Hindi
Partition: 1947 — Attempt to create nostalgia
Suddenly, the flavour of the season as far as filmmaking goes, seems to be India and its history, distant as well as recent. Some films, like Indu Sarkar (the recent film about the emergency era), are made to please the people in high places instead of the moviegoer while the latest one, Partition: 1947, according to its maker Gurinder Chadha is the result of her own family’s ordeal during the partition of the sucontinent.
Sadly, filmmakers seem to find little in India’s history. Even Hollywood stopped making films on World War II in 1960s save for an odd Dunkirk, released recently. And then, America was the victor in the war and a reason to celebrate it through its films. The partition of India into two countries has nothing that the survivors would like to remember or something that would inspire people. Also, it was done at the whim of the British rulers of India.
Lord Mountbatten (Huge Bonneville), the last Viceroy is despatched to India to oversee handing over the reign of India to its own people, freeing it after the British entered India almost 200 years ago and actually ruled it for over a century. As one knows, handing over freedom was not a simple process as there was also the problem of two religious groups at loggerheads and the Muslims wanting their own country carved out of India. Also, Mountbatten was not the final authority as the shots were called from his masters in London.
The partition plans were already put in place by then PM Winston Churchill in 1945 and there was little left for Mountbatten to do.
Though there is a symbolic romance between a Muslim girl played by Huma Qureshi and the Hindu boy, Manish Dayal who become the victims of partition, the film is more about the happenings in Delhi. For the migration of people due to partition, the film uses mostly archival footage.
This may be Gurinder Chadha’s most ambitious film yet, but it does not quite grip the viewer. If the partition was planned in the high offices of London, the Indian leaders, squabbling among themselves, had little say or showed any inclination. And, if the highlight of the film is that Mountbatten was manipulated, it is hardly an attraction anymore to watch the film.
Producers: Paul Mayeda Berges, Gurinder Chadha, Deepak Nayar.
Director: Gurinder Chadha.
Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Gillian Anderson, Manish Dayal, Huma Qureshi, Michael Gambon, Simon Callow, Om Puri, Roberta Taylor as Miss Reading, Tanveer Ghani, Simon Williams as Archibald Wavell
Hindi
Shekhar Suman opens acting academy in Mumbai
The veteran actor-presenter launches SSFA, promising immersive, mentorship-led training for aspiring actors and storytellers
Mumbai: Forty years in front of the camera, and Shekhar Suman still isn’t done. The actor, host, writer and director, one of Indian entertainment’s most restless polymaths, is now training his sights on the next generation, launching the Shekhar Suman Film Academy (SSFA) in Mumbai on 22nd April 2026. Registrations for the inaugural batch are already open.
SSFA pitches itself squarely against formula-driven acting schools, leading with an intensive three-month programme that Suman says he personally designed and will largely conduct himself. The curriculum blends voice and speech work, emotional access, body awareness and camera technique with the Linklater Voice Method, film language and on-set discipline, and rounds off with a student film, giving trainees their first taste of a real set.
Masterclasses with actors, casting directors and filmmakers sit alongside the core course. The academy is conceived as a platform that will eventually sprawl into screenwriting, direction, cinematography, music production and post-production: a full creative ecosystem rather than a single acting school.
“For me, this academy is not just an institution. It is a very personal way of giving back to the craft that has given me everything,” said Suman. “Over the years, acting has taught me discipline, imagination, resilience, and the importance of truth in performance. Through this academy, I hope to create something that goes beyond training and becomes a true creative journey for every student who walks in.”
Behind the scenes, the academy is backed by GBM Studios. Dharmesh Sangani, founder and visionary, is the driving force, bringing what the academy describes as “a focused approach to creating meaningful opportunities within the industry.” Adhyayan Suman, founder and director and Shekhar’s son, adds a performer’s perspective honed across acting, music and direction. Ekant Babani, partner and chief operating officer, handles strategy and operations.
Entry is deliberately low-barrier. No prior training is needed: applicants sit a basic self-audition test, shifting the focus firmly to potential rather than polish. The academy says it aims to stay accessible while delivering a premium, hands-on experience.
In a country where acting schools multiply almost as fast as OTT platforms, Suman’s personal stamp and his willingness to stand in the room and teach may be the sharpest edge SSFA has. For those ready to test that promise, the curtain is already up. Apply at shekharsumanfilmacademy.com
