Revisiting Ray

The modern retelling of legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s short stories in Netflix’s Ray is lost in translation, but shines in parts There’s no two ways about it that it takes an immensely talented individual to create a masterpiece. But to deconstruct a “master’s piece” and present it to the audience in a different time period, […]

“I’m glad filmmakers now visualise Sikh actors in realistic space and time”

Actor-director Kuljeet Singh opens up about the changing landscape of Indian cinema, from the perspective of its depiction of Sikh characters in films   Kuljeet Singh, a Delhi-based theatre actor-director, finds himself at the forefront of a dramatic shift in the depiction of Sikh characters in Indian films and series. Having personally fought the insensitive […]

A tale of two tigresses

Sherni documents the man vs wild conflict, and is also a metaphor for the deep-rooted patriarchy in society A man mimics a tiger – in the opening shot of Sherni. The so-called “social animal”, as we humans are often referred to, seems to take the role of the “wild animals.” In this man vs wild […]

Characters out of the closet

This Pride Month, let’s take a look at some of the best queer characters that Bollywood has given us in the last two years From an urban man who boldly explores his sexuality to an alpha male whose orientation is one big secret – here’s how some Bollywood characters belonging to the LGBTQ characters in […]

“My character in Sherni has interesting layers”

Actor Mukul Chadda opens up about his upcoming ventures From an investment banker in New York, to a Bollywood actor – Mukul Chadda’s journey into the film world has been as intriguing as the characters he portrays on-screen. Best known for playing the lead role of Jagdeep Chaddha in the Indian edition of the international hit […]

Meet five young filmmakers who are tweaking the conventions of cinema

Neeraj Ghaywan, Nachiket Samant, Ashish Aryan, Chaitanya Tamhane and Apurva Dhar Badgaiyann are making films that push us out of our comfort zones Neeraj Ghaywan Neeraj Ghaywan is an emerging modern master of independent and pathbreaking cinema, the multiple award-winning director of the critically acclaimed ‘Masaan.’ Having assisted filmmaker Anurag Kashyap on ‘Gangs of Wasseypur,’ […]

Bollywood vs Patriarchy

Be it countering patriarchy, breaking taboos and gender norms – some recent Hindi films have boldly taken these on, and rightly so Since time immemorial, women have been seen playing the role of damsel in distress in Bollywood films. And men, their knight in shining armour. This was the set formula which films followed. Women […]

Conventional, No More

Here’s taking a look at five characters that redefined women in Bollywood films in the recent times The conventional Bollywood “heroine” were often one-dimensional, impossibly perfect and confined to song and dance routines. A few films in the recent past have however challenged these notions yet again on the big screen as well as on […]