Some films are meant to be a part of the personal collection. Undoubtedly Aparna Sen’s recent release 15 Park Avenue (Shemaroo; DVD, Rs 399) is one of them. Touted, and very rightly so, as one of the best films of 2006 the film is a parade of performances at their best ? especially Konkona Sensharma, Shabana Azmi, Shefali Shah ? and deals with a subject that’s very sensitive and has been handled just as sensitively by Sen. The result is a touching story of a schizophrenic girl Meethi (Konkona) who believes she is married to her lover Rahul Bose, has five children and lives at 15, Park Avenue. Her whole life is centred around her non-existent family and home and her futile search for her dream abode. How Sen portrays a life caught in the web of imagination and how she brings about the climax is something to be seen.

John Mathew Matthan’s Shikhar (Shemaroo; DVD Rs 349) is about ambition and materialistic pursuits where emotions, feelings, and idealism take a backseat. Coming from the director of Sarfarosh, Matthan brings to the fore issues that are very real today. Shikhar is the story of an extremely ambitious man GG (Ajay Devgan) who wants to build a city and rule over it. He dreams of making Las Vegas of his own, in Mumbai. But his dream is hindered by a social crusader Guruji (Jawed Sheikh) and his ashram, that nurtures Nature. He stands rock-solid in the way of this natural destruction. But Ajay, excels in a negative role, targets Guruji’s son Shahid Kapur who like any youngster dreams big. Ajay takes him under his wing and teaches him to be dishonest. He uses his weakness to play his game. It’s interesting to see how things take a turn from there.

Rajkumar Santoshi’s Family ? Ties of Blood (Shemaroo; DVD Rs 349) upholds love and responsibility one has towards one’s family. Be it someone from a middleclass family like Akshay Kumar or a Don like Amitabh Bachchan the love for the family and the urge to always stand by them remains the same. Akshay Kumar has a complete, happy family and a flourishing business. He loves his younger brother, always bailing him out of trouble. But one fateful day, in search of his brother, he gets caught in a crossfire of some underworld gang war and gets killed. The younger brother Aryaman now wakes up to his responsibility and swears revenge on this Don and his family. He is up against a man, Amitabh Bachchan, who values his family as much and can go to any extent to save his family. Family is about the contrasting values of the two families and how some incidents change all their perspectives.