Sabar Bonda
Drama, Romance (Marathi)
A thirty-year-old city-dweller compelled to spend ten-day mourning of his father in the rugged countryside of Western India tenderly bonds with a local farmer struggling to stay unmarried. As the mourning ends, forcing his return, he must decide the fate (more…)
Tu Yaa Main
Thriller, Romance, Adventure (Hindi)
Trapped in an empty swimming pool, two content creators must fight for their survival against a ferocious, bloodthirsty natural predator. (more…)
Guild Reviews
O'Romeo
Crime, Drama, Action (Hindi)
What fate awaits a stonehearted gangster and bloodthirsty womaniser when true love claims him, helpless and unguarded? A gang war that shakes the entire underworld and crime syndicate to their very roots. A forbidden love; the tale of an unrequited passion.
Cast:
Shahid Kapoor, Triptii Dimri, Avinash Tiwary, Nana Patekar, Vikrant Massey, Tamannaah Bhatia, Disha Patani, Farida Jalal, Aruna Irani, Hussain Dalal
Director:
Vishal Bhardwaj
(Writing for OTT Play)
Vishal Bhardwaj’s Bloody Tale Of Love Has No Heart
Tue, February 17 2026
All Filmmakers plot legacy. For Vishal Bhardwaj, it filters to adaptations. The 60-year-old’s career — including 12 feature films in 24 years — is shaped, mostly, by taking literary texts and supplanting them in a world of his making. One can debate the merits, but there is something to be said about the tendency to assert his voice most intensely in borrowed words, thereby amplifying the collaborative spirit of creation. A chief collaborator, in this regard, has been Shakespeare, whose plays assume great malleability in the director’s hands. Bhardwaj’s latest, O’Romeo, is not drawn from one of the playwright’s works but still culminates as an ineffective Shakespeare adaptation — a first from the director.
A potboiler sans passion and payoff
Sun, February 15 2026
Vishal Bhardwaj’s cinematic universes can be wildly imaginative. They are the kind where two warring sisters, desperate to escape each other’s sight, end up marrying two brothers by accident. Historically, however, the Indian film industry’s version of audacity usually involves a hero incinerating a factory and sauntering away in slow motion while digital fumes billow behind him. This “mass” template is now more common than a childbirth scene, or a Muslim protagonist shown as an ordinary office worker instead of a kohl-eyed gangster. Trying to join both aspects of their respective universes, O’Romeo uses Bhardwaj’s brand of weirdness and masala movie flamboyance to create a confused mixture with no emotion and limited punch.
Sharper Razor, Duller Drama
Sun, February 15 2026
Vishal Bhardwaj returns to the big screen after Patakha (2018), although his last outing, Khufiya (2023), was released on Netflix. O Romeo has ambition and style, but at nearly three hours, it lacks the substance required to sustain that runtime and offers little that feels new.
Pennum Porattum
Comedy, Drama (Malayalam)
In Pattada, a village defined by its association with death, the narrative centers on Gopalan Master, Charulatha, and Suttu, each facing the village's harsh judgment and violence. Through their struggles, the story highlights the plight of the marginalized. Suttu finds solace in freedom, choosing to leave. However, Charulatha remains, her future precarious, trapped within Pattada's cycle of violence and injustice.
Cast:
Rajesh Madhavan, Raina Radhakrishnan, Tovino Thomas, Mithun Haridas
Director:
Rajesh Madhavan
Writer:
Ravi Sankar
A Truly Inventive Absurd Comedy
Tue, February 17 2026
It’s very much a part of the design to start watching Pennum Porattum (The Girl And The Circus) from Suttu’s POV. Voiced by Tovino Thomas, Suttu is a white mongrel with black spots all over and the refugee the film talks about in its opening statement refers to those like Suttu. In his introductory voiceover, he’s letting us in on his daily routine and the number of times he’s been shifted in and out of his master’s house. He isn’t particularly happy there, nor is he comfortable in his tiny cage. And as we see stones being pelted at Suttu from outside, in a fit of rage, he shouts back and calls them “Manushyante makkale!”, which is something along the lines of “You sons of humans!”
