My love for films started when I was a kid. I used to watch Bangla and Hindi movies on our black and white television at home. Colour television came later in our house. And when I used to visit my maternal aunt's place, she used to take me to the theaters to watch commercial Hindi movies. After entering college, I started to go out with my friends to watch commercial Hindi films. After watching those movies, I used to debate with my friends about the films. My only objective was to find flaws in those films, be it in the story or the making.
After graduation, I started watching foreign movies- Hollywood, European, Latin American, and Asian. Those movies have helped me to realize that films are not just images on screens- there is more to that. I generally used to watch song and dance movies that are not only bizarre but also lack intelligence and artistry. After I started watching foreign films, especially the good ones, I slowly came to realize that those films are leaving a mark on me. I was unable to find flaws in those movies. They became the topic of discussion and argument for me. Movies like Taxi Driver, Bicycle Thieves, and 81/2 shook my consciousness and help me to see a world that I have never traveled before. I stopped looking at films as entertainment. I started taking inspiration from the movies. Rather than finding flaws, I used to engage in deep conversations with my friend about films, their content, and the meaning.
And when I joined social media, I started writing mini-reviews on films. It is social media that introduced me to the world of film reviews and criticism. I never knew that a cinema bears so many different perspectives. I came to know about critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert who helped me to understand what film criticism is all about. I was unaware that film reviewers hold such high standards.
For the last 1 year, I've been working as a film critic for a Kolkata-based film magazine Cult Critic. I'm getting to see so many new works from independent directors from different parts of the world. I'm not only getting paid as a reviewer but also knowing what people are thinking around the world.
After starting to work as a reviewer, I started to discover the hidden messages that lie in a movie. I’m also able to understand the politics of a film along with its polemics. As a film critic, I’m able to see the artistry or entertainment quotient of a movie. The sheer joy of deconstructing a movie gives me the impetus to write about movies.
(Source: The Blue Diamond Library)
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