Aabir Vyas’s Top 10 Recommendations

Actor, director, and popular content creator based out of New York City, Aabir Vyas is a film school graduate. He has done off-Broadway plays and a lot of short films which have won awards across various film festivals in the US.

Here are 10 recommendations from Vyas:

1. Notting Hill (1999)

That is my number one movie. I love romantic movies. There's Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, and it’s about this simple guy who falls in love with this movie star and it’s one of those calming movies for me. When you watch it it feels like life is fine, everything is going well, everything is okay.

2. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)

Kate Hudson is really beautiful, but in this movie everyone (regardless of their gender) was gushing over Matthew McConaughey. All these new "alpha" males in the market don't stand a chance - McConaughey was the real alpha. My goal was simple: I wanted to be like him. Wanted his hair, his body, his charm.

3. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

I’ve studied theatre so for me watching this movie was a different experience because first I had read the play, and then I saw the movie. It’s based on play by Tennessee Williams. You must have heard, “When a person acts it doesn’t looks like he’s acting. It looks like it’s all happening in real life.." that’s what Marlon Brando did in this movie. But I would say that if you didn’t like the ending of Animal (2023), I don’t think you’ll like the ending of this either.

4. Chupke Chupke (1975)

This is the old classic rom-com Hindi movie. Dharmendra is my favourite. First he’s pretending to be a watchman to win over a girl then he’s pretending to be a driver to win over her brother-in-law played by Om Prakash.

5. Chhoti Si Baat (1976)

It is a beautiful romantic film. There’s this guy who’s in love with this girl but his personality and his confidence leave a lot to be desired. Even luck isn't on his side. He meets this guy who becomes his mentor and transforms Amol Palekar into a full hero.

6. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)

DDLJ is always going to be on my top 10 list. It hits all the marks. The guy is this Playboy type, the girl is simple. Love, tradition, family, feuds - iconic lines like "Ja Simran, ja!" You see India and Europe - what else do you need? This is the whole package.

7. Taxi Driver (1976)

One of Martin Scorsese's best films about a taxi driver played by Robert De Niro who is very lonely and doesn’t sleep at night. He sees weird things happening around him in New York City and then decides that he is going to clean up the city. He comes out to be a hero in the end but a weird hero I would say. You’ll only understand that once you watch it.

8. Maqbool (2004)

Although I’m very late to the party, I watched it only recently. Maqbool is based on Shakespeare’s Macbeth. All these amazing Indian actors in one frame which happens very rarely. You know how everyone talks about Irrfan Khan’s eyes? It’s true. You watch this movie and you’ll see him say so much with his eyes. Even in scenes where he doesn’t have any dialogues. And you’ll fall in love with Tabu - like deeply, madly, truly in love.

9. Elvis (2022)

Anytime i feel low, I watch this movie. I love Elvis Presley, I love his music and Austin Butler did the best character work of all time. Like he was Elvis Presley - singing like him, moving like him, talking like him. When it came out I watched this movie thrice in the theatre.

10. Grown Ups (2010)

This is one of those fun movies. Adam Sandler is my all time favourite. It’s not easy to do comedy and he just nails it every single time. The movie is about a group of school friends who are grown ups now and how they have this reunion where their families are also there, and they all are living under the same roof. It is a must watch!