12 regional films to watch after you've devoured The Great Indian Kitchen

Desi tadka for your watchlist

Konkona Sensharma insisted I watch The Great Indian Kitchen during a recent interview. It sounded familiar. The newest hit from Malayalam regional cinema had popped up on my Twitter feed, but who registers anything while doom-scrolling, am I right?

I streamed the film, and let’s just say, despite the multitasking it demanded (reading subtitles while watching can be quite a task), the movie blew my mind. Director Jeo Baby’s family drama tells the story of most Indian households where the subtle shades of patriarchy are so normalised that you’d rather question your sanity than point them out. We won’t spoil it for you; just watch it.

As the end credits rolled in, I borderline harassed my fellow cinephiles to stream it, stat. The following day, we gushed over it, made our parents watch it too, and bam, ran out of people to pitch the film to. Marvel fiends, Bollywood fanatics (myself, included) and even K-drama addicts — they are widespread among our peers, but there aren’t enough regional cinema activists.

The Great Indian Kitchen unlocked the door to a whole new world of intrigue, and slammed me with the question: “Why do we steer clear of regional cinema although it tells our stories?”

I lay wide awake coming up with excuses, and conveniently placed the blame on our tendency to stereotype. Bengali films invariably translate to sentimental tearjerkers; Tamil movies are louder than a machhi market; Gujarati films are slapstick comedies and other regional cinema industries were too small to even warrant a stereotype.

As the old saying goes, “To assume makes an ass out of you and me”, and that’s what my viewing habits had reduced me to.

Quickly, I shifted the blame onto my peers, since our watchlists are inspired by FOMO. We tweet about the trending movies, post mini reviews of them on Insta stories and nobody wants to run low on the social currency of cinema charcha. 

A serious lack of FOMO surrounding regional cinema deprives them of a fair chance.

Experts will give a subtle nod to stringent budgets for promotion, targetted distribution that denies them nationwide releases and other industry jargon. But as we go round and round in circles to frame a scapegoat, streaming services have cooked up a storm of change for us.

They’ve added some desi tadka to our binge-watching diet. The OTT platforms enthusiastically swooped in to revive the regional cinema movement. Old and new, commercial and critical successes, massy and niche, their well-stocked menu gives regional cinema the attention it deserves, while catering to all taste buds.

After a few weeks of movie marathoning, with great viewing pleasure, I share with you some stereotype-defying Bengali thrillers, light-hearted Marathi rom-coms, Gujarati adventure drama as well as acclaimed Malayalam potboilers. They traverse state borders, celebrate culture in all its diverse shades and soon, you’ll notice how familiar it all feels.

12 contemporary films that showcase regional cinema at its best

Bonus, 2020

Language: Marathi

In Nayak, common man Anil Kapoor’s character was granted the opportunity to be the Chief Minister for a day. In Saurav Bhave’s Bonus, the story is turned nearly upside down.

Nashik’s affluent industrialist Aditya (Gashmeer Mahajani) runs his grandfather’s (Mohan Agashe) company. Self-absorbed Aditya doesn’t believe in giving bonuses to his employees; this decision irks his grandfather, who challenges him to live like a working-class person for a month.

With his ego at stake, he accepts this mission sans preparation. He lands in Mumbai’s Koliwada with just Rs 8,000. He interacts with the other side of the society and befriends Minal (Pooja Sawant), but can he complete the challenge?

Bonus is a light-hearted examination of the increasing class divide and drives home the idea that the size of your pocket doesn’t matter as much as the size of your heart.

Watch on Prime Video

Bela Seshe, 2015

Language: Bengali

When the film released, it opened a Pandora’s box in my household — making parents and relatives dissect the very fundamentals of marriage as an institution.

A successful publisher Biswanath Mazumdar (Soumitro Chatterjee) decides to divorce his wife, Aarti Mazumdar (Swatilekha Sengupta), after 49 years of marriage. There’s no fathomable reason for the split. As the two generations of Mazumdar family struggle to accept the patriarch’s decision, each introspects on his or her own relationship and makes amends.

The poignant story asks simple questions that any relationship counsellor would stump you with: “When was the last time you complimented your partner?’ ‘When was the last time you enjoyed some ‘we’ time?’

For couples – young and old – this film by Nandita Roy and Shiboprasad Mukherjee is a sensitive guide to relationship management.