Tu Yaa Main
Thriller, Romance, Adventure (Hindi)
Trapped in an empty swimming pool, two content creators must fight for their survival against a ferocious, bloodthirsty natural predator.
Cast:
Adarsh Gourav, Shanaya Kapoor, Kshitee Jog, Parul Gulati, Ansh Chopra, Mona Singh, Hussain Dalal
Director:
Bejoy Nambiar
Writer:
Abhishek Bandekar
(Writing for OTT Play)
Campy Crocodile Drama Has The Right Thrills
Mon, February 16 2026
Bejoy Nambiar’s Tu Yaa Main, a relationship drama in the garb of a creature film, redeems an animal and a profession. Both, unfortunately, were subjected to great disservice in Hindi films. Given that the animal has lasted longer, its ignominy is greater, and therefore, the absolution was both inevitable and overdue. Nambiar’s film proves to be largely effective in this regard as it takes crocodiles from the mouth of disrepute and posits them in a narrative where they are given space to lay eggs, chill a little, and nap.
Thriller has bite but takes too long to sink its teeth in
Mon, February 16 2026
Directed by Bejoy Nambiar and adapted by Himanshu Sharma from the 2018 Thai thriller The Pool, directed by Ping Lumpraploeng, Tu Yaa Main is a curious addition to Hindi cinema’s sporadic engagement with the creature feature. The original was a compact, high-concept survival drama built around the simple premise of a man trapped in a drained swimming pool with a crocodile, trying to find a way out. Nambiar retains the skeletal premise but sets aside that minimalism, expanding the thriller framework into a 145-minute romantic drama inserted with class commentary and influencer satire. The result is an ambitious film intermittently exhausting itself instead of tightening its grip.
Magar Much Touble in the Pool
Sun, February 15 2026
Inspired by Ping Lumpraploeng’s Thai film The Pool (2018), Tu Yaa Main shifts between Mumbai and a 20-foot-deep swimming pool somewhere along the Goa–Mumbai highway. The story of a couple trapped in an empty pool with a crocodile for company offers a solid premise for a survival thriller.
Kohrra 2
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
When an NRI bridegroom is found dead days before his wedding in the countryside of Punjab, two cops must unravel the troubling case as turbulence unfolds in their own lives.
Cast:
Barun Sobti, Mona Singh
(Writing for M9 News)
Worthy Sequel With Winsome Performances
Sat, February 14 2026
Preet Bajwa is found dead on her family’s poultry farm. Cops Dhanwant Kaur and Amritpal Garundi soon discover the family has been hiding a dark secret for twenty years: they were keeping people as slaves. As the police get closer to the truth, the family takes desperate, violent steps to hide their crimes. The story shows how old secrets eventually catch up to people and destroy their lives.
Mona Singh pierces through the mist of motives in this intriguing police procedural
Sat, February 14 2026
There has always been a gap between the Punjab we watch on screen and the one we actually experience off-screen. Of late, there has been an attempt to look beyond the lavish weddings, bhangra beats, and bucolic humour. Carrying forward the Maachis that Gulzar lit in 1996 and Gurvinder Singh nurtured over the years, Sudeep Sharma’s Kohrra is one such significant attempt to pierce through the miasma that hangs over the mustard fields.
Fog lifts, Kohrra is still a winner
Sat, February 14 2026
When ‘Kohrra’ came in 2023, it was a breath of fresh air which not only put a majorly Punjabi language series on the world map of OTT, but showed a state dipped in shades of realism. Now, as its second season streams, the template is kind of… same. It’s still a police procedural with loads of human drama at the centre of it. ‘Kohrra 2’ starts on a similar note: murder of an NRI. But, hereafter, the series — again set in the hinterland of Punjab — takes a life of its own and envelops you as much in the mysterious air of whodunit as the lives of its protagonists. Investigation begins and we are all agog to know who has murdered this young lady Preet (Pooja Bhamrrah), a divorcee who loved to make reels and by no stretch of imagination was a pushover.
