bpb Contest: Recommend your favourite movie to rent in the comments section of this story and win cool world cinema DVDs from Lumiere Movies. Don’t forget to leave your email address!

bpb gets Bollywood’s young brigade – actors, filmmakers, writers – to recommend the movies they love to rent for a night in. Tuck this list under your pillow; you’re going to need it after all that December action.

Take 50.

Danish Aslam, director, Break Ke Baad

Closer: One of the most brutally real movies about how f***ed up relationships can be, ever to be committed on celluloid. Particularly the scene between Clive Owen and Julia Roberts (you know which one I'm talking about). It makes you cringe, squirm, writhe and applaud all at the same time. And it ends with: “That's the spirit. Thank you. Thank you for your honesty. Now f*** off and die, you f****d up slag.”
Director: Mike Nichols; genre: romance / drama

500 Days of Summer: I challenge anyone not to have a smile on their faces in the scene when Joseph Gordon-Levitt walks through the streets after the first time he has sex with Zooey Deschanel. The movie is inventive, lovable, bright and so very beautifully written.
Director: Marc Webb; genre: romance

The Prestige: It's really tough to choose just one from Christopher Nolan's body of work, but I think this one wins simply because of the strength of the writing alone. Inception bent your mind because of the premise and the world that it created. Prestige does the same but sets it in a real world with real people with very dark motives and a screenplay that creeps up behind you and knocks you down only to leave you wanting to watch it all over again, just as soon as it gets over.
Director: Christopher Nolan; genre: drama

Children of Men: I wanted to choose all the movies of all of the directors from the Nuevo Wave (Meirelles, Inarritu, Salles). But since that would be a long list on its own, I've settled for one of Cuaron's best and, for that matter, one of anybody's best in terms of cinematography and just sheer visual brilliance. The gripping dystopian tale of the future with some brilliant performances by the likes of Clive Owen.
Director: Alfonso Cuaron; genre: drama

Once: There are so many love stories that are told well, but the ones that stay with you without you even realising it are usually the simplest ones. This is one of those "little-movies-that-could" that make you go all teary-eyed through the smiles. Made on a shoestring budget of $160,000 this movie goes to prove that you don't need big money or bigger stars to make beautiful movies.
Director: John Carney; genre: romance

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Vishesh Bhatt, creative producer / writer, Jannat

Apocalypse Now: For the most convincing antagonist ever played in a movie (Marlon Brando). It’s like Dante’s Inferno in Vietnam.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola; genre: drama/war

Lady in the Water: A fantastical fairy tale that works with child-like mystery rather than cool (and convenient) visuals of an acid trip.
Director: M. Night Shyamalan; genre: fantasy

Gangster: An epic tragedy.
Director: Anurag Basu; genre: drama

Terminator 2: Because it confronts change, and it inspired me to get my very own pet cyborg.
Director: James Cameron; genre: sci-fi

The Dreamers: Provocative. Love it and / or hate it. Your choice.
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci; genre: drama

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Cyrus Dastur, founder, Shamiana short film club

Shadows of Time: Absolutely brilliant. One of the finest love stories you'll ever see. Send it to the Oscars!
Director: Florian Gallenberger; genre: romance

Sound of Music: One of my all-time favourite films. Have seen it a hundred times but can’t get enough of it.
Director: Robert Wise; genre: musical

Wuthering Heights: I can give you a million reasons why you should go watch this film but all I shall say is that it’s the ultimate romantic tragedy.
Director: William Wyler; genre: romance

Small Pleasures (short film): One of the best short films that I have ever seen. Heart warming.
Director: Konstantinos Pilavios; genre: drama

George Lucas in Love (short film): Bet you would want to know what the world’s most celebrated filmmaker was like when he was in film school. A fictitious comedy that could be true.
Director: Joe Nussbaum; genre: romance

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Purab Kohli, actor, Rock On!!

The Boat that Rocked: It’s a fantastic story on the rock and roll movement of the 1960's and the music is to die for.
Director: Richard Curtis; genre: comedy

Get Him to the Greek: Laugh yourself silly and watch some great performances.
Director: Nicholas Stoller; genre: comedy

Be Kind Rewind: It’s a mad story of two guys. While trying to cover up a disaster caused by one of them, they discover something they love and are truly passionate about. And I love Jack Black!
Director: Michel Gondry; genre: comedy

Tropic Thunder: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Tom Cruise and Robert Downey Jr. like you've never imagined them before. Absolute madness!
Director: Ben Stiller; genre: comedy

Harishchandrachi Factory: If only we made cinema with the passion that Dadasaheb Phalke made his films. This Marathi film is the true story of the birth of the Indian film industry.
Director: Paresh Mokashi; genre: drama

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Ayan Mukerji, director, Wake up Sid

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind: A great love story that moves me and makes me sad.
Director: Michel Gondry; genre: romance

Six Feet Under (Season 1): The best writing ever in my opinion.
Creator: Alan Ball; genre: drama

Brokeback Mountain: My favourite love story ever!
Director: Ang Lee; genre: drama

Revolutionary Road: It shook me up in a disconcerting kind of way. There is this pull that the original book and movie have towards uncovering the absolute truth, which makes you realise how comfortably we all can exist in a cocoon and go about our everyday lives. It blows my mind.
Director: Sam Mendes; genre: romance

Sideways: From one of my favourite film directors.
Director: Alexander Payne; genre: comedy

