The Deshpandes are no ordinary brood. And Aiyyaa is no ordinary film. Wildly wakda (read twisted) in more ways than one, it is a film that defies definition.It careens from the dreamy to the delirious, the realistic to the raucous, and the perfectly logical to the utterly nonsensical as it turns many a time-honoured convention of Hindi commercial cinema on its head.Many might find its loud, outré storytelling style somewhat difficult to comprehend and digest, especially in the context of the film’s slice-of-life love story predicated on a willing suspension of disbelief. Aiyyaa takes time to warm up, slips into dull patches at times and occasionally teeters on the edge of a certain dissonance. But the subversive spirit that drives the absurdist core of Aiyyaa is well worth embracing.

Grab a piece of this Pi. It is a must watch. In terms of both the scale of its ambition and the exquisite perfection of its execution, Life of Pi is pure magic.

Ek Tha Tiger isn’t what one whould rate as great cinema, but it isn’t just harmless fun. The pacifist message dovetailed into its core lends the film a far greater degree of relevance than Bollywood spy thrillers generally strive for.

This film is designed to be Sunny Leone’s ticket to a place in the Bollywood sun, but it isn’t quite love-all in her favour. Yet, Jism 2 has enough soul not be swamped by a curvaceous body. It is more than just another ‘booby’ trap of a film.

Cocktail has just the right mix of fizz and flavour to allow the occasional and inevitable crinkles of triteness to flow well below the surface. It is definitely worth a visit to the multiplex.

Here at long last is a Hindi film that dares to defy the conventions of its chosen genre. Shanghai is a no-frills but searing political thriller that is under-wired with intelligence and nerve, both cinematic and ideological.Shanghai draws much of its strength from a taut screenplay (Urmi Juvekar and Dibakar Banerjee) that never overplays its hand and leaves a lot to the imagination of the audience.Shanghai projects the dark, dank, redolent-with-danger innards of small-town India to absolute perfection.The film articulates a simmering rage at the sorry state of affairs in a country that is purportedly poised on the cusp of economic superpower status, but it does so neither through screechy bluster nor by means of preachy sermons.

The revenge, filmed with an operatic slo-mo rhythm, is bloodier than anything you would have seen before. But if you liked Gangs Of Wasseypur, there is no reason why won’t have another blast watching GOW II. But be warned: be sure that your stomach for blood and gore doesn’t give way.

It may not be for the faint-hearted and the prissy. Gangs of Wasseypur is a heavyweight knockout punch. You’re down for the count!

RA.One is like a colourful Popsicle that looks tantalising, tickles the palate while it lasts, but leaves no particular after-taste. Sound and fury? Loads of it. Significance? Not much.

Watch Jab Tak Hai Jaan not just for the obvious sentimental reason but for the fact that it shows, for one last time, what Bollywood will miss now that the undisputed master of romantic sagas is no more.