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Showing posts from 2021

JAWAAN (2023) : review

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And finally the much hyped, much awaited Jawaan saw light of the day ! Big stars, big budget( humongous budget actually), big music composer, everything super large. But does it meet the expectations of the average viewer? No it goes not. Read on.  A decorated jawan locks horns with a criminal called Kaali, this is in 1986 ( the year movies like Aakhri Raasta released, just for reference). Kaali gets him eliminated and send the pregnant wife to jail. The baby born in jail grows up to become the hero (look alike of the father) and decides to avenge the misdeeds done to his innocent patriotic parents. Well, isn’t it a masaaledaar full on Bollywood- Tollywood drama subject ?  And then the director Atlee also borrows ideas and references from various retro movies, some idea from Sholay (1975) as the hero assembled a gang of jailed Qaidis in order to form a team to nab the villain, then there’s an entire episode borrowed from Dhartiputra (1993), and the basic theme is copy pasted from Kaml
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DIAL D FOR DETECTIVE: rewind to Doordarshan part 2

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Revisiting the good old days of Doordarshan yet again, when it wasn’t exactly a boring cousin of the satellite channels like ZeeTv or mtv. One genre that has intrigued viewers over the years is suspense murder mysteries. With a common base of a chilling murder committed and then a detective is summoned to investigate. Sometimes it’s the detective who coincidentally ends up being at the place of the crime, convenient isn’t it? But that’s what crime genre lovers have loved all these years. From Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot to our very own Byomkesh Bakshi and the hot selling detective novels featuring Kaala Pahad and Dhananjay, we’ve had an amazing range of entertaining investigators, here’s a quick revisit to five detective serials from the golden days of Doordarshan.   KARAMCHAND (1985)  Termed and credited as India’s first detective series on television, though I’m unsure if it’s true, but certainly an engaging and thrilling series. With generous humour added to give it a black
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THE FAMILY MAN S2(2021) review

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Streaming on : Amazon prime video (9 episodes)  Directed by: Raj-DK and Suparn Varma  Cast: Manoj Bajpaye, Priyamani, Sharib Hashmi, Shahab Ali, Samantha Akkineni, Ashlesha Thakur, Vedant Sinha, Sharad Kelkar, Dalip Tahil, Darshan Kumar, Aritro R Banerjee, Anand Sami, Ravindra Vijay, Rajesh Balachandiran, Devadarshini, Udayabhanu Maheshwaran, Sunny Hinduja and Seema Biswas.  And just when you feel the level of Indian web series is stooping low, arrives the second season of Family Man, it was good in 2019, it’s much much better this time. Wonder how the director trio made a series so full of excitement and intrigue without a single “dull” moment. There are so many things happening, everything at fast speed, so many characters involved, yet there’s not an iota of confusion or mismanagement here, kudos to the team for a clear winner.  While the first season dealt with Pakistani cum Kerala based terrorist activities , this time the focus shifts to Sri Lankan terrorists who are hailed as r
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THE ASPIRANTS (2021) review

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Streaming on: YouTube  Directed by: Apoorva Singh Karki  Cast: Naveen Kasturia, Shivankit Singh Parihar, Abhilash Thapliyal, Namita Dubey, Sunny Hinduja, Kuljeet Singh, Nupur Nagpal, and others.  In my case TVF seems to be having an 100% entertainment success rate, never disappoints. If you liked the Kota factory series then this is a must watch , from stereotyping ‘coming of age’ as visiting Goan shores (Dil Chahta Hai) or an expensive kidney sale overseas adventure (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara) we get to watch what it actually means to come of age in this series. Friendship, betrayal, companionship, puppy love, ambition, motivation, you’ve got it all rolled into this five episodic ‘intellectually’ satisfying series.  Set in old Rajinder Nager, Delhi the series time travels between the present and the past wherein we get acquainted with three young men ‘well settled’ in their respective jobs of an IAS officer, a business man and a professor. We get flash backed recurrently into their pa
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THE LAST HOUR (2021) Review

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Directed by: Amit Kumar  Streaming on: Amazon prime video  Cast: Sanjay Kapoor, Karma Takapa, Shaylee Krishen, Shahana Goswami, Robin Tamang, Mandakini, Raima Sen, Lanuakom Ao, Debashish Lama, Tenzein Choden, and others  What’s the best location for a supernatural murder mystery? Nope not a Ramsay brother Haveli, it’s a foggy misty hill station that can give you the chills and the thrills. How I wish the direction was as thrilling and chilling here. Sigh.  A Mumbai based investigations officer is relocated to the north eastern Indian region, he soon gets assigned the task to track down the culprits behind the rape and murder of a tourist who was a Bengali film star. The murders do not stop there, and the officer (played by Sanjay Kapoor) soon realises it’s a pretty complicated mystery to crack down. A young Shaman (what’s that? Google and you’ll get a detailed description of these mysterious people who can travel in the middle world along with spirits) helps the officer by communicati
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REWIND TO DOORDARSHAN - part 1

