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<ul><li>It’s Mother’s Day this weekend, but most of us are confined to our homes, practising social distancing to battle the Coronavirus pandemic. </li><li>But, small things — like watching her favourite movie together can help. </li><li>This week, Business Insider brings you the stories that celebrate moms. </li></ul>It’s Mother’s Day this weekend, but most of us are confined to our homes, practising social distancing to battle the Coronavirus pandemic. That means no movie date with moms, no parties and fancy dinner. But, small things can help — like watching her favourite movie together. This week, Business Insider brings you the stories that celebrate moms. Here are a few movies and series on Netflix, ZEE5 and Disney+ Hotstar. English Vinglish <div type="Youtube" id="wmGVY4T88dc" title="English Vinglish | Official Trailer" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wmGVY4T88dc/mqdefault.jpg"></div> IMDb rating: 7.8/10 Director: Gauri Shinde Cast: Sridevi, Mehdi Nebbou, Priya Anand, Adil Hussain English Vinglish is an Indian comedy-drama film released in 2012 and is now available on Netflix. The story revolves around a small entrepreneur and mother named Shashi. She makes snacks. And then one fine day, Shashi decides to learn English and joins a course to refrain her husband and daughter from mocking her lack of English skills. And in the process, she ends up gaining self-respect. Workin’ Moms <div type="Youtube" id="gk1vKFcUxyU" title="Workin' Moms Season 1 Netflix Trailer" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gk1vKFcUxyU/mqdefault.jpg"></div> IMDb rating: 7.4/10 Director: Catherine Reitman Cast: Catherine Reitman,Dani Kind,Juno Rinaldi Workin' Moms is a Canadian show available on Netflix. The show narrates the story of four friends and working mothers who are to return to work in Toronto while managing their kids, bosses, love and everyday life. The story goes around how they deal with the challenges of being working mothers Nil Battey Sannata <div type="Youtube" id="rGrhXaVyltc" title="Nil Battey Sannata Official Trailer with Subtitle | Swara Bhaskar, Ratna Pathak" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/rGrhXaVyltc/mqdefault.jpg"></div> IMDb rating: 8.4/10 Director: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari Cast: Swara Bhaskar, Sanjay Suri, Pankaj Tripathi, Ratna Pathak Nil Battey Sannata, which is a slang for ‘Good For Nothing’, was a movie released in 2015. Apeksha is a class 10 student who hates studying. More because of her family’s financial status as she understands that she won’t be able to gp for higher studies. Her mother pushes her to study maths but Apeksha believes that she will end up being a maid like her mother. And then, her mother decides to study in her class. The movie was also released internationally as The New Classmate and i now available on ZEE5. Otherhood <div type="Youtube" id="q2b8MKsUloc" title="Otherhood | Official Trailer | Netflix" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q2b8MKsUloc/mqdefault.jpg"></div> IMDb rating: 6/10 Director: Cindy Chupack Cast: Patricia Arquette,Angela Bassett,Felicity Huffman Otherhood is an American comedy film available on Netflix. The film, based on the novel ‘Whatever Makes You Happy’ is a story of three best friends who drive to New York city to surprise their adult sons when they forget Mother’s Day. Mom <div type="Youtube" id="hctApy_i-qg" title="MOM - Official Trailer | Sridevi | Nawazuddin Siddiqui | Akshaye Khanna | Hindi Thriller Movie" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hctApy_i-qg/mqdefault.jpg"></div> IMDb rating: 7.3/10 Director: Ravi Udyawar Cast: Sridevi,Akshaye Khanna,Sajal Ali Available on Netflix and ZEE5, Mom narrates the story of a biology teacher Devki, who hires a private detective to take revenge for her stepdaughter’s sexual assault. She pledges to destroy the four rapists who were acquitted by the court. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/heres-why-mothers-day-is-celebrated-on-the-second-sunday-of-may-every-year/articleshow/75617023.cms">Here’s why Mother’s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May every year</a>

