Shubhra Gupta is film critic and senior columnist with the Indian Express. She watches world cinema for delectation, Hollywood for fun, and Bollywood for work. She has a huge capacity to sit through terrible Bollywood movies, but no patience at all with bad Hollywood. And world cinema has to be really cutting edge to grab her attention, and keep it. When she began reviewing, over 20 years ago, people would commiserate and say, “oh, you poor thing, you have to watch Hindi cinema”. But soon, Bollywood became cool, cool, cool. So now she hears this more often “oh my god, you watch Bollyood films, can you introduce me to Shah Rukh Khan”? No, she can’t, sorry, though she can vouch for the fact that he is really sharp and good fun in conversation. But what she can do, and has done week after week, month after month, year after year, without a break, is to lead you into the magical world of movies, and share her experiences of watching all those hundreds of films over the years. In her reviews and columns, she lets you into what she likes, and doesn’t, and invites you to be bewitched. And to know how to choose between the good ones and the turkeys, and how you can take away something from even the really ghastly ones. Because life is a movie, isn’t it? Bahut picture baaki hain, mere dost.

December 06,2025 08:10:14 AM
If it hadn’t been for Allu Arjun and his second go-round in Pushpa 2, bigger and louder than the first part, roaring in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Bengali, the biggies wouldn’t have been able to save any face.
Sat, Dec 06, 2025
December 06,2025 07:00:30 AM
At Expresso, actors Shefali Shah and Huma Qureshi spoke about the latest instalment of popular Netflix series Delhi Crime, how OTT has opened new doors for new stars and taking the critics’ words with a pinch of salt.
Sat, Dec 06, 2025
December 05,2025 15:09:50 PM
Stephen movie review: What rescues Stephen, and brings it back to its initial sharpness, is the last act with all its revelatory strands. Smartly shot and enacted, the portion is chilling, just the way it ought to be in a film like this.
Fri, Dec 05, 2025
December 05,2025 13:35:41 PM
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's chat with Raya Abirached at the fifth edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival, gave us a glimpse of the person behind the persona.
Fri, Dec 05, 2025
December 05,2025 08:33:55 AM
The year Bollywood tried to prove it wasn't going to go under the South juggernaut which had nearly steamrolled over it in the past two years, with Kantara, RRR and KGF.
Fri, Dec 05, 2025
December 03,2025 08:43:59 AM
25 Years of Indian Cinema: 2022 was nearly as dismal as 2021, with films like Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha and Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Brahmastra falling short of expectations.
Wed, Dec 03, 2025
December 02,2025 08:00:29 AM
The Covid-induced lockdown resulted in shuttered theatres, production slowdown and delayed releases. 2021 was one of the weakest years for films all over the globe, and Bollywood was no exception.
Tue, Dec 02, 2025
November 28,2025 22:22:49 PM
Perfect Family review: Perfect Family is an impactful introduction to the importance of therapy, keeping clear of the teaching-and-preaching which could alienate us.
Sat, Nov 29, 2025
November 28,2025 16:04:23 PM
Kaisi Yeh Paheli movie review: There are a couple of interesting elements in here, chief of them being the strained mother-son relationship, which spirals after the death of the father.
Fri, Nov 28, 2025
November 28,2025 15:10:23 PM
Tere Ishk Mein movie review: Dhanush, Kriti Sanon star in a film which ends up being a confused, heavy-on-melodrama-and-glycerine mish-mash of genres that glorifies an 'aggressive, angry, alpha’ man.
Mon, Dec 01, 2025
November 28,2025 14:05:39 PM
Gustakh Ishq movie review: Vijay Varma and Naseeruddin Shah's performances make you look, Vishal Bhardwaj–Gulzar's music is sublime, and both needed a better film.
Fri, Nov 28, 2025
November 28,2025 08:03:42 AM
As Covid changed the world, fantastic shows such as Panchayat and Pataal Lok trumped films, setting the narrative for what was to come.
Fri, Nov 28, 2025
November 27,2025 08:56:30 AM
2019 saw an OTT boom -- The Family Man, Delhi Crime, Made in Heaven and Gullak -- starting a fight for eyeballs between theatres and streaming platforms.
Thu, Dec 04, 2025
November 26,2025 08:41:06 AM
Sacred Games was a watershed in the year of a handful of well-told hits rose above the general dross, which was topped by the so bad it's terrible Thugs Of Hindostan (Aamir Khan), with Anand L Rai’s Zero (Shah Rukh Khan) coming a close second.
Wed, Nov 26, 2025
November 25,2025 21:04:07 PM
25 years of Indian Cinema | Of the other big hits--Tiger Zinda Hai, Golmaal, Raees, Toilet Ek Prem Katha, Secret Superstar, Kaabil, Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya, Judwa 2-- only Toilet claimed difference in its plot point.
Tue, Nov 25, 2025
November 24,2025 14:48:14 PM
Action hero, romantic icon, comic genius, before Amitabh Bachchan's Angry Young Man, there was Dharmendra, who could fight, flirt, and joke -- all in one frame
Mon, Nov 24, 2025
November 23,2025 16:44:30 PM
Sultan is that rare Salman Khan outing which actually submits to a plot. This is not just Bhaigiri, but being a character, in which he fails, falls, and gets up again, showing us the sweat and blood that goes into winning.
Sun, Nov 23, 2025
November 22,2025 16:34:08 PM
25 years of Indian Cinema: Zoya Akhtar’s 2015 Dil Dhadakne Do was yet another poor-little-rich-people drama that the director excelled at before she rolled over into more egalitarian ground with Gully Boy.
Sat, Nov 22, 2025
November 21,2025 18:55:21 PM
Mastii 4 movie review: Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Aftab Shivdasani-starrer Mastii 4 has zero laughs and non-stop cringe.
Fri, Nov 21, 2025
November 21,2025 13:56:50 PM
120 Bahadur movie review: Farhan Akhtar plays Major Shaitan Singh Bhati with brio, and the film brings a lump to the throat, and a tear to the eye.
Fri, Nov 21, 2025
November 21,2025 09:11:12 AM
The Family Man 3 review: Manoj Bajpayee is still the beating heart of the show, as is Sharib Hashmi as his trusty second-in-command; Priyamani continues to be as watchable too.
Fri, Nov 21, 2025
November 20,2025 15:08:00 PM
Amid Kick, Bang Bang, Singham Returns, Holiday, Happy New Year and Ek Villain -- only PK stood tall for its freshness.
Thu, Nov 20, 2025
November 19,2025 08:12:53 AM
If I were to pick one film which changed the game in terms of a wider overseas release, it was Ritesh Batra’s Lunchbox, an unlikely romance between two lonely souls starring Irrfan Khan and Nimrat Kaur.
Wed, Nov 19, 2025
November 18,2025 08:06:08 AM
Not Ek Tha Tiger and Rowdy Rathore, 2012 belonged to Tigmanshu Dhulia (Paan Singh Tomar), Shoojit Sircar (Vicky Donor), Anurag Kashyap (Gangs of Wasseypur 1 and 2), Gauri Shinde’s English Vinglish, and Sujoy Ghosh (Kahaani).
Tue, Nov 18, 2025
November 17,2025 10:50:24 AM
25 Years of Indian Cinema: A handful of non-starry films defined 2011. The top of the pops were Delhi Belly, and Pyaar Ka Punchnama even though big films and big stars kept their date with audience in theatres.
Mon, Nov 17, 2025


