A Real Pain
Comedy, Drama (English)
Mismatched cousins David and Benji reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history. (more…)
Paatal Lok S02
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
Inspector Hathi Ram Chaudhary, the unlikely hero, investigates a high-profile murder case that leads him to remote corners of North-East India, where he battles powerful forces and personal tragedies in his pursuit of truth. (more…)
Kudumbasthan
Family, Drama, Comedy (Tamil)
Naveen's relationship with his parents becomes strained after he marries a oppressed-caste girl. Though they eventually reconcile, his sudden unemployment puts him in a difficult position. As financial pressures mount, Naveen must navigate societal challenges and personal struggles to regain (more…)
The Roshans
Documentary (Hindi)
This documentary series chronicles the trials and triumphs of Bollywood's iconic Roshan family — musician Roshan Lal Nagrath, Rajesh, Rakesh and Hrithik. (more…)
Guild Reviews
Kudumbasthan
Family, Drama, Comedy (Tamil)
Naveen's relationship with his parents becomes strained after he marries a oppressed-caste girl. Though they eventually reconcile, his sudden unemployment puts him in a difficult position. As financial pressures mount, Naveen must navigate societal challenges and personal struggles to regain stability and rebuild harmony within his middle-class family.
Cast:
Manikandan, Saanve Meghana, Guru Somasundaram, Sundarrajan, Nivedita Rajappan, Balaji Sakthivel, Jensan Diwakar, Prasanna Balachandran, Kudassanad Kanakam, Nakkalites Dhanam
Director:
Rajeshwar Kalisamy
A brilliant comedy with lessons on relationships, money
Sat, January 25 2025
Actor Manikandan is steadily becoming a bankable actor in Tamil cinema. His last two films, Good Night and Lover, turned out to be crowd favourites. In both films, he played a relatable ‘guy next door’ dealing with financial and emotional problems. Director Rajeshwar Kalisamy’s Kudmbasthan is yet another film that features Manikandan in the role of a breadwinner in a lower-middle-class family man. Naveen (Manikandan) and Vennila (Saanve Megghana) get married at a registrar’s office, with their families cursing them for not getting their permission. After a brief hiatus, Naveen and Vennila live with his parents. Vennila, an IAS aspirant, is a cool-headed, understanding and pregnant wife, who supports Naveen and turns a blind eye to the insults of her mother-in-law.
Manikandan anchors this funny and familiar tale that needed a firmer grasp on things
Sat, January 25 2025
Remember TVF breaking into the Hindi web series space during the OTT boom? While not on the similar scale, Nakkalites managed to do that in the Tamil space with their native, relatable, and well-performed sketches that boasted of decent production value, and strong content. Since all rivers in this part of the world have to flow into cinema, many actors from this setup managed to eke out a name for themselves on the big screen too. Now, its director Rajeshwar Kalisamy has come with Kudumbasthan, a film that reflects the ethos of Nakkalites, features actors from Nakkalites, has the same irreverent vibe of Nakkalites, and for what its worth, makes quite an impression.
A Middling Comedy That Struggles To Balance Humour And Emotion
Sat, January 25 2025
Kudumbasthan’s premise taps into an evergreen theme in Tamil cinema, which is the struggles of a middle-class protagonist trying to make ends meet. The film’s title itself evokes memories of classics from filmmakers like Bhagyaraj, Visu, and actor Saravanan, who have explored similar themes in their comedy dramas across generations. The story revolves around Naveen (Manikandan), a typical middle-class youngster from a small town in Coimbatore, who is newly married to Vennila (Saanve Megghana). Naveen works as a designer at a local marketing company, earning just enough to sustain their modest life. Meanwhile, Vennila prepares for the UPSC exams while managing household responsibilities and battling caste-based discrimination from her mother-in-law. Their lives take a turn when Naveen, in a moment of self-respect, slaps a client and loses his job. What follows is a downward spiral of financial struggles, debt, and deception, with no apparent way out.
The Roshans
Documentary (Hindi)
This documentary series chronicles the trials and triumphs of Bollywood's iconic Roshan family — musician Roshan Lal Nagrath, Rajesh, Rakesh and Hrithik.
