2018 has been a splendid year for Marathi cinema! The great cinema was made last year too, but the audiences didn’t quite respond towards it! This year the audiences have wholeheartedly loved Marathi cinema & the box-office has boomed tremendously especially in the second half of 2018! So here’s our list of top 10 Marathi films of the year! Films that are high on quality as well have clicked with the audiences!

10. Mumbai Pune Mumbai 3
Our Rating: 3.5/5

The third part of the franchise mixed up the best of the previous two films very skillfully! It had the lighthearted fun tone of the first film & the serious dramatic undertone from the second film. Swapnil Joshi & Mukta Barve both had flawless chemistry as always!

Read our full review here

9. Redu
Our Rating: 3.5/5

Editor turned director Sagar Vanjari re-introduced the sweetness of ‘Malvani’ language & culture to the audiences, throughout enthralling us by the simplicity of this film. The film ended on such an unexpected yet beautiful point that it redefined the whole film & made us think after the film for a long time!

8. Aapla Manus
Our Rating: 4/5

The second Satish Rajwade film in our list after MPM 3! Nana Patekar’s surprise double role, the performances of the rest of the solid cast that included Sumit Raghavan & Irawati Harshe & the overall strength of the story made ‘Aapla Manus’ one of the most exciting films of the year! The idea of a suspense thriller was pushed to its limits rewarding the audiences in the end with an altogether unexpected twist.

Read our full review here

7. Pimpal
Our Rating: 4/5

Gajendra Ahire’s most simplistically beautiful film of all time! Dilip Prabhawalkar’s heartfelt performance connects us with the film almost instantly & we feel like we know this old man in real life. The film was a beautiful love letter to loneliness & how old age makes any stiff man become tender about his memories & the people who were most dear to him!

Read our full review here

6. Nude
Our Rating: 4/5

Ravi Jadhav’s magnum opus! Every frame of this film was like a painting! Probably the most visually stunning film made in Marathi ever! At the same time the film dealt with a very deep subject that dealt with the tragedy of a single uneducated mother fighting against the world. ‘Nude’ also had a philosophical subtext regarding ‘art’ & how it’s perceived by society.

Read our full review here

5. Maska
Our Rating: 4.5/5

Priyadarshan Jadhav’s debut film as a director was the most unexpectedly entertaining film of the year! Never have we ever seen a better ‘genre’ comedy in Marathi cinema. The performances of the cast that included Aniket Vishwasrao, Shashank Shende, Prarthana Behere, Pranav Raorane & Chinmay Mandlekar were equally brilliant & brought life into the quirky fun script! In years to come ‘Maska’ is destined to be an iconic Marathi film that will be enjoyed by the audiences repeatedly!

Read our full review here

4. Gulabjaam
Our Rating: 4.5/5

Sachin Kundalkar’s passion for food was seen in ‘Vazandar’ before but in ‘Gulabjaam’ he glamorized Maharashtrian food like never before! But beyond that the film’s strength was it’s emotional core & the chemistry between the characters played by Sonali Kulkarni & Siddharth Chandekar. ‘Gulabjaam’ had the right blend of Kundalkar’s avant-garde sensibilities & his love for ‘youthful’ mainstream cinema!

Read our full review here

3. Lathe Joshi
Our Rating: 4.5/5

A subtle masterpiece by debutant director Mangesh Joshi. A film that demands patience from the audiences & in return it rewards them with a completely original cinematic experience. A film that garnered praise all around the world at different festivals but didn’t quite receive a similar response upon its theatrical release here. Hopefully ,the film will pass the test of time & slowly the audiences would re-discover it some way.

Read our full review here

2. Chumbak
Our Rating: 5/5

A film presented by super star Akshay Kumar! He was so much in love with the film after watching it that that he wanted to be associated with it without expecting any returns! The film took the children film genre to an altogether new level in Marathi cinema. Popular lyricist & singer Swanand Kirkire gave a performance of a lifetime in this film & was equally supported by the rest of the teenage cast.

Read our full review here

1. Naal
Our Rating: 5/5

The Nagraj Manjule magic again worked! This time as producer & actor! However ,the real star of the film was the little kid Shrinivas Pokhale who gave the performance of the year! The audiences were throughout at the edge of the seat while watching this emotional journey of a little boy who discovers the meaning of the motherhood through it. Director Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti explored the larger meaning of birth & death too in a very organic & non-pretentious yet artistic way!

Read our full review here

Honourable Mentions:
Farzand – 3.5/5
Amhi Doghi – 3.5/5
Take Care Good Night – 3/5
Ani..Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar – 3/5
Mulshi Pattern – 3/5
Cycle – 3/5
Mantra – 3/5
Youngraad – 3/5

The post Top 10 Marathi Films of 2018 appeared first on MarathiStars.

