The Whimsy Bookworm: A Book Blog from India

 Hello, hello! This year has been a bust as far as the Indian movie scene was concerned (for us). We watched a few good ones, though and so, are sharing those as solid recommendations to enjoy over a long weekend!  Laapataa Ladies (Lost Ladies): Hands down, the best movie of the year! Won't be writing much here because we have a whole post about it. Read it ! :) Streaming on Netflix.  Kill: A gory, thrilling, slick action flick that's made in India! Fast-paced and so, so, so thrilling. Streaming on Netflix. Watch it!  Stree 2: A sequel that is not a sophomoric disaster! Yes, please! This movie takes us back into the Stree universe, except, we have a new villain and also, some new allies. A fun, spooky watch, for sure! Streaming on Prime Video.  Munjya: A nicely made horror movie inspired by the myth/ legend of the Brahmadaitya- the belief that if a Brahmin youth days within 14 days of his sacred thread ceremony, he becomes an evil spirit/ entity. Highly recommen...

Hello, hello, Another weekend and another 'what to watch' post on this blog :)  Today's recommendations are a nice mixed bag of true crime, horror and romance! So, let's get into it, shall we?  Nobody Wants This is a rom-com that is an instant throwback to the mid-2000s! Not only because it stars millennial heartthrobs Adam Brody and Kristen Bell but also it is, basically, a classic rom-com. Has several laugh out loud moments and all the formulaic, trope-heavy things that defined the rom-coms in the early to mid-2000s.  Messed up, commitment-averse heroine- check.  Stable, nice-boy hero- check.  He falls first- check.  She falls harder- check.   And, like I said, lots of LOL-worthy moments, mostly stemming from the hero's extremely Jewish family and the heroine's messy-chaotic family.  This is not a perfect show but it is one of the better rom-coms one has seen in a while. Plus it has six very short episodes which I like. I am so over 50 minute lo...

  What Today Looked Like:  Started a new book. Mayadevi's London Yatra by Bulbul Sharma is a charming, slice of life and bittersweet stories about regular people and ordinary lives. I am a couple of stories in and really enjoying this book.  Still reeling from a fever, so most of today was spent sleeping off and sweating off this flu. Ugh. I feel so out of it and weak.  Coffee in a tiny but happy mug. It's from Chumbak.  Finally watched Godzilla Minus One and absolutely loved it. It's streaming on Netflix and you have to watch it. I love all things Godzilla but these new one (the American films) and the whole Godzilla is our friend..is a bit odd. I am much more inclined to think of him as a super villian. This Japanese film has some seriously good visual effects (it won the Oscar) but it has an incredible story and a whole bunch of amazing characters you grow to care about. It's got thrills and a heart. 

 Hello, hello, Another weekend and if you, like us, plan to spend it in the relatively cooler comforts of home, then we have some movie recommendations for you!  Let's get started!  Late Night with the Devil: An interesting horror-thriller movie where a late night TV host bites off more than he can chew when a Halloween special episode (live) turns out to be truly horrifying. This is a really nicely done movie and there is a nice little twist as well. If you are not a horror fan, don't fret, it is not very scary. Can be rented on Prime Video.  Thanksgiving: A slasher flick set in a small town on Thanksgiving. A mysterious entity starts killing people, who survived a Thanksgiving night early Black Friday stampede at a popular store. A group of high school friends finds themselves in the sights of this killer and it is a race against time to save themselves from him. This is a fun, fast-paced slasher flick. Full time pass. Can be rented on Prime Video.  Godzilla x...

