Despite its stiffness, in Aarkkariyam, a supernatural glow does shine out of the ordinary.

With Joji, Dileesh Pothan has found a way, once more, to use everything he has learnt to further push the boundaries of his art, observes Sreehari Nair.

'I might in the future step out of a Dileesh Pothan movie not completely satisfied, but content I'll be in the knowledge that our greatest living film-maker had failed striving to be something more than just an auteur,' notes Sreehari Nair.

'Of all artists who openly support the current political dispensation, she is far and away the finest,' argues Sreehari Nair. 'With the exception of perhaps Tabu, no Indian actress has done more to extend the range of the feminine mystique in Hindi cinema.'

20 years ago this week, India and Australia played one of the greatest Test matches in cricket history. Sreehari Nair relives the sound and the fury of that unforgettable game at the Eden Gardens.

The curse of stardom, especially in a country like India -- which wants its Gods to be tidy and punctilious -- is that stardom forces you to stop exploring the frozen sea inside you, and instead inspires you more and more to perform out of a small puddle, observes Sreehari Nair.

If you think the film is gutsy, you are simply being blind to the truth that the whole men-are-worthless slant is saleable right now, argues Sreehari Nair.

The difference between watching a movie on a laptop in your apartment and watching it on a big white screen is almost spiritual, notes Sreehari Nair.

Padmarajan's Thoovanathumbikal has become a part of Malayali mythology, just as its maker himself now possesses mythological status.

Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors is not a great show, but an efficient one, notes Sreehari Nair.

To an award show that's famous for honouring artists belatedly, we have sent as our official entry one of our major film-makers's weakest work yet, feels Sreehari Nair.

... And sometimes, that's enough, says Sreehari Nair.

What Director Mahesh Narayanan captures perfectly in C U Soon is the texture of our online conversations, observes Sreehari Nair.

'It's also a movie-crazed kid's idea of a great time,' discovers Sreehari Nair.

All through Moothon, you can sense Mohandas trying hard to empathise with her characters; I just wish she was interested in them, declares Sreehari Nair.

'It's a performance that puts the Bachchan hysteria to shame,' observes Sreehari Nair.

'What guides Monsoon Wedding through and through is Mira Nair's openness as a film-maker,' observes Sreehari Nair.

'Since Piku, Irrfan seemed content in delighting us with his finesse than striking a nerve.' 'Now, why was this so?' 'Why did our No 1 soul-searching actor suddenly decide that he'd rather be a heart-warmer?' 'Did those journeys take too much out of him?' asks Sreehari Nair.

These videos are like butterflies in a case, says Sreehari Nair. They have neither aged badly nor grown over-familiar.

This piece is a tribute to that corner of film criticism that they call subtextual film criticism.