one time wanderer

It will take me some time to start moving on from Shobana's beauty in this movie. The name 'Maya' fits her in more ways than one- she is illusory, but with a depth that leaves you speechless. I can't see anyone other than her doing this role justice, and even though I am yet to see many Shobana movies, I am still counting this as one of her best performances. The way she carries the viewer along in her amnesiac daze- Innale is honestly enough for anyone to fall deeply in love with her. The script is excellently written and executed. Through Maya, we are made to question our own reliance on memories- how we build ourselves and even the world around us based on what we remember. This is further extended to "what we choose to remember" in the climax scene with Dr. Narendran (Suresh Gopi). To add further nuance to the script are the cinematography by Venu, and the direction by Padmarajan. By setting the movie in a remote corner of Kerala, the director reinforces t...

This is probably one of the best performances of Kajol's career- no matter how many times I watch this movie, the last shot of her on the train will haunt me for days afterwards. More than anything though, I love and appreciate this movie for the moral dilemmas- rewatching it this time around, I realised how I have a propensity for rooting for the "problematic" couple (eg. Dev and Maya from KANK ) and how that's probably because of my eternal fascination with the concept of morality, and how it is constituted not just in different eras and cultures, but also in different people. Think about it: do you really think 2 people living in the same society will have more or less similar conceptions of what is moral and what is not? I don't think so, and that's why I gravitate towards these layered yet simple movies, with a core of molten emotions. Good music is always a bonus, obviously.  Coming to the "problematic" couple here- Kajol & Ajay have such a...

I didn't know it was technically possible to be this emotional about a story that I was viewing for the third time (I had previously seen a Hindi dubbed version years ago, as well as the Hindi remake when it came out). I don't know if it's the Telugu feels (it is), but I still haven't stopped being moved by this movie, and the impact that it had on me. It's probably because the movie is so well-shot that you feel directly in the middle of things, alert and invested in everything's happening on screen. Which reminds me- Okkadu is not just a great thriller, it's also brilliant in its comedy and wholesomeness, and you can't help but root for the lead characters with your whole heart. Poetic cinema, indeed. I honestly feel like I'm just blabbering- these words pale in comparison to the epic highs and lows that this movie makes you experience. I was majorly shipping Ajay (Mahesh Babu, in what is possibly his best role) and Swapna (Bhumika Chawla, underrat...

Full offence, but Chiranjeevi should have been cast for Vishnu's role, instead of Mohan "Fasak" Babu. I was so pissed off throughout the movie, literally all because of him. The more I think about it, the more enraged I feel, because it was genuinely a very funny movie. Very sad also I guess, towards the end, but by then I had become too numb to properly respond to what was happening. Also the idea of Shobana falling in love with that man will always be supremely preposterous, and that's on that.  This was another movie where Ramya ma'am was massively under-utilised- they should have cut Mohan Babu's scenes to make way for ma'am. I am just so furious by the fact that this movie had so much potential, but it all went down the drain. How many men does it take to ruin a movie? Just one, when he's as annoying on screen as Mohan fasakking Babu. Hats off to Chandra Mohan though, for giving so many laughs and managing to engender some tenderness too. The scen...

Let the record show that it's been two days, and the song "Lakshmi baava, Lakshmi baava" is still stuck in my head. I went dangerously close to listening to it again this morning, but thankfully, for once, better sense prevailed and I played the Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha title track. JK, this song is way too powerful for me. Just heard it, and even danced a little. (Derrida, I know you're laughing in your grave.) According to my friend, this movie encapsulates every single Tollywood trope in existence. And I think I agree with her- there's #BaavaPropaganda, the ideal upright (and uptight) Annayya whose entire existence is devoted to the well-being of his siblings, the gasp-worthy (but also predictable) deception practiced through a marriage that everyone was happy about earlier, Sunil dropping truth bombs and saving the day (I know it doesn't technically qualify as a trope, but SO WHAT I LOVE AND CHERISH SUNIL AND I AM NOT ASHAMED OF IT), the comically insane villa...