Mother’s Day Watchlist⁠— English Vinglish, Workin’ Moms, Otherhood and other movies that celebrate mothers

What’s common between <keyword id="7482" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Cheeni-Kum">Cheeni Kum</keyword>, <keyword id="51400" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="paa">Paa</keyword>, <keyword id="702830" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="English-Vinglish">English Vinglish</keyword>, and <keyword id="2268710" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="shamitabh">Shamitabh</keyword>? 
 <keyword id="6357912" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="amitabh-bachchan">Amitabh Bachchan</keyword>, you might say, but there is one more thing that these movies share; all these movies have either been written, directed or produced by R. Balki. 
 
Balki, who considers Amitabh Bachchan as his lucky charm, has now decided to rope in Amitabh Bachchan, along with wife Jaya, for guest appearances in his upcoming movie <keyword id="2974811" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ki-and-Ka">Ki and Ka</keyword>. 
 
The news was shared by Amitabh Bachchan on his social media accounts, where he shared some images from the shoot of Ki and Ka. However, a look at the surroundings of the super couple hints that the role would most probably be a cameo, because Amitabh and Jaya are shown to be sitting in what looks like their own drawing room, with family images hanged on the wall, including pictures of his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan, son Abhishek and daughter Shweta. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 The movie stars <keyword id="1377418" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Kareena-Kapoor-Khan">Kareena Kapoor Khan</keyword> and <keyword id="114453" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Arjun-Kapoor">Arjun Kapoor</keyword> as the main leads. It has been written by Balki, who is also producing and directing the movie, and would showcase Khan and Kapoor as a married couple facing the challenges of the modern world. 
 
The movie would tentatively release in summer 2016. 
 
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/AmitabhBachchan">Source: Amitabh Bachchan Facebook</a>

Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan shoot for Ki and Ka inside Jalsa?

<keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> is inarguably the world’s largest film industry with more than 150 mainstream movies made in a year. Out of this huge number, there are movies for every generation and every section of the society. While there were periods when entire decades were dedicated to a particular genre like action in the 1980s or family dramas in the 1990s, the times have changed now and we get to see more and more variety in the kinds of movies that are being made. 
 
We looked at some of the Bollywood movies made in the last few years, which amazed us in the last reel. It could either be an unexpected twist in the script or the spellbinding acting which got these films a place in this list, but the endings are surely the highlights. 
 
Have a look at the movies mentioned below.

