“The Sky Is Pink” by Shonali Bose (2019)

Favorite 52 movies screened between Aug 20 and May 21 (#49)

Good personages, humor and gender content
Excellent script, dialogues, direction and message

After one hour, you wonder what is still to be said in the second hour of the movie, but surprise, it gives you the best part, bringing the personages and their relationship closer
Some insipid songs make the score most annoying
A movie that has been well liked by the public, but not so by critics

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 6,1
Metascore 5,5
Roger Ebert 0,0
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,8
IMDB 7,5
Average critics 3,9
Average public 8,2

Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim
Director: Shonali Bose
Writers: Shonali Bose, Juhi Chaturvedi (hindi dialogue) | 1 more credit »
Music by Mikey McCleary
Cinematography by Andrew Alderslade, Nick Cooke, Kartik Vijay
Film Editing by Manas Mittal

“The New Classmate” by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari (2015)

International update

First Feature

Good script, personages, direction and images

A very worthy first feature!
The Indian title means “Zero Divided by Zero Equals Nothing” … which would have beem much too difficult for Western audiences 🙂
Music at times too intrusive and childish: just like too many cooks spoil the broth, too many musicians handling the music spoil the score

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 6,5
Metascore —
Roger Ebert —
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,0
IMDB 8,4
Average critics 6,5
Average public 8,2

Original title: Nil Battey Sannata

Cast: Swara Bhaskar, Ratna Pathak Shah, Riya Shukla
Director: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Writers: Nitesh Tiwari, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Music by Naren Chandavarkar, Rohan-Vinayak
Mmusic composed by Vinayak Salvi, Rohan Utpat
Cinematography by Gavemic U. Ary
Film Editing by Chandrashekhar Prajapati

“Margarita With A Straw” by Shonali Bose and Nilesh Maniyar (2014)

Best movies seen in 2020

Great personages, dialogues and message
Excellent script, direction and images
Top gender content and minority presence

A movie that brings together personages with different physical disabilities, coming from antagonistic backgrounds and religions, and with sexualities diverging from the norm, in a true and poignant story
Extraordinary acting by Kalki Koechlin who can express so much and so clearly with her face and her body!

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 7,1
Metascore 6,3
Roger Ebert —
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,0
IMDB 7,2
Average critics 6,7
Average public 7,6

Cast: Kalki Koechlin, Revathi, Sayani Gupta
Directors: Shonali Bose, Nilesh Maniyar (co-director)
Writers: Shonali Bose, Atika Chohan
Music by Mikey McCleary
Cinematography by Anne Misawa
Film Editing by Monisha R Baldawa, Bob Brooks, Saksham Verma

“The Sky Is Pink” by Shonali Bose (2019)

Good personages, humor and gender content
Excellent script, dialogues, direction and message

After one hour, you wonder what is still to be said in the second hour of the movie, but surprise, it gives you the best part, bringing the personages and their relationship closer
Some insipid songs make the score most annoying
A movie that has been well liked by the public, but not so by critics

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 6,1
Metascore 5,5
Roger Ebert 0,0
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,8
IMDB 7,5
Average critics 3,9
Average public 8,2

Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim
Director: Shonali Bose
Writers: Shonali Bose, Juhi Chaturvedi (hindi dialogue) | 1 more credit »
Music by Mikey McCleary
Cinematography by Andrew Alderslade, Nick Cooke, Kartik Vijay
Film Editing by Manas Mittal

“Village Rockstars” by Rima Das (2017)

Good script, personages, images, content
Excellent direction

The life of a young girl who dreams of having a guitar
A serene movie in which children possess the rural Indian landscape
interesting scene when the girl gets her first menstruation
A movie predominantly made by Rima Das and her family, and if you’re patient enough to get to the end of the credits, you’ll see how extended her family is 🙂

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 8,0
Metascore —
Roger Ebert —
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 9,3
IMDB 7,2
Average critics 8,0
Average public 8,3

Cast: Bhanita Das, Basanti Das, Boloram Das
Director: Rima Das
Writer: Rima Das
Music by Preetom Dutta
Cinematography by Rima Das
Film Editing by Rima Das

“Manto” by Nandita Das (2018)

Good script, personages, direction, music and message
Excellent dialogues and minority representation

IMDB 7,4

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Rasika Dugal, Tahir Raj Bhasin
Director: Nandita Das
Writer: Nandita Das
Music by Babli Haque, Sneha Khanwalkar, Raftaar
Cinematography by Kartik Vijay
Film Editing by A. Sreekar Prasad

“The Japanese Wife” by Aparna Sen (2010)

A Weekend Treat!

