Rekha: Missing From the Frame
A biography of Rekha that is rich in empathy but lacks the diva’s voice
Open Magazine / September 2016 / Book Review
Mumbai-based film critic and independent journalist. Interested in longform narrative nonfiction. Awards: National Film Award for Best Film Critic (Swarna Kamal, 2015), and the Mumbai Press Club Award for Best Lifestyle and Entertainment Story (2015). E-mail: thakurtanul@gmail.com
A biography of Rekha that is rich in empathy but lacks the diva’s voice
Open Magazine / September 2016 / Book Review
Gay Talese might be an iconic journalist, but in his latest book he is an accomplice to a pervert.
Open Magazine / August 2016 / Book Review
How Bollywood shuts its doors on the poor
The Caravan / July 2016 / Feature
Anurag Kashyap is clearly going through a professional crisis at the moment.
The Wire / June 2016 / Film Review
Should the Central Board of Film Certification be taking instructions from the Home Ministry?
The Wire / May 2016 / Feature
The CBFC's systematic approach to curbing freedom of expression
The Wire / June 2016 / Feature
The inescapable casteism in the backlash against Sairat
The Caravan / July 2016 / Feature
Has Shah Rukh Khan copied a Shah Rukh Khan lookalike?
The Caravan / May 2016 / Feature
The unappreciated work of Bollywood’s script supervisors
The Caravan / February 2016 / Feature
A profile of Guddu Rangila, one of Bhojpuri cinema’s most popular stars, known particularly for the offensive and lewd songs he sings. (Winner of the 2015 Mumbai Press Club Award under the Lifestyle & Entertainment category.)
The Big Indian Picture / September 2014 / Feature
Firoz Khan has made a name for himself as the nation’s most popular Amitabh Bachchan lookalike. But his greatest gift is also his prison.
The Big Indian Picture / October 2013 / Feature
On Shivendra Singh Dungarpur's efforts to restore India's cinematic heritage.
Yahoo! Originals / April 2015 / Feature
Rahul Desai and I interview one of Indian cinema's definitive voices, film critic Baradwaj Rangan.
India Independent Films / March 2016 / Interview
Why do horrex heroines in Bollywood rarely get to take charge when it comes to ghostbusting? What should really scare them is a creature that walks on two legs.
Yahoo! Originals / February 2015 / Feature
Days after the ’84 Bhopal gas leak, a native of Bhopal recorded several hours of footage of the disaster’s aftermath. I write about the making of Bhopal 84, a documentary born of that footage, which casts new light on the world’s worst industrial disaster
The Sunday Guardian / December 2014 / Feature
Expect fact to be stranger than fiction in 2016
GQ / February 2016 / Opinion
On film professionals who left a mark in the last decade
Platform magazine / December 2015 / Opinion
Is Ram Gopal’s 25-year-old cult classic Shiva still worth a watch?
GQ / November 2015 / Opinion
Cameron Bailey, artistic director at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), on the changing landscape of Indian cinema, what it would take for MAMI to become a big player on its own, TIFF's reputation of predicting success at the Oscars, and more
FirstPost / November 2015 / Interview
The Guardian's critic Peter Bradshaw on the relevance of film critics in today's times, the future of film criticism, and why people who complain about spoilers, in critics' reviews, are really "stupid"
FirstPost / October 2015 / Interview
They don’t have famous last names, and the film industry will give them only so many chances. They are the A-grade actors who will always be B-list stars.
Man's World / October 2015 / Feature
A sharply observed police procedural about justice and class tensions
The Wire / October 2015 / Film Review
An uncomfortable intersection of the past and the present
The Caravan (Vantage) / July 2015 / Film Review
What Marathi film Killa can tell you about being homeless.
DailyO / June 2015 / Film Review
The Tamil film about two brothers will make you unspool images and memories that were buried somewhere deep.
DailyO / June 2015 / Film Review
Here’s why the founder of one of India’s first film magazines is rather controversial
OZY / September 2015 / Feature
Hollywood and Mumbai have been aware of each other and interacted for over a century but genuine creative collaboration between the two is a relatively recent phenomenon.
Fountain Ink / August 2015 / Interview
The Kashyap brothers, Anurag and Abhinav, haven't proven to be lucky for Ranbir Kapoor. But that still doesn't mean that he isn't already the defining actor, and superstar, of his generation.
Man's World / June 2015 / Feature / [Pdf , 117 KB]
The rich maybe shallow, but they have the same heartaches
The Wire / June 2015 / Film Review
Rahaab Allana on curating India’s greatest photographic archive — the Alkazi archive.
Man's World / May 2015 / Feature
Delhi-based NGO Love Commandos protects runaway couples from honour killings. If NH10 is anything to go by, we need it more than ever
Man's World / April 2015 / Feature
Mohsin Hamid’s non-fiction has much of the wit and vigour of his novels. Whether he is discussing the personal or the political, he takes to task hypocrites and rabble-rousers.
The Sunday Guardian / February 2015 / Book Review
An event hosted by Zohra Sehgal's relatives, friends, and co-workers to commemorate the legendary actress revealed a hitherto unknown side of her.
The Sunday Guardian / August 2014 / Feature
The 15th Roger Ebert’s Film Festival is the first to be held after the passing of its founder. Here is an account of the legacy of a man who was one of the most important voices on cinema ever.
