When one has a premonition that death is imminent, there is bound to be consternation. And when the person happens to be a 77-year-old, there could be some amusing moments too. Septuagenarian Daya (Lalit Behl) wakes up one morning to harry his son Rajiv (Adil Hussain) into accompanying him to Benaras in order to spend…
An inveterate alcoholic, Gloria (Anne Hathaway) — the once professional, now-fired blogger — gets kicked out of her live-in boyfriend Tim’s (Dan Stevens) pad for her all-night drinking bouts, and er, a little bit of lying. Heading back to her parents’ unused home in New Jersey she chances upon her old classmate Oscar (Jason Sudeikis)…
The phenomenal success of the 2015 Neeraj Pandey directed ‘Baby’ (oh yes, it was Akshay Kumar’s baby back then) undoubtedly inspired him to write ‘Naam Shabana’, a prequel to explain the female protagonist’s entry into the faceless agency that looks after the country’s security. Shabana, a martial arts champion, lives with her mother Farida (Natasha…
Adapted from W. Bruce Cameron’s 2010 novel — with a few changes — A Dog’s Purpose is a charming, and at times, sentimental tale of a dog’s life and his purpose on earth, vis-à-vis humans. Narrated by the dog Bailey (voice of Josh Gad) the film starts off with a young Red Retriever being adopted…
At 13 years, one is just about old enough to learn about the Himalayas, notably its tallest peak Mount Everest. On 25 May 2014, Malavath Poorna, the impoverished daughter of poor and illiterate Adivasi village-folk in Telengana, became the youngest female to ascend the famed peak. In his second directorial effort (Everybody Says I’m Fine,…
Every Yazdi Karanjia play is a family-affair with Yezdi’s talented family members in the cast (Gher-No-Ghambar). However, Yezdi carries this play entirely on his shoulders as always while delineating the role of the protagonist Dinshawji, taking us down memory lane to the original play in which Dinshaw Daji played the stellar role. Lukewarm at the…
Statutory Warning: This play is injurious to health because you may fall off your seat while laughing, especially during the first half! Any play from Silly Point Productions is not at all silly since laughter is serious ‘business’ for them. (Pun on ‘business’ intended considering the ticket prices!) This play picks you up from the very first…
Phillauri is the story of a friendly but confused ghost and age-old traditions, peppered quite liberally with Punjabi folk songs. Kannan (Suraj Sharma – Life of Pi) is a Canada-returned Punjabi boy due to marry his childhood sweetheart Anu (a comely Mehreen Kaur Pirzada in her first Hindi film). But as the disinterested Kannan is…
Coming exactly 60 years after the iconic women-centric Mother India, Anarkali of Aarah – starring Swara Bhaskar – tells the story of a rural folk dancer Anar(kali) of Aarah village in Bihar. Anarkali (Bhaskar) is the feisty and plucky lead singer of a troupe which specialises in entertaining locals with bawdy folk songs. Though the…
Two kinds of exploration have always intrigued and baffled humans: the mysteries of the deep (oceans) and the secrets of space. Director Daniel Espinosa has helmed this outer-space sci-fi horror thriller of six scientists and astronauts attempting to collect data from Mars. It’s a motley group consisting of hot-headed technician Roy Adams (Ryan Reynolds), the…
‘1944. Somewhere over the South Pacific’ says the film’s opening title card as the viewer is shown a couple of pilots marooned on one of the islands. The original 1933 black-and-white classic ‘King Kong’ had set the template for a number of films on the great ape – the 1976 and Peter Jackson’s 2005 versions…