Heart of the Beast
Adventure, Thriller (English)
After a harrowing plane crash, Special Forces officer James Belmont and his combat dog, Odin, find themselves stranded deep in the Alaskan wilderness. Together, they are forced into a brutal fight for survival against the elements. (more…)
Hunkkaar: The Roar
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
A victim takes a courageous stand against a powerful godman accused of misconduct in an intense courtroom drama centered on her fight for justice. (more…)
Don't Be Shy
Romance, Comedy (Hindi)
Quintessential Mean Girl, Shyamili ‘Shy’ Das, finds herself suddenly relegated to Loser-ville when Mayank, her boyfriend of three years, suddenly dumps her. But Shy, all set to get her revenge, finds herself falling into friendship and compassion with someone unexpected… (more…)
Shaque Trust No One
Drama, Crime, Mystery (Hindi)
A mother receives yearly photos of her missing child. After nine years of searching, she discovers the truth about the abduction lies not far away, but hidden among her closest circle. (more…)
The Vvaan: Force of the Forest
Action, Adventure, Thriller (Hindi)
A rational urban man defies his ancestral forbidden forest and awakens a divine goddess, only to realise that not only do some powers exist beyond logic but he must rise as the village’s only saviour to protect his people from (more…)
Guild Reviews by Film
Shaque Trust No One
Drama, Crime, Mystery (Hindi)
A mother receives yearly photos of her missing child. After nine years of searching, she discovers the truth about the abduction lies not far away, but hidden among her closest circle.
Cast:
Parineeti Chopra, Jennifer Winget, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Anup Soni, Chaitannya Choudhry, Sumeet Vyas, Soni Razdan, Harleen Sethi
Director:
Renzil D'Silva
Fri, September 25 2026
Director-writer Rensil D’Silva weaves an interesting albeit clichéd storyline
Illusion meets reality… those of us who have watched Christopher Nolan’s ‘Inception’ with rapt attention know all too well what a fascinating blend it is. Of course, Netflix’s latest web series ‘Shaque: Trust No One’, which too marries phantasmagoric elements with truth, bears no similarity with the acclaimed film. Rather, on the surface, it bears an uncanny resemblance with another of Netflix’s new films, ‘Gandhari’. Yes, like the Taapsee Pannu starrer, ‘Shaque’, which marks the web-series debut of Parineeti Chopra, too, deals with a mother’s search for her daughter.
Dhoomakethu
Comedy, Thriller (Malayalam)
On the morning of his wedding, 36 year old Kuttan wakes from a disturbing dream about his own death. As the day unfolds, familiar moments begin to repeat and reality becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish from memory. Realizing that something is terribly wrong, Kuttan races to uncover the truth before the day repeats itself again.
Cast:
Nikhila Vimal, Sajin Gopu, Ganapathi S. Poduval, Shine Tom Chacko, Sidharth Bharathan, Manju Pillai, Rajesh Pandian, Abel Twinkle, Adish Praveen
Director:
Sudhi Maddison
Writer:
Sonny, Manu
Fri, September 25 2026
For a part of the film’s runtime, a blend of the now familiar time loop trope with humour seems to work, until some of the hard work unravels due to weak writing of the background story
Any out of the world concept can lose its sheen when it becomes too commonplace and is overused. So it is with the time loop concept in cinema, the latest iteration of which is in Sudhi Maddison’s Dhoomakethu (comet). There is some irony in naming a film with a now commonplace concept with something as rare as a comet. Yet for a part of its runtime, the blend of this now familiar trope with humour seemed to work, until some of the hard work unravels due to weak writing of the background story.
The Vvaan: Force of the Forest
Action, Adventure, Thriller (Hindi)
A rational urban man defies his ancestral forbidden forest and awakens a divine goddess, only to realise that not only do some powers exist beyond logic but he must rise as the village’s only saviour to protect his people from annihilation.
