crown

Subscribe Now

FOLLOW US

Sign in

Home / Author / Deepanjana Pal

Deepanjana Pal

Deepanjana Pal

Articles by Deepanjana Pal

Errors in mapping: Deepanjana Pal writes on The Odyssey

Lupita Nyong’o doesn’t falter as Helen of Troy. But Nolan’s version is a fear-struck woman, a sort of apologetic alter-ego of Homer’s heroine.

Updated on Jul 18, 2026 12:25 IST

Offside stories: Deepanjana Pal writes on football documentaries

In Pele, now streaming on Netflix, one sees how the legend seemed able almost to bewitch the ball into doing his bidding.

Updated on Jul 4, 2026 10:31 IST

Listen to the voice of Hind Rajab

The fictionalised sections are set in the Red Crescent office, where frustrated aid workers end up lashing out at one another. The recordings of Hind’s calls are real.

Updated on Jun 20, 2026 11:04 IST

Shear mastery: Deepanjana Pal writes on The Sheep Detectives

Hugh Jackman reads to his herd, in The Sheep Detectives. Based on a German novel from 2005, the story, unusually, finds the beauty in clouds without silver linings.

Updated on May 22, 2026 10:54 IST

Haute and bothered: Deepanjana Pal writes on The Devil Wears Prada 2

How did this happen? Instead of being the outsider who can tell beauty spots from warts, part two is the blinkered insider, unable now to critique the industry in which it is set.

Updated on May 8, 2026 12:34 IST

That sounded better in Mandarin: Deepanjana Pal writes on The Drama vs a C-drama

Pursuit of Jade, Chinese TV’s first truly global hit, tells the love story of a haughty nobleman and a female butcher.

Updated on Apr 18, 2026 09:06 IST

Mischief managed: Deepanjana Pal writes on Riz Ahmed’s biting new series, Bait

Riz Ahmed and Guz Khan, who play cousins in Bait, have fantastic chemistry, and some of the best lines in the show.

Updated on Apr 3, 2026 16:16 IST

Rock n’ role: Deepanjana Pal writes on women and the Oscars

‘I want all the women in the room to stand up... I don’t get here without you,” said Autumn Durald Arka-paw, the first woman and first woman of colour to win the Oscar for Best Cinematography (for Sinners). (Reuters)

Updated on Mar 20, 2026 15:33 IST

Brimful of Asha: How excited should we be about the Gorillaz collab?

The cover art for the British band’s new album, The Mountain / Parvat, featuring collaborations with Asha Bhosle, Asha Puthli, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash, among others.

Updated on Mar 20, 2026 13:18 IST

Mist opportunity: Deepanjana Pal on Kohrra season 2

Compelling as it is, Kohrra 2 relies on the actors to elevate the writing. Mona Singh and Barun Sobti in a still from the show.

Updated on Feb 21, 2026 10:44 IST

See you swoon?: Deepanjana Pal on plot tangles, Bridgerton and Heated Rivalry

In some ways, Heated Rivalry (2025) is beating Bridgerton at its own game. It has the elaborate intimacy scenes, and doesn’t lose track of the plot.

Updated on Feb 7, 2026 10:12 IST

Light, likeable, forgettable: Deepanjana Pal on Vir Das’s Happy Patel

Vir Das with Mithila Palkar in Happy Patel. Das is sweet and goofy, but doesn’t offer enough edginess or intensity to leave a mark.

Updated on Jan 23, 2026 13:30 IST

A tribute to a mighty heart: Deepanjana Pal writes on Ikkis

Agastya Nanda plays Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, who was 21 when he refused to follow orders to retreat during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, eventually blocking a breakthrough for Pakistan. It was a victory for India that he and his tank’s radio operator, Sowar Nand Singh, paid for with their lives.

Updated on Jan 9, 2026 12:29 IST

Big picture energy: Deepanjana Pal on the best things to watch, from across 2025

Created by Vince Gilligan of Breaking Bad, Pluribus is science-fiction at its most elegant.

