Any sequel or a remake cannot escape comparisons with the original version. Avrodh is again a long form version of the 2019 super hit Hindi film – Uri - The Surgical Strike and hence comparisons with the film cannot be avoided. Based on one chapter of the book titled India’s Most Fearless authored by journalists... Continue Reading →
Revisiting Maniratnam’s Anjali after 30 years
(This piece was written for the news portal The News Minute and and was published first on 12th of July, 2020 and here’s the link for the same: https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/mani-ratnam-s-anjali-30-years-old-and-still-has-power-move-you-128460) Anjali, in my book, may not feature among the top three best films from director Mani Ratnam’s oeuvre. It might not be among the top grossers... Continue Reading →
K.D. (a) Karuppu Durai – My (late) Flash review
K.D. (a) Karuppu Durai is a 2019 Tamil film which I caught on Netflix just today. The film opens inside a small house in a village called Kallupatti in Virudhunagar with a voiceover of an old man. The lines are cheeky and within those few minutes you realise that you are up for some thing... Continue Reading →
K.Balachander at 90! Avar Oru Thodarkathai!
(This piece was written for the news portal The News Minute and and was published first on 9th of July, 2020 and here's the link for the same: https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/k-balachander-90-why-directors-films-still-appeal-women-128265) Back in the ‘70s, in my middle class household of five members, the only person who would watch movies was my mother. She would do that... Continue Reading →
Kappela – My Flash Review!
The film opens with many disjointed, slice of life scenes typical of Malayalam films, which establish the different characters. 40 minutes into the film, you still wait for something significant to happen. But these are some of the best moments of the film that bring the "today’s" life in a small town Kerala vividly before... Continue Reading →
Forensic – My Flash Review
This Malayalam film now streaming on Netflix, is another addition to the Psycho serial killer mystery genre in Malayalam. As you sit to watch, it feels similar to another recent hit – Anjaam Pathiraa. A lady cop leading the investigating team, investigation being driven by technical aspects rather than the traditional witnesses-evidence-questioning –leads routine and... Continue Reading →
Gulabo Sitabo – My Flash Review!
For a while it seems like a redux of Ayyapanum Koshyum in a different setting, in a different context. Just that the animosity here is not because of bloated egos but due to greed for one and survival instincts for the other. Director Shoojit Sarkar, the director of Gulabo Sitabo (GS) must be commended for... Continue Reading →
A battle of choices – OTT VS Theatres!
(This article was written for the news website thenewsminute.com and was first published on the 28th May, 2020 and can be read here: https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/adapt-or-perish-why-theatres-must-not-stall-film-releases-online-platforms-125439) On Friday, Ponmagal Vandhal, a Tamil film with Jyotika in the lead and accomplished actors like Parthiban and Bhagyaraj in the cast, will be premiering on Amazon Prime Video. And soon Gulabo Sitabo, a... Continue Reading →
Ponmagal Vandhal – My Review!
Film makers in Tamil, routinely pick up their titles from hit Tamil songs of yore, mainly to keep the title poetic and to touch a familiar nerve with the audience. Relevance of the title to the story is seldom a consideration. J.J.Fredrick, the debutant director of Ponmagal Vandhal makes an exception. The title chosen for... Continue Reading →
Paatal Lok (Web series) – My Flash Review
Paatal Lok, the recently added web series streaming on Amazon Prime belongs to what I call as the “Anurag Kashyap” genre of cinema. Dark, dense, deep, disturbing and at times depressing but gripping. Created by Sudip Sharma, the team of writers (Sudip Sharma, Sagar Haveli, Gunjit Chopra and Hardik Mehta) bring the nexus between Hindi... Continue Reading →
