Bollywood Home » Popular Movie Reviews » Bollywood Tragic Movies » Chandni Bar Chandni Bar is one of the realistic films made in Bollywood, written and directed by Madhur Bhandarkar. It is a film about a life of a simple girl who comes to Bombay and gets initiated into the world of bar dancing to make both ends meet. Brilliant performances, fine direction and some excellent shots make Chandni Bar, one of the realistic Bollywood movies.

Chandni Bar is written and directed by Madhur Bhandarkar. He has presented the gritty world of sin, prostitution and makes a daring attempt at presenting the lives of bar dancers. With excellent direction, presentation of screenplay and superlative performance by Tabu, the film stirs and touches the audience and offers a glimpse of a world which is a reality for many others.

Chandni Bar is story of a bar dancer who bravely battles the difficulties of life. Tabu plays a bar dancer who comes to Mumbai with her Irfan Mama after she looses her family in a communal riot in the UP. To survive in the city, she succumbs to her surroundings and situations and take up the job of a bar dancer in city's famous beer bar Chandni Bar.



Soon, she catches the attention of Pothya Sawant, played by Atul Kulkarni, who is involved in the dark world of crime and gangsters. Pothya marries her and as time passes Mumtaz settles into a family life with her husband and her two children. After a few years of marriage life, Mumtaz finds herself on the same crossroads following the death of Pothya in an encounter with the police.

Mumtaz has to make the hard choice for the survival of her two children and therefore she again entered the world of bar dancing. Underneath this mask of forced pretension as a bar dancer, she plays a simple and vulnerable woman whose self-determination and perseverance makes her face the rough phase of life courageously.

Tabu's consummate performance along with excellent acting by Atul Kulkarni gives the film a realistic look. Tabu is superb as a bar dancer who gets into the skin of the character and tries to play the role with perfection. She convincingly portrays the style, mannerism of a bar dancer.

Awards:

Chandni Bar was critically acclaimed and highly appreciated. The film was awarded three National Awards and its leading protagonist - Tabu also received Best Actress nominations at the Filmfare Awards and Bollywood Awards. The director Madhur Bhandarkar was nominated for Best Director in several award shows. Here is a list of award nominations and awards given to the film and its actors for the movie.

2002 National Film Awards (India)

• Tabu received the Best Actress Award
• Atul Kulkarni got the Best Supporting Actor award
• Ananya Khare received the Best Supporting Actress Award

2002 Star Screen Awards (India)

• Madhur Bhandarkar was awarded with the Star Screen Award for the Best Story
• Atul Kulkarni received the Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Star Screen Awards.

2002 Zee Cine Awards (India)

• Tabu was rewarded with Best Actress award

Chandni Bar falls under different genre and has a hard-hitting, realistic storyline. It is a subject that has seldom been taken up in Bollywood.

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