Shomini Sen

Things are very easy in Aanand L Rai’s world. A local goon who doesn’t know the full form of UPSC in one scene can clear the prelims in the next. A man who is in and out of jail for creating a ruckus on campus can become one of the bravest officers of the Indian Air Force. A raging alcoholic, who is popping anxiety pills by the hour, is a counsellor for the Defence forces (god save our soldiers from such counsellors) and given the task to counsel a problematic officer at the Indo-China border, while she is herself 9 months pregnant. Call it easy or indulgence, but Rai’s latest film Tere Ishk Mein- starring Dhanush and Kriti Sanon- has plenty of such obscure stuff decorating a very problematic story. The film celebrates toxicity like a festival, and glorifies pain and suffering in the name of love.

Things are personal this time in The Family Man 3. Everyone is fighting or seeking revenge for a personal loss, and everyone has a clear agenda. Manoj Bajpayee returns to Prime Video’s popular web series The Family Man as the smart, quick on heels and very middle-class Intelligence officer Srikant Tiwari. In the third season, Srikant is finally forced to spend time with his family- and protect them at all costs- while solving an intricate geo-political case and even clearing his name from a crime that he never committed. Naturally, the stakes are high, and The Family Man 3 weaves a very elaborate plot involving some old characters and lots of references from previous seasons.

When the first season of Delhi Crime was released on Netflix back in 2022, the series, however much difficult it was to watch, won over the audience for its raw and authentic portrayal of a case that had shocked the entire world. The Nirbhaya gang rape case, formed the base of the Delhi Crime plot and director Richie Mehta presented a very real picture of how the case was first ignored by the Delhi Police and then cracked. The show opened up a new genre of thriller for the Indian audience- one which feels almost real and yet is fictionalised. It also gave us a new heroine, supercop Vertika Singh – played by Shefali Shah- a no-nonsense, honest police officer with a sharp mind, calm demeanour and one who brings apathy into the otherwise cold, corrupt Police force. Vartika Singh comes back in Delhi Crime Season ,3 and while her core characteristics are intact, she is now more hardened – perhaps due to circumstances or age. Vartika is now posted in Silchar, Assa,m but a case of human trafficking and search for a certain Badi Didi (Huma Quereshi) brings her back to the national capital.

Kashmir valley and insurgency in the state have both served as themes for numerous films in Indian cinema. The beauty of the valley and the unfortunate political climate of the state have always been a topic of discussion and heated debate across India, thus serving as the perfect premise for films. Netflix’s latest film Baramulla, featuring Manav Kaul and Bhasha Sumbli in the lead, sets the story deep into the valley, but instead of romanticising about Kashmir, it depicts the grim reality of the place, riddled with curfews, terrorism and more. Directed byAditya Suhas Jambhale, who also serves as a co-writer with Aditya Dhar and Monal Thaakar, Baramulla keeps terrorism as just one of the subplots, while the main plot revolves around a case of missing children, which DSP Ridwaan Sayyed is appointed to solve.

Yami Gautam and Emraan Hashmi’s latest film, Haq, brings a landmark case from the past to the forefront. The Shah Bano case, where the Supreme Court upheld Allahabad High Court’s verdict that gave senior lawyer Mohammed Ahmad Khan the order to pay lifelong maintenance to his estranged wife Shazia Bano Begum, is a case that changed the trajectory of muslim women and their rights in India. Inspired by the case and based on Jigna Vora’s book Bano: Bharat Ki Beti, Suparn Verma’s film fictionalises the landmark case, adding emotional depth and drama to make it into a solid and impactful film.

Maddock Films’ newest offering, its horror franchise, Thamma, featuring Ayushmann Khurrana and Rashmika Mandanna, opens up a new world. After ghosts and werewolves, Thamma introduces the world of Vampires or ‘Betaals’ to the audience. Ayushmann returns to the big screen after a long hiatus, taking up a character which is similar to his previous films, yet strikingly different as it belongs to the fantasy fiction genre. Directed by Munjya director Aditya Sarpotdar, Thamma explores a new genre in the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe- MHCU- a name coined by the banner- where Vampires thrive on blood but also maintain an equilibrium between their world and our world.

Lord Curzon Ki Haveli, directed by Anshuman Jha, may have been a great mystery thriller on paper. The film, with a very Hitchcock vibe, starts on a promising note, but soon enough, almost 15 minutes into the film, it loses steam. Yes, that early. I will be honest, I sat alone only for its actors. It features Anuj Mathur, Rasika Dugal, Paresh Pahuja and Zoha Rahman- all very watchable actors, all who have proved their mettle in projects before. But Lord Curzon Ki Haveli is unable to use these actors to their hilt thanks to a sketchy plot which is woke unnecessarily and a terribly written screenplay.

In Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, Vishal Jethwa and Ishaan Khatter play Chandan and Shoaib, childhood buddies from the marginalized section of society, who are acutely aware of their social status and desperate to earn the respect and validation they rightfully deserve. Early in the film, we are told that Chandan hides his caste identity. Desperate to break generational discrimination, both Chandan and Shoaib apply for Police jobs, but instead of opting for the reservation quota, Chandan applies in the general category. When a perturbed Shoiab questions his move, Chandan admits that he is scared to reveal his caste lest he be thrown again into doing menial jobs. That moment sets the tone of Homebound. A film about two young men who try honest means to get jobs and earn the respect of society, but society constantly fails them, ridicules them, and never allows them to shine.