Cinemania’s Top 10 Bollywood Films of 2020
Bollywood had a productive January with successful films like Om Raut’s directorial “Tanhaji”, starring Ajay Devgan, Saif Ali Khan and Kajol, Meghna Gulzar-Deepika Padukone starrer “Chhapaak” and Remo D’Souza’s “Street Dancer 3D” featuring Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor, Prabhu Deva and Nora Fatehi.
The trend continued in February with “Malang” and “Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan” doing decent business despite mixed reviews. And then the pandemic set in grinding the biggest film industry in the world to a screeching halt.
A number of Bollywood films released on streaming platforms – primarily Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Disney + Hotstar and Zee5 – in the subsequent months.
Below is Cinemania’s pick of Top 10 Hindi Films of 2020:
10
Film: Pareeksha – The Final Test
Directed by: Prakash Jha
Cast: Adil Hussain, Priyanka Bose, Sanjay Suri, Shourya Deep and Shubham Jha
Produced by: Prakash Jha
Release Date: 06 August 2020
Streaming on: Zee5
“Pareeksha”, written, directed and produced by Prakash Jha (Raajneeti) revolves around the story of an underprivileged rickshaw puller (Adil Hussain) in a developing Indian state who aspires to enroll his 14-year-old son at a high-end private school where he drops affluent boys every morning.
Critics praised the drama for taking on the education system in India, its storyline, direction and performances of the main cast.
9
Film: Chhapaak
Directed by: Meghna Gulzar
Cast: Deepika Padukone, Vikrant Massey and Madhurjeet Sarghi
Produced by: Deepika Padukone, Govind Singh Sandhu, Meghna Gulzar and Fox Star Studios
Release Date: 10 January 2020
Streaming on: Disney + Hotstar
Co-written and directed by Meghna Gulzar (Raazi), “Chhapaak” is based on the real-life story of acid attack survivor and activist Laxmi Agarwal who is portrayed by Deepika Padukone in the film.
The plot revolves around the survivor’s relentless fight for justice against a broken system following the brutal attack on her.
Critics hailed the film for its concept, Gulzar’s direction and Padukone’s performance.
8
Film: Raat Akeli Hai
Directed by: Honey Trehan
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Radhika Apte, Shweta Tripathi and Shivani Raghuvanshi
Produced by: Abhishek Chaubey and Ronnie Screwvala
Release Date: 31 July 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
Written by Smita Singh and helmed by casting director Honey Trehan in his directorial debut, “Raat Akeli Hai” follows a cop (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) investigating the murder of a newly-married landlord. The cop’s hunt for the killer is complicated by the victim’s secretive family and political interference.
The thriller released to critical acclaim and won the “Best Film” and “Best Actor” award for Siddiqui at the inaugural Filmfare OTT Awards.
7
Film: Bulbbul
Directed by: Anvita Dutt
Cast: Tripti Dimri, Avinash Tiwary, Paoli Dam, Rahul Bose and Parambrata Chatterjee
Produced by: Anushka Sharma
Release Date: 24 June 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
Fantasy drama-thriller “Bulbbul”, written and directed by lyricist Anvita Dutt in her directorial debut, is set in the backdrop of a fictional village in 19th century India where a series of brutal killings take place and the villagers believe it is the work of a witch.
“Bulbbul” gained praise for its storyline, cinematography (Siddharth Diwan) and the performance of its female lead Tripti Dimri who won the “Best Actress” award at the inaugural Filmfare OTT Awards.
The film also fetched its antagonist Rahul Bose the “Best Actor in a Supporting Role” Filmfare OTT award.
6
Film: Kaamyaab
Directed by: Hardik Mehta
Cast: Sanjay Mishra, Deepak Dobriyal, Isha Talwar and Nasirr Khan
Produced by: Gauri Khan, Manish Mundra, Gaurav Verma and Bhaumik Gondaliya
Release Date: 06 March 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
Written and directed by Hardik Mehta (Amdavad Ma Famous), “Kaamyaab” follows a washed-up supporting actor (Sanjay Mishra) of Hindi films, who wants to make a comeback with a memorable role so that he can complete a record figure of acting in 500 films.
The film had its world premiere at the 23rd Busan International Film Festival on 5 October 2018 and released in Indian cinemas on 6 March 2020 before being pulled off the theatres as they shut down due to the pandemic and lockdown restrictions. The comedy-drama premiered on Netflix on 3 May 2020.
