Mon, July 21 2025

Sat, July 19 2025

At a tech summit, AI scientist Dr Piyush Bhargav is kidnapped, and a RAW officer, Vinod Shekhawat, is killed. Months from his retirement, Himmat Singh is entrusted with the task of bringing Bhargav back. Meanwhile, his former superior, Subramanyam, who has lost his wife to a terminal illness, threatens dire consequences if bank defaulter Jignesh Dholakia isn’t put behind bars. Kay Kay Menon, much like his character, leads from the front with the right composure and level-headedness, scoring big in the tense, crucial moments, without missing out on the tenderness in the seemingly insignificant segments. A flamboyant Karan Tacker, a chiselled Muzammul Ibrahim, a no-nonsense Saiyami Kher, and an enthusiastic Shikha Talsania make for a solid team, contributing their bit to the show, doing what’s expected of them.

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Sat, July 19 2025

Given its length, there definitely are spots where things slacken, but on the whole, this buzzy spy-saga stays mostly on-point, always entertaining

I’m just done binge-watching seven episodes of Special Ops 2, each lasting about 50-57 minutes, and I’m here to tell you that this one is a banger. Most sequels flatten and disappoint. Special Ops came in 2020, when we were in the midst of the pandemic; five years later, where much has changed in the media landscape, and part twos are where creativity goes to die, I’m most pleasantly surprised that this sequel, again co-directed by Neeraj Pandey and Shivam Nair, and written by creator Pandey, Deepak Kingrani, Benazir Ali Fida, has exceeded my expectations. We have finally got ourselves a spy franchise that is globally ambitious in the way it goes about laying out its wares, dropping in and out of political hot-spots casually, bunging in enough lol moments: what’s the point of a spymeister who can’t just say, ‘hamare pass CIA waalon ke liye kuchch hai,’ and his faithful dogsbody coming up with just a teeny detail that has the Langley HQ in Virginia salivating.

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Mon, July 21 2025

Sat, July 19 2025

Sat, July 19 2025

Delivers emotional highs but falters in depth, relying on sentiment over nuance in its portrayal of neurodivergent experiences

n the cinematic world, autism is often depicted in one of two familiar forms: either the misunderstood genius with miraculous mental powers, or the socially awkward yet irresistibly charming soul who gently reminds everyone how to live more meaningful lives. Tanvi The Great chooses the latter. Like many of its predecessors, it simplifies a complex neurodevelopmental condition into a digestible, inspirational narrative that leans heavily on sentiment, often at the expense of authenticity. Directed by Anupam Kher and produced by Anupam Kher Studio in association with the NFDC, Tanvi The Great tells the story of Tanvi (Shubhangi Dutt), a 21-year-old woman on the autism spectrum. Raised by her mother Vidya (Pallavi Joshi) and grandfather Colonel Pratap Raina (Anupam Kher), Tanvi is determined to honour the memory of her late father, Captain Samar Raina (Karan Tacker), by joining the Indian Army and saluting the national flag at Siachen Glacier—a dream he never lived to fulfil.

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Sat, July 19 2025

Nimrat Khaira and Ammy Virk steal the show in this hilarious multi-starrer that despite a few hiccups, is a laugh riot.

Punjabis are perhaps most associated with their loud, fun weddings and the multi-starrer featuring Gippy Grewal, Sargun Mehta, Ammy Virk, Nimrat Khaira, Sarbala Ji (2025), makes this the perfect setting for a complete entertainer. Directed by Mandeep Kumar, the film weaves together comedy, drama and romance in a pre-Partition setting. Cousins Sucha Singh (Gippy Grewal) and Gajjan Singh (Ammy Virk) are like chalk and cheese. Sucha Singh is the life of every wedding while Gajjan shies away from marriage, being more interested in embroidery stitches and crochet. When flirtation with Rajjo (Sargun Mehta) leads Sucha to a pronouncement that he is never to marry, he is utterly dismayed. Meanwhile, Gajjan is all set to marry Pyaaro (Nimrat Khaira) who is far from being the docile, embroidery-loving woman that he dreams of. Content with working at the farm, and shunning housework, Pyaaro is completely smitten and transformed in love, eager to marry her beau. However, there are few twists and turns to be navigated.

