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Subhash K Jha revisits Mani Shankar’s spy drama 16 December, which released in 2002.

The imminent Hollywoodization of mainstream Hindi cinema continued full-throttle with debutant director Mani Shankar’s slick espionage flick 16 December, which masters all the tricks of the tantalizing trek from buildup to climax in one sleek swish of special effects, heightened drama and collaborative chemistry.

In trying to take on slick Hollywood thrillers like Mission Impossible and Charlie’s Angels, Mani mingles history with hearsay, fact with fiction, and escapist thrills with pseudo-documentation. The director doesn’t quite negotiate the distance that divides our cinema from Hollywood. But he makes a defiantly direct effort to make an uncompromised, historically rooted spy thriller, which is more in the league of the Nick Carter pulp novels than the films of Brian de Palma or Ridley Scott.

What really distinguishes Shankar’s film is its winking homage to Indian history. Though 16 December...

Filmmaker Indrani Ray’s short Dinner in Lockdown starring Shibani Akhtar and Shekhar Ravjiani—part of her critically acclaimed anthology—has been selected to screen at the Grenoble Indian Film Festival in France on February 22, 2025. “A joyous surprise in the month of love,” Ray said gleefully!

During the global lockdowns of 2020-21, Ray wrote and executive-produced her debut anthology, featuring Adil Hussain, Shibani Dandekar (Made in Heaven) Shekhar Ravjiani (Neerja), Dipannita Sharma (16th December) Natasha Rastogi (Made in Heaven). Produced by Tanvi Gandhi the anthology made remotely at the time the world was shut down – with a transatlantic nano-crew including DoP Karan Thapliyal (Academy Award-winning The Elephant Whisperers) and NYC-based editor Eu-nah Lee— authentically captured the zeitgeist of the time, all round.

Premiering at Viacom’s Voot Select Debut Shorts Festival (2021), the anthology gained recognition purely on merit, with no PR push—earning praise from critics:

“Lockdown film is a...

A girl dies once when she is slain; if she is raped and lives, she dies every second of her life. Can we even think of what a rape victim goes through? Can we imagine the scale of the pain a girl can feel after a brutal rape? The film Kooki tries to answer such unanswered questions and is now ready to release in cinemas on June 28, 2024.

A few shocking scenes and strong punches in the Kooki trailer entice viewers to watch the movie. The trailer starts with the scene of a rape victim being questioned, followed by a discussion between a few teenage friends. A glimpse of an innocent teenage love story can also be seen. A brutally raped girl is taken to the hospital, investigations go on, and the public comes on the road demanding the justice of the rape victim. The trailer ends with lots of unanswered quotes.

Mumbai, July 6 (Ians) Actress Vidya Balan is making a comeback to the theatres after a gap of 4 years with her film ‘Neeyat’. The actress revealed that the director and the producer of the film are very crucial before she signs it.

When Vidya Balan does something on screen, it certainly is different and amazing. The actress is all geared up for her next theatrical release ‘Neeyat’ which is a murder mystery. At a press conference held for the film in Mumbai recently, where spoke about what made her say Yes to the film.

The actress said: “I am a very impatient, restless, easily bored audience. When I read something I ask myself: “Will I want to watch it on screen?” Post that obviously if the character calls out to me, the overall script works for me. Director of the film is very very crucial. Also the producer. You can make...

Filmmaker Anu Menon, who is collaborating with Vidya Balan for the second time on ‘Neeyat’ this time after ‘Shakuntala Devi’ said on Wednesday she needed someone with calibre and gravitas for the role. So, she approached Vidya for the lead.Menon, along with Vidya, Ram Kapoor, Rahul Bose, Dipannita Sharma, Shashank Arora, Shahana Goswami, Neeraj Kabi and Amrita Puri, were interacting with the media during a press conference in Mumbai.

When asked about collaborating with Vidya Balan for the second time, Menon said: “Why? Because when we started writing the script and started figuring out this character, it really felt like a Vidya Balan role. I am not saying she is similar to Vidya, but we wanted someone of her calibre, gravitas; someone who can actually takes us on this journey — the one you can trust.”

Menon added: “And as you know, Vidya Balan doesn’t say yes very easily,...

Prajakta Koli started her journey in the digital space and over the years has made a place for herself as one of the most prominent faces in the Indian Entertainment Industry. Apart from the multiple feathers that she dons in her hat including being the United Nations Climate Control Ambassador for India; being on the Board of Gates Foundation and running her own highly successful Youtube channel, this is Prajakta’s second venture as an actor on the big screen.

Talking about working with names such as Vidya Balan, Ram Kapoor, Rahul Bose and Neeraj Kabi among many others, Prajakta says, “I have been a Vidya Balan fan since forever, and just the fact that I get to share the screen with her was magical for me. And then there was the whole cast, I mean where else would I get to chill for two months with the likes of Ram Kapoor,...

