This was all fun and games until halfway. I don't have a better way to put this so I'll go straight to the point: 1) The male lead potentially getting blackmailed into BDSM by an old aunty is not funny. 2) Him looking exhausted and making double meaning comments about "getting pounced," "being under a mountain," and "feeling exhausted from all nighters" is not funny. 3) Showing her as "delusional" or a "liar" doesn't dismiss the joke— 4) —especially when you show the same grown man panicking when she says that she is pregnant. 5) also call me "woke" but casting an actor with draftism as a hangman, who only appears in a nightmare of the lead is also not funny. rather be boring than whatever this was.

I'll make a reel with this sound as soon as I get time.

I said this to my mom about the end, and I quote—"Why are creators required to prove their greater intelligence with every film?" They can have just as mediocre a brain as us!" In other words, a predictable film, but it was fun! P.S.: Thank God, Jaehyun is still in NCT. Love him, but he sucked in this one. I enjoyed him in Dear M more.

- it calls me out - I just don't like one single word in it, otherwise it would be 5 stars - a sob fest - I cried so much

Brainrot from start to finish. I love the film in parts and do enjoy a good chunk of it. But it dips here and there which feels extremely tiring, when your film already feels like a doom scrolling session.

I wish the best for the month as I chant, "I'm a lemon tree," "I'm a lemon tree," "I too superbloom under stress."

Another skipped rating of the day because I just don't watch enough action to have an opinion upon it. And tbf, I can't compare this with "Study Group," (an action kdrama I enjoyed) and be like "um...I was more engaged in SG." But, I liked it. It was fun. It didn't require me to use my brain and I could just zone out a bit for the afternoon.

I'm skipping the rating because I did not finish the film. But ☝️ I do have opinions.

I'll watch anything and find it entertaining when tired.

There is something very attractive about young Kamal Hassan, and I wouldn't miss a chance to see him in a romantic setting. But this is maybe? an underrated film of his. It seems suprising that despite having big names, such as Gulzar involved in the project, I haven't really heard about it. It's a fantastic film though, worth a watch. It just swings between realism and feel-good elements at times. I might be nit-picking.

played till level 15. helps silence thoughts. idk if I'm winning or not, but it doesn't matter.

When everyone was watching a popular film that critics are calling "propaganda," I watched a different "propaganda" film—the perks being it's a comedy starring my tragedy legends. I haven't watched Meena Kumari in such a jolly, fluttering role before, and it is a shame that she didn't do more such rom-coms with the heartthrob Dilip Kumar. Both matched each other so well, and their chemistry made me blush multiple times. Now, fangirling apart, here's why Azaad is a "propaganda" film and one that I would rather buy: 👰 The film opens with a sequence where Meena Kumari's character and her 'parents' (they are family friends who are raising her because her family died) discuss marriage. Dearest Meena declares that she shall choose her groom herself (in 1955 India). In another sequence, a lady was sharing her sob story where the villain (Pran) brought her to the city with a false promise of marriage. Meena hears this and asks, "How can a sensible woman like yours fall for such tricks?" This single line provides the woman autonomy (in 1955) instead of following her parents' will and accepting whatever happens as fate. And also reminds audiences to be wary of false promises from "reputable" men. (You go, girl!) Btw, she does not blame the lady ahead and is genuinely concerned. 🚔 The police are repeatedly shown lacking basic skills with a tongue-in-cheek/satirical tone. This allows for several instances where they remind people that class and titles matter far less than they assume. In a sequence they say it clearly, "Don't assume someone belonging to a reputable family can't do bad." (Preach!) 🙏 Dilip Kumar plays the dashing Robin Hood character, Azaad (a common name that families loved in post-independence India regardless of religion), but he also goes around town as the reputable Khan Sahab and eventually reveals his identity as Kumar. This was what the secular India aspired to, where a hero is a hero regardless of his religion. But all of this "propaganda" apart, the film had hilariously fake-looking sets, surprisingly well-choreographed action sequences, and some whimsy, song, and dance. It's easily a comfort film for sad days.