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Sat, July 19 2025

17वीं शताब्दी के महाराष्ट्र में आए भक्त-कवि, समाज सुधारक, संत तुकाराम के परिवार का संबंध भगवान विष्णु के अवतार माने गए विट्ठल या विठोबा की उपासना करने वाले वारकरी समुदाय से था। उनसे पूर्व इस समुदाय में संत नामदेव, संत ज्ञानेश्वर व संत एकनाथ का नाम बड़ी श्रद्धा से लिया जाता है। अपने पूर्ववर्ती भक्त-कवियों, संतों की भांति उन्होंने भी विट्ठल की स्तुति में भक्ति काव्य रचा जिसे ‘अभंग’ कहा जाता है। यह फिल्म ‘राम कृष्ण हरि…’ जपने वाले उन्हीं संत तुकाराम की भक्तिमय कहानी दिखाती है। संत तुकाराम के जीवन पर फिल्में हमेशा से बनती आई हैं। 1921 में बनी मूक फिल्म ‘संत तुकाराम’ और 1936 में प्रभात फिल्म कंपनी से आई विष्णुपंत गोविंद दामले निर्देशित मराठी फिल्म ‘संत तुकाराम’ से लेकर आज तक विभिन्न भाषाओं में संत तुकाराम के जीवन का चित्रण सिनेमा में हुआ। लेकिन विडंबना यही है कि नई पीढ़ी के दर्शक आज भी महाराष्ट्र के बाहर उन्हें कम ही जानते हैं। ऐसे में हिन्दी में इस किस्म का सिनेमा आकर जब ज्ञानवर्धन के साथ-साथ भक्ति रस का संचार करता है तो वह सार्थक हो उठता है।

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Sat, July 19 2025

In this documentary on the making of Vidhu Vinod Chopra's 12th Fail, Jaskunwar Kohli distils the ambiguity of creation rather than the disorder of production, lending his debut film a poignant purism.

ZERO SE RESTART, the documentary on the making of 12th Fail (2023), opens with a scene from the film. Manoj Kumar Sharma (Vikrant Massey), the UPSC aspirant, is sitting in a closed room. It is the final leg of his gruelling journey, and the interviewer is irked. We don’t hear Sharma speak, but the formidable face of the examiner fills the frame, so do the two words he chews out: “What arrogance!”. For those familiar with Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s last work, the context is evident. And for those familiar with Chopra, the text is. Little about the filmmaker is unknown. His early career, National Award winning short film, struggle in distributing Parinda (1989; distributors had offered Chopra money not to kill the leads — Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit, but instead Jackie Shroff’s character), losing temper either with actors (he had infamously bitten Shabana Raza’s hand during Kareeb because she was making a mistake) or journalists (Chopra screaming during 3 Idiots’ screening is as well known as the film). When these are coupled with his filmmaking verve and producer-ambition, a tangled portrait of a man surfaces, one so incautious in dealing with others for the sake of art that it makes one wonder about the hubris of his artistry in private. Jaskunwar Kohli’s Zero Se Restart springs from that curiosity.

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Tue, December 17 2024

Fri, December 13 2024

अक्टूबर, 2023 में आई और बेहद सराही गई विधु विनोद चोपड़ा की विक्रांत मैस्सी वाली फिल्म ‘12वीं फेल’ को देख चुके दर्शकों को अगर यह बताया जाए कि यह फिल्म तो कभी बननी ही नहीं थी तो उन्हें कैसा लगेगा? आप को यह जान कर भी हैरानी हो सकती है कि इस फिल्म को इंडस्ट्री के पांच बड़े निर्देशकों ने यह कह कर ठुकरा दिया था कि भला यह भी कोई कहानी है, इसे कौन देखने आएगा? लेकिन यह फिल्म बनी और ऐसी बनी कि जिसने भी इसे देखा, इसकी तारीफ किए बिना न रह सका। इसी ‘12वीं फेल’ के न बन पाने और आखिर बन जाने के संघर्ष की कहानी दिखाती है ‘ज़ीरो से रीस्टार्ट’-कुछ इस अंदाज़ में कि आप फिर से प्रेरित होते हैं और आपका मन इसकी और विधु विनोद चोपड़ा की पूरी टीम की तारीफ किए बिना नहीं रह पाता।

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Fri, July 18 2025

A more populist companion piece to Sandhya Suri's Santosh, Tovino Thomas' Narivetta has somehow slipped under the CBFC's nose.

