Cinema, Karam, Kapi

The much hyped Thug Life , directed by Mani Ratnam feat thespian Kamal Hassan along with a long cast & crew released on 5 th June 2025 amidst much fanfare.  AR Rahman and Mani Ratnam join hands after their last outing Ponniyin Selvan (2022) while Mani Ratnam and Kamala Hassan come together after 38 years since their last collab – Nayakan.   It  It is quite clear that Mani Ratnam has a large team of Assistant Directors who are clued in to the latest trends that intrigue the Millennials and Gen Z and this reflects in most parts of the movie. This is not to take away the genius of Mani Ratnam himself.  The movie revolves around a father-son duo who are both orphans and grow up to become Dons in their own ways.  The movie is set in the national capital of New Delhi where Rangaraya Sakthivel (Kamal) came as a young man 40 years ago from Kayalpattinam, Tirunelveli.   He finds the young boy Amar (Simbu) orphaned in a shoot-out and brings him up as his own you...

A thief is a thief forever. But some thieves are special, for they steal not just for the loot, ra. ther for the “Kick” of it. Rehan is a professional “Jewel Thief” and carries the film on his shoulders all through and confirms at the end of the movie that the heist will continue. Raja Chauhan alias Rehan (Saif Ali Khan) is in hiding in Europe when two Indian cops spot him, basis instructions from their boss Vikram Patel (Kunal Kapoor).  Rehan befriends them and voluntarily surrenders to them, as he wishes to get to India to finish an important task. The duo, bewildered about their prized catch, take him to India, only to lose him at the airport, even as Vikram arrives there.. Back in India, Rehan reaches the Alibaug bungalow of Rajan Aulakh (Jaideep Ahla wat). Rajan threatens that for Rehan’s family to be undisturbed, he must steal “ The Red Sun ”, a rare diamond that would be exhibited soon in Mumbai. Rehan shares a watertight plan with Rajan to get to the diamond safely and wi...

It’s that time of the year when our walls and desks are replaced. This year, I bought one from Fully Filmy with every month having a montage of my matinee idol Superstar Rajinikanth.  The living room will have one or two large monthly calendars while the puja room with have a daily-sheet calendar, a culture that is very popular in the South, especially in Tamil Nadu.  The workdesks for all of us at home will have new desktop calendars, courtesy friends and family who ship their business calendars or send us one bearing photos of religious deities. This year, I am plannning to design my own desktop calendars on Zoomin with photos taken through 2024. But other than these little changes that we make, there is nothing that really changes between 31 Dec & 1 Jan. for most Indians.  Our personal / religious calendar is varied across the country and our ethnic backgrounds.  From Ugadi to Baisakhi and so many others for almost each state, our calendar for purposes of calc...

In the second instalment of Pushpa 2 – The Rule, the lead actor Allu Arjun doesn’t disappoint his fans one bit. From the first scene till the end, it’s Arjun who carries confidently, the might of the expectations of the much awaited film on his shoulders. And how he does it deftly, so easily, is something that’s worth appreciating. In the first part Pushpa - The Rise (2021), Pushpa Raj, a coolie who is involved in transporting red sanders smuggled from the forests, becomes a local thug and begins to be a part of the syndicate. Over time, he becomes a notorious criminal, by transporting truck loads of the well guarded tree logs, which are banned from hunting and transporting unofficially. In the sequel, we see Pushparaj continue his “raj” and this time, he is a lot more aggressive in his dealings with the cops. Pushparaj and Srivalli’s (Rashmika Mandanna) romance track goes on one side. They are married now and their overtures are – well over the top in some scenes (sic). Jagapathi Ba...