious and unsavory stories about her from the agency owner Aniruddh Shroff (Rushad Rana). The self-respecting woman that is, Sharon slaps Aniruddh in his own office before all the employees... only to be slapped back with a 'ban' from advertising world. An accidental meeting with a leading journalist at a bookstore lands her a job as a TV show anchor. Meanwhile, Nandita Menon quits her glam job even before it takes off, only to get married to Harsh, the scion of the wealthy Narang family. Lastly, Mayuri Chauhan uses not just her networking skills, but also her social networking skills to become a successful Bollywood actress. In this process, while on one hand she doesn't mind doing a film with wealthy producer's son purely for the sake of money, on the other hand, she leaves no stone unturned when it comes to hobnobbing with the filmmakers who matter (in this film, its Madhur Bhandarkar in a cameo). Will Nazneen Malik ever be able to get out of her escort business, does the 'model' Sharon Pinto become a successful TV host, does Nandita Menon ever find true love from her husband Harsh, does Mayuri Chauhan and her impeccable PR skills make her a successful actress and does Paromita Ghosh manage to get out of the cricket scam and what ultimately happens to all the five 'calendar girls' is what forms the story of the film..
A hurried after-thought, which talks of how these girls are really, truly ‘proud achievers’, comes right in the end. And it’s just that, an after-thought. The rest of it exploits—smugly, tackily, uncomfortably explicitly—young women being exploi.
Adman and occasional actor Suhel Seth pops up in a few scenes in the guise of a flashy entrepreneur. His opening line, spoken in a boardroom, sums up the film: Why are you guys behaving like dolts?
Take the cue. Give Calendar Girls a miss..
On the whole, CALENDAR GIRLS can be watched for its wholesome entertainment value, hard hitting drama and engaging narrative. Or like Madhur Bhandarkar himself would describe it in one word.... 'Jalwa'!.