The Central Board of Film Certification’s screening process can often be arbitrary. Only recently, Indian audiences complained about the CBFC’s decision to have a 30-second kiss shortened in the film Superman. A person on social media pithily observed that the scene would’ve made the cut had Superman been slapping Lois Lane instead of making out with her. There is an element of truth to this, of course. It wasn’t too long ago that the CBFC deemed Marco — a movie in which many children die cruel deaths — fit for public viewing. At the same time, they’ve stalled the release of films such as Honey Trehan’s Panjab 95 and Sandhya Suri’s Santosh. Sometimes, however, this chaotic approach to film certification allows certain movies to slip through the cracks. Narivetta is one of them. Directed by Anuraj Manohar and starring Tovino Thomas, the mere existence of the Malayalam-language film is enough to suggest that the movie gods have a sense of humour. The CBFC can block Santosh, but while they were abusing their power, Narivetta snuck under its nose. A more populist cousin to Santosh, the film fixates on many of the same themes. Narivetta is about the systemic oppression of minorities, and mass corruption in organisations meant to serve and protect; but more than anything else, Narivetta dares to raise objections about police brutality at a time when Rohit Shetty’s cinema has basically coated the concept in Teflon.

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Sat, May 24 2025

Told through shifting vantage points and anchored by Tovino Thomas’s textured performance, Narivetta is a quiet but forceful meditation on complicity, masculinity, and state power.

Anuraj Manohar’s debut film, Ishq (2016), does something interesting. It shows us a calculated act of violence and establishes a certain perspective. Later, it flips the narrative as well as the power imbalance by showing one of the victims, a heterosexual male who recovers from the ordeal quickly, perpetrate the same violence but this time to ghastlier ends in the name of revenge. As the film gradually becomes more and more uncomfortable, we understand that Manohar is interested in this cyclical nature sustained by the insecurities, frailties and ego of men. It makes a much larger point than a quid pro quo revenge act. Manohar’s new Malayalam film Narivetta also keeps moving around the vantage points, but from the view of the sole protagonist. It is clever but more straightforward in terms of storytelling and sociopolitical play than the first film. Yet, it makes for a solid sophomore film from the director.

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Fri, May 23 2025

Director Anuraj Manohar's 'Narivetta' is based on the 2003 Muthanga incident that led to the loss of lives after a clash between police officers and the Adivasi community. The film's gripping narrative post-interval makes up for its sluggish first half.

What do ‘Jigarthanda Double X’, ‘Viduthalai 2’, and ‘Narivetta’ have in common? It has protagonists who fall victim to systemic oppression - a hero who represents a system, later realises the truth, who represents the right, and who fights for what’s right, even if it means an end to one’s life. Varghese Peter (Tovino Thomas) is a man, much like his father. The two men are not interested in doing simple jobs to pass the day. They aim high, which is a testament to their potential. Varghese lives with his mother after his father took his life. He is awaiting calls for two jobs – a village assistant and a police constable. Varghese, who doesn’t think twice about borrowing money from the women in his life, is uninterested in both jobs.

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Fri, July 18 2025

Between jokes about duck sex, Kangana Ranaut, and the moral bankruptcy of the Indian middle-class, Vir Das finds quiet moments of poignancy and introspection in his sixth Netflix special.

Throttled by his government and abandoned by his peers — inanimate objects and abstract ideas get more support than Indian comedians — Vir Das seems to be in conflict with his past. His sixth stand-up special for Netflix, Fool Volume, combines his trademark self-effacing delivery with his signature ambition. Fool Volume was filmed in Mumbai, London, and New York, at venues of different shapes and sizes, in front of crowds with different thresholds of tolerance. But the elaborate production and occasional filmmaking flourish isn’t the most impressive thing about the one-hour special. It’s the comedian’s ability to spin a story, to structure a narrative that serves as yet another reminder of his skill. There isn’t a dull moment in the hour-long set, which Das says was rewritten after he lost his voice, literally, six weeks before he was supposed to perform it. He abandoned the material that Netflix had paid him for, and, either by chance or by design, found himself gravitating towards the style of comedy that he does best. In Fool Volume, Das gazes inward; he glances at the world around him, and then, he gets down to business. The show isn’t so much about a comedian finding his voice again as it is about a middle-aged Indian man finding a new voice.

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Fri, July 18 2025

Director Praveena Paruchuri's 'Kothapallilo Okappudu' is a thought-provoking film on faith and belief. While there's a lot to ponder, the film goes through a bumpy ride.