Couple Friendly
Romance, Drama (Telugu)
After connecting on a rideshare app, a young couple struggling to achieve their respective dreams form a romantic connection.
Cast:
Santosh Shoban, Manasa Varanasi, Rajiv Kanakala, Sriranjini, Yogi Babu, Livingston, Goparaju Ramana
Director:
Ashwin Chandrasekar
Writer:
Ashwin Chandrasekar
(Writing for The Hindu)
Santosh Soban, Manasa Varanasi’s romance drama is mature and heartfelt
Sat, February 14 2026
Until the early 90s, Chennai (then Madras) served as a common backdrop for Telugu films. However, the subsequent industry shift to Hyderabad gradually altered the geographical canvas of its stories. Despite Chennai remaining a preferred destination for the Telugu community in nearby regions of Andhra Pradesh for livelihood for years, modern-day filmmakers have seldom explored their enduring connection with the city through a contemporary lens.
Ashakal Aayiram
Drama (Malayalam)
Cast:
Jayaram, Kalidas Jayaram, Asha Sarath, Ishaani Krishna, Anand Manmadhan, Zhinz Shan, Raffi, Sharafudheen, Sudheer Paravoor, Akhil Nrd
Director:
G. Prajith
Writer:
Aravind Rajendran, Jude Anthany Joseph
The Jayaram We Missed In This Wholesome Anthikadian Comedy
Sat, February 14 2026
‘History repeats itself’ is the phrase that kept coming to mind while watching Jayaram’s delightfully old-school Ashakal Aayiram, co-starring his son Kalidas. Yet, when you think of a film reuniting this real-life father-son duo, you might first be tempted to recall Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal, the charming Sathyan Anthikad comedy that brought them together the first time. But if you observe closely, the soul of Ashakal Aayiram is closer in spirit to another Anthikad classic, the 1999 family drama Veendum Chila Veettukaryangal.
My Lord
Drama (Tamil)
A man and his wife battle bureaucracy after being wrongly declared dead, while he confronts a kidney trafficking ring connected to corrupt politicians that destroyed his life.
Cast:
M. Sasikumar, Chaithra J Achar, Guru Somasundaram, Asha Sarath, Jayaprakash, Gopi Nainar, Vasumithra
Director:
Raju Murugan
Writer:
Raju Murugan
A Distinctively Raju Murugan Social Comedy Until It Veers Into A Typical Melodrama
Sat, February 14 2026
There might be a hundred things you may not like about Raju Murugan’s cinema, but not having a voice that is distinctly his own, cannot be one of them. This voice isn’t just limited to the overarching themes he wants to discuss, his films’ politics or plot, or the manner in which even familiar actors behave differently when they’re in his movies. Even when you get in and out of his movie, there could be dozens of frames only this man could have thought of.
Cast:
Vishwak Sen, Kayadu Lohar, Naresh, Easwari Rao, Muralidhar Goud, Ravi Anthony, Pammi Sai, Raghu Babu, Sampath Raj
Director:
Anudeep
Writer:
Anudeep, Mohan Sato
Vishwak Sen, KV Anudeep deliver two hours of awkwardness
Sat, February 14 2026
Naaku galeej anipisthundhi, which translates to “It’s all too awkward,” is a repetitive phrase in KV Anudeep’s third film, Funky. After two hours and eight minutes, it’s this thought – and the only one – that you are left with. Director KV Anudeep’s unique sense of humour may not be everyone’s cup of tea. In three films, he’s made that loud and clear. But there’s a sense of earnestness and honesty in Jathi Ratnalu and Prince that hardly makes you look away. You’d want to know what new trick he has up his sleeve the third time around.
