Guild Reviews
Baksho Bondi (Shadowbox)
Drama (Bengali)
Maya discovers that her husband – an ex-soldier who is suffering from PTSD - is the prime suspect in a murder investigation. She and her teenage son are forced to go to extremes to keep the family together.
Cast:
Tillotama Shome, Chandan Bisht, Sayan Karmakar, Suman Saha
Director:
Saumyananda Sahi
A Film About Fierce Loyalty and All-Encompassing Love
Fri, February 28 2025
In another life, Maya (Tillotama Shome) would have lived a different, more comfortable life. A college graduate in Barrackpore, she was set for an ordinary middle-class life like the many girls around her. However, all her parents’ dreams crash and burn when Maya tells them about Sundar (Chandan Bisht) – a pahadi man stationed in the nearby army cantonment. By the time Tanushree Das and Saumyananda Sahi’s Baksho Bondi (English title: Shadowbox) begins – it’s been a few years since Sundar has been dishonourably discharged from the army because of what appears to be a serious case of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The rebellion of young love has made way for the caution and weariness of middle age. Both presumably in their late 30s by now, the onus of providing for Sundar now falls on Maya.
(Writing for Berlinale Talent Press)
Shadowbox: A Nebulous Tale of Captivity and Resistance
Sun, February 23 2025
In a literal world, ‘Baksho Bondi’ — Bengali words carrying set meanings — need not exist together. When translated to English, ‘baksho’ means ‘box’ and ‘bondi’ is ‘captive’; both denoting the idea of being boxed up. But then again, in a literal world the verbatim translation of ‘Baksho Bondi’ would be a phrase: captive in a box. Yet first-time directors Tanushree Das and Saumyananda Sahi forsake precision in favour of interpretation, choosing Shadowbox (Baksho Bondi, 2025), meaning to fight with an imaginary adversary, as the English title, and in doing so, shrink the subjectivity of a person to the objectivity of an experience. The result is a film that unfolds as an interplay of both titles —imbued with the angst of confinement and the spirit of resistance— while mirroring the ambiguity that comes with it. Maya (Tillotama Shome) lives with her husband and son in Barrackpore, a neighbourhood located at the fringes of Kolkata, a densely populated Indian city. She works constantly although the specificity of her labour takes shape later. She irons clothes and ferries them from door to door on a cycle, and does domestic work for a family. In between, she outlines her husband’s routine and instructs their teenage son Debu to help him with it.
Sabdham
Thriller, Horror (Tamil)
A paranormal investigator is employed by a university to investigate a series of mysterious deaths some are attributing to supernatural causes.
Cast:
Aadhi Pinisetty, Lakshmi Menon, Redin Kingsley, Simran, Rajiv Menon
Director:
Arivazhagan Venkatachalam
Aadhi And Arivazhagan’s New Horror Has Streaks Of Eeram’s Brilliance
Fri, February 28 2025
A problem with magnum opuses is the weight of the expectations it creates for future projects from the filmmaker. Eeram continues to be a victory director Arivazhagan is unable to emulate. Sabdham is the second collaboration with Aadhi, which has brought the hit duo back again, but not the quality it had produced with Eeram. Though Sabdham is an unabashed attempt at creating a horror film of a similar pedigree, Arivazhagan falls short due to the lack of simplicity that Eeram wore as a crown. Eeram, his debut, was a straightforward story about the ghost of a virtuous woman haunting everyone who wronged her, using water as her medium. When the protagonist investigates the case, it takes an organic route to move from being a crime thriller to a horror. Everything about the film was lucid and engaging as the film doesn’t take too much on its shoulders. On the other hand, Sabdham (meaning sound) is confusing as it tries to marry science with the supernatural.
Toxic Town
Drama (English)
When dozens of babies in Corby are born with disabilities, their mothers embark on a battle to hold those responsible to account.