Watch on Prime Video

Reva, 2018

Language: Gujarati

If you’ve loved Swades, you’ll love this regional cinema gem. Director Rahul Bhole and Vinit Khanojia adapt Dhruv Bhatt’s novel, Tattvamasi, as an adventure drama.

Twenty five-year-old Karan (Chetan Dhanani) was born and raised in the US. He couldn’t care less about his homeland. When he visits an ashram near the Narmada River in Gujarat to retrieve his grandfather’s will, he faces a series of culture shocks.

Twenty days in the village on the banks of river Narmada send him on another journey, this time, within his soul. His company? Supriya (Monal Gajjar), a social worker striving to improve the quality of life in rural India.

Reva, with its soul-stirring music, is a tale of rediscovering your roots, while being attached to modern ideas, and how to strike a peace treaty between the two.

Watch on Prime Video

Muramba, 2017

Language: Marathi

Being transparent about your relationship status with your parents is a gamble in Indian households. Either they have reservations about your partner, or become overly attached to the relationship, and find a break-up tough to process.

In this light-hearted emotional drama, Alok (Amey Wagh) and Indu (Mithila Palkar) are millennials who believe that relationships don’t promise a lifetime guarantee. The parents approve of their bond.

But when the couple breaks up, the parents get involved to fuel a reconciliation. Alok and Indu team up as ex-lovers to bridge this generation gap and share pearls of wisdom on modern love.

Muramba, we believe, can be a smooth segue to broach the difficult conversation of changing dynamics of relationships with your elders.

Watch on Sony Liv

Ardaas, 2016

Language: Punjabi

At a time when religion-driven headlines are splashed across front pages the world over, Gippy Grewal’s Ardaas is a prayer of sorts to make you introspect.

In the opening scene, we are in rural Punjab, people wake up to a rendition of Gurbaani, one that teaches people to look up to a spiritual entity, irrespective of religious leanings. When Gurmukh Singh (Gurpreet Chuggi), a teacher from the urban cluster takes up a job at a village school, locals change his perception of life.

The soul-stirring sub-plots of a young child Mithu in denial of her father’s death, her mother Binder’s (Mandy Takhar) wait for her husband to return are painful to watch, but Rana Ranbir playing the local postmaster adds well-meaning humour to bring a smile when you least expect it.

Ardaas is driven by kindness towards oneself as well as those around you — a lesson we could use in these dire times.

Watch on Prime Video

Maj Rati Keteki, 2017

Language: Assamese

Santwana Bardoloi’s Maj Rati Keteki is an homage to ’70s parallel cinema movement, devoid of OTT melodrama, larger-than-life action sequences and song and dance routines.

Noted writer Priyendu Hazarika (Adil Hussain) ends his decade-long self-imposed exile to return to his hometown, Guwahati, where he started his journey as a writer.

In this second chapter of his life, he meanders through rice fields, forests, rustic meadows and memories as he confronts his past, ties loose ends, and pieces together a more fitting conclusion to his half-baked relationships.

This tale of second chances is a sentimental voyage soaked in reality that also serves as a picturesque gateway to the North-East. Because we could all use a bit of couch travel right about now.

Watch on Netflix

Joji, 2021

Language: Malayalam

Director Dilesh Pothan’s adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a gruesome love letter to dysfunctional families.The bloodthirsty drama is set in the confines of a Kottayam-based wealthy family.

When patriarch Kuttapan PK (PN Sunny) succumbs to a terminal stroke, the youngest son, Joji (Fahadh Faasil) an engineering drop-out, decides to prove to his dying father that he deserves the respect his family never gave him.

He lives with his father, elder brothers Jamon (Baburaj) and Jaison (Joji Mundakayam), sister-in-law Bincy (Unnimaya Prasad) and nephew Popy (Alex Alister). And soon you’ll realise that everybody has a secret and motives to act upon.

Driven by his desperation and frustration, as Joji unleashes his plans, masks start falling off, one by one. And without masks, much like our present scenario, what unfolds is sinister.

Watch on Prime Video

Baishe Srabon, 2011

Language: Bengali

Regional cinema stereotype 101: Bengali films steer clear of violence and gore. Srijit Mukherji’s gripping thriller changes the notion with this cop drama.

Plot twist: It still offers a generous side of poetry and a tale of complex relationships.