The Big Indian Picture / April 2013 / Feature
Kamal Swaroop is known for flouting every possible convention. Swaroop speaks about his documentary on Dadasaheb Phalke, a project that’s taken two decades to materialise.
The Sunday Guardian / July 2014 / Interview
Indian cinema has recently been crippled by regressive censorship. I inquire what leads to such retrograde decisions.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2014 / Feature
Aurally challenged wrestler Virender Singh has so far been denied a fair chance to represent India at the Olympics. However, a new rule and a little help from three young filmmakers may turn everything around.
The Sunday Guardian / July 2014 / Feature
Naseeruddin Shah’s memoir is compulsively readable, doesn’t pull its punches and is informed by a writing style that manages to remain detached from its subject matter
The Sunday Guardian / December 2014 / Book Review
Gautam Chintamani's biography of Rajesh Khanna does not flinch from the actor's seamier side. It is a balanced and entertaining account of an often turbulent life
The Sunday Guardian / October 2014 / Book Review
Gauri Gadgil overcame the daunting challenges of Down Syndrome to become a renowned sportsman (she won a silver medal for swimming at the Special Olympics Summer Games in 2007). Six years later, she played herself in a role that won her a National Award.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2014 / Feature
Bollywood has begun to make films that get the mechanics of sport right. This is largely due to the contributions of sports consultants like Robert Miller, who have helped bring authenticity to films such as Chak De India!, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and Mary Kom
The Sunday Guardian / October 2014 / Feature
Abhay Kumar filmed four students at a top college for two years for his feature documentary Placebo. I spoke to the filmmaker about the pressure on young people today to be successful.
The Sunday Guardian / November 2014 / Feature
Half-baked characters and sloppy writing make Raghavan's latest a lesser film
The Sunday Guardian / February 2015 / Film Review
MSG: The Messenger is not a film, and shouldn’t be judged as one
The Sunday Guardian / February 2015 / Film Review
Foxcatcher dives deep into the world of competitive wrestling
The Sunday Guardian / February 2015 / Film Review
A predictable film that gleefully subverts the formula
The Sunday Guardian / January 2015 / Film Review
Cumberbatch’s acting chops enliven the film
The Sunday Guardian / January 2015 / Film Review
Kashyap’s ambition is both his boon and bane
The Sunday Guardian / December 2014 / Film Review
An ambitious space saga that falls just short of stellar
The Sunday Guardian / November 2014 / Film Review
Audacious filmmaking finds a story worth telling
The Sunday Guardian / October 2014 / Film Review
A documentary about how Bhojpuri music empowers Bihari migrants in Mumbai
RIFF Diaries / October 2013 / Film Review
Homi Adajania cannot be slotted as a filmmaker. He’s made an off-kilter thriller as well as a regular romcom. He talks about his dichotomous filmography and directorial choices.
The Sunday Guardian / September 2014 / Interview
The life of one of India’s best known film festivals, from its inception
The Big Indian Picture / October 2013 / Feature
Rachel Dwyer’s latest book, Picture Abhi Baaki Hai, explores Bollywood films since ’91 and examines their portrayal of modern India. I spoke to her about the transformation of Bollywood films.
The Sunday Guardian / October 2014 / Interview
For the last seven years, Rocky and Mayur have hosted some of the most popular food shows on TV, including Highway On My Plate and FoodMad. They talk about their love for food and India in this interview.
The Sunday Guardian / December 2014 / Interview
On an Indian documentary, I am Offended, that takes a close look at the burgeoning culture of stand-up comics in the country, placed within the context of growing cultural intolerance.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2014 / Feature
A report from the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, 2013
The Big Indian Picture / April 2013 / Feature
Siddiq Barmak on filmmaking in the middle of political turmoil in Afghanistan
The Big Indian Picture / November 2013 / Interview
On Subhash Ghai's descent into cultural irrelevance.
The Sunday Guardian / April 2014 / Feature
The BJP’s Art and Culture Cell emphasises the need to promote art rich in Indian values. Its National Convenor, Mithilesh Tripathi, talks about the cell’s future plans.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2014 / Interview
Tula Goenka interviews a diverse and impressive line-up of Indian filmmakers, but for the most part, her book is marred by the trite and clichéd questions she asks.
The Sunday Guardian / July 2014 / Book Review
The documentary 'The Quantum Indians' chronicles the lives of three celebrated Indian scientists—C.V. Raman, S.N. Bose, Meghnad Saha—using archival footage, cutting-edge computer graphics and interviews with leading Indian scientists.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2014 / Feature
How Luis Salinas became a globally acclaimed Mexican film producer in three years
The Big Indian Picture / January 2014 / Interview
Lynn Barber’s memoir is an honest, unflinching look at her long and illustrious career. It's also an impressively detailed exploration of the mechanics of an interview.
The Sunday Guardian / August 2014 / Book Review
Hamed Alizadeh on a new Afghan cinema
The Big Indian Picture / November 2013 / Interview
Manjunath Shanmugam’s heroic story affected filmmaker Sandeep A. Varma so deeply, he decided to make a biopic on the man. He traces his filmmaking journey in this conversation.
The Sunday Guardian / April 2014 / Interview
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