Blogs
Qaidi Band: An over-the-top mission
Cast: Anya Singh, Sachin Pilgaonkar, Prince Parvinder Singh, Aadar Jain Rated: 4/10 YRF gets ambitious here in bringing in an issue-based
Read moreLove bites from Dak bungalows, trains & machans
Nothing like reviving a lost cuisine and Anglo-Indian food is distinctly yours to relish The romance of food revival stories
Read moreA Gentleman: Slick & thrilling popcorn film
Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Jacqueline Fernandez, Darshan Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Kushal Punjabi, Hussain Dalal, Supriya Pilgaonkar, Rajit Kapur Rated: 6/10 A
Read moreBabumoshai Bandookbaaz: Violent without purpose
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami, Shraddha Das, Divya Dutta Rated: 2/10 I kill, you kill, we all kill
Read moreThe Hitman’s Bodyguard: Jackson fans go for it
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L Jackson, Gary Oldman, Salma Hayek, Élodie Yung, Joaquim de Almeida, Kirsty Mitchell Rated: 5/10 A heebie-jeebie kind
Read moreThe Dark Tower: It’s evil but un-happening
Cast: Idris Elba, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Taylor, Claudia Kim, Fran Kranz, Abbey Lee, Jackie Earle Haley Rated: 3/10 Stephen King will
Read moreSniff – Fails to sniff the pulse
Cast: Khushmeet Gill, Manmeet Singh, Surekha Sikri, Sushmita Mukherjee Rated: 4/10 Children’s film is still a genre in need of
Read moreFeminists Anonymous
The new brand of feminism is cleverly inclusive, subtle but decisive. It is a way of life with the young
Read moreBareilly Ki Barfi: Soft & sweet like a barfi
Cast: Kriti Sanon, Rajkummar Rao, Ayushmann Khurrana, Pankaj Tripathi, Seema Pahwa Rated: 7.5/10 Just like a good barfi, this film is soft, sweet
Read moreAnnabelle: Creation — Not too scary a creation
Cast: Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, Anthony LaPaglia, Miranda Otto Rated: 5/10 Well, dolls will be dolls — scaring the hell
Read moreToilet: Ek Prem Katha — Swachch toilet humour
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Bhumi Pednekar, Anupam Kher, Divyendu Sharma, Sana Khan Rated: 8/10 Earthy, real, contemporary and fun — Akshay Kumar
Read moreAtomic Blonde — Charlize sizzles here
Cast: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, John Goodman Rated: 6/10 The blonde is truly blonde — and truly atomic, more so as
Read moreThe Emoji Movie
Cast: TJ Miller, James Corden, Anna Faris, Maya Rudolph, Steven Wright, Jennifer Coolidge, Christina Aguilera Rated: 5/10 Full marks for
Read moreTime to build up on the euphoria: Mitali Raj
Mithali Raj. India Captain. Women’s Cricket. That’s the proud identity the game has given me, the 31-year-old skipper tells MEENAKSHI RAO in
Read moreArrowtown: Gold all yours to sift from this river
MEENAKSHI RAO sifts real 24 carat gold from a Kiwi river after an exhilarating drive up the second most dangerous road
Read moreJab Harry met Sejal: Love, fun & humour SRK style
Cast : Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma, Sayani Gupta, Evelyn Sharma, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Aru Krishansh Verma, Paras Arora Rated: 7/10
Read moreGurgaon: A real, dark and edgy film
Cast: Akshay Oberoi, Pankaj Tripathy, Ragini Khanna Rated: 6/10 This edgy, slow thriller is a reality bite on the life and
Read moreHowzzat for fair share?
