Tushar Shukla

Chamkila - An honest attempt marred by lack of passion I had high expectations from this given the great team behind it, but within an hour, I knew it is not working for me. The main appeal of a biopic is how intriguing the central character is, and in this film, Chamkila, just didn't carry that charisma for me. Diljit Dosanjh tries but there is no spark, no connection. All he does is try hard at looking innocent and lost in an artistic way. I did appreciate the storytelling experiments, the brilliant songs by AR Rahman (which again can well exist outside the film, they just don’t add to the narration in any fruitful way except make it more ambiguous and hence 'poetic' for the cool kids), the camerawork and the lighting making it all very lived in and authentic. Some of the female singers who sing with Chamkila are good too, and they look quite close to reality. However, the film goes down several notches just as Parineeti Chopra enters the frame. She just doesn’t look believable as Amarjyot. There is no earthiness to her, her portrayal is just drab and devoid of any color or mischief or energy, the parlor look not helping. I kept waiting for the film to get better but unfortunately it was a messy narration aided with a confused premise. It feels like the director couldn’t decide what side to take, between showing Chamkila in a good light and society in a bad, he does start off well, but then it gets so repetitive. There is just no growth in the story. All we keep hearing is, there is this great artist who makes music that sells, and so what if the lyrics are banal/sleazy, it is what the society wants. That's the entire crux of the film. In between you see few things being inserted in the story like his Canada trip, the romantic track (which again feels so filmy and fake), his occasional Rockstar/rebellious moments, his attempts to make religious songs and abide by the religious heads (again shown in a very cynical light). Towards the end the director starts gathering points to the tragic finale, you see several dialog and sequences that hint at the certain ending rather overtly. But again there is no sense of drama, purpose or thrill to it. The scenes are just so cold that by the time the inevitable end comes, you are just left indifferent. I feel this film is dishonest on so many levels. As someone who has seen the village shows and heard the music of this genre growing up in 80s/90s Rajasthan and Punjab, the live/akhada sequences in the film have just no iota of realism. Just watch any clip of the duo on YouTube and you will see such energy and spark in their performance, which the film just doesn’t have. It might work for someone who has never seen the culture up close, and that’s another reason why Netflix has produced it, their favorite thing to do is to show India in a bad light, immoral, backward and irredeemable. The film's take away is that Chamkila was an artist too good for his times. There is just no attempt at showing the larger landscape. If one were to trust the film, there are no artists from Punjab that have come as good as Chamkila. I find this not only preposterous but heavily irresponsible. Unfortunately, majority of audience who will watch this across the world will walk away with that knowledge. To them I can just say, while Chamkila may be good, there are just so many more brilliant artists from Punjab of 70s to 90s, no one may make a flashy, exotified movie on them but they exist in the galaxy of stars too.

It is probably the 3rd time since last year that I have gone for a lesser known film due to raving reviews and been terribly disappointed. Last year it was Everything everywhere…that promised to wipe the planet off of multiverse/superhero movies. And all it did was give me a splitting headache. I liked Rogue One despite its hokey drifts because it was something new and emotionally dramatic for the largely drab Star Wars franchise. I was liking this film in the first half but the problems started appearing very soon. The false building up of a mystery and twist that I could see coming from miles. The obvious urge to show the director’s references(he said Baraka was an influence, which is funny because that film had no dialog while this one just doesn’t know when to stop) and the confusion that stems from it makes me think of the fake confidence with which Jamie Oliver cooks on his shows and pretends he has made something great at the end(yayee). Initially I was thinking wow the writing is layered, the messaging is not so in your face, they are actually letting the story take its time to build, the sci-fi elements are not too loud. And that all changed in the second half. What was poetic initially became a chore, the same yawn-inducing politics, the hammering of woke agenda, and don’t even get me started on all the pretentious concepts - so the New Asia has all the cool AI supporting monks and Tibetan temples with AI art and monuments and scriptures? What! And somehow everyone is good there even if they kill people and celebrate burning of forests. And they are what exactly, what was the neanderthal line? And the random use of songs? Just wow. Child in time? Radiohead but more distorted? It felt like the writers ran out of ideas and just stuffed in anything anyone said in the coffee break. Droids from Star Wars? AT-AT's? Death Star blastoff? Self-contemplative read boring protagonist who is always clueless? An annoying kid who does some 'force' stuff and everything gets fixed? Apocalypse Now type needle drops while planes and choppers are making noise? A forced family narrative a la Avatar and every other Hollywood movies these days? and why not some MCU stuff too, because then we can say we are not a franchise and so original and all that? To sum up, this film has way too much stuffed in to be a coherent experience. By the time 2/3rd of it wrapped up I was ready to fall asleep, but the incessant action and repeating plot points just wouldn’t let me. To top it all off, there was a terrible ending which just does a free fall in all areas of logic, and you suddenly feel like you are watching a Bollywood film inspired by Stranger Things. I was better off watching the same schtick in The Mandalorian. I am so not trusting any more so called acclaimed film of the year now onwards.

