Screen Time: Superheroes and Superstars
January was packed with binge-worthy content and exciting announcements. Mohanlal’s Bro Daddy is coming to Disney+ Hotstar, while Looop Lapeta (the official remake of Run Lola Run), starring Taapsee Pannu, is hitting Netflix this month. Amazon Prime’s Unpaused comes back for another season, and comedians Kapil Sharma and Aziz Ansari are coming to Netflix with I’m not Done Yet and Nightclub Comedian, respectively. Meanwhile, here’s a look at recent OTT hits headlined by some big names. Spoilers ahead!
Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui (Hindi)
Netflix
Ayushmann Khurrana has always walked the path less trodden. In Abhishek Kapoor’s Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, he’s backing gender fluidity. He plays Manu Munjal, a Punjabi munda who is all brawn and bristle. He falls for the gorgeous new Zumba trainer at the gym, Maanvi Brar (Vaani Kapoor), who has a secret that is too much for the “government school-educated” Munjal to handle. Brar is a trans woman who yearns for familial acceptance but lives on her own terms. She tells him to take a hike, but he can’t get over her. It’s all a big, dramatic mess but good ol’ fashioned Bollywood gives it a happy ending. It’s a big leap for a mainstream Hindi film director to position a trans woman at the center of his story but Kapoor plays it safe. He peppers the film with pedestrian jokes about Maanvi being an “aadmi wali shakal ki aurat” (or the more cringey “chakki”), stereotypically loud Punjabi sisters who keep pressuring Manu to get married. I would’ve wanted to see more of Maanvi’s struggle honestly, but in the end she comes across as a means for Manu to become the man he becomes—a hero, who frankly she doesn’t need.
Minnal Murali (Malayalam)
Netflix
Speaking of heroes we need, here’s a superhero for the ages! Malayalam actor extraordinaire, Tovino Thomas ((Kala), plays the lungi-clad Jaison (aka Minnal Murali) who inherits unusual powers after getting hit by a bolt of lightning. Unbeknownst to him, Shibu (the brilliant Guru Somasundaram), who works at the local tea stall and is deemed “crazy” by the locals, has also been hit by the same bolt. One uses his power for good, the other for evil. Shot in the lush and verdant environs of Wayanad and Alappuzha in Kerala, the film has a hero who just wants to get away from his mundane life until he realizes he has a higher calling, a villain who just wants to love but is cruelly denied, and slick action sequences that rival the best in Hollywood’s larger-than-life spectacles. There is a genuine sweetness to this film—you can’t help but laugh out loud when Jaison asks his little nephew who Superman and Batman are, and he replies without missing a beat: “They are superheroes and America is surviving only because of them!”
Pushpa: The Rise (Telugu)
Amazon Prime
Welcome to the Allu Arjun show! The Telugu superstar, called Icon Star by his fans, simmers, snarls and swaggers in every frame of his latest blockbuster. This out-and-out entertainer has Arjun playing Pushparaj, born to his father’s mistress and hence shunned by society. He gets involved in a smuggling syndicate that deals with red sanders—a rare sandalwood that is in high demand because it grows only in the Seshachalam Hills of Andhra Pradesh. Being humiliated by his stepbrother about the circumstance of his birth fuels his anger and determination to become the top dog. The women in the film don’t have very much to do besides simper and titillate. Rashmika Mandana plays Pushpa’s love interest and dances to the viral “Sami Sami” while Samantha Prabhu (The Family Man Season 2) sizzles with her performance in “Oo Antava Mava.” The action is stylish and the background score pulsating. Fahadh Faasil makes an appearance. The depiction of Pushpa's love interest, Srivalli (Mandana), is disturbing. He pays her to kiss him, and she wants to sleep with him before submitting to the villain. This "romance" is a bit of a mess. A sequel is in the works.
Kadaseela Biriyani (Tamil)
Netflix
What better way to tackle the dreary winter than indulge in a quirky, dark, violent comedy? This Tamil revenge saga is the directorial debut of Nishanth Kaladindi. Chikku, Ila and Periya Pandi are three brothers who break into the estate of a local landlord, their father’s killer, with the intention of murdering him. But they are in for a shock when the landlord’s maniacal son turns on them, hunting them down in a series of bizarrely comical events. There is a particular scene involving a coffin that sets things in motion with shocking effect. The first 20 minutes of the film will hold you in thrall, thanks once again to the breathtaking locales (the border areas of Kerala and Tamil Nadu). And the actors are fantastic! If you remember the Thiagarajan Kumararaja masterpiece, Super Deluxe, where he played the character of Gaaji, you will appreciate Vijay Ram’s effortless performance as the youngest brother Chikku, who just wants to do well in his academics and stay away from his murderous family. The oldest brother, played with throbbing intensity by Vasanth Selvan, and the psychopathic son, played by Hakkim Shah, are delightful to watch. Easily one of the best films to hit OTT.
In Case You Missed . . .
Honsla Rakh (Punjabi)
Amazon Prime
This romantic comedy has not one but four stars! Diljit Dosanjh, Sonam Bajwa, Shehnaaz Gill and the littlest cast member, Shinda Grewal (superstar Gippy Grewal’s son), deliver a fun experience in one of the highest grossing films of last year. Diljit plays Yankey Singh, who must raise his son by himself after his wife Sweety (Gill) decides that she needs more from life than being a mom and divorces him. Yankey wants to meet a woman he can marry and share parental responsibilities. That leads to some hilarious scenarios involving dating apps and matchmaking. Ultimately, he meets Jasmine (Bajwa) and they fall in love. But Sweety makes a comeback just when things are starting to work out for Yankey. Hardcore Diljit fans will love his effortless comic timing. The fact that moviegoers in India flooded to the theatres to watch this film in a pandemic speaks to his star power. The film came to OTT late last year and has been racking up views. For me, the fact that it was shot extensively in Vancouver kept my interest going, but the story doesn’t really stay with you. It’s something to do while you fold the laundry, which I did.
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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