Cast:
Sidharth Malhotra, Tamannaah Bhatia, Nimrat Kaur, Maniesh Paul, Sunil Grover, Shweta Tiwari, Yo Yo Honey Singh, Manu Rishi Chadha, Durgesh Kumar, Anup Soni
Director:
Deepak Kumar Mishra
Writer:
Arunabh Kumar
Fri, September 25 2026
Engineered to exploit the current devotional fervour at the box office, in this tale of divine retribution, both the plot and the message are ultimately buried beneath a high-pitched, artificial theme-park aesthetic.
What happens when the custodians of ecological preservation form a corrupt alliance with political forces in the name of progress? Arunabh Kumar and Ekta Kapoor combine to present the dialectic between ecological conservation and modernisation, wrapped in a glossy, high-pitched divine intervention, for a mass audience that, these days, looks South for grand mytho-mystical experiences. When Rishi (Sidharth Malhotra), a rational professional, returns to his ancestral village with his wife Mamta (Tamannaah Bhatia) to sell off his inherited land, he is sucked into a raging debate. Led by the double-faced Deepak (Sunil Grover), those aligned with the development agenda offer a better rate because they want to build a road through the forest to reduce travel time to city infrastructure. In contrast, the traditionalists, including his well-meaning brother Shashi (Anup Soni) and bitter sister-in-law (Shweta Tiwari), don’t want to upset the forest’s reigning deity and invite her curse. Because of a past incident, Rishi has lost faith in the goddess, but Mamta remains devoted. When Rishi ignores the sacred decree forbidding entry into the forest after sunset, fury breaks loose as we gradually discover that beneath the supernatural lies a timely message: reneging on a pact with nature can unleash self-seeking dark forces. Drawing from folklore, it reminds us that the ruler has a role to protect nature and what happens when the custodian goes corrupt.
Fri, September 25 2026
Some films are bad. Some are terrible. And some are pure torture. Sidharth Malhotra-Tamannaah's The Vvaan falls neatly into that third category.
Some films are bad. Some are terrible. And some are pure torture. The Vvaan falls neatly into that third category, in which I struggled to find a single redeeming feature, and failed spectacularly. When we first come upon a Mumbai-based engineer (Sidharth Malhotra) and his wife (Tamannaah Bhatia), childless but certainly not loveless, they are a) singing songs in a large sea-side bungalow, b) fetching up at a quack who hands out potency powders and c) participating in a hideous racist-colourist joke. The Vvaan never recovers from this early blow. Nor did I, as the film kept drawing me deeper into an off-colour, off-putting mix of so-called fantasy and folklore, of the kind that involves dark forests and their resident guardian devis, and evil spirits which devour those who dare walk into their domain after dark.
Fri, September 25 2026
Meesaya Murukku 2
Comedy, Romance, Drama (Tamil)
After facing rejection in love and getting into a fight, Jeeva learns about his father Siva's struggles and sacrifices. Inspired by his grandfather's legacy and father's dedication, Jeeva changes his outlook and works hard toward his musical dream. Through determination and perseverance, Jeeva earns recognition in the music industry and brings pride to his family.
Cast:
HipHop Tamizha Adhi, Ketika Sharma, Chaithra J Achar, Ramya Ranganathan, Harshath Khan, Shah Ra, Karunas, Nassar, Aadukalam Naren, Karunakaran
Director:
HipHop Tamizha Adhi
Writer:
HipHop Tamizha Adhi
Fri, September 25 2026
Directed by Hiphop Tamizha Adhi and starring himself, Karunas and Baba Baskar, the gaana-driven musical explores the class divide in the music world and the struggle for gaana to find mainstream recognition. Spanning the musical dreams of three generations, the film has an interesting premise but remains disappointingly hollow.
Meesaya Murukku arrived in 2017 and remains a film that still serves as solid motivation to youngsters. A coming-of-age musical that doubled as Hiphop Tamizha Adhi’s biography, it was everything youngsters lapped up. Eight years later, Meesaya Murukku 2 is here. A spiritual sequel, the second part now sheds light on gaana — often linked to a particular era — and how it hasn’t got the recognition it deserves.