Cast:
Hrithik Roshan, Rakesh Roshan, Rajesh Roshan
Director:
Shashi Ranjan
Much-deserved tribute
Sat, January 25 2025
Think music composers of yesteryear and chances are that the name Roshan wouldn’t figure on the top of your mind. For the present generation and even a generation before that, the surname Roshan is but obviously a byword for superstar Hrithik Roshan and, at best, his father-filmmaker Rakesh Roshan. But, as the Netflix documentary ‘The Roshans’ delves into the lives of four men of the Roshan family, all of them of exceptional talent, you learn more than a thing or two about who the original Roshan was. The first episode dedicated to the family patriarch, the late Roshan Lal Nagrath, is a revelation. Not because it unfurls any hidden family secrets, but reminds you how those lilting melodies — ‘Mann re tu kahe na dheer dhare’, ‘Rahein na rahein hum, mehka karenge’, ‘Yeh ishq ishq hai’, ‘Zindagi bhar nahi bhoolegi woh barsaat ki raat’ — you have often hummed came from his musical prowess. There are so many OMG moments. ‘Nigahein milane ko jee chahta hai’, ‘Dil jo na keh saka’… — he composed these, too! The list is endless. As we get over the overwhelming feeling of admiration, also stemming out of our ignorance of not knowing enough about his music, the very first episode turns out to be extremely satisfying.
A valuable addition to films about Hindi film industry
Sat, January 18 2025
One of the chief things that emerges from this four-part mini-series on the Roshans, is that, despite being part of so many memorable films via music, direction, production and performance, their contribution to Hindi cinema was not celebrated enough. Part of the pleasure of watching this kind of show is the straight-up access: apart from the Roshans themselves — Rajesh, Rakesh, Hrithik and close family — everyone from Shatrughan Sinha, Shah Rukh Khan, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Karan Johar, the Akhtars, Javed, Farhan and Zoya, Abhishek Bachchan, singers Asha Bhosle, Suman Kalyanpuri, Sudha Malhotra, Usha Mangeshkar, Kumar Sanu, Sonu Nigam, and several others are all here, speaking about their relationship, professional and personal, with the Roshans.
When Nonfiction Behaves Like Fiction
Sat, January 18 2025
You’ve heard of “Prestige TV”: the term for quality long-form film-making, cinematic production values, A-list acting and complex screenwriting. But in the Netflix non-fiction universe, Prestige TV is a far more literal term. It stands for self-produced and self-congratulatory celebrity documentaries with infinite access that explore the sanitised prestige of fame. The symptoms: prestigious movie and music legacies, prestigious anecdotes, prestigious lives, prestigious prestige. You get the gist. Or maybe you didn’t. Think of the line from Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige (2006): “Making something disappear isn’t enough, you have to bring it back”. This hagiographic genre is all about bringing things back. Some call it the magic of movies, others call it a nostalgia grab.
A Real Pain
Comedy, Drama (English)
Mismatched cousins David and Benji reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.
Cast:
Jesse Eisenberg, Kieran Culkin, Will Sharpe, Jennifer Grey, Kurt Egyiawan, Liza Sadovy, Daniel Oreskes, Ellora Torchia, Banner Eisenberg, Olha Bosova
Director:
Jesse Eisenberg
Writer:
Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Eisenberg directs a moving road trip film
Fri, January 24 2025
“This will be a tour about pain,” cautions James, the earnest British guide shepherding a group of American Jews on a tour of Poland. The small group includes David and Benji, two cousins from New York on a visit to Poland to honour their recently deceased grandmother Dori, a Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust. Best known for this starring role as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, Jesse Eisenberg writes, directs and stars in this holocaust comedy playing David, who like Eisenberg, suffers from OCD and anxiety disorder. David has a regular job, a wife and child and uses pills to deal with his anxiety. He’s socially awkward and envies Benji’s ease and charm. Benji road-rolls his cousin and trivialises his life choices.
Jesse Eisenberg’s Film Revises the Way We See the Failure in the Family
Tue, January 21 2025
The first time we meet Benji (Kieran Culkin), he’s aimlessly floating around in an airport. Seated in the waiting area with his ear pods plugged in, one can immediately spot the melancholy in his eyes. He appears to be curious about people – observing them closely. There’s a good chance that if someone around him was in need, Benji would be one of the first persons to help. But he’s also a wildcard, who wouldn’t respond to his cousin David’s (Jesse Eisenberg) voicemails, and that too on the day they’re supposed to travel to Poland together. Has he woken up? Has he left? Is he on time? Where is he? Does he remember they have a flight? No response.
