Mandaar To Vaikunth: Film Critic Anupama Chopra's Favourite Films And Series

Journalist and film critic Anupama Chopra is the founder and editor of the digital platform Film Companion, which offers a curated look at cinema.

Chopra has written several books on Indian cinema and has worked as a film critic for NDTV, India Today, and Hindustan Times. She won the 2000 National Film Award for Best Book on Cinema for her book Sholay: The Making of a Classic.

In 2014, Chopra founded Film Companion which carries reviews, interviews, features, and masterclasses around cinema, television, and web series.

SheThePeopleTV got the opportunity to speak to Anupama Chopra and asked her about her favourite films or television shows to binge-watch. The film critic listed some of the incredible pieces of media that struck a chord with her.

Anupama Chopra's Favourite Films And Series

Mandaar

Mandaar is a Bengali crime thriller television series based on William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The series marks theatre actor Anirban Bhattacharya’s directorial debut.

The series stars Bhattacharya, Sonhini Sarkar, Debasish Mondal, and Bebesh Roy Chowdhury.

Chopra described the series as ”wonderful” and added that the adaption was “very precisely told, lovely, dark and twisted”.

It was released on the over-the-top (OTT) streaming platform Hoichoi and received critical acclaim and was praised for the cinematography, performances, and background score.

Geeli Pucchi – Ajeeb Daastaans

Geeli Pucchi is a short film in the anthology film Ajeeb Daastaans. Directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, the short film stars Konkona Sen Sharma and Aditi Rao Hydari as Bharti Mandal and Priya Sharma respectively.

Chopra said she really loved the film and added, “I would recommend that <Geeli Pucchi> to anybody who hasn’t seen it.”

The short film takes a look at intersectionality, caste, sexuality, and privilege.

Still from Geeli Pucchi

Suggested Reading: Cinema Not Divorced From Cultures: Anupama Chopra On Women In Films

Vaikunth – Unpaused: Naya Safar

Vaikunth is a short film from the anthology film Unpaused: Naya Safar directed by Nagraj Manjule. The anthology is set in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The short film Vaikunth focuses on a crematorium worker during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Director Nagraj Manjule plays the role of Vikas, the crematorium worker.

Chopra described the short film as “beautifully done and very well directed”.

The Great Indian Kitchen

The Great Indian Kitchen is a Malayalam drama film that tells the story of a newlywed woman. The film received critical acclaim and won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Film. The writer and director Jeo Baby won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay.

The Great Indian Kitchen stars Nimisha Sajayan as the newlywed woman who is struggling to become the submissive wife that her husband (played by Surah Venjaramood) expects her to be.

The film was one of Chopra’s favourite films from 2021. She said it was “a fabulous Malayam film about what women go through.”

She added, “I think that film should be required viewing in universities. Just a brilliantly done movie about an arranged marriage and what this woman has to deal with in the kitchen.”

Still from The Great Indian Kitchen

Sarpatta Parambarai

Sarpatta Parambarai is a Tamil period sports action film. The film stars Arya, Shabeer Kallarakkal, John Kokken, Dushara Vijayan, Pasupathy, Sanchana Natarajan, and Anupama Kumar.

Set in the 1970s, the film revolves around the clash between two clans in North Chennai and showcased the boxing culture and the politics involved in it.