Critics appreciated the drama for its writing, direction, humour and performances of the main cast.
5
Film: Eeb Allay Ooo!
Directed by: Prateek Vats
Cast: Shardul Bharadwaj
Produced by: Shwetaabh Singh and Prateek Vats
Release Date: 18 December 2020
Streaming on: NA
Prateek Vats’ debut directorial “Eeb Allay Ooo!” revolves around a young migrant in New Delhi, who scores the unusual government job of keeping monkeys away from public buildings, and focuses on his ensuing struggles and disillusionment with the work. The title is a set of distinct sounds used by the protagonist in the film to scare away the monkeys.
The drama first premiered at the 2019 Pingyao International Film Festival in China and was also screened at the Mumbai Film Festival in October 2019. In February 2020, the film was screened at the Panorama section of the 70th Berlin International Film Festival.
“Eeb Allay Ooo!” is competing for a “Best Foreign Language Film” nomination at Golden Globes 2021.
The film released in select cinemas in India on 18 December 2020.
4
Film: AK vs AK
Directed by: Vikramaditya Motwane
Cast: Anil Kapoor and Anurag Kashyap
Produced by: Deepa De Motwane
Release Date: 24 December 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane (Sacred Games) and starring Anil Kapoor (Slumdog Millionaire) and Anurag Kashyap (Imaikkaa Nodigal), hostage-thriller “AK vs AK” revolves around a disgraced director (Anurag Kashyap), who after a public spat with an aging movie star (Anil Kapoor), kidnaps the actor’s daughter (Sonam Kapoor) and films the search in real time in his quest for revenge.
Critics praised the film’s unique concept, dialogues, performances of the leads Kapoor and Kashyap and the plot twist.
3
Film: Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior
Directed by: Om Raut
Cast: Ajay Devgan, Saif Ali Khan and Kajol
Produced by: Ajay Devgan and T-Series
Release Date: 10 January 2020
Streaming on: Disney + Hotstar
Period action-drama “Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior” is set in the backdrop of 17th century India and revolves around the attempts of military leader Tanhaji (Ajay Devgan) to recapture the Kondhana fortress once it passes on to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb who transfers its control to his trusted Rajput guard Udaybhan Singh Rathore (Saif Ali Khan).
Following its theatrical release, the film was hailed for its action sequences, visual effects, dialogues and performances of Ajay Devgan and Saif Ali Khan.
“Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior” is in the reckoning for a “Best Foreign Language Film” nomination at Golden Globes 2021.
2
Film: Ludo
Directed by: Anurag Basu
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi and Fatima Sana Sheikh
Produced by: T-Series, Anurag Basu Productions and Ishana Movies
Release Date: 12 November 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
From a resurfaced sex tape to a rogue suitcase of money, four wildly different stories overlap at the whims of fate, chance and one eccentric criminal in this comedy-drama-thriller helmed by Anurag Basu (Barfi!) that features an ensemble cast including Abhishek Bachchan (Guru), Aditya Roy Kapur (Aashiqui 2), Rajkummar Rao (Stree), Pankaj Tripathi (Mirzapur) and Fatima Sana Sheikh (Dangal).
Critics showered praises on Anurag Basu’s direction, the film’s genre – black comedy – and performances of the main cast.
“Ludo” is competing for a “Best Foreign Language Film” nomination at Golden Globes 2021.
1
Film: Serious Men
Directed by: Sudhir Mishra
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Indira Tiwari, Nassar, Aakshath Das and Shweta Basu Prasad
Produced by: Sudhir Mishra, Bhavesh Mandalia and Sejal Shah
Release Date: 02 October 2020
Streaming on: Netflix
Based on a novel by Manu Joseph, the film follows Ayyan Mani (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), a personal assistant to highly-regarded astronomer Dr. Arvind Acharya (Nasser) at the Institute of Theory and Research in Mumbai. After a lifetime of being criticized for being unsuccessful, Mani decides to channel his anger at the world by conning it.
Mani begins a journey of upward social mobility by convincing everybody that his 10-year-old son (Aakshath Das) is a mathematical genius, a lie which spirals out of control.
“Serious Men” released to universal critical acclaim with several reviewers hailing it as “one of the finest films of 2020” whilst praising the writing, direction and performances of Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Aakshath Das.