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So the unavoidable lockdown makes you yawn in despair? And you have had an overdose of espionage spy thrillers and crime dramas on the ott platform ? Then revisit some good old feel- good slice of life television series from Doordarshan days which are available on YouTube and some other steaming platforms. What you’ll invariably and unmistakably find these retro serials is the simplicity of the characters that’s awfully missing today!  Kachchi Dhoop (1987)  Directed by actor Amol Palekar this desi ‘little women’ featured future one film wonder Bhagyashree in a pivotal role along with Ashutosh Govarikar and Palekar himself. Sweet, sugary and simple it’s the perfect remedy for a bored viewer! The characters are simple and relatable, they speak in a sing a song manner and make you fall in love with their on screen trials and tribulations.  Idhar Udhar (1985)  If you are an sitcom fan then this show is unmissable! Starring the talented Pathak sisters playing roomies along with Ravi Basawa
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HIS STORY(2021): review

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Directed by: Prashant Bhagia  Streaming on : zee5  Cast: Priyamani, Satyadeep Misra, Mrinal Dutt, Nikhil Bhatia, Mikhail Gandhi, Rajeev Kumar, Parinita Seth, Anmol Kajani, Charu Shanker, Rheanne Tejani.  Surprisingly, the otherwise intolerable Alt Balaji (Ekta Kapoor) has been coming out with some decent stuff these days, breaking out of the Saas Bahus and Gandi Baats she’s exploring some good subjects being handled sensitively. Hmm.  So the story is actually about two men in love with each other in a homophobic world, but the lead actress has played her part so well that she manages to convince you that it’s actually ‘her story’ and not ‘his story’, seriously that’s how good actress Priyamani is in this role. A working woman, chef by profession who’s been in a happy marriage(or so she thinks) of twenty years with a wealthy entrepreneur suddenly one fateful evening finds her husband smooching a young guy in the car! Soon she comes to know the guy is her husband’s boyfriend. Now what? 
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THE TATTOO MURDERS(2021): review

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Directed by: Shrawan Kumar Tiwary  Streaming on: Disney Hotstar  Cast: Meera Chopra, Tanuj Virwani, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Anang Desai, Anupam Shyam, Varun Joshi, Chirag Trivedi, Falguni Rajni, Priyanka Khatri, Virender Panday, Mehool Desai, Aman Singh Vohra, Vimmi Bhatt and others.  A series of murders startle the city that never sleeps, the victims are prostitutes from the infamous and hugely popular kamathipura area. A young officer (Chopra) who is battling psychological issues is assigned the duty to nab the cold blooded serial killer. The only clue available is a scorpion tattoo affixed on each victim. Helped by a supportive subordinate and a local flesh trader, the officer pursues this difficult mission that has its roots in Kolkata finally leading to a bloody climax in Mumbai.  Decent storyline, no overcrowding of events, well placed flashbacks (though recurrent) are few factors that make this suspense series watchable and tolerable as well. The low points are some of the cast m
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AJEEB DAASTAANS(2021): review

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Directors: Neeraj Ghaywan, Kayoze Irani, Shashank Khaitan & Raj Mehta  Streaming on : Netflix  An anthology series with four shorts from the house of Dharmatic productions helmed by Karan Johar and company. It’s like continuing with the tradition of Lust stories, Ghost stories etc, these are like twist stories exploring unconventional human relationships with an unexpected bittersweet twist at the end.  MAJNU In an affluent family live an incompatible couple who haven’t consummated their royal marriage for over three years, the wife longs for attention & love. One fine day a young boy enters their lives & is employed as a finance manager for their business. Things get awry when both the husband & wife get hopelessly & sexually drawn towards him.  Can be termed a black comedy, it’s got these subtle comical undertones & thanks to a brilliant actor like Jaideep Ahlawat it’s thoroughly enjoyable. Armaan Rahlan exudes machismo and that’s perfect casting while the ot
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THE SERPENT (2021) : Review

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Directed by: Hans Herbots & Tom Shankland  Streaming on : Netflix  Cast: Tahar Rahim, Billy Howle, Jenna Coleman, Ellie Bamber, Mathilde Warnier, Tim McInnerny, Amesh Ederaweera, Fabian Frankel, Darshan Zariwala, Aly Khan, Stacy Martin, Pravesh Rana, Baby Meghan Jeremiah & others.  The sensational murderous journey of the notorious serial killer Charles Sobhraj is brilliantly executed in this delightfully directed web series. There have been several documented series and documentaries specially on bbc in the past chronicling Sobhraj’s intriguing crime story and even a forgettable Bollywood movie made five or six years ago but this series takes the cake and how!  In the mid 70s in Bangkok a young backpacker Dutch couple goes mysteriously missing and their charred dead bodies are found days later. A Dutch diplomat gets ethically engrossed in solving the mystery and soon gets entangled in a larger than life(or deadly) crime syndicate controlled by a notorious criminal Charles Sob
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