Our girls in cricket have the passion, power, and perseverance. All they need now is honing and hand-holding out of
Read moreMubarakan: Congrats for a rollicking comdey
Cast: Anil Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Ileana D’Cruz, Athiya Shetty, Neha Sharma Rate : 8/10 It’s a rollicking, largely Punjabi, comedy which comes
Read moreBerlin Syndrome: Usual with an unusual twist
Cast: Teresa Palmer, Max Riemelt Rated: 6/10 Hollywood has had many episodes of predator-prey, naive girl held-hostage stories but Berlin Syndrome
Read moreValerian & the City of a Thousand Planets
Cast: Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevingne, Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, Kris Wu, Rutger Hauer Rated: 5/10 Director Luc Besson
Read moreLocal is the new sold-out
Staycations have grown into a distinct segment over the past couple of years and local hotels have been cashing in
Read moreLipstick Under My Burkha: Powerful movie of the week
Cast: Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak, Aahana Kumra, Plabita Borthakur, Sushant Singh, Vaibhav Tatwawaadi Rated: 8/10 Lipstick Under My Burqa is meant
Read moreDunkirk: Long & tedious war
Cast: Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jack Lowden, Harry Styles, Aneurin Barnard, James D’Arcy Rated: 4/10 War films have been Hollywood’s staple forever.
Read moreMunna Michael: Dance to fore, nothing else
Cast: Tiger Shroff, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Nidhhi Agerwal Rated: 5.5/10 Legend Michael Jackson would have given his life to get the 16-pack abs
Read moreThe Black Prince: A sad but true tale
Cast: Jason Flemyng, Amanda Root, Shabana Azmi, Kavi Raz, Satinder Sartaaj Rated: 6/10 The Black Prince is the no punches spared film on
Read moreJagga Jasoos: A differently-enabled stunner
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Sayani Gupta Rated: 8/10 It took three-and-a-half years in the making, tided over the real life
Read moreWar for the Planet of the Apes: Slow drama of the Apes
Cast: Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn Rated: 7/10 For war junkies, blood-enthusiasts and thrill-kill punks, these apes ain’t doing all of
Read moreMom: Compelling, on-edge drama
Cast: Sridevi, Adnan Siddiqui, Sajal Ali, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Akshaye Khanna Rated: 8.5/10 It is a difficult venture to knit a racy
Read more‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’: Casts a web around you
Cast: Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Jon Favreau, Zendaya, Donald Glover, Tyne Daly, Marisa Tomei, Robert Downey Jr. Rated: 8/10 For now,
Read moreGuest in London: One big fart
Cast: Paresh Rawal, Kartik Aaryan, Tanvi Azmi, Kriti Kharbanda Rated: 4/10 Just because it is Paresh Rawal and Tanvi Azmi
Read moreTransformers: The Last Knight — Metal pumpers are here again
Transformers: The Last Knight Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Josh Duhamel, Stanley Tucci, Anthony Hopkins Rated: 6.5/10 Here comes a high-octane, iron cluttered
Read moreBaby Driver: A bad drive
Cast: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jon Bernthal, Eiza González, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx Rated: 4/10 This seems to be the
Read moreTubelight: This tubelight is fused
*ing: Salman Khan, Sohail Khan, Zhu Zhu, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Om Puri, Shah Rukh Khan Rated: 4/10 It’s unfortunate and
Read moreGloom in cricket, bloom in hockey
Pakistan, fearless with the bat and fearsome with the ball, gave India its most painful bleed in cricket at the
