Reviews of the latest (and sometimes not-so latest) independent films from South Asians everywhere.
Film Review: Hola Venky!
Put away Mathew McConaughey's old dated rom-coms; this one's far more relatable.
The World Before Her (2014)
Film Critic Rahul Desai looks back on a brave film that raised the bar for non-fiction storytelling in India.
Film Review: Killa (The Fort)
It’s usually a faint glimpse of a familiar perfume, musky scent or lilting tune that does it. Killa is all that and more; a time machine that takes us forward by pushing us back into the lake with rubber tyres around our waists.
Film Review: Labour Of Love
And just like that, an ordinary cup of tea becomes the most romantic gesture in contemporary Indian cinema.
‘Monsoon Shootout’ Review
The 10th anniversary of HBO's South Asian International Film Festival kicked off with a bang, and then another, and then another. Not sure what I mean? Well when you watch Amit Kumar's "Monsoon Shootout" you'll understand. But for now you'll have to settle with my review. The films explores the ramifications of a single confrontation in three distinct ways. Adi (Vijay Varma),a young cop in his first days on the field, is faced with a choice when he confronts an infamous gangster named Shiva (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). Should he shoot the man or let him live? Director Amit Kumar explores the [...]
‘Kumaré’ Review
Kumaré is available on Netflix, iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, among other streaming video sources. Visit the website www.kumaremovie.com for more info. Kumaré is a slightly twisted story that unravels into an emotionally trying ending about a disenchanted, suspicious young director and his search for some kind of truth. The movie features the director, Vikram Gandhi, as a disgruntled man whose experiences with the new-age yoga and spiritual teachings have been far less than satisfying. After numerous experiences in search of a more profound truth in the US and India, Vikram takes a different approach than normal. Instead of following the beaten [...]
Tribeca Review: ‘Farah Goes Bang’
I have a confession to make. I've struggled a lot with this review. Not because my reaction to Meera Menon's feature debut was inconclusive. Quite the contrary. I knew I loved this movie the second the credits started rolling. In fact, I think I actually like it too much. As a result I refrained from writing about it for a long time. Maybe I thought I had too much to say, not enough to say or just not the right things to say. Either way, I've floundered long enough. Kandis Erickson, Nikohl Boosheri and Kiran Deol in "Farah Goes [...]
Tribeca Review: ‘The Patience Stone’
"The Patience Stone", originally a novel by Afghan director Atiq Rahimi, tells the story of a Muslim woman taking care of her husband who was put into a coma after being shot in the neck. He can't move or speak and his wife slowly becomes overwhelmed as she takes care of him, her children and also deals with everyday life in a war torn region. Eventually, she starts spilling out secrets of her past. Memories she has never spoken of before. The film itself, a revelation. There is little to no action or violence depicted on screen but the tension is never [...]
‘The Only Real Game’ Review
The world premiere of "The Only Real Game" was at the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) on Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at the Tribeca Cinemas in New York City, NY. It was followed by a Q&A with Director Mirra Banks, narrator Melissa Leo, producer Muriel "Mike" Peters and cast member Jeff Brueggemann. http://youtu.be/FnwlGA9q2Xw "Baseball is a microcosm of the world; the decisions, struggles, things that aren't fair." - Quote from "The Only Real Game" Even in times of plenty or times without devastation or sacrifice, certain elements of society have the tendency to function as binding elements, a social [...]
‘Dekh Tamasha Dekh’ Review
"Dekh Tamasha Dekh" is an inspired and unique film from director Feroz Abbas Khan (coming off the critically acclaimed "Gandhi, My Father"). It's the story of a town torn apart by the dispute over a dead man's religious identity. What ensues is a mix of hilarity and horror that appropriately dissects the irrationality of violence, religious zealots, corruption and bureaucracy. "Dekh Tamasha Dekh" by Feroz Abbas Khan opened NYIFF this year Khan's two main vehicles of exposition here are, as stated earlier, comedy and drama. There are scenes displaying the complete ineptitude of the legal system in a rather [...]
