TOP 7 FILMS OF 2014

Aside from the films competing for the next crores milestone at the box office, the year 2014 had a few shiny film pearls appear on screen. It is these that make the audience truly vibrate to the emotions evoked by directors, actors and a good story. Here is our pick:

1. THE LUNCHBOX

Director: Ritesh Batra

Cast: Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur, Nawazzudin Siddiqi

The Lunchbox is an Indian film that conquered audiences around the world in 2014. With its high octane casting and a subdued approach to matters of the heart, it carried universal appeal and struck gold at many festivals and amid audiences in India too. One word: Unmissable.

2. HAIDER

Director: Vishal Bhardwaj 

Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Tabu, Kay Kay Menon, Shraddha Kapoor, Irffan Khan

Haider is another one-man exploit, with Vishal Bhardwaj at the front of directing, scripting and producing a new adaptation of a Shakespearian drama. Suffering, insanity, right, wrong and jaw-dropping landscapes are the backdrop of a very well shot and emotionally compelling Haider.

3. QUEEN

Director: Vikas Bahl, 

Cast: Kangna Ranuat, Lisa Haydon

Who does not feel for Rani, an innocent girl from Delhi, when she is shoved aside by a heartless groom? The tale that follows her evolution after heartbreak is empowering and inspirational. Every girl, but also every boy, should make a point to watch this. In the end, it is more than just a chick flick. It is a tribute to human resilience that does not take itself too seriously, therein its timeless charm.

4. ANKHON DEKHI

Director: Rajat Kapoor

Cast: Sanjay Mishra, Namit Das

Aankhon Dekhi honors critical thinking at the same time pinpoints its ridiculous pitfalls. The wise Bauji asks relevant questions and brings change into an otherwise peaceful mini-society, inviting the audience to rethink their existence.

5. FILMISTAAN

Director: Nitin Kakkar Cast: Shabir Ahmed, Inaam Ul Haq

When people who claim to be from fundamentally different backgrounds discover they are in reality much more alike than they would like to think, the setting is right for intelligent comedy. Based on the relationship between Hindi speakers on both sides of the Indo-Pakistani border and their common love for cinema, Filmistaan is an opportunity to embrace that every human being is fundamentally equal. 

6. FINDING FANNY

Director: Homi Adajania Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Deepika Padukone, Pankaj Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Arjun Kapoor

Stolen moments in Goa's off-the-beaten-track locations with one thing in mind: recovering lost love. Homi Adajania's Finding Fanny is a tale of distinctive characters and experiences. The cast, the images, the music result in a journey that is one of a kind.

7. DEDH ISHQIYA

Director: Abhishek Chaubey Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi, Madhuri Dixit, Huma Qureshi

When tight writing as well as a tried and tested mega-talented cast are put together, one can expect the likes of a film such as Dedh Ishqiya despite the fact that most sequels are usually not what garners the most critical acclaim. The film has been ravely reviewed across the board and ingredients such as social critique, action, comedy and romance make it a surefire entertainer.

BHAAG MILKHA BHAAG: A Real-Life Tale of Inspiration

Rakeysh Onprakash Mehra had me conquered with Rang de Basanti and I had been awaiting a new tale that would feature his unique directorial punch. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, a patriotic and epic account of runner Milkha Singh's life, features spot on performances by the cast and a wonderful and highly involved lead performance by actor/director Farhan Akhtar, who trains, sweats, bhangras and romances with all his heart. Prasoon Joshi’s script tell's Milkha Singh’s story through a long series of flashbacks that make the full story materialize at the end of the film.
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SPECIAL 26 Review: Thrill is the Word

A Wednesday was the first Indian film I believe I watched in India and without English subtitles. I still remember a friend translating for me the parts I did not fully understand and feeling how the plot was getting entangled and detangled in my brain. Such a stimulating film had me looking forward to acclaimed director Neeraj Pandey's Special 26 (aka Special Chabbis) and I am glad the waiting is over.

While the director might have been facing nervousness this week before the release, one has to say that a trip to the cinema this weekend to watch it is pretty well worth it!

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EK THA TIGER Review: Romancing Masala

Once upon a time there was Tiger... A Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer... a full-blown masala entertainer... what could rake in more box office success?

Ek Tha Tiger has been the press' favorite phenomenon this week due to its record breaking success figures and most media is likely to praise and recommend it.The film is a Yash Chopra production with Salman Khan as its main man and therefore makes the movie an entire Salman Khan centered affair, with a fresh-as-a-flower looking Katrina Kaif as his befitting love interest.

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GROW UP, BOLLYWOOD GIRLS!

