OTT Watch: A surrogacy laugh-riot, political web-series & a time-loop thriller

The Kriti Sanon and Pankay Tripathi starrer, ‘Mimi’, was supposed to be Bollywood’s big offering this weekend on OTT. However, the film’s producers Maddock Films and Jio Studios and Netflix (which had bought the film) got into a sticky situation, when the film ostensibly leaked online and started streaming on pirated websites before Friday, said media reports.

The filmmakers then were forced to release the film earlier saying they were doing so as a gift to the lead actor, Kriti Sanon on her birthday, which fell on July 27. Online piracy, which happened to Salman Khan’s ‘Radhe’ too, is becoming a major challenge for Netflix. This time around, the ‘Mimi’ producers and Netflix are reportedly at loggerheads with each other over the issue and are trying to find out where the leak happened, said a Bollywood Hungama report.

Despite the drama, the film, centred around surrogacy, seems to be garnering views from diehard Bollywood fans. While reviewers are slamming the film for being frothy and not taking a deeper look at the surrogacy trade, the film is a good weekend entertainer for those wanting to see Kriti Sanon’s dance moves in the rambunctious song, ‘Parama Sundari’.

The film which is a remake of a national-award winning Marathi movie, ‘Mala Aai Vhhaychy’, is meant to be a setting for a comedy, as Kriti loans her womb for ₹20 lakhs to an American couple since she dreams of a house in Juhu and a Daboo Ratnani (highly-sought after celebrity photographer) photoshoot to take her into tinseltown. But tragedy strikes when the couple desert her halfway and she’s left holding the “white” baby.

Also read: OTT Watch: Lots of Hungama, fake marriages & ode to young love

Pankaj Tripathi, who had roped her in for the “job” has to step in to bear the responsibility of having made her pregnant. Check it out for an easy, non-taxing watch.

For a more meaningful watch is ‘Lihaaf’, a short film, which delves into topics such as same sex love and freedom of speech for women, A joint venture of Surankote-born filmmaker Rahat Kazmi and Oscar-winning French producer Marc Bachet of ‘No Man’s Land’ fame, this film is being premiered as part of the Voot Film Festival on July 31. Voot is a popular video-on-demand and streaming service based in Mumbai.

‘Lihaaf’, which is based on one of the most celebrated masterpieces of author Ismat Chughtai, has picked up many international awards. Tannishtha Chatterjee (known for ‘Brick Lane’, ‘Angry Indian Goddesses’) plays the role of Ismat Chughtai in the film and is hauled to court on charges of obscenity for writing “provocative” subjects of that time in the film.

Incidentally, VootSelect film fest, which flagged off on July 24 is streaming 15 critically-acclaimed movies across genres for a span of 8 days, including Vidya Balan’s ‘Natkhat’, a film on a mother teaching her son about gender equality.

Power games in a political thriller set in Maharashtra

‘Dor’ director Nakesh Kukunoor’s political thriller is back on Disney+Hotstar. The season 2 of ‘City of Dreams’, which taps into the goings-on in the powerful political dynasty of the Gaikwads in Mumbai, will start streaming on July 30.

When the first season of ‘City of Dreams’ premiered back in 2019, everyone saw it to be the next big political drama. This 10-episode series started with an assassination attempt on an important politician. Then, the story spread out to reveal a major political race that is going on, with multiple candidates vying for the injured politician’s position of power. In the second season, viewers get to see how Priya Bapat’s Poornima Rao Gaikwad navigates her position as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra and battles her acrimonious father in a political power struggle.

Also read: Shilpa Shetty’s Bollywood comeback with ‘Hungama 2’ comes under a cloud

Murder and time-loop thrillers

What’s a weekend without murder mysteries? Aishwarya Rajesh’s ‘Thittam Irandu’ lands on July 30 on SonyLiv. The actor is carrying the film on her shoulder as she plays a cop trying to unravel the mystery behind two murders that she has a personal stake in.

On the topic of thrillers, a time-loop mystery thriller that is gaining traction on OTT platform, Aha, is Pawan Kumar Telugu web series, ‘Kudi Yedamaithe’. It released earlier this month but critics are praising the film for its unique plot and calling it a riveting watch. The title which translates to ‘if right become left’ stems from a phrase which refers to an unexpected turn of events throwing life out of gear.

Adi (Rahul Vijay), an aspiring actor who doubles up as a food delivery boy to pay his bills, and Durga (Amala Paul), a police officer trying to crack serial kidnappings of boys under the age of ten are involved in an accident. When Adi’s bike is hit by Durga’s jeep, they die and find themselves stuck in a time loop, reliving the same day over and over again.

The murder mystery and a police investigation are thrown into the plot, and the time-loop takes a back seat just to push the narrative forward or as a conflict to overcome. The series spans eight episodes, each with a duration of 30-35 minutes, and stays focussed on its plot, without giving in to any frills.

According to The Hindu review, Pawan Kumar and his technical team ensure a slick thriller where the repetitive events never get boring. Amala Paul is expectedly sure-footed in her portrayal of Durga, with all her complexities; the surprise is Rahul Vijay, who gets an equal footing and shows that he has potential.

Also read: Prithviraj’s political thriller ‘Kuruthi’ gets Onam release on August 11

It is an mind-boggling thought. What if you wake up to realise that you have already lived through this day? You know what to expect and do you desperately try to change the turn of events as best as you can? Do you win or fail? Director Pawan Kumar, (Lucia and U-Turn fame), is truly picking up a loyal following.

Aha’s dubbed film bonanza

For Telugu speakers, Aha streaming service, regularly dub some of the popular Malayalam and Tamil movies in Telugu and stream them on their platform. Mammoottys ‘One’, another political thriller, will land on July 30. The film centres around a crisis tackled by Kerala’a Chief Minister, who is a man of ideals. Although ‘One’ is built around a power struggle, the main focus of the movie is the Chief Minister – his personal and professional lives.

Mammootty, who appears in the signature white-and-white attire, is impeccable as Kadakkal Chandran and he plays the character with grace and ease, said a Times of India review. While Murali Gopi is the opposition leader Jayanandhan also puts up a good performance.

Malayalam movies like Forensic, And The Oscar Goes To, and others have also been dubbed into Telugu and released on Aha.

Jean-Claude Van Damme’s The Last Mercenary

The 90’s action flicks were dominated by the inimitable Jean-Claude Van Damme. One of the best action stars ever in Hollywood, this actor hasn’t been seen in a lot of projects off late. But with ‘The Last Mercenary’, one can hope that he will be back at his usual best. This French action-comedy stars Van Damme as a retired secret service agent who has to get back into the job when his son’s life is endangered and he gets to flex his muscles once again. It lands on Netflix on July 30.