Welcome to the golden age of Marathi cinema where film makers are not afraid to experiment with different plots and ideas, and deliver excellent quality products. Right now, the Marathi movie industry is at its peak. In the recent past, we have seen so many good films, of so many genres…from thrillers like “Checkmate”, “Chakwa”, and “Savarkhed – Ek Gaav” to full-on fun films like “Pak Pak Pakak”, “Aga Bai Arechha”, “Kaydyacha Bola”, and “De Dhakka” and from timepass comedies like “Jatra”, “Hyancha Kahi Nem Nahi”, and “Navra Majha Navsacha” to serious films like “Dombivali Fast”, “Nital”, “Shwaas”, “Uttarayan”, and “Saatchya Aat Gharat”.
I remember the days when the Marathi movies were ruled by the awesome foursome of Sachin, Ashok Saraf, Lakshmikant Berde, and Mahesh Kothare. Majority of the mainstream films featured permutations and combinations of these four actors. As a kid, I enjoyed those movies tremendously, be it “Ashi Hi Banva Banvi”, “Thartharat”, “Dhadakebaaz”, “Eka Peksha Ek”, to name a few. Although excellent (and some of them are my all-time favorites), those films were somewhat limited in their scope, and focused primarily on comedy. Things were sort of repetitive, as the theme, genre, and most of the times actors were the same.
Things have changed dramatically over the past few years. Even today actors are repetitive, but the films are not. Although some of the movies that become superhits are modeled on the lines of popular Hollywood hits, they have a distinct hint of a “Marathmola” flavor. Today’s awesome foursome in my opinion is Sanjay Narvekar, Makrand Anaspure, Ankush Choudhari, and Bharat Jadhav.
Here are some films from the past 4-5 years that I absolutely loved:
1. Pak Pak Pakak
2. Yanda Kartavya Ahe
3. Kaydyacha Bola
4. Checkmate
5. Aga Bai Arechha
All in all, this is a great time for the Marathi film industry, and for an enthusiast like me for whom movies are like food, and watching an amazing Marathi movie is like a feast.
