Ajooba (1990) User Reviews

It's so-so. (spoilers??)

[invictusdeux · 5/10 · 7 July 2003]

I saw this movie when I was a kid. In fact I saw it twice and both times at a theatre. And then I saw it again this week, and out of sheer curiosity decided to see whether it was listed on IMDB

Agreed the movie is over the top and cannot be believed by most adults. But then, adults were not the main target audience of the movie. This was intended to be a children's film. And that children did like it was quite evident by the fact that the mask that Amitabh wears in the movie was a craze with youngsters around that time. You could get it at every roadside feriwala.

The story was as old as the hills shown in the movie, (interestingly, I couldn't quite get where the movie was shot), but it's no less believable than the Harry Potter series.

I guess why most people may not like the movie is because Amitabh had to play a Zorro in this movie, and that may not go down well with adults who are used to his normal roles, but he seems to be enjoying his role in the movie.

The special effects are corny, with the monster straight out of your toy collection, but Amrish Puri as a villain excels, as always, bringing the same sinister feeling to the role as he did in Mr. India, as Mogambo.

At times the lips do not match the dialogs, especially when the Russian actors speak, but Amitabh's mother looks quite Indian.

Rishi Kapoor is okay, and Sonam is supposed to add glamour to the film, but despite trying to attract the front-benchers with antics like getting out of her bath-tub nude (this is NOT a nude scene, Indian movies do not have nude scenes, she is shown to reflect in many convex mirrors, wonder whether they held a doll to the mirrors?), she just can't act, and more importantly for an Indian actress, she just can't dance!

Dimple is as gorgeous as ever, breathing life into a miniscule role.

Shashi Kapoor at least tried to make a movie that was a little off-beat, which is more than you can say of today's directors.

All in all, I'd say leave your brains behind and watch this movie with your kids, even if you don't like it much, your kids sure will!

Ajooba is no Ajooba !

[elshikh4 · 6/10 · 31 December 2012]

This could have been great; a Bollywood-Soviet Union production, of a fantasy, with all star cast, and a big budget which was amongst the highest at the time, done by 2 directors; the Indian Shashi Kapoor and the Soviet Gennadi Vasilyev. Though, the outcome is something between terrible, and average at best!

Despite the old Arabic backgrounds, or the fantasy element, this is an Indian masala of which was so popular between the late 1970s and the early 1990s. Otherwise, it roots part of the masala's historical basis, which is the Arabian folk stories. But anyway, while the script built the basis right, it led the story in a way that had many plot holes, lousy moments, and - yes - incomprehensible matters!

To instance: the king regain his memory so easily; actually all what happened that the title character told him: "You're the king", and BOOPH, he remembered what he had forgotten during 20 years! How that king transformed into magical healer was never explained (the more provocative question should be; how he didn't heal himself?!). A crab monster shows up suddenly to rescue the good leads in the nick of time, OK, who's that crab? Who sent him? How come he knows the leads? (Was he a fan of the Indian cinema?!).

Speaking of which, the special effects were mostly what I meant by terrible in the start. You won't believe their cheapness until you watch the movie. The back projections, the flaying carpet, the monster crab all were poor, shoddy and a bit embarrassing. However, Piece De Resistance has to be the huge, Godzilla-like, devil of the end; it seemed like a burned small toy that terrorizes only by its low level!

According to that script, nothing was really demanded from the performance's side. Just look handsome and charming while the romantic scenes, energetic and heroic while the action ones, and sad and misty while the melodramatic ones. Nevertheless, nothing made me sad and misty more than seeing Amitabh Bachchan in this. He was only there, doing the simple required simply. Sure I felt him less enthusiastic. Not for being 49 year old only, but also because he worked in it gratis, as a favor to his longtime collaborator and friend Shashi Kapoor. Well, that was the movie's top melodrama for me!

Furthermore, I don't know why to waste a load of talent and charisma such as Amrish Puri? They thought, extremely stupidly, that he would be both "very evil" and "memorable" by standing in front of the camera, and repeating like an idiot: "Shaitan zindabad!" or "Long Live the Devil!" for like 20 times (it was more than half of his dialogue!). I believe the aim was to recreate a catchphrase a la "Mogambo khush hua" or "Mogambo is pleased" said by Puri himself in Mr. India, four years earlier. But apparently, the most famous lines in movie history come unintentionally, this round they represented the intentional way, and how failed and unbearably boring it turned out to be. Another line was so-hateful-it's-laughable when the mother actually "threatens" god after the climactic fencing and the injury of her son!

The electronic music score was generally annoying and degraded. Some of the directing was primitive and odd (misusing the lens at Rishi Kapoor sequence in the palace was a clear example). The action was like most of the movie itself; naïve. And although the lead's Zorro mask was, as I read, being sold at every corner in India at the time, I have to scream my heart out; it was cheeeeeeeeeesy. It's hard to believe that Bachchan saw anything while wearing it!

On the positive side, the cast did well; the lovely Dimple Kapadia as the love interest, the chubby Rishi Kapoor as the funny sidekick, and the heartwarming Ariadna Shengelaya as the soppy mother. I loved most of the songs, especially "Ya Ali Ya Ali" by Sudesh Bhosle: an instant classic in my book. Some of the huge sets and the flashy customs dazzled me (I said "some" since the city's miniatures rather infuriated me!). Unlike the rest of the special effects, the tricks of minimizing some of the characters were very well-done. And the editing managed to make a lively pace without one atom of bore.

