Popular reviews

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  Review by rahul ranjan ★★★★ 1

  What a fantastic piece of cinema

  Achal while writing a love letter to kind of films he has admired in maybe his formative years hasn't forgotten the fact that those films he was able to watch and get inspired from weren't without privilege. He's totally aware of that.
  In a particular scene where a trio of young filmmakers discuss films of Iran and Kiarostami while the protagonist is left alienated because he doesn't enjoy that kind of exposure and privilege, Achal very subtly yet bluntly puts it out that cinephilia is a privilege, if you have an access to it be grateful and not gatekeeper. The way protagonist was rebuffed in that scene when he wants to atleast understand the…

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  Review by cinema_made ★★★★

  Dhuin is a homage to the legend of Kiarostami. Dhuin, like Gamak Ghar, it's a moody and breezy film. Dhuin is a film about a theatre actor, who's major dilemma strikes, to choose between his passion or his family economy. Comparable to Gamak Ghar, Dhuin is a miniature piece of the troubles through a tender cinematic experience. Achal Mishra brings out a soft glow of optimism through his films, even though subject matter varies. The protagonist proclaims an invisible halo of optimism to follow his passion, even though he wins or fails. His passion surrounds him and his love for acting has coherent viewpoint throughout the film. The film attains it's peak, when the protagonist and some filmmaker guys sitting…

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  Review by Kibriya⚡ ★★★½ 10

  As a self proclaimed cinephile I always wanted to attend a film festival be it virtual or on location. But haven't had the chance, until Jio MAMI 2022 Mumbai Film Festival.
  
  Dhuin is elegantly shot with a crisp runtime of 50 minutes of a story about an aspiring actor dreaming of moving into Mumbai but is stuck due to family responsibility. There's a beautiful scene where young filmmakers talk about how Kiarostami's film has a combination of real actors and non-actors which outshines the source material. What I loved most was the 4:3 aspect ratio and hazy cinematography. Although a short runtime, it was a good start to the film festival and I am looking forward to watching more.

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  Review by Khwahish ★★★★★ 1

  Darbhanga’s Kiarostami indeed. The visuals are so beautifully woven with the delicate storytelling, I was in awe throughout.

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  Review by Shikhar Verma ★★★

  Achal Mishra’s Dhuin is slight. It is wrapped in the fog that encapsulates Dharbhanga and the illusive dreams of its protagonist Pankaj. He is a struggling theatre artist who is in splits between choosing to escape to Mumbai, or stay back and help out his family after his father lost his job to the pandemic. 

  Mishra’s approach is very social-realistic like that of Kiarostami. And while, his debut took some pages out of Ozu’s rule book, this 50 minute long film is more character-driven and political in its approach like the Iranian master. 

  The plot doesn’t break any new grounds, but Mishra maintains a very visual approach to empathise with having to live a life that is forced to abandon things halfway though.

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  Review by rahul ranjan ★★★★ 3

  Rewatched.
  At this point I'm sure Achal is making films for only me lol.
  Hard relate, infact related to a degree that I probably didn't even want to.
  And I'm afraid that this film will grow on me in ways I don't want to, it'll keep wrecking me and I'll keep coming back to it.

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  Review by Madhukar Nandagudi ★★★★ 4

  Achal Mishra's Dhuin is as much his love letter to the films that has inspired him over the years, especially Kiarostami's movies, it's also a mirror held up to the cinephiles to show the inherent elitism they possess while discussing the cinema from around the world. In one of the highlighting scenes of the movie, the focus is on the protagonist throughout trying to fit with other filmmakers talking about Kiarostami's films and eventually feeling lost. The scene ends with the others failing to include him in the conversation because he didn't have the "experience" of it. The entire scene jolted me and made me realise of my own personal cinematic elitism that I've been guilty of multiple times.

  The…

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  Review by meenalupreti ★★★★

  Quite recently, I promised myself that nothing is more important than family and I’d go visit my parents often; watching this film really made me question my privileges even more now than ever. The story has been written so well that it overshadows Tajdar’s music which is a big achievement in itself. 

  Apart from the outstanding visual language as per usual, there is a scene towards the end of the film when the parents have a conversation about money. We see a younger image of the parents adorning the back wall. Brilliant detailing. 

  Safe to say, cannot wait for the next one :))

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  Review by Sahin Mondal

  Kiarostami, lying in heaven(if there's one) would be proud and smiling.

  A bunch of people discussing Kiarostami gives me orgasm ngl. Achal, endless love and gratitude.

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  Review by Anurag Sanyal ★★½

  Dhuin is a film that I found beautiful and mesmerizing through its visuals only. But what left me asking for more is the exploration of the barrier that our lead character faces. He wants to he an actor but circumstances and lack of seriousness of his peers makes everything harder day by day. While the chill-out & lo-fi aesthetics backed up with soothing background score made this film as I said a visual treat. But lack of risks taken and no tonal shifts throughout the film, it quickly made me remember other better films in this same range i.e. "The Disciple" which through its nuanced take on such topic made everything worthwhile. But to its defense we get some random name…

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  Review by Santanu Patra ★★★★★ 1

  So close to life and Its the underlying and quite relatable melancholy that I loved..A film which expresses emotions and the way everything in the life is connected and beautiful cinematography. The most beautiful movie I watched this year.

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  Review by Akash Suresh

  Pain, beauty and chasing dreams amidst the major conundrum of life called 'Existence'... That scene where the three outsiders discuss about the everlasting aura of the great Abbas Kiarostami and our protagonist stays bewildered all throughout is hands down the most compassionate scene I've seen in a long while... Can't help but believe that that closing scene was a homage to Kiarostami's masterpiece by the name of 'Close-Up' and all the love in the world to everyone involved for creating such a beautiful yet melancholic couple of minutes of sheer delicate artistry... Achal Mishra's tender and terrific sophomore outing after his stunning debut by the name of 'Gamak Ghar' establishes himself as someone to watch out for from the Indian arthouse spectrum and I well and truly believe that we have our own 'Hou Hsiao-Hsien' in the making... I'd love to visit Darbhanga someday and I'd be really grateful if someone can explain me the word meaning of 'Dhuin'!!!