Cast:
Jodie Whittaker, Aimee Lou Wood, Claudia Jessie, Karla Crome, Robert Carlyle
Jodie Whittaker Leads Heartbreaking True Story About Mothers' Fight To Get Justice For Their Kids
Thu, February 27 2025
Toxic Town is the true story about an English steel town’s toxic waste that led to birth defects amongst the children. But more than that, the series is about the legal fight to get acknowledgement and justice for the pain and suffering they’ve been through. While the four-part series takes place over many years and tracks the arduous legal battle, Toxic Town is noteworthy for the stellar performances from its British cast led by Doctor Who and Broadchurch’s Jodie Whittaker. The limited series revolves around the working-class town of Corby, where the closing of a steel mill leads to other construction opportunities. However, as the site is developed into something different by negligent crews, under the lax leadership of the city council, the toxins seep into the town, affecting future generations. Mothers Susan (Jodie Whitaker), Tracey (Aimee Lou Wood), and Maggie (Claudia Jessie) all suffer different kinds of trauma as they watch their children suffer and, in Tracey’s case, watch them die. It takes much time, nearly 15 years, before any kind of resolution is reached.
Nickel Boys
Drama (English)
Chronicles the powerful friendship between two young Black teenagers navigating the harrowing trials of reform school together in Florida.
Cast:
Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Hamish Linklater, Gralen Bryant Banks
Director:
RaMell Ross
Beautifully Filmed Oscar Nominee's Devastating Ending Will Shatter You
Thu, February 27 2025
Nickel Boys, directed by RaMell Ross, is up for two Oscar awards at the upcoming ceremony on March 2. It deserved a few more nominations, including one for its cinematography that details the alternating perspectives of its teenage lead characters, Elwood and Turner. This tragic story, adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by Colson Whitehead, hits even harder in this visual format, backed by some exceptional performances. Set in 1960s Florida, the story sees change coming to the US in the form of the civil rights movement and space travel, but in some places it feels like time never changed. Elwood Curtis (Ethan Herisse), a promising young Black teenager with a bright future, is caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. Transferred to the Nickel Academy, a reform school for juvenile delinquents, he learns how cruel the world can really be. Separated from his beloved grandmother (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor), he makes a friend in Turner (Brandon Wilson), who is desperate to escape from the clutches of the evil wardens.
Suits LA
Drama (English)
Ted Black, a former federal prosecutor from New York, has reinvented himself representing the most powerful clients in Los Angeles. But his firm is at a crisis point, and in order to survive, he must embrace a role he held in contempt his entire career.
Cast:
Stephen Amell, Lex Scott Davis, Josh McDermitt, Bryan Greenberg
Stephen Amell Spinoff Series Is Pale, Disappointing Replica Of Original Legal Drama
Thu, February 27 2025
Suits LA is one of the most eagerly awaited shows of the year, and now that it’s here, one can only wonder why it was commissioned. Well, actually, we know why. But this redux of Suits is a disappointment on every level. Creator Aaron Korsh introduces a new shark-like lawyer with Stephen Amell’s Ted Black, aka the new Harvey Specter. But we all know that the original Suits was a lighting in a bottle. This second spinoff from the same universe does not have the same charm as the original nor does it have the characters required to get invested. The spinoff introduces viewers to hot-shot LA lawyer Ted (Amell), who is on the verge of a big merger with his partner Stuart (Josh McDermitt). Amidst the chaos of all this lies the news that his father (Matt Letscher) is dying back in New York. The premiere episode revolves around our introduction of Ted’s world, his fight to keep his firm and glimpses of his troubled past and shaky relationship with his father. A few generic supporting characters flit in and out.
Thadavu
Drama (Malayalam)
Geetha is alone, jobless, and terminally ill. She can't afford the treatment. As jail inmates get free treatment, she hatches a plan to commit a crime.
Cast:
M.N. Anitha, Beena R Chandran, Ishak Musafir, Subramanian, Vappu
Director:
Fazil Razak
Writer:
Fazil Razak
Fazil Razak makes a promising debut
Wed, February 26 2025
Human beings are bound to have a breaking point, the limit till which they can take all the pain and sufferings that life throws at them. Geetha, the protagonist of Fazil Razak’s Thadavu(The Sentence) being screened in the international competition category at the 28th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), does not seem to have one. In the short period from the life of the 51-year old that we get to see in the film, she lands in one crisis after another, the latest one being more grave than the previous that it seems impossible that she would overcome it. But, for the woman scarred by two unsuccessful marriages and a series of unfortunate events, including being blamed for a child’s death for no fault of her own, the question of giving in does not arise.
