Nine new films, including a spy thriller, a social drama, an action-packed thriller and an animated fantasy adventure featuring beloved comic characters, are going to hit the theatres today. Here’s all you need to know about the Hindi, Bengali and English movies releasing on May 12.
IB71 (Hindi)
Directed by: Sankalp Reddy
Cast: Vidyut Jammwal, Anupam Kher, Vishal Jethwa, Ashwath Bhat and Dalip Tahil
It’s 1971 — India and Pakistan are at the brink of war. As Pakistan plans to launch an airstrike against India, the Indian intelligence unit is gearing up to foil their plans. IB agent Dev Jammwal (Vidyut Jammwal) has been tasked with blocking the airspace to prevent the imminent threat.
Chatrapathi (Hindi)
Directed by: V. V. Vinayak
Cast: Bellamkonda Sai Srinivas, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Bhagyashree and Sharad Kelkar
Chatrapathi is the Hindi remake of S.S. Rajamouli’s 2005 Telugu blockbuster of the same name. The film revolves around a mother and her two sons. However, Shiva (Bellamkonda Sai Srinivas) is separated from his mother by his jealous half-brother and ends up as a bonded labourer. The search for his family becomes Shiva’s mission even as he emerges as the saviour of the downtrodden.
Fatafati (Bengali)
Directed by: Aritra Mukherjee
Cast: Ritabhari Chakraborty, Abir Chatterjee and Swastika Dutta
Phullora Bhaduri (Ritabhari Chakraborty) is a tailor from a small town who aspires to become a celebrated designer. Though she often faces ridicule for being overweight, it doesn’t stop her from pursuing her dream. Phullora becomes an online fashion influencer under the veil of anonymity. How she breaks the glass ceiling forms the crux of the film.
Love Again (English)
Directed by: James C. Strouse
Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Sam Heughan, Celine Dion and Nick Jonas
Love Again is a remake of the 2016 German film SMS für Dich, which was an adaptation of a novel of the same name by Sofie Cramer. The story revolves around Mira Ray (Priyanka Chopra), who is struggling to come to terms with the death of her fiancé. She keeps sending text messages to his phone number, which has been reassigned to Rob Burns (Sam Heughan). Rob is intrigued by the messages and falls in love with Mira.
Asterix & Obelix - The Middle Kingdom (English)
Directed by: Guillaume Canet
Cast: Guillaume Canet, Gilles Lellouche, Vincent Cassel, Julie Chen and Bun Hay Mean
The year is 50 B.C. and the empress of China has been imprisoned by prince Deng Tsin Qin (Bun Hay Mean) following a coup. Princess Fu Yi (Julie Chen) escapes from the clutches of the prince and arrives at Gaul to seek help from Asterix and Obelix, who possess superhuman strength because of a secret magic potion prepared by their druid. But Julius Caesar (Vincent Cassel) is heading towards the middle kingdom with his powerful army and the Gaul warriors must also battle the Roman Emperor.
To Leslie (English)
Directed by: Paul Dugdale
Cast: Andrea Riseborough, Allison Janney and Owen Teague
Leslie (Andrea Riseborough), an alcoholic from West Texas, wins a massive lottery prize but squanders it away on liquor and drugs. Six years later, Leslie leads the life of a destitute, hopping from one motel to another and sometimes spending nights on the streets. Desperate for a shelter, she reunites with her estranged son James (Owen Teague), who allows her to live with him under one condition — she must not drink. As Leslie goes back to her old ways, her friend Nancy (Allison Janney) steps in and helps her mend her ways.
A Winter Tale at Shimla (Hindi)
Directed by: Yogesh Verma
Cast: Gauri Pradhan Tejwani, Indraneil Sengupta and Deepraj Rana
Vaidehi (Gauri Pradhan Tejwani) and Chintan (Indraneil Sengupta) are long-lost lovers who have a chance encounter after two decades at Shimla. As the duo rekindle their romance, it proves to be ruinous for their personal lives as Vaidehi’s jealous husband DIG Uday Raj Singh (Deepraj Rana) is a brute officer with an infamous reputation.
Music School (Telugu, Hindi and Tamil)
Directed by: Papa Rao Biyyala
Cast: Shriya Saran, Prakash Raj, Sharman Joshi, Ozu Barua and Gracy Goswami
Music School revolves around a group of young students who are dragged into the rat race of life. With never-ending pressure from the school and parents to secure good grades in exams, they have little or no time to pursue other interests like music and arts.
Farhana (Hindi)
Directed by: Nelson Venkatesan
Cast: Aishwarya Rajesh, Jithan Ramesh, Aishwarya Dutta and Selvaraghavan
Farhana (Aishwarya Rajesh), a devout Muslim woman, is forced to take up a job as a call centre executive. As expenses go up due to her infant’s health condition, she switches to another team with higher incentives. However, to her dismay, Farhana learns that her new role entails her to engage with lonely strangers. Her world turns upside down when Farhana feels enamoured by one such caller and decides to meet him in person.
