Thappad Movie Review

thappad poster

Thappad is an extremely astute piece of cinema that is thought provoking, engaging and highly rewarding. This is a rare combination, even more so for a Bollywood film. Right from the release of the trailer, it was evident that Anubhav Sinha is not going to waste any time in song and dance. So, neither will I. The entire film centres around 'The Slap'. I think I would rather address it as 'The Incident' and just like the film, I will try to break-down my review around it.  ...  more

Delhi Crime (Netflix) Season 1 Review

Netflix Original Delhi Crime
“Tell me something, have you ever seen a local crime being covered by CNN?”
Kumar Vijay - Commissioner of Police

This sums up the gravity of the events at play in Delhi Crime - a new show by Netflix. The show is based on the events of 16th Dec 2012 in Delhi i.e. the gang rape of Nirbhaya in a moving bus by 6 men. Yes, Delhi is known as the Rape Capital and yes the unfortunate truth is that they are not a rare occurrence. This case, however, was different and the show reminds us of the horrifying truths that made it so.  ...  more

Sonchiriya Movie Review

sonchiriya poster sushant singh bhumi manoj bajpayee

On the surface, Sonchiriya, directed by Abhishek Chaubey, is a dacoit vs police story from the 70s. Underneath, however, there are multiple elements at play. It is paced like a psychological thriller, with splendid action sequences shot to perfection, neatly wrapped in a non-cliched revenge saga. Back in the day, when mainstream actors played dacoits, the story usually came bundled with the 'Halaat' and 'Majbooris' of why and how they joined the dark side of the 70s. Sonchiriya has no such backstories or explanations and I loved that. Honestly, there were a lot of things I loved in the film but I will start with my most favourite.  ...  more

Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga – Movie Review

ek ladki sonam kapoor rajkumar rao

I really wanted to watch this film since I saw the trailer. Not because of the star-cast (which is no doubt impressive) but because I really wanted to see how the subject of homosexuality will be handled in this new era of Hindi Cinema. I sincerely believe we have moved far ahead of the mockery that was shown in Dostana. Unfortunately, when it comes to Ek Ladki Ko Dekha..., the idea of creating a new-age romance that transcends boundaries was possibly limited to the creator's vision. It never gets translated into the actual film. So Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga is a massive opportunity gone lost. It will only be a spot even when it had the opportunity to paint the entire canvas, for generations to admire. ...  more

Manmarziyaan Movie Review

Manmarziyaan Abhishek Bachchan Tapsee Pannu

Manmarziyaan continues Anurag Kashyap's 2.0 journey into mainstream Hindi cinema. Though he had a forgettable start to it with Bombay Velvet, I remained optimistic. To be fair, Bombay Velvet was still very much in Kashyap's domain. There was a retro setting, underworld and struggle for power. Those are all the things, Kashyap excels in. When he was not able to deliver a good film with that setting, many would have doubted Kashyap's multi-dimensional ability. However, this time he is experimenting with a completely new genre and seems in a good enough form to prove his point. ...  more