Mere Husband Ki Biwi
Drama, Comedy (Hindi)
A hilarious and heartwarming modern-day romance set in Delhi, where love, fate, and unexpected twists put one man in a chaotic dilemma. Caught between a rekindled spark with Antara and an unexpected twist with Prabhleen, Ankur’s life takes a hilariously unpredictable turn.
Cast:
Bhumi Pednekar, Arjun Kapoor, Rakul Preet Singh, Harsh Gujral, Aditya Seal
Director:
Mudassar Aziz
Writer:
Mudassar Aziz
Save This Arjun Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar Starrer For OTT
Wed, February 26 2025
Written and directed by Mudassar Aziz, the film does bring tones similar to his previous releases like Khel Khel Mein, Pati Patni Aur Woh, Happy Bhag Jayegi series. While his previous films had some aspects working for them, Mere Husband Ki Biwi falls short on most of them. Led by Arjun Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar and Rakul Preet Singh, the film attempts to explore a good concept about divorce and separated families but the message is lost somewhere between all the twists and turns that don’t add much. The comic timings often work but the screenplay doesn’t support or appreciate the comedy as much. The film begins with Arjun Kapoor’s Ankur Chaddha dreaming about his monstrous ex-wife, Prabhleen Dhilon played by Bhumi Pednekar. Ankur and Prabhleen have separated for over two years but she continue to haunt his dreams, and his reality. Her memories continue to get in the way of his new relationships, however, his one loyal friend refuses to give up even if it lands them in trouble. Ankur is finally able to move on when he visits his hometown to finalise a deal, where he meets his college’s ‘IT’ girl Antara Khanna played by Rakul Preet Singh.
चटनी चटाती
Wed, February 26 2025
अंकुर चड्ढा और प्रभलीन ढिल्लों (जिसे फिल्म में ढिल्लों, ढिल्लोन, ढिल्लन भी कहा गया) का तलाक हो चुका है लेकिन प्रभलीन के साथ बिताए बुरे दिन अंकुर की यादों से नहीं निकल पा रहे हैं। उसे पुरानी दोस्त अंतरा खन्ना मिलती है, दोनों करीब आते हैं कि तभी प्रभलीन लौट आती है और अंकुर को वापस पाने की जुगत में लग जाती है। कौन जीतेगी इस रेस में? हस्बैंड को छोड़ चुकी बीवी या हस्बैंड की होने वाली बीवी? अपने आकर्षक नाम और अपनी कहानी की रूपरेखा से लुभाती इस फिल्म को पति-पत्नी के रिश्ते की पेचीदगियों के इर्दगिर्द बुनी एक कॉमेडी फिल्म का कलेवर दिया गया है। फिल्म अपने फ्लेवर में है भी ऐसी जिससे हल्की-फुल्की कॉमेडी उपजती रहे और रिश्तों की संजीदगियों पर बात भी न हो। अपने ‘बॉलीवुड’ से आने वाली इस किस्म की फिल्में अक्सर यही तो करती आई हैं। आइए, देखिए, टाइमपास कीजिए और जाइए। जिसे कोई सीख लेनी हो ले ले, हम तो मसखरी दिखाएंगे।
Aims to provide laughter during tough times, it fails to deliver meaningful entertainment.
Sat, February 22 2025
Crime Beat
Drama (Hindi)
Small-town crime journalist Abhishek finds his life and career affected by a fugitive gangster. As he gets trapped in a web of lies and motives, what price will he pay- to become a renowned reporter?
Cast:
Saqib Saleem, Saba Azad, Sai Tamhankar, Rahul Bhat, Adinath Kothare
Director:
Sanjeev Kaul
Facing the heat in the crime beat
Sun, February 23 2025
The fine line between journalism and sensationalism is fast becoming wafer-thin. Even those not privy to the world of journalism are aware of the falsehoods the media propagates in search of truth. So, what can the showrunner of ‘Crime Beat’, Sudhir Mishra, tell us what we already don’t know, or go beyond what Hansal Mehta’s ‘Scoop’ or ‘The Broken News’ offered? ‘Crime Beat’, like Mehta’s ‘Scoop’, is very much an insider account of investigative journalism. Based on the novel ‘The Price You Pay’ by Somnath Batabyal, who spent a decade covering crime, it takes us into the heart of news gatherers. Set in 2011 in New Delhi, a journalist, Abhishek Sinha (Saqib Saleem), in pursuit of page one stories even recreates the drama for a story. Of course, before we meet the protagonist of the series, we are introduced to Binny Chaudhry (Rahul Bhat). Hailed as a messiah, he is on the verge of surrendering to the police but before we get to know who he is, he is shot dead.
