Chitra Varga

‘ We are all children of one great mother, Nature ’ is a well-known Earth Day quote. That quote dovetails rather well with William Wordsworth’s quote of: “ Nature never did betray the heart that loved her .”   ಕಾಂತಾರ ( Kāntāra , which translates to “Mystical Forest”) is a 2022 Kannada -language  action thriller that explores man-nature conflict against the backdrop of culture and heritage. The critically-acclaimed film takes us through the eternal struggle between need and greed of humans. Oh…it was a commercial blockbuster and won myriad awards too! The film starts with the story of a powerful, but respected ruler of a large, prosperous 19 th Century kingdom. Despite having a loving family and happy subjects, the ruler was desolate and depressed. So, he sets out aimlessly in quest for bliss, happiness and tranquility. Eventually, the forlorn king finds inner peace and spiritual succor in a remote forest at a sacred stone, which inhabitants of the forest worship as the g...

It is oft said that ‘variety is the spice of life’! Surely true, that…except when the variety pertains to marital affairs and matrimonial matters! “ ಇಕ್ಕಟ್ ” (‘ Ikkat , which translates to: ‘ Crisis’ and also ‘Dilemma’ ), is a 2021 Kannada language film, written, directed and edited by Haseen and Esham Khan. The sweet, situation comedy, rib-tickling if I may add, features the lives of a young, middle-class couple during the COVID-lockdown. Vasu (Nagabhushana) and his wife, Janvi (Bhoomi Shetty) constantly squabbles over trivialities. One such spat gets the couple to even contemplate divorce. Dude Maga (RJ Vikki), Janvi’s TikTok buddy lands up unannounced and suggests elopement. Janvi flatly rejects the proposition; however, she allows Dude Maga to stay on surreptitiously without Vasu’s knowledge. In the meantime, Vasu’s relative, Karna Uncle (Sundar Veena) too shows up uninvited. That prepares the perfect recipe for some hilarious moments entailing exorcism of imaginary ghost...