'I realised why the farmers and the rural folks are going for Trump. They are so insecure and vulnerable that anybody who is throwing a line of hope to them, they seize it.'
'They are clueless about the man on the currency notes.' 'They have been fed with WhatsApp forwards, so either Gandhi is vilified or deified. There's nothing in between.'
'What is it about the institution of faith that makes somebody get a sense of impunity, that they believe they can get away with anything?'
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.
Rediff's critics -- Raja Sen, Aseem Chhabra and Sukanya Verma -- make Oscar predictions!
'You need the drishti, the experience. I am beginning to see things differently.'
'On our first day at the Kumbh Mela, there was a fire and shook our confidence. 'There must have been a few crore people there.' 'How do we place the camera in between them?'
'When you are a pioneer and someone who's put on a pedestal, but then the pedestal gets dusty, people don't look at the statue anymore.' 'They would say, 'Yes, yes, of course I know Bimal Roy. He made Do Bigha Zamin.'.'
'So my question was, 'What is it that you are proud of? What have you achieved? What is your contribution?' 'He had no answer.'
Twice-fried plantains make a great base for any kind of topping, especially something with avocado in it.
'The value of a human being is being lost. That's my biggest worry.'
'I have always looked at people and said, 'You just have to accept. You just have to love. You just have to let this person be and the trouble would be less.' 'But we keep complicating things, and that is the tragedy -- our desire not to understand.'
Gene Hackman had a long and rich career, playing leading and supporting roles in many Hollywood films.
'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.'
Here's a look at the expert predictions. Do send in your predictions too!
Aseem Chhabra presents his list of 100 best (and must watch) films -- many classics, some relatively new and several personal favourites.
'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.'
Karisma meets Maonj Bajpayee... Juhi wishes Alka Yagnik... Namrata enjoys a Parisian breakfast...
'When the phone's battery is running out, it will make a charming statement like "I'm feeling a little low. Please recharge me".'
Check out who Rediff critics are rooting for this year!
Aseem Chhabra Raja Sen, Sukanya Verma make their predictions.
Aseem Chhabra presents his list of 100 best (and must watch) films -- many classics, some relatively new and several personal favourites.
Aseem Chhabra presents his list of 100 best (and must watch) films -- many classics, some relatively new and several personal favourites.
Literary adaptations, whistleblower pursuits, kidnapped Santas and South India's biggest stars, Sukanya Verma lists them all on OTT this week.
'One afternoon, I spotted Karan Johar and film critic Rajeev Masand having tea with Nina Gupta, the head of NFDC, and barged into their meeting.' Aseem Chhabra's IFFI diaries...
'In a world which is full of categories, hatred and ideologies, there was this basic decency.'
As Swades turns 20, Aseem Chhabra looks back at the film that spoke to him.
Sean Baker broke a record by winning four Oscars just himself for Anora: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Editing and Best Original Screenplay.
Through Bob Dylan's music, lyrics, and Timothe Chalamet's superb acting, we feel we have rubbed shoulders with greatness, even when it is full of flaws, self-doubts, warts and all, observes Aseem Chhabra.
'He spent his lifetime writing about Africa, supporting the continent's desires to stand up against injustice. Watching him work, I learned to be tolerant, secular and liberal, values that now define who I have become.' Aseem Chhabra pays tribute to his father Hari Sharan Chhabra, one of India's foremost experts on Africa.
Rediff star reviewers tells us who they are rooting for.
Aseem Chhabra lists must watch films, many classics, some relatively new and several personal favourites.
'Sudip sir keeps telling me that what I have done is very Hollywood.'
Filmmaker Nisha Pahuja, whose widely acclaimed documentary opens in Indian theatres on June 6, in conversation with Aseem Chhabra.
This year's Sundance Film Festival was rich with films and the theatres were warm, even as temperatures outside dipped to below freezing point. It snowed only once but the sidewalks remained slippery for a few days.
Aseem Chhabra picks his favourite films from the recently concluded Berlin Film Festival.
The stars of MNIK, SRK, Kajol and Karan Johar, will be promoting their film in New York on February 1. And you can catch the action right here.
'People riot against power cuts, get beaten up, killed,' Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar, who have made the powerful documentary Katiyabaaz, tell Aseem Chhabra/Rediff.com
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