Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026)

The first half of Main Vaapas Aaunga wanders, and at 167 minutes you feel it. The title means I will return. Naseeruddin Shah plays Ishar Singh Grewal, called Keenu, a 95-year-old man, frail after a stroke and lost in dementia, who keeps murmuring about returning to Sargodha, a town on the other side of the border since Partition. His grandson Nirvair, played by Diljit Dosanjh, comes from London to care for him and starts piecing the old man’s words together. The film moves back to young Keenu, played by Vedang Raina, a college kid who loves cricket and jazz and falls for Jiya, played by Sharvari, just as Partition tears their world apart. Imtiaz Ali handles that history with care, never looking away from the loss. Shah gives a masterful, heartbreaking performance, and Dosanjh anchors the present-day story beside him. A few critics found its view of the violence one-sided. An 8.0 because it’s a love story that understands grief. $99.79 says the next time you tell someone you love that you’ll be back, you hear it a little differently.

What works: Naseeruddin Shah is extraordinary, Diljit Dosanjh is a warm anchor, and the film treats Partition’s loss with real care.

What doesn’t: At 167 minutes the first half drags, and some critics felt its picture of the riots was one-sided.

Who it’s for: Anyone who loves a sweeping, patient love story, and families who carry Partition stories of their own.