Read moreBank Chor: Ritesh in blunderland
Cast: Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Rhea Chakraborty, Bhuvan Arora, Sahil Vaid, Vikram Thapa Rated: 2/10 Bank Chor is like that upside
Read moreDespicable Me 3: Fun, frolic & laughter
Star voiceovers: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Trey Parker Rated: 3/10 A perfect holiday movie for kids and accompanying parents too,
Read moreWonder Woman: It is a captivating action thriller
Cast: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Danny Huston, David Thewlis, Connie Nielsen, Elena Anaya Rated: 8.5/10 In the entirely
Read moreA Death in the Gunj: Different but slow
Cast: Vikrant Massey, Tillotama Shome, Gulshan Devaiah, Om Puri, Kalki Koechlin, Ranvir Shorey, Tanuja, Jim Sarbh Rated: 5/10 Death in
Read moreHanuman Da Damdaar: Humour yes, Animation no
Star voiceovers: Salman Khan, Javed Akhtar, Raveena Tandon, Vinay Pathak, Makrand Deshpande, Saurabh Shukla, Chunky Pandey, Kunal Khemu Rated: 5/10
Read moreBaywatch: Naa, that’s not what we wanted
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron, Priyanka Chopra, Alexandra Daddario, David Hasselhoff, Cody Martin Rated: 4/10 Wasn’t Baywatch always about certain portions of the
Read moreSachin Tendulkar: The humble legend
Sachin Tendulkar has inspired generations with his acumen, determination, and humility — traits that carve legends out of stars. MEENAKSHI RAO explores
Read moreMt Cook: An Icy recession
Glacial recession may be a worldwide phenomenon but New Zealand’s ice retreats are the fastest and thus most alarming. MEENAKSHI RAO reports
Read moreStand-up Stands out: Stand-up comedy is on fire
Stand-up comedy is on fire, spiralling up the ladder to fill the gaping hole in India’s live entertainment sector. MEENAKSHI RAO takes
Read moreHalf Girlfriend: Everything here is half
Cast: Arjun Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Rhea Chakraborty Rated: 3/10 Half Girlfriend is as pathetic as the face of Bill Gates shown in the
Read moreHindi Medium: A delightful mirror to society
Cast: Irrfan, Saba Qamar, Deepak Dobriyal, Dishita Sehgal Rated: 8/10 Hindi Medium is cutting edge axe that falls on our pretentious
Read moreThe Sense of An Ending: Slow emotional journey
Cast: Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling Rated: 4.5/10 Two reasons to see this slow and steady, old world winner: First, the film
Read moreSarkar 3: A tires Nagre and RGV
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Manoj Bajpayee, Amit Sadh, Yami Gautam, Ronit Roy Rated: 5/10 You are almost scared that
Read moreMeri Pyaari Bindu: Much too sweet, oh-so sticky
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Parineeti Chopra Rated: 4/10 Some relationships are not meant to be. Some films, too, are not meant
Read moreMt. Cook: A night in shining armour
MEENAKSHI RAO goes stargazing in one of the 11 dark sky reserves in the world at Mt Cook National Park &
Read moreKing Arthur: Legend of the Sword : Arthurian myth gone wrong
Cast : Charlie Hunnam, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Jude Law Rated: 4/10 Big, medieval, fantasy, historical, mystical, drama. Call it what you must
Read moreAlien: Covenant: Nothing out of nowhere
Cast : Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir Rated: 3/10 It seems this horror film outer space
Read moreGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Reckless, chaotic and very GOTG
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell Rated: 6.5/10 For followers, this one is as much a
Read moreBahubali: Why? And How!