(Writing for OTT Play)
The Art, & Heart, Of Suffering
Sat, January 18 2025
A Real Pain, starring Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin as cousins, is exactly the kind of film you imagine if Eisenberg and Culkin played cousins. It’s funny, awkward, edgy, poignant, light, chatty, alert, minor-key and Sundancey (an adjective for the brand of tragicomic American quirk that the snowy festival loves to showcase). There are echoes of the uptight mom and no-filter teen from the actor’s directorial debut, When You Finish Saving The World, in the uptight David (Eisenberg) and the free-spirited-but-troubled Benji (Culkin). Family man David and drifter Benji head to Poland to process their Jewish heritage through a guided Holocaust tour and, more importantly, visit their late camp-survivor grandmother’s childhood home. As in most movies, it’s the interiority of the oddball journey that matters.
Bottle Radha
Drama (Tamil)
When his wife sends him to rehab for his alcohol addiction without consent, Radha's world shatters, fuelling his desperate escape plan. Loneliness and estrangement from his family follow as he returns to his old ways.
Cast:
Guru Somasundaram, Sanchana Natarajan, John Vijay, Pari Elavazhagan, Maaran, Antony, Arumugavel, Abhi Ramaiyah, J.P. Kumar, Oviyar Sow
Director:
Dinakaran Sivalingam
Writer:
Dinakaran Sivalingam
Guru Somasundaram, Sanchana Natarajan shoulder a message-heavy but pertinent film
Fri, January 24 2025
The title of director Dhinakaran Sivalingam’s debut film Bottle Radha makes its intentions clear. It is about alcohol addiction, and it is about Radhamani, who is an alcoholic. While there is no doubt that the movie trains all its focus firmly on Radhamani and his seemingly never-ending tryst with the bottle, some of the best moments of the film comes in the scenes involving his wife Anjalam. This is also due to the fact that Bottle Radha feels like being an anonymous fly during one of the many meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, and it is the portions involving Anjalam gives the movie a refreshing change of pace. The opening shot of Bottle Radha is a drone shot that captures the expanse of the Chennai city that is not often shown in our films. We see Radhamani creating a ruckus over being admonished for coming drunk to work. Interestingly, the entire opening stretch wonderfully introduces the world of Radhamani, and how despite being around near and dear, the allure of the bottle takes him to unsavoury places. Again, the places he goes to might not seem really dire, but the look on Anjalam’s face when he comes home drunk says a lot more than what pages of dialogues could do. She feels insulted. She feels violated. She feels neglected. She feels distraught. And all that she can do is stand resolutely with tears streaming down her face. But Radhamani doesn’t see any of this because he is blinded by the booze, and when one things leads to another, and he finds himself arrested by the police, Bottle Radha decides to take a different route to tackle the issue of addiction.
The Seed of the Sacred Fig
Drama, Thriller, Crime (French)
Investigating judge Iman grapples with paranoia amid political unrest in Tehran. When his gun vanishes, he suspects his wife and daughters, imposing draconian measures that strain family ties as societal rules crumble.
Cast:
Misagh Zare, Soheila Golestani, Mahsa Rostami, Setareh Maleki, Niousha Akhshi, Reza Akhlaghirad, Shiva Ordooie, Amineh Mazrouie Arani, Mohammad Kamal Alavi, Parisa Mohyedini
Director:
Mohammad Rasoulof
The Seed Of The Sacred Fig is an absolute soul-shattering work of cinema because of just how urgent, relatable, and familiar its conflicts are.
Fri, January 24 2025
Severance S02
Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi & Fantasy (English)
Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.
Cast:
Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Zach Cherry, Jen Tullock, Michael Chernus, Dichen Lachman, Sarah Bock, John Turturro, Christopher Walken
Superb Office Sci-Fi Thriller Continues To Tap Into Stranger, Revealing Mysteries Of Human Psyche
Fri, January 24 2025
As a fan of the 2004-2010 sci-fi island drama Lost, I thought I’d never find a show that would be weirder or more out there. I was wrong. The Apple TV+ series Severance is a fascinating thriller set in the corporate world that might just be one of the most intriguing streaming series right now. Exploring the premise of having an ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ self at work and home, the show created by Dan Erickson returns for a second season that continues to examine what it means to be human in a world that is out to exploit you constantly. The second season picks up after the uprising from the innies at the Macrodata Refinement team at Lumon Industries, where Mark (Adam Scott), Helly R (Britt Lower), and Irving (John Turturro) are able to explore the outside world. Management is not happy as the gang is put through their paces initially and pushed even further as they come to terms with the added knowledge of their outie selves. Audiences get to explore more of the Lumon offices with new expanded departments and co-workers like Miss Huang (Sarah Bock), the new deputy manager who is just a child.
