Vijay Varma in ‘Gustaakh Ishq’ | Photo Credit: Stage5 Production/YouTube An ageing poet, his stoic daughter and a cunning publisher make the subjects of filmmaker Vibhu Puri’s student film, Chabiwali Pocket Watch (2006). Set in the ruins of old Delhi at an unspecified time, there are signs of an impressionistic, young mind in its eerie…
Amritha Murali at her Music Academy concert in 2022. | Photo Credit: KRISHNAN VV My guru R.K. Shriramkumar is that rare musician who contains multitudes. He is defined not just by his erudition and virtuosity, but also by his grace, simplicity and warmth. His music is a unique blend of hoary tradition and a finesse…
A still from Being | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT As artificial intelligence makes inroads into entertainment in a big way, the 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa saw a landmark moment with the launch of country’s first AI film festivaI, Cinema AI Hackathon 2025. Winning big at the fete is Being, a…
There were many laugh-out-loud moments in Zootopia 2, proving patience is most definitely is a virtue, as we had to wait for seven years for the follow-up to the 2016 Oscar winner. There are sight gags, including the police officers saying “lay down the spikes” and rolling out a porcupine, and clever puns such as…
Unlike vocalists and solo instrumentalists who can preplan what to present, for accompanying musicians, each concert is a mystery that unravels only as it progresses. During the music season, they play two to three concerts every day, switching gears among musicians as seamlessly as changing the tala between songs. “After a point, adapting to different…
Stills from ‘Vinland Saga’ and ‘The Monk and the Gun’ | Photo Credit: Crunchyroll, MUBI Whether you’re an old hand at arthouse or just dipping a toe into the rising otaku subculture of anime aficionados around the world, this column lists curated titles that challenge, comfort, and occasionally combust your expectations. This week’s picks bring…
Bollywood is in love all over again. After Mohit Suri’s Saiyaara, Aanand L Rai, another master of the poetic portrayal of passion and pain, returns with a gripping interrogation of love’s destructive underbelly, set in a social context. Connected to Raanjhanaa(2013) by an umbilical cord, Tere Ishk Mein talks of the magic of love that…
G. Narendra | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement “What does the award mean to you?” Narendra did seem amused by my query. But he was not surprised and went on to explain all about awards and what they meant to him. On December 12, 2025, the Sri Krishna Gana Sabha will confer the Nrithya Choodamani title…
Kiara Advani and Sidharth Malhotra | Photo Credit: sidmalhotra/Instagram Actor-couple Sidharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani on Friday announced they have named their daughter Saraayah Malhotra. The couple shared the news with a joint Instagram post, which featured both the actors holding the toes of their daughter. “From our prayers, to our arms, our divine blessing,…
Lav Diaz’s Magellan is an impossible fever dream across the seas, smuggled into the respectable body of a festival biopic. On paper, the 160-minute Cannes-premiering historical epic in colour, fronted by Gael García Bernal, is pitched around a name every schoolbook knows. But in practice, it works as a slow, methodical dismantling of the conquistador…
