Screen Time: Falling for the Fall Shows
As a new season kicks off, you’ll find an avenging father, crazed lovers who are determined to unite, a cop battling her personal demons, a family drama that pulls at the heartstrings, and a master filmmaker who dazzles with his craft.
Phir Aayi Haseen Dilruba (Hindi)
Netflix
Lovers of pulp, rejoice! I’m happy to report that the sequel to the 2021 film Haseen Dilruba (also on Netflix, directed by Vinil Mathew) is more than a worthy successor to its predecessor. This Jayprad Desai directorial, starring Taapsee Pannu and Vikram Massey playing lovers Rani and Rishu who will go to the ends of the earth (or in this case to the depths of a river) to unite, is a fun and pacy watch, with better-etched-out characters and a storyline that keeps you riveted. After getting away with killing his lustful and flirtatious cousin Neel (Harshvardhan Rane) and faking his own death in the first film, Rishu (Massey) is living a low-key life in Agra doing odd jobs. He’s planning to decamp to Thailand with his wife, Rani (Pannu), who works as a beautician in the city. Enter Abhimanyu (an impressive Sunny Kaushal), a physician who is consumed by his love for Rani. Rani proposes that she and Abhimanyu get married but, unbeknownst to him, he is a crucial part of her escape plan with Rishu. BUT! There’s obviously a twist and as more bodies fall and the cops turn on the heat (Jimmy Shergill as supercop Paswan and Neel’s uncle is a hoot!) Rani and Rishu up the ante. This one’s a fun ride.
Maharaja (Tamil)
Netflix
Vijay Sethupathi is Maharaja, an unassuming barber who works in a local Chennai salon. His world is shattered when a truck veers into his house killing his wife. Miraculously, his infant daughter survives, thanks to a metallic dustbin that falls over her and shields her from the impact and the debris. The dustbin acquires a god-like status in his household and he and his daughter venerate it, worshiping it and even naming it Lakshmi. Then one day Lakshmi goes missing. Maharaja rushes to the police station to report the burglary and is rebuffed by the policemen on duty who don’t want to waste their time looking for a dustbin. But he insists and even offers a good sum of money to recover Lakshmi. The police are intrigued and so is our curiosity. Is it really about a dustbin? What is Maharaja’s relationship to Selvam (a menacing Anurag Kashyap), a thief and murderer with past demons of his own? What really happened on the night that Lakshmi was taken? A thrilling revenge drama, Sethupathi’s fiftieth outing as an actor is right up there with his other brilliant films.
Brinda (Telugu)
SonyLiv
Chutney Sambar (Tamil)
Disney Hotstar
Sachin (Yogi Babu), an orphan and a street vendor, finds his life suddenly change when his half-brother Karthik (Chandran) walks into his life and reveals their father Rathnasamy’s hidden past to him. While Karthik’s father ran a cafe in Ooty known for its sambar, Sachin runs a roadside eatery known for its chutney. Soon Sachin is part of a family, some of whom are unaware of his identity, including Rathasamy's wife and his daughter. The series has some entertaining bits featuring the cook Sophie (Vani Bhojan), brother-in-law Ilango (Nithin Sathya), and Peter (Elango Kumaravel), the house help. Creator Radha Mohan, known for his wholesome family fare, serves up a sweet and unassuming comedy, with legendary comic actor Yogi Babu quickening the pace when it starts to sag. There is a sweetness and simplicity in the story’s premise, making it a welcome change from all the blood, gore, and depravity that seem to be the go-to for most OTT series currently.
Modern Masters: S.S. Rajamouli (English)
Netflix
Remember the swell of pride at the Oscars when the auditorium came alive to the beats of “Naatu, Naatu,” the now legendary song from the smash hit RRR? Well, now those who haven't a clue about Indian movies, let alone Telugu movies, have woken up to the phenomenon, thanks to this one song. All credit of course goes to the master who started it all—S.S. Rajamouli, the director and visionary behind such films as Eega, Magadheera, the Baahubali films, and most recently, RRR. Rajamouli’s journey as a filmmaker—his unusual upbringing (his mother urged him to spend his time reading comics rather than his schoolbooks!); his talented family (his father is a co-writer and his wife, Rama, designed costumes for his films); his obsession with grandiosity; and much more—is captured in this engaging documentary. Rajamouli, a seemingly bashful personality, opens up to journalist Anupama Chopra, speaking in detail about what inspires him and his vision for his future projects. This is a must-watch for Rajamouli fans as well as for those interested in the very process of filmmaking.
Baisakhi Roy is a culture writer and journalist based in Ontario, Canada. Her work has appeared in The Globe and Mail, Huffington Post Canada, Chatelaine, Broadview and CBC. Formerly a reporter with The Indian Express in India, Roy is an avid Bollywood fan and co-hosts the Hindi language podcast KhabardaarPodcast.com. Email: baisakhi.roy@gmail.com
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