• Review : Chumbak (2018)
• Producer : Aruna Bhatia, Naren Kumar and Cape of Good Films
• Director : Sandeep Modi
• Screenplay : Saurabh Bhave & Sandeep Modi
• Star Cast : Swanand Kirkire, Sahil Jadhav, Sangram Desai & Vibhawri Deshpande
• Review by : Abhay Salvi

Rating : 5/5

Chumbak Review (Marathi Movie):

Backed by Akshay Kumar ‘Chumbak’ is a buffet of cinema or entertainment! There’s enough food for everyone here! It’s impossible to define it as one particular ‘cuisine’! Though the film has won at many prestigious film festivals all over the globe, ‘Chumbak’ isn’t a typical ‘festival’ affair! Neither is it typically commercial. I can confidently tell you this is a film for all kinds of audiences with all kinds of tastes & preferences in cinema!

Directed by Sandeep Modi & written by Saurabh Bhave, this film is a battle between the good & the evil within a person & not the usual good vs evil battle! The metaphor of ‘Chumbak’ or a ‘Magnet’ can be interpreted in two ways in the context of the film. One is that there are two opposite poles of a magnet. One can tilt towards either of them. The other is the direct context of Swanand Kirkire’s character ‘Prasanna’ who in a way is representing the positive side of the magnet that is naturally attracted towards the negative side of the magnet (the con kids Balu & Disco).

Though scientifically the positive side of a magnet cannot change the properties of the negative side even after being attached to it! But in real life & with real people it is possible, that’s what makes us humans & not objects! A positive within a person can have an influence on the other person’s negatives, not to forget the other person also has his own conscience that is again a magnet within with both positive & negative poles!

I was also reminded of last year’s wonderful Marathi film ‘Ringan’. In that film we had a ‘Ringan’ (cycle) of happiness & sorrow one after the other. In ‘Chumbak’ the cycle is of the good within the protagonist (Balu) winning over the evil within him & the evil within him winning over the good within him! But throughout the journey of ‘Balu’ never does the film judge him for letting the evil within him come out, it instead embraces it, understands it & presents it in a beautifully objective way!

‘Chumbak’ is also groundbreaking in a very subtle way in another context. Marathi films are clearly bifurcated into urban films & rural films. There are very strong leanings of our films towards either of the two bifurcations & sometimes even if the film on it’s own has tried hard to avoid leaning towards any one of the two, the audiences instead have clearly sorted them out. The journey of Chumbak’s protagonist begins from Mumbai & then goes through the rural parts in the time frame of the narrative of the film & before this time frame his journey has been from rural to urban! Not that this must be a conscious decision from the makers of the film, but unconsciously they have diminished the geographical differences to much extent in the film! We don’t look at the humans of these regions differently like we do in other films!

The film is a visual delight & the cinematographer Rangarajan Ramabadran & the editor Chandrashekhar Prajapati deserve credit for it along with the director! The detailing in the craft of the film from production design to the use of background score & sound too enhances the experience of the film. Last but not the least the film involves mainly the three lead characters only & is standing on their capable shoulders throughout!

While the kids Sahil Jadhav (hailing from Pune, who has done a bit of theatre) & Sangram Desai (completely new to acting, comes from Kolhapur) haven’t missed a single beat in their performance it’s Swanand Kirkire who has given a spellbinding performance in Chumbak! A star is born! If compared with such roles seen in different films before, Swanand Kirkire’e performance is totally different from all of them & has been so organically developed & projected by the actor & the director too who has orchestrated the performance! Sandeep Modi is one bright director to watch out for! He has probably made a masterpiece straightaway in his debut, a very rare feat to achieve!

Overall:

If you are watching only one Marathi film this year, it has to be ‘Chumbak’! Doesn’t matter what your genre preferences are this one is a must watch for everyone!

The post Chumbak Review: Meet & Embrace The Good & The Evil Within You! appeared first on MarathiStars.

• Movie : Chumbak (2018) | चुंबक
• Producer : Aruna Bhatia, Naren Kumar and Cape of Good Films
• Director : Sandeep Modi
• Studio : Kyra Kumar Kreations Production
• Star Cast :
  • Swanand Kirkire as Prasanna
  • Sahil Jadhav
  • Sangram Desai
• Writer : Saurabh Bhave and Sandeep Modi
• Lyrics : Omkar Kulkarni
• Music : Saket Kanetkar
• Sound Design : Allwin Rego and Sanjay Maurya
• Cinematography (DOP) : Rangarajan Ramabadran
• Editor : Chandrashekhar Prajapati
• Art Director : Prashant Bidkar
• Costume : Sachin Lovalekar
• Hair and Make-up : Serina Tixeria
• Executive Producer : Mahesh Korade
• Presenter : Akshay Kumar
• Co-Producer : Sujatha Kumar and Shreni Modi
• Associate Director : Saurabh Bhave
• Location Sound : Yatrik Dave
• Casting : Romil Modi and Tejas Thakkar
• DI Colorist : Kirankumar Kota (Prasad Labs)
• Re-Recording Mixer : Boloy Kumar Doloy
• Visual Promotion : Just Right Studioz
• Marketing : Amit Bhanushali (52 Friday Cinemas)
• Publicity Design : Chaitanya Sant (Mantra SDS)
• Genre : Drama
• Release Date : 27th July 2018

Synopsis : A 15-year-old busboy Baalu is on the verge of making life choices when he stumbles upon a 45-year-old Prasanna, who is mentally challenged. Wanting to pursue his dream, Baalu is caught in a conflict between his aspiration and morality.

