What to watch this week: ‘Gram Chikitsalay', ‘The Royals', and more
Prince Aviraaj falls for career-minded Sophia in this clash-of-cultures series. The eclectic cast has Bhumi Pednekar and Ishaan Khatter in the lead, and support from Zeenat Aman and Sakshi Tanwar. Created by Rangita and Ishita Pritish Nandy. (Netflix)
A man honours his late mother by opening an Italian restaurant run by actual nonnas (grandmothers) as the chefs. Starring Vince Vaughn, Lorraine Bracco,Talia Shire, Brenda Vaccaro, Joe Manganiello and Susan Sarandon. Directed by Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower). (Netflix)
A couple reunite in heaven. He was bedridden for a large part of his life and she took care of him. In heaven, the tables are turned: he's in his 30s and she's in her 80s. Starring Kim Hye-ja (The Light in Your Eyes) and Son Suk-ku (The Roundup; Nothing Serious). (Netflix)
Actor and newly minted Padma Bhushan awardee Ajith Kumar stars in this action-comedy that entered the ₹ 100-crore club within five days of its theatrical release in April. Directed by Adhik Ravichandran, the film has Ajith playing a retired gangster who has to pick up the cudgels once again to help his son out. The cast also includes Trisha Krishnan and Arjun Das. (Netflix)
TVF isn't known for fixing what isn't broken. Their latest series is squarely in Panchayat territory, a droll comedy-drama about an idealistic young doctor (Amol Parashar) who tries to revive a village clinic. Created by Deepak Kumar Mishra. (Amazon Prime)
Jane Schoenbrun's 2024 film, I Saw the TV Glow, starring Justice Smith and Jack Haven, begins with dreamy unreality and ends with necessary struggle. It's a film that speaks to the trans experience, but in a complex, fractured manner. It's a shattering, haunting work, so unlike the explanation-driven American cinema of today that it seems to invent its own language. Schoenbrun instinctively arrives at a Lynchian kind of dread. Yet, I Saw the TV Glow is also achingly beautiful. Schoenbrun and cinematographer Eric K. Yue use saturated colours and shimmers of neon the way Gregg Araki, a pioneer of New Queer Cinema, did in the 1990s. (Netflix)
Two members of a special forces group called Shadow Force break the rules by falling in love with each other. They have a child and are living a regular life. But then their old employer comes after them, and they're forced to go underground. Shadow Force has a standard action movie premise. But Joe Carnahan (Smokin' Aces, The Grey) has made a career out of tough actioners. And it will be intriguing seeing Kerry Washington (Scandal, Django Unchained) in fight mode. Her co-lead is Omar Sy, best known for playing the titular thief in the Netflix series Lupin. Also starring Mark Strong, Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Cliff 'Method Man' Smith. (In theatres)
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