First things first: Celine Song’s The Materialist doesn’t quite reach the quiet brilliance of her debut, the magnificent Past Lives. Yet, it’s still a relationship drama worth your time.
Dakota Johnson (yes, of 50 Shades fame) shines as Lucy, an upmarket New York City matchmaker for the rich and privileged. She approaches romance like an M&A deal, quipping, “Marriage is a business deal and it always has been.”
Her carefully constructed world collides when she meets Harry (Pedro Pascal) — a charming private equity prince with a $12 million penthouse and impeccable style — at a client’s wedding. At the same event, Lucy’s past resurfaces in the form of John (Chris Evans), her struggling-actor ex who’s working as a waiter. Their breakup years ago, heartbreakingly, was over a parking fee.
Celine frames Lucy’s dilemma in modern Jane Austen fashion: should she choose the wealthy, flawless suitor or the imperfect, impoverished man who once held her heart? Classic setup, updated for Manhattan.
The film is peppered with witty (and often depressing) “wish lists” from Lucy’s elite clients — a satirical mirror of transactional love. A side plot also hints at the risks of modern dating.
Song still delivers memorable moments:
Lucy admitting she left John not for incompatibility, but for his poverty.
Lucy seduced by Harry’s luxurious lifestyle, yet starved of intimacy.
Lucy and Harry, seemingly the perfect match, inevitably drifting apart.
Dakota Johnson gives a grounded, honest performance. Pedro Pascal oozes charm, while Chris Evans taps into raw vulnerability. The film itself, though, is uneven. The screenplay meanders, and the writing never fully soars.
Still, Celine’s words resonate: “Love is the greatest mystery in everyone’s lives, and therefore one of the most important themes in cinema.” Couldn’t agree more.
💡 The Materialist may not be flawless, but it’s a smart, satirical look at the math of love in a material world — and a worthy weekend watch.
Laila Majnu Review: The Eternal Love’s Journey From Kashmir To Spirituality
The popular and classical tragic love story of Persian and Arabic times gets a Kashmiri setup in Imtiaz Ali’s writing. The Sajid Ali directed movie impresses with its authentic and rawness – Yashraj polish is missing but the movie touches your heart and soul.
Laila – the girl is a prick tease who flirts with a battery of Srinagar boys
Majnu (Qais) – the guy has bad reputation looks but stalks in a disarming manner
As Qais tells Laila “humaari kahaani likhi gayi hai”, they fall in love while their parents are sworn enemies. The virgin love has a roller coaster ride with Laila getting married to a local politician and Majnu escaping to London. He returns and seems to be in an eternal waiting game for Laila. Both lose their lives with Majnu becoming a crazy mad lover. He discovers spirituality emphasising the path to God is nothing but love.
Avinash Tiwary is intense and gets better as the movie progresses. He makes us believe in the madness of love with his powerful portrayal of Majnu. Tripti Dimri shows her talent in this pre-Animal avatar. Kashmir is a character by itself – what would Vishal Bharadwaj or Gulzar have done?.
The songs are beautiful – O Meri Laila, Hafiz Hafiz and Aahista shine. The direction and editing could have been better as movie fails in certain portions.
The movie was a big flop but the audience love brings it back after years of conversations. Within 3-4 days of release, it has made more money than its initial run six years ago! Love stories are eternal!
Watch Laila Majnu for Avinash Tiwary’s Majnu act, Kashmir backdrop, nice music and a timeless love story!
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s ‘An Uncommon Love: The Early Life of Sudha and Narayana Murthy’ covers all of the above and more themes!
Like its iconic subjects, Uncommon Love is a simple, candid and honest story of the early life of Sudha and Narayan Murthy. The couple have led a very private life and hence it is quite insightful to get a peek into their personal world. The book is filled with rich anecdotes which are a delight for everyone. These tales give us a clear understanding of the individual traits of Sudha and Narayan.
Indeed a few stories stand out:
Sudha Murty is a movie buff and a certified ‘First Day First Show’ fan. She won the title of Miss Cinema, after winning the bet to watch one movie every day of the year in a theatre! I can relate to it totally!
She was the only woman in the engineering class of 150 men and had to face a lot of challenges including derogatory comments and total unkindness. Her admission conditions included compulsory wearing of saree, no access to canteen and no chatting with boys! The college had no toilet and she had to travel to home in break. But not only she excelled despite the systemic misogyny, she won the respect of everyone!
