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Showing posts with the label web series

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 ...
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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 recurr...
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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 off...
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OK COMPUTER (2021): review

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Directed by: Pooja Shetty and Neil Pagedar  Streaming on : Disney hotstar  Cast: Vijay Verma, Radhika Apte, Kani Kusruti, Sarang Sathaye, Vibha Chhibber, Ratnabali Bhattacharya, Alok Ulfat, (Sp. App.)- Rasika Dugal, Jackie Shroff and Shekhar Kapur.  Are we ready for this? A sci fi black comedy set in a futuristic world predicting machines taking over human roles. If you don’t quite like this genre then skip it, otherwise it’s a nice watchable comic relief with recurrent hiccups.  Set in 2031 that is exactly ten years later, we are introduced to a modern world run by machines, humans totally dependent on technology which is superficially advanced. An unknown victim gets brutally murdered by an automated driven car and the acp (Varma) is assigned the task to nab the culprit. Considering a car has no feelings or emotions one has to find out who planned and executed the murder. Acp also has to find out identity of the victim. Several suspects pop up including a naked ol...
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CHAKRAVYUH : Review

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Directed by: Sajit Warrier  Streaming on : mx player  Cast: Prateik Babbar, Ashish Vidyarthi, Simran Kaur Mundi, Gopal Dutt, Shiv Pandit, Urvashi Sardhara, Anjali Shivaraman, Ayesha Kanga, Twinkle Tshering, Ruhi Singh, Rajesh Khera, Rohan Joshi and others.  If successful this series could turn into a franchise chronicling the adventures of inspector Virkar( Babbar). This particular season deals with cyber crime and sex racket. And how Virkar with his intelligence and wits unravels the mystery. That’s what we are made to believe.  There are a series of serial killings in Mumbai that give sleepless nights to the crime bureau. The beefed up inspector Virkar is assigned the responsibility to track down the serial killer. The victims are all young teenagers, it starts with the brutal murder of a young boy where he’s castrated and stabbed to death. Then another boy is murdered brutally and his eyeballs are sucked out of their sockets. The third victim is a young girl murd...
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UNDEKHI: Review

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Directed by: Ashish Shukla  Cast: Harsh Chhaya, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Abhishek Chauhan, Surya Sharma, Anchal Singh, Ayn Zoya, Sayandeep Sengupta, Ankur Rathee, Apeksha Porwal, Uttam Halder, Shivangi Singh, Bikramjeet Kanwarpal, and others.  Streaming on SonyLiv (Rated 18+) If “gripping” had a face that would be these series, a dark, dirty face of crime, deceit and politics. How an influential political clout and impotent puppets in the law can help criminals get away with murder, quite literally.  Set in picturesque Manali (breathtakingly gorgeous cinematography by Murzi Pagdiwala), the backdrop is of a big fat Indian wedding in an high end resort enveloped by the chilling snow and sensuous mountains on all sides. Things get out of Hand when the groom’s father in an inebriated state shoots a performing dancer in the head, the murder is recorded by the wedding videographer. Soon the murderer’s loyal henchmen are on a wild dog hunt to bump off the videographer and the vic...
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A SIMPLE MURDER (2021) Review

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A SIMPLE MURDER (2020) directed by Sachin Pathak  Cast- Mohammed Z Ayub, Amit Sial, Sushant Singh, Priya Anand, Ayaaz Khan, Gopal Dutt, Vikram Kochhar, Yashpal Sharma and others.  Warning: In case you cannot comprehend black comedies you need to skip this, this is an out and out black or as they call it nowadays dark comedy. So the proceedings may be undigestible for certain viewers. Streaming on Sonyliv  The story is infused with comical coincidences including mice that create humorous errors leading to complicated yet entertaining repercussions. A young guy high on debt is erroneously assigned the deadly job of assassinating a politician’s daughter who has eloped with a Muslim boyfriend. He ends up killing the wrong girl, the victim’s partner is a retired contract killer who’s now on a mission to nab the killer, and wait there are some more interesting characters. The young man’s wife is cheating on him with her virile boss who in turn was having a scandalous affair wi...
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GULLAK (2021) Review

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GULLAK (2020-2021) directed by Amrit Raj Gupta  Cast- Jameel Khan, Geetanjali, Vaibhav Raj Gupta, Harsh Mayar, Sunita Rajawar and others.  This slice of life web-series has two seasons streaming on SonyLiv and is an TVF original presentation. Must watch.  Simple, relatable, down to earth, not describing a prospective bride or groom, these are the attributes for this slice of life web series titled Gullak, it could’ve been a real life story happening in your own home or the neighbourhood. Set in a middle class North Indian family of the Mishra’s it deals with their daily humorous as well as emotional situations (mostly arising out of comical goof ups) that’ll undeniably touch the emotional chord of viewers.  You could well be transported back to the memorable Doordarshan days when we had family comedies like Wagle Ki Duniya(1988) and Yeh Duniya Ghazab Ki(1990) and so many others bereft of television glamour and high on content. Gullak has that nostalgic feel to it. T...
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SCAM 1992 (2020) : Review

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Scam 1992(2020) directed by Hansal Mehta  Cast: Pratik Gandhi, Rajat Kapoor, Satish Kaushik, Ananth Mahadevan, Shreya Dhanwantari, Shadaab Khan, Nikhil Dwivedi, Mamik Harmeet, K K Raina, Lalit Parimoo, and others.  Ten episodes long , averaging 52 minutes each episode, what would be your reaction at the end? Exhausted? Not in this case. It’s a fulfilling experience to relish these longish episodes and feel hungry for more after it ends. By far the most perfect web series made in India.  Adapted from the book “The Scam” authored by renowned journalist Sucheta Dalal, it’s a biographical account of one of the most intriguing and influential personalities in the history of Indian financial scams, Harshad Mehta! Chronicling his rise from a chawl to high rise Bombay lifestyle, it showcases the intricate details of how he as a common man with an uncommon grit and intellectual manipulated the stock market in the 80s and early 90s leading to the expose of the infamous scam 1992....
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE 2(2020): review

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Directed by- Rohan Sippy  Cast- Pankaj Tripathy, Kirti Kulhari, Ashish Vidyarthi, Deepti Naval, Mita Vasishtha, Anupriya Goenka, Pankaj Saraswat, Shilpa Shukla, Vibhawari Deshpande, Kalyani Mulay, & others  Currently streaming on Disney hotstar, the second season of criminal justice just about manages to pass muster, comparatively season one was a little more thrilling.  The premise is that of an alleged cold blooded murder. A high profile lawyer is found brutally stabbed in his bedroom, the prime suspect being his psychologically depressed wife. A courtroom drama ensues revealing dirty, dark secrets of the window dressed posh lifestyles of the wealthy and famous. Is the accused acting depressed? What exactly happened that fateful night? Defense lawyers (Tripathy and Goenka) try their sincere best to expose the bitter truth.  Sippy is in fine form in his direction, if this was meant to be only a courtroom drama then he gets brownie points but considering it’s an...
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