Best Hindi movies 2014

A glorious year has come to an end and it is the 102^nd year for Indian Cinema. I believe this is the right time to have a look at the best work during this year in Hindi Cinema.

One very visible change is that Indian cinema is visually better than ever. Every cinema is having its own color tone and style. Hindi cinema is also daring to enter certain genres that have been never or rarely touched before. Emergence of successful Independent filmmakers may be the reason for that.

In spite of this tremendous progress, there are hints that Indian cinema is losing its Indianess and the films are looking more European and American.

Ugly is a drama thriller film by the brand ambassador of new wave Indian cinema, Anurag Kashyap which has release great response in film festivals. Though the release has been delayed in India due to a dispute regarding display of warning for smoking, this film has been appreciated by the critics.

Kali is daughter of a middle-class housewife, Shalini who has divorced Kali’s father, Rahul and married a police-chief Shoumik Bose. As per custody agreement during divorse, Kali had to be with Rahul one Saturday and she goes missing. While the police torture Rahul and his career agent, what happened to Kali forms the rest of the story.

PK is a Sci fi Comedy Drama film by one of the most brilliant directors of modern Indian Cinema, Rajkumar Hirani. This film did not only win hearts of many viewers, it has also become the highest grossing film of all time in India in mere two weeks.

A person without a name, without clothes, without lies in his heart comes to a place to explore. As soon as he comes, a person steals the most valuable thing and runs away. Rest of the film is about how he gets this back. In this quest, he uncovers various paradoxes, changes a person with prejudice and he even unites lovers.

Haider is crime drama film by another master of modern Indian cinema, Vishal Bharadwaj. This is the Indian version of the Shakespeare's Hamlet set against Kashmir conflicts of 1995.

A young man returns to Kashmir when he learns the disappearance of his father. When he returns, he finds that his mother is in a relationship with his father’s brother. After this, an intense drama reveals the reason behind his father’s disappearance. In this quest, the main theme that runs is his mother’s intention of stopping him to be involved in the Kashmir conflict and his will to involve after getting inspired from his father.

Critically lauded in many film festivals and received National award in 2012, Filmistaan released nationwide on June 6, 2014.

An underrated and aspiring film actor is a bollywood buff who gets kidnapped by a terrorist group accidentally when he was working as an assistant director for a film. The house in which he is confined belongs to a Pakistani who makes a life using pirated Hindi movies. The rest of the film is about how cinema shows the common human aspects between two people from two very different cultures.

A remake of BAFTA nominated British film (Metro Manila), Citylights is a drama film directed by Hansal Mehta and presented by Fox Star Studios in association with Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt.

This film is about the challenges a farmer faces in a big city, Mumbai in this case, along with his wife and child after a tragedy in his village.

As a tribute to people who dare to dream, this film is a drama film directed by Amole Gupte and is produced by Fox Star Studios.

This film chronicles Arjun Harishchand Waghmare and his coach’s journey of Arjun’s dream to skate.

Set in 1948, this film is a war drama film produced by Karan Arora and the directorial debut of actor Vijay Raaz.

In a war at Indo-Pak border, only two soldiers are left alive. One is a Pakistani soldier with Indian origin and the other is an Indian soldier with Pakistani origin. Rest of the film is the journey of these two soldiers amidst the war.

Produced by Anurag Kashyap, Queen is a comedy-drama film directed by Vikas Bahl. This film was premiered in Busan International Film Festival and received extremely positive response.

An under confidant and a traditional girl is about to get married when the bridegroom reveals that he is not interested in this as she doesn’t suit his modern life. Heartbroken, the girl sets out to go to her honeymoon alone to Europe. Rest of the film is about how she gains confidence and turns out to be a different person at the end of her solo honeymoon journey.

Screened in 2014 Berlin International film festival, Highway is produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and is directed by the extremely talented Imtiaz Ali. This film is based on an episode in a Zee TV anthology series Rishty which was also directed by Imtiaz Ali.

Right before wedding, a girl is kidnapped for a ransom. She is an outspoken and a charming girl. After few days, she develops Stockholm syndrome towards her kidnapper. In a police shootout, the kidnapper dies and she is returned to her family when the family finds out about her hatred towards her uncle who used to abuse her when she was a child.

Directed by a unique film maker Rajat Kapoor, he dedicates this film to his idols and teachers, Mani Kaul and Shahani.

This film is about a person who decides that he will believe only the things that he sees with his eyes.

Drama, Comedy, Romance, Action, Social and Horror were the known areas for Hindi cinema. Movies falling outside these genres are rare. This year there were some fantastic movies in very different genres like black comedy, documentary, animation, sports, supernatural and fantasy films.

This is a Norwegian-Indian –Danish co-production documentary film directed by Nishtha Jain. This film is about the revolution related to gender violence, caste oppression and widespread corruption in Bundelkhand, India.

A black comedy thriller and a sequel to Ishquya, Dedh Ishquiya is directed by Abhishek Chaubey. A critical and a commercial success, this film is about two lousy crooks who steals a royal jewellery and how they find paradise in seven stages of love.

A Punjabi 3D animated historical drama film, Chaar Sahibzaade is directed by Harry Baweja and produced by Pammi Baweja. Om Puri narrates this film which is about the battle of Chamkaur which took place in 1704 CE and the sacrifice of the four sons of Guru Gobind Singh ji (tenth guru of Sikhs)

Remake of a Tamil film, Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu, this is a sports film directed by Shailesh Verma and produced by Karrm Movies. This film is about an underdog kabadi team in a remote Indian village that doesn’t only play passionately but also gets involved in socio-economic issues.

Sequel to Bhoothnath, this film is a supernatural comedy film directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Bhushan Kumar. On Election commission of India’s demand, Uttar Pradesh government has declared tax free status to this film. A ghost who is mocked in his world for his inability to scare children, he is sent back to redeem. The film is about a journey between this ghost and a boy who is not scared of him while dealing with corruption and voter rights.

This is an Indian Postmodernist film directed by National award winning director Kamal Swaroop and produced by National Film Development Corporation of India. Originally a 1988 film released only in film festivals, the digital version of this film is released commercially in India after 26 years. This is a story about a boy, Om during his carefree adolescence and its harsh disillusions.

A drama fantasy film set in Rann of Kutch, Jal is directed by Girish Malik. Premiered in international film festivals, Jal won National award for best special effects. This is the story of a young Bakka who has a special ability to detect water in desert.

Probably the most difficult film for Priyanka Chopra, Mary Kom is a sports drama film directed by Omang Kumar and produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. This film chronicles life of an Indian boxer Mary Kom who underwent hardships before achieving her ultimate goal.

Clearly PK is a big winner though there are few discussions around the themes and the greatness of the film.

Hope you have enjoyed this concise view of Hindi Cinema 2014. Please do leave a comment below if you like this list or have any suggestions.