TOP 10 HINDI MOVIES OF 2023
1. JAANE JAAN
What I remember - Great Mr Jaideep Ahlawat, the teacher is always wrong! Tumne wohi kiya na jo meine kaha tha, fir? Awesome awesome movie!
FROM THE FILES -
JAANE JAAN - 5 STARS. PG-13
Directed by - Sujoy Ghosh
Starring - Kareena Kapoor Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Varma
Why Should I Watch it -
2. ROCKY AUR RANI KI PREM KAHANI
What I remember - Great Mr Ranveer Singh. Like Jaideep he made this role his own. Really funny jokes. A lot of liberal agenda and over the top grand typical Karah Johar affair.
FROM THE FILES -
ROCKY AUR RANI KI PREM KAHANI - 4.5 STARS. PG.
Podcast-review - Google / Samsung
Rocky aur Rani ki Prem Khaaani - Trailer
Directed by - Karan Johar
Starring - Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt
Why should I watch it -
Remember NRI 90s movies that were tagged as Bollywood? yea Karan Johar is back! You crave a rich people love story? when did you last time see it? long time back. When did you actually laugh at a lead comic character? A mainstream masala movie with dollops of liberalism sprinkled all over - when did you last see that? When did you see every dialogue written so that you remember it forever?
तो भाई खड़ा खड़ा मुँह क्या देख रहा है. जा मूवी लगा वेब पे आ गयी है! क्या? तू आलरेडी देख चूका है? चल ठीक है फिर आगे ब्लॉग पढ़ ले.
Why not -
To annoy me? Because you suddenly are pretending that you like small budget realistic cinema even though you have not watched any of the ones I have been begging every one to watch? Forget it man, who am I to convince you.
3. BOB BISWAS
What I remember - One bloody ending. Memory may not return but the skills still remain. Awesome thriller.
FROM THE FILES -
BOB BISWAS - 5.0 Stars (R)
Directed by Diya Annapurna Ghosh
Starring Abhishek Bachchan, Chitrangada Singh
The Story - There was a great movie named 'Kahaani' and there was a character in that movie called Bob Biswas. That character is developed in this movie. This is purely indigenous 'made in India' character. Bob is out of hospital with zero memory of his past. People pop up around him convincing him of various things including that he was a hit man in past forgotten life. He has no clue if wife and his kids are real, his friends are real, his employer is real. His appearance is of a bank clerk, what is the truth? Does it matter?
The Characters - Abhishek Bachchan who is pretty under rated actor puts on a look of Bob Biswas and plays it with honesty. Chitrangada Singh looks good for her role and adds to the mystery. Bob's kids are great as Bob gets attached to them. But the best are the side characters, the police the criminals the annoying neighbor and the best one is the Bengali babu shop keeper who keeps hinting Bob on what they do and how it is guiding principle of his life. Actually I can watch movie again just because of that bengali uncle.
The Verdict - I gave it a 5 stars because it was so different and so under the radar. It was an awesome thriller and suspense which I had to find on internet to watch. This definitely keeps you engaged.
4. FRIDAY NIGHT PLAN
What I remember - Beautiful sibling story. Cute and sweet.
FROM THE FILES -
Directed by - Vatsal Neelakantan
Starring - Juhi Chawla, Babil Khan, Aadhya Anand, Ninad Kamat, Ria Chaudhary, Aditya Jain, Medha Rana
Why Should I Watch it -
Why not -
oh... I only watch Hindi movies that are big name bad movies. So I can watch them and feel superior by trashing them as rehash of hollywood.
oh .. I only like movies of my superstar, when he makes the same faces and has the same plot.. ahh the movies at their best.
5. ALMOST PYAR WITH DJ MOHABBAT
What I remember - Awesome dialogues! A typical Anurag Kashyap love story, if that is a thing.
FROM THE FILES -
ALMOST PYAAR WITH DJ MOHABBAT - 4.5 Stars. (PG)
Directed by Anurag Kashyap
Starring Karan Mehta, Alaya F, Amber Arya, Vicky Kaushal
The Story - This is an Anurag Kashyap love story. It is not your run of the mill love story. It is an Anurag Kashyap love story. That should be enough for you to watch it. This is bout two Love stories in different parts of the world played by the same couple. Their is a lover who can't see anything outside of love, there is a person who receives love due to innocence in their heart. The person who is hopelessly in Love has no 'hope' in this world. Humans in a society are zombies, with no brains left to think for themselves. They do what they think society wants them to do.
The Characters - Anurag again delivers a great movie. He is my favorite director along with Anubhav Sinha so I am biased. The breaking news is - Alaya and Karan. Great, great actors, what a performance in their double roles. Alaya specially is awesome, I have not seen a person so confident in her crying. Generally actors don't cry the way an actual person cries, because it contorts their face and they may not look good. Alaya cries like she means it. Well done Alaya.