Pretty underwhelming. This is probably the 3rd or 4th movie where Soubin Shahir disappoints in hands of a bad script and direction. The film tries to be too many things...brainy intellectual artsy metaphorical(rats, posters) and that does lead to few good scenes but apart from that it just drags aimlessly trying to be a horror comedy with music that forces you to laugh at scenes at a hostel. Just because the climax blatantly plugs a sequel shows how hopeless this film is. My expectations from Malayalam cinema are always sky high so such movies let me down.

I have watched both Seasons of this show twice. And they can be watched few more times. This show is that good, especially the latest season. The writing is the winner, complemented with performances, background score and international quality of production design. Such an immensely satisfying show to binge watch.

Exactly what one expects from FaFa & Friends! A film that surprised me with how well it captures the local/socio-economic dynamic(a regular in Malayalam cinema) even within a survival thriller. Fahadh Faasil is brilliant as usual in portraying the flawed nobody, who undergoes a rather predictable transformation. The credit to his performance is that he even makes a flawed character relatable, and 'like us'. I liked how the film stayed honest to its clear intentions, even though it might throw the viewer off at a few turns. It is another well-made addition to Malayalam cinema's rich tapestry of articulate, diligently crafted pieces of art. I had been liking their recent films but nothing stood out this much, probably after Aarkkariyam or Nayattu. Though Malayankunju doesn’t reach those heights, it is still a big big achievement, in risking something new in narrative format, and getting the audience to experience something so daring in cinemas. I wish I had caught this in the theater. AR Rahman's score gave the film a new dimension that makes you connect with it at a very sensory level, I never found the score loud of out of place even once, in fact there is way too much beautiful use of silences that creates a sense of restless dread. At many a places he uses muted instruments like a flute, piano, violin or pipe that underplays the tragedy so well. Loved the camera too, the lighting and choreography of the entire 'event'. The finale, if a little rushed does score with its last frame and perfect timing of credits.

A landmark film that is bold, experimental, and still very watchable and entertaining. Usually such projects end up being self-obsessed and art film types, but Iravin Nizhal respects its audience, entertains them, and provides a fulfilling if unsettling viewing experience. It deals with some very dark and disturbing themes and may even make you feel guilty at times of deriving fun from the miseries of the characters, but still I would prefer this film over less the mindless films that come out in name of cinema. IN is a cinematic treat for AR Rahman and cinema fans. The best parts of the film for me were towards the first half where the fire and colorful imagery blends so so well with the brilliant score. It is pure cinema, in those parts at least. I felt ARR just got the film more than anyone. His score lives and breathes the film. A visual poetry...brilliant in most parts evocative in others, a bold dark personal no holds barred piece of cinema. Mr. R Parthieban, thanks for releasing it in english subs and opening it up to a wider audience.

