The 15 Best Indian Films of 2016

Indian cinema has experimented extensively in recent years and has been quite successful. New actors and directors have made their presence felt. Importantly, audiences are opening up to new ideas and experimenting with narration, though it sometimes goes horribly wrong. Films like Kismath (Malayalam), Waiting (Hindi), Dhanak (Hindi), and Sairat (Marathi) paved the path for films with simple narration and characters rooted in the real world. Characters played by non-superstars drove these films.

Honorable Mentions: Kismath (Malayalam), Waiting (Hindi), Kali (Malayalam), Phobia (Hindi), Action Hero Biju. Comment your thoughts on the list. How many films have you seen from the list?

15. The Violin Player | Hindi | Drama

The Violin Player is an intense drama about a brooding artist at its center looking for an opportunity to showcase his talent. The writer & director, Bauddhayan Mukherji, very smartly captures the paranoia of the struggling violin player inside his eroded, four-walled, shabby house in the opening scene. The film is layered if you look beyond the mystery of a shady director asking the violin player to follow him for his first-ever solo performance. Even more interesting is that the solo violin piece itself forms the emotional catharsis of a sincere artist & a lost man.

14. Pelli Choopulu | Telugu | Romantic Drama

The Telugu film industry has been churning out nasty commercial films with unrealistic characters and amplified drama for any average human to handle, and objectifying the women in every other movie is the worst part. Pelli Choopulu flips the above two things synonyms to Telugu films and serves as a feel-good romantic film with empathetic characters with real-life problems. Prashant is a dreamer and aspires to be a chef but his father has a different plan for him, Chitra is a strong headed woman who thinks practically. When they cross paths accidentally, they learn about life and dreams from each other. You know how the film will end, but the characters are written from the heart of a commoner, and you fall for them, root for them, and want them to be happy. It is a simple film that addresses issues with & around arranged marriages and how they crush the dreams and aspirations of a person.

13. Kammatti Paadam | Malayalam | Crime Drama

Eranakulam’s green lush is gradually turned into a land of crime & alcohol cartels for political and personal mileage. Kammatti paadam quite smartly handles the emotional pathos of friendship put to the test amid the rise of crime, where trust, love, and loyalty are hanging by a thin thread. The film has its share of flaws; it has an incoherent screenplay, but that is compensated by the strong performances of all the actors & some remarkable characterization that will be in mind for a long time. Rajeev Rai focuses on how people from the lower strata are reduced to mere objects in the hands of not-so-powerful men for their agenda. How the elimination of such group has shaped the Ernakulam’s underbelly. The film’s narration is strongly supported by the soundtrack & cinematography that evokes a sense of agony & anger. Vinayakan’s performance is the highlight of the film. He has given one of the best performances of 2016.

12. Kuttrame Thadanai | Tamil | Mystery Thriller

Kuttrame Thandanai has a smartly written narration that seems an ode to Dostoyevsky (Kuttrame Thandanai translates to Crime is Punishment). Still, it influences Hitchcock’s visual technique & claustrophobic mystery. The lead protagonist is an overdue credit card collection agent suffering from tunnel vision. Director Manikandan vicariously puts us in the head of the protagonist and weaves the psychological crime drama around murder in the shabby society. How our conscious choices under critical circumstances -not under the moral radar – shape our lives & how we can’t escape its repercussions forms the crux of the story.

11. Pink | Hindi | Drama Thriller

Pink is an intense courtroom drama that takes a microscopic look at the difference between consensual sex & molestation. It does so without any inhibition, preachiness, and glorifying feminism. The strength of ‘Pink’ lies in how three female characters are written; anyone could relate to them, and importantly, their problems are real. They don’t feel like characters from a fiction film. Instead, they seem like regular girls from our friend circle or neighbor or possibly our relative. ‘Pink‘ raises some uncomfortable but factual questions about hypocritical modern society, without being overdramatic, that most other films suffer in a similar genre.

10. Dangal | Hindi | Sports Drama

Nitesh Tiwari makes sure to fictionalize the drama that plays on the audience’s heartstrings. The greatest strength of Dangal lies in its unabashed & natural performances by the entire cast and well-choreographed wrestling scenes that feel as real as if watching a live match. So even when the whole second half starts to falter, and we see the forced drama injected into the screenplay, making it uneven & sometimes cringe-worthy, it is impossible to take your eyes off the screen. The earnest performances by all four girls keep you glued to your seat.

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9. Maheshinte Prathikaaram | Malayalam | Drama

Malayalam Film industry has mastered the storytelling of an ordinary man in day-to-day life, and Maheshinte Prathikaaram is a testament to it. The film’s genius lies in the fact that characters are driven by the commoner human conscience, which renders a profound depth of depth to the character and an emotional thrust on the overall story. The lead protagonist, Mahesh -played effectively by Fahad Faasil- has his life going awry. It hits rock bottom when Mahesh is hit by a loafer on a trivial issue that did not concern him in the first place. Mahesh vows not to wear a slipper until he takes the revenge and beats that loafer. Maheshinte Prathikaaram relies more on the emotional stance of the characters rather than the story itself.

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8. Aligarh | Hindi | Drama

“You people are so obsessed with the word ‘Love.’ At least try to understand love. It’s a beautiful word. If you’re making it sound like a dirty word.. then I have a problem with this.” Aligarh is an agonizing poetry in motion about love in its unadulterated form. It is anchored by prolific actor Manoj Bajpayee’s devastating performance. The film revolves around how Dr. Siras’s life is torn apart when he is caught making love to a man and his constant struggle against every naive person who does not understand his passion. It is a heartbreaking film that brings out the unconsciously obscured conservative mindset of the educated society, the fallacy of love, and the media’s circus for the discussion.

