Love of Cinema

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Delighted to have Chandan Arora on the pod to chat about one of my favorite films of 2010s, Striker. Striker is a Mumbai story, a sub-culture film, and a coming-of-age story, all rolled into one. Chandan talked about the genesis of the film, the film's world-building, the casting process, and shared some terrific stories...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar The Revenge have stormed into the history books of Indian cinema, broken all box office records, challenged hierarchies, swept into pop culture, and disrupted Hindi cinema.  Abhijeet Shirish Deshpande (Ani... Dr Kashinath Ghanekar, Natasamrat, Wazir, Breathe) joins me as we try to deconstruct and dec...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Vishek Chauhan is here. Hailing from a family that's been in the business of film exhibition(theaters) for more than six decades, Vishek's got strong informed opinions and isn't afraid to voice them! The historical success of Dhurandhar and the reasons behind it, why Netflix should release their original films...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! 2025 was a great year for Indian cinema! We had massive blockbusters, sleeper hits, and indie-arthouse darlings. And then in the last month of the year, we got a film that might very well turn out to be one of the biggest milestones in the history of Hindi cinema — Dhurandhar. Was delighted to have friends of the podcast and...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Suparn Varma is here! A true-blue film nut turned film journalist turned film critic turned filmmaker. We talked about everything from Feroz Khan and Mukul Anand to Weapons and Sinners, and from Karam and Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena to Manoj Bajpayee and Haq. If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.b...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Ram Gopal Varma's Shiva (1989) is a tremendous action drama. Everybody from Ashutosh Gowariker to S. S. Rajamouli to Anurag Kashyap to Sandeep Reddy Vanga count Shiva among their personal favorites. RGV is back on the pod for a deep dive of his stunning debut film.  If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the sh...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Omkara, Vishal Bhardwaj's critically acclaimed adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello, is unarguably one of the best Hindi film adaptations of all-time. Jamie Alter joins me as we look back on one of our favorite films of last 25 years. If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout....

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Raj Khosla, one of the absolute greats, made films across genres. His films were often marked by outstanding music, well-written women characters, and self-referential nods. National Award-winning writer Amborish Roychoudhury has written a fantastic new biography of the man. I was delighted to host Amborish on the pod, for th...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Sholay turns 50 this year! Film Heritage Foundation's Shivendra Singh Dungarpur is here to talk about the film that over the years, as he puts it, has become part of our consciousness. We fanboyed over Sholay and talked about his foundation's years-long effort to restore the Ramesh Sippy classic to the director&apos...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Writer and co-architect of the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe, Niren Bhatt, is here for a deep dive of Bhediya! We also talked about writing horror comedies, how our horror comedies differ from the horror comedies in the West, Niren's takeaways from working on a VFX-heavy film, and much more. Join us! If you enjoy the po...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Screenwriter Alok Sharma and author Yasser Usman are here for a freewheeling discussion on Guru Dutt and his legacy, as we mark the filmmaker's centenary this month. Join us!  Amazon link to Yasser Usman's book on Guru Dutt: https://www.amazon.com/Guru-Dutt-Unfinished-Yasser-Usman/dp/9386797887 If you enjoy the podc...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Writer-director duo Pushkar and Gayatri are here for a deep dive of their compelling action thriller, Vikram Vedha. They talked about both Tamil and Hindi versions of the film and shared fascinating insights and interesting stories behind the two films. Join us! If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : http...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Director Pankuj Parashar joins us as we focus on Sridevi's most popular film, ChaalBaaz (1989). Stories, memories and more! If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout.com/257788/support Feedback/comments/questions: loveofcinemasf@gmail.com Credits: Produced and hosted by: Himanshu...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Showrunner Sudip Sharma joins us for a probing discussion on the excellent second season of Amazon's hit crime thriller, Paatal Lok. And yes, I also got a chance to ask him about Kohrra 2 and why Balbir won't be returning this season. If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Senior film journalist and author Dilip Thakur joins us to recount memories of covering Hindi cinema in the 80s and the 90s. The excitement of muhurat shots, the glitz of premiere parties, the charm of single screen cinemas, Bachchan media boycott, access to stars, and Mumbai of the old — it's all here. Join us! If you e...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Deewaar (1975) turns 50 this year. The Bachchan Coolies (Alok Sharma, Diptakirti Chaudhuri and Shiva Krishnamurthy) are back to celebrate the film that proved to be a landmark film not just for Bachchan, Salim-Javed and Yash Chopra but Hindi cinema itself. We discussed how Deewaar is a goldmine of quotable as well as throwawa...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Mithun is among the actors who have become an integral part of Indian pop culture. Author Avijit Ghosh joins me as we look back on Mithun's career in the 80s, when he broke through as a star, not just in India but across the globe, including countries as far as Russia and Egypt.  Amazon link for all the books authored by...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! The second part of my conversation with Aditya Sarpotdar where we talked about his favorite films and shows, his A R Rahman fandom (including an anecdote which he has never shared publicly until now), and much more! If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout.com/257788/support Feedback/...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Aditya Sarpotdar is here! His horror comedy Munjya is one of the biggest hits of 2024 and his next film Vampires of Vijay Nagar is one of the most eagerly anticipated films of 2025. Before making his Hindi debut with Munjya, Aditya made some of the more interesting and refreshing Marathi cinema of recent years, including Narb...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Zoya Akhtar's Dil Dhadakne Do puts the fun in dysfunctional. Vanita Kohli-Khandekar and I revisit the 2015 comedy drama that happens to be one of our favortie films by Zoya. Join us! If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout.com/257788/support Feedback/comments/questions: loveofci...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Aatish: Feel the Fire turns 30 this year. Avneesh Prashar, Saurabh Nair, Vikram Bondal and I celebrate Sanjay Gupta's 1994 action drama, a film that all four of us are fond of. Join us as we look back on — the bromance of Baba and Nawab; Gupta's eye for style, music, action and locations; and all other things Aatish...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Sharaabi (1984) turns 40 this year. Superfans Alok Sharma, Diptakirti Chaudhuri and Shiva Krishnamurthy join me as we celebrate the Prakash Mehra film that gave us one of Amitabh Bachchan's top performances, Bappi-da's ace soundtrack, and some of the most incisive and clear-eyed dialouge penned by Kader Khan. We tal...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Hemanth M Rao joins us to chat about his gripping, noir-ish investigative thriller Kavaludaari and the stirring Sapta Sagaradaache Ello (Side A and Side B). Hemanth also shared his experiences assisting Girish Kasaravalli and co-writing with Sriram Raghavan. Joins us! If you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! Randeep Jha joins us for a long chat on his excellent debut feature film Halahal, Netflix's Kohrra, his equally uncompromising short film Kartaa, and Trial by Fire which he co-directed. I f you enjoy the podcast, do consider supporting the show : https://www.buzzsprout.com/257788/support Feedback/comments/questions: love...

Hi everyone, thanks for listening. Drop a line or two about the episode! For cinephiles, cinema halls are like places of worship. Following the long and harsh Covid winter, cinema halls had a massive sunny run in 2023 thanks to Pathaan, Gadar 2, Jawan and Animal. Exhibitor and friend of the podcast, Akkshay Rathie joins us for a chat on — the banner year that was 2023 for Hindi cinema, consumption...