Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam is a masterpiece, and like most masterpieces of the cinema, it's a great act of folly, observes Sreehari Nair.
From show business to sports stories, you'll find plenty to keep you busy on OTT this week.
Rajinikanth's visible electoral strength is his constant mouthing of the term, 'aanmiga arasiyal', or 'spiritual politics', without he having to explain what it is. By implication, it is all that what Dravidian politics is not about. It may imply anti-corruption, being against Periyar's forgotten anti-god, anti-Brahmin dictum, but also ends up covering 'Tamil pride', which begins with Tamil language where, as a Maratha from Karnataka, he has more to defend himself. However, in the contemporary national context, aanmiga arasiyal is seen as a front for Rajini to market his brand of 'soft Hindutva' but identified even more with the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in political terms, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'The number of films released in cinemas in 2022 was closer to 1,200. It could cross 1,500 in 2023, since nearly all big stars in Hindi and regional languages have films lined up this year.'
It's comeback time for many Bollywood stars. With the OTT platform opening up, quite a few actors, who had taken a break, are getting ready to be seen again!
Blind is a film you are better off not watching, warns Mayur Sanap.
Rajinikanth is the third cinema personality after the late thespian Sivaji Ganesan and the late director K Balachander, also Rajinikanth's mentor, to have been chosen for the award from Tamil Nadu.
RRR threw a lifeline, or so it seemed -- to a world that was down in the dumps. Keeravani and his Naatu Naatu just happened to be in the right place at the right time, notes Saibal Chatterjee.
With the Delhi administration announcing a closure of cinema halls, producers of the Shahid Kapoor-starrer Jersey, which was to release on December 31, have decided to postpone it indefinitely.
With coronavirus cases on the decline, the Tamil Nadu government on Thursday withdrew restrictions such as night curfew and Sunday lockdown while permitting schools to reopen on February 1 for classes 1 to 12.
As Rajinikanth turns 69 on December 12, his family and friends took to social media to wish him. They posted pictures of the superstar and wrote touching notes.
The latest updates from the Tamil film industry.
The two obvious best choices are to combine OTT viewing time with some good eating, because Joe, Rishi and Co don't have to be the only ones dining well.
The New Year brings with it a new slate of movie announcements. The stars update us:
Looking back at Rajinikanth's film journey.
Rajini's call may now force other political parties, including the DMK and the Congress, who are in alliance talks already, to come up with water proposals of their own in their poll manifesto. In a way, this may be a 'tactical victory' for Rajinikanth, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'I couldn't sleep for a couple of nights due to stress, wondering if I could do the role...' 'I am still enjoying my work and that is a huge pat on my back.' 'But I haven't done much work because I am lazy and choosy.'
Religion matters. Aspirational India is still poor. India admires strong leaders. India values decency. Shreekant Sambrani highlights the reasons why the BJP pulled off improbable victories in the Hindi heartland.
"There was absolutely no need or necessity to mount a visceral attack on the religious beliefs of the Hindus. It was unwarranted and utterly unrelated to the occasion. That is what makes it deliberate and malicious," Justice G R Swaminathan of Madras High Court said.
The latest updates from the Tamil film industry.
Sukanya Verma lists everything you can look forward to on OTT this week.
Lovingly made, heartfelt stories that speak the truths about our lives.
The cinema industry is staring at a loss of at least Rs 5,000 crore at the box office over the next six months if Omicron proves to be a spoiler.
Dominic Xavier captures the uncertainty among theatre owners and movie watching public as the big screen once again promises a magical mystery ride.
'It's time to change this system of randomly giving stars and the right to bad critics to run down our products.' 'Two films, even if both get three stars, are very different from each other.' 'I can understand if these stars indicated a level of enjoyment or engagement, but the current rating system is flawed because there are no parameters.'
'Earlier, it was four songs and four fights, and some story. That was enough.' 'Maybe we are in a box then and the audiences were not prepared for anything new.' 'Now we have got bigger scope.'
'The cross-pollination between the states has always been happening.' 'It's only over the past one or two years that all this talk about South versus Bollywood has been happening.'
The stark simplicity of the dialogues, the well-etched characters, the intriguing plot, the captivating music, the cinematography, but most of all the brilliant twist at the end makes Director Balaji K Kumar's Vidiyum Munn a must watch, says S Saraswathi
Filmmaker and actor Arjun Sarja is producing, directing and acting in a big budget Hindi movie.
A select 12 matches will also be broadcast in Malayalam via Asianet Plus.
Truth be acknowledged, Rajinikanth is not known for wanting to leave his comfort zone to take the politico-electoral plunge, even if it meant his becoming the chief minister of a state that has conferred Tamil cinema's superstardom on him over the past 25 years. Today, his fans belong to the younger generation all right, but their numbers are far fewer than their counterparts in the '90s. They are not devoid of personal ambitions and agendas, unlike what Rajinikanh wants them to be, if he and they were to enter politics, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The likes of iconic actor-director Guru Dutt, South star Silk Smitha, actor Jiah Khan and now, Sushant Singh Rajput gave up on life in the Indian film industry.
'He's always been an all-inspiring kind of director that nobody can surpass,' R Madhavan tells Subhash K Jha about Mani Ratnam.
'If questioning and dethroning hierarchies is your primary motive, why not put an end to the practice of announcing your shining star, your box office draw, in big flaming letters and mentioning everyone else's name in small font at the bottom of the screen?' asks Sreehari Nair.
If Team Rajini expected Kaala to carry the superstar's political message off-screen, it may have proved counter-productive. If the not-so-infrequent presence of Muslim residents of Dharavi, including that of Kaala's ex-love Zarina, in many scenes is expected to convey a political message, it is a no-brainer, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
About 30 Tamil films slated for a March release are already delayed.
A lowdown on what's happening in the Tamil film industry.
'He is busy building an image on the social media as an anti-right-winger.' 'But remember: An actor is only good at what he was born to do,' observes Subhash K Jha.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances