An eclectic selection of films, including two Oscar-nominated projects and a thriller directed by Tumbbad makers, are set to hit theatres in India this week. Here’s everything you need to know about this week’s theatrical releases.
Superboys of Malegaon (Hindi)
Directed by: Reema Kagti
Cast: Adarsh Gaurav, Vineet Singh, Shashank Arora
Prime Video Original film Superboys of Malegaon, helmed by Reema Kagti, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last year, hits cinemas in India this Friday. A heartwarming tale of friendship and filmmaking, Superboys of Malegaon brings to life the inspiring journey of Nasir Shaikh, an amateur filmmaker from a small town in Maharashtra. The film follows Nasir (Adarsh Gourav), a wedding videographer with a deep passion for cinema. Determined to bring joy to his community, he rallies his friends to create low-budget Bollywood parodies.
Crazxy (Hindi)
Directed by: Girish Kohli
Cast: Sohum Shah, Tinnu Anand, Nimisha Sajayan, Shilpa Shukla
A high-octane thriller that promises to fuse action, dark humour, and emotions, Crazxy tells the story of Abhimanyu Sood (Sohum Shah), a skilled surgeon caught in the worst day of his life. Written and directed by Girish Kohli, the film presents a relentless series of events that push Abhimanyu to his limits.
The Brutalist (English)
Directed by: Brady Corbet
Cast: Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones
Nominated for ten Oscars, The Brutalist follows the story of a Hungarian-Jewish architect Laszlo Toth (Adrien Brody), a Holocaust survivor, as he immigrates to America in 1947 to rebuild his life. While struggling with discrimination, betrayal, and financial hardship, he crosses paths with a wealthy industrialist, Harrison Van Buren (Guy Pearce), who commissions him to build an ambitious cultural centre. Toth’s masterpiece, The Van Buren Institute, becomes both a symbol of his resilience and a reflection of his trauma.
A Complete Unknown (English)
Directed by: James Mangold
Cast: Timothee Chalamet
Music lovers will find a lot to appreciate in A Complete Unknown, a biopic chronicling Bob Dylan’s early days in the 1960s New York folk scene. Directed by James Mangold and starring Timothée Chalamet in the lead role, the film portrays Dylan’s transformation from an aspiring musician to a cultural icon. Based on the 2015 book Dylan Goes Electric! by Elijah Wald, the film follows Bob Dylan’s rise from the early 1960s folk scene to his controversial shift to electric music.
Emilia Perez (Spanish)
Directed by: Jacques Audiard
Cast: Karla Sofía Gascon, Zoe Saldana, Selena Gomez
Nominated for 13 Oscars, Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Perez is a musical crime drama revolving around Juan ‘Manitas’ Del Monte, a Mexican cartel leader who, yearning to live authentically as a woman, seeks the assistance of lawyer Rita Mora Castro (Zoe Saldana) to transition and escape his criminal past. Following the transformation into Emilia Perez (Karla Sofia Gascon), she fakes her death and relocates her family to Switzerland for their safety. Years later, Emilia reconnects with Rita, expressing a desire to reunite with her family, leading to a complex and emotionally charged series of events that explore themes of identity, redemption, and the consequences of one's past actions. Selena Gomez is also part of the ensemble cast of the film.
Flow (Latvian)
Directed by: Gints Zilbalodis
Flow, an animated Latvian film, follows a dark grey cat struggling to survive in a world reshaped by a devastating flood. After losing its home, the cat sets off on a sailboat, joining forces with other displaced animals — a capybara, a ring-tailed lemur, a dog, and a secretarybird. Together, they journey across flooded landscapes, face various natural challenges, and learn to trust each other in their search for solid ground.
Dhrubor Aschorjo Jibon (Bengali)
Directed by: Abhijit Chowdhury
Cast: Rishav Basu, Judhajit Sarkar, Debesh Chattopadhyay, Ritwika Pal, Korak Samanta, Badshah Moitra
Dhrubor Aschorjo Jibon, winner of the Royal Bengal Tiger award at the 30th Kolkata International Film Festival in the Bengali Panorama section, explores the impact of art in our lives through four thematic chapters of crime, love, betrayal, and redemption. The story follows protagonist Dhrubo’s (Rishav Basu) morally complex journey, blurring lines between duty and desire. The works of Jamini Roy, Gaganendranath Tagore, Bikash Bhattacharya, and Benode Behari Mukherjee shape the narrative, serving as both inspiration and catalyst for self-discovery.
Aghathiyaa (Tamil)
Directed by: Pa. Vijay
Cast: Jiiva, Raashii Khanna, Edward Sonnenblick and Arjun Sarja
An action-packed fantasy-horror thriller, Aghathiyaa is directed by Pa. Vijay and stars Jiiva, Raashii Khanna and Arjun Sarja. Set in British India, the film follows Agathiyan (Jiiva), a struggling art director burdened with the challenge of finding a way to treat his mother’s cancer. He unexpectedly discovers an old movie camera that transports him to the 1940s. He and his girlfriend Veena (Raashii Khanna) come face to face with the vengeful ghost of French Dy (Edward Sonnenblick), a ruthless governor who once ruled Pondicherry.
Sabdham (Tamil)
Directed by: Arivazhagan Venkatachalam
Cast: Aadhi Pinisetty, Simran Bagga and Lakshmi Menon
Sabdham, a supernatural thriller directed by Arivazhagan Venkatachalam, features Aadhi Pinisetty as Ruben, a paranormal investigator. The film explores the eerie power of sound in paranormal investigations. Ruben takes on the case of a woman experiencing a pain that feels like a thousand bats screaming in her ears. Although her doctor brushes it off as an auditory hallucination, the severity of her symptoms suggests there’s something more sinister at play.
RE-RELEASES
Gangs of Wasseypur (Hindi)
Directed by: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Huma Qureshi, Richa Chadha, Pankaj Tripathi
Anurag Kashyap’s modern crime classic Gangs of Wasseypur – Part 1 returns to theatres this Friday, allowing fans to relive the gripping saga of coal mafia feuds in Dhanbad. Originally released in 2012, this intergenerational revenge drama is set in the small town of Wasseypur near Dhanbad in Jharkhand. The story delves into the coal mafia's influence across three generations of a family involved in crime, extortion, and bloodshed.
Aradhana (Hindi)
Directed by: Shakti Samanta
Cast: Rajesh Khanna, Sharmila Tagore
Romance lovers can once again experience the timeless magic of Aradhana, the Shakti Samanta-directed 1969 classic starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore, in a restored 4K version. The story follows Vandana (Sharmila Tagore), in love with a pilot, Arun (Rajesh Khanna), who is presumed dead in a plane crash. After giving birth to their son, she raises him alone, hiding her past.
Dil To Pagal Hai (Hindi)
Directed by: Yash Chopra
Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Karisma Kapoor, Akshay Kumar
Dil To Pagal Hai, directed by Yash Chopra in 1997, starred Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, and Karisma Kapoor in lead roles. Also featuring Akshay Kumar, Aruna Irani, and Farida Jalal in the cast, the film secured its place as the highest-grossing Indian film globally in 1997. The movie follows the love story of Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan) and Pooja (Madhuri Dixit) who are part of a drama troupe.
