The movie - Midnight's Children (2013) by Deepa Mehta is based on the novel of Salman Rushdie (by the same name) which uncovers postcolonial experience of a few characters. What intrigued me as a viewer was the narrative style which was a conglomeration of chronological political sequences, magic realism, vivid characters and tumultuous course of life. Time has played a crucial role in the narrative of the movie (as all the lead characters were born on the midnight of 15th Aug, 1947) and as the calendar of the movie progresses the post colonial political episodes like- freedom of India, Partition and Emergency period are aesthetically disclosed in subtle and satirical manner that amplify the thrill quotient for the viewer besides giving them an insight into historical times.
Parvati, the female lead who's a magician in the movie and knows witchcraft is the companion of Saleem and Shiva; is one of the midnight's children that Saleem imagines with his powers. Yes! magic and surreal fantasy is seamlessly woven into the rich plot and you have to watch it how magic takes over your mind.Her zealous and vibrant character manifest her love for freedom and sensual desire.
On the contrary front, there is Saleem brushed with marks of thousands of Midnight's children like him who were born with him and whom he visualises in his dreams, who have a pre-decided destination towards struggle to survive. On a whole, Midnight's children is a brainchild of Saleem and resonates the midnight children’s stories and their dispensation in a disturbed socio-political and cultural milieu where power decides for the people

If you haven’t seen an edgy suspense story for a long while then be ready to savour the taste of Chutney- a 17 min critically acclaimed short film by Jyoti Kapur Das which is performed by a great ensemble cast with not so meaty but yet eerily spicy roles. How a grotesque act of murder is unfolded through an agrarian Indian paste - Chutney which is used as a metaphor to convey revenge is very spine chilling!
Tisca Chopra as a timid, seemingly naive and a domesticated wife( Vanita) will leave you in splits with her fear-invoking storytelling of Chutney. Her under confident demeanour in the beginning visible through her meek presence at the Model Town garden party could rarely make us think of how dubious she could be from inside. On finding his husband’s affair with flam buoyant and flirtatious young married woman (Rasika) she instantly decides to seek vengeance in her own strangely unique style by inviting Rasika over a cup of tea to chit-chat over Pakoras and Chutney. The plot explicitly brings out key themes like betrayal in marriage, infidelity, insecurity and subtle way of taking revenge.
The viewer can see the status quo and power relation between Anita and Rasika changing by the end of the conversation. The bold and beautiful Rasika who was enjoying the Pakoras remains wide eyed-pale faced and totally frightened to hear the Chutney’s shady back-story which directly relates to the heinous murder of which feeble and shy looking Anita and her husband were a part of. Tisca’s covert screen presence is very transcending and keep intact the suspense element till the end. The most appreciable element is that the face of the protagonist (Vanita) is the prologue and if you have succeeded in reading it correctly then you are going to get what’s in the plot before you reach the edgy climax. A true suspense thriller indeed!

Girl in the city is a short crisp web series that centres around a young ambitious Meera Sehgal, a small town Dehradun girl with big dreams to be chased in the perfect city - Mumbai. The thirteen episode web series has two seasons that revolve around how a girl enters Mumbai as an outsider to pursue her ambitious fashion internship and lately a job at a leading brand but guess what? Mumbai being Mumbai and life being life has to offer her with her share of dilemmas, risks, opportunities, hectic work, parental pressure, anxieties, annoying bosses and lastly twisted love angles in relationships. Mithila Palkar, being the internet sensation with her super adorable chirpy persona steals our heart with her engaging performance as Meera Sehgal. Rajat Barmecha as the friendzoned roommate who ultimately confesses his love for Meera adds to a good romantic chemistry in season 1 and has a sizeable role in the second season too but by this time both Meera and he have met their real mates- Meera’s bosses!
Preethika Chawla as Areem - the high class –rich spoilt brat who feels an emotional cavity due to his brother’s prioritising business over her and Karanvir Sharma as a mature, overburdened yet a dotting brother seem to repel one another and often enter into arguments. As rich and orphan brother-sister duo , they have their own set of challenges and mood swings that affects their huge fashion franchise- House of Areem. Here’s when Meera steps to rescue the firm by making some hard choices and compromises that ultimately pay off well with her official launch as a designer! What is really sentimentally touching is the practical portrayal of situations and relations. Meera’s protective and supportive parents with progressive thoughts assures a viewer that everything is going to be fine and though standing at the crossroads of her professional life, Meera would find a way out being blessed with such caring family and friends. The content driven web series is worth a watch and much relatable if you have had those moments of self-realization as a growing adult who has begun to understand individuality.