6 Bollywood movies released in recent years with the best endings

<ul><li>Veteran star <keyword id="14505" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="zeenat-aman" source="Orion">Zeenat Aman</keyword> made her <keyword id="819905" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="instagram" source="Orion">Instagram</keyword> debut at 71 and amassed over 1.3 lakh followers in just a month. She will soon make her web series debut.</li><li><keyword id="1813" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="neena-gupta" source="Orion">Neena Gupta</keyword>’s appeal for work on Instagram heralded a change in the way the industry looked at veteran actresses.</li><li>OTT platforms have not only revived careers of veteran stars, it has also brought to centre stage actresses long-sidelined by mainstream media.</li></ul>Gauri Shinde’s English Vinglish that released in 2012, was considered a sleeper hit despite starring one of Indian cinema’s original female superstars, Sridevi. It took the industry by surprise because <keyword id="143" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="bollywood" source="Orion">Bollywood</keyword> rarely backs female-led movies and even when it does, these movies – especially those starring veterans, aren’t expected to become commercial potboilers. However, the advent of over-the-top (OTT) streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney plus Hotstar etc, and the rise of social media has changed the scenario. In some cases, actresses of a certain vintage have begun to take centre stage – with some even landing hits far more popular than the ones delivered by mainstream heroes. In February 2023, the 70s heart-throb Zeenat Aman, 71, made her debut on Instagram. Within a month, she has <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thezeenataman/">amassed </a>1.37 lakh followers and won over the audience with her articulate, unabashed and honest views — a far cry from the carefully-curated celebrity updates people are accustomed to. “The roles available to women are clearly not just ornamental anymore. What hasn’t changed though is the gender pay gap. In my time I was lauded as the highest paid female actor, but the disparity in the pay cheque between my male co-stars and myself was so vast it was laughable…it disappoints me that even today women in the film industry don’t have wage parity,” <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CpFl3XoA8Un/">remarked </a>Aman in one of her many posts on the platform. Aman, who’ll soon make her <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/zeenat-aman-to-make-her-ott-debut-soon-already-has-two-web-series-in-her-kitty/articleshow/92560748.cms">web series debut</a> with <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/web-series/zeenat-aman-to-make-ott-debut-with-the-series-showsttopper-101677773391183.html">Showsttopper</a>, co-starring Shweta Tiwari, Rohit Roy and others, also walked the ramp for Shahin Mannan’s fashion show at the Lakme Fashion week. She’s the latest in a long list of veteran actresses who’ve taken to new-age entertainment platforms and social media channels like fish to water, and have managed to shatter the long-held Bollywood concept of ‘limited shelf life’ for female actors. But, it’s certainly not a new phenomenon. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The Bollywood stars who went to reality shows" comment="subhead" text="The Bollywood stars who went to reality shows">The Bollywood stars who went to reality shows</cmsannotation> There’s always been a clear divide between a TV and movie star in India, with television often seen as a stepping stone to movies — but only for a few. Most stars who start with TV shows, however, continue to remain there. However, when some of the stars from the 90s and early 2000s first made their comeback, it was as judges of reality shows on TV or in some cases, as contestants. For instance, Shilpa Shetty famously participated in Big Brother —- the British version of Bigg Boss, which catapulted her back to stardom. A few even took to TV shows, like Sonali Bendre in Ajeeb Daastaan Hai Ye (2014). Although superstars like Madhuri Dixit have managed to reinvent their careers and regularly land exciting roles, that wasn’t the case for many other veteran actresses. Until actor Neena Gupta decided to ask for work on social media, heralding a change in the way Bollywood views older stars. In 2017, Neena Gupta, the star of indie cinema in the 1980s, openly asked for work — a move that left a majority of the population within the industry, and even outside of it, surprised. After all, this is an industry where actors out of work for years still spout the excuse, “looking for the right script.” “I live in Mumbai and working, am a good actor looking for good parts to play,” wrote Gupta on Instagram. The result of Gupta’s request – since 2017, she’s starred in over 10 different movies and web series, including blockbuster hits like Badhaai Ho and crowd favourites like Panchayat. Her Badhaai Ho co-star, the late Surekha Sikri also won her third National Film Award for the film. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The other comeback: Sidelined by mainstream media but stars on OTT" comment="subhead" text="The other comeback: Sidelined by mainstream media but stars on OTT">The other comeback: Sidelined by mainstream media but stars on OTT</cmsannotation> The advent of OTT streaming has not only shone the spotlight on veteran stars but has also given actors sidelined by mainstream media a chance to showcase their acting prowess. Like actor <keyword id="18676" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="shefali-shah" source="Orion">Shefali Shah</keyword>. Sidelined by mainstream cinema for years, 49-year-old Shah’s gritty performance in Netflix’s International Emmy-winner Delhi Crime was the perfect response to that mistreatment. Since then, she’s been on a roll, delivering hits across genres — romantic dramas like Netflix’s Once Again, thrillers like Prime Video’s Jalsa and Disney+Hostar’s Human or dark comedies, like Darlings (on Netflix). In fact, OTT brought back many millennials’ childhood divas, be it former Miss <keyword id="326110" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="universe-sushmita-sen" source="Orion">Universe Sushmita Sen</keyword> or the ‘tip tip’ girl, Raveena Tandon. And they didn’t return to play stereotypical mothers to actors who were as old or even younger than themselves — as Shefali Shah did for Akshay Kumar in the film Waqt: The Race Against Time. Shah is six years younger than Kumar. Rather they starred as protagonists in shows with gripping storylines that gave them a chance to flex their long-dormant acting muscles. The result — Sen’s mom-turned-mobster avatar in Aarya and Tandon’s small-town cop in Aranyak and the antagonist in KGF2. As Sen shared <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch">in an interview </a>with film critic Anupama Chopra for Film Companion, “What I like about Bollywood now is suddenly, content is king. It’s incredible how liberal the language of cinema is becoming. It’s allowing people to explore all different aspects — writing, execution, direction, actors getting that opportunity to go beyond the boy-meets-girl phase. It’s wonderful.” Long story short, the stars have finally aligned for Bollywood’s veteran and long-sidelined powerful actresses. And it’s a well-deserved comeback indeed! SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/how-is-gpt-4-different-from-chatgpt-and-what-makes-it-unique/articleshow/98688465.cms">How is GPT-4 different from ChatGPT, and what makes it unique?</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/googles-new-ai-features-for-docs-gmail-and-more-to-rival-microsofts-workspace-toolsheres-what-it-means/articleshow/98657324.cms">Google’s new AI features for Docs, Gmail, and more to rival Microsoft’s workspace tools—here’s what it means</a>

