documentary Archives

Why We Need Supermen of Malegaon in the Time of Pragya Singh Thakur

In the last few months, Malegaon has found itself splattered across headlines, thanks to Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur’s win in the elections. But in the outrage over Thakur’s win, there’s one aspect of the town that remains in danger of being forgotten – the ability to churn out entertaining spoofs like Supermen of Malegaon.

Ronak Gupta July 3, 2016

Documentary

Knock Down the House Isn’t About Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alone. It’s a Roadmap for a Political System

There’s more to Netflix’s Knock Down the House than Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her journey to becoming a Congresswoman. Instead, the documentary is a record of the struggle of “getting everyday Americans represented by everyday Americans” and the near lack of space that the nation’s politics reserves for women.

Poulomi Das May 28, 2016

Pop Culture

Revisit Wild Wild Country Before You Start Searching for Sheela

Had Rajneeshpuram been a successful experiment, would the “freaks” – the ones with radical ideas – have had a chance at being mainstream? Osho was an idea that had daunting potential before he went and armed himself to the teeth, finds the new documentary Wild Wild Country.

Sharan Saikumar May 21, 2016

Pop Culture

Can You Watch “The Great Hack” Without Worrying About How Netflix Controls Your Data?

How do you grapple with the irony that Netflix, a streaming platform that has acquired The Great Hack, a chilling documentary that profiles the invasion of privacy carried out during the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica Scandal, is itself guilty of controlling massive amounts of data about us?

Sindhuri Nandhakumar May 12, 2016

POV

In Memory of Friends: Why a 1990 Documentary on the Fallout of the 1984 Pogrom Still Remains Relevant

Anand Patwardhan’s 1990 documentary In Memory Of Friends made me realise that the alienation and othering of Sikhs reached alarming levels during the ’80s. As Sajjan Kumar is sentenced and Kamal Nath’s role is under scrutiny, we continue to feel the fallout of the violence of 1984 even today.

Sourodipto Sanyal May 5, 2016

Pop Culture

A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings Who Forgot to Fly

Prateek Vats’ A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings offers a peek into the twilight years of Manohar Aich, India’s first Mr Universe — a delicate portrait of the frailties of human memory and the Indian family.

Poulomi Das April 23, 2016

Pop Culture

Still Searching for Sheela! The Netflix Docu Tells Us Nothing New

Where is Rajneeshpuram’s enigmatic Ma Anand Sheela? In Netflix’s Searching for Sheela, we meet a polite grandmother who is visiting her country after decades abroad.

#VALUE! April 17, 2016

Bollywood

Meet the Real PadMan Before Bollywood Ruins It

“Menstrual hygiene can’t be tackled by an advertising or a marketing team,” said Arunachalam Muruganantham toward the end of Amit Virmani’s 2013 documentary Menstrual Man. Will Akshay Kumar’s PadMan prove him wrong?

Poulomi Das March 30, 2016

Pop Culture

Nature Documentaries are Pleasant Viewing, but “Our Planet” Changes that Forever

Despite sporting the familiar trappings of most nature documentaries, Our Planet’s tone is markedly more urgent. While shows like The Crocodile Hunter and Planet Earth provided stunning retreats into the bosom of the wild, in Our Planet human presence and activity looms like an impending storm-cloud.

Dushyant Shekhawat March 8, 2016

Pop Culture

Diego Maradona Review: The Greatest Footballer of All Time Observed Like Never Before

Asif Kapadia’s Diego Maradona, a biopic documentary of the greatest footballer of all time, is an enthralling, explosive record of the time when Diego, born in an impoverished town outside Buenos Aires, became a prisoner of Maradona, the celebrity brand he created for himself.

Poulomi Das March 7, 2016