Saqib Saleem's Series Is Not A Crackling Thriller, But Worth Bingeing On
Fri, February 21 2025
A significant addition to the small canon of Indian media industry dramas, Crime Beat, like Scoop before it, is based on a book written by a journalist who was in the thick of the action that forms the core of the series. Even its fictional elements largely flow from fact. The Zee5 series is marked by realism, an attribute that stems from its abjuration of overt generic flourishes. The dialogues co-written by the author of the novel (The Price You Pay, published in 2013)—scribe-turned academic Somnath Batabyal—contribute conversational authenticity to the show. Crime Beat investigates the Delhi underworld, the media’s attritional brushes with it and with men in uniform charged with keeping crime in check in the city. The lines that separate the three domains from each other as well as from party politics are frequently blurred, even erased.
On The Beaten Path
Fri, February 21 2025
You’ve seen Broken News. You know how rival channels work, ethics versus TRPs. You’ve seen Dhamaka and newsroom ambitions that prevail over national security. You’ve seen Despatch, the print medium giving way to digital. You’ve also seen umpteen movies and shows centred around a dreaded criminal, cops, journalists and politicians. You know that cops on the take, on the payroll of businessmen, ministers and opposition leaders, contribute to regular cinematic fodder. The show begins with someone with a huge following stepping out. Binny Chaudhry has surrendered, scream assorted TV anchors. And Binny is shot. The rest is a flashback to return to this moment at the end. Sudhir Mishra who takes the credit as showrunner and director (along with Sanjeev Kaul), picks up a book titled The Price You Pay and proceeds to build Binny Chaudhry (Rahul Bhat) as an uncatchable criminal with hawala rackets, kidnappings and ransom money that he showers like confetti over Indirapuram, the place he grew up in Delhi.
(Writing for The Hindu)
A new film reiterates the enduring appeal of Subramania Bharati
Sun, February 23 2025
In his short lifetime of 38 years (1882-1921), Subramania Bharati left an indelible mark on Tamil society. His rousing poetry and prose introduced many to the concepts of patriotism and female emancipation, and enhanced them in those who already possessed it. His love for the country, and towards his Parasakthi, the divine feminine are well-known. The nimirndha nannadai (graceful walk with head held high) and nerkonda paarvai (straightforward vision) he visualised women to possess still serve as an inspiration to some and an aspiration for others. Despite multiple readings of Bharati’s life over the ages, there’s still scope to analyse the various facets of his life. And, that’s what the film Shaktidasan (devotee of Shakti), by director Usha Rajeshwari sets out to do.
Max
Action, Drama (Kannada)
A maverick senior cop reports for duty at a new police station and soon find himself embroiled in an unexpectedly dangerous turn of events.
Cast:
Sudeep, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Sunil Varma, Pramod Shetty, Manjunatha Gowda
Director:
Vijay Kartikeyaa
Writer:
Vijay Kartikeyaa
(Writing for The News Minute)
Sudeep shines in a one-note action fest
Sun, February 23 2025
It takes a certain kind of courage to write a one-note film and pack it with well-choreographed action set pieces without any of the trappings (barring an item number, sigh!) of a film where the hero is the saviour. For instance, the traditional mother sentiment is turned on its head — with the mother (Sudha Belawadi) telling others that the families of those in the police force should be brave — and there’s no romance angle that diverts the hero from his grand goal. This is one of the main reasons the film races past at a spiff two hours and 13 minutes. But what debut director Vijay Karthikeyaa has with him is an action star of Sudeep’s calibre. This is the kind of role Sudeep can do with his eyes closed — show brawn, fight, and casually spread his charisma around. And, he delights his core fan base with this film where he does all the things they’ve come to expect of him — kickass action, punch dialogues and a certain swagger that, strangely, comes effortlessly to someone also capable of deep nuance and sensitivity.
Broken Rage
Crime, Drama, Comedy, Action (Japanese)
A seemingly unremarkable man called “Mouse” is caught by the police. In exchange for his freedom, he goes undercover, infiltrates a drug ring, and arranges a fake deal, but an unexpected turn of events occurs... Director Takeshi Kitano presents a two-part film: a serious yakuza action and a self-parodying comedy of the same story. What is the fate of "Mouse"?
