The Critique

Dir: Neeraj Pandey Starring: Sushant Singh Rajput, Disha Patani, Kiara Advani, Anupam Kher Dur: 3 hrs Genre: Biography Rating: 9/10 A fantastic tribute to one of Indian crickets recent legends. A man who came from very humble beginnings, someone who couldn’t boast of having cricket in his blood but who scaled the heights of fame and success and who is still very much an inspirational figure in Indian Cricket. M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story is interesting, intriguing and sticks I guess close to the truth. Dhoni is a people’s player and in the film they show you well just how he got to be that person. The film has its share of drama and romance and somewhere in between they give at that typical Bollywood touch: a lonely, sad scene of Dhoni sitting in the middle of the highway crying his eyes out. The film takes us through the initial days of Dhoni right from his footballing days to his lifting the World Cup. His close ties to his family and his romantic adventures aren’...

Dir: Robert Connolly Starring: Sam Worthington, David Wenham, Deborah Mailman, Ed Oxenbould Dur: 1 hr 36 mins Genre: Drama Rating: 7/10 A fantastic film for kids. It’s an inspirational movie with a scientific twist. We all know that paper planes don’t fly for too long but relationships are meant to and so despite its name, this is a film about relationships. A widower has lost meaning in his life after the death of his young wife. His 11 year old son dreams of rising from the gloom of losing his mom and lift his dad in the cockpit of a paper plane. Now the story may not seem like much but it has appeal and once you see it you will know what I mean. This is not a boring story or a mere childish fantasy; it’s full of real life situations and coping strategies. It could even be termed a psychological drama. The performances are good and so is the cinematography. This makes the film a double tutor as it has the capacity to inspire kids and alert parents to their kids nee...

Dir: Shana Feste Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Gabriella Wilde Dur: 1 hr 45 mins Genre: Romance PG: Lots of kisses and lovemaking Rating: 8/10 Love is a wonderful theme for all arts. It never ceases to fascinate me how every other week a new film, book, song or work of art turns up proclaiming love in one of its forms. Endless Love is a strange name to give this film. It should instead have been called ‘Enduring love’ for it tells us about how true love braves all trials and opposition. Alex Pettyfer plays the debonair guy who somehow has a lot of pull when it comes to the peer group but very little when it comes to love. Needless to say he soon extends his pull to his lady love and her family. Jade (Gabriella Wilde) isn’t the most attractive girl around but she catches David‘s attention and ours. Here, the film departs from usual narrative. It moves from being about two people in love to including the family members. This is where the movie scores a point for me. ...

Lent, I have discovered over the years is a special time of the year. It is a critical liturgical season that helps us prepare for the great feast of Easter. My usage of the word ‘critical’ may surprise or upset some of you. Allow me to clarify. I don’t use it here to refer to the state of our mental or physical health for the duration of the season (in fact for a majority of us, Lent isn’t a period of serious prayer and rigorous fasting and penance). ‘Critical’ here means ‘having a decisive importance’. I suppose we are all aware that the liturgical year comprises of five seasons. They are Advent, Christmas, Ordinary Time, Lent and Easter. The seasons of Lent and Advent are periods of intense preparations for the great feasts that are to follow. Advent is a four-week long period of preparation to welcome the Saviour in our midst and to recall the great act of God: the Incarnation. Similarly, Lent is a 40 day period of inner preparation to commemorate the Passion, Death and Resur...

India really is a fabulous country not so much in terms of cleanliness and sincerity but to the lover of art and culture, it is a haven. Every Indian knows that India is an amalgam of cultures, traditions, religions and the like but not every Indian is open to this sort of diversity. This is unfortunate but it doesn’t take away much from the splendor of the reality. But what has any of this got to do with Ash Wednesday? Give me a moment and I will explain. To make Ash Wednesday understandable to the Indian mind I will offer illustrations from the Indian ethos. The Muslims have a month long period of preparation for the great feast of Eid. During this period of ‘Ramadan’, they are not allowed to touch any food or drink in the daylight hours. The purpose of this fasting is a mental and spiritual preparation for Eid. This is specifically a period of cleansing and introspective reflection. The Hindus have a month of ‘Shravan’ in their calendar. This is a holy month of prayer and fast...