Fri, September 25 2026
Takes on gaana culture, caste and class barriers in the music industry, but its many ideas come at the cost of a focussed story
Meesaya Murukku 2 has some basic ideas that would fill the first few pages of a Pa Ranjith or a Mari Selvaraj script, which explains how it opens: a traditionalist orthodox musician grabbing a recording chance that was otherwise meant for a rooted gaana artiste. Here, we see characters named Das and Lakshmi from Royapuram, in true retro style, filling the theatre with lines in Madras baashai. Very soon, we cut to characters called Siva and Jeeva. What connects these people and why do they struggle to find success in this world?
Dorothy
Action, Adventure, Drama, Romance (Tamil)
Set in a world shaped by caste, violence, and toxic masculinity, two childhood friends grow up inseparable in rural Tamil Nadu. Their lives are transformed by the arrival of Dorothy, a woman whose compassion quietly challenges the world around them.
Cast:
Keerthy Suresh, Sananth, Rishikanth, Jeeva Subramanian, Ramachandran Durairaj, Muthukumar, Soundara Raja, Anthony Daasan
Director:
Karthik Subbaraj
Fri, September 25 2026
Directed by Karthik Subbaraj and starring Sananth and Rishikanth, Dorothy is a generational mainstream drama centered on love of all forms. The film explores a relationship that challenges one's moral and societal expectations while navigating emotion, acceptance and patriarchy.
Even before Dorothy could hit theatres, it made all the noise on social media. Thanks to the fabulous response the Karthik Subbaraj directorial received after the screening at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). A standing ovation, glowing reviews and what not! After working with industry greats, director Karthik Subbaraj is back in his most comfortable space with two promising performers, Rishikanth and Sananth.
Fri, September 25 2026
The Paradise
Action, Thriller, Drama (Telugu)
In 1980s Secunderabad, a marginalised tribe battles discrimination and fights for citizenship under an unexpected leader's guidance, challenging systemic oppression.
Cast:
Nani, Mohan Babu, Kayadu Lohar, Sonali Kulkarni, Raghav Juyal, Sampoornesh Babu, Vishika, Tanikella Bharani, Priyadarshi Pullikonda, P. Vijay Kumar
Director:
Srikanth Odela
Fri, September 25 2026
Directed by Srikanth Odela and starring Nani, Mohan Babu, and Sonali Kulkarni, The Paradise is so fragmented that it struggles to establish cohesion and continuity and, most importantly, lacks a substantial story to hold it together.
Nani, the Natural Star and one of Telugu cinema’s most relatable, family-friendly heroes, has been steadily pivoting towards action-heavy films over the past few years. His latest outing, The Paradise, is his biggest yet in terms of scale and action. But does Nani’s second collaboration with director Srikanth Odela work as well as their first? Can The Paradise take the actor and filmmaker to the next league? What works, what doesn’t, and what really goes wrong? Let’s find out.
Fri, September 25 2026
Nani’s physical transformation in this Srikanth Odela-directed film is striking, but it cannot make up for a narrative that struggles to establish its characters or conflict
The Paradise begins by paying tribute to some of the Indian cinema legends we have lost in recent times. It also remembers revolutionary Telangana poet Gummadi Vittal Rao, better known as Gaddar. It is director Srikanth Odela’s way of tipping his hat to his Telangana roots and the region’s textured history. In his debut, Dasara, also starring Nani, Srikanth explored caste hierarchies around Telangana’s coal mines during the era of prohibition, weaving a tale of friendship, loss and revenge. It wasn’t a perfect film, but it established its emotional conflicts well.
Brothers
Comedy (English)
Hollywood actors Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson have been best friends for years, but a shocking family secret suggests their connection might be closer.
Cast:
Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Natalie Martinez, Brittany Ishibashi, Nolan Almeida, Ella Grace Helton, Noah Carganilla, Highdee Kuan, Oona Yaffe, Holland Taylor
Fri, September 25 2026
The Hollywood stars act as fictionalised versions of themselves in this far-out comedy that imagines the two as brothers after a real-life rumour.