How stars like Neena Gupta, Zeenat Aman & Shefali Shah finally found their place in the sun via OTT

There are very few movie stars as disciplined as <keyword id="2823" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Akshay-Kumar">Akshay Kumar</keyword>. Popularly called ‘Khiladi’ in <keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword>, <keyword id="6381441" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="akshay">Akshay</keyword> has been giving countless hits since a few years. But when it comes to sensible film or method acting like <keyword id="6355923" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aamir-Khan">Aamir Khan</keyword> in Dangal, Akhsay has not many in his credits. 
 But thanks to his wife <keyword id="5357" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Twinkle-Khanna">Twinkle Khanna</keyword>, an actress turned writer, it’s time for Akshay to prove his mettle. <keyword id="31838" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Twinkle">Twinkle</keyword> is ready with her production venture and the first film is a biopic on an Indian man who handmade the first low-cost sanitary napkins in the country. 
 Well, that’s a different “Make in India” story altogether. Winner of <keyword id="25105" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Padma-Shri">Padma Shri</keyword> award, <keyword id="904175" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arunachalam-Muruganantham">Arunachalam Muruganantham</keyword> is a social entrepreneur from Coimbatore. He is the inventor of a low-cost sanitary pad making machine and has innovated grass-roots mechanisms for generating awareness about traditional unhygienic practices around menstruation in rural India. His mini-machines, which can manufacture sanitary pads for less than a third of the cost of commercial pads, have been installed in 23 of the 29 states of India. He is currently planning to expand the production of these machines to 106 nations. 
 Taking an inspiration from this, Twinkle <keyword id="1983" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Khanna">Khanna</keyword> wanted to cast Akshay Kumar for this biopic ‘Pad Man’. And guess who’s directing the film? It’s none other than maestro <keyword id="72976" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="R-Balki">R Balki</keyword>, who has made wonderful films like Paa and English Vinglish. 
 Twinkle Khanna has recently said that convincing <keyword id="260416" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Muruganantham">Muruganantham</keyword> wasn’t easy. But thanks to Mrs Funny <keyword id="62532" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="bones">Bones</keyword> of Twitter, Akshay Kumar and R Balki, the world will know about the struggle to success of India’s Pad Man.

Akshay Kumar to play Pad Man: A movie on how an Indian man
made sanitary napkins for village women

We all know what a brilliant director and writer R. Balki is, and he has proven it time and again, with his ventures Cheeni Kum, Paa, English Vinglish, and lately, Shamitabh. 
 His next venture comes in the form of <keyword id="3018653" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ki-Ka">Ki &amp; Ka</keyword>, a romantic comedy starring <keyword id="2165" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Kareena-Kapoor">Kareena Kapoor</keyword> as Kia and <keyword id="114453" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Arjun-Kapoor">Arjun Kapoor</keyword> as Kabir, a modern couple with a twist. 
 