The Verdict - Did you watch Manmarziyan? go watch that along with this one. 2 best love stories of last few years. If you only want standard Bollywood stuff, like a Karan Johar romance, then stay away from this one.
6. VADH
What I remember - The great Sanjay Mishra making this his statement. What a script and a thriller you have not seen before.
FROM THE FILES -
VADH - 4.5 Stars. (R)
Directed by Jaspal Singh Sandhu
Starring Sanjay Mishra, Neena Gupta, Manav Vij, Saurabh Sachdeva
The Story - From the looks of it, we were dreading it to be a Baghban 2.0. We dragged our feet to get to this one. AND o boi... how wrong we were. Probably the best desi thriller I have seen in a while. Seeped in Indian ethos this bone chilling thriller makes you tight in the jaw, as you go through the ups and downs with the old couple who are living an unassuming life. Their kid has left them with debt, the only bright spot is the neighbor's daughter. They kind of have adopted her and then there is this problem of a small time loan shark who they have to deal with.
The Characters - Sanjay Mishra's swag is at a different level. He is this regular uncle who can turn into 70s Bachchan in no time. Neena Gupta is a collossal great they both do something special in this great movie. But the credit needs to be given to Jaspal Sandhu the director. I will definitely look out for this name in future.
The Verdict - Get ready to be shocked. This is not an old couple's sob story. It is a taut thriller.
7. GULMOHAR
What I remember - Unexpectedly great family drama. Looked like a cringe affair turned out to be an awesome family drama with depth and breadth.
FROM THE FILES -
GULMOHAR - 4.5 Stars. (G)
Directed by Rahul V. Chittella
Starring Sharmila Tagore, Manoj Bajpayee, Simran, Suraj Sharma, Amol Palekar, Kaveri Seth
The Story - Did I tell you about a movie which looked like it will be a Bhaghban 2.0 but it turned out to be an awesome movie? Yea i think I said that twice. No you are not in a time warp. This is the third such movie that I dragged my feet to watch thinking it will be a boring social drama instead it turned out to be a great one. The story is around Manoj Bajpayee, who is engaged in this movie to give it a good effort. A family is leaving their ancestral home in heart of delhi to a suburb. In that backdrop their are love stories that are being affected or blooming, there are revelations and a lot more dirty secrets coming out in the open. A very well written family drama. This is not your soap opera this is a good progressive family drama you want to engage yourself with.
The Characters - Manoj is great in this one. Sometimes I am critical of him and I remember few years ago I was critical of his face lift and his fake hair he grew. Maybe it was my jealousy that he got hair transplant when I did not. Not to bring my own drama into this family drama. Manoj is a good actor and he keeps the movie engaging. Sharmila Tagore does great as a cool Grandma. Amol Palekar does a great character in negative shades, that was something he would have never done before. The kids are really good too, they don't come across as caricatures and each character has depth to them. Awesome work by the Director Rahul. I need to remember his name too now.
The Verdict - Overall this encompasses entire 5 season of 'This is Us' kind of drama (My favorite drama ever) into a movie. Only negative I can think of is - they pushed LGBTQ angle a little too much, but who cares.
8. BLOODY DADDY
What I remember - Stylish all out fighting. This is an out and out action movie. One hotel and one night let's fight.
FROM THE FILES -
BLOODY DADDY - 4.0 Stars. PG.
Directed by - Ali Abbas Zafar
Starring - Shahid Kapoor, Ronit Roy, Rajeev Khandelwal, Sanjay Kapoor, Diana Penty
Why Should I Watch it -
What I remember - Apurva looked like a regular affair but turned out to be a Kill Bill!
FROM THE FILES -
APURVA - 4.0 STARS
Directed by - Nikhil Nagesh Bhat
Starring - Tara Sutaria
Why Watch it - Spoiler alert! The last dialogue uff... 'By The Way - My name is Dante!' (From count of Monte Cristo). What the heck am I talking about? I had read this thriller novel when I was a teenager and in the end he reveals himself as Dante. Anyways, the point is Tara Sutaria is abducted by 3 goons and it is her story of survival. One of the goon keeps calling him Pinky (due to her pink dress) and then she delivers the line - 'Mera naam Apurva hai' and smashes his head. I loved the movie especially how a bumbling idiot of an actor like Tara can become a good actor in a movie if you give her something to do. I remember she was in one of those Race 3 type of movies and now she is here doing action and throwing some shade at the goons.
Why Not - It's a small movie but has great star cast of goons. In total there are not more than 10 characters in the movie. That may or may not make you like it. It's a thriller and you may not be in the mood for a thriller.
What I remember - If it's Yami you can't go wrong. Yami Gautam is getting to be this blog's favorite actor. A lotta responsibility and pressure!!