Actors Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson have been good friends since they met on the film Edtv (1999) and went on to collaborate on HBO’s award-winning series True Detective (2014). In recent years, a rumour about the two keeps surfacing from an interview with Matthew’s mother Kay revealing that she ‘knew’ Woody’s father, Charles, a felon, in her past. While it was suggested that the two actors could be brothers, a DNA test was never taken. In the new Apple TV series, Brothers, created by the two stars, David West Read and Lee Eisenberg, the outlandish series imagines a fictional scenario in which this plays out. The cheeky, wink-wink narrative works best when it remains on the actors, as it gets way too sitcom-ish when applied to their extended families.
Mobland S02
Crime, Drama (English)
Two mob families clash in a war that threatens to topple empires and lives.
Cast:
Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, Paddy Considine, Joanne Froggatt, Lara Pulver, Anson Boon, Mandeep Dhillon, Jasmine Jobson, Teddie Allen, Emmett J. Scanlan
Fri, September 25 2026
The British crime thriller returns to London as the Harrigan family finds themselves in the middle of another turf war.
The first half of MobLand Season 1 moved around at a slow pace, introducing characters and setting up the chaotic world of the Harrigan crime family. Returning for its second season, the series, created by Top Boy’s Ronan Bennett, wastes no time in setting up another threat for the Harrigans, who find themselves in the midst of a civil war. Directed by Guy Ritchie, the Paramount+ show has been in the news for its on-set drama, with reports of discord between the leads. However, the show is back with gusto on Season 2 that quickly establishes the stakes and the players. It remains to be seen if it can stick the landing with what lies ahead.
Don't Be Shy
Romance, Comedy (Hindi)
Quintessential Mean Girl, Shyamili ‘Shy’ Das, finds herself suddenly relegated to Loser-ville when Mayank, her boyfriend of three years, suddenly dumps her. But Shy, all set to get her revenge, finds herself falling into friendship and compassion with someone unexpected… Mayank’s new girlfriend - Tara.
Cast:
Arushi Bajaj, Ansh Duggal, Bianca Arora, Piyush Khati, Kunaal Roy Kapur, Neha Dhupia, Anurag Basu, Anju Alva Naik, Nazneen Madan
Director:
Sreeti Mukerji
Writer:
Sreeti Mukerji
Fri, September 25 2026
1998 में जब करण जौहर ‘कुछ कुछ होता है’ लेकर आए थे तो दर्शक सोचते थे कि अपने देश में कहां पर होते हैं ऐसे कॉलेज जिनमें इतनी रंगीनी हो, इतनी चमक-दमक हो, जहां पढ़ाई के अलावा सब कुछ होता हो…? लेकिन वह फिल्म सुहानी हवा के झोंके की तरह आई थी। आर्चीज़ कॉमिक्स से निकली कहानी, कसी हुई स्क्रिप्ट, सधा हुआ निर्देशन, बड़े सितारे, शानदार म्यूज़िक और… फिल्म सुपरहिट। इसके 14 बरस बाद एक बार फिर करण जौहर ‘स्टूडैंट ऑफ द ईयर’ लेकर आए तो हम दर्शक फिर हैरान हुए कि यार, कहां होते हैं ऐसे स्कूल-कॉलेज जिनमें इस तरह की भौंडी हरकतें होती हों, इस तरह के चमकीले जीव ‘पढ़ाई’ के नाम पर फूहड़ता करते हों। लेकिन यह फिल्म भी अपनी चमक-दमक और रसीले एंटरटेनमैंट के चलते युवा दर्शकों को ही सही, पसंद आ गई थी।
Fri, September 25 2026
Prime Video’s new Hindi original film centres on Shyamili ‘Shy’ Das (Aarushi Bajaj), a college student who has her entire life mapped out. Shy has absorbed the rules of The Perfect Woman, a book that promises to show women how to get life right. Plan A revolves around Shy’s future with boyfriend Mayank (Piyush Khati), the heir to a business empire, and an imagined version of herself that bears little resemblance to her actual existence. Shy has no Plan B.
