Latest news with #TVGold
The Hindu
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
The Traitors India and Squid Game — one show rewards deceit, the other punishes hope
Two finales, one week, and enough betrayal to trigger your fight-or-flight response. Whether it's fiction or 'reality', the message is the same: trust no one. It's the season of shocking twists, savage exits, and friendships turned fatal. One show rewards deceit, the other punishes hope. The line between reality TV and dystopian fiction has never been blurrier. Or more binge-worthy. Truth is stranger 'I don't have the brains to be a traitor,' a contestant laughs. Everyone laughs because they agree. 'She's so dumb,' the punchlines fly, like it's open-mic night. We laugh too, because we know she's exactly that — a traitor. Welcome to The Traitors India, where fake deaths make real enemies, and betrayal is the only way to survive. Karan Johar, dressed like Malegaon ka Mogambo, sets the tone with his signature catty charm. It's a game of lies and manipulation, where being trusted is a liability, and trust itself? A trap. The cast, led by meme queen and couture-chaos-engine Uorfi Javed, is a fever dream. Apoorva, the rebel kid, dishes zingers like she's paid per punchline. Purab Jha plays the boy-next-door with the dead-eyed chill of a serial killer on a lunch break. And foul-mouthed sass queen Sufi Motiwala, the 21-year-old, sobs after taking out the fan-favourite rapper — then invents words like 'allegate' when he runs out of real ones. At the heart of it all is the Uorfi-Apoorva influencer friendship. They start with a sworn 'behan' code and end in full-blown betrayal. The episode-9 cliffhanger closes their arc like a chick-flick bromance: two creators, influenced against each other by — well — influence put their differences aside. The game-changing dynamic we were waiting for. Elnaaz Norouzi deserves her own genre: the dumb-blonde assassin who weaponises tears, decoys, and ditz like she's submitting a masterclass in deception. I tuned in for the cringe art section. By the end? It made the cut for hype check. Not TV Gold. Let's not lose our minds. But trust me — this one's worth the chaos. Season finale aired on Thursday evening. Let's just say there was so much poetic justice, it felt scripted, rehearsed and performed. Do I actually love this show? Or are you being played? Fool around and find out. Morality versus mortality Replace influencers with desperate adults, the host with a faceless system, and the villa with an island — and you've got Squid Game Season 3. But don't get too comfortable. This one hurts. Not in the 'oh no! my fav died' way. In the 'wait… are we the problem?' way. The show's central idea mutates. It's no longer about survival. It's about complicity. Every game is more violent, absurd and emotionally loaded. Not just a death match. A morality test dressed up as a cash prize. This close to being a baby-killing show. Not literally. But spiritually? Existentially? Emotionally? Yeah. The players aren't pawns anymore. They're products. Performing pain for a hungry audience. And we eat it up, guilty about the popcorn we are munching watching a show known for its high body count. If you have seen the first two seasons, know the zone. Empathy is a liability. Hope is dangerous. And the moment you try to do the right thing — you die. The real twist? They're no longer trying to win. They're trying not to lose themselves. And most of them fail. It's stylish. Brutal. Philosophical. And disturbingly fun to watch — which is the point. It dares you to keep going. Then punishes you for enjoying it. Because the most violent thing about Squid Game? Is how close it hits to home. Two shows. Same moral. Trust no one. Including yourself. From the hottest shows to hidden gems, overlooked classics to guilty pleasures, FOMO Fix is a fortnightly compass through the chaos of content. Expect timely recommendations, spoiler-free insights, and an honest heads-up on what to not miss.
The Hindu
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Thug Life: First day first show reactions Tourist Family
What a week—so many choices, so little time. This episode of FOMO Fix dives into some of the buzziest new releases and helps you figure out what's worth watching. On Hype Check, I'm joined by film critic Shilajit Mitra to break down our first-day-first-show reactions to Thug Life, the much-anticipated Kamal Haasan–Mani Ratnam collaboration. It starts off with promise, but let's just say things go south after the interval. Then on TV Gold, I spotlight Mountainhead, Jesse Armstrong's razor-sharp satire on tech billionaires. It's dark, hilarious, and deeply relevant. If Succession met Black Mirror at a Silicon Valley retreat, this would be the outcome. Also in this week's heads up: • Tourist Family, a refugee drama that refuses to lean into trauma and instead delivers warmth, humor, and hope. • Stolen, a lean and tense thriller set over one unforgettable night. It's tightly made, hard-hitting, and leaves a mark.
The Hindu
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Watch: Same plot, new bottles
This week on FOMO Fix, Sudhish Kamath breaks down Bhool Chuk Maaf — the latest entry in the overdone time-loop genre that ironically forgets to be original. Also on the episode: TV Gold: Taylor Sheridan's Landman — where oil meets fire and Billy Bob Thornton holds it all together. If Yellowstone was your vibe, this one is worth drilling into. Heads Up: Vijay Sethupathi stars in Ace, a film that tries to bluff with comedy, action, and a heist — but doesn't quite have the right cards. Retro Ride: Mohanlal's Thudarum revs up old-school action with Ilaiyaraaja music and raw nostalgia — but don't expect Drishyam-style twists. PSA: JJ Abrams throws it back to the '70s with Duster, where fast cars, FBI agents, and blue suede shoes collide. 👁🗨 Watch, skip, or wait — Sudhish Kamath is your binge guide, your designated driver through the noisy streets of content chaos. This is FOMO Fix, brought to you by The Hindu.
The Hindu
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Watch: Mission: Impossible to Ignore
Tom Cruise is back doing the impossible — taking on AI, gravity, and a franchise finale in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. But is it worth your time (and IMAX money)? Sudhish Kamath breaks it down with a full franchise recap and ranking on Hype Check with a Mission: Impossible Special. Plus, on TV Gold, don't miss Guy Ritchie's gangster epic Mobland, and catch the riotous finale of Seth Rogen's The Studio. We also cover the Danish thriller Secrets We Keep on Heads Up and call out the problematic Tamil crime drama Fire. Get the fix before the algorithm traps you in another content loop. This week's FOMO Fix will self-destruct in 3… 2… 1… Script and presentation: Sudhish Kamath Music: Ivan Avakian
The Hindu
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Retro, Four Seasons, Thunderbolts and more
The day you find your purpose… or realise you've wasted 200 bucks on a bad movie. This week on FOMO Fix, I, Sudhish Kamath, help you navigate stories about people chasing meaning while the world burns around them. In Hype Check, we look at Retro — Suriya's masala-packed tribute to classic cinema. It's love, laughter, and war… but does it live up to its own hype? In TV Gold, Tina Fey and Steve Carell bring us The Four Seasons, a funny and heartfelt Netflix series about changing relationships through the year. Heads Up covers Marvel's latest misfit team-up — Thunderbolts (now rebranded The New Avengers). Meta, messy, but actually watchable. Also recommending: Muthayya, a charming Telugu indie about a 70-year-old chasing his movie dreams. The Rehearsal, Nathan Fielder's absurd, brilliant deep-dive into fake lives and uncomfortable truths (yes, there's a diaper scene). Watch now for the weekly lowdown on what to stream, skip, and why good marketing sometimes looks a lot like purpose. Music: Ivan Avakian
