(This article forms a part of the First Day First Show newsletter that brings you the latest and best from the world of movies and entertainment. Subscribe now)
Bollywood
Tiger Shroff to star in Shashank Khaitan’s ‘Screw Dheela’
Pratik Gandhi to play Mahatma Gandhi in new series from Hansal Mehta
Manoj Bajpayee, Neeraj Pandey reunite for docu-series ‘Secrets of the Kohinoor’
Sonakshi Sinha to headline brother’s directorial debut ‘Nikita Roy and The Book of Darkness’
Shreyas Talpade to play Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Emergency’
Hollywood
San Diego Comic-Con: Marvel announces new titles, unveils ‘Black Panther 2’ teaser
‘Black Adam’, ‘Shazam!’ sequel showcased at Comic-Con
Keanu Reeves goes to war in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ teaser
‘Goodfellas’ and ‘Law & Order’ actor Paul Sorvino dies at 83
MGM developing ‘Creed’ spin-off ‘Drago’
Netflix announces ‘The Gray Man’ sequel with Ryan Gosling, spin-off film also in the works
Ben Affleck to return as Batman for ‘Aquaman’ sequel
Regional Cinema
Kamal Haasan to produce Udhayanidhi Stalin’s next
‘Vaathi’ teaser shows Dhanush as a teacher up against education mafia
Dulquer Salmaan’s ‘Sita Ramam’ trailer points to an intense romance drama
‘Jai Bhim’ director TJ Gnanavel’s next is ‘Dosa King’
New in streaming
New on Disney+ Hotstar this month: Kamal Haasan’s Vikram, a brand new season of Koffee With Karan, new series Shoorveer and more
New on Netflix: Black comedy drama Darlings, a new season of reality series Indian Matchmaking, the third season of Never Have I Ever, and more
New on Amazon Prime Video this week: Biographical drama Rocketry, superhero feature The Batman, comedy series The Odd Couple, and more
New on Apple TV Plus: Gugu Mbatha-Raw’ stars in thriller Surface, third season of See, new comedy series Bad Sisters, and more
Essential reading
1) Sobhita Dhulipala: Moved me to see Mani Ratnam bring ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ to life
>> The actor on ‘Made in Heaven’ season 2, Mani Ratnam’s ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ and her Hollywood debut ‘Monkey Man‘
2) Shalini Ushadevi on winning the National Award for the Best Screenplay for ‘Soorarai Pottru’
>> The Malayalam filmmaker speaks about winning her first National Film Award and her upcoming projects
3) Sandhya Raju: The National Awards for ‘Natyam’ are a validation of our efforts
>> The National Award winner for best choreography speaks on making dance compositions appeal to moviegoers
4) Hanu Raghavapudi: The war in ‘Sita Ramam’ is an internal battle
>> The director says that his film is a throwback to the era of letter writing
5) Shane Nigam: Bermuda is an entertainer that is a reflection of present-day society
>> The actor speaks about his new film ‘Bermuda’ and ‘Evideyo’, a short film he directed
6) Usha Uthup discusses her biography ‘The Queen of Indian Pop’
>> The singer on her biography ‘The Queen of Indian Pop’, and why she likes to call herself a ‘people’s singer’
7) A delectable recipe for success
>> An exploration on how culinary shows have continued to be relatable and engaging
8) Persuasion’s faux ‘inclusiveness’ is culturally insulting
>> Would casting a person of colour in a Jane Austen adaptation make the classic “belong to everyone”?
9) Filmmaker Ayesha Sood on making the true crime docu-series ‘Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi’
>> The three-episodeNetflix series tells the story of the infamous serial killer Chandrakant Jha
10) Art director Jothish Shankar on creating the massive set for Fahadh Faasil’s survival thriller, ‘Malayankunju’
>> The team converted a studio floor as the earth’s interior where the lead character is trapped after a landslip
11) My fans, my family: When celebrities bond with fans
>> Feel like striking up a conversation with your favourite star? Here’s how fan clubs on Twitter function
What to watch
1) Kichcha Sudeep’s ‘Vikrant Rona’ is marred by logical loopholes and a faulty narrative
2) ‘Ek Villain Returns’ is as plastic as the smiley mask, despite Arjun Kapoor’s best efforts
Read the full review here
3) Too lucky to be true, Janhvi Kapoor-starrer ‘Good Luck Jerry’ is good fun on the run
Read the full review here
4) ‘The Legend’ is an absurd, campy Saravana Stores advertisement
5) Santhanam’s black comedy ‘Gulu Gulu’ dishes a few laughs but nothing more
6) ‘19(1)(a)‘ is a valiant directorial debut anchored by a poignant Nithya Menen and a charming Vijay Sethupathi
7) Ravi Teja starrer ‘Ramarao on Duty’ has neither chutzpah nor interesting content
8) Mindy Kaling’s comedy film ‘The Sex Lives of College Girls’ is about sex, in every way of the word
9) Rajiv Nath’s ‘Headmaster’, based on a short story by Karur Neelakanda Pillai, works in parts