Fri, September 25 2026
Hunkkaar: The Roar
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
A victim takes a courageous stand against a powerful godman accused of misconduct in an intense courtroom drama centered on her fight for justice.
Cast:
Aneet Padda, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Raghubir Yadav, Zoya Hussain, Ram Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma, Arjun Mathur, Charu Shankar, Veen Harsh
Director:
Karan Kapadia, Nitya Mehra, Heeraz Marfatia
Writer:
Heeraz Marfatia
Fri, September 25 2026
Aneet Padda, Fatima Sana Shaikh remain largely convincing, and own the best moments of the six-episode show.
The rampage of dhongi babas, spellbound bhakts and shell-shocked victims continues apace. The fresh spate began in 2020 with Bobby Deol spreading his beatific smile and vile ways through the multi-season ‘Ashram’ . In 2023, we saw Manoj Bajpayee fighting a lone battle against a powerful self-styled godman, based on the real-life Asaram, in ‘Sirf Ek Banda Kaafi Hai’. That was followed by Jaideep Ahlawat jumping into the role of the rapacious ‘Maharaj’ in a film of the same name in 2024. Now comes ‘Hunkkaar’, in which the excellent Raghubir Yadav plays Baapji, the all-seeing seer who preys upon young girls. While the casting seems, at first glance, to be inspired – I mean, the always likeable Yadav turning into a monster, can you imagine – not being able to overcome the utter familiarity of the subject never allows Hunkkaar to become its own beast.
Fri, September 25 2026
A fairly familiar fight for justice that builds far too many flimsy narratives around its core conflict, runs out of ammunition and speaks out of turn in a needlessly cussing tone
A week after Daayra probed into India’s rampant rape crisis through the purview of a police procedural comes Hunkkaar: The Roar. In this six-part series created by the husband and wife duo of Karan Darius Kapadia and Nitya Mehra, a 17-year-old victim of sexual assault takes an influential godman to court in hopes of justice, only to encounter endless persecution and judgement at the hands of the law, society and media. You can find different takes on this theme across fare like Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai, Sia, Ashram and Maharaj. Hunkkaar’s generic treatment of a widespread problem doesn’t provide any fresh insights but engages in fits and starts on the strength of the talent on board.
Fri, September 25 2026
Inspired by an India we’re all too familiar with, the well-crafted series revolves around a 17-year-old girl who accuses a mighty godman of sexual assault
A 17-year-old girl walks into a police station. Her name is Meenu Rawat, but anonymity is going to be her shield. Her anxious parents try to lodge her complaint. But the first hurdle is a sign of things to come. A devout officer going around distributing prasad to his colleagues puts a sticky ladoo in her hand. The girl is paralysed with fear. The sacred sweet not only reveals the permeation of blind faith in a law enforcement space; it also reminds her of a trust betrayed. By her elders, who admitted her into a god-fearing school run by a spiritual organisation. By the teachers and parents, who were too brainwashed to question their holy ways. By a middle-class culture that forces its citizens to seek refuge in the flowery proverbs of dodgy orators. And by the beloved godman, who preyed on her under the guise of a ‘purification ritual’. Meenu, a minor, breaks the gaze of the sweet, regains her numbness, and places herself in the sticky hands of a system that normalises poisoned apples. The family takes all night to file a sexual assault report against the cult leader, Sunil “Baapji” Chakosi. And it’s only the beginning.
Heart of the Beast
Adventure, Thriller (English)
After a harrowing plane crash, Special Forces officer James Belmont and his combat dog, Odin, find themselves stranded deep in the Alaskan wilderness. Together, they are forced into a brutal fight for survival against the elements.
Cast:
Brad Pitt, J.K. Simmons, Anna Lambe
Director:
David Ayer
Writer:
Cameron Alexander
Fri, September 25 2026
My five minutes of joy — and, more importantly, of peace — are when I lay my head on my furry baby’s stomach and talk her through my day. The highs, the lows, the mundane and the momentous… I talk to her about everything. She responds with a few grunts (if I am lucky), but I am mostly greeted with an unstifled yawn. But her eyes tell me she understands. That she shares and cares. That alone is enough to help me power through yet another day.
