Stallone debuts in Bollywood with `Kambakkht Ishq`

Mumbai, July 03: Hollywood icon Slyvester Stallone makes his Bollywood debut in Sajid Nadiadwala`s `Kambakkht Ishq` which released worldwide in over 2000 screens on Friday. Fans of the `Rocky` and `Rambo` star can see their hero beating up bad men to save a damsel in distress in typical Bollywood style and even say two Hindi words, title of the film `Kambakkht Ishq`.

Even though he, along with Brandon Routh of Superman fame and `James Bond` girl Denise Richards are integrated well in the narrative, about an Indian stuntman working in Hollywood, the film is a major disappointment in terms of content, say film critics. But, the film sports a grandiose look and has been mounted lavishly due to the no-holds-barred budget by producer Sajid. It remains to be seen if the Akshay-Kareena starrer which had been hyped tremendously for getting Hollywood into Bollywood, lives up to the expectations in terms of Box Office collections. However, majority of the audience who watched the film on the first day were unhappy that the movie was not their money`s worth. "I was shocked to see both the lead pair mouthing foul words and cheap, crude dialogues throughout in the name of entertainment," said Namrata, collegian from suburban Mumbai. "It is surprising how veteran actors like Boman Irani, Kirron Kher, Javed Jaffry agreed to be part of this film. Boman`s lone scene as an ENT specialist was nauseating," Vikas said. Raghuvendra, a media professional, said, "There were high expectations from Kareena after her award winning performance in `Jab We Met`. But she has failed. Akshay Kumar needs a serious rethink on the kind of scripts he choses." The advance bookings had opened on Sunday and Eros International, co-producers of the film are confident of a grand opening. However, trade sources said the opening in Mumbai was about 70 percent. "Producers have lured the audiences who were looking for star studded big budget film for a long time, by opening the advance bookings a week before the actual release," a film critic said. Akshay, whose last two films `Chandni Chowk to China` and `Tasveer 8 x10` have flopped, continues his cassanova act of `Heyy Babby` in `Kambakkht Ishq` as well. Senior film journalist Ajay Brahmatmaj said, "The script lacks content, consistency and continuity. Since Askhay has been repeating himself in similar kind of roles, there is no novelty to his character." "It is time he gets serious. The dialogues are full of sexual connotations. It may work in the metros but not in small centres," he said. Bureau Report