Nomad, the Scribbler

 Reviewing Empuraan is difficult. Though I won’t care to admit it, I had high expectations for the movie. Lucifer, though intended to be a commercial superstar film—usually high on style and low on substance—was a reasonably well-made movie. It had a solid story, its highs, and a good balance overall. The re-watchability of Lucifer is still high, you can sit through the entire movie without a problem. Since Empuraan is the next chapter in that universe, I was looking forward to it. The first half mostly focused on building new characters, narrating Zyed’s backstory, and giving us insight into AK’s world. Some movies take a while to get into the groove and pull you in, but that never really happened for me, to be honest. I was constantly analyzing it rather than being immersed in it. Zyed’s backstory was well-made, but it felt like something I’ve seen too many times in the past decade. Did you notice that foreign actors of Western ethnicity all look the same in Indian movies? With d...

First week of January. It is that time of the year, right? Have resolutions, then have selective amnesia, only to remember them by the start of the next year and repeat the cycle all over again. I have a friend who paid for an annual gym subscription at the start of every year for three consecutive years, only to visit the gym half a dozen times. You could even say he went there only to pay the subscription fee if you’re willing to round it off. From my learning about his approach and experiences in the first year, I did foretell and warn him not to make further investments when he was going to renew his membership for the next couple of years. Apparently, gyms thrive on such subscriptions. I am sure they can hardly accommodate all the New Year resolution joinees if they actually became regulars. But he did understand all of that. His theory was that once the payment was made, the idea of not wasting money would motivate him to make regular visits to the gym. Making the payment was his...