7. Iraivi | Tamil | Drama

Iraivi is an unconventional feminist film where we see the repercussions of three shoddy men doing things men do to the three women. Though the three men in the film drive the entire narrative, it is still primarily a film about the females and them being collateral damage. Iraivi features earth-shattering performances all around. Surya S.J., as Arul, is primarily a revelation. There’s not a single wrong note that goes into his work. All his alcoholic shamblings, random fits of anger, and high-pitched ramblings on how films are being treated make him one of the most likable and vulnerable of the characters. Vijay Sethupathi as Michael is again brilliant. His fear, disappointments, and pain all feel real. Bobby Simha, who won a National award for Subbharaj’s Jigarthanda, doesn’t get much to do in the first half. But instantly shines in the second half. All the women, including Anjali, Kamalinee Mukherjee, and Pooja Devariya, prove why this film is about them and not the men in question.

6. Raman Raghav 2.0 | Hindi | Crime Thriller

A strange smile appears on your face as you watch Ramanna dismantling his victims in Anurag Kashyap’s Raman Raghav 2.0. It’s not because Kashyap somehow magically manages to justify the mystifying murders in his film, nor because he tries to ground you into rooting for his killing machine, but because the film jabs at that side of a human brain which has violence and anarchy all over its surface. Raman Raghav 2.0 is dark, delirious, and stylistically delicious. It doesn’t leave any stone unturned and is an actual Kashyap film.

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5. Udta Punjab | Hindi | Crime Drama

Set in the heartland of Punjab, which is plagued with the rampant usage of drugs, Abhishek Chaubey’s unflinching narrative takes a microscopic look at the entire drug epidemic. He weaves an engaging drama around the four divergent characters. The set condition in Punjab is desolating into one that doesn’t seem to wake up from the overdose of snippets of drugs of all kinds and creeds. From people who work at general stores to rock stars who write involuntary anthems about how cool it is to intake worthless substances, it has gradually increased to a wholesome number. Udta Punjab focuses on this problem that is indecently ruining the youth of a state known as the land of the five rivers. But, the film is not just about the state or even the country. It is about a general idea that doesn’t seem to help people. The way Chaubey shows his vulnerable characters, some being forced to substance abuse, while some forcing themselves into it, makes it all the more authentic.

4. Thithi | Kannada | Drama

Reddy has microscopic views of his characters, originating from the roots of South Indian villages. Despite the cast comprising non-professional actors (except for two), they fill up the screen with such honest performances that the lack of a more complex resolution to the story’s conflicts seems less of an offense. They are honest and seem not to follow any script; somewhat real characters react and follow their heads and minds (if any).

Thithi packs a ton of amusing characters embroiled in volcanic familial turmoil, which shares the same gene as Anurag Kashyap’s style characters minus the violent urges. The narration is funny and whimsical and flows effortlessly out of the screen.

3. Kapoor & Sons | Hindi | Drama

Kapoor and Sons take a microscopic look at the foible of individuals and interpersonal issues with a dash of intrinsic humor. Recognizable characters and familial problems from your own family or neighborhood make the film believable. Kapoor and Sons is unlike many family dramas that have been shoved down our throat in the past. Kapoor and Sons’ strength lies in its relatable characters, familial problems that exist in society & perhaps our own families, and the fact that it never tries to rectify the flaws. The film powerfully conveys that there is no solution to problems that can bring a flawed family together; instead, we must accept them with their unsettling flaws.

Director Shakun Batra deftly carves out multiple conflicts without being melodramatic or manipulating the character, sprinkling it with humor to ease the impending tensions in the third act. The film does not rush into establishing the characters; instead, it gives the center stage to multiple characters and lets them flourish in their own space, like puzzle pieces, which, when assembled together, will complete the imperfect family jigsaw.

2. Kaul- A Calling | Marathi | Drama

‘Kaul- A Calling’ is an aggressive divergent thinking film that has nihilism & existentialism at its core done in a highly unconventional manner. Kaul is a meditation on losing the sanity or attaining the moksha. It is a visceral philosophical experience that is haunting & horrific in equal measure, which leaves you with spiritual ambiguity. He takes the audience for an adventurous ride that is nothing less than a nightmare. This is a nightmare where complete submission to ‘Kaul’ will invigorate metaphysical thinking. It will give you an alternate perspective about how society has created the existential conundrum and seeks social acknowledgment for being sane.

Aadish Keluskar’s writing is flawless, cerebral, and thought-provoking. Aadish intelligently stitches mundane but evocative montages to create an eerie atmosphere that adds an extra challenging dimension to exploratory audio-visual storytelling. Kaul will be celebrated as an unconventional film that was done right. It is a milestone film in Indian cinema that will soon have cult status.

1. Visaranai | Tamil | Thriller Drama

There is a scene in the film where one of the police officers hits the elbow of a dead body to straighten his stiff hand. You could hear the bone-crunching sound. It’s a trivial scene shown in the background. But that is the realistic detailing the film has. Visaranai is a powerful drama devoid of overdramatic moments. It’s an example of poetic injustice done to humans from within the system. Visaranai seems like a distant cousin of brilliant film ‘Court’. Such films redefine cinema and reassure us why we love cinema so much in the first place. It is a shocking, brutal, and sincere attempt at filmmaking that needs to be seen & applauded. One of the finest script that has been deftly handled, a plethora of ironical & metaphors thrown that will disturb you & shock you. By the end, “Police are for the protection of the common man” will sound like a fairy tale.