She got prestigious MIT admission but she gave it up for a shop floor job at Telco – A job where she challenged J R D Tata for ‘men only’ employment policy of Tatas and won the coveted job. She faced similar challenges like the engineering college but her persistence and diligence and professionalism won the day. Later in life, she cried profusely when she visited MIT.
Sudha supported the entrepreneurial dreams of Murthy emotionally, physically and even financially! Murthy would be broke and she would loan money and fund their expenses. She had a notebook of loans which she destroyed on their wedding day.
She regularly financed Infosys and saved it – even pawned her wedding jewellery. She had to be away from her young daughter Akshata to help Infosys as well as manage her job.
Narayan Murthy got an IIT admission but his father’s financial situation forced him to turn it down. He was devastated.
He learnt English due to the nudge and kind help of a roadside shopkeeper!
He proposed to Sudha in an autorickshaw. Though she agreed, her father was not convinced. Narayana also had worn a Red Shirt when meeting his prospective in-laws and gave weird responses to their questioning.
He turned down a lucrative job offer at Hindustan Lever because of the ‘separate toilets’ policy.
Azim Premji interviewed Murthy but did not offer him the job as he thought Murthy was too simple. What if Azim Premji had hired Narayan Murthy?
Narayan Murthy founded Infosys but he gave a lion’s share to all other colleagues. All the other co-founders got big equity share – more than the normal business parlance. He kept only 30% and distributed the rest. He took a 90% salary cut while gave a 20% hike to others. He always focussed on the comfort of the employees. Compassionate Capital is his mantra!
Narayan Murthy did not allow Sudha to join Infosys as he wanted to create a totally professional company. He told her that if she wants to join Infosys, he will support her decision – he would leave and let her run the show. Sudha was very disappointed, hurt and angry. These hard decisions created Infosys as a different company (there was a brief departure from this position when Rohan joined as EA for a short period).
What if Sudha Murthy ran Infosys?
Murthy was busy building Infosys and could not spend time with the kid. The children felt that Infosys was the third sibling – the favourite child that never grew up and required constant attention.
He continues to be the simpleton. He cleans his own toilet.
Sudha clearly emerges as the brighter, smarter and more generous with her untold sacrifices. But Narayan Murthy’s simplicity, humanity, ethical approach and care for everyone else is his distinguishing hallmark. As Sudha said, he was the trapeze artist in the circus and she was the safety net!
In summary, Uncommon Love is a great read. The author’s grip on the content is not consistent and the book is bereft of any pictures – the one big disappointment in such a rich historically important biography. While the childhood, career, courtship, marriage, childbirth and entrepreneurship is captured well, the rise of Infosys and Sudha’s author career is very rushed.
The love, understanding, respect and support that Sudha and Narayan gave each other is the core message of the book. They do not need anyone else other than each other’s company. They are mirror to each other and their bond strengthened by shared values and idealistic principles.
The book also gives a glimpse of the challenges that Narayan Murthy faced in setting up Infosys after his first failure as an entrepreneur. Indeed it is due to persistence of him and likes of Fakir Chand Kohli, that India has emerged as an IT superpower – that would change the glo
Past Lives: A Poignant Painting Of Relationships, Identities & Possibilities!
One of the year’s best and a must watch movie! A slow burn movie that touches your heart! A though provoking movie that spans time and continents!
Celine Song’s debut movie beautifully captures the lives of two childhood friends over a two decade period where they explore their relationships in the backdrop of life events. Nora & Hae Sung are academic rivals and friends who once go on a parent brokered ‘play date’. The boy is in awe of the girl but she emigrates to Canada.
Thanks to social media and digital world, they reconnect after twelve years but begin to drift apart again as Nora is committed to her ambition and explores the life she desires. Hae Sung finally meets Nora after another twelve years, as he plans a vacation to New York to meet the established playwright Nora, who is married to writer Arthur. How the meeting unfolds and unravels the nostalgic emotions is what makes Past Lives a brilliant and reflective piece of art!
The Korean concept of “in-yeon” is central to the movie.
The movie thrives in the power of saying the unsaid – eye contact, silence, stillness, music, backdrops etc. Watch the powerful ending…..soul moving!