The trailer of the upcoming film ‘Neeyat’ which stars Vidya Balan in the lead, was unveiled on Thursday. With a length of over 2 minutes and 24 seconds, the trailer paints a riveting picture of a whodunit mystery.

It begins with Ram Kapoor’s character of billionaire, Ashish Kapoor, organising a gathering at his castle in Scotland. As the celebrations go on in full swing, Ashish jumps off from the cliff leaving everyone flabbergasted. Enters Vidya Balan, a detective, Mira Rao who breaks the news to Kapoor’s guests that this one is not a suicide but a murder.

The movie also stars Rahul Bose, Neeraj Kabi, Amrita Puri, Shahana Goswami, Niki Walia, Dipannita Sharma, Shashank Arora, Prajakta Koli, Danesh Razvi, Ishika Mehra and Madhav Deval in pivotal roles.

The trailer reminds of the Daniel Craig-starrer ‘Knives Out’ with a dysfunctional family and their web of secrets acting as the central themes.

Abundantia Entertainment and Prime Video’s most anticipated murder mystery, ‘Neeyat’ is all set for its worldwide theatrical premiere on July 7th, 2023. The intriguing thriller, featuring Vidya Balan as the leading protagonist, is making its grand entrance in the crown jewel of recording studios, the iconic Abbey Road Studios.

Having earned a name for itself for being the epicenter of work for many legendary musicians and artists, Abbey Road Studios has been a musical pillar to the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Amy Winehouse and more recently Ed Sheeran, Adele, and Lady Gaga. It also one of the world’s premier destinations for film scoring with illustrious movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark, the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, movies from the Harry Potter series, Black Panther, 1917, Avengers: Endgame including the Oscar winning scores of Gravity and The Shape of Water being composed here. Neeyat joins the distinguished...

Abundantia Entertainment and Prime Video, today, announced the worldwide theatrical release date of their much-awaited, murder mystery – Neeyat. The intriguing whodunnit, featuring Vidya Balan in the lead, marks its date with the audience in theatres on July 7th, 2023. Neeyat is directed by Anu Menon who last directed Vidya Balan in the 2020 superhit ‘Shakuntala Devi’, based on the life and times of the lady known as the human computer.

Anu Menon’s recent directing credits also include multiple episodes of the internationally acclaimed series ‘Killing Eve’. Neeyat boasts of an enviable ensemble cast featuring Ram Kapoor, Rahul Bose, Neeraj Kabi, Amrita Puri, Shahana Goswami, Niki Walia, Dipannita Sharma, Shashank Arora, Prajakta Koli, Danesh Razvi, Ishika Mehra and Madhav Deval in pivotal roles. Neeyat has been written by Anu Menon, Priya Venkataraman, Advaita Kala and Girvani Dhyani with dialogues by Kausar Munir.

Produced by the Vikram Malhotra-led Abundantia Entertainment, that also produced Shakuntala Devi,...

‘Modern Love’ Third Iteration Sets Release

Prime Video has set May 18 for the global release of its upcoming Indian anthology series “Modern Love Chennai.” This is the third Indian adaptation of “Modern Love,” the internationally acclaimed original anthology directed by John Carney, following “Modern Love Mumbai” and “Modern Love Hyderabad.”

Produced under the banner of Tyler Durden and Kino Fist, with Thiagarajan Kumararaja as the creator, the six-episode anthology presents a bouquet of love stories set in the city of Chennai that explore relationships, push boundaries, and open minds.

“Love stories and rom-coms have never been my cup of tea. Thus, ‘Modern Love Chennai’ was an interesting challenge,” said Kumararaja, creator of the series and writer-director of one of the episodes. “With these stories, we have explored and celebrated the old-world charm of the city, which remains rooted in a distinct blend of tradition and modernity.”

Festival Winners

The Jeonju International Film Festival,...

Tusshar Kapoor is all set to come back in a different avatar with his upcoming murder mystery, Maarrich. He is playing the role of a Senior Cop from Mumbai named Rajiv. It’s after 18 long years that Tusshar Kapoor is returning as a cop and in a different avatar on the silver screen. There is a lot of preparation he had to undergo to ensure he represents his character as close to a real life cop.

The film is Tusshar Entertainment House’s second outing after Akshay Kumar starrer, Laxmii. Tusshar Kapoor transformed and groomed himself in various ways to ace his role as a Senior Cop in the murder mystery. He not only took various workshops he also put on weight and worked on modulating his voice.

Speaking about his process of preparation for the film, he said, “I did a lot of preparation because I am playing a...

Streamer has also set licensing deals with leading Indian production houses.

Amazon Prime Video is making its biggest push into India to date with plans to launch more than 40 films and TV series while striking new licensing deals and launching a TVoD film rental service.

At its first Prime Video Presents India showcase event in Mumbai, the streamer said its investment in the service would more than double over the next five years.

This is led by original features, series and co-productions, in Hindi, Tamil and Telegu, which are planned to launch over the next two years. These will range from thrillers,...