one time wanderer

What do I even say right now, that could encapsulate my grief? Maybe this- I was listening to the latest Raveesh Kumar episode while washing the dishes this morning, and at one point, Mihir Pandya (Raveesh's guest, and film critic) quoted Irrfan Khan's dialogue from Life of Pi (2012), and I broke down. I don't mean that I was just crying, my knees actually buckled and I had to hang on to the countertop to maintain my balance. Not that there seems to be much balance left anymore.  I watched this movie last night, and if you haven't figured out already, I am yet to stop crying. I had somehow forgotten how perfect this movie was- every scene is a masterclass in the art of film-making. It's hard to believe that both Tabu and Irrfan are not ethnically Bengali- they don't just embody the accents, but also the expressions, the reactions, the movements. Kal Penn is funny, but also heart-ache inducing in his depiction of one of the best ABCD characters to ever hit th...

As I write this, something devastating has happened for the Indian film landscape- the death of Irrfan Khan, who was one of the best actors to come out of the country. Personally, it has left me both numb and shaken, and I fully expect that when it hits me, I will not stop crying for days. But as for now, I will restrict my words to what I thought of Manichithrathazhu , the source of other legendary films like Chandramukhi (2005), and of course, Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007), the latter of which I'd watched in the theater back when it had first released. Now, I think it would be disingenuous for me to compare the two movies- I haven't seen Bhool Bhulaiyaa in years, so it would not be fair. That being said, had I seen Manichithrathazhu first, I don't think I would have been interested in Bhool Bhulaiyaa . A Malayali friend recently told me that Priyadarshan basically lifted Manichithrathazhu  and transplanted it to Rajasthan, with no changes in the context whatsoever, which has ...

This was a very special movie to watch- clever, engaging, funny, and of course, heart-warmingly romantic (cue tears of joy). Controversial opinion, but I think that it elevated Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility (1811). And a lot of it has to do with how brilliant all the actors were, and of course, A.R. Rahman's genius.  Kandukondain Kandukondain is probably one of the the best romantic comedies I have seen, and definitely the best Indian romantic comedy. It doesn't shy away from owning the traditional "masala" movie elements, but is so damn witty about it- especially the meta-narratives about the making of a film. Extremely entertaining. However, the film is also a profound look at certain things, including the Indian dependence on astrology- Tabu's character Sowmya is branded as "unlucky" by her horoscope, and that leads to debilitating self-esteem, which will probably take years of therapy to recover from. The very nature of heterosexual...

At one point, while watching this movie, I forgot I was watching one, and felt instead that I was talking to a friend who was telling me the story of what happened to these 5 sisters that she knew. It felt that warm, intimate and familiar- probably because I could easily identify with a lot of the familial patriarchal oppression that the girls go through, having been through similar experiences myself. Mustang was the perfect blend of intense and light-hearted. By calling it light-hearted, I don't mean to trivialise the characters' experiences- what I mean is that they remind one to never let anything break one's spirit. I suppose I am not explaining myself very well. I guess you'll have to watch the movie to find out hehe. Also, the fact it was directed by a woman (Deniz Gamze Ergüven in her debut venture), and written by two women (Ergüven and Alice Winocour), makes it so much more loveable. And proves, yet again, how important it is for women to be able to tell ...

I guess this movie was just too white male for me? I don't know, it peaked for me at the 12 minutes mark, the first scene of sexual tension between Allen Ginsberg (Daniel Radcliffe) and Lucien Carr (Dane DeHaan). Otherwise, it just lost me. In a big way. The thing that made me most uncomfortable was the treatment of women- they were borderline caricatured. The men too, just had a typical "misunderstood" vibe to them, and I'm sorry, but I'm having none of it in this new decade. Blah, white men, blah. Daniel Radcliffe though, always a winner in my book. That's all. 

This might possibly be the worst movie ever made, and yes, I have seen Tommy Wiseau's The Room  (2003). There was no point, no logic, absolutely NOTHING in this movie that could be considered redeemable. The songs, which I found decent prior to witnessing this absolute travesty, have been forever tainted by such in-depth knowledge of their source. I am finding it hard to best express my rage and disgust in, but honestly, Salman Khan getting Aishwarya Rai's lookalike Sneha Ullal to play a SCHOOLGIRL is one of the most creepy things to come out of Bollywood. Especially after you realise that Salman was at least 2 decades older than Sneha when this movie was shot. The ending makes it all worse, and leaves one questioning why people appreciated this movie, and more importantly, why does Salman Khan still have a career? Why is he allowed to get away with stuff of this magnitude? Now, I know that, objectively, Bollywood is a great big fuckfest of all things creepy and disgusting. ...

Where do I even begin with this movie? The fact that neither of the three lead actors can act?- Zayed Khan was by far the worst, mostly because Arjun Rampal's character had a redeeming arc, and mercifully, Ameesha Patel's character didn't have enough screen time to impart lasting damage. The music?- The songs were deranged. I don't have any other way to put it. I mean, one of the songs was literally called "Teri Kurti Sexy", and one of them, "Main Ishq Uska" is a scary attempt to normalise stalking and other obsessive behaviours towards women in the name of love. And the background score was a completely over-the-top, headache-inducing early '00s Bollywood mix. The person responsible for this mess? The one and only Himesh Reshammiya. The loopholes in the story?- So much could have been solved by simple communication. Why were Rahul and Karan friends? Why was Pooja so... never mind, this will go in the spoilers territory. But seriously, why...