Bachchan Paandey, Review: Gangsters are best played by real-life gangsters Why would you choose a name like Bachchan Pandey, unless you thought you could cash-in on the franchises called Amitabh Bachchan (name of a real life actor) and Chulbul Pandey (name of a reel-life character, played in several movies by Salman Khan)? Point is, does a superstar himself, like Akshay Kumar, who plays the title role, need these props? Leaving the Paandey behind, ‘Bachchan’ is made to speak some ...

IFFI 50: Maker Madhur Bhandarkar’s Master Class on social perspective Thursday, 21st November, 2019, morning, saw many a film buff heading for the Masterclass on Master’s Social Perspective, held with  National Award winner and Padma Shri (civilian honour) Awardee Madhur Bhandarkar, and moderated by well know film trade analyst and critic, Taran Adarsh. The session started with the felicitation of Madhur Bhandarkar and Taran Adarsh, by Satyendra Prakash, Director General, Bu...

Poster Boys, Review by Siraj Syed: The Half Monty Actor Shreyas Talpade’s directorial debut vehicle Poster Boys is a remake of his Marathi hit, Poshter Boyz. It also carries an elaborate scene towards the climax which reminds you of the British cult movie, The Full Monty (1997), wherein three unemployed men decide to strip on stage to earn some much needed money. Well, an Indian movie has a chance and a half of pulling off such show of skin on screen, either sex, so they decided to meet...

The Legend of Michael Mishra, Review: Legender Bender, alias What a Choke! A joke I read as a teenager went like this: After consulting doctor after doctor for two years, a man was unable to find a cure for his eyes popping out and a growing choking feeling. When it became so bad that he was unable to breathe properly, he thought the end was near, and decided to live it up during his last days on earth. So, he went to a tailor to get a new shirt and suit stitched. The tailor took a tape and s...