Abbas Hassan

Animal is a trail-blazer, a terrific film, even if gore and mayhem goes unpoliced and escapes all routes of the law. Ranvijay "Vijay" Singh, brilliantly and exceptionally played by Ranbir Kapoor is a man who as a boy had a yearning for his father's attention, which he never had. As a man that yearning turns into an obsession where he feels that he will never be like his father: oblivious to the happiness and safety of his own family. This character brings him in conflict with an actual situation which puts his father and family in grave danger. How he rises to that and the lengths he goes to protect his family is the crux of this tale. His unfettered machismo and masculinity can become a subject of cancel culture's rallying cry against misogyny and male toxicity, which honestly is hogwash. When a movie succumbs to a drawn out perimeter of sorts, it loses its freedom. Art, books, movies are best when they throw rules out of the window. This movie is one such and I congratulate its makers for their bravado.

Dunki puts spotlight on a much under-debated topic of why people love migrating to the west, particularly within the Indian context. Somewhat a satire with a sentimental blend, it underwhelms with dollops of eulogizing by migrants for their home country after living in the west all their lives, their pining for their homeland and the humdrum of humble but happy moments no longer within their reach. Brevity in story-telling goes a long way which many Indian directors never seem to understand, surprisingly, with this movie Raj Kumar Hirani turns out to be one amongst those? His 3 Idiots and PK were a lot more taut and mordantly aligned with their messages, alas this one misses the mark somewhere. I however give it a 4 for the charming comedy used to convey a serious message.

Please do not pay attention to the filthy memes and clamour on twitter. Kalank is a serious film and would have to be taken as such, and it is not easy to appreciate a tragic story. The movie lacks brevity but not soul. Really, what was the audience expecting out of a doomed love story? And the song "tabah ho gaye" marks the climax of the story. I cannot give out the spoilers but it is a pivotal moment in the culmination of a love story that germinated so beautifully but had no future. That is the crux of that song which had a meaning. It is a lie to say that the movie is soulless when in fact the audience don't understand the movie at all. Please go and watch if you have the ability to sit through drama and aesthetically done sequences.

Excellent film, great take on key messages of the day: misogyny, body-shaming and general societal double-standards. Songs are excellent along with amazing performances. Never a dull moment. Please don't miss.

A first rate movie with a very novel screenplay and chronology. It also underpins the irrational abuse of scientific intellectualism which still exists today. The performance by Cillian Murphy is top-notch as also that of Robert Downey Jr and Emily Blunt. A 3-hr movie worth its load of vision and execution. Please don't miss.