With the year 2021 coming to a halfway point, there have been a flood of movies that have released in both theaters and OTT platforms everywhere, amidst the various corona waves that have come into light. As the month of July has come to an end, the first half of the year has concluded on a mostly positive note for Indian cinema as a whole, with some movies that have shined as pure gems in Indian cinema for not only this year but for the history of Indian cinema. Below are the Top 10 Indian movies halfway into 2021 from Jan-July, encapsulating most languages spoken in India.
10. Sarpatta parambarai (Tamil)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 3/5
Sarpatta Parambarai is a missed opportunity. The uneven editing, the routine writing when there is a good screenplay and the haphazard screenplay when there is layered writing, and a stretched out runtime hurt the movie from reaching its full potential. Despite these flaws however, Sarpatta is still a very good movie that should be watched. Fantastic performances from everyone, especially Arya, a proper development of characters and their arcs from Pa. Ranjith, and a visually astonishing recreation of Madras Boxing club with the influence of the British colonization while paying homage to real life boxers brings the movie to life and immerses you in the experience. If a few glaring flaws could have been fixed, the movie could have been an instant classic: instead, it remains a satisfactory boxing movie.
9. Malik (Malayalam)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 3.25/5
Fahadh Faasil consistenly puts out fabulous movies, let it be the theaters or streaming platforms, and Malik is another reminder of how Malayalam cinema can hit the perfect balance of commercial and art movies. Malik starts off as an art movie, with a 11 minute no-cut shot and emotions that sink in to the viewer with impactful writing, and then transitions to a fast paced gangster movie, one that is ably carried by Fahadh Faasil’s wonderful performance and Mahesh Narayan’s focused direction. The movie admittedly does get too carried away in the moment and goes too fast in the second half without much detailing, as well as having a predictable plot similar to the Godfather, but the supporting casts’ performances and a fantastic ending cover it up. With a amazing musical album springing a surprise, Malik is an impactful watch and a worthy addition to this list.
9. Krack (Telugu)
Streaming: Aha
Rating: 3.5/5
A movie that is high on energy, brings a new type of screenplay to the forefront for a commercial cinema, and instills a mass hype in you, Krack easily stands out as one of the best commercial movies made. Despite the movie following a standard plot, faltering in the family portions of the movie, and presenting a loud tone, the movie brought forth a new type of parallel screenplay of past-present-past with each story and a circulatory type narration, uniting all the arcs. Ravi Teja as the leading police man again is fabulous, celebrating his career through every frame and every action, while Samuthirakani and Varalaxmi Sarathkumar hold their own with fantastic villain performances. With Thaman’s rousing music as the cherry on top, Krack is an enjoyable watch with enough of a repeat value. For the full review, click here.
7. Sandeep aur pinky faraar (Hindi)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 3.5/5
Dibakar Banerjee has always been an underrated magician, spinning magic with his previous movies and transporting cinema to a different world. This time, he does it with Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar, an unabashedly dark yet comedically genius drama that explores the true meaning of suspicion and hate in the finest way possible. The screenplay, which is very layered and detailed, brings forward an urban and rustic setting that has multiple symbolic points inside of it. This urban yet raw feel is helped by the writing, which knows when to remain light, when to be serious, and when to force introspection; it nails this down to a T. Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra headline surprisingly brilliant performances, while Banerjee’s narration adds the final touches to a brilliant work of fast-paced yet thoughtful art.
6. Mandela (Tamil)
Streaming: Netflix
Rating: 3.5/5
Political satires are becoming more and more evident nowadays, but there hasn’t been a political satire that concentrates itself in the roots of a village and shows exactly what hullaballoo happens at the grassroots level. Mandela fills this void as Madonne Ashwin pulls together a beautiful satire movie that shows the extent of politics with able laughs and a solid message. Ashwin’s screenplay and writing are the most impressive part of this satire; throughout the movie, the screenplay never veers off track and is always asking the audience to reinforce a higher point from the way the scenes are positioned and written. Yogi Babu proves once again that he is a brilliant performer and comedian, while Sheela Rajkumar shows her mettle too. Leaving the movie with an open ended yet meaningful ending, Mandela is a perfect reminder of the political scene in India.
5. Drishyam 2 (Malayalam)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 3.5/5
Drishyam was one of the best thrillers of India, inspiring many with the way that it was formatted with unpredictable twists and relatable characters that the majority of the audience could relate too. With the sequel having lots of expectations on it, there were doubts on whether it could match up to the first one, but Jeethu Joseph quelled almost all doubts on the movie through a brilliant retrospection of the consequences of what happened in the first movie. Despite a very meandering pace in the first half, Joseph’s screenplay builds up almost every detail very carefully, and when the movie brings in a brilliant interval twist is when the movie hits turbo mode, with the screenplay being equally as thrilling as insightful. The final sequence of events question everything and come across as a huge twist, and armed with Mohanlal’s performance, Drishyam 2 remains as a perfect followup thriller, possibly one of the best sequels in India. If you want to watch this sequel, I suggest you watch the first one to start off, which is available in almost every language with the multiple remakes the Malayalam one had.
