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Best Films of 2024
2024 will be remembered as the year when Indian cinema finally moved out of the red carpet and won big at international film festivals. Payal Kapadia brought laurels for the country with her film Malyalam/English/Hindi language film All We Imagine As Light. Shuchi Talati's Girls Will Be Girls won the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival. And while big Bollywood blockbusters especially horror comedies ruled the box office, the year saw some exceptionally beautiful stories striking a chord with the audience. Here's presenting the best Hindi films of 2024.
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Amar Singh Chamkila
Imtiaz Ali's most political film to date, Amar Singh Chamkila narrated the story of slain and controversial Punjabi folk singer Amar Singh Chamkila in the 1980s. The film had brilliant performances by Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra (who played Chamkila's wife Amarjot Kaur) who brought alive the troubled times in Punjab and the couple's meteoric rise to stardom and their tragic abrupt end.
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Laapataa Ladies
Unarguably the best Hindi film of the year, Kiran Rao's satirical comedy about two missing brides left a defining impact with its refreshing story and endearing performances. Featuring rank newcomers Sparsh Srivastava, Pratibha Ranta and Nitanshi Goel and the popular Ravi Kishan the film delivered some powerful messages on women empowerment, female bonding and self-reliance - without ever making it sound like jargon. The film may not have cut Best International Feature Film at the Oscars, but it won hearts worldwide with its simplicity.
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Maidaan
Sports biopic run a predictable course but its the implementation and perfromances that make the difference. At a time when cricket has almost become the unofficial national sport of the country, the story of Syed Abdul Rehman, often known as the architect of the modern Indian football, is truly inspiring and one that everyone should know. It helped that Maidaan was directed by Amit Sharma and had Ajay Devgn delivering a stellar act.
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Kill
If you have to make an action film, go all out or else don't make one. Directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhatt, and shot within the confines of a train, Kill was a pulsating action thriller with zero dull moments. You would squirm at the gore and gasp for breath watching the action sequences - in regular intervals. The film also had actor Raghav Juyal humanising a slightly psycho villain and Lakshya Kapoor delivering a credible act in his debut performance.
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Sector 36
Sector 36, helmed by Aditya Nimbalkar, was not an easy watch. Yet the film's lead actors- Vikrant Massey and Deepak Dobriyal- drew you in with their powerful act. Based on the infamous Nithari case, the film relies a lot on interpretation and keeps the gore minimal yet the visuals make your stomach churn because the screenplay is so taut and Saurabh Goswami's camera work so intrusive that the film paints a vivid picture in the viewers mind. I would recommend this film simply for that interrogation scene featuring Massey and Dobriyal- it's a masterclass in acting and how a scene should be written.
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I Want To Talk
Can any best film list this year be complete without the mention of Payal Kapadia's globally acclaimed All We Imagine As Light. Since the film is not completely in Hindi, it finds a mention only. But Kapadia's mastery over the craft of filmmaking is evident in every frame and it has Kani Kusruti and Chhaya Kadam delivering such impactful performances. The film talks of a part of Mumbai that is not discussed much in the movies, it also talks of sisterhood and female bonding- another unchartered territory in Hindi films. Shuchi Talati's coming-of-age Girls Will Be Girls is also a beautiful film and takes you back in time to your teenage years. Kanu Behl's Despatch works because of the powerful Manoj Bajpayee who always delivers- no matter what the part is.
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Special Mention
Can any best film list this year be complete without the mention of Payal Kapadia's globally acclaimed All We Imagine As Light. Since the film is not completely in Hindi, it finds a mention only. But Kapadia's mastery over the craft of filmmaking is evident in every frame and it has Kani Kusruti and Chhaya Kadam delivering such impactful performances. The film talks of a part of Mumbai that is not discussed much in the movies, it also talks of sisterhood and female bonding- another unchartered territory in Hindi films. Shuchi Talati's coming-of-age Girls Will Be Girls is also a beautiful film and takes you back in time during your teenage years. Kanu Behl's Despatch works because of the powerful Manoj Bajpayee who always delivers- no matter what the part is.