  Hello, hello, We just finished watching Laapataa Ladies on Netflix and we loved it so, so much that we simply had to get on here and recommend it to all of you!  So, without further ado, let's get into our top 5 reasons for watching this absolutely smashing movie: 1. The writing! OMG, the writing! It is funny, insightful, wise and so pitch perfect! I haven't watched an Indian movie in the past 5-6 years where the writing made me actually clap more than once! So, so good!  2. The story. A simple story of two brides getting lost because of being inside navel-length ghunghats. Phool, married to Deepak, sleeps on the train and, Deepak mistakenly takes Pushpa/ Jaya to get off with him at his station because both women are dressed in similar bridal sarees with a huge ghunghat. Chaos ensues! The story is about how both the women find their way back home and to themselves.  3. The found family in this movie so absolutely adorable! The people that Phool (Deepak's wife) find...

 Hello, hello, We come to you today with some very random (and not new) movie recommendations.  Let's get into it, shall we?  1. Wait Till Helen Comes (YouTube) First of all, if you want to watch a bunch of horror and thriller movies and are not finding anything on your usual subs, then go to YouTube and search for horror movies and you will find a bunch of not-so-bad movies!  Wait Till Helen Comes is a decent horror movie about a family that moves into a church-turned-into-a-home and strange things start happening.  2. Devil's Diary (YouTube) A teen/ high school horror flick. Kinda inspired by The Craft but is still its own thing. A mysterious blank journal that makes evil desires come true falls into the hands of the high school outcast. All kinds of evil shenanigans happen.  3. Solstice (2008 movie) (YouTube)  A pretty decent horror-thriller movie. The print on YouTube is not the best but it is okay if you are watching it on your tablet or phone. We...

 Hello, hello, Welcome to the very first Friday of 2024!  I hope you are as excited as I am that the work week is done and a weekend (and all its myriad possibilities) spreads out ahead of us!  Sharing some of the recent things that we've been loving!  The beginning of any New Year means setting up our planners and journals. This here is my sister's Hobonichi Techo. She is back in the Hobonichi after 3 years and this cover is from The Black Canvas . The crochet pencil case is from an Instagram shop whose name I can't remember.  Are you a fan of stickers? We are. They just brighten up things like laptops and Kindle and iPad cases and can be easily removed and replaced with other stickers. This one is from the Strawbabie store . The Kindle cover is from Amazon . My sister has the slightly larger 11th Generation Paperwhite and it is so difficult to find a good cover for it.  I spent some time organising my journal/ planner supplies in my The Ink Bucket planner...

 Hello, hello! I hope December has been good to you thus far!  We are a little more than halfway done with the last month of the year and, seriously, where has the time flown by?!  Anyway, back to the post. Today, I am going to share our Top 10 Hindi movies of the year. This year has been awful for the Hindi movie industry and they've only given us duds and godawful movies! However, even amongst the uninspiring slew of Hindi movies, there were some that were, thankfully, good!  Let's get into it, shall we?!  Uunchai,  streaming on Zee5, is a lovely, heartwarming movie about a group of septuagenarians, who decide to trek to the Everest Base Camp to honour one of their friends, whose dream it was and who'd passed away quite suddenly. The treacherous trek, the unravelling of secrets and just the dynamics of the friendships was really nicely done!  Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga,  streaming on Netflix, is a really nicely done thriller. It starts with the hi...

 Hello, hello! Happy Halloween!  When the real world is so full of horrors, do we really need another day to remind us of the existence of all kinds of scary things? Maybe, maybe not.  Irrespective of whether you celebrate Halloween or not, here are 10 solid horror movies and shows that you can enjoy on this spooky day.  1. The Pale Blue Eye (Netflix)  is a horror-thriller-suspence series that has Edgar Allen Poe as a detective (of sorts) as he investigates murders of cadets at a military school in upstate New York. A spooky and atmospheric watch, which is very nicely done.  2. The Wonder (Netflix) is an interesting and atmospheric movie about a young girl, who has not been eating for over a couple of months. The village elders call upon a trained nurse and a nun to observe the girl to see it is a miracle or a hoax. An interesting one to watch if you don't want to watch something too spooky or scary.  3. Bodies Bodies Bodies (Netflix) is a slasher-come...

