Dhadak, Review: Kiss kiss kill kill A noun form of the verb dhadakna, which means ‘beating of the heart’, Dhadak re-introduces us to Ishan Khattar and gives us the much-awaited first look at Jahnvi Kapoor. Both have acting parentage, and that comes with a lot of weight. In the first half of the film, the two succeed in captivating the audience with their sheer freshness and electrical chemistry. Then, sadly, formulae and tropism take over, the pulsation of early dhadaks get blocke...

Five-film package of Iran in Mumbai Bleeding Heart (Delkhoon) was the first film to be screened in the festival comprising five Iranian films. The festival is being organised by Culture House of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mumbai, and the Federation of Film Societies of India, Maharashtra, at Ravindra Mini Theatre, until January 26, 2018. I could not make it to this film but caught up with the second film, Hello Mumbai (Salaam Mumbai), shown on 23rd January. As the name gives away, this is...

IFFI Goa 2017, VIII: Message of Sunit Tandon, Festival Director In the run-up to the International Film Festival of India, Panaji, Goa, November 20-28, I continue to monitor the news and developments. Here’s one link I found: http://iffigoa.org/indian-cinema-catalogue-2017/ At the bottom is a button called Download. When you click on it, you get: Sorry! Page not Found Back To Home However, on the second link, found right next to the above link, http://iffigoa.org/international-cin...

IFFI Goa 2017, V: Majidi’s Made in India ‘Beyond the Clouds’ is opening film Oscar-nominated Iranian director Majid Majidi (Children of Heaven, The Colour of Paradise) a favourite among Indian cine-buffs, will show his Made in India film at the 48th. International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa. It will be the opening film, also marking its Indian première, on 20 November. Malavika Mohanan stars in the film, which marks the debut of Ishaan Khatter. This was confir...

Siraj Syed interviews young film-maker Pratik Rajen Kothari *How many films have you made since your student days and what/who made it possible to make them? I have made three short films plus co-directed one before Hell O Hello. I also made some music videos. Almost all of these are zero/extremely low budget. At the start, people who are instrumental in making it possible are your like-minded friends. I have a very co-operative core team, without whom, I just wouldn't have had the coura...

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...

 Monday, July 30------- With Iran very much in the news in the United States these days (mostly negative), it is a kind of act of artistic defiance for courageous film distributors to bring to the American public another view of the "axis of evil". Those in the know have long realized that Iranian cinema is among the most poetic, visually magnificent and humanistic.....a far cry from the way most Americans are taught to think of the country and its citizens. A new addition to the rost...