“The Reluctant Fundamentalist” Review
Mira Nair's latest project "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" is not her best film. But it could be her most important. The story (based on the Moshin Hamid novel of the same name) speaks to the nature of perception between East and West in a world forever changed by 9/11. While most films surrounding a post 9/11 world tend to favor the Western point of view, this film's main character is a young Pakistani professor named Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed). The story is told in flashbacks as Changez is being interviewed by an American reporter named Bobby Lincoln (Liev Schreiber) in Lahore following the [...]
“Listen Amaya” Review
"Listen Amaya" by Avinash Kumar Singh was a very difficult film to review. Not because I didn't like it. Quite the contrary actually. I loved it. I found it pleasant, realistic, heartfelt and humorous with the appropriate amount of melodrama. But I also found it very personal. http://youtu.be/RY4xXvvHcdE The story is centered around a twenty something girl named Amaya (Swara Bhaskar) coming to grips with her widowed mother's new relationship. Her mother Leela (Deepti Naval) runs an off-beat cafe called Book A Coffee who falls in love with a regular at the shop, Jayant (Farooq Shaikh). Jayant (affectionately called Jazz by all the [...]
“Color of Anger” Review
"Color of Anger" is a short film by Vishesh Sharma about a young man dealing with the effects of an abusive father. But how this young man deals with the pain is the crux of the story. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIFneMBhzKE Jeremy Gallant plays Jim, the disturbed teenager, with quiet brilliance. Now when I say quiet, I mean it literally. Jim has zero lines throughout the film but certainly makes the biggest impact. Sharma uses several close shots to get us inside Jim's mind. We see a kid dealing with the pain of an abusive father in two ways. One is through a [...]
SAIFF 2012 Award Winners
The South Asian International Film Festival concluded Saturday night after a two week layoff thanks to Hurricane Sandy. "This was a historic year for us and the city. Besides introducing some amazing films and doing the Rising Star Film Awards, we also got hit with a storm," Shilen Amin, SAIFF's President and Founder, said. "So many of the films that we wanted to show did not make it to the screen but we were able to make up our closing night at least." The festival award winners were also officially announced Saturday night. Check out the winners below and the [...]
“Patang” Review
"Patang" is perhaps one of the most genuine films I have ever seen. The movie won awards for Best Director and Best Picture at the SAIFF Rising Stars Awards Ceremony a few weeks ago. It's a rare, unfiltered look at a world that is new and familiar at the same time. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_rOqsX-aY8 The story is simple. Jayesh (played brilliantly by Mukund Shukla), a successful businessman in Delhi, returns to visit his estranged family after five years in Ahmedabad for Uttarayan, the annual kite festival. Old wounds and family troubles arise as Bhargava effortlessly weaves the story of six different characters during this celebration. I'd [...]
“Miss Lovely” Review
"Miss Lovely" (directed by Ashim Ahluwalia) is not a film for everyone. Honestly, I'm still not sure if it's the film for me. It was the opening night movie at the South Asian International Film Festival this year and I've spent a considerable amount of time thinking about the picture. The story centers around the Duggal Brothers Vicky (Anil George) and Sonu (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) who make and sell low-budget horror and soft-core porn films. It's a world full of sleaze, money and corruption. Eventually, Sonu wants to get out of the business and make a romantic picture with the girl of his [...]
“…Or Die” Review
"Attempting to get at truth means rejecting stereotypes and cliches." - Harold Evans Stereotypes exist for all races across the board. Some of them can be true while others are blatantly false. Nearly all of them can be associated with ignorance. Yes, some cab drivers are brown. Yes, a lot of IT guys are also brown. Yes, even many terrorists have brown skin. As it turns out though, there are brown people around the world who also happen to be athletes, artists, writers, actors, teachers, pilots, directors, editors, journalists, bartenders, painters, comedians, zookeepers, train conductors, lawyers, politicians, construction workers, cops, [...]
“Balak Palak” Review
So let's talk about sex. What? You don't want to? What do you mean you're embarrassed? Why? Wait where are you going?! Who the hell is supposed to explain this stuff to me? "Balak Palak" premiered at the South Asian Film Festival Friday night. These are the questions many adolescents face as they grow older and attempt the decipher one of nature's most confounding experiences. Sex. And those kids who grow up in communities (especially India) where such talk and communication is considered taboo, the ramifications can be particularly damaging. This is the premise of "Balak Palak", a film directed by [...]