MEENAKSHI RAO discusses why the Bahubali saga is such a big deal for Indian cinema I know it’s pretty unrelated but
Read moreBahubali – The Conclusion: The Raymond film from hitech India
The bigness of the film, and director SS Rajamouli’s mastery of cinema, can be gauged from the fact that Bahubali-The Conclusion as
Read moreSmurfs: The Lost Village
Cast (voiceovers): Demi Lovato, Rainn Wilson, Joe Manganiello, Jack McBrayer, Danny Pudi, Michelle Rodriguez, Ellie Kemper, Ariel Winter, Meghan Trainor, Jake
Read moreSonata: Slow & unsteady
Cast : Aparna Sen, Shabana Azmi, Lillete Dubey Rated: 4/10 Shabana is great, Aparna Sen muted and Lillete much too bubbly under
Read moreThe Zookeeper’s Wife: A movie not to be missed
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Johan Heldenbergh, Michael McElhatton, Daniel Brühl Rated: 8/10 Holocaust stories from Hollywood have been quite a draw. Be
Read moreNoor: Slim Sonakshi, slimmer film
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Kanan Gill, Shibani Dandekar, Purab Kohli, Sunny Leone Rated: 5/10 So what’s the one and only guiding
Read moreMaatr: Rape drama lacking teeth
Cast: Raveena Tandon, Alisha Khan, Madhur Mittal, Divya Jagdale, Anurag Arora, Rushad Rana, Saleem Khan, Shalee Goel Rated: 4/10 Gangrape is a
Read more‘I want to make a film on a Kerala family’
Renowned British filmmaker MCaillister talks to MEENAKSHI RAO about his much acclaimed documentary A Syrian Love Story which documents the
Read moreNaam Shabana: Fim lets Taapsee down
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Akshay Kumar, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Manoj Bajpayee, Anupam Kher Rated: 5/10 An aspiring Baby 2, Naam Shabana takes too much time
Read morePower Rangers: Action flows in late
Cast: Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Becky G, Ludi Lin Rated: 5/10 More like the making of the power rangers, this
Read moreA Dog’s Purpose: Cool canine caper
Cast: Dennis Quaid, Britt Robertson, Josh Gad, KJ Apa Rated: 6.5/10 For dog lovers, an Oh-My-God kind of a film. For others,
Read moreAnarkali of Arrah: Swara and movie both fiesty
Cast: Swara Bhaskar, Sanjay Mishra, Pankaj Tripathi Rated: 8/10 This is the film of the week — raunchy but not
Read morePhillauri: Ghost of a film
Cast: Anushka Sharma, Diljit Dosanjh, Suraj Sharma, Mehreen Pirzada Rated: 6/10 It is a beautiful film with a lot of heart.
Read moreLife: There’s life after half hour
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare, Olga Dihovichnaya Rated: 7/10 This slow starter seems to
Read moreTrapped: Different but predictable
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Geetanjali Thapa Rated: 5/10 To carry a two-hour movie as an edgy thriller from an inaccessible two-room 37th storey
Read moreBeauty and the Beast: lovely fairytale to be with
Cast: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, Josh Gad, Ewan McGregor, Emma Thompson Rated: 7/10 It’s a much feted fairytale
Read moreMachine: No Baazigar, this
Cast: Mustafa Burmawalla, Kiara Advani Rated: 3/10 Let’s admit it. Abbas-Mustan, an era in themselves, have finally become prisoners of their
Read moreThe Ibnii: Evergreen tourism
Eco-tourism is a young but fastest growing concept in India even as environmentalists mull its efficacy to conserve Nature and
Read moreFor Sebastian, home is where nature is
Sebastian Perumpullikadan, a shipping tycoon from Dubai, came into the hospitality industry quite by accident. But his love for Nature
Read moreKong: Skull Island: Big & beautiful
Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L Jackson, John Goodman, Brie Larson, Jing Tian, Toby Kebbell, John Ortiz, Corey Hawkins Rated: 7/10
Read moreBadrinath Ki Dulhania : Fun, Frolic, & Romance
Cast: Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Gauahar Khan, Mohit Marwah, Aakanksha Singh Rated: 7/10 Jhansi meets Kota in a bubble of
Read moreJackie: Slow but compelling
Cast: Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig Rated: 8/10 Miles away from America and its 1960s, India still knows the John F
Read moreLion: An amazing tale told well
Cast: Dev Patel, Rooney Mara, David Wenham and Nicole Kidman Rated: 7/10 The film ends with the adopted mother coming all the
Read moreRangoon: All’s fair in love & war
Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor, Kangana Ranaut Rated: 6/10 Rangoon, the name itself conjures up a compelling nostalgia that director Vishal
