Upala KBR (MID-DAY; April 29, 2019)

"It was like making seven different films," says director Ali Abbas Zafar, the ambitious scale of Bharat not lost on him. The central plot of the Salman Khan-starrer — that of tracing India's journey from the Partition to the present day through the protagonist's point of view — may be simple, but executing it was a different ball game altogether.

The director, along with production designer Rajnish Hedao and stylists Alvira Agnihotri and Ashley Rebello, dedicated one-and-a-half years to research the different eras before taking the Katrina Kaif and Disha Patani film on floors.

The most challenging chapter, he says, was recreating the Partition. "The way the Partition was depicted in Richard Attenborough's Gandhi [1982], was my benchmark. We shot the sequence over 10 days in Punjab, in the freezing cold. The scene required us to recreate a station near Lahore, replete with a steam engine. Of the five functioning steam engines in the country, we had one brought to Punjab. The art department worked on it for four days to make it resemble those from the Northern Frontier Railways of 1947."

When cinematographer Marcin Laskawiec came on board, he had detailed mood boards ready for him. "We did thorough research, based on the material available in libraries and museums, of what a circus looked like in the '60s. Salman's look in that decade is modelled on Elvis Presley, who was a rage at the time. We got vintage cars, costumes and even newspapers made, to stay true to the era. Reimagining the '70s and '80s [was relatively easier] as we could source props from bazaars in purani Delhi, but we built everything from scratch for the preceding decades."

Zafar adds that a distinct colour palette has been used to depict each period. "The Partition era is in desat [desaturation] mode, while we have employed Eastman colour for the '60s and '70s, and sparkling colours for the next two decades."

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 6, 2014)

Tumse milne ka keeda andar hai
Dating kar le tu, open calendar hai
Som, Mangal, Budh, Guru, Shukra, Shani, Ravi...
Aaja meri gali, aaja meri gali....

Keeda, the first track from the Action Jackson music album is quickly worming its way up the charts thanks to its massy lyrics, catchy tune and choreographer-director Prabhu Dheva's Elvis Presley moves. And Himesh Reshammiya who has just had a chartbuster in Kick is playing on a loop again, seven days of the week.

The composer informs that Prabhu Dheva wanted to make Ajay Devgn dance in a different way with Sonakshi Sinha. He planned to picturise the song abroad with a number of dancers. So the brief for Keeda was a fun 'boy-meets-girl' dance track.

"It's USP is its choreography. Prabhuji has gone retro with a tribute to the King of Rock n' Roll, Elvis Presley, on a contemporary beat," Himesh points out. "The sound arrangement is very fresh with the theme music of a shehnai. Since everything that we were doing was experimental, I decided to also sing the song in middle octave and not my usual high pitch voice."

Giving Himesh company is playback singer Neeti Mohan who had earlier crooned Tu hi tu for Kick under his baton. She has sung three songs for Action Jackson and admits that she quickly realised that her first impression of Himesh as a strict disciplinarian was definitely erroneous.

"I was a little scared of him initially but after a few interactions, I realised that he's very cool. He is very clear about what he wants from a singer which makes our job really easy," Neeti explains.

Himesh's brief to Neeti was to let the keeda in her out and make the track lively and naughty. "I had the lyrics and the tune down pat when I went for the recording. Himeshji told me to sing it casually, with attitude. It was smooth sailing and we were done in an hour," she reminisces, adding that she had no idea that he was going to sing the duet with her. "Having him as a co-singer is such a kick!"

Also, Neeti did not know that the song will be picturised on Ajay and Sonakshi. And it's a thrill for her to hear Sonakshi croon Keeda. "Everyone is a bathroom singer but when it's an actress singing your song it's such a high!" she exults.

Another bonus was having Prabhu Dheva choreograph the song. The desi Michael Jackson is a family favourite of hers. "My sister Shakti danced for him in a song in Rowdy Rathore," she reminds you.

Himesh admits that pressure on him was huge since Keeda was the launch track of the album. Also, he has had a great track record with Ajay and Sonakshi, with Bol Bachchan, OMG! O My God and SOS: Son Of Sardar.

"I listened to the recorded song not as a composer but as a regular listener and there was something about it that struck a chord, not just with me but also Ajayji and Sonakshi. With this we've taken our combo to another level thanks to Prabhuji's steps. Even as we were recording it, I could see how the song would look on screen," says Himesh, who was confident that the song will be a hit from day one. "It has already crossed 1 million views and the feedback has been overwhelming.  Usually, we launch a score with a conventional song. Keeda was an experimental track but the gamble seems to have paid off."

Sonakshi and Ajay's keeda in the film is to go on a date together. What's Neeti's keeda? "I love running and go for a run at least three-four times a week," she laughs. "And my second keeda is chocolates. I allow myself to indulge in them at least once a month."

And what about Himesh? "Yes, mere me bhi keeda hai. My keeda is to deliver hit song after hit song, " says the composer.

BOMBAY TIMES (October 30, 2014)

Check out Elvis Presley clones in white and red bell-bottoms and sporting the popular 70s hairstyle, sharing screen space with Ajay Devgn and Sonakshi Sinha. We hear choreographer-turned-director Prabhu Dheva is paying homage to the King of Rock & Roll in a song titled Keeda in Action Jackson. So he has got the group of dancers to dance like the iconic American singer-actor