Hansal Mehta’s Simran: a letdown
Coming from Hansal Mehta- director of films like Shahid and Aligarh- Simran is a letdown. It is a tale of an NRI gujju hotel maid Praful Patel who is ambitious and impulsive. (I couldn’t but think of…
Srijit Mukherji’s ‘Begum Jaan’: Powerful and nuanced
Several versions in cinema describe the impact of the partition of India in 1947 – some are grim, some intense, while others are emotional. Srijit Mukherji’s ‘Begum Jaan‘ is a metaphorical story which offers a completely different…
Nil Battey Sannata: A good directorial debut
Ever since I heard of it, I have wanted to see this film, which has been making waves in film festivals across the world. First, because the title “Nil Battey Sannata” didn’t make any sense to me.…
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil: A SWOC analysis
Saw Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. And some of my friends asked me to write a review. Now that’s not just mushkil but beyond my capabilities. Still reeling from the film’s after effects. But let me try a…
Pink: Mandatory viewing
What happens one night when three independent working girls go to a rock concert? What leads one of them, Meenal Arora (Taapsee Pannu), to bash a glass bottle over a guy’s head? Shoojit Sircar’s ‘Pink’- a movie…
Paa: Paa (r) excellence!
Watching R Balki’s Paa has been so uplifting. It teaches you to celebrate the goodness of life— however short it is. Auro (Amitabh Bachchan)— a 12 year old patient of progeria suffers from a rare congenital disorder…
Dev D: More original than the original
If you hated the different film adaptations of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s Devdas for the elaborate emotional atyaachaar, it is time you watched Dev D. Anurag Kashyap turns the age old tale on its head and comes up…
Slumdog Millionaire: Does it even deserve an Oscar nomination?
The script of Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire is a much better version of the original book- Vikas Swarup’s Q & A. However for the life of me, I cannot fathom why it is being lauded as Oscar…
Luck by chance: Go watch it!
Zoya Akhtar’s debut venture ’Luck by Chance’ features her as the writer and director. And she does live up to the genetic baggage she carries on her shoulders- of both her parents being successful script writers and her brother…
Falling in love with a stranger
Before you get any ideas from the title, just found this beautiful song. It is a rare RD Burman composition. Any guesses to the film? It is from my all-time favourite ‘Deewar’ starring Amitabh and Parveen Babi.…
