Ramblings of a 20something girl

Firstly, I know it's July 2024, and I'm terribly late with my list of 2023 movies. But it's not like you all were waiting for this list :p. So now that it's here, read on :) 2023 was a great year for movies (2024 is already better, I cannot wait to write my 2024 list, hehe). The Malayalam film industry has taken the mantle up once again, but I have to say that Hindi films were pretty good too, if not better.  So, in no particular order, here are my favorite movies from 2023. 1 . Romancham For someone who does not like watching horror movies because they're very boring (and not because I'm a coward in real life okay?), and also because I have not seen a lot of good horror comedies (Stree, 2018 is an exception), Romancham came as a pleasant surprise and what I would call a brilliantly set-up horror comedy. Jithu Madhavan, in his directorial debut,  traces the real-life story of himself and his friends back when they used to live in Bangalore as young 20-year-olds.

There are a few movies that come along once in a while and really sweep you off your feet. "Laapata Ladies"  (2023) is one of them. An absolute gem directed by Kiran Rao and produced by Aamir Khan films, this movie is easily one of my favorites from this year. Heads up, there may be spoilers ahead! Set in 2001 in India, this story revolves around two girls (Ladies, if you will) who get caught in an accidental swap and embark on a journey of self discovery. The movie starts with Deepak and his wife, Phool who board a train to go to his family's house. Phool wears her traditional lehenga and covers herself with the veil, as married women are not supposed to show their faces to non- family members. The day they board the train is considered very auspicious; hence, it is crowded with other brides and grooms (all married on the auspicious day), going to their respective houses . At night, when they reach the station, Deepak in a hurry, takes Phool's hand and exits the trai

Manithar unarndha kolla, Idhu manitha kaadhal alla, Adhaiyum thaandi punithamaanathu (For mere humans to understand, this is no mortal love! It’s beyond that.... pure and holy!) Manjummel Boys is the newest movie of the Malayalam film industry that itself has been riding high by its back-to-back hits with Bhramayugam and Premalu within the first two months of this year. Directed by Chidambaram Poduval, Manjummel Boys has been in the theatres, going strong weeks after its release.  Based on a real-life incident, the film follows the story of the Manjummel boys to their trip to Kodaikanal in 2006. Like any other gang of boys, these boys in their early 20s are having fun, out and about without a care in the world, waiting to have the time of their lives as they plan their tour to Kodaikanal. What seemed like a fun tour at the start becomes a matter of life and death for the Manjummel boys when the boys reach Guna Cave (formerly known as the Devil's Kitchen). Guna Cave was named a

As a kid, I was always excited about birthdays. My birthday, the birthdays of family and friends—literally everyone! No points for guessing why I would be excited for mine. But I was equally excited for other people's birthdays because there would be cake for everyone and we would all have fun, plus I could make cards for everyone( I genuinely enjoyed making cards for everyone, so win-win). I remember as a kid, I once asked a bhaiya (who must have been in his late 20s) if he was excited about his birthday, which was coming up in a week. The reply was a nonchalant "eh, yeah, it's just another day." The 8-year-old me couldn't fathom in her young mind why he wasn't excited for his birthday. Wasn't everyone supposed to be excited for their birthdays? Didn't they all have friends coming over in the evening for the birthday party? Didn't they receive gifts from everyone? Didn't they get the chance to distribute chocolates and sweets to everyone in

The Indian Premier League concluded yesterday after what seemed like a century. (No pun intended) Both the Gujarat Titans (GT), and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who have held the trophy in the past, were one match away from clinching the title, yet again. It was safe to say that it was truly a test of the champions.  The final was ready to take place in Ahmedabad on Sunday. But the final that should have happened on Sunday, shifted to Monday, thanks to the unprecedented rains in Ahmedabad. The postponement of the match led people to take a day off from their work and many of the supporters who had travelled from faraway places even slept at the railway stations just to cheer for their teams and see the jersey number 7.  On Monday, when the match (finally) started, GT took the lead to bat. In their previous 4 matches before the finals that they have played with each other- GT won 3, while CSK managed to beat them only once at their home ground in Chennai.  Considering this result, one

Cunk on Earth is a five-episode mockumentary series about human civilization that takes viewers on a hilarious and thought-provoking journey through history, offering a delightful blend of wit, absurdity, and astute observations.  At the center of the show is Philomena Cunk (played by Diane Morgan), a brilliant clueless reporter with a deadpan expression throughout the series. She travels the world (as much as the budget of the show allows her), and asks questions to historians, professors, academicians and other experts that will look stupid at the first go, but often provokes intriguing thoughts.  Obviously, the experts are all in the act. But one wonders how many takes it would have taken them to answer each of her questions without laughing.  Take for example questions like, "How did Egyptians build the pyramids? Did they start at the top and work down?” or "Were numbers worth less back in ancient times?" or my personal favorite when in an interview with composer an