First Day First Show | Reviews of ‘All We Imagine as Light,’ ‘Devara: Part 1’ FilmyMeet

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Around Tinsel Town

>> Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’ is India’s official submission to Oscars 2025

Kiran Rao’s piquant Laapataa Ladies has been selected as India’s official submission to Oscars 2025. The announcement was made by the jury of the Film Federation of India (FFI), the apex body that annually selects the Indian official entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, on Monday, September 23

>> Tirupati laddu row: Pawan Kalyan upset over Karthi’s remarks; Tamil star apologises

Amidst the ongoing Tirupati laddu controversy, Telugu actor and politician Pawan Kalyan was upset over Tamil actor Karthi’s remarks at a promotional event. The matter was put to rest after actor Karthi tweeted an apology. “As a humble devotee of Lord Venkateswara, I always hold our traditions dear,” the actor tweeted.

>> Actor Chiranjeevi honoured with Guinness World Record

Film star Chiranjeevi Konidela was honoured with the award of the most prolific star in the Indian film industry by the Guinness World Records at an event in Hyderabad last Sunday. The certificate was handed over by a representative of the Guinness World Records and the event also saw Bollywood star Aamir Khan sharing the dais. The certificate read “The most prolific film star in Indian Film Industry-actor/dancer is Konidela Chiranjeevi aka Mega Star achieved on 20 September 2024.”

Bollywood

Karan Johar to direct big-budget Netflix series

Kartik Aaryan shares poster of ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3’, confirms release date

Censor Board to Bombay HC on Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Emergency’: Certificate can be issued if some cuts are made

First look of Abhishek Bachchan, Remo D’Souza’s ‘Be Happy’ out; dance drama to premiere on Prime Video

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Alia Bhatt Kapoor walk the ramp in style at Paris Fashion Week 2024

‘Fabulous Lives vs Bollywood Wives’ Season 3 promises drama and new faces

Multiplex Association responds to Karan Johar’s remarks, defends dynamic ticket pricing

‘Tumbbad’ director Rahi Anil Barve won’t return for film’s sequel

Actor Parvin Dabas in ICU after car accident

Hollywood

Martin Scorsese’s Jesus and Sinatra biopics postponed indefinitely

Batman makes history as first superhero with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

50 Cent to produce Netflix docuseries on Diddy sexual assault, sex trafficking allegations

‘Peppa Pig’ voice actor David Graham passes away

Ridley Scott eyes third trip to ancient Rome with ‘Gladiator 3’ on the cards

Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi to star in Emerald Fennell’s upcoming ‘Wuthering Heights’

Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman to begin Oscar campaign for ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’

Mike Flanagan’s TIFF winner, ‘The Life of Chuck’, acquired by Neon

Matthias Schoenaerts to portray villain in DC Studios’ ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’

‘Robocop’ TV series in the works at Amazon Prime Video

Maika Monroe to star in ‘The Hand That Rocks the Cradle’ remake

Tamara Smart cast as Thalia Grace in ‘Percy Jackson & The Olympians’

Josh O’Connor to lead Kelly Reichardt’s ‘The Mastermind’

Regional cinema

Veteran Bengali actor Manoj Mitra hospitalised, condition ‘critical’

Director Shankar upset over “unauthorised use” of scenes from Tamil novel ‘Veera Yuga Nayagan Velpari’

Actor Ajith Kumar set to make a comeback to motor racing; plans to compete in European GT4 championship

Mani Ratnam-Kamal Haasan’s ‘Thug Life’ wraps up

Pawan Kalyan’s ‘Hari Hara Veera Mallu’ gets a release date

Jayam Ravi opens up on divorce with Aarti, slams affair rumours

‘Devara: Part 1’ pre-release event cancelled due to security reasons; Jr NTR reacts

Palani panchamirtham row: Director Mohan G arrested, released on own bail

Ashutosh Gowariker to serve as honorary chairman for 10th Ajanta Ellora Film Festival

Soori, Anna Ben starrer ‘Kottukkaali’ clinches Grand Prix Award at Amur Autumn International Film Festival

World cinema

Sandhya Suri’s police thriller ‘Santosh’ selected as UK’s official submission to the Oscars 2025

Cate Blanchett feted with Donostia career achievement award at San Sebastian Film Festival 2024

Johnny Depp to be presented with Lifetime Achievement Award at Rome Film Festival

Trailers

‘Vettaiyan’ prevue shows Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan at loggerheads over police encounters

Kaitlyn Dever’s controversial Abby gets first look on Outbreak Day in the trailer of ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2

‘Thunderbolts’ trailer shows Florence Pugh lead Marvel’s next rag-tag group of misfit antiheroes

Kartik Aaryan faces off against Vidya Balan’s Manjulika in teaser for ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3’

