Renuka Vyavahare

The new adaptation of Sense & Sensibility offers a gloomier, grimmer take on Jane Austen’s classic tale of two sisters, their contrasting perspectives on love and heartbreak, and their struggle to navigate life, financial uncertainty and rigid social hierarchies in 19th-century England. It is fascinating to see how two sisters perceive love in their own distinct ways. One believes in restraint, the other in revelation. “We have neither of us anything to tell; you, because you do not communicate, and I, because I conceal nothing.” The older Elinor (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and younger Marianne Dashwood (Esmé Creed-Miles) embody the central philosophical conflict between Sense (rationality and restraint) and Sensibility (emotion and openness). Their contrasting attitudes towards emotional reserve, understanding and the expression of love shape their individual journeys, their sisterly bond and Austen’s larger commentary on women’s survival in a society that leaves them with little agency.

When he witnesses his parents fighting over the everyday struggles of middle-class life—expenses, responsibilities and survival, seven-year-old Thomas Miranda (Hridansh Parekh) realises that life isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. Yet, in his innocent logic, he believes that a little brother could bring the family closer and make them happier. But with their finances crumbling, his parents – piano teacher Jesse (Rasika Dugal) and baker Desmond (Gulshan Devaiah) are too preoccupied with keeping their household afloat to think about expanding their family or rekindling their romance. At the heart of director Kaushal Oza’s tender tale is a child who wants to believe in miracles but must eventually confront reality. Set in the sleepy neighbourhood of Fontainhas in 1990s Goa, the film unfolds like a gentle childhood lullaby, evoking a time when life moved at a slower pace and childhood was unburdened by the noise of the world.

A sleeper agent of Pakistan’s ISI, Bilal (Ayushmann Khurrana), infiltrates India’s Counter Terrorism Squad (CTS), only to lose his memory in an accident and forget his real identity. With dime-a-dozen spy thrillers flooding Bollywood, Udta Teer feels like a refreshing mockumentary-style satire that offers a funny take on the genre. At least, that’s how it begins. An Indian agent proclaims, ‘Mulk ke aagey kuch nahi’, only for it to emerge that he is actually Pakistani and means the same for his own country. But when he and his allies risk blowing their cover, a fatal accident leaves him with amnesia, triggering chaos and comedy as he suddenly becomes loyal to India. Deshbhakti yaad hai, par desh nahi.

Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries), a promising young actor on the brink of stardom, sees his world shatter when a ruthless mob boss brutally disfigures his face. Unable to accept his world crumbling beneath his feet, Hagen vows to reclaim everything he has lost, warning his tormentors: “I will be back, and I am coming for everything.” For a movie star whose face is his identity and currency, losing it is nothing short of a living nightmare. Matt begs Dr. Corr (Naomi Ackie) to restore his features, urging her to resort to any unapproved medical means necessary. The procedure gives him back his face, but at a terrifying cost: an uncontrollable shape-shifting ability that he initially struggles to control. His body stretches, melts, bubbles, and contorts, allowing him to assume any shape, size, or identity he desires or even one that crosses his mind. The transformation wreaks havoc on his psyche and unleashes chaos upon his adversaries.

The gripping courtroom thriller centres on Ujjwal Nikam (Rajkummar Rao), India’s celebrated public prosecutor, revisiting his formidable legal battle against Ajmal Kasab, the sole surviving gunman captured during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. Tasked with securing justice by proving Kasab’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt, Nikam faces unprecedented challenges and makes immense personal sacrifices to build an airtight case in a trial that holds the nation’s attention. He handled the Kasab case from December 2008 until Kasab’s execution in November 2012, spanning nearly four years. The 26/11 terror attacks didn’t just shake the nation and the world; they drove a dagger into the beating heart of Mumbai, a city whose indomitable spirit and resilience have always defied its darkest hours. It remains one of the most painful chapters in the city’s history, one that continues to haunt and unsettle every Mumbaikar.

Drishyam 3 walks a dangerous line. How many times can you revisit the same crime, the same family and the same cat-and-mouse game before the formula begins to show? The film doesn’t reinvent the franchise, but it does just enough to keep you invested. A new police officer, Rajveer Tomar (Jaideep Ahlawat), arrives with one mission, to do what everyone before him failed to — bring Vijay Salgaonkar (Ajay Devgn) to his knees. Rajveer is convinced he has fresh evidence that can finally crack Vijay’s carefully constructed defence. His philosophy is simple: “System ka darr bana rehna chahiye.” And unlike the cops before him, he believes he has the ammunition to make Vijay pay. But Vijay has survived this game before. As he puts it, “Agar hero jail mein gaya, toh audience ko accha lagega?” It’s a line that perfectly captures the franchise’s biggest trick: making you root for a man whose actions are, at best, morally debatable.

Digger Rockwell (Tom Cruise), an aging American oil tycoon, lives in an isolated mansion with his ailing white cat. Accustomed to getting his way and surrounded by people too afraid to disappoint him, Digger is not easily rattled. However, when the consequences of his reckless actions in Greenland threaten to unleash a climate catastrophe across Northern Europe, he is forced to confront a crisis of his own making. With the help of Dr. Ganesh (Riz Ahmed) and the President of the United States, Digger must race against time to contain the damage and halt the unfolding disaster. But can a man who spent his life exploiting the planet and people, find a way to save it?

Primetime is based on the controversial mid-2000s true-crime series To Catch a Predator, hosted by American broadcast journalist Chris Hansen (Robert Pattinson). The psychological thriller follows Hansen and his production team as they conduct sting operations to expose suspected paedophiles who engage in online chats with minors. The team recruits adult volunteers posing as 13-year-olds to lure potential predators into meeting them. Once they arrive, they are ambushed on camera by Chris before being arrested by the police. The show was widely celebrated for its intent of exposing sexual predators but its methods often walked a murky ethical line. That moral ambiguity forms the heart of Primetime. Director Lance Oppenheim examines the credibility, ethics and moral corrosion of vigilante justice when packaged as entertainment. What begins as an ostensibly noble mission gradually becomes a spectacle, where humiliation, outrage and ratings feed off one another. The film also traces the systematic erosion of conscience among those involved, culminating in the suicide of one of the accused.