Children of heaven by Majid Majidi is one of the most critically acclaimed films of Iranian Cinema that brings to focus a tale full of hardships yet happiness, little joys in simple endeavours, playfulness and innocence of two poverty stricken children living in South Tehran. The viewer who loves simple yet realistic cinema would be blown away by the commendable acting( performed mostly by child actors) that uplifts the beauty of the theme of happiness despite of living in underprivileged conditions.
How a universally appealing theme like – ‘losing a pair of shoes’ can unwrap the loving bond and adventures of a brother and his sister are worth a waych. Ali a 10 year old boy is given the responsibility to get her sister Zahra’s shoes mended but eventually he loses them and fears telling this to his parents as he is well aware to their financially bad condition. Same sensibility and maturity is shown by little( 6 year old) Zahra’s character who, though cries but agrees never to tell this to the parents. What follows is an alternative plan where the duo manages to wear Ali’s pair of shoes to their schools where Zahra in those big size torn apart shoes has to reach home hurriedly in afternoon only to let her brother wear them in the afternoon school. This along with many other moments in the movie like Ali winning a gold pen from his master for being a studious and hardworking student, gives it to his sister only to see her smiling, is very empathising from viewers lens. Perseverance and team work depicted by the brother and sister not only vocalises their daily struggle but also their ability to make ends meet without bugging their already ill and burdened parents. The uniqueness of this film is that it does not have manufactured entertainment in the form of superficial heroes, Dinasaurs, Avengers or high-voltage action but teach the young generation about moral values, team spirit and deeper understanding of relationships which are same even across the border. Want to know what happens to the pair of shoes? Oh you better watch this promising Oscar nominated movie.

If you are a lover of Shyam Benegal’s emotionally crafted cinema then Zubaida is made for you. As depicted in most of Benegal’s movies, his characters are flawed and possess shades of grey that make them interesting. Zubaida, played by Karishma Kapoor is no exception. She is portrayed like a flawed princess who is betoned with childilike yet rebellious streak. Highly aspirational and free spirited Zubaida, in every phase of her life faces restrictions imposed by the patriarchal society and traditional customary practices which make her desire for freedom and love more strong leading to a fatal end.
Karishma Kapoor steals the show through her expressive performance, daring disposition and adamant wilfulness. Sometimes she garners sympathy from the viewer like when she wants to become an actress but her dreams are crushed by her muslim hardliner father portrayed by Ambrish Puri who himself is a filmmaker. His father portrays the epitome of patriarchy when he forcibly makes Zubaida marry a groom of his choice( just to strengthen the business relations) where this marriage finally leads to divorce ( when the groom reluctantly leaves her and their son Rizu to move to Pakistan abiding by his father’s wishes).But since Zubaida herself is a character of many shades and emotions so she is the last one to accept the ill-fate and gets lured by the Maharaja of Fatehpur- Vijayendra Singh (Manoj Bajpayee) who marries her and takes her off to his royal palace where Zubaida meets his first wife Mandira Devi and their two childrens. This is where the emotional termoil is accentuated where Zubaida has a relationship of affection and jealousy with Mandira ( portrayed by Rekha as a demure, mature and mysteriously pacifying lady).Zubaida feels outcasted not just by the inter- caste and religion marriage but also by the conjugal love of Maharaja with his first wife and out of her insecurity takes an eerily mysterious step that makes the viewer ponder upon the climax where the Maharaja and Zubaida meet in afterlife as according to her philosophy of re-union.
The movie is in an investigative journalism format where the anecdotes of the life of Zubaida are uncovered by his adult son Riyaz played by Rajit Kapoor who meets every single person who have known his mother personally and professionally.
What is to die for in the movie is A.R Rehman’s music, Lata Mangeshkar’s voice and Jawed Akhta’s lyrics. Songs like ‘Kho Gaye Hein’ setting in a deep and melancholic tone in all sad scenes while a lively dash of ‘Banjara dance version’ in song ‘Mei Albeli’ complemented by stunningly expressive performance of Karishma Kapoor is extremely soul-stirring.
The characteristically traditional and historical nuances can be seen well in the movie where the plot touches the mores and milieu of post independence period, status of Muslims in dominantly Hindu society and takeover of power by democratic system.
Overall, the movie is high on emotions and less on actions or physical stunts that dominate today’s mainstream.