The movie is a master class in story telling, cinematography, music, acting and direction. Hae Sung (Yoo Teo) wins your heart as a handsome, sweet, dignified, mature and totally romantic protagonist. Nora (Greta Lee) is confused, vulnerable, practical and emotionally torn. Arthur (John Magarro) makes a great impact as Nora’s husband. Celine Song’s direction is truly amazing – full marks to her for a perfect debut.
Past Lives – A movie about love, loss, marriage, career, culture, diaspora, nostalgia, relationships and destiny! How our relationships affect our lives!
Faadu is a clutter breaking slow burn love story powered by exceptional performances of Saiyami Kher and Pavail Gulati.
When Ghalib Meets Gucci
When Bhutan Meets America
When Faiz Meets Ferrari
Faadu starts as a refreshing tale of opposites attract. Manjiri and Abhay comes from a completely different background. Ujjain descendant Abhay, his auto rickshaw driver father, ailing mother and alcoholic brother live in a Mumbai Ghetto where life is an endless struggle and everything claustrophobic. Manjiri hails from an idyllic village in Konkan Coast where her highly supportive poetry loving father has given her complete support and encouragement to fly in the open skies. Both meet, appreciate each other’s candour, fall in love and marry. So far so good.
However, ambitious Abhay is on a single minded mission to break the shackles of poverty and ensure a meteoric rise in the city of dreams. He makes questionable choices resulting into a troubled relationship with family and Manjiri. The journey of impatient Abhay overtakes the romance as he navigates different chapters of his hyper quick but grey growth.
Faadu is indeed a slow burn where Saiyami Kher shines. She is the moral compass and acts an anchor with brilliant clarity. She is the fountainhead of poetry, patience and simplicity. Pavail is equally strong and shows a great transformation. Great supporting cast as well.
Faadu slips in the second half and could have done with better editing. Though, its slow pace could appeal to a few sections. Excellent music and awesome cinematography.
Modern Love Hyderabad: Baingan Ka Bataan? Nau..Lekin Mazza Nahin Aaya!
Formulaic Fare That Does Not Impress!
Hyderabad is a city with a special magic! The city of pearls is lovingly progressive and its golden hearted people welcomingly share the love for food, cinema and culture. The Hyderabadi lingo, IT transformation, culinary delights and overall warmth stay on….
An anthology celebrating Nawabi city, cuisine & kiraak Ishq deserves to be much much better! Especially when Hyderabad Blues’ Nagesh Kukonoor paints the multiple shades of Love & muse Hyderabad!
What is love? Billion definitions for a universal emotion. Is love letting go? Should you wait for love to discover you? Is love unconditional? Modern Love Hyderabad gives a few perspectives.
Six stories. Six angles. All celebrate love and successfully keep Hyderabad at the centre of it. All the interpretations have strong women protagonists – unique, emotional, vulnerable yet very impressive and steadfast.
‘My Unlikely Pandemic Dream Partner’ is the best of the lot with Revathy and Nithya killing it. Perfect partners can drift apart. A mother wants space from her child. Cool!
‘How To Find Your Penguin’ is interestingly creative and brave. Komalee Prasad manages to carry the bizarre idea of a microbiologist comparing men to animals and birds. It again lacks depth and falls short….
‘Why Did She Leave Me There?’ is an heart-wrenching emotional drama showing unconditional love means letting go…
‘What Clown Wrote The Script’ is fresh and promises great potential…but does not carry through…
Purple Stilettoes can ruin a purple patch…’Fuzzy, purple and full of thorns’ is a story with relatable couple and Ritu Varma in form but script falls short.
‘About that Rustle in the Bushes’ is predictable…
Modern Love Hyderabad is a soothing, warm and predictable love series with happy endings and nice music. It keeps Hyderabad at the centre of it but it is not as brave as Modern Love Mumbai. M M Keeravani’s theme music and songs are really awesome! Director Nagesh could have done better!
Let’s see what Modern Love Chennai brings….The best would be to green light Modern Love Sangli, Modern Love Rajkot, Modern Love Bokaro, Modern Love Rohtak, Modern Love Baramulla – What say?
Modern Love Season 1 remains the topnotch fare. Crème de la crème! Watch it first before anything else!
