Openions Blog

You remember those satirical stories in our Hindi textbooks? Lakhnavi Andaaz by Yashpal, George Pancham ki Naak by Kamleshwar, or Do Bailon ki Katha by Premchand. Basically, if Premchand was a  filmmaker, it would be Shoojit Sircar.  The man who directed Vicky Donor (2012), Madras Cafe (2013), Piku (2015), and October (2018), presents a satirical outlook on his interpretation of ‘greed’ and ‘materialism’ ingrained in the Indian minds.  The film is hilarious at many levels, not only in terms of its story and bizarre characters but also, with the use of Lucknowi dialect which makes you laugh on the dialogues as well. Gulabo-Sitabo, the title is inspired from a traditional glove puppet theatre performed in North India. Sitabo is the old, frustrated spouse and Gulabo is the young, cunning one. Both married to the same man. The model fits perfectly onto the characters of the film. Amitabh Bachchan’s character Mirza, who is an old, rude and meanie landlord...

Chintu ka Birthday is a film made with warmth and compassion, and that reflects in every scene of the film. The Story The film is set in Baghdad in 2004, when Saddam Hussain’s reign ended and Iraq was under the control of US Forces. It’s about an Indian family stuck in Iraq in the middle of a war. The story is about a kid named Chintu, all he wants is to have a decent birthday celebration which he has been promised from the past 2-3 years. All things were going as per plan, when out of nowhere their party preparations were interrupted by two US Army men. Chintu’s family, after being heckled by the soldiers, gathered their courage and decided that whatever may happen today, they are gonna celebrate Chintu’s birthday.  Source: Zee5 If you think I’ve spoilt anything for you, no I’ve not. They literally reveal the entire plot in the trailer itself. Because, the plot is not the film’s concern. It’s the experience that will touch your heart. The film makes you think about larger qu...

Bollywood is filled with crappy love-stories and stuff. The majority of mainstream movies are all about romance. See, for example a movie like Love Aaj Kal (2020), or Marjaavan (2019), or even movies that have decent premise: take this film, Mohenjo Daro (2016). A film set in ancient history, showcasing the kind of lifestyle people had during the period of ancient civilisations. And yet, all they could come up in the name of plot was a dumb love-story. Like, after a point, it feels as if the film could have entirely been set up in the present times, and still it wouldn’t have impacted the plot at all. I would go on ranting but coming back to the point. Among all the nonsensical romantic dramas that Bollywood pours onto its audience every year, there are a few that stand out. Here is a list of five masala bollywood romantic movies that you might enjoy watching, or rewatching (if you’ve already seen them). 1.  Band Baaja Baaraat (2010) Source: Film Companion It’s directed by Manees...

Look, filmmaking is a form of storytelling. And hence, the foremost purpose of any movie or web series is simply, to tell stories- Stories that are entertaining, inspiring and compelling. And yes, it would be an unjust accusation upon the writers to say that Paatal Lok sidelined the story or prioritized the messaging, in any way. No. Sudeep Sharma who is the creator of the show, and co-writers Sagar Haveli, Hardik Mehta and Gunjit Chopra have put in great efforts in creating a delicate, detailed, dense and layered world. But one can also not deny that the series defames some of the highest government agencies like The Central Bureau of Investigation or The Delhi Police, by the so-called “exposing” of the miserable corruption these organisations operate with. Source: IMDB What seems an investigative thriller, on the surface, turns out to be a social commentary on the Indian society.  Paatal Lok is based on a critically acclaimed novel The Story of My Assassins by Tarun Tejpal. For ...

Two days back, Joe Russo , the co-producer at the film Extraction, made an announcement stating that they are putting pieces together to take forward the life of the black ops mercenary, Tyler, played by Chris Hemsworth. Extraction Poster (Source: Netflix) Why? Just why man? I mean, can there be anything more saddening? The producers whom you love for the kind of masterpieces they pulled off with Endgame and Infinity War . The director who has previously worked as the action-director at several of Russo Brothers ’ films like Civil War & Endgame. The lead actor whom you love the role of the amazing Thor that he has played in the MCU. And what you see them doing? Trying to build a franchise and make money off of a movie that had no substance to it apart from the action which yes, feels fabulous initially but soon just gets too tedious beyond a point. Joe and Anthony Russo (Source: Google) Man, I know the movie stars some really talented actors, not only from Hollywood like Chris H...

Gone are the days when you had to wait for (what seemed like) ages in the hallways of your school/college and wait for your crush to come out of her class so you could nervously ask her out to a cup of coffee-and make a stuttering, squeaking fool of yourself. These days, a simple “coffee cup” emoji and a question mark will suffice. Communication through symbols has been around for ages, and the arrival of modern communication technology has put a refreshing new twist in its. Although the picture-like emoji system is fairly new to the world, it would be unfair to not learn about its humble keyboard-based predecessor-the emoticon.    The first widely accepted and documented use of an emoticon was by American computer scientist Scott. E. Fahlman on September 18 th , 1982 when he said on an online message board that “:-)” could denote a humorous post while “:-(” could denote a serious one. This seemed to click with the users of the message board, who soon spread it wi...