Telugu film C/O Kancharapalem, backed by Praveena Paruchuri, is one of my all-time favourite films. Directed by Venkatesh Maha and presented by Rana Daggubati, the film was fresh, innovative, profound, and exhilarating. All at once. With ‘Kothapallilo Okappudu’, Praveena Paruchuri makes her debut as a filmmaker, with Rana backing her once again. The trailer hinted at a quirky satire and a social commentary wrapped in humour. Ramakrishna (Manoj Chandra) works under loan shark Appanna (Ravindra Vijay), who sexualises women at the drop of a hat. Ramakrishna is smitten by his school love Savitri (Monika), who is the granddaughter of Reddy (Benerjee). Benerjee and Appanna are at odds with each other, driven by ego, caste, and privilege. Yet, both are vying to become the dominant force in the village.

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Fri, July 18 2025

In Eugien Jos Chirammel’s debut, starring Shine Tom Chacko, the patchy writing fails to balance light-hearted scenes with the police procedural angle

Cops without any baggage are so hard to find in movies these days that the police officer protagonist and even the entire police station in Soothravakyamstand out as different, although not exactly in a good way. Neither do they have personal troubles, nor are they challenged much by professional assignments for a good part of the movie. It leaves them enough time to run a tuition centre for school students on the top floor of the police station, with Circle Inspector Christo Xavier (Shine Tom Chacko) doubling up as a teacher. The police are so diligent in their teaching that they even go to the extent of visiting the houses of students who are absent from class. So much so that Nimisha (Vincy Aloshious), the teacher at a nearby school, feels students are losing interest in her class because of the tuition classes at the station. In Eugien Jos Chirammel’s debut directorial, this teaching activity of the police is projected as one of its novelties, but we are never told how it came about. Just like the rest of Soothravakyam, nothing is explored beyond what you see on the surface. Not even a single classroom exchange is shown to convey the equation that the officer shares with the students.

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Fri, July 18 2025

The series adaptation of Jenny Han's trilogy starts off its last season as Lola Tung's Belly aims to find herself while being among the Fisher boys.

The Summer I Turned Pretty’s final chapter takes tentative steps towards adulthood as Belly (Lola Tung) gears up for her senior year of college. Her friends and family around her also go through some major changes. But the real focus of the Amazon Prime Video coming-of-age series will always be about Belly’s choice of partner. Will she choose her first love, Conrad (Christopher Briney), or his younger brother Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno)? In this final 11-episode season, creator Jenny Han puts the trio through yet another roller-coaster summer to remember. A time jump shows Belly and Jeremiah happily together at Finch University. But that happiness is short-lived as Jeremiah’s graduation is delayed and Belly gets chosen for a study abroad program in Paris. Conrad is thriving across the country at Standford where he’s doing well studying to be a doctor. The gang plans to head back to the family home at Cousins Beach for a dedication ceremony for Conrad and Jeremiah’s mother Susannah (Rachel Blanchard). But will the reunion be happy or awkward?

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Thu, July 17 2025

Even by superhero movie standards, which aren’t as low as you’d think, James Gunn's Superman presents a rather racist view of the third-world.

By now, Quentin Tarantino’s hot take on Superman has resurfaced online enough times for it to have seeped into the cultural consciousness. Via one of his onscreen mouthpieces, Tarantino theorised that Superman truly was an alien living among us. The blue suit with the large ’S’ wasn’t a costume for him; it was the attire of his people. The real costume was the suit and tie he wore as Clark Kent. “Clark Kent is how Superman views us,” Tarantino said. “And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He’s weak… he’s unsure of himself… he’s a coward. Clark Kent is Superman’s critique on the whole human race.” The same theory, funnily enough, could be applied to James Gunn. In his new Superman movie, the filmmaker offers a similar outsider’s perspective on earthly matters. Positioned as a quasi-apology for Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel — the most expensive emo music video ever filmed — Gunn’s Superman harkens back to the goofy cartoons of the 1980s. It’s bright, kid-friendly, and energetically performed. It’s also surprisingly contemporary. Not only does this Superman live in the DC Universe’s equivalent of 2025, he also finds himself at the centre of a divided world. The film’s opening titles inform us that ‘metahumans’ like him first arrived on Earth 3,000 years ago. Three years ago, Kal-El ‘came out’ as Superman, and three minutes ago, he suffered his first loss on the battlefield.

