G-d knows I wanted to like this movie. For starters, it’s got Fahadh Faasil in it, whose been one of my favorite Indian actors the past couple years. It’s also India’s first pandemic-made film which upped its ante even more… Continue Reading
I confess that I rolled my eyes when I read that Bollywood was churning out another pseudo-inspiring chowdikar film and releasing it of course on Independence Day to capitalize on the streak of fervid nationalism coursing throughout India in this very,… Continue Reading
In one of the first scenes in Thappad, a film about a doting husband who unexpectedly assaults his loving wife for the first time at a party, I noticed a Gustav Klimt (Austrian symbolist artist) painting on the wall which tells me… Continue Reading
Contrary to popular Indian belief, South India shits out as much bad cinema as Bollywood. Varane Ayusshmand, Dulquer Salmaan’s first production venture, is a testament to this fact. The film is one faux-pas after another; an Altman ensemble film gone… Continue Reading
Chicchore (**1/2) It’s high time a filmmaker in Bollywood tackled India’s alarmingly high student suicide rate (the last one I heard about was of a 15 year old ending his life over a Chemistry exam) and Dangal’s Nitesh Tiwari seems… Continue Reading
Chopsticks, starring the supposed lesser of the Deols, Abhay, and YouTube pixie, Mithila Palkar, is a Netflix Original which means it’s a good film but, much to our chagrin, it rarely exceeds that. Those seeking frothy late night Hindi entertainment… Continue Reading
Filmmaker Ritesh Batra might only be four films old but his filmography couldn’t be more impressive. After striking gold with his debut, The Lunchbox, one of the most beloved transnational Indian films, he ventured out to the world to work… Continue Reading
Gully Boy, a biopic on Mumbai’s slum resident turned MC megastar, Naezy, stumped me because it shouldn’t have worked. A blockbuster masala film that’s set in despondent Dharavi and whose two lead characters are practicing Muslims – a bold move in… Continue Reading
At one point watching Badhaai Ho, I laughed so hard that I fell off my chair and rather than adhere to social decorum and get up quickly, I decided to savor the moment by staying on the floor and continue… Continue Reading
We all saw this one coming. Someone was bound to make a film about India’s extraordinary Mars Orbiter Mission a.k.a. Mangalyaan, a momentous event that established the Indian Space Research Organization as a serious contender in the world for the… Continue Reading