‘Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi’ Trailer: YAS QUEEN!

[Photo Source: Screenshot/Zee Studios]

This might be one of the only occasions where the appropriate reaction to something is YAS QUEEN! The trailer for “Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi” dropped, featuring two minutes of action-packed visuals. After the week women have had in my corner of the world (or, really, anywhere at the moment), watching Kangana Ranaut looking majestic – cutting people down, riding her horse, and generally being very regal – was like a balm for my soul.

The only way you know a historical epic is a historical epic is if Amitabh Bachchan narrates the trailer/opening, and his booming voice opens the trailer for ‘Manikarnika’ as well. India is referred to as a “mahaan sabhyata” or a “great culture,” and British colonizers are referred to as “those with cruel intentions who took advantage of India’s hospitality” in the first seconds… We all already know where this is going.

And we are PUMPED.

[Photo Source: Screenshot/YouTube]
The trailer hails “Manikarnika” as coming from the makers of “Baahubali,” which, to be honest, is a stretch, but that and dodgy CGI aside, this trailer still got me excited. The only thing “Baahubali” and “Manikarnika” seem to have in common is that both the films are directed by Telugu filmmakers.

“Manikarnika,” which refers to the birth name of the Rani of Jhansi, is helmed by Krish Jagarlamudi, who is making his entrance into the Hindi film industry with this epic. His previous outings were the Telugu historical epic “Gautamiputra Satakarni,” and the very well received “Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum.”

[Photo Source: Screenshot/YouTube]
Kangana Ranaut looks fierce in this trailer, and I’m looking forward to see how Jagarlamudi handles this story. A lot of the trailer features an open-mouthed Ranaut, and the four words she utters in the span of two minutes are of weirdly bad audio quality – but I’m still not letting any of it get me down.

My favorite part of the trailer is that we don’t know who the Raja of Jhansi is played by. You know what? We (I. Mainly me.) don’t even care.

[Read Related: ‘Thugs of Hindostan’ Trailer: Remind You of Any Hollywood Swashbucklers?]

I’m really looking forward to sitting in the theater and soaking up the resplendency of Kangana in all her queen-ly badassery. Bring on the battles, the horses and the blood!

By Shruti Tarigoppula

Shruti Tarigoppula is a graduate of SUNY Stony Brook and New York University who currently works in Digital Marketing. She … Read more ›

‘The Romantics’: Revisiting the Legacy and Grandeur of Yash Chopra With Filmmaker Smriti Mundhra

The Romantics

If you are a South Asian, born in the ’80s or the early ’90s, chances are your ideas of love and romance are heavily influenced by Hindi films — that first gaze, the secret love notes, that accidental meeting somewhere in Europe, over-the-top gestures and dancing around trees. While reality may have been far from what was promised on reel, you still can’t stop pining over a hopeless romantic, with chocolate boy looks, chasing you across the earth and many universes; in the life here and the ones after. Somewhere deep down, you still dream of that possibility despite your husband sitting and sipping his morning coffee right next to you. And much of the credit for weaving this dreamland, that we can’t resist happily sliding into, goes to the legendary Yash Chopra. Award-winning filmmaker Smriti Mundhra’s docu-series, “The Romantics,” that released on Netflix on February 14, chronicles Chopra’s prolific career; offering an illuminating look into the highs and lows of his journey, his unblemished vision for Hindi cinema and sheer love for filmmaking. 

I wanted to look at Indian cinema through the lens of it being a major contributor to the global cinema canon and Yash Chopra seemed like the perfect lens to explore that because of the longevity of his career and the fact that he had worked across so many different genres. His films, for so many of us, defined what Hindi cinema is.

— Smriti Mundhra

As “The Romantics” unveils, in a mere episode — a challenging feat in itself — Chopra did experiment with multiple genres as a budding filmmaker, initially under the shadows of his elder brother B.R. Chopra. From the religiously sensitive “Dharamputra” and the trendsetting “Waqt” to the action-packed and iconic “Deewaar.” It wasn’t until later on in his career that he set a precedent for a Hindi film having a wholly romantic narrative; though “Waqt” did offer the perfect glimpse into what would go on to become Chopra’s cinematic imprint. And then came “Chandni” which ushered in a new era for Hindi cinema; defying the formulaic approach to box office success and making love stories the golden goose.

In the words of more than 30 famous faces, a host of archival videos and interviews, and personal anecdotes, audiences get an extensive insight into the life and career of Yash Chopra and the evolution of his vision through the business acumen and genius of his polar opposite son and a famous recluse, Aditya Chopra. “The Romantics” is not a fancy portrait of a legendary filmmaker but an exploration of what goes into making a successful film family and a path-breaking production house. As viewers, we not only get a peek into the making of a fantasy creator but also learn of the many failures, hurdles and uncertainties that the business of filmmaking comes packaged in, the impact of socio-political shifts on the kind of content being produced and demanded, and just how much control we have as an audience over the fate of the film and the filmmaker.

For both the uninitiated and fanatics, there are some interesting revelations like Shah Rukh Khan’s lifelong desire to become an action hero as opposed to a romantic one and the creative conflict between Aditya Chopra and his father Yash Chopra on the sets of “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jaayenge” — a project that, surprisingly, did not seem too promising to the latter. Mundhra penetrates deep into the family’s history and industry relationships evoking some really candid conversations; almost as if these celebs were eagerly waiting for their moment to speak. With one appraising interview after the other, it’s a panegyric that does border on being a tad tedious but there is enough depth and fodder in there to keep one hooked. Kudos to Mundhra for managing to achieve cohesion despite there being more than enough material to chew on. In the process of bringing this project to life, Mundhra also ends up achieving a number of milestones: one that the series features the last of actor Rishi Kapoor’s interviews and two, it brings Aditya Chopra, who, it appears, can talk a blue streak contrary to popular belief, to the front of the camera after almost two decades. The moment when he puts the nepotism debate to rest by referring to his brother’s catastrophic attempt at acting is quite the show-stealer.

 

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At some point during the four-episode series, you might question if it’s fair to credit the Yash Raj family for being the only real changemakers of the Hindi film industry and for picking up the baton to get Hindi cinema the global recognition that it has. But then there is no denying the Chopra clan’s body of work, their ability to understand what pleases the crowd and their commitment towards growth and progress amidst changing times and technology — Yash Raj Studios is in fact the only privately held and one of the biggest, state-of-the-art film studios in India. Chopra’s career and legacy are in no way under-lit that Mundhra can claim to throw new light on with “The Romantics.” But what she really has on offer here are sheer nostalgia, some fascinating discoveries and an ode to a cinephile and his art with a bit of fan service.

In an interview with Brown Girl Magazine, Mundhra discusses why it was so important for Chopra to be the subject of her docu-series, her own learnings during the series’ research and creative process and her accomplishment of getting Aditya Chopra to talk, and that too, at length.

By Nida Hasan

Editor by profession, writer by passion, and a mother 24/7, Nida is a member of Brown Girl Lifestyle's editing team … Read more ›