Cast:
Takeshi Kitano, Tadanobu Asano, Nao Ômori, Shido Nakamura, Hakuryu
Director:
Takeshi Kitano
Writer:
Takeshi Kitano
The weirdest movie of the year, courtesy Takeshi Kitano; no wonder Amazon buried it
Sun, February 23 2025
In a recent interview, actor Rajiv Thakur admitted that audiences that have seen him as a fixture on Kapil Sharma’s comedy shows will have no idea that he played a menacing terrorist in the spectacular streaming series IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. And those who discovered him through IC 814 wouldn’t know that he has spent years as a part of Sharma’s silly troupe. In the Venn diagram of Indian entertainment, these audiences will never intersect, even though both IC 814 and The Great Indian Kapil Show are available on Netflix. Similarly, it is possible that cinephiles familiar with Takeshi Kitano through his art-house yakuza movies, or his memorable appearance in the hyper-violent Battle Royale, will collapse in shock they are told that he was so central to the game show Takeshi’s Castle that they named it after him. Kitano gets to play with his two creative personalities — the Golden Lion-winning filmmaker and the court jester — in his latest movie, Broken Rage, which was released on Prime Video with less fanfare than what you’d find at funerals in certain cultures.
Oops! Ab Kya
Drama, Comedy, Mystery (Hindi)
An accident during a medical check-up changes Roohi's life completely, she must face whatever fate has in store for her.
Cast:
Shweta Basu Prasad, Vanshika Taparia, Javed Jaffrey, Sonali Kulkarni, Abhay Mahajan
अच्छे अभिनय से सजी हल्की-फुल्की मजेदार कहानी
Sat, February 22 2025
सोचिए, एक लड़की जिसने आज के जमाने में शादी से पहले कभी इंटीमेट नहीं होने की कसम ली हो, जिसका बॉयफ्रेंड तीन साल से उस खास दिन का इंतजार कर रहा हो, उसे अचानक पता चले कि वो प्रेग्नेंट है। है ना विचित्र परिस्थिति! पर इसी अजीबो-गरीब सिचुएशन को काफी मजेदार तरीके से हैंडल करती है वेब सीरीज ‘ऊप्स! अब क्या?’, जो मशहूर अमेरिकन टीवी शो ‘जेन द वर्जिन’ का आधिकारिक रीमेक है। इस वेब सीरीज में ड्रामा है, कॉमिडी है, इमोशन है, और तो और मर्डर मिस्ट्री जैसे भरपूर मसाले हैं, जो कभी-कभी अतिरेक भरे लगने के बावजूद आपको बांधे रखते हैं। यह कहानी है रूही (श्वेता बसु प्रसाद) की, जिसने अपनी नानी को वचन दिया है कि वह शादी से पहले कभी फिजिकल रिलेशन नहीं बनाएगी। उसका ओमकार (अभय महाजन) जैसा ग्रीन फ्लैग ब्वॉयफ्रेंड है, जो तीन साल से अपने अरमानों को दबाकर रूही के इस वचन में उसका साथ दे रहा है। लेकिन तभी एक दिन पता चलता है कि रूही प्रेग्नेंट है।
Watchable but Uninspired Remake of 'Jane the Virgin'
Fri, February 21 2025
Fortunately, the worst thing about Oops! Ab Kya? is its title. The eight-episode series is an Indian remake of Jane the Virgin, the hit American dramedy centered on the life of a chaste Latina virgin who becomes pregnant after a routine hospital visit turns into an artificial insemination accident. Oops! Ab Kya? (if I repeat this title enough, maybe it’ll stop sounding terrible) is a serviceable show on its own. It has a decent cast: Shweta Basu Prasad finally gets an author-backed role of sorts, while the supporting gang is gamely led by veterans like Sonali Kulkarni and Jaaved Jaaferi. The young-and-awkward Dice Media aesthetic lends itself naturally to the show’s unserious tone. For once, the artifice and DIY stagey-ness of its setting aren’t deal breakers. And it helps that the original show aims beyond its one-line gimmick: every character becomes a protagonist of their own little storyline. There’s not much to tell the main dish from the garnish.