Yemen S
Times Of India
CityLights
2026 · Times Of India
Where City Lights falls short is in its ambition. Despite dealing with several interesting subjects — exploitation of sex workers, gender identity, acceptance, migration and survival in an unforgiving city — it rarely moves beyond the familiar territory established by Vijay Kumar's earlier films. The making is solid, the performances work and the Bengaluru setting gives the film character. But there isn't enough that feels genuinely extraordinary or fresh to make City Lights stand apart.
Amartha
2026 · Times Of India
The film works best when it stays with Ramesh and Lakshmi — two people who have grown older, lived separate lives and are forced to confront feelings they thought they had left behind. It is when the screenplay moves away from this heart of the story that Amartha begins to lose its emotional grip.