FROM THE FILES -
CHOR NIKAL KE BHAGA - 4.0 Stars. (G)
Podcast-review - Google / Samsung
Directed by Ajay Singh
Starring Yami Gautam, Sunny Kaushal
The Story - A love story turns into a thriller. The couple need to get out of the mess and need to steal a lot of money. Underworld and terrorist are involved as the couple try to escape from everyone including the cops.
The Characters - Yami is the King. Yami delivers another great performance. Sunny is as good as someone's brother can be. He does his job.
The Verdict - Surprisingly it was a pretty good taut thriller. Edge of the seat and a good story and a awesome climax makes it a 4 starer. Out and out entertaining thriller.
OTHER NOTABLE MENTIONS
11. GHOOMER - A sports movie.
12. LOST - A serious thriller
13. DREAM GIRL 2 - A comedy.
14. AN ACTION HERO - Philosophical Thriller
15. TARA Vs BILAL - Love Story.
TOP 5 WEB SERIES
1. GUNS AND GULAABS
What I remember - A villain who is inserted as a cartoonish super villain in a realistic setting! Creative and whacky and Rajkumar Rao at his best.
FROM THE FILES -
GUNS & GULAABS - 4.5 STARS. PG13
Directed by - Raj & DK
Starring - Rajkummar Rao, Dulquer Salmaan, Adarsh Gourav, Gulshan Devaiah
Why Should I Watch it -
2. DAHAAD
What I remember - Surprisingly good Sonakshi and a great script and presentation by Zoya and Reema. You can't go wrong with these greats!
FROM THE FILES -
DAHAAD - 4.0 Stars. PG13
Created by - Reema Kagti, Zoya Akhtar
Starring - Sonakshi Sinha, Gulshan Devaiah, Vijay Varma, Sohum Shah
The Story - A great cop drama. Cops try to be one step ahead of a serial killer to avoid more killings. Very standard serial killer plot done right.
The Characters - Easily the best work Sonakshi has ever done. Take a bow Sonakshi Sinha. Gulshan Devaiah and Vijay Varma all put in awesome performances. Sonakshi and Gulshan's Boss subordinate relationship is awesome.
The Verdict - First time a serial killer is revealed in first episode and still you can't stop watching. It's not the identity it's the process of trapping him that is enthralling. It's not even the actual killing but the side stories and characters and their wholesome treatment and experiences that make it a great show.
What I remember - An overdose of Drugs and LGBTQ issues. May not be for everyone but again it's a Zoya Akhtar production.
FROM THE FILES -
MADE IN HEAVEN-2 - 4.0 STARS. PG13.
Directed by - Nitya Mehra, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Prashant Nair, Alankrita Shrivastava, Neeraj Ghaywan
Starring - Arjun Mathur, Sobhita Dhulipala, Kalki Koechlin, Jim Sarbh, Shashank Arora, Shivani Raghuvanshi, Mona Singh, Trinetra Haldar Gummaraju, Ishwak Singh
Why Should I Watch it -
4. POP KAUN
What I remember - This is called a out and out stupid comedy. Brains out laughter in.
FROM THE FILES -
POP KAUN - 4.0 Stars. (G)
Directed by Farhad Samji
Starring Kunal Khemu, Saurabh Shukla, Johny Lever, Rajpal Yadav, Ashwini Kalsekar, Farhad Samji
The Story - Kunal finds out his dad is not his dad. Starts the hilarious search for his 'Pop'. It probably was a movie that was divided into 5 episodes to make it a TV series. All the yesteryear comedians make an appearance and mostly all of them are funny except Chunky Pandey (what a surprise!)
The Characters - Kunal Khemu is our new Jimmy Shergill in the sense that all his films are good. He is center of all the fun going on. Saurabh Shukla, Johny Lever, and Rajpal Yadav all have their typical Quirks like responding to everything 10 seconds late or interpreting stuff that is similar sounding. Making it all stupid and hilarious. The best of the lot is Johny Lever's daughter who has a great comic timing and also mimics Johny Lever pretty well.
The Verdict - If you ever wanted to watch dumb stupid hilarious comedy this is for you. There is no underlying message it is completely stupid fun.
5. HASMUKH
What I remember - Veer Daas does write well. Very creatively written and great acting by Ranvir Shorey makes it a great watch.
FROM THE FILES -
HASMUKH - 4.0 STARS.
Genre - Crime/ Dark comedy
Directed by - Nikhil Gonsalves
Starring - Vir Das, Ranvir Shorey, Manoj Pahwa
Why Watch It - It is an old web series we watched now. Vir Das is a goo comedian and when he matches with Ranvir Shorey it is becomes double the fun. This series is a definition of dark comedy, brilliantly scripted and perfectly played especially by Ranvir Shorey! A comedian who can't muster courage to eclipse his mentor, who stutters in front of audience finds a way to become a fearless awesome funny comedian. The catch is - he needs to murder someone before every show!
Why Not - It's an old series. It gets slow after the initial blast of creativity and they struggle to end it in a proper way.
