The rise and rise of regional cinema
The Lockdown was a catalyst that ensured that I could spend a lot of time watching cinema of the world and also a lot of regional cinema which has been generating a lot of good content in the last couple of years. Marathi, Malayalam, and Tamil cinema has been steadily gaining a certain kind of reverie amongst aficionados who are looking for good cinema. Being a Bengali myself I have been exposed to Bengal cinema since the time I was introduced to it by Ma. So, that also gave me an added advantage. I remember in my growing up years I use to often be on toes with my mother getting across to some of the cinema halls in Banaras which had the morning show, casting some of the most amazing Hollywood releases, like Ben Hur, Where Eagles Dare, Ten Commandants, Lust for Life, to name a few. There were many I saw but as a 4-5 year kid they were hazy images to me. But, Ben Hur I vividly remember because of the Chariot Race. Later, I remember my parents went for a morning screen of European C...