Parallels with Eminem’s 8 Mile are inevitable because both rappers battle difficult domestic lives to explode on stage with material that relays their ordeals. But this gully boy proves that you don’t need to be slim or shady as long as you can rhyme with reason.

This one may not achieve what 3 Idiots did for parents of engineering students with non-technical passions. But it has the recipe for a light-hearted comedy. Also, it subliminally yet successfully sensitises audiences to the challenges endured by same-sex couples when surrounded by those who refuse to understand or accept them.

Manikarnika is a blood-splattered odyssey that celebrates the warrior queen who stood her ground and even threatened the British Raj’s ambitions in India. Most know of Jhansi ki Rani from the poem that aptly described the fearless queen. This biopic goes beyond heroics to reveal a resolute yet vulnerable figure. And even while the authenticity of all the events detailed here is debatable, it makes for a decent watch.

What should a biopic deliver is a question that will garner various responses. A historian would want it to be a record of our times so that it could have resonance in the future. A filmmaker would seek dramatic points in the subject’s life that would render a compelling narrative. A sociologist would want to assess if the person’s life had any significant impact on society. We would like to stick with the one in the disclaimer: “this film is meant solely for the purpose of entertainment”.

Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma, Katrina Kaif-starrer is a half-baked love story…

If one must watch a fictional account of a natural disaster, we can always turn to Hollywood blockbusters which have done it too well and too often. This just seems like watching an ’80s Hindi movie for an hour-and-a-half and then an ’80s shark movie for another 10 minutes.

Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan’s fantasy tale of retribution suffers due to mediocre execution…

This socially-awkward construct lends itself to such compelling material that even a compilation of reaction shots would suffice. But writers Shantanu Srivastava and Akshat Ghildial capitalise on the uneasiness of being in this pickle to script hilarious sequences that would leave you in splits.

Arjun Kapoor, Parineeti Chopra fail to deliver on their potential…

What doesn’t kill you, makes you more resilient. And if you survive the version of Beelzebub in this film, you surely have the liver for heart-pounding horror.