Veerendra Saxena Movies
William Makepeace Thackeray's witty assessment of the British class system, as seen through the experiences of one young woman, is brought to the screen with some serious star power in this period comedy drama. Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon) is a bright and ambitious girl born to a poor British family. Becky is determined to make something of herself however she can, and after accepting a job as a nanny for the children of the powerful and aristocratic Sir Pitt Crawley (Bob Hoskins), she wastes no time ingratiating herself with the family. Pretty Becky catches the eye of Crawley's handsome and eligible son Rawdon (James Purefoy), and becomes chummy with sharp-tongued Aunt Matilda (Eileen Atkins). Between the two of them, Becky is introduced to London's most exclusive social circle, where she becomes re-acquainted with Amelia Sedley (Romola Garai), a former school chum who is amused by Becky's efforts to scale the ladder of social influence. Becky weds Rawdon, but following initial happiness, the social and economic stability she dreamed of begins to collapse when he begins drowning his troubles in gambling and drink, and soon she turns to the powerful Marquess of Steyne (Gabriel Byrne) for support. Meanwhile, Amelia's fortunes fall even harder following the death of her husband. Vanity Fair was directed by Mira Nair, who enjoyed a surprise international success with 2002's Monsoon Wedding. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Reese Witherspoon, Romola Garai, (more)
- 1994
Small town bureaucracy in a small Indian town provides the focus of this film. Upon receiving his education Agastya Sen, a Bengali, joins the public service where he is assigned to work in a tiny village as an assistant to the collector. He does not speak the local language. Sen is set up in a dreadfully primitive little place where his only company is a small frog. He misses his friends in the city. He has trouble adjusting to the quaint village and it's eccentric, provincial ways. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rahul Bose, Salim Shah, (more)
- 1994
Confronted with the Kafka-esque complexity of the Indian bureaucratic hierarchy after being transferred to the provinces, an open-minded urbanite struggles with the hopelessness and despair of being dislocated and misunderstood in this semi-absurdist drama starring Indian art-house icon Rahule Bose. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rahul Bose, Tanvi Azmi, (more)
Anita Desai and Shahrukh Husain adapted Desai's novel for this comedy-drama about an Indian university teacher who encounters numerous hassles in his attempts to document the final writings of an ailing, alcoholic poet whom he idolizes. Score by Zakir Hussain and Ustad Sultan Khan. ~ Nicole Gagne, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, (more)
- 1986
This tragedy is about a man caught at the crosshairs where British colonial rule stifled Indian freedoms, told from the Indian point of view. Francis Massey (Raghuvir Yadav) works as a secretary for a British government officer in central India. The time is the end of the 1920s and a long way from independence. Francis tries to out-British his superior in every way. He dresses British and even marries British, in the sense that he has a church wedding. He is not the most efficient or talented worker, and his boss, the Commissioner Charles Adam (Barry John), often intercedes on his behalf. Massey's ironic destiny, however, is quite beyond the Commissioner's intercession. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry John, Arundhati Roy, (more)