Chumbak Marathi Movie Poster/Photos :

Chumbak Marathi Movie Teaser/Trailer :

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Chumbak (Trailer) has been a highly awaited film for two reasons, one being the fact that this film has been highly appreciated at film festivals around the world & the second reason being the association of Bollywood Star Akshay Kumar as the presenter of the film. The trailer of the film introduces us to the basic plot of the film precisely.

Prasanna (Swanand Kirkire) is being conned by two young kids from Mumbai who are pretending to be the RBI governor! But instead this simple minded man doesn’t let them con him so easily, he just doesn’t leave them! In a way their destinies bring them together! What change do these characters undergo is to be seen in the film. And do they complete their desires or not also to be seen!

This journey seems to be both funny & heartfelt at the same time. The story of the film starts from Mumbai & later flows through different parts of Maharashtra. The trailer suggests the locations used in the film are real & they give an authentic feel to the film.

The post Chumbak Trailer (Marathi Movie) : Funny yet Heartfelt! appeared first on MarathiStars.

The Marathi film industry has been abuzz ever since Akshay Kumar took to social media to speak his heart out in ‘Marathi’ about the film ‘Chumbak‘ which is presented by none other than Akshay Kumar himself. The team of Chumbak has now released the first look of three key characters in the film – Prasanna Thombre played by the two-time National Award winner noted lyricist, singer, musician and writer Swanand Kirkire, Disco played by debutante teen actor Sangram Desai who hails from a village near Kolhapur & Balu played by another debutante teenager Sahil Jadhav from Pune.

Acting in a leading role for the first time, Swanand Kirkire plays the role of a mentally slow simpleton from a village near Solapur. One of top lyricists and music artist of the country, Swanand says “I had assumed the team wanted to meet me for its music, but I was taken aback once I realized they wanted me to act, that too in a leading part, that too in one of the toughest parts I have heard! But hearing the script and the faith the team had, we dived into it all together – me, Sandeep, Saurabh and Naren.”

” Building on the part of a mentally slow naive man with our own personal observations of people around us  and extensive research  with doctors and counselors working in this area, we all built this part together  brick by brick, with the love and dignity we wanted to bring to it.”, adds director Sandeep Modi.

On the other poster, Sangram Desai plays Disco, a migrant mobile repairer in Mumbai. The casting team led by Romil Modi and Tejas Thakkar unexpectedly discovered Sangram from a village near Kolhapur. Playing a part of a street-smart migrant, Sangram who had never been to Mumbai spent a month in the city observing and learning its pulse under the guidance of director Sandeep Modi and writer Saurabh Bhave to build the part. Acting for the first time, Sangram even learned the basics of repairing a phone for preparing the part.

The third poster starring the character of ‘Balu’ played by Pune’s Sahil Jadhav is a character of a young boy who works as a waiter in Mumbai & he has a dream! The team of Chumbak found Sahil at the very last moment when just 25 days were left for the shooting. Before that, they auditioned over 250 kids but couldn’t find the perfect ‘Balu’. Sahil was found from his work in amateur theater.

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It’s a known fact that Akshay Kumar is very much fond of Marathi artists & Marathi films. He has earlier produced a Marathi film ’72 Mile – Ek Pravas’ which was very well appreciated. Now he is again backing a meaningful Marathi film ‘Chumbak’.

Akshay was mighty impressed when he saw ‘Chumbak’ & couldn’t remove the film from his mind & hence he decided to present the film & make the release of the film possible. ‘Chumbak’ stars lyricist-singer turned actor Swanand Kirkire in the lead role & a bunch of young actors. It has already won many awards at film festivals around the world.

Akshay Kumar revealed this news by posting a video on social media were in talked in pure Marathi & said how ‘Chumbak’ had a great impact on him & couldn’t leave his mind & hence he decided to present the film! This is definitely a great initiative by Akshay Kumar to back meaningful Marathi cinema.

This film is directed by Sandeep Modi & is a feel-good story about a simple-minded middle-class man played by Kirkire who is bluffed by two young Mumbai boys! But these boys go through a life-changing journey in the course of the film & Swanand Kirkire’s simplicity & honesty teaches them a life lesson. The film releases on 27^th July so don’t forget to watch it at a theatre near you!

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