Last year saw some of the small budget films win big at the box office. While it was easier for the big, mainstream masala films to rake in the moolah faster, most of them ended up disappointing critics as well as fans. Films like Stree, Badhai Ho, and Andhadhun on the contrary set the tone for what Bollywood can do with storytelling, while simultaneously doling out commercial successes. While we hope 2019 will be even better, here are 11 indie films we are really curious about thanks to their star performers who dazzled in 2018:
Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai?
Soumitra Ranade’s remake of Saeed Akhtar Mirza’s cult classic Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai debuted the first time at the National Film Development Corporation of India’s Film Bazaar in 2016. But, it still hasn’t had a theatrical release in India. Ranade’s remake stars Tumhari Sulu and Ghoul’s Manav Kaul along with Saurabh Shukla, Kishor Kadam, and Nandita Das who will apparently be seen playing seven characters in the film!
Tryst With Destiny
This Prashant Nair film, backed by Drishyam Films and Backup Media will star Vineet Kumar Singh, Geetanjali Thapa, Amit Sial, Prakash Raj and Suhasini Maniratnam in key roles. It is going to be an anthology film with four chapters, and yes, the name is a reference to PM Jawaharlal Nehru’s historic speech made to the Parliament on August 14, 1947.
Bombairiya
Pia Sukanya’s black comedy is actually all set for release the same day The Accidental Prime Minister and Uri: The Surgical Strike release, so it has a good chance of getting overshadowed. The film will feature Netflix’s darling Radhika Apte, along with Siddhanth Kapoor, Akshay Oberoi, Adil Hussain, Ravi Kishan, Amit Sial, Ajinkya Deo and Shilpa Shukla.
Photograph
Nawazuddin’s next biopic Thackeray is in the limelight for a lot of wrong reasons, but we’re personally more curious about his next with The Lunchbox maker Ritesh Batra, Photograph. He will be playing the role of a struggling street photographer in the film which will also star Sanya Malhotra as a reclusive stranger who agrees to pose as Nawaz’s fiance when his family starts pushing him to get married.
Yours Truly
Memories Of March director Sanjoy Nag’s Yours Truly premiered at the 23rd Busan International Film Festival, and we’re hoping it gets a theatrical release soon this year. The romantic drama stars Soni Razdan in the lead, along with Aahana Kumra. One of the most prolific performers of recent times, Pankaj Tripathi will also be seen in the film where Mahesh Bhatt also has a special appearance.
Pashmina
Starring Aditi Rao Hydari, Shweta Tripathi, Dulquer Salmaan, Zaira Wasim, Ronit Roy, Soni Razdan, Farida Jalal, Pashmina has us sold simply because of the stellar cast. The film directed by Danish Rezu, narrates the story of four strangers whose lives collide at certain junctures, through the point of view of a young Kashmiri girl.
Pind Daan
After receiving all the well-deserved praises for her performances on-screen, Seema Pahwa is taking up the mantle of a director for the first time with Pind Daan. Drishyam Films is backing this film starring Vikrant Massey, Naseeruddin Shah, Vinay Pathak, Manoj Pahwa, Konkana Sen, Deepika Amin and Ninad Kamat in key roles. Seriously, we are sold on the cast for this one too!
Kaamyaab
The impressive star cast of this film? Sanjay Mishra. Yep, the one man powerhouse of talent is going to play a rather meta character in the film. His character is an accomplished character actor who decides to come out of retirement one fine day. Kaamyaab also debuted at the Busan International Film Festival. The film will also have Deepak Dobriyal and Isha Talwar in key roles.
Hamid
After Manto and Mirzapur, Rasika Dugal will be back with her on-screen magic in Aijaz Khan’s Hamid. Based on how families are affected by the political unrest in Kashmir, the film is about an eight-year-old Hamid who, upon discovering that 786 is supposed to be God’s number, tries to ring him up.
No Fathers In Kashmir
Another film starring Soni Razdan and based in Kashmir, No Fathers In Kashmir is a love story of two 16-year-olds who find love while grieving for their lost fathers. Ashvin Kumar’s film stars child artists Zara Webb, Shivam Rana, along with Kulbulshan Kharbanda and Anshuman Jha.
The Storyteller
Actor-director Ananth Mahadevan is all set to re-adapt Satyajit Ray’s short story The Storyteller in this Hindi feature film starring Naseeruddin Shah, Paresh Rawal, Revathi and Tannishtha Chatterjee in lead roles. Even though no release date is set for it yet, we are hoping to see Tarini Khuro on the big screen as soon as possible!