This was the only brief that we had about the movie until now, however, with the motion poster of the movie being released today, we have a slightly better idea about the whole ‘twist’ in question. 
Amitabh Bachchan, who has acted in all of Balki’s ventures until now and is playing a guest role in Ki &amp; Ka along with wife Jaya Bachchan took to his social media accounts to share the motion poster. 
 
Here, have a look: 
 
<blockquote cite="https://www.facebook.com/AmitabhBachchan/videos/1176856062348181/">
	<a href="https://www.facebook.com/AmitabhBachchan/videos/1176856062348181/">#KiandKaMotionPoster</a>
	
		#KiandKaMotionPoster .. !!
	Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AmitabhBachchan/">Amitabh Bachchan</a> on Monday, 11 January 2016</blockquote>
 
That’s right, it’s Kareena Kapoor putting a mangalsutra around Arjun Kapoor’s neck, with the motion poster announcing that streeling (female) and pulling (male), is the same thing. What we can make out from this poster is that Kia would be a working woman and Kabir would be a stay at home husband, dealing with the lemons that life throws at them. 
 
Interesting enough? But beware, the movie releases on April Fool’s day, so you might as well be ready to be fooled by the creative genius.

The motion poster of Ki & Ka is here

Mumbai voted and so did Delhi. Bangalore did it, too! And Kolkata was not left behind either. While the whole country seems reluctant to comment on whether there is a genuine Narendra Modi wave this time around or whether it is the handiwork of the media, no one can possibly deny a couple of poll trends which have come up this time. 
 To start with, the number of first-time voters has been the highest this time. The other trend, apparently new in the Indian context, is the emergence of the ‘<keyword id="1725157" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Selfie">selfie</keyword> brigade’ as voters pose with index-finger-inked selfies on their respective social networking sites. 
 In a narcissistic world, anything that glorifies the self is welcomed with open arms. Err… did we say arms? We mean the hands that take the pictures, of course. Social networking sites seem to thrive on the selfie culture, helping people glorify the self, even if it means throwing privacy and caution to the wind. In that sense, being ‘social’ is more about self-promotion, rather than networking with people and meeting them. <keyword id="6354576" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Facebook">Facebook</keyword>, <keyword id="819905" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Instagram">Instagram</keyword> and Twitter are the new Page 3. 
 
When you say that all the world’s a stage, the elections must be the biggest platform to stage a great performance. So what other option was left for the 23.16 million young, peppy, cyber-savvy Gen Y, hitting the polling booths to exercise their franchise? It had to be a flood of inked selfies, expressly showing their joy and pride that come with casting the ballot. 
 
Giving into this trend were celebrities and politicians who would not lose a chance to show that they did fulfil their responsibility. Rajinikath’s fans posted a picture of the thalaiva voting; Shah Rukh posed with his inky finger outside the booth, and so did Aamir and his wife Kiran. Sachin Tendulkar also surrendered to this selfie craze. Director-actor <keyword id="5015" type="PERSON" weightage="40" keywordseo="Farhan-Akhtar">Farhan Akhtar</keyword> posted his selfie with the picture taken at his house; Rahul Bose took his selfie with a poker face; <keyword id="8145" type="PERSON" weightage="40" keywordseo="Preity-zinta">Preity Zinta</keyword> went for a selfie pose for a snapshot while Raveena Tandon looked beautiful, shooting her inky index finger inside her car. 
 
But there were even more luminaries who followed the trend. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan voted without giving it a miss. Singer Kailash Kher turned to his camera soon after voting and showed the world he had performed his duty as an Indian citizen. Sonam Kapoor looked all radiant while posing with that inky finger right in front of her. And an almost forgotten Dino Morea posted his selfie soon after voting was done. English Vinglish director Gauri Shinde didn’t miss posing before her own camera after she voted. In a nutshell, the selfie frenzy took over during the polls and caught hold of everyone, almost everywhere. 
 