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Shazahn Padamsee, actress, Rocket Singh - Salesman of the Year

Sophie’s Choice: I absolutely loved Meryl Streep’s performance in the movie. It became one of the reasons why I wanted to become an actor.
Director: Alan J. Pakula; genre: drama

Taxi Driver: An amazing film with Robert De Niro at his best.
Director: Martin Scorsese; genre: drama

Midnight Cowboy: Watch it for the powerful and gripping performances.
Director: John Schlesinger; genre: drama

The Mask: I am a huge Jim Carrey fan and have watched this film over a 100 times. Every weekend, my cousin and I would watch this movie and mouth all the dialogues.
Director: Chuck Russell; genre: comedy

Elegy: The chemistry between Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz is fabulous.
Director: Isabel Cioxet; genre: romance

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Amrita Puri, actress, Aisha

Children of Heaven: A simple, moving film.
Director: Majid Majidi; genre: drama

Pulp Fiction: This movie is killer.
Director: Quentin Tarantino; genre: crime /drama

Breakfast at Tiffany’s: This is a classic romance. Hepburn at her best as Holly Golightly. Which girl wouldn’t want to see this movie over and over?
Director: Blake Edwards; genre: romance

Cinema Paradiso: I loved it for its simplicity and heart warming narrative.
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore; genre: comedy / romance / drama

The Kid: Charlie Chaplin is the father of comedy. He created the lovable lovelorn fellow that made people laugh and cry.
Director: Charles Chaplin; genre: comedy

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Rohan Sabharwal, independent film director

The Godfather Trilogy: A true masterpiece, The Godfather is a perfect representation of society, business and family life even if one were to go by the Aristotelian tradition of literary theory. The third instalment obviously weaker, but nevertheless significant if put in perspective. I tend to watch all three films back to back.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola; genre: crime

Birth of a Nation: Originally titled the Clansman, this is a powerful and shocking film that seems to condone the racist behaviour of the KKK and is sadly still used as a manual by various racist groups. This film makes it to my favourites because even though it's from an American perspective, it's still very relevant in understanding almost any culture, including our own.
Director: D.W Griffith; genre: drama

No Country for Old Men: I've always loved modern films that use classical themes in innovative ways. This film is beautifully shot, the characters are complex and flawed and sans archetypes. Fate and Hamartia are important themes in drama.
Director: Ethan Coen and Joel Coen; genre: drama

Blade Runner: Some of my favourite films have changelings and doppelgangers in them, and sometimes aliens! Blade Runner is a brilliant sci-fi movie that is also a noir film. It may lack the quality of CGI that’s generally expected from films today, but it also lacks the cheesy special effects used in the 80s. In terms of story and narrative, it's a classic that makes one question whether we are really as superior as we think we are.
Director: Ridley Scott; genre: sci-fi

Martyrs: Ghosts and monsters don't scare me as much as merely thinking about what humans are capable of. I compare the experience of watching Martyrs with the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre when I was barely 15, the numerous Giallos I watched in my early 20s and Salos when I was in film school. The difference between the wave of French Extremity and the Hostel/Saw franchises are well... anthropological!
Director: Pascal Laugier; genre: thriller

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Arunoday Singh, actor, Sikandar

The Jungle Book: Greatest movie hands down. The characterisation, the sweetness, the dialogues, the really deep layered story, and one of the great all-time villains. I have loved this movie more every time I've seen it. Makes me feel happiest and that's why it's number one. This is my panacea for all the mental ills the world infects me with.
Director: Wolfgang Reitherman; genre: animation

Dead Poets Society: I saw this when I was very young and impressionable and identified very much with each boy's desire - the girl, the will to stand defiant against authority, the desire to fit in, to have friends to howl at the moon with. A true classic.
Director: Peter Weir; genre: drama

On The Waterfront: Marlon Brando at his absolute best. A brilliant, seriously dark and layered script and some wonderful character work. This movie made me want to be in the movies.
Director: Elia Kazan; genre: drama

The Way We Were: Greatest adult love story ever captured on screen. The dynamics between Redford and Streisand were so well nuanced that even at the end of the film you're hoping their love survives. A film that showed how hard it is when you love someone you just cannot live with. But you love them. But you just don't understand each other - fundamentally.
Director: Sydney Pollack; genre: romance

As Good as It Gets: One of the most life-affirming, heart-warming, adorable films ever made. I swear to God I start smiling like a looney tune at the thought of this film. Jack Nicholson and Greg Kinnear and even Cuba Gooding Jr. in his cameo were so damn brilliant. Takes my breath away, every time.
Director: James L. Brooks; genre: romance

From the bpb office

High Fidelity: Superbly adapted from the hilarious Nick Hornby novel. Teaches you about love, music and those who love music.
Director: Stephen Fears; genre: comedy

Il Postino: A pretty Italian island, a beautiful woman, a gentle postman and the poetry of Pablo Neruda all make up this endearing love story.
Director: Michael Radford; genre: foreign film, romance

Casablanca: Best dialogues ever.
Director: Michael Curiz; genre: romance / drama

Lost in Translation: The outrageously romantic (yet deliciously understated) chemistry between Scarlett Johansson and Bill Murray; Sophia Coppola’s melancholic story; and the mad, psychedelic background of Tokyo makes this one of the best love stories ever.
Director: Sofia Coppola; genre: romance / drama

In the Mood for Love: Lush and languid, Kar Wai Wong’s best.
Director: Kar Wai Wong; genre: foreign film / romance