This year, the genre has done especially well, with films like Stree 2 and Munjya. Will Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 keep up the momentum?
The Housemaid makes up for a few hiccups with a series of sharply staged shocks, resulting in a fun and satisfying thriller, notes Mayur Sanap.
In the year gone by, quite a few of the younger actors flexed their acting muscle. Whether the films were blockbusters or not is immaterial, what matters is the effort put in.
Big films like Dhurandhar, Chhava and Kantara: Chapter 1 hit box office gold in 2025, and its directors, Aditya Dhar, Laxman Utekar and Rishab Shetty, have proved their worth. But many other directors made an impact with their 2025 releases, in various languages.
This is also the time when South Indian films started doing well, commercially and critically, on a Pan-India scale.
'A majority of filmmakers cannot truly understand the city because they don't live here,' says Anusha Rizvi, Director, The Great Shamsuddin Family.
Aseem Chhabra ranks the Best of 2025's films that released in theatres, or went directly to OTT platforms.
A look at the interesting movie releases lined up for November.
Pankaj Kapur, who visibly enjoys playing the ringmaster to this family circus, is the glue that holds Thode Door Thode Paas together, observes Deepa Gahlot.
Agra is weird, even ambitiously so, as the film moves between being disturbing and just plain odd, it doesn't fully land on either side, observes Mayur Sanap.
In 2025, OTT series were entertaining enough, even though most were in the crime genre.
'He was a joyful man. He was always content with his life and never ran after money.'
'In the beginning of Thamma, he's a common man like all of us. At the end of the film, he's a sexy beast!'
'It's heartening to see that the festive energy is being driven not only by star-led blockbusters but also by fresh, content-rich films.'
'I have always broken my image every time I went on screen. I don't know what it means to be a Greek God but people used to call me one.'
Dharmendra remained one of the most loved stars of all time, even when his movies tapered off, and age caught up with him.
'The industry has lost a legend... and we've lost someone who shaped the very soul of our cinema.'
September has packed in quite a bit on OTT, with many series and movies seeing their digital premiere. Joginder Tuteja lists the OTT menu for the month.
Comedies are a difficult genre to pull off in today's day and age, thanks to the audiences' increasing exposure to diverse content and dwindling attention spans. Still, there are quite a few Tamil movies that can bring on the laughs. Arjun Menon lists the recent releases you can watch at home.
Inspector Zende had the potential to be genuinely entertaining. Instead, it settles for formulaic fun, observes Mayur Sanap.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
We look at the longest Hindi movies through the years, and interestingly, most of them have done well.
The comedy is unfunny, the emotional bits are dubious and the music forgettable in Heer Express, observes Deepa Gahlot.
Stephen Graham won two awards at the Emmys, including Best Actor for his role in Netflix's hit drama Adolescence as well as Best Writing alongside co-creator Jack Thorne.
Flms belonging to genres as diverse as comedy, drama, romance, crime, and history get ready for release in theatres.
September is going to be an exciting month in theatres.
'We have come to the point in civilisation where emotion seems to be something you hide or you have to be discreet about, or to be ashamed of.'
Today, says Twinkle Khanna, motherhood is very different. "You're like a psychologist, you're their trainer, you're the nutritionist, you're seeing how many carbs they're eating, how many vitamins they're having, you're their chef, you're an educator and you are also their screen monitor. And you still have to make the hair along with that."
It was a black weekend for the Bollywood box office, as close to half a dozen new films arrived in theatres and all of them flopped!
'The heavens will be a merrier and a happier place now.' Colleagues pay homage to Satish Shah who passed into the ages on Saturday.
After Aneet Padda, Bollywood gets ready for yet another promising actress to storm the big screen.
'We don't make films for profit and that's exactly why profit follows.'
Asrani may have never been a marquee name up in sparkling lights or on outsized posters but the sheer proficiency with which he realised his characters has unleashed gales of laughter over five decades and made a significant contribution to several landmark films. Dinesh Raheja salutes the iconic actor.
Born on June 25, 1951, Shah was a prominent figure in Indian cinema and television. His career spanned several decades, during which he earned acclaim for his comedic timing in movies such as Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Maalamaal, Hero Hiralal, Main Hoon Na and Kal Ho Naa Ho.
One thing you realize after seeing the title of the Netflix show, 'The Great Indian Kapil Show' that the word 'comedy' is missing from the title. In the language of mathematics: Kapil Sharma equals to Comedy. Kapil is synonymous with laughter and as a comedian when you watch him he makes you forget all your worries.
Vijay Sethupathi and Nithya Menen's electrifying performances hold Thalaivan Thalaivii together, notes Arjun Menon.
Shivanand Kanavi remembers his father, the eminent Kannada poet Nadoja Chennaveera Kanavi.
'Look after your own mother before looking after your neighbour's mother.' 'I don't believe in starving my own mother and feeding sweets to the neighbours.'
'I'm totally focussed on finding the right energies around me. A lot of the treatment is psychosomatic, as my mother keeps reiterating, if you think positive, positive things will happen to you.'