The ones who didn’t post their selfies were probably the most ‘tech-unabled’ people. The incessant flow of selfies were fast and furious, came in all shapes and sizes, and featured varied expressions – right from brilliant, billion-dollar smiles to haggard to merry ones. But the most disappointed lot of this season were those who went to the booth armed with their cell phones (naturally 3G-enabled ones, which would enable them to post a picture even before the ink on their fingers dried), only to find that their names were missing from the voters’ list. Their disappointment was as huge as Viswanathan Anand’s when he lost the World Championship to young Magnus Carlson. What a pity. And what a selfie-opportunity missed for life (or at least for the next five years). 
 
Just as the indelible ink has made its mark throughout the democratic process, pinpointing the serious nature of our political responsibilities, people posting selfies after voting also tells us another story – a different story altogether. It amply shows that upholding the democratic system in India has now become a heady combination of duty and exhibitionism. 
 
Now, we call that finger-lookin’ good! 
 
Image: Sachin Tendulkar/Twitter

This
Time Around, Polls Are Driven By Selfie Passion In India

​The Oscar fights never go out of fashion in India. We have not made our mark there yet in spite of many Indian connections with movies like Life of Pi and <keyword id="32892" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Slumdog-Millionaire">Slumdog Millionaire</keyword>. But when it comes to selecting India’s official entry for the Foreign Language Film category at the <keyword id="9344" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Academy-Awards">Academy Awards</keyword>, the heat is full on. This time, there were as many as 22 contenders and some entries like Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, English Vinglish, Celluloid, Shabdo, Ship of Theseus and <keyword id="6354603" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Kamal-Haasan">Kamal Haasan</keyword>’s Vishwaroopam created a lot of buzz. But the final battle royal seemed to have boiled down to just two – Mumbaikar <keyword id="1539946" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ritesh-Batra">Ritesh Batra</keyword>’s <keyword id="1678680" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="The-Lunchbox">The Lunchbox</keyword> and Goa-born <keyword id="1602536" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Gyan-Correa">Gyan Correa</keyword>’s <keyword id="1602537" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="The-Good-Road">The Good Road</keyword>. However, The Lunchbox lost to The Good Road, which earlier bagged the national award for the best Gujarati feature film. Correa’s flick was picked by a 19-member jury, appointed by the <keyword id="291689" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Film-Federation-of-India">Film Federation of India</keyword> (FFI). 
 
What they tweeted 
A Press release said the decision had been unanimous, but congratulatory and disgruntled tweets followed. Here’s a look at some of the significant ones. 
 
Gujarat chief minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>: Delighted to know that Gujarati film The Good Road has been chosen to represent India at Oscars. My best wishes. 
 
<keyword id="7929" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Anurag-Kashyap">Anurag Kashyap</keyword> (the film-maker co-produced The Lunchbox with <keyword id="197931" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Guneet-Monga">Guneet Monga</keyword>): Feeling very, very disappointed, can’t comment on the film I have not seen, but it better make it to final five… I don’t know who the federation is. But it goes to show, why we completely lack the understanding to make films that can travel across borders… I hope and pray I am wrong and it actually is a film that knocks the socks off everyone… We should then make a clean policy, you want to send the best film, then send the national award winner. Or send the one most likely to win... Anyway, disappointment and anger aside… let’s go back to make cinema… 
 
<keyword id="3778" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Karan-Johar">Karan Johar</keyword> (The director-producer turned presenter for The Lunchbox): Really shocked and disappointed… #LUNCHBOX had every factor working in its favour... we may have just lost our golden chance… SAD!!! 
 