The Night Agent S02
Action & Adventure, Drama, Mystery (English)
Brought together by a midnight phone call, an FBI agent and a cybersecurity expert must unravel an ever-growing web of political conspiracies.
Cast:
Gabriel Basso, Luciane Buchanan, Arienne Mandi, Louis Herthum, Berto Colon, Keon Alexander, Michael Malarkey, Amanda Warren
Unassuming Spy Thriller Is Bolder And Just As Binge-Worthy
Fri, January 24 2025
In 2023, The Night Agent became Netflix’s most-watched series, and it’s easy to see why. Gabriel Basso plays the earnest young government official Peter Sutherland, an FBI agent in this case, who accidentally uncovers a conspiracy to kill the president. The action drama mixed all the right ingredients, and now as it returns for Season 2, it continues where it left off, and adds more urgency. The new season takes place 10 months after the first season, with Peter on assignment as a Night Action agent. Within the first 15 minutes, there’s immediate danger, putting him in the same position as he was in Season 1, not knowing who to trust. However, the smart-thinking agent follows his own leads to find out who amongst the agency is leaking information on the outside. He is reunited with his former girlfriend Rose Larkin (Luciane Buchanan), who proves to be a great asset to him, even as another plotline on the side involves suspicious goings on at the Iranian mission to the United Nations.
Paatal Lok S02
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
Inspector Hathi Ram Chaudhary, the unlikely hero, investigates a high-profile murder case that leads him to remote corners of North-East India, where he battles powerful forces and personal tragedies in his pursuit of truth.
Cast:
Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Tillotama Shome, Gul Panag, Nagesh Kukunoor, Jahnu Barua, Anuraag Arora, Prashant Tamang, Merenla Imsong, LC Sekhose
Director:
Avinash Arun
Jaideep Ahlawat Shines in This Competent – But Too Neat – Cop Procedural
Tue, January 21 2025
After the second season of Paatal Lok (Amazon Prime Video), it’s safe to say that nobody else in India has mastered the police procedural like Sudip Sharma. Known for writing acclaimed films like Udta Punjab (2016) and Sonchiriya (2019) – Sharma became a household name after the first season of the show in 2020, much like his lead actor – Jaideep Ahlawat. Since then, Sharma has written Kohhra (2023), using the mould of a police investigation to uncover the oppressive culture of patriarchy typical to Punjab. In the second season of Paatal Lok, Sharma is still grappling with the larger rot in society using a trail of missing persons and murder probes.
Jaideep Ahlawat returns with fierce energy
Mon, January 20 2025
Sub inspector Hathi Ram Chaudhary (Jaideep Ahlawat) of Jamna-paar police station has become more confident in life after the adventures of the first season. He finds himself entangled in a political murder that takes place in Delhi with its roots in Nagaland. He, along with IPS Iqbal Ansari ( Ishwak Singh), goes into the interiors of North East India to find out a complex society striving for power by any means. So many factions, so much greed and so bizarre situations. They meet Barua (Tillottama Shome) as the local police authority and begin a chase that’s forcing them to move in circles. At least, this is what happens in the first four episodes I watched after the show started streaming on Thursday night.
Jaideep Ahlawat delivers a class act in a sharp, worthy sequel
Sun, January 19 2025
Hathiram Chaudhary, the permanent resident of Paatal Lok (netherworld) is back, and with him, so is the world of crime and murky dealings that need a desperate cleanup. Paatal Lok Season 1 came out during the first lockdown and blew everyone’s mind with its taut storyline and strong performances. It opened up ways for other similar cop stories that dealt with cases from the underbelly of society. Some were good, some were mere copies, but none captured the attention of viewers the way Paatal Lok had. It took the makers 5 years to come up with a sequel, and after watching season 2 of Paatal Lok, I have to admit it was worth the wait.
Mother's Instinct
Thriller, Drama (English)
Housewives Alice and Celine are best friends and neighbours who seem to have it all. However, when a tragic accident shatters the harmony of their lives, guilt, suspicion and paranoia begin to unravel their sisterly bond.
