
Recent Reviews by Renuka Vyavahare
The Times of India

Renuka Vyavahare is a film critic with one of India’s leading dailies, The Times of India and also a senior entertainment journalist with Bombay Times. She has been reviewing films for the Times Group for over a decade now.
Films reviewed on this Page
Nadaaniyan
Chhaava
I Want to Talk
All We Imagine as Light
Here
Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3
Do Patti
Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video
Nadaaniyan

A rambling love story that’s too filtered to be true
Despite the potential, the storytelling and emotions in Nadaaniyan are as shallow and filtered as beautified Instagram posts.
To win over her best friends and wriggle out of a sticky situation, poor little rich girl Pia Jaisingh (Khushi Kapoor) convinces her new classmate, a career-driven Arjun Mehta (Ibrahim Ali Khan) to be her rental boyfriend. The Instagram love story looks perfect on reels until things get real between the two. You can predict this story as soon as it begins. It follows the tropes of any teen romance. Pia offers Rs 25K a week to Arjun, an aspiring lawyer to get him to pretend as her boyfriend. She’s a wealthy Delhi girl; he’s from Greater Noida. He thinks love is a distraction, she thinks her world revolves around love. Her family’s patriarchal, his parents are liberal. Despite the differences, the two make a deal. She soft launches him on her socials before the big reveal. What happens when the two catch feelings?
All 19 reviews of Nadaaniyan here
Chhaava

Vicky Kaushal ferociously roars, races and goes on a rampage in Chhaava
Chhaava’s excellence lies in its terrific climax. You just wish the film relied and trusted its solid story more than Rahman's music, which largely feels out of place.
Based on Shivaji Sawant’s Marathi novel, Chhaava (lion’s cub) aims to acknowledge the bravery of Shambhu Raje (Sambhaji Maharaj played by Vicky Kaushal), that most history books haven’t been able to. There’s more to him than being Shivaji’s son who was betrayed by his own men, captured and brutally executed by Aurangzeb (played by Akshaye Khanna). The film sheds light on why he was widely revered by his people and feared by rivals in the nine years that he held the Maratha throne. Still reeling from the loss of his father, Sambhaji and Sersenapati Hambirrao Mohite (essayed by Ashutosh Rana) invaded Mughal stronghold Burhanpur right under their nose. For the nine years that followed, Sambhaji trampled on Mughals’ expansion plans making him a thorn in their side. Sambhaji’s bravery overcame the betrayal he faced by his own people until he was ambushed and captured in Sangameshwar. Even his brutal execution couldn’t kill his warrior spirit and fight for Swaraj.
All 17 reviews of Chhaava here
I Want to Talk

Silence speaks volumes in this true story on unwavering resilience
There's a certain stillness to the film but it's not a sob story. It reminds you that you are way more stronger than you think you are.
In denial initially, this traumatic health crisis, numbs the pain of everything else in comparison including a broken marriage and financial downfall. What follows is countless hospital visits and an unpredictable future which tests the relationship Arjun shares with his daughter Reya.
All 11 reviews of I Want to Talk here
All We Imagine as Light

An enchanting ode to hope, desire & sisterhood
There’s a certain tenderness and ease to the flow in storytelling that feels cathartic.
Payal Kapadia’s enchanting ode to sisterhood and the glaring contrasts of Mumbai has a tranquil charm to it. There’s a certain tenderness and ease to the flow in storytelling that makes you see the city in a new light, even if you have been a Mumbaikar all your life. Watching Kapadia’s three protagonists setting themselves free from societal and psychological shackles to embrace their desires, gives you that warm fuzzy feeling.
All 7 reviews of All We Imagine as Light here
Here

A heart-warming ode to life
Set entirely in the drawing room of a house, ‘Here’ explores the relationship this home shares with generations of its inhabitants, making it privy to their lives and events that unfold.
‘Life happens while you’re busy making other plans’. ‘Here’ is a moving love letter to life and fleeting time. The iconic Forrest Gump team (Hanks, Wright, Zemeckis) reunites after 30 years to give us yet another poignant human story on the evolution and circle of life. While one constantly looks ahead, the story urges you to live in the present, live ‘here’, where every beginning is the end and vice versa.
Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3

A solid twist elevates this Diwali entertainer
BB3 has its share of highs and lows but it delivers what you expect from a Diwali family entertainer.
Keeping with the theme of the franchise, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 also pits an unassuming cheeky protagonist against a spooky haveli with a buried past. The century-old mansion needs to be restored to its former glory and sold, but Manjulika’s terrorising presence in it forbids the owners from doing so. The royal family in dire need of resources, seeks Rooh baba’s intervention. The fraudster takes up the lucrative offer only to find himself tangled in a mess as he discovers two dark forces who claim to be Manjulika.
All 14 reviews of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 here
Do Patti

The film touches upon substantial topics but lacks the sensibility or depth to make flawed seem fascinating.
When an attempted murder case unfolds in a sleepy hill town, investigating officer Vidya Jyoti (Kajol) suspects there’s more to the story than meets the eye. Can she decode fact from fiction?
Twins Saumya and Shailee (Kriti Sanon in a double role, this is not a spoiler) are like chalk and cheese. One gets married to hot-headed Dhruv Sood, (television actor Shaheer Sheikh) the privileged man with a volatile temper and political connect who owns a paragliding business in the hills. All’s well on the surface until an unlikely crime makes police officer VJ (Kajol) question everything about this family.
All 18 reviews of Do Patti here
Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video

Tiring pursuit of a sex tape
Newlyweds Vicky (Rajkummar Rao) and Vidya (Triptii Dimri), decide to record their honeymoon video for self pleasure and gratification. Chaos ensues when the CD gets stolen.
Set in the late 90’s, the pre-Instagram era, when ‘get ready with me’ reels were non-existent, privacy had a different meaning. Without having the platform to post their private life anywhere, couples voluntarily recording their intimate moments was still a rare phenomenon. So on paper, the film’s script sounds promising. What happens when this private video belonging to a middle-class couple from Rishikesh goes missing? What are the repercussions and can they retrieve it?