Abhishek Bachchan

Starring : Abhishek Bachchan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Sanya Malhotra, Rohit Suresh Saraf, Pearle Maaney

Directed by : Anurag Basu

Produced by : Bhushan Kumar, Divya Khosla Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Anurag Basu, Tani Basu, Deepshika Bose

Music by : Pritam

Cinematography : Anurag Basu, Rajesh Shukla

Edited by : Ajay Sharma

So, continuing the series of reviewing OTT shows and films, our today’s pick is the Hindi film Ludo. The film is available on Netflix and let’s see how it is.

Story :

Sattu Bhaiyya(Pankaj Tripathi) is a dreaded gangster who kills a builder and hell breaks out loose. Four different characters with names Bittu Tiwari(Abhishek Bachchan) Akash(Aditya Roy Kapur) Aalu(Rajkummar Rao)and Shruti (Sanya Malhotra) get entangled in this murder without their knowledge. How one murder changes things for these characters forms the story of Ludo.

What’s Good

With each passing film, Pankaj Tripathi is getting solid roles and he is the best part in Ludo as well. He has the best role and delivers a solid performance. His expressions and comedy timing in a few scenes are to die for. Next in line is Rajkumar Rao who is superb. His take on Mithun Chakraborthy in all his dialogues and the fun factor he brings was amazing.

Aditya Roy is just about okay in his role and plays his part well. Abhishek Bachchan is also neat but he is getting repetitive in his roles. Sanya Malhotra looks beautiful and is good in her small role. The backstories and characters of each of the actors are nicely written and have been set up well in the plot.

The dialogues are amazing and evoke witty humor. The production design and camerawork are good. But the BGM was even better. The humor angle in the film is good and makes the dull scenes active.

What’s Bad

Though the backstories are written well, director Anurag Basu takes a lot of time to establish them. Because of this, the length of the film becomes long and some parts drag for no reason. The screenplay is a bit wayward as many things happen in the pot and the normal audience can get confused a bit with what is happening in the plot. The film has way too many characters and it is hard to keep track of some in crucial scenes.

Verdict :

On the whole, Ludo is a film that has a very interesting backdrop. The film is filled with noted Bollywood stars and the performances they give and their weird characters make things interesting. If you ignore the length and slightly complex narration, this film ends up as a decent watch.

Rating: 3/5

Cast : Abhishek Bachchan, Amit Sadh, Nithya Menen, Ivana Kaur, Saiyami Kher, Hrishikesh Joshi, Shruti Bapna, Resham Shrivardhan

Directed by : Mayank Sharma

Producers : Vikram Malhotra, Nidhi Agarwal, Ajay G Rai, Vijash Kothari

Cinematography by : S. Bharathwaaj

Editing by : Sumeet Kotian

So, continuing the series of reviewing movies and shows during the lockdown period, our today’s pick is the Hindi web series Breathe Into The Shadows which has Abhishek Bachchan in the lead role. The series is available on Amazon Prime video and let’s see how it is.

What’s it about

The series is set in Delhi and is based on the life of a couple, Avinash Sabarwal(Abhishek and Abha Sabarwal(Nithya Menen) who have a six-year-old daughter Siya. Things start getting worse when Siya gets kidnapped all of a sudden. The kidnapper makes a call and demands the couple to start killing a select few in order to set their daughter free. On the other hand, the case is assigned to Kabir Sawant(Amith Sadh) who has his own past. What will Avinash and his wife do now? Will they start killing people to save their daughter? What are the problems they face and who is this kidnapper? To know this you have to watch the entire show.

What’s good?

Abhishek Bachchan makes his entry into the OTT world with a bang. He as the desperate father does extremely well in the show. He has a tailor-made role and surprises you with his act. He does not show himself in a frustrated manner but is clever and shows all his pain through his eyes. Nithya Menen is a proven actoress and she does well in her character of Abha. Nithya’s Hindi diction is spot on and she does superb job supporting Abhisekh in his act. The whole story is based on the couple and their chemistry is spot on.

Each of the episodes has a good twist which has been executed well. Sayami Kher is solid in her key role and brings a lot of depth to the show. Amit Sadh is also amazing as the cop.

The show has a stunning background score which makes the viewing even more engaging. The story looks simple but the twists and turns that are given in the narration are decent. A major twist in the story that is revealed in the middle episodes is shocking.

What’s bad?

Even though the show is gripping until the end, there was absolutely no need to have 12 episodes. Things could have been wrapped up in just nine or ten episodes. Also, once the suspense is known, things get slow in a few scenes. The love story of Amith Sadh is dragged for no reason. The series could have been edited a bit better to make it even tauter.

Final Word

Overall, Breathe Into the Shadows is a web series that has a very good premise. The earthy characters, realistic performances, and twists keep you engaged most of the time. A very lengthy runtime in each of 12 long episodes and slow pace bore you at times. But still, this series has enough moments that makes up for a decent watch during this lockdown.

Rating: 3/5

OTT Review : Ludo – Hindi film on Netflix

Lockdown Review : Breathe Into The Shadows – Hindi series on Amazon Prime