Poulomi Das, Author at Arré

The Terrorising Silence of A Quiet Place

In John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place, silence holds the key to survival. Unlike assembly-line Hollywood horror, the film’s greatest strength lies in its ability to create a visual atmosphere of horror from its quietude.

Poulomi Das March 5, 2016

Pop Culture

Ben is Back Review: A Heartbreaking Take on the Addiction of Maternal Love

In Peter Hedges’ Ben Is Back, maternal love comes without an expiry date – just like drug addiction. The film investigates the aftermath of addiction, both as a raging epidemic and as a crushing emotion.

Poulomi Das March 5, 2016

Pop Culture

Hindi-Medium Soup for the English-Medium Soul

Hindi Medium could have been a dire PSA film with a preachy note about our foolish love for English. Instead, it holds up a wicked mirror to ourselves. All you can do is laugh.

Poulomi Das March 4, 2016

Pop Culture

The Beauty of the Brooder in Dil Chahta Hai

In a cinematic universe full of overgrown men-children, Dil Chahta Hai’s Siddharth really stands out. Before Sid, played expertly by Akshaye Khanna, we’d never seen such acute sadness delivered with such control.

Poulomi Das March 4, 2016

Pop Culture

First Man Review: One Giant Leap for Space Movies

Damien Chazelle’s First Man, a film about Neil Armstrong and his journey, isn’t about the mission to the moon. Or even about the moon. It’s a sombre portrait of what going to the moon and back does to a man.

Poulomi Das March 4, 2016

Bollywood

Cargo Review: A Universal Fable of Loneliness in Space Light Years Away From Indian Sci-Fi

The solitude of space is a universal, and by now, familiar tale (think Gravity or The Martian). Arati Kadav, who makes her writing and directorial debut is aware of that. But the universe of space in Cargo is unlike any other; it is rooted in the homegrown grammar of Indian mythology.

Poulomi Das March 4, 2016

Bollywood

The Tashkent Files Review: A Life-Threatening Headache Presented by Alt-Historian Vivek Agnihotri

Vivek Agnihotri's The Tashkent Files keeps raising questions and presents multiple conspiracy theories on Lal Bahadur Shastri's death like an insufferable Quora thread. By the end of the movie, we’re back where we started – no one is certain how Shastri died or why Agnihotri continues making films.

Poulomi Das March 4, 2016

Pop Culture

Why Begum Jaan is Unnecessary

Srijit Mukherji gets wholly confused between the meaning of the words “retelling” and “copy pasting” and creates Begum Jaan, a film exactly like the one that he has already created.

Poulomi Das March 3, 2016

Bollywood

The Sky Is Pink Review: A Tender Family Drama Shouldered By an Evocative Priyanka Chopra

The Sky Is Pink feels less like a biopic of a dead teenager and more like an unabashed tribute to the two fighters who volunteered to a losing battle for over two decades. It’s predictable and familiar yet affecting and tender, especially as an examination of unconditional caregiving.

Poulomi Das March 2, 2016

Gender

What Every Woman Must Remember While Celebrating the Victory of Priya Ramani

My mind kept coming back to the first words uttered by Priya Ramani after she was acquitted in the defamation case filed by MJ Akbar. “Me, the victim, had to stand in court as the accused.” What we are celebrating effectively is the fact that a sexual harassment survivor wasn’t convicted of defamation.

Poulomi Das March 2, 2016