'It is rare that a Hindi language film delivers so much promise in the first half. And so it is extremely disappointing when the director and his script lead us on the journey that starts to meander and eventually fizzles out, collapses and dies in front of our eyes.'
It is all about a C and C model -- of choices and consequences -- for women. Women make choices about their lives and for each of them there will be consequences, Shell India Lubricants MD Mansi Madan Tripathy tells Jyoti Mukul.
Indira Kannan picks Made in Bangladesh, Greed, Moothon.
'2016 was the age of convenience for Hindi movies; of down pat effrontery and planned feeling triumphing over attempts to discern something complexly beautiful,' says Sreehari Nair.
We bring you a fresh collection of offbeat, quirky stories from around the world.
'Her short black choli with a deep cut-out back and multi-coloured pom-poms became quite a sensation. It was clearly meant to draw your attention to Kareena's perfect figure.'
If Manto, the film, falls short of being a masterpiece it's because Nandita Das could not quite crack the Manto code: She couldn't quite see the wholeness of her subject with the same eyes that Manto saw his people. This imperfection in the film, in a way, becomes the greatest tribute to Manto, feels Sreehari Nair.
True Indian scenes most often lie on less travelled routes, along roads that have fallen off the map, after modern highways have come up. On the fourth leg of their 2,148 km journey, Rediff.com's Archana Masih and photographer Rajesh Karkera discover one such forgotten place in the Thar Desert.
'I had heard that it was a paradise... but when I first lay my eyes on it, it wasn't what I had pictured.' 'We had known of the devastation, but we didn't know the true extent of it.'
'Here was a man who played a major part in helping the Bengalis of East Pakistan create a new nation, secured the merger of Sikkim into the Indian dominion and built R&AW into a formidable outfit, comparable to the best in the world.' Rameshwar Nath Kao shunned the limelight, hated to be photographed and preferred to work behind the scenes. A revealing excerpt from Nitin A Gokhale's much awaited book, R N Kao: Gentleman Spymaster.
'We have created an enemy we can't even see and that enemy is entertaining us while tightening the noose around our necks.' 'As the radiation increases, it will affect everything -- from your little bumble bee to plants to every living cell.' 'By the time the effects are understood, it might be too late.'
India's beloved President -- there has been no other who has influenced the nation as much -- never stepped back from inspiring people to be the very best that they could be.
A round-up of Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy group matches played on Thursday.
'Wasn't there a single person below 30 in the whole production team? I wondered aloud at different points in the narrative,' notes Sreehari Nair.
What happens when you shoot at night, under pouring rain, as electrical wires snake around and your eyes turn gritty due to lack of sleep?
From Dudhwa to Veppathur and Havelock Island, the Indian tourism market is booming like never before.
Her great grandfather began sugar co-operatives in Maharashtra. Her grandfather was an eight time MP. Her uncle is currently leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly. Her cousin joined the BJP on Tuesday, March 12. Nila Vikhe Patil, who could one day become prime minister of Sweden, unravels her India connections in an e-mail interaction with Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel.
'End of the day, my thing is, entertainment, entertainment, entertainment.'
Amol Shahane remembers the first time he was introduced to St Valentine.
'Most of the time we do close-ups you'll be looking at the camera or your main lead, your leading lady, is left of the camera, right of the camera -- she's never there. So, your best close-ups are looking at some unfortunate-looking assistant director or a cameraman. All the romantic close-ups I'm looking at some guy.' Salman Khan tells P Rajendran/ Rediff.com how he shoots his romantic scenes.
'The hotel room number can never total up to 8.' 'I fly First Class and won't take a pre-9am flight.' Check out Bollywood's travel plans.
'As each week brings fresh tales of the woes of Rio on the eve of the Olympics, I wonder whether my friends had a foreboding that the Gods of the Olympics will bring only misfortunes to their country.' 'For, surely, Brazil is now getting ready to host the Games with a joyless spirit, says B S Prakash, formerly India's ambassador to Brazil.
'Sudhir Mishra takes us into the dreams and fears of our politicians, into their self-deceiving pitches, and he shows us their demons and angels,' says Sreehari Nair.
A mere pair of shoes sets off the kind of harsh condemnation Indrani draws in these corridors of justice. That she being a woman who killed her daughter -- never mind that she is an undertrial and the crime has not yet been proven -- apart from making her an object of curiosity, also makes her, by perception, more evil than the men that flood these corridors, facing trial for similar or worse crimes.
'Even in its unmistakably masala tone, Bajrangi Bhaijaan firmly believes the desire for peace is universal and recommends being a hero. Or just human,' says Sukanya Verma.
Favourite to win February's FIFA presidential election until the end of last week, Michel Platini is suddenly facing the same doubts and criticism which he has himself cast upon incumbent Sepp Blatter.
On International Yoga Day, South Delhi-based yoga teacher Saudamini Chandra found herself shepherding the young girl students to their first taste of India's heritage that was being celebrated across the world. This is her experience.
Kalyani Khona is helping the disabled find love.
Despite its squandered possibilities, Fan is always engaging, writes Sukanya Verma.
'Single life is pretty good. I like the attention. If I feel lonely, I just call my mom and she sleeps in my bed,' Kalki Koechlin tells Rediff.com contributor Paloma Sharma.
'With India's bowling so poor, there will be extra pressure on the batsmen to score more runs. The Indian team, which nonchalantly scores 300/350 runs in ODIs at home, has had problems making even 200/250 runs in Australia.'
Purab Kohli on fatherhood, Rock On!! 2, POW and more...
'Badlapur,' says Sreehari Nair, 'proves that sometimes there are more personal truths to be discovered in our trash cans than in our neatly arranged book-shelves.'
'If you batted an eyelid and drifted the vehicle a little, you'd certainly hit the unsteady rocks and meet your end. Or so it seemed.' 'By the way, did I tell you that we were cruising at approximately 12,000 feet and above?'
How things have changed for Dev Patel!
Aseem Chhabra's take on the highlights of Indian cinema this year.
Armed with a warm smile, the Swede shares his thoughts about Federer, Becker and modern-day tennis. Norma Godinho/Rediff.com speaks to the legend, who made the art of serve and volley a potent weapon, reckons Federer should skip French Open to focus on winning Wimbledon and that technology in the sport is here to stay.
'If one thing seemed clear in this week of very uneven tennis in Melbourne though, the much celebrated golden age of tennis may be over.'
18-year-old Paloma Sharma had never been to a fashion week until a few days ago. She writes about what it feels like to stick out like a sore thumb.
