Game of Thrones has painted perhaps the glummest picture of love ever conceived in popular culture. Love does not last or make us better persons. Instead, it corrupts, handicaps, and burdens as much as any other responsibility in the world.

Purists may dismiss Sooryavansham as one of Amitabh Bachchan’s mediocre offerings, but two decades later, this sappy family drama has found itself a diverse and an ever-growing fandom: Some watch it for cheap thrills, some out of habit. The movie’s perpetual telecast has inspired legions of jokes and memes.

Maybe George RR Martin has a personal dislike for Jon Snow, which the writers of Game of Thrones inherited. It’s the only explanation I can think of to justify how many times the plot has swerved Jon, who can never retire his sulking expression for too long.

We're two days away from one of the biggest pop-culture event of the year: The #GoT finale. In this week's podcast, we're asking: Does Khaleesi still deserve the throne? Jackie Thakkar sits down with Shreya Ramakrishnan and Dushyant Shekhawat to find out whether they're Team #AbKiBaarJonSnow or #AayegiTohKhaalesi

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum does not have the luxury of low expectations like the first two films in the franchise. And with the bar set higher than ever before, John Wick manages to clear it yet again, in a dapper Italian suit to boot.

Pop culture has led us to believe that the most intriguing stories are about people who go against the grain. But what about the majority, the 9-to-5 doers, mostly rejected as conformists? TVF’s Kota Factory offers refreshing evidence that life bristles just as mightily between the margins of accommodation as well.

There’s no getting away from the fact that Mallika Sherawat’s and Hina Khan’s connection to world cinema is tenuous at best. Yet they are gracing the Cannes red carpet. As for the rest of the Indian delegation? To paraphrase a modern statesman: We’re definitely not sending our best people.

Last Monday, as King’s Landing turned into a literal metaphor of the dropping writing standards in the Game of Thrones team, Veep delivered a spectacular series finale. It hit the right emotional beats, delivered a scathing critique of modern-day American politics, and tied its seven-season long storyline to a logical end – all while being laugh out loud hilarious.

Pokémon Detective Pikachu features Ryan Reynolds as the amnesiac, coffee-chugging, New York wisecracking title character. But underneath Pikachu’s ironic wit and conspiracy theories, lies a core of sincerity that defines the actor. The ability to skewer a beloved story without disrespecting its essence is signature Reynolds.

At a time when actors are overeager to broadcast every part of their lives online, there remains little reason to watch a celebrity chat show. It’s precisely what should have triggered the talk show fatigue years ago. That might change now with Pinch by Arbaaz Khan.