(Writing for The Hindu)
KV Anudeep’s lazy parody of the film industry tests your patience
Sat, February 14 2026
Jathi Ratnalu director KV Anudeep’s latest film, Funky, is set in a bubble—the Telugu film industry, a world the filmmaker has immediate access to. The premise itself—where an emerging director falls for the daughter of an eminent producer—is a fictional take on the love story of industry couple, director Nag Ashwin and producer Priyanka Dutt (who are often referenced in the film).
Sabar Bonda
Drama, Romance (Marathi)
A thirty-year-old city-dweller compelled to spend ten-day mourning of his father in the rugged countryside of Western India tenderly bonds with a local farmer struggling to stay unmarried. As the mourning ends, forcing his return, he must decide the fate of his relationship born under duress.
Cast:
Bhushaan Manoj, Suraaj Suman, Jayshri Jagtap, Dhananjay Jambar, Sandhya Pawase, Hemant Kadam, Vidhya Joshi, Ram Daund
Director:
Rohan Kanawade
Writer:
Rohan Kanawade
A Spotify Review
Fri, February 13 2026
Sabar Bonda, the Marathi film that won a prestigious honour at Sundance last year, is either a poetic exploration of the road not taken or a pretentious try-hard desperate to feel important. We discuss the film’s unconventional dramatic choices, the effects of its stillness, and the lacklustre quality of the central performances. We also debate its performative nature and wonder how it turned out to be so divisive.
A lyrical, languid journey of self-discovery and belonging that offers hope even in difficult circumstances
Sat, September 20 2025
(Writing for OTT Play)
An Astounding, Assured Debut
Sat, September 20 2025
Fairly early in Rohan Parashuram Kanawade’s Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears), a character is instructed on how to grieve. Don’t cut your hair, don’t ask for a second helping and walk bare feet for the next couple of days. Anand (Bhushaan Manoj) has just lost his father but his extended relatives have no time for feelings. The mourning ought to be communal and hence regimented, an ask which falls in line with their larger curiosity in Anand’s life: at 30 years of age, why is he still unmarried? The demand to conform and the desire to live form the crux of Kanawade’s Sabar Bonda, a strikingly assured debut and the first Marathi film to be premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. After Anand’s father passes away, his mother persuades him to go to his ancestral village for the stipulated 10-day mourning period. He resists suggesting that he will go to pick her up instead. A quiet telling-off changes his mind as they both journey back to a place which has more memories than people.
Paro Pinaki Ki Kahani
Drama, Romance, Crime, Thriller (Hindi)
A manhole cleaner and vegetable vendor fall in love during secret meetings in a train bathroom. When she stops appearing, he begins a dangerous search to find her.
Cast:
Eshita Singh, Sanjay Bishnoi, Hanuman Soni, Dhananjay Sardeshpande, Madan Deodhar, Lalit Kumar, Ramdas Andhare, Sanjiv Bage, Pratap Bhosale, Sanjay Dole
Director:
Rudra Jadon
Writer:
Rudra Jadon
When Love And Intent Are Not Enough
Mon, February 9 2026
“A manhole cleaner and vegetable vendor fall in love during secret meetings in a train bathroom” is a great one-liner. Especially for an indie made on a shoestring budget. Especially in an India that’s gotten too real and complicated for love stories to make sense. It’s even better if said India then gatecrashes the love story, revealing why the title contains the term “Ki Kahani (the story of)” rather than the Bollywood-coded “Ki Prem Kahani (the love story of)”. With those like Pinaki (Sanjay Bishnoi) and Mariyam (Eshita Singh), it’s not falling for each other that’s the conflict; it’s the audacity to fall for each other that is.
Vadh 2
Crime, Drama, Thriller (Hindi)
A police officer's pursuit of truth in a shocking prison crime intertwines with the lives of a widowed prison guard and a soon to be released inmate, unravelling a web of morality and redemption.