Updated on Dec 26, 2025 09:30 IST

Stealth management: Deepanjana Pal writes on Dhurandhar

Akshaye Khanna as the gangster Rehman Dakait, being carefree and dancing to the song Fa9la.

Updated on Dec 19, 2025 14:16 IST

Rate this U, for Uncomplicated: Deepanjana Pal on the Telugu film The Girlfriend

Mandanna plays Bhooma, whose first act of quiet rebellion is to enrol in college, which places her outside her domineering father’s reach.

Updated on Nov 21, 2025 09:37 IST

Lore and order: Deepanjana Pal on the new Mahabharat series, and Lokah Chapter 1

Kalyani Priyadarshan as the superhero Chandra in Lokah Chapter 1.

Updated on Nov 7, 2025 09:23 IST

The Diplomat, Tempest: Deepanjana Pal writes on a new numbers game

Keri Russell as Kate Wyler in The Diplomat.

Updated on Oct 25, 2025 07:44 IST

Are you seeing what I’m seeing?: Deepanjana Pal writes on Homebound

Homebound, starring Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa as the friends Shoaib and Chandan, is earnest and evocative. But why are poverty and marginalisation the two mens’ only identity?

Updated on Oct 11, 2025 06:17 IST

A change of scene: Deepanjana Pal on Ba***ds of Bollywood and Humans in the Loop

In Humans in the Loop, AI is shown to be an empowering agent. That AI is controlled by corpor-ations with questionable agendas is acknowle-dged, but the film focuses more on what AI could mean for those who are invisibilised.

Updated on Sep 26, 2025 12:47 IST

On the horizon: Deepanjana Pal on India’s Venice winner Songs of Forgotten Trees

Songs of Forgotten Trees has some clumsy edges, but Roy is in her element as she traces the delicate bond between Thooya (Naaz Shaikh), an aspiring actress, and Shweta (Sumi Baghel), who works at a call centre.

Updated on Sep 12, 2025 10:11 IST

No guts, no glory: Deepanjana Pal writes on the film War 2

The fights are unimaginative, the twists are tired.

Updated on Aug 29, 2025 12:02 IST

Delightfully weird: Deepanjana Pal writes on Season 2 of Wednesday

At a time when social media threatens to flatten the youth into a monoculture, Wednesday really matters.

Updated on Aug 16, 2025 08:01 IST

Much like the heroine, all I feel is a sad blankness: Deepanjana Pal on Saiyaara

At her most dynamic, Vaani acts as a sort of ChatGPT for Krish, churning out lyrics for a song, in response to incoherent prompts.

Updated on Aug 1, 2025 09:08 IST

Up, up and a new way: Deepanjana Pal writes on a new kind of hero

Madhavan plays his character as a man who is unpretentious and unabashedly tender. It’s refreshing, and makes the movie better.

Updated on Jul 19, 2025 07:27 IST

Stream team: Check out Deepanjana Pal’s mid-year watchlist

The Apothecary Diaries wears its progressive, feminist heart on its sleeve.

Updated on Jul 5, 2025 07:07 IST

Love, and other bugs: Deepanjana Pal writes on Materialists

Even Pascal’s crinkly-eyed smile can’t plug the gaps. Materialists isn’t nearly as heart-wrenching as writer-director Celine Song’s last film, Past Lives (2023).

Updated on Jun 21, 2025 09:33 IST

‘Stolen’ chances: Deepanjana Pal writes on a gritty film’s scramble for space

Mia Maelzer as the impoverished mother Jhumpa, in Stolen (2023).

Updated on Jun 7, 2025 07:05 IST

Blocked buster: Deepanjana Pal on the tussle over the release of Bhool Chuk Maaf

Bhool Chuk Maaf, starring Rajkummar Rao, needn’t have had such a crisis of confidence. With just a two-week window before it becomes available on streaming, the odds are now stacked against its theatrical run.

Updated on May 23, 2025 10:34 IST

Blunt-force drama: Deepanjana Pal writes on the new series Black, White and Gray

Palak Jaiswal in Black, White & Gray - Love Kills.

Updated on May 10, 2025 09:14 IST

© 2026 HindustanTimes