On 13th May, 2023, which marked a very auspicious day in the Parsi calendar (Mah – Deh, Roj – Hormazd), the World Zoroastrian Organisation (WZO) – India, organized the annual evening Jashan ceremony at the Ripon Club in Mumbai. Post the Jashan, which was performed by Er. Jamshed Bhesadia and Er. Farokh Kerawala (of M…
Thirty young and talented students from Surat’s Utkarsh Dance Academy LLP, represented India at the ‘Yilan International Children’s Folklore Festival’, which was held in Taiwan from 5th to 16th July, 2019. Under the guidance of Behnaz S. Todiwala, Director of Utkarsh Dance Academy LLP since last 25 years, these dance enthusiasts, aged seven to fifteen…
Six-and-a-half decades after Sohrab Modi’s technicolor epic but commercially disastrous ‘Jhansi ki Rani’ hit the screens, comes a modern-day version with Kangana Ranaut in the lead of Manikarnika (Manu). The common runtime of 148 minutes could be a mere coincidence though. The story begins in 1828 in Varanasi where great fame is predicted for a…
Also known as ‘The Mumbai Siege: 4 Days of Terror’, the film attempts to recreate the ghastly, inhuman attacks on the iconic Taj Mahal hotel which claimed 166 innocent lives. The four-day siege on the Taj was just one of many such strikes, though it was the one which was the one to have captured…
Genre: Drama, Comedy, Action Rating: 3/5 159 minutes Director: Rohit Shetty Let’s get one thing clear – Rohit Shetty has proved amply in the past that his films (Golmaal, Singham), like Manmohan Desai’s in the 70s, are intended to titillate the grey cells – not stimulate them; nor has he ever demonstrated any pretensions to…
One of the first films to showcase (pun unintended) the plight of brothels and their inmates was ‘Mandi’ (1983). The dusky Mrunal Thakur, making her debut in Hindi films in the eponymous ‘Love Sonia’, has shades of the late Smita Patil, who essayed Zeenat in Shyam Benegal’s 1983 classic. Noorani’s directorial feature debut goes several…
Sequels are not always successful, despite the makers’ best commercial motives and despite how hard the storyline – and budget – is stretched! For those who missed out on the 2016 prequel, Harpreet ‘Happy’ Kaur (Diana Penty) was in the title role with Pakistan as the backdrop. This one shifts base to its more affluent…
“Based on true stories”, claims the info during the opening credits, even as the film portrays the events during a single ‘search and seize’ raid in Lucknow in 1981. Amay Patnaik (Ajay Devgn) is an upright (both physically and morally) Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax — a couple of elaborately staged scenes during the opening frames…
When was the last time one saw a film where tears of sorrow turned to sporadic laughter and the other way around? The third film of playwright-turned-director Martin McDonagh (screenplay too), ‘Three Billboards…’ narrates the story of Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand), a grief-stricken mother whose daughter was raped and burnt to death and is seeking justice…
Early on in the film one of the central characters in the film mouths the dialogue “In our job we cannot afford confusion”. This line could very well have been spoken by writer-director Neeraj Pandey as viewed throughout the first half of the 160 minute film. The lengthy opening disclaimer too is understandable – after…
Shiamak Davar was recently awarded the ‘Best Choreographer’ by Star Screen Awards on >>>>, for his choreography in the song ‘Ullu Ka Patha’ from the movie, ‘Jagga Jasoos’. Shiamak has been repeatedly honoured for revolutionizing dance and entertainment in the Indian Film Industry. Accompanied by his mother, Puran Davar, Shiamak said, “I’m extremely happy on winning the award at…