Cast:
Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Anders Danielsen Lie, Josh Charles, Caroline Lagerfelt, Alexander Blaise, Steve Routman, Joel Nagle, Larry Petersen, Eamon Patrick O'Connell
Director:
Benoît Delhomme
Though it unravels in the last act, Mother's Instinct is a pulpy, fairly gripping watch.
Mon, January 20 2025
Mother’s Instinct could have been named ‘Mom gone bonkers’. Turning the concept/ idea/ theme of a mother’s selfless love for her child on its head, this 2024 thriller, now streaming on Prime Video, is a pulpy watch, with maternal instinct going into a zone dark enough to result in murder. A couple of them, in fact. Set in the 1960s and headlined by Hollywood A-listers Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain, the directorial debut of acclaimed French cinematographer Benoit Delhomme has a Hitchcockian feel of unease and foreshadowing, but never really lives up to its ultimately pulpy potential.
Wolf Man
Horror, Thriller (English)
With his marriage fraying, Blake persuades his wife Charlotte to take a break from the city and visit his remote childhood home in rural Oregon. As they arrive at the farmhouse in the dead of night, they're attacked by an unseen animal and barricade themselves inside the home as the creature prowls the perimeter. But as the night stretches on, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable.
Cast:
Christopher Abbott, Julia Garner, Matilda Firth, Sam Jaeger, Ben Prendergast, Benedict Hardie, Zac Chandler, Milo Cawthorne, Leigh Whannell, Rob MacBride
Director:
Leigh Whannell
Universal Pictures’ horror classic reboot is a howling miss
Mon, January 20 2025
After the astounding success ofThe Invisible Man, director Leigh Whannell is back to reboot another of Universal Pictures’ most iconic horror titles. While The Invisible Man turned out to be the outing that could have revived the Dark Universe which was shot down after the failure of The Mummy, the filmmaker’s latest film Wolf Man shows why the chances of getting that universe are darker than the films it could have. In the latest iteration of Wolf Man, after getting a “closure” on his father’s sudden disappearance along with the keys to his childhood home, Blake (Christopher Abbott) decides to make a trip out of it to save his strained marriage with Charlotte (Julia Garner). Along with their child Ginger (Matilda Firth), the couple drives to the middle of nowhere when they get attacked by a mysterious creature similar to what Blake had seen 30 years ago. When one of them gets infected while escaping from the monster, the barricaded safehouse turns into a trap.
Emergency
Drama (Hindi)
Based on true events that unfolded in 1975, the film chronicles incidents that took place under the leadership of Indira Gandhi, one of the most powerful women in Indian history.
Cast:
Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Vishak Nair, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry, Satish Kaushik, Bhumika Chawla, Scott Alexander Young, Richard Bhakti Klein
Director:
Kangana Ranaut
Kangana Ranaut turns Indira Gandhi’s life into a lopsided listicle
Mon, January 20 2025
When Kangana Ranaut announced that she would direct Emergency, many felt it might be another weapon to whip the Congress in the election year to limit the memory of the grand old party’s rule to the 21-month blot that Indira Gandhi inflicted on democracy in 1975. After a long wait and multiple controversies, it turns out that the artist in Kangana has prevailed over the fledgling politician in her to create an ambitious biopic of the former Prime Minister, where the Emergency period is a dark chapter in her storied journey from Anand Bhawan to 1 Safdarjung Road. However, in an attempt to find the roots of dictatorial insecurities in Indira’s psyche, the writers (Kangana and Ritesh Shah) tie the screenplay into knots. The muddled gaze results in a spiritual cousin of The Accidental Prime Minister where a biopic vilifies or dilutes its subject to serve the present dispensation.
Kangana Ranaut Places the Hindi Historical Under Curfew
Sat, January 18 2025
In Emergency, Kangana Ranaut plays Indira Gandhi who plays Kangana Ranaut. Let me explain. Ranaut performs as the former Prime Minister of India when the politician is flawed, cruel, paranoid, a nepotism hire, power-hungry, guilty, and the mother of Sanjay Gandhi. Her voice becomes high-pitched, uneven and shaky in these parts. But Indira Gandhi seems to perform as Ranaut when the woman is defiant, patriotic, headstrong, resilient, reverential towards the opposition (Janata Party leaders Jayaprakash Narayan and Atal Bihari Vajpayee), and the mother of the nation. Her voice becomes firm, furious and confident in these parts.