4. joji (Malayalam)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 3.75/5
Shakespeare has been dealt with many a way in Indian cinema, with movies like Omkara, Haider, and Maqbool bringing the unique storytelling to the Indian screens. Yet, Fahaadh Fasil (who by now has become a masterful storytelling monarch) ‘s Joji, which deals with the Shakespearian epic Macbeth, brought forward this type of storytelling mixed with the fantastic sets of Kerala, sets that accentuated the mood and screenplay as it all unravelled. Director Dileesh Pothan balanced the nativitiy of the Kerala setting and the ever-known Shakespearean symbolism through the meaningful writing and truly layered screenplay; with a runtime under 2 hours, the pacing remains slow but impactful as every scene has meaning leading to the next. Fasil’s performance is as usual brilliant and awe inspiring, but the supporting cast in this one is equally as awe inspiring, particularly Baburaj as Jomon and Unnimaya Prasad as Bincy. A masterful retelling, Joji remains an amazing watch for cinephiles and reaffirms Fahaadh Fasil as an actor of the highest standard.
3. the disciple (Marathi)
Streaming: Netflix
Rating: 4/5
The norms and traditions of classical music haven’t been explored too much; barring G.V. Prakash’s wonderful Sarvam Thaala Mayam (a top 10 candidate for South Indian movies on Netflix), the clash of classical music with the modern generation is a topic seen as taboo in India. And yet, with The Disciple, director Chaitanya Tamhane brings forward the journey of a brilliantly motivated classical singer, played expertly by Aditya Modak, who begins to realize the ups, downs, and changes in classical music to the modern world. The dialogues, set in Marathi, are the most awe-inspiring factor in this movie, which are written very artistically and set forward the themes of the story, while the screenplay tends to reinforce the symbolism at every point in the story. The cinemtography, pacing, and soulful music add immensely to the story, trasnporting the viewer to a different world. The Disciple isn’t just great cinema, it’s a great societal reminder of the rigidity of tradition and the flexibility of the modern world, etched out beautifully through a classic movie.
2. Karnan (Tamil)
Streaming: Amazon Prime
Rating: 4/5
Not many have explored the symbolism of the Mahabharata and symbolism in general of the Indian surroundings as well and as thorough as Karnan. The movie, which on the surface is a retelling of caste discrimination and suppression, is entirely transformed by director Mari Selvaraj’s fantastic writing, which introduces symbols, motifs, and subtlety that is brought forward throughout the entire movie, easy for even the average movie goer to catch and with tremendous depth to the region of Tamil Nadu and it’s surroundings. Added more, Selvaraj adds symbolism of the Mahabharata, telling a new portrayal of the classic mythology and changing the moral stance of the Pandavas and Kauravas completely, questioning what is right and wrong. Dhanush and Lal bring the movie to the next level with their realistic portrayal of the characters, while the cinematography captures rural Tamil Nadu really well. Aided by terrific music, Karnan is a movie that is a must watch for its wonderful symbolism. Full review here.
1. the great indian kitchen (Malayalam)
Streaming: Amazon Prime / Neestream
Rating: 4.5/5
Often times, many say a movie should be viewed as a movie, without any implications to what we do everyday. Purely as “entertainment”. Yet, after watching a movie like the Great Indian Kitchen, I’m pretty sure every single man bowed their head in shame. The Great Indian Kitchen is an amazingly symbolic tale of the internalized misogny Indian societies everywhere have embedded in them, primarily through the form of chores and cooking that women are just “expected” to do. Director Jeo Baby’s narration is fantastic, with an emphasis on no BGM throughout and keeping it with natural sounds to enforce again and again that this is what WE DO in our everyday lives. The writing and screenplay is crisp, packed with symbolism to the depth, and employs real life connections relevant to the plot wonderfully. The dialogues and cinematography, focusing on the each and every action that leads up to this internalized and misogyny, are wonderfully introspective. With the terrific performances of Suraj Nenjaramoodu and Nimisha Sajayan, The Great Indian Kitchen is one of those movies that doesn’t come often enough, but when it comes, it transforms the way one looks at life.
Honorable mentions:
Tribhanga (Hindi, Netflix): An emotional retelling of the story between a mother and daughter, seen through the eyes of an Orissan art. Aided with terrific performances and a non-linear screenplay, the movie stands as an emotional watch.
Cinema Bandi (Telugu, Netflix): The story of two people who by chance get a camera and decide to shoot a movie with it, Cinema Bandi strikes a heartwarming emotion due to the evergreen relatability and natural comedy and performances. A worthwhile watch for everyone.
Naandhi (Telugu, Aha): A stirring lawyer crime thriller that makes for a brilliant viewing experience, powered by Allari Naresh’s brilliant performance and a sensationally emotional screenplay and direction from Vijay Kanakamedala. A good watch despite the predictability.
With that, the best of the first half of the year in Indian cinema is behind us. Let’s hope for a fantastic rest of the year ahead!!
Sai Says Movies 