I can think of no other movie that represents 2018 better than this one. Also, I watched Gang , the Telugu dubbed version. Telugu occhhu very soon, guys.  I wish I wasn't half as distracted I was while watching the movie- don't blame me, blame the COVID pandemic and that I have an actual exam to give, thanks to the Indian obsession with exams and marks and the complete and dismal failure of the education system to even try and move past this obsession. But anyway, back to TSK - now, I haven't seen Special 26 (2013), and I don't think I will, because Suriya is EASILY superior to Canadian Kumar, in every single way possible. Plus, how can I ignore Ramya ma'am and how effortless she makes every role seem? I absolutely loved her character, and how she managed to make every scene she was in better. Both Ramya ma'am and Suriya have amazing comic timing, which makes this movie fun, but also really cathartic, and goddamnit but that's all I need in 2020. The support...

Trigger warning for sexual assault (in the movie). If there's one thing this movie proves, it's that I am truly a 13-year old Delhi boy on the inside, considering that I was planning to rewatch it even before it got over (be prepared, L). And yes, I know it's problematic in its representation of women, and yes, some scenes were so full of it that I felt numb by the time the movie ended, but I also found it really funny, I loved the fashion (I want at least 10 outfits worn by various characters), the songs picturisation was absolutely 90s-level insane, and finally, you just can't go wrong with Lakshmi and Chiranjeevi, that too in such inappropriate settings. I wish they had given Ramya a more substantial role, though. She would have killed it as the bitchy rich girl, if Padayappa (1999) is anything to go by. Or even half of it. *cries in subtitles*. In true E.V.V. Satyanarayana fashion, Alluda Majaka was full of references to Ramayana and bigamy. In addition to that thou...

Honestly, this movie makes me want to rewatch Manichithrathazhu (1993) more than anything (I have wanted to go back to it for some weeks now, but still). Mohanlal plays "Dr. Sunny", a psychiatrist, in that movie too, and I really just want to see if there's some consistency, some hints of belonging to the same universe. Coming back to the movie itself: my constant thought throughout was how underrated an actress Amala is. She was really terrifying in some scenes, and extremely vulnerable in others. I could never hate her, despite everything she did. And I think that's a very important aspect of making movies that revolve around mental disorders. Not that there was perfect representation of mental disorders or psychiatry here, but the way Amala's character is written and performed was quite exceptional for me, someone who's used to really disappointing cinematic takes on mental health. On this basis alone, I would recommend this movie to anyone interested in tr...

Throughout the movie (I technically watched Kidnap , the Telugu dubbed version), I had to restrain myself from thinking about its morality. And of course, the fact that Indian cinema can't seem to understand that feminism and class discourse can exist side by side- it doesn't have to be either/or. Not that it takes a genius to figure out why this particular device is employed, time and again. Oh, well. Keeping these two factors aside though, I really enjoyed the movie. I found it goofy, witty and charming (the only love triangle I stan), and I particularly loved all the meta bits (Jyothika literally plays a fictional version of herself). The genius of the movie lies in the performances of Suriya and Jyo, honestly, more than the script itself. And even though this didn't have too many cute/emotional Jyo-Suriya bits (which are practically sustaining me these days), it was nevertheless amazing to see their chemistry in a totally different aspect. MY SHIP HAS A FANTASTIC RANGE ...

Disclaimer (don't know what else to call it): I technically saw Nuvvu Nennu Prema , the Telugu dubbed version.  If I wasn't such a big shipper of Jyo-Suriya (even without watching a single movie of theirs), I probably would have hated this one. It was a massive mess on various levels, and the only thing that pulled me through was the thought of another emotional/cute Jyo-Suriya moment. The first thing that set me off was the whole transphobic garbage disguised as "comedy". I don't even have the patience to talk about it, or to argue why such representations further toxic narratives, because it's 2020 and it should be a given by now. The next thing to set me off was the entire college-era Suriya-Bhumika storyline. It was too reminiscent of Tere Naam (2003) for me to not fast-forward through certain bits (I love you Suriya, but I'm sorry), and as sad as I was at the marriage bit, I was more relieved that it was over and that I could get back to what I came h...

The things we do for our faves. Sigh. Yes, I only watched it for Shobana. And for her chemistry with Mammootty. And keeping just those two things in mind, the movie wasn't a complete let-down. Actually, I wish Gauri (Shobana) had spent a little less time crying. But okay, I could have lived with that. It was a 90s drama, for God's sake. Also, I do appreciate movies where everyone is a bit of a dick (only Gauri and her father were completely nice people in this movie). No, my problem is with everything else. What exactly was Kaliyoonjal trying to pass off as a moral teaching? I know there was something, because the entire tone of the movie was preachy as fuck. What was it? One shouldn't pamper one's sister so much? One shouldn't love one's brother so much? One shouldn't have epilepsy? WHAT? Also, why couldn't Nandagopalan (Mammootty) just aPOLOGISE to his wife, especially when he could see how distressed she was by his behaviour (I repeat, half of this m...

