The Bollywood Elephant

After a delay, Padmaavat finally hit the theatres and it is a typical signature of Sanjay Leela Bhansali! The man creates magic behind the camera. Padmaavat is SLB's  3rd best movie to date behind the Bachchan-Mukherjee starrer 'Black' and 'Bajirao Mastani'. 'Padmaavat' is a story of honour, valour, and obsession.                  Ranveer Singh is the man of the moment. He displays the vivid layers of Alauddin Khilji to perfection. He is menacing, amusing and cynical and no one apart from him could have played this role. He should be ready for his award speeches now! Shahidas Maharawal Ratan Singh is impressive. He carries the honour, valour required for a Rajput king with perfection but his character lacks depth! 'Padmavati' Deepika essays brilliantly, especially through her eyes. She literally lives the role of 'Padmavati'. Aditi Hydari as Meherunnisa is stunning and Jim Sarbh as Malik Gafur is fun, wicked and amazing to watch. Th

Overall 2017 has been a disappointing year for cinema, both in terms of content and revenue. There have been 214 releases out of which there have been only 20 successes (semi hit and above) and hence Bollywood has been poorer compared to 2016. But amidst a lot of poor movies, there was some content-driven cinema which really made it tough for me to choose a Bollywood No.1! And surprisingly, this time I do not have a Bollywood favorite but a Hollywood favorite. So here are my Top 10 Bollywood and Top 5 Hollywood movies. 10. Meri Pyaari Bindu & Tumhari Sulu : Nuanced Performances, Storytelling, and foot tapping Music.                                          9. Qarib Qarib Singlle: Performances, Dialogues, Direction.                                                                  8. Mom: Performances and Direction.                                                                  7. Hindi Medium: Performances, Dialogues, Music and Saba Qamar.