Few years back when movie reviews were a thing on social media, I had written these short movie reviews for the below three movies. Now that I have my own pop culture website, why not publish them here as well. So here is Whims and Quirks with a new segment called Diet Movie Reviews and the very first edition will feature three of my most favorite movies listed below.
Dil Dhadakne Do (2015)
Director – Zoya Akhtar
Cast – Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shah, Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh, Anushka Sharma, Farhan Akhtar, Rahul Bose, Zarina Wahab, Vikrant Massey, Manoj Pahwa, Ridhima Sud, Parmeet Sethi, Dolly Minhas, Divya Seth, Vandana Sajani
Dil Dhadakne Do is so close to reality that it can make people uncomfortable. The flawed and layered characters, the subtle humor, the chemistry among the entire cast, the superb acting makes the movie a delight. Kudos to the writers for being so accurate in etching these characters. I know the conservative and pretentious Indian will pass off the movie as something that is completely alien to them but somewhere deep down they too know it’s real. Glad I saw the movie. Special mention to Zarina Wahab’s character, it’s damn funny.
Parched (2016)
Director – Leena Yadav
Cast – Radhika Apte, Surveen Chawla, Tanishtha Chattejee
My love for the gorgeous @radhikaofficial made me watch Parched, a tale about three women and their everyday battle with patriarchy! These women are feisty and do not give up on life in spite of all their hardships. Amidst regressive and patriarchal mindset, they admire a progressive outlook! Radhika Apte as usual is brilliant and natural to the core! Tanishtha Chatterjee and @surveenchawla are terrific as well! The writing could have been tighter though! Certain elements look forced into the narrative just to prove a point! It does not seem organic! Nevertheless the movie is worth a watch because of the issues it tackles and of course the performances of the three main leads!
A Death In The Gunj (2018)
Director – Konkana Sen Sharma
Cast – Vikrant Massey, Tanuja, Om Puri, Kalki, Ranvir Shorey, Gulshan Devaiah, Tilottma Shome, Jim Sarbh, Arya Sharma
Stumbled upon this gem of a movie directed by the talented Konkana Sen Sharma on Amazon Prime! A Death In The Gunj is an ensemble that builds its narrative around these super real characters who happen to be at McCluskiegunj, a small town in Jharkhand for the New Years 1979! Spread around a span of 7 days, each day adds to the vulnerability of the protagonist #Shutu, who is already going through a rough patch. It conveys subtly and brilliantly, how devastating harmless, unintentional bullying can be! Vikrant Massey is effortlessly endearing and portrays the character of #Shutu with aplomb! Other actors, Tanuja, Om Puri, Kalki, Ranvir Shorey, Gulshan Devaiah, Tilottma Shome, Jim Sarbh and Arya Sharma all stand out. A special shout out to the Background score, it’s terrific! A Death In The Gunj is reminiscent of the simpler times when our school vacation used to be a month long stay at our maternal grandparents’ home! Being born and brought up in Jharkhand, which is where the movie is based, makes the characters even more relatable for me! The movie deserved a much wider release!
Authored By – Abinash Gupta
(Disclaimer – I do not own the rights to the images displayed on the page. The rights remain with their rightful owners. The images are sourced from various public online sources to provide references to the above movies.)
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