A serial killer is on the loose. His victims are innocent, marginalised individuals across Kolkata. He kills them in in a gruesome fashion and leaves a famous couplet or a poetry on the crime scene. The title, Baishe Srabon, befittingly translates to the 22nd day of Shravana, which coincides with Tagore’s death anniversary.

After naive young cop Abhijit Pakrashi (Parambrata Chatterjee) fails to make a breakthrough, his seniors advise him to work with a former discredited cop, Prabir Roy Chowdhary (Prosenjeet). Chowdhary is dealing with his own demons from the past, while Pakrashi is stuck in his relationship troubles with firebrand journalist Amrita Mukherjee (Raima Sen).

Can the two cops keep their differences aside and close the case, and find some closure in their life? For the faint-hearted, there are enough lyrics to keep you distracted from the crime scene.

Watch on Disney+ Hotstar

Bell Bottom, 2019

Language: Kannada

Most of us get stuck in a job to pay our bills, while eagerly hoping that someday, we get the opportunity to pursue our dream profession.

In director Jayatheertha’s crime-comedy, ‘defective’ Divakara (Rishab) is a detective fiction fanatic. But his constable father (Achyuth) forces him to join in his footsteps and work in the police department.

This career move shatters his dreams, but he makes peace with it until a his police station is robbed, and he goes undercover to catch the criminals.

While working on the case, he comes across wisecracks, oddballs and meets the love of his life, Kusuma (Hariprriya). In this crime thriller, loaded with comic elements, as Divakara finds his true calling, he makes us believe that it’s never to late to pursue our dreams, and that opportunities can come knocking at our door when we least expect them.

Watch on Voot

Chitrangada: The Crowning Wish, 2012

Language: Bengali

Part autobiographical, part fiction, released a year before he passed away, National Award-winning Chitrangada undoubtedly is filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh’s (who also acted in the film) most personal work. He has packed one too many difficult conversations into this one, and we aren’t complaining.

The movie unravels itself through a series of conversations between choreographer Rudra Chatterji (Ghosh) and his therapist (Anjan Dutt). Rudra struggles with his homosexuality and his desperation to undergo a sex reassignment surgery to adopt a child with his drug-addict partner, Partho (Jisshu Sengupta).

Rudra is also seen staging an adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Chitrangada’. It’s the tale of a princess from Mahabharata, whose father raises her as a man, but she falls for Arjun and feels trapped in her mind and body.

This regional cinema masterpiece draws parallels between Rudra’s life and the epic tale. We see him battle with his parents who consider his sexuality an illness. Between his sessions with therapist, his drama rehearsals, his turbulent relationship and his need to be a parent, Ghosh explores the idea of acceptance in our society.

Watch on Prime Video

Nayattu, 2021

Language: Malayalam

Putting the spotlight on regional cinema almost single-handedly, Malayalam cinema hasn’t delivered just one gem this year (The Great Indian Kitchen), but followed it up with yet another edge-of-the-seat thriller.

The movie seems like the final dramatic act to the long drawn election season that the country just witnessed.

Praveen Michael (Kunchako Boban) is posted to a new police station in Kerala. He befriends ASI Maniyan (Joju George) and constable Sunitha (Nimisha Sajayan). They spot a local goon, whose friends in higher political places ensure he never gets caught by the trio.

When a tragic accident kills a party worker, the three friends become suspects in a murder case. Will the cops be able to break through the layers of red tape, corruption and prove themselves innocent with their own colleagues spearheading the case against them?

Watch on Netflix

Vaanam Kottatum, 2020

Language: Tamil

Mani Ratnam’s latest story is a bloody good family drama. A moment of rage, and the unplanned murder of his brother (Balaji Sakthivel) lands Bose Kaalai (Sarath Kumar) behind bars for a fair share of his life.

His wife Chandra (Radikaa) wants out of this violence-stricken environment. She moves to Chennai with her son Selva (Vikram Prabhu) and daughter Mangai (Aishwarya Rajesh). Sixteen years later when Bose returns, his family has a tough choice to make.

Will they forgive him and welcome him back with open arms or break all their ties? Is it even possible to end the connection when Kaalai’s nephew (the son of his deceased brother) is plotting a revenge move?

Vaanam Kottatum is a critical study of life’s tough choices and asks the audience, “How tolerant is tolerant enough, when it comes to your own family?”

Watch on Prime Video