Release date: 17th April 2019

Cast: Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Maduri Dixit, Aditya Roy Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Sonakshi Sinha

Director: Abhishek Verman

Run time: 2hrs 48mins

Rating: 3/5

A tale of love and stigma, Abhishek Varman’s Kalank is occasionally moving, but mostly an unsatisfying melodrama. Set in the pre-Independence era, in the fictional city of Husnabad, the movie’s six pivotal characters crave love, but can’t have it. Roop (Bhatt) finds herself becoming the reluctant wife of Dev Chaudhry (Kapur) , a newspaper editor, whose first wife Satya (Sinha) is terminally ill and wants to see her husband settled before she dies. Stuck in a loveless marriage, Roop finds herself drawn to Zafar (Dhawan), the local blacksmith and the illegitimate son of a courtesan named Bahaar Begum (Dixit) and Balraj Chaudhary (Dutt).

Release date: 21st June 2019

Cast: Shahid kapoor, Kiara advani

Director: Sandeep Reddy Vanga

Run time: 2hrs 52mins

Rating: 4.8/5

Kabir Singh(a living it like it is Shahid Kapoor) a post graduate Medical student from Delhi Institute of Medical Sciences revels in excess. In an inter-collegiate football match, he prefers to use his fists rather than foot, to prove a point to his opponents. The opponent is left shell-hocked and bloodied and vows revenge. Cut to a scene where a fresh batch of MBBS entrants are being ragged by their seniors. Peachy punjaban Preeti Sikka (a demure tongue-tied Kiara Advani) catches Kabir’s eye and he instantly lays claim to her as his possession. Preeti has nothing to say and even her anxious father is shown seeking Kabir’s father’s (Suresh Oberoi) help in saving his daughter’s blushes from that of heartless raggers. Little does he know that he has served his daughter up as fresh meat for the lion in his very den. It’s a classic Stockholm syndrome set-up where the captive falls for her captor. Can this be called love?

For most of the narrative we see his parents condone his extreme behaviour, his college Dean(Adil Hussain) and associated staffers pat him on the back rather than rusticate him from the Institute, his older brother Karan(Arjan Bajwa) look on his excesses with a ‘Men will be men’ benevolence, his nursing assistants pander to his every whim, and his best friend Shiva(Soham Majumdar) sacrifice his own career ambitions to lend him the incessant back-up support needed to keep this abusive addict and bully out of the crosshairs of justified retribution. The message being sent down is that if you are a meritorious top-ranking student then everything else, character flaws, criminality et al can be overlooked. In fact, it takes more than three-fourths of the trying, energy sapping runtime to provoke a conscience within Kabir and make him willingly surrender to the consequences of his actions. But by then it’s already too late for the unreasonable film and its shell-shocked audience.

Release date: 25th December 2001

Cast: Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Jada Pinkett Smith

Director: Michael Mann

Run time: 2hrs 47mins

Rating: 6.8/10

Ali is a life story of heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, following the champ’s early days as Cassius Clay and his rise in sports and politics, including his controversial refusal to fight in the Vietnam War and his infamous comeback battles against Joe Frazier and George Foreman.

Ali in the 1960s stood for the proposition that principles matter, that equality among people is just and proper, and that the war in Vietnam was wrong. Every time he looked in the mirror and preened, “I’m so pretty,” he was saying “black is beautiful” before it became fashionable to do so. But one of the reasons Ali had the impact he did was because there was an ugly edge to what he said. Many of his views changed later on, but he was unrepentant regarding what he once believed. And by covering up the true nature of Ali’s earlier beliefs, the current keepers of his legacy are losing sight of why he so enthralled and enraged segments of American society.

Ali’s love affair with the world reached its zenith in 1996, when he was chosen to light the Olympic flame in Atlanta. It was a glorious moment. More than three billion people watched on television and were united by love and caring for one man. But the 1996 Olympics carried negatives as well, for it was in Atlanta that corporate America “rediscovered” Ali. Since then, there has been a determined effort to rewrite history. In order to take advantage of Ali’s economic potential, it was deemed desirable to “sanitize” him. As a result, all of the rough edges have been filed away from his life story.

Release date: 24th September 2010

Cast: Jesse Einsberg, Justin Timberlake, Andrew Garfield

Director: David Fincher

Run time: 2hrs 1min

Rating: 7.7/10

The Social Network” explores the moment at which Facebook, the most revolutionary social phenomena of the new century, was invented — through the warring perspectives of the super-smart young men who each claimed to be there at its inception.

The result is a drama rife with both creation and destruction; one that audaciously avoids a singular POV, but instead, by tracking dueling narratives, mirrors the clashing truths and constantly morphing social relationships that define our time.