 Hello, hello! Happy Friday the 13th to all who celebrate!  As a horror fan, my plan for today is to watch as many horror movies as possible and so, in the spirit of sharing, here are 10 horror movie recommendations for you should you also want to watch one or a few of them! :)  Let's get started!  1. Talk to Me: Some high school kids find a mysterious embalmed hand that can summon spirits and decide to use it as some kind of a game. If you hold the hand, a spirit possesses you and it is safe to stay possessed for 90 seconds. But then things go wrong, as they do... 2. Raaz: A Hindi classic. Heavily inspired by What Lies Beneath but still quite scary and good!  3. The Exorcist (1973): Truly a classic of the genre. A little girl is possessed and her mother, a priest and family friends band together to save her.  4. The Conjuring: Based on a real case undertaken by Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring is a seriously spooky movie about a family's home being ha...

 Hello, hello, I hope your long weekend has gotten off to a great start!  After a busy week, mine has been slow and lazy, exactly as I wanted it to be!  In case you are planning to be home this long weekend, here are a few series and movie recommendations for you!  1. Destined With You is a Korean series that is a romance but with elements like reincarnation, mystery and magic. It is funny and sweet and totally worth bingeing this weekend. Streaming on Netflix. 2. Wilderness is a suspense/ thriller domestic drama about a woman, who decides to kill her cheating husband during a road trip through the US West Coast National Parks. It is gripping and worth watching. Streaming on Prime Video.  3. Athidhi (The Guest) is a Telugu (dubbed in 7 languages) horror/ suspense series about a man living with his wife in a beautiful home when random strangers start showing up on a stormy night. Streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.  4. No Hard Feelings is a comedy movie about supe...

  Hello, hello, I hope your Monday has been good.  If you are looking for something to watch tonight or maybe something nice this week, I have Five Things to Watch.  So let's just jump in.  Friday Night Plan: This teen, coming-of-age and shenanigans-filled film on Netflix was such good fun. It was sweet, funny and has its heart in the right place. I liked how school life and different cliques are shown in a believable way. The popular kids aren't some monsters and relentlessly evil. It shows friendships in schools in a way that seemed so real. I had such a fun time watching this and if you need something short and fun and nostalgic watch this.  It's streaming on Netflix.  The After Party: This is a suspense-whodunnit-comedy. The second season recently wrapped up and if you are looking for something to binge, I highly recommend both seasons of this quirky show and the mystery is also decent. Both seasons are solid and fun and you can watch this over the we...

  We watched Lust Stories 2 last night and here is a full on spoiler-filled review for y'all!  BEWARE- FULL SPOILERS AHEAD- SKIP THIS POST IF YOU DON'T LIKE SPOILERS Lust Stories 2 is an anthology of four short films centred around, what else, lust. The themes for each of these stories are different and so, as an anthology, it works well. Also, all the stories are women-centric, which given the theme is always nice to see. So, without any further ado, let's dive into the individual short films.  The first story is directed by R. Balki and is, honestly, one of the most ridiculous and far-fetched ones in the anthology! While it did make me chuckle on multiple occasions, the whole schtick of a Dadima insisting on her granddaughter have sex before marriage with a potential semi-arranged marriage groom is just ridiculously far fetched given the social milieu and the kind of family shown in this story, which is an average middle-upper-middle class family!  Can you imagine ...

 Hello, hello! A long weekend is just a few hours away from us and if you, like us, plan to just chill and be home, then we have got you sorted with some really interesting OTT recommendations.  Without any further ado, let's get into it, shall we? :)  Documentaries If you enjoy documentaries, then these three on Netflix are definitely ones that you should watch: MH370: The Plane That Disappeared looks into various theories behind the mysterious disappearance of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared into thin air in 2014! An interesting look at multiple conspiracy and scientific theories that speculate on what could've happened.  Waco: American Apocalypse is a look at the 51-day stand off between the FBI and a cult based out of Waco, Texas. The documentary sheds light on what went on for those 51 days and how, in the end, the tragic events that unfolded at the compound came to pass. A nice true crime documentary.  Challenger: The Final Flig...