Guest post by Dolce from the Dolce and Namak Talk Indian Movies blog

Dolce (Italian for “sweet”) is an Eastern European movie addict (Indian movies to be precise) who has made Toronto, Canada her home over the past few years. She has an endless infectious enthusiasm for movies, songs, settings, dances, badassness and everything else that makes Indian movies a world of their own. You may visit Dolce's blog by clicking here..
 

One of the biggest disadvantages of having a group of friends where everyone is 3-5 years younger than you is that you're always waiting for people to grow up. You keep making excuses for them and keep saying: they'll grow up when they get a real job, they'll grow up when they find a steady girlfriend/boyfriend, they'll grow up when they move out, etc. And there is some truth to that because that is usually how people learn responsibility and maturity. In fact, on the opposite end, the most telling sign that someone is refusing to grow up is that they will do anything (and I mean ANYthing) to not get a full-time job, or what we call a "real" job.

In a way, Bollywood is like these friends of mine: it keeps refusing to let its heroines (and heroes sometimes) grow up. In real life, if someone is responsible enough to keep a real job and live on their own, we also expect them to be emotionally mature. (Of course that expectation can backfire horribly, but that's for a different day to discuss.) But Bollywood, as I have discovered, doesn't like emotionally mature characters. It follows logically that they cannot have jobs (or if they do they're in the artistic realm), live on their own or make reasonable (read: mature) decisions. So... they don't.

I have already discussed in my blog that a fair percentage of the male characters have become manchildren (without actually getting to the bottom of why that is, but we might get there in this post), so it's only right to now discuss what type of female characters will suit these boys. Not surprisingly: girls! Not women. Girls. Sometimes (not very often, thankfully!) manic pixie dream girls and other times just girls in the process of growing up along with their hero. But girls nonetheless.

Look around at Bollywood movies from the past two decades: how many women can we count and how many girls? And of those women, how many are the heroine? Moreover, how many of those heroines end up with the hero? Three questions, each worth exploring in some detail.

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VICKY DONOR: More than a Find... a Hit!

 

Backed by John Abraham's production and cool promotional video, Vicky Donor surprises by thinking out of the box in all departments: its subject, its excellent acting (Yes! No humongous stars in this one but still lots of bang for your buck!), cute and funny script and last but not least, a pleasant soundtrack. With all this working for the film, there is no going wrong with Shoojit Sircar's comedy.

New Delhi is the setting of Dr Baldev Chaddha's (Annu Kapoor) failing fertility clinic and sperm bank. Dr. Chaddha's problems seem solved when he meets Vicky Arora (Ayushmann Khurrana), a handsome young man who lives with his mother struggling to make ends meet. Dr. Chaddha is convinced that Vicky is the donor who would erase all his sperm bank woes. His duty remains to convince the young man, and once this happens, one wonders what the future love life of Vicky will become.

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DON 2 - THE CHASE CONTINUES: Shah Rukh is Back!

  DON 2: The Chase Continues review by Diana (Italian Cinema Hindi Blog)

Rating: *****

Have you been on holiday and have totally relaxed? Have you been enjoying the seasonal festive banquets, oblivious to whatever is happening in other parts of the world? Or have you returned to normal daily life, becoming absorbed in the same everyday boring duties? 

In case you did not know: THE KING IS BACK. 

Drop it all and take the first plane to Mumbai, London or any other place in the civilized world (Fiji, for example!) And without stopping for food, sleep or even calling your mother to tell her you have landed safely, head to the nearest cinema to watch Don 2: The Chase Continues. You will never be the same again.
 

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BOL Review: Immersed in Lollywood

BOL review by Diana (Italian Cinema Hindi Blog)

Rating: ****

Bol allows us to immerse ourselves in Lollywood (Pakistani cinema has not been spared the suffix borrowed from Hollywood, taking the first letter of the capital city, Lahore, which is the main stageof the Pakistani film industry).

Zainab (Humaima Malik) is in prison, having been convicted of murder. Before she is executed she requests to be able to tell her story. She is the eldest of five daughters of a very modest family in Lahore. Her father, Hakim Sahib (Manzar Sehbai), is the sole breadwinner, whereasthe family's women remain confined within their home without being given the opportunity to study or tobecome independent, thereby becoming a financial burden. When the family finally sees the arrival of a much-desired male heir, the midwife confides in Hakim and reveals that the baby is a hermaphrodite.

A central theme in Bol is sexuality. In a conservative and repressive society, sexuality is seen as a taboo which often results in sexual phobias, morbid, violent or abusive behavior.

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