In Pursuit of Wisdom

I am in the middle of my Christmas vacation with my wife Shusmita, son Ahyan and daughter Suhaila trekking through the landscapes of South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini. While the views are breathtaking, the soundtrack to my trip is undeniably intense. I found myself listening to two songs on repeat— Fa9la and Ishq Jalakar —from the colossal hit, Dhurandhar . The movie has already crossed 1051 crore rupees worldwide , becoming the 7th highest-grossing Indian film of all time in just 24 days. But beyond the box office numbers, Dhurandhar offers a cultural mirror that I haven't seen in years. The Titans: Ranveer vs. Akshaye I admit, I have tried not to like Ranveer Singh for many years. But in Dhurandhar , he won me over completely. Gone is the manic energy; instead, we get a calm, composed, ferocious look that is terrifyingly quiet. If we are comparing recent alpha-male cinema, Ranveer in Dhurandhar is miles ahead of Ranbir Kapoor in Animal . And yet... he is completely outshin...