 Hello, hello, Sharing some of our most loved movies and web series of February 2023!  Given we have some long weekends coming up in March, these would be good ones to watch.  Let's get into it!  1. Mr Queen: A K-drama that is absolutely hilarious and adorable but with a hint of palace/ political intrigue! When a 21st century masterchef falls into a swimming pool, he wakes up in the body of a 19th century queen-to-be. Hilarity ensues as he tries to keep the King at an arm's length, try desperate means to get back to his life and fix things in the past all at the same time!  2. Crash Course in Romance: An introverted, workaholic Maths tutor falls for an extroverted, kind restaurant owner. This is, however, not just an opposites attract love story but is also a commentary on the brutal education system in Korea, especially, the cut-throat world of competitive exams, special tuition classes for these exams and the toll it takes on students. There is also a bit of a...

 Hello, hello, January is almost coming to an end and before it does, I thought I'd share some of our most loved content- TV and film- that we watched this month! Without any further ado, let's get into it!  The Pale Blue Eye (Netflix)  A murder mystery featuring a young Edgar Allen Poe. Set in a military academy in New York, The Pale Blue Eye, deals with the brutal murder of a young military cadet. When the local detective (Christian Bale) is called in to investigate, he forms an unusual alliance with another young cadet- Edgar Allen Poe. An interesting and riveting murder mystery movie.  The Wonder (Prime Video) When a young girl in a little Irish village has not eaten anything for over four months, it is assumed to be a divine miracle of sorts. The local parish and some influential men (businessmen, local Lord) decide to get this miracle ratified by calling a Catholic Nun and an English Nurse to observe the girl day and night for two weeks. Is this really a miracl...

 Hello, hello! We'd recently shared our Favourite Movies of 2022 and so, now this post right here is going to be the master list of all our favourite web series, documentaries and other OTT content that we loved in 2022!  If you haven't watched any of these, then you simply should use this long weekend to do just that!  Let's start with our favourite K-dramas/ Korean shows (and one film) of 2022!  Heartfelt, heartwarming, heartbreaking. If you are in the mood for all of the feels, then these Korean shows and movie are an absolute must-watch! All are streaming on Netflix.  A legal drama with a lot of heart, an extraordinary character and a story about three gritty sisters! Both so different but so amazing!  Moving on to Indian web series.. we have a mix of Hindi, Bengali and Tamil recommendations..  These are all quite good and interesting! Enlarge the image to see where each is streaming.  And now, a couple more Indian shows and some of our favou...

 Hello, hello! Sharing our favourite movies (a mix of Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam and English) of 2022 with you.  These are across genres like thrillers, drama, dramedies, horror-comedies, action and such.  As we wind down the year and, hopefully, you have a little more time on your hands, these movies are good ones to watch!  Without further ado, let's get into it!  We will be back with our Top OTT series faves across fiction and non-fiction very soon!  Enjoy! 

 Hello, hello, It's Friday! That means, the weekend is here for us to binge some really amazing OTT content!  Without further ado, let's get into some of our recent faves across different OTT platforms... 1. Chup (Zee5)  In  Chup, a serial killer is brutally murdering film critics using lines from their own reviews. So, one critic gets "ruthlessly cut" while the other ends up "all over the place" and, well, you get the idea! Who is this killer and why is he killing film critics?  Sunny Deol as the ace homicide detective and Pooja Bhatt as a criminal psychologist are on the case! BTW, so good to see both after such a long time!  A pretty good thriller film with stellar performances from Dulquer Salman and Sunny Deol! Worth a watch for sure!  2. Bodh (Hoichoi) Bodh (conscience in Bengali) is a gripping and nicely written show about justice and not being afraid of facing off against more powerful people in the quest of that justice!  Retired judge, A...