Ritesh Batra (Director, The Lunchbox): Congrats to The Good Road. Hope it makes it all the way, else it will be a lost chance by FFI-appointed jury that lacks vision. Hope I am wrong… 
 
The Good Road and The Lunchbox: Head-to-head 
Some industry experts are not too enthusiastic and feel that The Lunchbox would have been a better Oscar choice for several reasons. So here is a head-to-head for our readers, along with some lesser-known facts. 
 
Auteur cinema is gaining prominence. Written by Correa himself, The Good Road is a documentary-style collage of stories woven around the highway where the protagonists lose their way, struggle on their personal quests and evolve in a way that touches the heart. The Lunchbox, on the other hand, brings to life the ever-present Mumbai dabbawalas (tiffin carriers) and a bitter-sweet story of bonding that starts with a misplaced lunchbox (according to a Harvard University study, the delivery system is so excellent that just one in a million lunch boxes will go to a wrong address). Each film reflects its director’s vision instead treading the beaten path. 
 
Both Correa and Batra did it hands-on. It was real-life research for both the directors. Correa got into a truck and went on a journey, getting to the core of things before he created his story. Batra worked as a <keyword id="415857" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Dabbawala">dabbawala</keyword> for a week to get the hang of it. 
 
But they come from different industries. That’s right. Batra studied Economics and worked as a consultant for Deloitte. He left the job to join the Graduate Film Program at New York University, but dropped out after a year and a half due to fund crunch. Correa is from the advertising space but decided to have a go at film-making. 
 
In spite of debacle, The Lunchbox gets a bite of the global pie. According to media reports, it has already been sold to 30 different territories globally and could be the first Indian film with 3 foreign producers – ASAP Films of France, Rohfilm of Germany and Cinemosaic of America, along with <keyword id="66984" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="NFDC">NFDC</keyword>, Sikhya <keyword id="4578" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="entertainment">Entertainment</keyword>, Dharma Productions and DAR Films from India. It can also be the first Indian movie to be released across 100 screens in Germany. Incidentally, the film was made on a shoestring budget of $1.5 million. On the other hand, NFDC produced The Good Road, but it doesn’t have an <keyword id="1878880" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="American-distributor">American distributor</keyword> yet. 
 
But what about Oscar compatibility? The Lunchbox might have got a favourable push at the Oscars, had it been chosen. For one, <keyword id="16207" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Irrfan-Khan">Irrfan Khan</keyword> is a familiar name (his roles in The Warrior, Mighty Heart, Slumdog Millionaire and The Amazing Spider-man certainly helped) and the movie has already received some rev reviews at Cannes, Telluride, Toronto and India. Moreover, <keyword id="6411012" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Sony-Pictures">Sony Pictures</keyword> Classics will be distributing the film in the US and that could have been another plus. The Good Road has one Oscar connection, though. Its sound designer Resul Pookutty has already won an Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire in 2009. 
 
Bottom line: Till date, only three <keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> movies made it to the nomination stage of the Oscar. These include Mehboob Khan’s Mother India (1957), <keyword id="7999" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Mira-Nair">Mira Nair</keyword>’s Salaam Bombay (1988) and <keyword id="17233" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ashutosh-Gowariker">Ashutosh Gowariker</keyword>’s Lagaan (2001). The Good Road belongs to the art house pack, but going by the poor track record of other ‘arty’ films (Salim Ahamed’s Abu, Son of Adam in 2011, <keyword id="82569" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Anusha-Rizvi">Anusha Rizvi</keyword>’s Peepli Live in 2010 and <keyword id="33044" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Kalpana-Lajmi">Kalpana Lajmi</keyword>’s Rudaali in 1993), will Gollywood’s (a concoction of Gujarat and Bollywood) tryst with Oscar produce something more fruitful this time? Also, will it be possible for the Lunchbox team to push the movie at the Oscars even without the government’s backing? Let us wait and watch how ‘independent’ our independent cinema is in reality. 
 
With additional input from Agencies 
Image courtesy: Indiatimes

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