A commercial Guru Dutt film that actually worked. The only unfortunate thing is that Dutt loves tragedy and wouldn't miss a chance to suffer in the climax.

I'm trying to form a predictable relationship with uncertainty. I've known her for a while, and in retrospect I think I had an amiable connection with her. For instance, in December 2016, I was certain about her growing presence in my life. I lived in a tiny walled water body, where she only appeared as an uninvited current. That year, I extensively documented my days, knowing that I wouldn't be attending school again. It was a silly thought for a 10th grader, but I knew that uncertainty rules outside the schedules of institutions. "I'm going to miss the certainty of Mondays," I had said to my friends, already feeling the turbulent presence of uncertainty in the flow of time. They had nodded in understanding. Ever since, I've chased the safe shores of schedules at work and home. And uncertainty has only grown violently closer to me. She keeps building behind my back, only to slap me in the face when I turn back to acknowledge her. Today, I feel her presence growing again, and I'm tired. So, I wish to embrace her when she comes rushing to engulf me this time. I'll give her a tight hug, tumbling in unfamiliar directions, and continue again, wherever and whenever. I'll be resilient and persistent. Not like a rock that erodes over time, but like a seaweed that takes root anywhere, everywhere, no matter.

My experience with Guru Dutt is limited to "Pyaasa." It was ahead of its time, a cinematic gem, and simply excellent. Compared to that, "Kaagaz Ke Phool" is much more commercial, straightforward and enjoyable. But the screenplay and dialogues continue like ebb and tide. I felt the cinematography was particularly lacking and didn't do justice to the film whose heart belongs to filmmaking and filmmakers. Nevertheless, one scene that had the most impact upon me was when Guru Dutt's character—a famous director turned an alcoholic and "has-been"—witnesses a brawl between other drunkards. His perspective briefly shifts to that of a director, which is beautifully depicted with the change of lights. To witness this shift on a cinema screen in the late 1950s would have simply been mesmerizing. Alas, all I can say is: RIP Guru Dutt; you'd have enjoyed K-drama "Our Movie."

A complete film, but not an extraordinary one. There is a belief that in this world there are as few as 36 stories. We keep retelling them in various ways, through various mediums. And "Once We Were Us" definitely feels like a retelling. Its characters, events, and key emotions are so ordinary that it's difficult to not relate to them. We have seen this, we have heard it, and sometimes we have even lived these sequences. It's marvelous to make a film driven with melancholy, romance, coming-of-age elements, and a massive amount of nostalgia. However, it's difficult to make something so "life-like" entertaining. There were multiple moments where I felt that if I stopped the film right here, I might never pick it up again. So, in that way, the climax felt apt. It made sense that neither character felt any drive to return or save their relationship—and perhaps even found moving on easy.

Pros: 1) Meena Kumari 2) Patriach sacrificing instead of usual women sacrificing 3) Jhonny Walker 4) Multiple strong women characters who didn't end up scarifying much comparatively 5) Meena Kumari (I love her sm) Cons: 1) Pradeep Kumar looks like a radish throughout 2) Not enough chemistry or depth in love of Pradeep Kumar's character and Meena Kumari's character 3) Ashok Kumar looks like a humble gentleman, but fails to look like a nawab 4) Songs are okay-ish 5) Logically speaking, Kumar sacrificed himself for Kumar.

No rating because I only watched half. It felt like a film dependent on the controversy of actors' personal lives. But also it is difficult to ignore how the film helped each actor to face the titles of "the wife," "the other woman," and "the unfaithful husband" gracefully.

A bit too filmy climax. And as much as I love Saif Ail Khan and Vidya Balan individually, their chemistry just didn't work for me. Were they good and convincing as lovers? yes. Were they convincing enough for the "Berlin Wall" climax? no. ps: I haven't read the book, but my mum said that this was a "woke" adaptation (take with a pinch or two of salt; she mixes up plots).

women's day special screening (at my home xD). loved it even more than when I first watched it as a teenager.