Drawn from multiple sources, the film captures the visceral thrill of the heady early days of a culture-changing phenomenon in the making — and the way it both pulled a group of young revolutionaries together and then split them apart.

Release date: 25th January 2019

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Amrita Rao

Director: Abhijit Panse

Run time: 2hrs 19mins

Rating: 3/5

This biopic traces the rise of Bal Keshav Thackeray, as he goes from being a cartoonist, to establishing a new political party for Maharashtrians, the Shiv Sena. The film takes us through the journey of his political life and also gives us a glimpse of his personal story. All of this as Thackeray becomes the most influential political leader in Maharashtra.
The film presents both the applauded and the less appreciated shades of Thackeray’s life and career. Powered by a stellar performance by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, this biopic rises above an inconsistent screenplay, to present an intriguing political career.

The riled up speeches, the unapologetic candour and the larger-than-life persona is presented without a veil. While the honesty is commendable, it comes across that the lead character’s political motivations lack clarity. Perhaps a more seasoned writer could have fleshed out Thackeray’s character and eccentricities a lot better. But its Nawaz’s nonchalant performance that overshadows the flaws and leaves a lasting impact.

Release date: 25th January 2018

Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Jisshu Sen Gupta

Directors: Kangana Ranaut, Krish

Rating: 3.5/5

Manikarnika the film kicks off with viewers being introduced to the strong and independent Manikarnika (Kangana Rananut), who is well-versed in archery and sword-fighting. From taming a wild horse, to shooting a tiger from afar, or hop, skip and jumping to her elephant, it seems like she is the champion of stunts. There’s a constant flurry of expository dialogues on how fearless she is; enough to make your head spin.

Manikarnika is married off to Maharaja Gangadhar Rao Newalkar (Jisshu Sengupta) of Jhansi. He is more than impressed by her fearless behaviour. The Rajmata of the house isn’t, and strongly reprimands her.

Clouds loom over her seemingly-blissful life after her first child dies, and shortly later, her husband. The British officers are eager to capture Jhansi, and don’t accept her adopted son as the heir to the throne. Laxmibai’s fight against the British forms the rest of the story of Manikarnika.

If you’re a Kangana Ranaut fan, Manikarnika is THE film for you. If you remember your history lessons, take Manikarnika with a generous pinch of salt, says our review.

Release date: 13th July 2018

Cast: Diljit Dosanjh, Tapsee Pannu, Angad Bedi, Pitobash Tripathi

Director: Shaad Ali Sahgal

Rating: 3.5/5
Soorma, a comeback story of the hockey legend Sandeep Singh(Diljit Dosanjh) that chronicles the life and times of the famed hockey player.

It is an inspirational tale of ace Sandeep Singh, who was accidentally shot in the back during a train journey in 2006. Singh was almost paralysed for a year. Yet, with sheer determination and will, he fought with fate and worked hard to walk again. It didn’t stop there: he led India to victory in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in 2009 after defeating Malaysia in the finals at Ipoh. He was also the top goal-scorer of the tournament.

Sandeep starts playing hockey at the Shahbad local training center, just to be close to Harpreet(Tapsee Pannu), who is well on her way to make it to the national hockey team. In true Bollywood style, Harpreet falls in love with him, against the coach’s wishes.

Sandeep Singh has been portrayed as a unidimensional sketch who is a trifle monotonous at times. It’s a waste of Dosanjh’s capabilities, though he tries earnestly to breathe life into his character.It has rare convincing moments in the second half, if you have any patience left.

Bollywood continues with it’s relentless spree of sports biopics, and the latest offering is Diljit Dosanjh’s Soorma. The film is unimpressive and slow.

Release date: 19th February 2016

Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Shekar Ravjiani, Jim Sarbh, Yogendra Tiku

Director: Ram Madhvani

In September 1986, Neerja Bhanot(Sonam) saves the lives of 359 passengers on a hijacked Pan Am plane from Mumbai to New York via Karachi. 

The story of this Indian beti is well-known and famous. The in-flight drama between gun-`n’-grenade toting men and a plane-load of hapless victims, leaves you angry. The film makes you weep and mourn the ongoing acts of global terrorism. You also look at Neerja’s troubled marriage. She has her reasons for being the brave heart she is. Having fled from a disastrous alliance to a male chauvinist, Neerja has promised herself that if ever life gives her another opportunity, she will look adversity in the eye. But darn it, 23 is still no age to die.

Sonam’s Neerja quietly seals a place in your heart. There are no theatrics; she’s dignified, strong and real. Shabana as the bereaved mother makes her grief yours, her daughter’s glory also yours. Yogendra Tiku lends able support and Khalil(Jim Sarbh) as the maniacal terrorist is terrific.

This one raises a toast to the daunting spirit of India’s daughters; every one of us must salute Neerja. 

Ratings: 4/5