Best Hindi Movies of 2023
One of the most touching moments in Hindi cinema happened not on the big screen but on stage.At the press conference after Siddharth Anand’s huge success. pathan (The film reportedly grossed more than Rs 1,000 crore worldwide.) Shah Rukh Khan, who is returning to a Bollywood film after four years, said, referring to his co-stars: I am Shah Rukh Khan, Akbar. He’s John (Abraham), he’s Anthony. This is what makes movies. Amar, Akbar, Anthony. There is no difference between us in any culture or in any aspect of life. We love you, that’s why we make movies. ”
Despite the irony around us, it’s impossible to ignore Kahn’s deliberate choice of words. Especially considering #BoycottBollywood and other equally dumb hashtags leading up to the film’s release. Khan, in his own incomparable way, was answering the trolls in the most graceful way. This statement also comes as solace to the millions of people who have watched helplessly as films that uphold the most vile, anti-minority and anti-women sentiments are flooded into Indian theaters.
This year has been a tough year for the loyal Hindi film audience as the Hindi film industry is between woes. In particular, creative expression is increasingly monitored by controlled governments. Stars desperately want a blockbuster, even if it means compromise or regression. Also, the Hindi film industry is definitely more cautious than ever since he was exposed to multiple obituaries just a year ago. That’s reflected in the movies, where when they’re not shameless populists, they’re just bloodless and lukewarm.
In 2023, we watched Vishal Bhardwaj’s underwhelming film (kufiyah), glossy Zoya Akhtar film (arches), boring Meghna Gulzar movies (Sam Bahadur) Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s empty provocation (animal), Understanding the Struggles of Binary Gender by Luv Ranjan (Tu jyoti main makkar) and lots of Shah Rukh Khan. In the midst of all this, we also had a few surprises. Several independent films have hit theaters (if only for a few weeks), some mainstream filmmakers have come into their own again, and some of the hottest filmmakers have appeared. It’s about finding a way to beat the system that invalidates even the slightest hint of a comment.
here it is wirehas selected some of the best Hindi movies released in 2023.
Joram
Devashish Makhija’s fourth feature as a director is a rare political film (in Hindi) that slipped through the hands of a sensitive censor board. The film, which is 20 minutes shorter than the film festival cut, follows a man (a very physical Manoj Bajpayee) from a tribal community in Jharkhand whose land is usurped by a mining company and forcibly transferred to the Naxals. He was supposed to join, but later fled to Mumbai. He works as a construction worker. In Mumbai, a man takes three people with him after being ordered and implicated in the murder of his wife by a local politician (Smita Tambe, who has perhaps had the biggest influence on this year’s screen time ratio). was forced to flee. – A one month old baby is strapped to his back. Understatedly written and evocatively photographed, Joram The film plays out like one of the most grueling films of the year, only for marginalized people to face injustice at various seemingly invisible crossroads. Even after they bow their heads and make peace with oppression and injustice.
Also read | “Joram”: There is no country for the downtrodden in a system that emphasizes the rich and powerful
the three of us
What happens when a selfless and domesticated woman in an Indian family (even while working a full-time job) is forced to consider early stage dementia? And how will the people around her react to her suddenly starting to put her own wishes above those of others? A beautifully written and wonderful performance by Avinash Arun Daware. the three of us, attempts to explore this premise.Almost a sister work to Celine Song past life (2023), Daware’s film delves into what-ifs. Featuring great turns by the four lead actors – Shefali Shah, Swanand Kirkeer, Jaideep Ahlawat and Kadambari Kadam, it’s hard not to be fooled by the gentle approach of the Dawea film. Perhaps going back to the beginning is the only form of catharsis some of us need, as much as refreshing old wounds.
Pokal ke dunu parl
Director Parth Saurabh’s brilliantly observed and languidly shot directorial debut tells the story of two lovers, Sumit (Abhinav Jha) and Priyanka (Abhinav Jha), who elope from Darbhanga (Bihar) to Delhi only to be hit by the pandemic. It depicts the life of Tanaya Khan Jha. Forced to return to their homeland and face the prospect of facing their recently disowned and exasperated parents, the couple is forced to recalibrate their bond, remaining happily together. While Priyanka worries about the future of the couple, Sumit remains blissfully ignorant and she doesn’t fully understand that her wasted youth is over. Saurabh’s dialogues (Jha is credited as an “additional screenwriter”) hardly feel written, and Pradeep Vinyavel’s camera eavesdrops on Sumit, Priyanka, and his friends. looks like. Saurabh’s film is an unusual “love story” that depicts the vigor of youth slowly coming to terms with the disappointments of adult life.
Ahwah
“If I get a good price, I’ll sell the other kidney as well.”
“How will you survive then?”
“Doctors said at least one of my kidneys would have regenerated by then.”
This is a dark humorous conversation between a truck driver and his fugitive’s entourage in Sudhir Mishra’s novel. Ahwah. In the world of movies, gullible people get information via his WhatsApp forwards, and a news story about a couple on the run can suddenly take a social turn by invoking a “love jihad” . Privileged liberals can literally close the door to the poor simply by closing their eyes and ears to the world burning around them. Sound familiar? Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s performance as an urban ad man was affected, even though his F-bombs sounded the most contrived and the exposition was very bland in several places. Ahwah He sees Mishra, who has regained his strength and returned to his normal state.The fact that Sudeep Sen’s film sank within weeks story of kerala The rush to packed theaters is one of the grim conditions regarding the kind of “buzz” movies that Indian audiences find solace in these days. I’d wager there was definitely a dejected laugh from Mishra.