Heropanti 2 is a perfectly average and entertaining film. It has a silly plot but is not that inane, there are some flashes of smartness in relevance of cyber crime in today's world, there are lot of great action sequences that can be watched and rewatched, super-funny and self-aware dialogs by Rajat Arora, some very filmy scenes which refreshingly don’t go over the top, and yes since I am an AR Rahman fan, I loved the songs, the background score and the well-shot song sequences especially Dafa Kar and the qawwali Rehnuma. I was surprised by how much I liked Tiger Shroff in this film. He reminds me of an early action-comedy Salman Khan. He is certainly no great actor but is pleasing to watch on screen. The film is lot of fun if you want to watch something mindless and entertaining. I personally don’t like much of the 'great' or 'superhit' films that come out these days but liked Heropanti 2 enough to watch it twice. People have become too demanding and critical these days. They will watch and praise anything that comes on Netflix or OTT just because others say it is great and must be watched. This film is not smarter or dumber than other films or content that we see in south or north. But for some reason everyone decided to spread vitriol over this particular film. It is how movies were back in 90s, silly and fun. Critics and oversmart audience ko Dafa Kar!

I was a little apprehensive of the film landing on OTT but it surpassed all expectations. Abhishek Bachchan as a Haryanvi politician with a heart is just a tailor-made role for him and he embraces it with such aplomb and grace. The film takes a few stumbles initially to get going but the second half is superb, with flashes of humor, good-natured social messaging, and some cleverly written characters and twists. The cast, the production standards, editing(the great Sreekar Prasad), the script and dialog(Kumaar Vishwas) are all top class. The film is an Abhishek vehicle all the way, you can see how much he is enjoying each scene and frame, he elevates even the weaker portions and makes the film stand tall. Don't listen to critics, watch it for yourself and decide, this is a pure entertainer made with its heart in the right place.

I saw Bob Biswas when it released on OTT last Friday, and found it average, it was a largely entertaining small thriller/crime caper set in the underbelly of Kolkata. Few scenes and elements were going on in the head and I decided to rewatch it last night. And this time, I was able to appreciate the nuances, the world building, the characters, the small-town-noir elements a bit more. Among the few things I liked were how the writing respects the character arcs. Bob Biswas goes from a rather clueless man coming out of a coma to a 'creature of habit' cold-criminal and then again on a path of seeming redemption and back to crime? And in this entire gamut of arcs, Abhishek Bachchan is convincing, in an honesty of craft which he has often shown in his better films. He treats Bob Biswas with his own ingenious mannerisms, the look working very well this time, with the setting, with the sometimes dimwit sometimes laughably confused and sometimes evil with a wink portrayal. On the second watch, I could also appreciate the storyboarding, the comic-book like frames, like the night terrace view in particular, or the ones in the streets. This all feels very lived-in, from an eye of an insider. I never thought I would embrace the mise en scene so much as I did here in another crime film based in Kolkata, having seen quite a few of them. The writing is fresh here, even when it tackles familiar elements(the backdrop of a drug conspiracy, code of conduct of the crime circles, informers, detectives in disguise, secret diaries, keys to a criminal database). The casting is superb. I liked the fact that not everyone is your stereotypical Bengali here, nor do you see characters mouthing stuff like Rosogulla or Tagore before you can say Tollygunge. The quirky man-Friday-detective duo is also fresh and not your average paunch-sporting Jishu-Da's. Kali Da(Paran Bandhopadhyay), who I remember from a Ray-tribute-anthology called Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy, is a hoot here, and is winning all the scenery chewing laurels in every review and rightfully so. Chitrangada Singh is a welcome return to well written films and characters like the one she plays here, and not a mere showpiece. Purab Kohli, Tina Desai, Samara Tijori all lend a richness to the atmosphere like perfectly fitting pieces in a crime novel. The score is above average, the songs are minimal, and really complement the narration. What the film leaves wanting for more is mostly in the area Bob is most interested in- crime. I could have easily taken some more deliciously crafted kills. You do see the oddball murders happen and they are entertaining in their own zone, but one wishes there were more that explored the brilliant setting, of decrepit buildings, rundown police station backyards, govt. offices. I understand these are minor quibbles, and more so from the view of an avid crime watcher. Other than that, this is a solid entertainer, which pays off well and in bounds on a repeat watch. After watching the film, I did check out few scenes from Kahaani(never seen it), and Saswata Chatterjee's Bob Biswas, and found it entertaining. I feel Abhishek Bachchan had a tough challenge on his hands, of taking a one-note-goofy-big-eye character to a complete film that explores the man behind the apparent scare-games and he has successfully done that, and then infused it with some more story-led flesh and blood(excuse the pun) to give us a satisfying mild-crime-Kolkata-noir film.