Let me get this straight (lol): I absolutely hated the cringe-worthy gay representation here, especially because it had a lot of potential to be funny, without being so disrespectful. It could have been an interesting take on the objectification and sexualisation of bodies (most commonly, female bodies) that is so normalised in Indian cinema, but no. The whole thing just came off as a massive "eeeks" and made me want to shake whoever was responsible for it by the shoulders and question them "Why would you do this to us? WHY?" Apart from this though, I have zero complaints from the movie. As a lit kid, I was already in love with the premise, but it turned out so much better than even my expectations. The way they carried out the "found family" (one of my favourite tropes of all time) narrative was super wholesome, and had me feeling (and crying) a lot throughout the movie. It was also super hilarious, in order to maintain the equilibrium, ESPECIALLY Nani as...

I think the best way to describe Love in Simla is to call it an inversion of both Cinderella, and William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew . Also, even though I hate the term, this movie comes closest to being a "guilty pleasure" for me. I know there's some problematic stuff in it, but goddamnit, it's so fun and I personally love movies where everyone is a bit of a dick. It's so refreshing, and truly representative of real life. So please excuse me while I fangirl over this underrated 60s rom-com. First and foremost, #SadhanaSupremacy. The range, the fashion, the legends-only behaviour (she is one of the rare women who directed a movie in 70s Bollywood, which also went on to become a box-office hit), she has everything I need to become a life-long simp. Secondly, her chemistry with Joy Mukherjee here is genuinely so good and entertaining, which well, made me overlook all the "problematic" stuff. Plus, this was one of the few times when I didn...

Thank you Salil Chowdhury, Lata Mangeshkar, and Shailendra, for giving me a new rainy day jam- "O Sajana, Barkha Bahar Aai". It actually rained after I was done watching the movie, and it's these things that make me believe in... something. #justagnosticthings The best part about this movie is how well it has aged, 60 years on. Of course, a lot of things have changed, but as they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. That's the best way to describe this movie. A simple plot done cleverly- I think that's Bimal Roy's jam, and I am honestly here for it. I loved the humour, the emotions, how heartwarming the ending was, and most of all, Sadhana being Sadhana, with or without the Sadhana cut. This woman is severely underrated and under-appreciated, and something needs to be done about it. Next up: Sadhana's debut Love in Simla (1960), because I am nowhere close to having had enough of this woman. #SadhanaSupremacy *heart eyes emoji*

Let me just get this out of my system: Anushka Shetty is very stupidly under-utilised in this movie. I feel like she was more suited to play the role of Gowri. And honestly, both Anushka and Venkatesh are fully capable of doing double roles, and had that happened, we would have been truly blessed.  Venky obviously carries the movie on his very capable shoulders. The man is funny, entertaining, brilliant- basically, his performance is the only thing that makes this movie enjoyable, or even engaging. If you have seen Fazil's Manichithrathazhu (1993) or any of its many remakes and derivatives, the plot is pretty easy to figure out. As with most horror movies, they focused more on jump scares, and less on making the plot actually terrifying, which was a great waste since Sweety was absolutely terrifying in the small space she'd been given in that capacity. The mirror scene in particular could have been the stuff that haunts one for years, had it not been for the ridiculously over-t...

TRIGGER WARNING FOR MENTIONS OF RAPE "Oka manchi coffee lanti cinema." And it truly is like an excellent cup of coffee, shared with a friend as she tells you a story about this creep she knew whose fiancé left him at their wedding because his evil bitch of a mother forced her to take off her dead mother's saree and change into something more "appropriate", which made her re-evaluate her decision, and come to the most important conclusion that nothing is more important than respecting oneself. And this is only the beginning! (Of the movie, I mean.) Can I just say that everyone deserves a friend like Anitha (Satya Krishnan)? She was such an excellent support system to both Anand (Raja) and Roopa (Kamalinee Mukherjee), while being the badass feminist of everyone's dreams at the same time. Get yourself a gal who can do both, indeed. Yes, if I knew Anitha in real life, I'd have a massive crush on her. What's new? Which reminds me, Samatha (Bakhita Francis...