Gullak Season 1 & 2 Review

gullak

It is both fortunate and unfortunate that there has been an exponential rise in content. Not too long ago, when there was no Indian content other than the sappy Balaji Telefilm shows, we used to hunt for torrents of our favorite shows from the U.S. That changed dramatically with Netflix coming to India. Others followed suit so as to not miss the bus. Today, with so many platforms and so much content, the problem has only changed shape. We are surrounded by content, but finding what's right for you is a big challenge. To be fair, this is a good problem to have. I would rather have too many choices rather than no choice at all.  ...  More

Jagga Jasoos Movie Review

jagga-jasoos
3rd Anniversary

I was watching Jagga Jasoos once again over the weekend and decided to write a post. When I was looking up the details, I realized that the film released on 14th July 2017. So this post becomes all the more appropriate as yesterday marked the 3rd anniversary of a beautiful film that got marred by controversy and its gigantic ambitions. Nevertheless, I look at Jagga as a film that almost pulled off the impossible. Creating a true-blue musical adventure film for kids. No one else has even come close.   ...  More

Upgrade Movie Review

Upgrade movie poster

Sample the fact that District 9, the 2009 Sci-fi film was considered by the Industry to be a low budget marvel. That is because District 9 was made at a budget of 30 million USD while Star Trek (2009) had a budget that was 5 times. Now that the context is set, let's talk about the film in question. Upgrade is a 2018 Sci-fi film that beautifully mixes various genres. It has elements from cyberpunk sub-genre along with the obvious 'action' overtones. The film also has ample flavour of the dark comedy genre, in addition to an evident stamp of body horror. Though Upgrade has enough highlights from a creative standpoint, all those are elevated many notches when seen alongside the film's paltry budget. Upgrade had a budget of 3 million USD and was made 9 years after Neill Blomkamp's District 9, the low budget marvel of the time.   ...  More

Jackie Shroff: A journey that is remarkable and rare

jackie

Jackie Shroff has always intrigued me. Since the first time I saw him in Ram Lakhan (1988), I was in awe of his unconventional demeanour and body language. His screen presence was so overpowering that one could not look at anyone else while he was in the frame. Jackie came from a modest background. Born as Jai Kishan Kakubhai Shroff, he left school and did odd jobs before getting spotted by an ad-agency executive. That started his journey into modelling and subsequently led to his debut film Swami Dada (1982) where he had an uncredited role. Jackie's big break came in 1983 with Subhash Ghai's Hero.  ...  More

C/o Kancharapalem Movie Review (2018, Telugu)

Kancharapalem

Made on a shoe-string budget of around 70 Lakhs, C/o Kancharapalem brings us 4 love stories that vary across age, religion, caste and social status. It is a fine example of how you can make an excellent film without big stars and big budgets. All you need is good writing and a lot of heart. C/o Kancharapalem has plenty of both. The characters are so endearing and you will see it right up front, as little Sundaram waits in the rain with his friend to catch a glimpse of his classmate Sunitha. Sundaram’s smile when he sees Sunitha approaching, Sunitha and her friend approaching in slow motion carrying an umbrella, the shots done through the rain and the sheer innocence of it all. Just like Sundaram, I lost my heart right there. ...  More