Also read | ‘Ahwah’ is an important mirror that reflects today’s India
Faraz
Hansal Mehta’s film about the 2016 terrorist attacks in Bangladesh is perhaps the most counterintuitive film of the year. The young militants (led by Aditya Rawal’s Nibras) are preaching Islam, killing in the name of the Quran, and saying things like: Katre Mein Hai” he said with a smile. Jannat waiting for them on the surface, Faraz This is also a hostage drama that casts Muslims as the bad guys. But Mehta and writers Raghav Kakkar and Kashyap Kapoor use the hostage film mold as a smokescreen to meditate on religious dogma and fundamentalist beliefs. With tasteful cinematography by Pratham Mehta and the intensity of a tense action movie, Faraz It reveals itself in the final moments, an ode to the idealism of youth. In Mehta’s films, the “hero” is not always visible until he stands up for justice in the final scene. A sublime touch!
Also read: Hansal Mehta’s ‘Faraaz’ brings nuance and wit to horror
Goldfish
It might be a stretch to call Pushhan Kripalani’s Goldfish a “Hindi” film. Given that it’s primarily set in London and centers around an Indian mother (Deepti Naval) and her half-British daughter (Kalki Koechlin), who mostly converse in English. But the dysfunctional bond between parent and child has rarely been portrayed so accurately and honestly on screen. Anamika, played by Koechlin (nicknamed “Mika” by her mother), is forced to return home when she learns that her mother accidentally set the kitchen on fire and showed her early symptoms of dementia. You won’t get any more. He is also forced to consider his mother’s lover, a street grocer (Rajit Kapoor) named in her will to inherit a house in London, but Koechlin’s character is both reckless and caring. , kind, and selfless, all at the same time. In a spectacular scene, she reveals that she used to go around telling people that she was adopted by her, only to anger her mother. Naval’s character retorts that he would do the same. And they both shared an unexpected heartfelt laugh. It’s a surprisingly moving scene depicting torn bonds with an undercurrent of repressed love.
Rocky Orr Rani Ki Prem Kahani
It’s all about asking your parents – is very likely to be the tagline of Karan Johar’s 2023 film. Returning to the director’s chair after seven years, Dzhokhar takes the popular romantic comedy trope of a couple swapping places to live with their partner’s family and adds plenty of his personal flavor to it. This includes over-produced songs, mesmerizing costumes, painstaking production designs, and huge productions. haveliThe matriarch barks orders. But beneath all the gloss is a whiff of rebellion. Both Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, two of the most talented young actors working today, submit completely to Johar’s landscape and become shining objects, but it helps that neither loses their individuality. It becomes. The first half is probably the most entertaining of Dzhokhar so far.
Also read: Karan Johar keeps his tongue firmly in his cheek in ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani’
12th failure
Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s film about a UPSC aspirant is one of the most surprising and satisfying Hindi films of the year. Based on a true story written in the book of the same name by Anurag Pathak, the film features some of the most sincere lead performances from Vikrant Massey and Medha Shanker. Chopra, who uses music sparingly to amplify the pathos throughout much of the film, never succumbs to cheap or disingenuous metaphors, and with her earnestness brings the audience to tears. The film has had one of the longest theatrical runs in recent history – more than three months in multiplexes – and embodies the same hardworking spirit of its protagonist. What could be more poetic than this!
Also read: Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s ’12th Failure’ will captivate you with its tenderness and sincerity
last stories 2‘mirror’
Konkona Sen Sharma’s short story, included in the Netflix anthology, is one of the best in Hindi cinema for its economy and for featuring two of the most hierarchical female characters written in recent times. It’s one of the movies. Ishita (Tirotama Shome), a single woman living in Mumbai, witnesses her maid Seema (Amruta Subhash) and her husband Kamal (Shrikant Yadav) having sex in her bedroom. Ishita, who was initially disgusted by the act, becomes attracted to watching the two have sex, but even after Seema realizes that she is being watched, she I have my own tacit desire to expose myself. It’s a great premise, executed with admirable precision by Sen Sharma and her team, which manages to say more in its 36 minutes of running time than an entire feature film. Apart from the star turns by Chaumet, Subhash and Yadav, Sagar Desai’s music is the highlight of the film. mirror.
pathan
Siddharth Anand’s film is where it all started for Hindi cinema in 2023. Shah Rukh Khan plays the title character in His R&AW, who teams up with an ISI spy (Deepika Padukone) to fight the highest bidder terrorist (John Abraham). Even within the template of an over-the-top action movie (short for “don’t take yourself too seriously”), the film makes some subversive choices. Desh (nation) and saved from certain death by the local population of Afghanistan. Terrorists who do not chant Islam or Allah bomb the country.Showing Pakistani characters as allies, also done in Salman Khan’s films tiger movie. pathan “While Anand seems capable of executing large-scale action set-pieces, this is far from the best action film to come out of India, although one of the final footage from the film shows the titular ‘hero’ closing his ears.” When you are, that’s saying something. He witnessed the death of his colleagues (including Dimple Kapadia). It brings back patriotism from a movie that frivolously evokes the tricolor flag and the national anthem at its climax. It must be worth something.
Also read: With Pathaan, Shahrukh gives fans what they have been missing for years