Kangana Ranaut’s Indira Gandhi Biopic Is Enjoyable For Its Performances
Sat, January 18 2025
The Kangana Ranaut directorial is a fictional account of Indira Gandhi’s personal life experiences as a daughter, wife, politician and a woman of the nation. Led by Kangana in the leading role, the film does take creative liberties but impresses with writing that provides full-circle moments and character-focused direction. It is important to emphasise that the film is not a biopic or documentation of the real political personality but fiction an account of her life. The makers before the film began emphasized the film is based on two books. Emergency begins with Indira’s childhood and how she was inspired by her grandfather’s vision and understanding of Indraprastha, a play in ancient Indian history and its equivalent Delhi in today’s time where a constant struggle remains for power. Since childhood Indira focuses on winning the big battles and the same remains throughout her political career. The film also gives glimpses of her personal life her little interactions with her husband and her children through flashbacks and presently as her career progressed. The first half feels rushed as the story progresses through her political career with only a few incidents in the foreground. From the death of her father, her feeling betrayed by him to taking control of the party.
Azaad
Drama, Action (Hindi)
In 1920s India, a young stable boy bonds with a spirited horse. Amid rebellion and tyranny, his quest to ride the majestic animal becomes a journey of courage, awakening him to the country's fight for freedom.
Cast:
Aaman Devgan, Rasha Thadani, Ajay Devgn, Diana Penty, Mohit Malik, Piyush Mishra, Jiya Imran Amin, Rasha, Dylan Jones, Akshay Anand Kohli
Director:
Abhishek Kapoor
Writer:
Abhishek Kapoor, K. Hariharan, Ritesh Shah, Suresh Nair
Aaman Devgan’s debut is a disappointing ride
Sun, January 19 2025
Betaab, Barsaat, Mirziya… Bollywood somehow loves to launch its kids on horses. Abhishek Kapoor’s Azaad is the latest addition to the list where Ajay Devgn’s nephew Aaman Devgan, and Raveena Tandon’s daughter Rasha Thadani, get a horse ride because of their pedigree.
इंसान और पशु प्रेम की बानगी देती यह फिल्म अमन देवगन के लिए देखी जा सकती है।
Sat, January 18 2025
बॉलीवुड में इंसान और जानवरों के प्यार, दोस्ती और वफादारी पर ‘हाथी मेरे साथी’ और ‘तेरी मेहरबानियां’ जैसी यादगार फिल्में बनी हैं। हालांकि, वक्त के साथ इन बेजुबानों के साथ इंसानी रिश्तों की कहानियां कम होती गईं, पर अब डायरेक्टर अभिषेक कपूर इस कड़ी को आगे बढ़ाते हुए फिल्म ‘आजाद’ लेकर आए हैं, जिसका केंद्र एक घोड़ा है। अपनी फिल्मों से फरहान अख्तर, सुशांत सिंह राजपूत और सारा अली खान को बॉलीवुड में लॉन्च करने वाले अभिषेक कपूर इस फिल्म से भी दो नए चेहरों, अजय देवगन के भांजे अमन देवगन और रवीना टंडन की बेटी राशा थडानी को पर्दे पर उतार रहे हैं। फिल्म में इन दोनों नए एक्टर्स, खासकर अमन ने आत्मविश्वास भरी अदाकारी से खुद को लंबी रेस का घोड़ा साबित करने की बढ़िया कोशिश की है।
Dear Bollywood, Stop Horsing Around
Sat, January 18 2025
Azaad is fit, handsome, muscular and agile. His flowy hair is the talk of the town. He plays hard to get. He looks away and sighs if he isn’t interested. He loves his whisky neat — and straight from the bottle. He sits on a bed when he’s tired. He loses his appetite when he’s sad; he eats only if his food is spiked with alcohol. He has expensive taste. He farts in a closed room. He isn’t afraid to defy outdated perceptions of masculinity: his eyes go glassy when he gets a whiff of his late companion’s scent from a turban. He remembers the day they met and necked. He remembers their adolescent-love song together: “Ab jeene ki koi wajah toh hai” (I now have a reason to live). He isn’t ashamed of weeping. He likes dancing. He loves racing, too. Azaad is an expressive action hero; this film is his big-budget launch vehicle. There’s only one problem though: Azaad is a horse.