Mughal-E-Azam is a landmark classic of Indian cinema. The movie was the costliest movie and broke all box office records to become the highest grossing Bollywood movie of all time. Its record was broken by Sholay. Its footfalls were higher than Baahubali and Hum Aapke Hain Kaun.
K Asif’s Mughal-E-Azam is a milestone of Indian cinema. It has been reinvented and redesigned by Feroz Abbas Khan as a musical play. Set in the style of Broadway, this musical play accentuates the greatness of original Mughal-E-Azam.
The play was launched in Mumbai and has travelled to Delhi. It was in Ahmedabad for four days and we grabbed the opportunity to see it.
Mughal-E-Azam means grandeur. Feroz Abbas Khan gives Broadway treatment and royal grandness to the play. Each and every aspect of production is impeccable and majestic. The set design and the digital play is the highlight. The choreography is awesome. Manish Malhotra’s clothes and Naushad’s music steal your hearts.
The live music and the singing by actors is terrific. Audience had multiple queries of it being recorded or lip-sync. The actors sang live to clear all doubts.
Parda nahi jab koi khuda se, Parda nahi jab koi khuda se
Bando se parda karna kya, Jab pyaar kiya to darna kya
Wow!
Mughal-E-Azam has a story is timeless and appeals to the broader audience. It is a story that brings out the secular nature of the nation. It has class conflict, love conflict and many other dimensions.
Shapoorji Pallonji produced the K Asif version and they brought it back in theatrical form. This is also a classic in making.
Big cheers to Feroz Abbas Khan. The magic of Feroz Abbas Khan is the grand visualization and courage to reinterpret India’s milestone movie. To contemporaries it for Instagram generation. A timeless love tale in Tinder times.
Watch it!
YouTube Glimpse:
Special note for the Ahmedabad event organizer: It was one of the worst experiences. The basic promise was broken. The seating arrangement was not as promised. The cancellation of two lower categories and they placing them at the top of the ladder was a stupidest mistake. The show started one hour late, and police intervention was required to start the show. Total chaos. Many people came from other cities to watch it and the experience was shameful. Senior citizens had to stand for hours. We watched the 60% of the show standing inspite of my friends paying a bomb for the tickets.
Love is in the Bollywood air ! After Aashiqui 2 and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Raanjhanaa brings a different love story with a twist.
Aanand Rai’s Tanu Weds Manu was an impressive outing. I was looking forward to Raanjhanaa and A R Rahman’s music. I was very curious to see Dhanush – can he pull off a full fledged Bollywood movie based in Benares? I was pleasantly surprised. Raanjhanaa is one of the best movies of 2013 inspite its melodramatic second half.
Raanjhanaa is an epic love story where a passionate lover meets innocent beauty. The boy is an ardent devotee of his love while the girl is at her casual best. The first half keeps us hooked with engaging plot, great acting, nice music and beautifully captured Benares (different from traditional images we see on TV). Dialogues are earthy, witty and impeccably placed. Consider this one : Pyaar na hua, UPSC ka imtihan ho gaya. Dus saal se paas hi nahi ho raha.
The movie gets diluted in the second half due to the political plot and confused direction. If Raanjhaana had continued its first half tone, it could have been better. I know Rai had a great challenge for second half, but the current chosen second half’s melodrama diluted the impact.
A R Rahman is wonderful – each song is a beauty. Whether it is Tum Tak or Title Song or Tu Mun Shudi – Rahman take forward the Rockstar form and balances it with Benares times. Abhay Deol is his usual self and is rooted in his character. Swara Bhaskar is a strong and a real emerging talent. She had excelled in Rai’s earlier outing Tanu Weds Manu as well. Sonam Kapoor is at her best in the movie. She really transforms her throughout out the movie and this can be considered her strongest performance to the date. But the real winner is Dhanush. Dhanush wins you over with his passion and persistence. You really root for him. You want him. Every slap of Sonam brings you closer to Dhanush.
Dhanush rules the screen. He owns the movie. Though he received 1/3rd of Abhay Deol’s compensation, he hits the ultimate jackpot. He proved that Kolaveri Di is not his only claim to fame. He has the talent. Can he break the South Jinx? Can he surprise us again ? We are waiting !
The new Bollywood is a great place. Again and again it is proving that what really matters is talent and hard work. When they shine, looks really take a back seat. Irfan. Nawazuddin. Dhanush. It is exciting phase for Bollywood.
