Thread by @shubhragupta

Just 10 from 10 whole years? Too few. Finally decided to stop keeping a count. Here’s a list of Bollywood movies which counted for something and made me happy #lookback indianexpress.com/article/entert…

What was meant to be a quick listicle turned into a fairly detailed look back at the movies which were about something. For those who don't want to wade through the long-ish piece, here's a rapid reckoner #2010-2019

Band Baaja Baraat (2010) Ranveer and Anushka, the sparks that flew, and that roll in the hay, hey. Ghazab kar diya, bread padode ki kasam

Udaan (2010) Vikramaditya Motwane made an unforgettable film, the only true coming of age film that Bollywood has produced. Great perfs all round, especially from Ronit Roy

Love Sex aur Dhoka (2010) Ekta Kapoor's catchy title won the day for Dibakar Bannerjee's stark, devastating mirror to the evils of society. Rajkummar Rao showed up, and I sat up : who's that guy?

Vicky Donor (2012) Shoojit Sircar's tryst with bodily fluids, envisioned by Juhi Chaturvedi, starts here : Annu Kapoor's doctor, Ayushmann Khurrana's aryaputtar, Yami Gautam's smart young banker, and healthy sperm. Gasp, Bollywood ko kya ho gaya?

Paan Singh Tomar (2012) Tigmanshu Dhulia brought alive the Chambal and its denizens without romanticizing, and gave us rebels with cause. Irrfan Khan,as Paan Singh, was outstanding : daaku toh sirf sansad mein hotey hain, hum baaghi hain

The Lunchbox (2013) Two unlikely people whose only connection is a dabba filled with love and flavours. Ritesh Batra's gently observed film has Irrfan and newcomer Nimrat, and Nawazuddin sliding in sideways, brilliantly

Ship Of Theseus (2013) An ancient conundrum, three disparate strands, and a highly unusual premise. With Kiran Rao backing Anand Gandhi, this 'small' film came to the screens, and stayed : was Bollywood changing?

Queen (2014) A girl named Rani, played by Kangana Ranaut like she was born to play her, and not just London but all of us #thumkda. Such a happy-making, shedding-inhibitions, growing-up film

Titli (2014) Can you ever break out of a cycle of violence? Kanu Behl's film about a loveless family on the brink was dark and disturbing, and Ravir Shorey, unforgettable.

Masaan ( 2015) Neeraj Ghaywan's characters and their lingo, grappling with caste and class and oppression. Heart-breaking and life-affirming. Vicky Kaushal, Richa Chaddha, great supporting cast, and tu kisi rail si guzarti hai..

Aankhon Dekhi (2015) I will only believe what I see with my own eyes, declares Bauji, and this leads him and his hapless parivaar down paths untrodden in Bollywood. Sanjay Mishra, Seema Pahwa, Rajat Kapoor ( who also directs) and a film I haven't stopped thinking about.

Dum Lagaa Ke Haisha (2015) A petulant, entitled 'hero', a 'plus-sized' heroine in a Yashraj film. Yep, that's right. Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar won our hearts in Sharat Kataria's winsome romance

Pink (2016) No Means No. Yes, this line came out of the mouth of a big male star, but the fact that it was said, out loud and clear, was important. That plus the realistic performances by the three young women, and the entitled jerks who harass them

A Death In The Gunj ( 2017) Bullying can kill. Soul and body.Konkona Sen Sharma's assured direction, a plot that never gives anything away, and a bunch of wonderful actors :Gulshan Devaiah, Ranvir Shorey, Tillotama Shome, Kalki, Om Puri,Tanuja, and, ohmg, Vikrant Massey

Anarkali Of Arrah ( 2017) Just because you are a nachaniya and sing raunchy lyrics, are you up for grabs? No, says Anarkali Arrahwali, and we applaud. Avinash Das knew his terrain, Sanjay Mishra was properly lustful, and Swara Bhaskar, superb.

Newton (2017) What do polling booths, sloganeering candidates, and indeed the whole dance of democracy, mean in the deepest forests of India, where Naxals and the forces clash? Amit Masurkar comes up with a brilliant black satire, poking fun at all kinds of holy cows.

Oops, here's #GangsOfWassyepur (2012). Gangsta-rap, Anurag Kashyap style, was never as enthralling as in this two-part testosterone-filled parade of hoods in search of women, pride, money, and yes, love. Manoj Bajpayee, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nawazuddin, Piyush Mishra..

#LipstickUnderMyBurkha (2017) A bunch of women, of varying ages, and stages, struggle with age-old patriarchy to demand what should be theirs, by rights. Alankrita Srivastava directs with a sure hand, and the actors are all so good, esp Ratna Pathak Shah

#MuktiBhawan (2018) Can you will yourself to die? And does death come as the end? Subhashish Bhutiani's thought-provoking film comes riding on striking images of Banaras,and actors who fill their parts:just watch Adil Hussain not put a single foot wrong, in a superb performance

#Mulk (2018) This, our mulk, our country. Anubhav Sinha articulates the many millions of mutinies at play right now, right here. Again, Banaras is where it's at, and the question- who is Us and who Them- is reverberating as we speak

#Tumbaad (2018) Greed can swallow you alive. How much is ever enough? I haven't seen anything as atmospheric and immersive from Bollywood in a long time. Sohum Shah commands the screen in this seamless directorial by Rahi Anil Barve.

#GullyBoy (2019) Zoya Akhtar's deft melding of the haves and have-nots, angsty rap riffs and endearing characters, is both exhilarating and moving. Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt lead from the front; the scene stealer is Siddhant Chaturvedi

#Article15 (2019) 'Aukaat', a word that the privileged never have to deal with, gets full play in Anubhav Sinha's part police procedural-part-caste-nama. In India,caste is the key,and the lock rusted.But, says the film, the constitution is supreme.Hard-hitting, crucial.