Knowing that Ajooba means in Hindi, as well as Arabic; miracle, I must say Ajooba is no Ajooba. But thanks to the story's formula, the A-list stars, the different atmosphere, the songs.. it holds its own and somewhat works. It's a fantasy from Bollywood of 1991. If you know and happens to love the concomitants of that, then it's for you. If you don't, then this is some entertainment with B and C-grade stuff!

One of the worst all-time Hindi movies ever...

[reviewman · 1/10 · 27 October 2002]

A complete zero out of four. One worst sums up Ajooba: awful. Actually, more words come to mind: ridiculous, third-rate, and terrible. This is one of Amitabh's worst movies ever, he prances around in a cheap leather jacket and equally cheap tinsel foil Zorro-style mask with what appears to be wings on the sides.

The movie is set in ancient Persia or Arabia and is characteristically un-historical for an Indian movie. As stated above, a leather jacket from K-Mart with velcro straps did not exist 400 years ago, unless all my history teachers were wrong.

Rishi also does his patented cross-dressing in this movie. Far from being funny, it is very embarassing to watch. What could possess the son of the legendary Raj Kapoor to flay the memory of his house like this on screen?

On the plus side, if you want a real laugh, go ahead and watch this film. The glaring inconsistencies in the plot and costumes are no match for the awful dialogues and shoddy acting.

One word - Embarrassing

[Abhishek_R · 3/10 · 5 October 2008]

If there's one word I can associate to this movie, its 'embarrassment'. It must be embarrassing to everyone associated with the movie, to actually watch it in a theatre. Everything - the script, screenplay, dialogues, song lyrics, direction - shoddy, lousy.

Saw this movie when I was a kid. Liked it then, mainly because it was a fantasy, a superhero-movie. Its a not-so-explored genre in Hindi cinema. The attempt deserves credit, but that's all there is to it. Sashi Kapoor seems to have been in a great hurry in making the movie. Can't understand the reason behind casting foreigners as Hindi-speaking characters, who can't even get the sync right (nothing to say about the dubbing). The screenplay is terrible. The editing even more. If one follows the dialogues closely, one can detect grammatically-wrong sentences (which completely alter the intended meaning). Nothing special about the music.

The biggest embarrassment must be for the Censor board. There are a couple of nip-slip scenes in the movie, one of which is absolutely clear (so much so that I can't even think of a metaphor). The director missed them. The editing team missed it. And the censor board missed it too. So much for the no-indecent-exposure-on screen motto. The officials probably fell asleep while watching the movie.

Can't think of why Amitabh went with the role. It might be because he was a good friend of the Kapoors. But the role hardly has anything for him. With wonderful roles in Hum and Agneepath behind him, he couldn't have followed it up with a worse one. There are a couple of heroic scenes, really worthy ones. But otherwise, they're embarrassingly unbelievable (arrow-catching for instance.. it probably could've been better with CGI, but it was '91..).

Dimple and Sonam do not exactly set the screen on fire. Shammi Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor give an inspired performance, but their scope is limited. Amrish Puri is his usual self in the role of a fairy-tale villain (letting out the villainous laugh every now and then).

On the whole, an interesting concept. Could have been a lot more better.

Truly a Great Classic

[wali_zaidi · 10/10 · 10 April 2006]

Ajooba is actually one of the only good Indian movies ever. My brother and I had watched this movie when we were very little and still enjoy its classic and very adventurous themes. The acting in Ajooba is like that of most 1990's Indian movie (maybe better). An up-side to this classic is that it stars many well known and good Indian actors such as Amitab Bachan. The one thing that attracted me to the movie was an outstanding setting in a desert; making it relate to the old "Arabian" tales such as Aladdin which are recognized world-wide for their adventure, love, and humor. The theme of a betrayed pure good fighting ruthless bad catches my eyes as one of the many beauties of Ajooba. Although it maybe lagging in FX (c'mon, 1991), it is a story, that if understood, catches the hearts and ears of its viewers.

Cult classic

[sanket21-449-295359 · 10/10 · 8 August 2019]

It's one of those movies which u love it or hate it. Remember this movie came in 1991, and was made on limited technical skills India had. For me it's a classic. Smart story, impressive direction and good vision, action drama comedy thrills everything is there. And songs and dance sequences with some memorable numbers. The pairing of actors and their on screen chemistry is amazing to watch. Rishi Kapoor probably is at his best comic sidekick ever. The only thing went against fo me is I wasn't satisfied. If made today it wld become a trilogy. How can u replace Amitabh, rishi Kapoor, dimple, Sonam, Shammi Kapoor, timeless Ariadna( the queen) , Sayed jafree, and villan of all villains, the great Amrish Puri. What a movie. It's right there in my all time top 10s.

One of the favourite 90's Classic movies

[rishabhsonimech · 9/10 · 7 September 2018]

This probably one of the best 90's movies of all time . I don't know why it is so underrated there..

A very entertaining Movie ..

[Ashvini_777 · 10/10 · 2 January 2021]

Ajooba is indeed a very entertaining movie of its time,but unfortunately didn't get that respect ! It has to be taken into consideration that it was released way back when technology was probably not that advanced , so the special effects are not that satisfactory .But the movie itself is no doubt entertaining and well directed .. all characters have done justice to their characters ..music is good .. Amitabh Sir , Rishi Sir and Amrish Sir are fantastic and are a treat to watch.. over all a very good entertainer...