Trailer of Steve McQueen’s WWII drama ‘Blitz,’ starring Saoirse Ronan, hints at an intense story of a mother and her son

Alia Bhatt is unstoppable in trailer of Vasan Bala’s sibling prison break film, ‘Jigra’

Michael B Jordan delivers a haunting voiceover in trailer of ‘Sinner,’ his reunion with Ryan Coogler

Angelina Jolie begins Oscar campaign in first look at Pablo Larraín biopic in first trailer for ‘Maria’

Ana de Armas kicks off ‘John Wick’ spin-off series in ‘Ballerina’ trailer

Trailer of ‘Inside Out 2’ spin-off, ‘Dream Productions,’ explores the quirky studio responsible for Riley’s nightly dreams

Selena Gomez and the Russo family returns to mentor a new generation in ‘Wizards Beyond Waverly Place’ trailer

Trailer of Prem Kumar’s ‘Meiyazhagan’ shows Karthi, Arvind Swami share a heartwarming bond

Trailer of Vikramaditya Motwane’s ‘CTRL,’ starring Ananya Pandey, promises a gripping cyber thriller

‘Black’ trailer shows Jiiva and Priya Bhavani Shankar as clueless inhabitants of an eerie gated community

Essential reading

1) Jr NTR on ‘Devara: Part 1’ and how Janhvi Kapoor ‘manifested’ her role in the film

>> The ‘RRR’ star also speaks about the challenges of shooting the film, and working with Janhvi Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan

2) Politics of aesthetics: How ‘Laapataa Ladies’ got a shot at the Oscars

>> Let’s peel the layers of the comedy of manners to figure out what Kiran Rao’s social satire says and what it implies

3) Hansal Mehta on ‘The Buckingham Murders’: Telling my kind of stories is still a struggle

>> The director talks about presenting Kareena Kapoor Khan in a new light and paring down the divine halo around Gandhi in his upcoming show

4) Why the ‘bad guy from Baahubali’ is distributing Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine as Light’

>> Payal Kapadia, Rana Daggubati discuss the unusual release strategy of their Cannes-winning film and the state of independent cinema in India

5) Vijay Antony interview on ‘Hitler’: I don’t have any political agenda

>> The multi-hyphenate also talks about why the right story matters, being genre-fluid, and the future of producing films

6) Park Seo-joon and Han So-Hee interview: On Netflix’s sophomore season for ‘Gyeongseong Creature’

>> The stars spill all, on the show’s time leap, how they approached the sequel, and the promise of a lot more action and romance

7) Malayalam filmmaker Dinjith Ayyathan interview: I had manifested the success of ‘Kishkindha Kaandam’

>> He talks about creating the world of the Malayalam thriller ‘Kishkindha Kaandam,’ which is having a solid run at the box office

8) Chandrajith Belliappa on ‘Ibbani Tabbida Ileyali’: I wanted to create a visceral experience

>> The director’s debut, from Rakshit Shetty’s Paramvah Studios, has made an impact on the box office thanks to good word of mouth

9) Meet Sublahshini, the girl behind trending Tamil track ‘Golden Sparrow’

>> Love it, hate it, but you can’t ignore it. The viral song is out and the playback singer behind it is keen on making her voice heard

What to watch

1) Payal Kapadia’s radiant ode to a city and its outsiders in ‘All We Imagine as Light’

Read the full review here

2) Jr NTR and Anirudh amp up the intensity in the overstretched action drama, ‘Devara: Part 1’

Read the full review here

3) Karthi and Arvind Swami shoulder the spirited bromance drama ‘Meiyazhagan’

Read the full review here

4) Vijay Antony’s revenge drama, ‘Hitler’, is outdated and ordinary

Read the full review here

5) Pre-wedding blues with Sobhita Dhulipala in ‘Love, Sitara’

Read the full review here

6) Anjini Dhawan and Pankaj Kapur bridge the generation gap in ‘Binny And Family’

Read the full review here

7) ‘Cup’ is an uninspiring sports drama that lacks any flair

Read the full review here

8) Javier Bardem, Chloë Sevigny star in a callous, confused storytelling mess, ‘Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’

Read the full review here

9) George Clooney and Brad Pitt turn up the charm for this smooth operation, ‘Wolf’

Read the full review here

10) ‘Thalaivettiyaan Paalayam,’ Tamil remake of ‘Panchayat,’ offers familiar delights

Read the full review here

11) Elizabeth Olsen, Carrie Coon and Natasha Lyonne chart a soul-stirring sisterhood in the devastating ‘His Three Daughters’

Read the full review here

12) In ‘Never Let Go,’ Halle Berry holds middling survival thriller together

Read the full review here

13) Hiphop Tamizha Adhi’s ambitious dystopian film, ‘Kadaisi Ulaga Por,’ bites off more than it can chew

Read the full review here