Film
Ghoomketu
A small-town dreamer flees to Mumbai with 30 days to make it as a writer. Ghoomketu is a shaggy, affectionate comedy about ambition, failure, and found family, powered by Nawazuddin Siddiqui's gift for playing likeable underdogs. Warm without being saccharine; funny without punching down.
If you liked this
Jai Bhim2021
Tamil-language courtroom drama with Suriya delivering career-best work. Urgent, morally clear, and structurally brilliant—about injustice but never didactic or performative.
But Subtitles required if you don't speak Tamil. The first hour moves methodically before the payoff arrives; patience required.
Barfi!2012
Ranbir Kapoor silent film romance that's genuinely moving and inventive. A love story that earns its sentiment through specificity and visual wit rather than music-video emotion.
But The whimsy occasionally tips into calculated cuteness. The central relationship dynamic may feel dated to some viewers.
Tumbbad2018
A folk-horror fever dream about greed and myth, shot with stunning control. Every frame is painterly; the plot unfolds like a nightmare told by someone who knows exactly what they're doing.
But Deliberately paced and genuinely unsettling. If you want clear answers or a comfortable climax, look elsewhere.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Ghoomketu
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Peepli Live2010
Both feature protagonists whose ambitions—however modest—run directly into the machinery of indifference. Both are about the gap between dreaming and being seen, with humour as the only honest response.
A farmer threatens suicide for subsidy, and suddenly he's media sensation and political pawn. Scabrously funny satire about media, politics, and spectacle. Shot like a mockumentary; cuts like a knife.
But Bleak worldview; nobody wins. The rapid-fire satirical style can feel exhausting rather than energizing if you're not in its rhythm.
More like this (7)
Khosla Ka Ghosla!2006
Middle-class family comedy that's never condescending to its subjects. Sharp dialogue, genuine warmth, and a story about property fraud that somehow becomes genuinely moving.
But Feels very specifically of its era—the tech and references may feel distant now. The comedy relies on recognizing a particular kind of Delhi family.
Newton2017
A man assigned to oversee elections in a Maoist-held forest encounters the reality beneath procedural neutrality. Darkly funny, structurally elegant, and says more about power in 90 minutes than most essays.
But Subtitles; deliberately ambiguous ending. The tone is wry rather than reassuring.
Rang De Basanti2006
Young-people-wanting-to-change-the-world film that actually respects its characters' conviction. Energetic, warm, and unafraid to ask what activism actually costs.
But The pacing lurches; tonal shifts between buddy comedy and political thriller don't always land. Some sentiment borders on maudlin.
Natrang2010
A theatre actor's rise and fall in Marathi cinema. Meditative, gorgeously shot, and genuinely tragic—about the price of obsession and talent in a system that doesn't care.
But Marathi-language. Slow-burn and melancholic; the central character becomes harder to like as the film progresses. Not for mood-watching.
Gangs of Wasseypur - Part 12012
Anurag Kashyap's epic crime saga across decades and families. Sprawling, brutal, funny, and genuinely addictive—a gangster opera that never looks away.
But Extremely violent. Three and a half hours across two films. The regional dialect takes adjustment. Some scenes are deliberately ugly.
Piku2015
A woman, her father, and an architect on a road trip becomes a meditation on family irritation and love. Sparks mostly from how little it relies on plot; the characters are enough.
But Indie-paced and dialogue-heavy. The father character's quirk can feel like a one-note joke stretched thin. May feel slight if you want stakes.
Badhaai Do2022
Both are about people desperate to belong to a world that won't have them, and both locate dignity and humour in that exact space. The difference: one's private struggle, one's public. Both matter equally.
A female cop and a PE teacher marry for respectability while hiding their sexualities. Comedy that never sidelines its emotional stakes; genuinely funny and genuinely sad, often simultaneously.
But The tone is unusual and deliberate—comedic moments sit beside real pain without resolving into either. Some will find the register unsettling rather than effective.
People
Cast
Nawazuddin SiddiquiGhoomketu
Ragini KhannaJankiDevi
Richa ChadhaPagaliya
Anurag KashyapInspector Badlani
Ila ArunSanto Bua
Raghubir YadavDadda
Deepika AminMrs. Badlani, Inspector's Wife
Directing
- Pushpendra Nath MisraDirector
Writing
- Pushpendra Nath MisraWriter