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Sun, July 13 2025

Sat, July 12 2025

Following the release of Man of Steel (2013) and the critically panned Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), which failed to perform well at the box office, the Kryptonian superhero was granted a hiatus. This film has been in the works for some time; however, when Justice League (2017) encountered production difficulties, the sequel to Man of Steel was also sidelined. James Gunn, who directed the three Guardians of the Galaxy films for Marvel, has transitioned to D.C. with this new Superman project. Although Guardians franchise featured a team of superheroes while this one primarily focuses on a solo hero (with the Justice gang making a brief appearance), there is a significant difference in the tone of the two movies. Guardians was predominantly a light-hearted film that utilized humor to navigate its narrative, whereas Superman does not follow the same pattern. He faces a serious mission to thwart the nefarious schemes of Lex Luthor. With Lois Lane present, there is an opportunity to incorporate some romantic elements, and some of the most delightful moments arise from Krypto, the Superdog. . But otherwise, Superman plays it by the numbers.

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Wed, July 16 2025

Even after 40 years, Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan's obsession with The Godfather shows no signs of abating. Their new film, Thug Life, is a disposable gangster movie that makes a bizarre creative choice at the end.

A regular reappraisal of old masters should be made standard practice in all art. Just because someone made a good movie once doesn’t mean that they should be given immunity from bad reviews for the rest of their lives. Sure, making Piku and October and Gulabo Sitabo and Sardar Udham (in a row!) allows you one I Want to Talk, but that’s all. It is only when certain sacred cows are nudged out of (self) harm’s way that they can introspect. Had somebody somebody pointed out the obvious to Sanjay Leela Bhansali years ago, we wouldn’t have had to endure Heeramandi. Had someone criticised Nayakan for what it is — a blatant act of plagiarism — we wouldn’t have had to witness director Mani Ratnam and star Kamal Haasan doing it all over again in Thug Life. The gangster drama was released on Netflix merely four weeks after it flopped in theaters. Thug Life debuted to intense scrutiny, seeing as it marked the filmmaker and actor’s first collaboration in nearly four decades. During those years, the two rose to the pinnacle of Indian cinema, having earned not just a reputation for making hits, but also a certain respect that eludes most of their colleagues. Mani Ratnam is the thinking man’s blockbuster director; Kamal Haasan is the thinking man’s movie star. And yet, the best that they could come up with is yet another tired reimagining of Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, injected with a toxic dose of Prashanth Neel.

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Fri, July 4 2025

I didn’t get to catch Thug Life in theatres, thanks to the controversy sparked by Kamal Haasan’s comments about the Tamil-Kannada language connection. It didn’t get a theatrical release in Karnataka. In hindsight, it was a poorly thought-out statement that ignited a pointless feud between two neighbouring states. But that’s a saga for another blog. Thug Life is now on Netflix, and I finally watched it. Short version: I’m disappointed. Not just because it’s a dull slog — though it absolutely is — but because I could see the glimmer of potential in the material Mani Ratnam had in his head, yet he didn’t go all in. It feels like Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan had a mid-production crisis of confidence, veering off into drastic detours that left us with a film stuffed with half-baked artistic flourishes.

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Sat, June 7 2025

Directed by Mani Ratnam, 'Thug Life', starring Kamal Haasan and Silambarasan, is a gangster drama with emotional beats. While the film had a great set-up pre-interval, it falls into a deep pit in the second half and there is no turning back – even for a legend like Mani Ratnam.

“You saved me from death. From now on, you and me are one,” says Kamal Haasan in one of the most strikingly shot scenes from Mani Ratnam’s ‘Thug Life’. The dialogue, albeit simple, has a profound touch to it. As the story progresses, you realise he meant what he said. Kamal Haasan’s Rangaraya Sakthivel and Silambarasan’s Amar are indeed one. But, what causes a rift between them in this world of thugs? Mani Ratnam’s ‘Thug Life’ aims to present a full-blown gangster drama rooted in this very question. Rangaraya Sakthivel (Kamal Haasan) is a gangster in New Delhi and has a bunch of trusted aides, all recruited and raised by Manikkam (Nasser). An encounter leads to the death of a local newspaper vendor. Sakthivel, who is deeply disturbed to see the newspaper vendor’s son, Amar, takes him and raises him as his own son (Silambarasan) along with his wife Jeeva (Abhirami).

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