Good script and minority representation

A good story
I am tempted to summarize the movie as having a weak and manipulated man stuck between three women as its main character… but I don’t think Aparna Sen would approve 🙂

IMDB 7,6

Cast: Rahul Bose, Chigusa Takaku, Raima Sen
Director: Aparna Sen
Writers: Aparna Sen, based on the story by Kunal Basu
Music by Sagar Desai
Cinematography by Anay Goswami
Film Editing by Rabiranjan Maitra

“Gully Boy” by Zoya Akhtar (2019)

My Year’s Favorites (Aug. 2019-July 2020)

Good personages, humor and images
Excellent dialogues, direction and content
Top script and music

A movie that shows the struggles that young people in India endure to change the deeply anchored traditions of their parents
Great story and great music!

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 7,4
Metascore 6,5
Roger Ebert 0,0
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,6
IMDB 8,2
Average critics 4,6
Average public 8,4

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Writers: Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti
Music by ishQ Bector, Karsh Kale, Jasleen Royal
Cinematography by Jay Oza
Film Editing by Nitin Baid

“Margarita With A Straw” by Shonali Bose & Nilesh Maniyar (2014)

My Year’s Favorites (Aug. 2019-July 2020)

Great personages, dialogues and message
Excellent script, direction and images
Top gender content and minority presence

A movie that brings together personages with different physical disabilities, coming from antagonistic backgrounds and religions, and with sexualities diverging from the norm, in a true and poignant story
Extraordinary acting by Kalki Koechlin who can express so much and so clearly with her face and her body!

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 7,1
Metascore 6,3
Roger Ebert —
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,0
IMDB 7,2
Average critics 6,7
Average public 7,6

Cast: Kalki Koechlin, Revathi, Sayani Gupta
Directors: Shonali Bose, Nilesh Maniyar (co-director)
Writers: Shonali Bose, Atika Chohan
Music by Mikey McCleary
Cinematography by Anne Misawa
Film Editing by Monisha R Baldawa, Bob Brooks, Saksham Verma

“Margarita With A Straw” by Shonali Bose & Nilesh Maniyar (2014)

Teens & Sex / A Weekend Treat!

Great personages, dialogues and message
Excellent script, direction and images
Top gender content and minority presence

A movie that brings together personages with different physical disabilities, coming from antagonistic backgrounds and religions, and with sexualities diverging from the norm, in a true and poignant story
Extraordinary acting by Kalki Koechlin who can express so much and so clearly with her face and her body!

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 7,1
Metascore 6,3
Roger Ebert —
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,0
IMDB 7,2
Average critics 6,7
Average public 7,6

Cast: Kalki Koechlin, Revathi, Sayani Gupta
Directors: Shonali Bose, Nilesh Maniyar (co-director)
Writers: Shonali Bose, Atika Chohan
Music by Mikey McCleary
Cinematography by Anne Misawa
Film Editing by Monisha R Baldawa, Bob Brooks, Saksham Verma

“Gully Boy” by Zoya Akhtar (2019)

2019 was a good year!

Good personages, humor and images (8)
Excellent dialogues, direction and content (9)
Top script and music (10)

A movie that shows the struggles that young people in India endure to change the deeply anchored traditions of their parents
Great story and great music!

Rotten Tomatoes Critics 7,4
Metascore 6,5
Roger Ebert 0,0
Rotten Tomatoes Audience 8,6
IMDB 8,2
Average critics 4,6
Average public 8,4

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Writers: Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti
Music by ishQ Bector, Karsh Kale, Jasleen Royal
Cinematography by Jay Oza
Film Editing by Nitin Baid

See also

“Let The Heart Beat” by Zoya Akhtar (2015)

“You Don’t Get Life a Second Time” by Zoya Akhtar (2011)

Luck By Chance” by Zoya Akhtar (2009)