Read moreSilence: A Scorsese Masterpiece
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Tadanobu Asano, Ciarán Hinds, Liam Neeson Rated: 6/10 It’s a masterpiece on religion. It is a thinking
Read moreMoonlight: Life’s not black & white
Cast: Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Janelle Monáe, Ashton Sanders, Jharrel Jerome, Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali Rated: 6/10 This introvert movie
Read moreJohn Wick 2: Blood, blood & more blood
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Common, Laurence Fishburne, Riccardo Scamarcio, Ruby Rose, John Leguizamo, Ian McShane Rated: 5/10 The big star is here but
Read moreHidden Figures
Cast: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons Rated: 7/10 This gentle but little known Afro-American
Read moreResident Evil: The Final Chapter
Cast: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Shawn Roberts, Ruby Rose, Eoin Macken Rated: 6/10 This is the sixth one in the series
Read moreThe Space Between Us
Cast: Gary Oldman, Asa Butterfield, Carla Gugino, Britt Robertson Rated: 5/10 It’s been quite some Valentine seasons that no good romance from
Read moreRings: In the ring of evil
Cast: Matilda Lutz, Alex Roe, Johnny Galecki, Vincent D’Onofrio, Aimee Teegarden, Bonnie Morgan Rated: 5/10 The horror flag of this
Read moreJolly LLB 2: A jolly good film
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Annu Kapoor, Huma Qureshi, Saurabh Shukla Rated: 8/10 Jolly LLB 2 is a crackling, near perfect, all-in-place rarity.
Read moreDubai Parks and Resorts: Park & ride
Dizzying aerial swoops with Krrish, digital puzzle busting with Ra.One, shooting Gabbar baddies and playing cricket with Aamir — all
Read moreThe Great Dane
He knew nothing about Indian cinema, had never visited India and was not even remotely associated with any kind of
Read moreIt takes food to tango
Chef’s tables are a high-end trend that’s picking up in the Capital, more so with celebrity chefs like Vivek Singh
Read moreThe Crew: Racy but only after half hour
CAST: Vladimir Mashkov, Danila Kozlovsky, Agne Grudyte, Katerina Shpitsa RATED: 6/10 For an edgy drama around an aerial thriller and a
Read moreThis year you will know why Katappa killed Bahubali
No Amir Khan this year, SRK strutting the screen more in anger than romance, Salman turning Tubelight before roaring as
Read more2016: LADLI YEAR IN SPORTS
Here’s reliving the year gone by from the tracks, badminton stadia, rowing stations, and wrestling mats where history was made
Read moreFirst Family of Woman Wrestling
The Phogat sisters, all six of them, and their father Mahavir, will go down in the annals of sporting history
Read moreDangal: Dhaakad hai, Dhaakad hai
Cast : Aamir Khan, Sakshi Tanwar, Fatima Sana Sheikh, Sanya Malhotra, Zaira Wasim, Suhani Bhatnagar Rated : 9/10 When Geeta Phogat won
Read moreThe Christmas platter
It’s Christmas end of the year & time for yuletides, mistletoes, family supper, being together and joining in the festivities. MEENAKSHI
Read moreBefikre: Love is second hand here
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Vaani Kapoor Rated: 6/10 Production qualities: More than slick, very YRF. Locale: Most romantic in the world, very YRF.
Read moreDeepwater Horizon: Intense drama around reality
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, John Malkovich, Gina Rodriguez, Dylan O’Brien Rated: 6/10 The April 2010 British Petroleum rig fire has
Read moreUnderworld: Blood Wars; Needed so much more
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Theo James, Tobias Menzies, Trent Garrett, Lara Pulver Rated: 4/10 Fifth in the series of wars between blood drinking
Read moreKahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh: Predictability is the killer
Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh Cast : Arjun Rampal, Vidya Balan, Naisha Khanna, Jugal Hansraj Rated: 5/10 Kahaani 2… is not a
Read moreMoana: Fantastic at all levels
Moana Cast voiceovers: Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison, Jemaine Clement Rated: 8/10 There is a reason why this
Read moreDear Zindagi: This has life
Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Alia Bhatt, Kunal Kapoor, Atif Aslam Rated: 6.5/10 Dear Zindagi is undoubtedly the longest therapy session that Bollywood
Read more