Last week, I went with a few screenwriter friends to watch Superboys of Malegaon. Reema Kagti’s film has that rare magical quality—of reminding people why they do what they do, which is so important for artistes to remember.  

But, as we entered an empty theatre, I could see the heart-broken faces of my friends aged 25, 31 and 35.  On most days, it’s safe to assume that a good movie can fix everything, but not that day. A large part of the post-movie conversation became about how good films are slowly being disincentivised by the system, while the same system backs mediocrity. The conversation then focused on the Internet’s hate-watch of the week—Nadaaniyan, starring Khushi Kapoor and Ibrahim Ali Khan, backed by Karan Johar.