'The fact that this was the first stop of French President Emmanuel Macron's trip shows his appreciation of the fact that films are not only a cultural exchange but also a tool of soft power that can foster economic growth.'
'Here's to India x France. And to many more stories waiting to be told.'
The Hollywood Reporter introduces yet another awards show, and India's biggest stars give it a warm welcome.
Vishal Jethwa comes to Rediff office, and talks about his Homebound journey, Martin Scorsese, his friendship with Ishaan Khatter and Janhvi Kapoor, and his love for singing.
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.
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.
'Global politics are in a pretty rough shape and always have been. But the speed and extent with which we receive the insanity surrounding us makes it feel more present and immediate.'
We asked readers to list their favourite films from 2025, and we got an interesting range of movies that included blockbusters, well-reviewed films and a couple of surprises.
Having grossed nearly $370 worldwide, Sinners filled up Warner Bros coffers when many of the studio's key 2025 films lost money, and deserves its many Oscar nominations.
Homebound missed an Oscar nomination; Sinners broke the record by getting the most nominations ever, at 16 counts.
'To have made it to the shortlist of 15 films for the Academy Award is a big deal for us.''
Film folk attended the premiere of Neeraj Ghaywan's new film, Homebound, India's entry for the Oscars.
A quick look at the 14 names the Neeraj Ghaywan movie is competing with for a spot in the top five nominations.
Over 25 years, societies evolve and tastes change. Cinema absorbs and reflects this transformation. Picking only 25 films from the first quarter of the century is tough.
The year had a variety of films to choose from. Not all of them were successful at the box office, but had merit.
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.
Aseem Chhabra ranks the Best of 2025's films that released in theatres, or went directly to OTT platforms.
Masaan received a five-minute standing ovation following its screening at the French Film Festival.
What made the premiere special was the almost 9 minute-long standing ovation given to the team by the audience.
From India's entry to the Oscars to the foodie flamboyance of Bollywood's first family to Srikant Tiwari's hope for a hat-trick and Korean entertainment in deeply dark mode, it's raining OTT goodies this week.
'Homebound stands for something very beautiful at a time where the world is starting to feel like there is a lot of othering going on and it's starting to feel divided.' 'We are starting to become less human, more disconnected.'
Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal celebrated their wedding anniversary over the weekend, and invited their friends over for a party.
In the slot of rural poor, there are those who struggle to pull themselves out of crumbling hovels, and there are the Jamtara-like bunch who turn to crime. Neeraj Ghaywan's Homebound is about the former, whose quest for respect and dignity is thwarted because they are underprivileged, notes Deepa Gahlot.
Janhvi Kapoor obviously knows how to impress at international film festivals.
Janhvi Kapoor is having a golden moment at the Toronto International Film Festival, and she captures it perfectly by wearing a gown of the same colour.
'Even if I didn't have anything to do with it, I would be very, very proud that this is the film that is representing India.'
A glimpse of the film, via the trailer, indicates a sincerity of purpose and the shining of a light into those corners of India that remain dark amidst progress and prosperity, notes Deepa Gahlot.
Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khatter, along with others, turned heads at Cannes 2025 as they walked the red carpet in absolute style ahead of the much-awaited premiere of their film 'Homebound' at the prestigious film festival.
The elegant actor walked the red carpet for her film, Homebound.
The festival's People's Choice Award, voted by the audience, is a strong indication of films that can eventually be nominated and even win Oscars. Twelve of the last 15 People's Choice winners have received Best Picture Oscar nominations.
'So my question was, 'What is it that you are proud of? What have you achieved? What is your contribution?' 'He had no answer.'
The organisers of the 78th Cannes Film Festival have announced the dress code for the attendees regarding the gala screenings at the Grand Theatre Lumiere, set to take place from May 13 to May 24.
'If you look around the world at people of colour, religion, caste, sexuality or any of the marginalised communities, we are always talking in numbers.' 'We are always assigning them a statistic.' 'That is an easy way to assuage your urban guilt. Because you hide your apathy with hollow sympathy.' 'We are, in a way, making them invisible.'
'These characters have huge spirits and they are fighting something that is much bigger than them.' 'The attempt was to portray how they navigate their lives, to retain that spirit and not let it die.'
'We have had several films on the caste system but they are all in different decades, when sensibilities were mature enough to comprehend.' 'Today, we are in a different zone of thought.'
'When Shahid, Ishaan and I are together, it is a madhouse because we are all performers.'
'In a world which is full of categories, hatred and ideologies, there was this basic decency.'
Bollywood doesn't need fire-breathing dragons when it has Bhai.
'A large part of this episode has come from my own life, the backlash I faced and my journey after having publicly claimed my identity.'
Steadily marching ahead for almost a decade now on the strength of his unassuming versatility, the 35 year old is ready to showcase his mettle in one of the most challenging roles of his career as India's first Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw in Meghna Gulzar's biopic, Sam Bahadur.
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