Entertainment
HINDI MOVIE PreviewS
“Batla House” Starring John Abraham, Mrunal Thakur, Ravi Kishen, Manish Chaudhari, Rajesh Sharma; directed by Nikkhil Advani; music by Rochak Kohli, Tanishk Bagchi, Ankit Tiwari.
This action thriller is inspired by the true events after a series of bomb blasts from September 2008 and the aftermath of an operation to capture suspected Indian Mujahedeen terrorists at Batla House in Delhi. During the controversial encounter, two suspects were killed in the shootout and two arrested, while one escaped. The capable John Abraham stars as police officer Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, who leads the raid. The encounter raises questions and criticism across the nation and also public protests. An investigation ensues to determine if it was it a cover-up or a real victory for the Delhi police? Yadav struggles with his duties and must prove what actually took place. Last seen with Hrithik Roshan in “Super 30,” Mrunal Thakur plays Nandita, Yadav’s wife. 
The movie was shot across Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Lucknow and Nepal.
“Mission Mangal” Starring Akshay Kumar, Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Sonakshi Sinha, Nithya Menen, Sharman Joshi, Kirti Kulhari; directed by Jagan Shakti; music by Amit Trivedi.
This directorial debut from Jagan Shakti is based on real scientists at Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) who worked on the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) launched in 2013, India's first interplanetary expedition. Featuring a stellar cast, it tells the incredible story of mission director, Rakesh Dhawan, played by Akshay Kumar and project head, Tara Shinde, played by Vidya Balan. They lead a team of scientists, including several women, who overcome personal challenges to serve as the brains behind this great mission, the launch of India’s first satellite to Mars. 
The film is about ordinary people doing extraordinary things and inspiring generations to dream big. While the story is true, several women scientists were essential to the mission’s success, the characters here are fictionalized and names changed. This director’s sister is a scientist at ISRO. Shakti credits her for inspiration and help in speaking to the launch team. He began the script while working as assistant to R. Balki on “Padman.” Shakti hopes stories like this will motivate and inspire the youth.