Fri, September 25 2026
Much of what makes David Ayer's Heart of the Beast gripping and deeply moving is down to Brad Pitt
A man and his dog walk across 58 miles of Alaskan wilderness, fighting a heart attack, plane crash, injury, bears, wolves, drowning. David Ayer and Brad Pitt collaborate for the second time, after Fury, for this unlikely film about a bond between a retired US Special Forces Sergeant Major and his combat scout dog. A bond that has been forged during one of those indistinguishable and bloody tours of duty that America keeps rushing into. The PTSD that follows afflicts not just James (Pitt) but also Odin, and the two are spending time now in a part of Alaska that is even more isolated than the rest of it. They have no company but each other — barring a visit by a mysterious retired gold miner played gamely by Simmons.
Thu, September 24 2026
इंसान और डॉगी के प्यारे रिश्ते पर हाल ही में आई बॉलीवुड फिल्म ‘ओह माय डॉग’ के बाद अब हॉलीवुड स्टार ब्रैड पिट भी अपनी नई फिल्म ‘हार्ट ऑफ द बीस्ट’ में इस रिश्ते की एक भावनात्मक कहानी लेकर आए हैं। एक बर्फीले और वीरान जंगल के बीच फंसे दो साथियों, जिनमें एक इंसान और दूसरा बेजुबान चौपाया, अपनी जिंदगी बचाने की जद्दोजहद करते हैं। लेकिन इस सर्वाइवल ड्रामा की जान इन दोनों की दोस्ती, प्यार और वफादारी में है। कहानी सेना के स्पेशल फोर्सेज के रिटायर मेजर जेम्स बेलमोंट (ब्रैड पिट) और उनके बेहद करीबी रिटायर्ड कॉम्बैट जर्मन शेफर्ड ओडिन (ऊबर) की है। युद्ध की डरावनी यादों से पीछा छुड़ाने के लिए जेम्स अपने साथी ओडिन के साथ अलास्का के बर्फीले जंगलों में वक्त बिताने पहुंचता है, लेकिन खराब मौसम के बीच प्लेन उड़ाते वक्त उसे दिल का दौरा पड़ जाता है। उसका जहाज दुर्घटनाग्रस्त हो जाता है। इस हादसे में जेम्स और ओडिन जैसे-तैसे बच तो जाते हैं, लेकिन वहां से बर्फीले और वीरान जंगल से सुरक्षित बाहर निकलने के लिए उन्हें भीषण ठंड, भूख-प्यास, जंगली जानवरों, जानलेवा खाई, दलदल जैसे खतरों से लड़कर 58 मील लंबी यात्रा तय करनी है। अब ये दोनों इस खौफनाक चुनौती से कैसे निबटते हैं, यह देखने लायक है।
The Love Hypothesis
Romance, Comedy (English)
Olive Smith, a biology PhD candidate, and Dr. Adam Carlsen, a hotshot professor and well-known tyrant, enter into a fake relationship, seeing each of their carefully calculated theories on love get thrown into chaos.
Cast:
Lili Reinhart, Tom Bateman, Rachel Marsh, Jaboukie Young-White, Nicholas Duvernay, Arty Froushan, Jeananne Goossen, Aladeen Tawfeek, Kenny Wong, Daniel Brochu
Director:
Claire Scanlon
Fri, September 25 2026
Tom Bateman is tall and handsome, but like all good love stories, he must also be cussed and stuck-up, and it seems too contrived.
Writer Ali Hazelwood is a romantic novelist and a neuroscientist, a kind of bond that is hardly organic. The Love Hypothesis, the film based on her bestselling novel by the same name, mixes together the same chemicals. The couple in question, and the people in their lives, walk the rarefied corridors of Stanford. She is a PhD student, he is a professor, and they do top-of-the-line work such as detecting pancreatic cancer. However, barring the lab coats, some mice, a few beakers and mentions of molecules, chemicals and controlled experiments, this could be a love story from anywhere, any time — though, because Hazelwood knows this territory, the science part looks and sounds genuine.