Kerala's Tourism Department has some of the best marketing minds among Indian states. It routinely runs high-quality social media campaigns that showcase Kerala at its best, depending on the season. The Onam season in Kerala is a “high” season in the state’s tourism calendar. This year, Kerala tourism seems to have wanted to do something... Continue Reading →
Coolie (2025) – My Flash Review!
The release of Coolie coincided with 50 years of Rajinikanth in cinema. As the title credits roll, an animated sequence showcasing some of Rajini’s best roles flashes before us. This segment, which lasts about a minute, is very well made and takes us on a nostalgic journey through Rajinikanth’s iconic work, which has made him... Continue Reading →
Ronth – My Flash Review!
Ronth, usually pronounced Rondhu, means patrolling in police parlance in Malayalam and Tamil. Accordingly, this film is about a pair of police officers—one a seasoned, dyed-in-the-wool cop and the other a Greenhorn —who are on night patrol duty. The film, set in a small town in Kerala, is about what happens during that one night... Continue Reading →
Chhaava – My Flash Review!
Against the usual norm of a hero introduction scene, Chhaava begins with a scene that introduces the villain. The villain here is Aurangzeb, often referred to in this film simply as Aurang, the last of the famous Mughal kings who ruled India. When the film’s promos started appearing, I thought it was another film based... Continue Reading →
Narayaneente Moonnaanmakkal – My Flash Review!
Somewhere in the middle of the movie, we see a frame frozen for a few seconds, depicting a typical Kerala house with three brothers sitting quietly and discordantly. This frame epitomises the entire proceedings of the film. Narayaneente Moonnaanmakkal, meaning “Narayanee's Three Sons” in Malayalam, is a film without a real story, a beginning or... Continue Reading →
Lubber Pandhu – My Flash Review!
The title of the film is Lubber Pandhu, which means Rubber Ball in English. The film opens with a cricket match scene in a village in Tamil Nadu. Just in the initial 30 minutes, there are enough references to IPL and CSK. About half the film's run time features some cricket match or other. A... Continue Reading →
Laapataa Ladies – My Flash Review!
As the colourful credits roll, you are indeed taken back to the times of those Doordarshan serial days and you get a sense of what you should expect. The opening shot of a very young couple getting married in the hinterlands makes you wonder if it is a child marriage. This is 21st-century India and... Continue Reading →
Aavesham – My Flash Review
About twenty minutes into the film, three newly joined students in the midst of a nagging or rather ragging problem in their college are looking for a “Local resource” to solve the problem. One of the guys comes up with the idea of hanging out every evening in pubs and bars of the city for... Continue Reading →
Aattam – My Flash Review!
There are some films which after watching, you are eager to write a review. Aattam, a Malayalam film which means “The Play/Drama” is one such film. The film doesn’t boast of any big names in terms of cast or the Director. Yet, in terms of screenplay, acting and technique it is one of the finest... Continue Reading →
Anweshippin Kandethum – My Flash Review!
One more Malayalam film. One more murder mystery. One more police procedural. One more no-star, no-frills film. One more slow burn. One more Good Watch. Just that we get to see two investigations in one. A zoom-in shot of Tovino Thomas (like that of Mohanlal in Drishyam) who plays Anand Narayanan, a Sub Inspector in... Continue Reading →