Cast:
Sanjay Mishra, Neena Gupta, Kumud Mishra, Amitt K Singh, Akshay Dogra, Shilpa Shukla, Yogita Bihani, Akanksha Ojha
Director:
Jaspal Singh Sandhu
Writer:
Jaspal Singh Sandhu
(Writing for The Daily Eye)
EXPLORES JUSTICE AND AGING
Mon, February 9 2026
A sequel is always a perilous undertaking. Once a film has established its tonal register and moral grammar, the space for reinvention narrows considerably. The past looms large, often shackling imagination and circumscribing execution. Jaspal Singh Sandhu’s Vadh 2 negotiates this terrain cautiously. While it is not a narrative continuation of Vadh (2022), it inhabits the same ethical cosmos, tethered by mood rather than plot. The connection is atmospheric, not anecdotal, and viewers are best served by leaving memories of the earlier film at the threshold.
Star duo ensures sequel does justice
Mon, February 9 2026
Justice, we all know, by and large eludes the powerless. On screen, however, poetic justice as well as its vigilante variant has been delivered time and again. At times with a loud thump and less often in a quiet, restrained tone. ‘Vadh’, as the name suggests, is about killing. Since the word has much significance in mythology, we know it would be for the right reasons. Enter a jail in Madhya Pradesh. Now the much-acclaimed series ‘Black Warrant’ and many other Indian films have already shown us what all the innards of a jail possibly entail. So you bet the presence of a despicable criminal like Keshav (Akshya Dogra), with deep political connections, hardly comes as a surprise. What does is the tender love story brewing between a criminal serving life sentence and one of the jail’s guards. Trust both Neena Gupta and Sanjay Mishra to breathe life into their characters of Manju Mishra and Shambhunath Mishra.
An emotionally resonant thriller where restraint is over-stated
Sun, February 8 2026
Over the years, carceral imagery has been an important creative device for shaping tales of confinement and social control. This week, Shambhunath Mishra (Sanjay Mishra), a prison guard struggling with financial burdens and personal isolation, forms an unlikely bond with Manju Singh (Neena Gupta), an inmate serving a life term for crimes she may not have committed. The intimacy amid isolation gets a jolt when one night a politically-connected predator disappears from prison, triggering an investigation. As a determined officer, Ateet Singh (Amitt K. Singh) takes charge, and elements of caste dynamics and power struggles surface, involving a strict but prejudiced superintendent (Kumud Mishra) and a perverted inmate (Akshay Dogra).
Sthal
Drama (Marathi)
It chronicles the experiences of a young woman yearning to determine her own future in a world where patriarchal traditions deprive women of agency and arranged marriage is presented as the only option for self-betterment.
Cast:
Nandini Chikte, Taranath Khiratkar, Sangita Sonekar, Suyog Dhawas, Sandip Somalkar, Sandip Parkhi, Swati Ulmale, Gauri Badki, Mansi Pawar, Sachin Tonge
Director:
Jayant Digambar Somalkar
Writer:
Jayant Digambar Somalkar
A Spotify Review
Mon, February 9 2026
Sthal, the Marathi-language feature from debutante director Jayant Digambar Somalkar, is one of the best films of 2025. It’s a deftly written, confidently shot, and expertly performed psychological drama about the commodification of women. We discuss the anger at the film’s core, its bleak view of Indian society, and the catharsis it provides with an instant-classic climax.
A Spotify Review
Sat, February 7 2026
Sthal, the Marathi-language feature from debutante director Jayant Digambar Somalkar, is one of the best films of 2025. It’s a deftly written, confidently shot, and expertly performed psychological drama about the commodification of women. We discuss the anger at the film’s core, its bleak view of Indian society, and the catharsis it provides with an instant-classic climax.
Marathi Film Shining Again
Sun, March 9 2025