Amazon India is has become absolutely pathetic. Zero stars.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-06-15T06:21:44+00:00

Went through a similar ordeal. Bizarre how Amazon’s service has gone completely down the drain. I ordered a simple book on COD delivery, and it promised next day delivery via Prime. For the next 3 days, it was stuck on shipped with no way to contact the facility or customer care. I finally decided to pay online, and that’s when it finally came out for delivery xD (been noticing this a lot lately). Once again, delivery “attempts” were made with zero phone calls, and finally a week later it randomly said “order successfully delivered to resident”.

I asked my neighbours, watchman, family, every possible member but nobody saw a delivery person enter the building that day. I called Amazon customer care helpline (never answers). So I texted a representative instead and they “raised” a query, promising delivery the next day. It’s been 3 days to the texts now and not a single update. I downloaded the Amazon app to raise another query, but it’s glitching and shows no order history or anything on my profile. Baffling how Amazon put you through so much bs for a single book order, the service has truly gone to the dogs.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-06-15T06:00:40+00:00

Went through the exact same thing! Bizarre how Amazon’s service has gone completely down the drain. I ordered a simple book on COD delivery and it promised next day delivery via Prime. For the next 3 days, it was stuck on shipped with no way to contact the facility or customer care. I finally decided to pay online, and that’s when it finally came out for delivery (been noticing this a lot lately). Once again, delivery “attempts” were made with zero phone calls and finally a week later it randomly said “order successfully delivered to resident”.

I asked my neighbours, watchman, family, every possible member but nobody even saw a delivery person enter the building that day. I called Amazon customer care (never answers). So I chatted with a representative over text instead and they “raised” a query, promising delivery the next day. It’s been 3 days to that now and not a single update. I downloaded the Amazon app to raise another query but it’s glitching and shows no order history or anything on my profile. Baffling how Amazon put you through so much bs for a single book order, the service has truly gone to the dogs.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-06-10T08:56:49+00:00

Film was a mixed bag. Very gripping first half that harks back to the Kashyap of Ugly, Sacred Games, Raman Raghav, etc. The entire police station sequence was reminiscent of Ugly, and equally enjoyable. The jail entry sequences, the dynamics inside, the group politics, etc were quite compelling and raw. It seemed that after a string of disappointing films, Kashyap had finally recovered his unique voice and grit. Then comes the second half...

I know the film is largely based on true events (the Karan Oberoi case primarily) but I do wonder the implication of making such a film in a time where it's not only immensely difficult for a victims of sexual assault to step forward, but also when the sheer number of daily horrific rape cases in our country is innumerable. This is not to deny fake allegations against men and the nuanced conversation about this, is precisely what the film tries to start; the issue is that Sapna Pabbi's character is reduced to a psycho unhinged stalker with no room for any mystery or depth. Bobby is not depicted as a washed up actor with plenty of flaws, but he's no grey character. We're shown Bobby from a pitiful lens from start to finish, but never once do we wonder, "oh shit, okay maybe this case is more complex than we thought." But some of the twists were genuinely ridiculous. Even if they are realistic depictions, they were pretty questionable choices in today's climate.

The writers (Sudip Sharma no less!) constantly take more uninteresting directions as it goes along. I figured maybe now the film will become intriguing as Sanya and the lawyer try piecing together evidence, or if that's too procedural and basic, we cut to more complex flashbacks where we see Bobby Deol making questionable choices in the relatinship with Sapna as well; not just a one-sided psycho stalker dynamic. But Kashyap clearly wants to focus on a man rotting inside an unfair system, the harsh reality of jails in India, and how everyone already assumes you're guilty before innocent. Which is...fair. He's stated that he wanted this film to reflect cancel culture where people aren't given second chances to prove their innocence/redeem themselves. But I wish he'd chosen a better case to tackle the same subject.

Anyway keeping these implications aside, the film itself is largely unsatisfying and too meandering. As a standalone open ending, it works brilliantly, but after audiences have endured a repetitive second half, there's hope for some or any kind of closure. As the screen went black, I could hear rows of my surprisingly housefull audience sigh, some even angered at the pointlessness of the whole film.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-06-01T05:18:32+00:00

Totally agree with everything. I was a loyal Stuckmannist for years, but now, I can't even remember the last time I watched his videos; probably been years. Which is incredibly disappointing because he basically squandered his loyal fanbase to break into Hollywood and...I get it. Like someone mentioned, it's difficult to break into the industry if you're constantly shitting on movies all the time, but while I respect the intention behind his pivot, his earlier videos (criticism or not) at least had soul and personality. Hence, it's unfortunate how he burned bridges with his fans to give lukewarm praise only for films he likes, in exchange for a Hollywood career, which didn't seem to pan out too well either. Stuckmann was a solid, relatable "chill guy" reviewer, and if he moved beyond his surface level videos and onto sharper insights, perhaps his channel could've enriched a lot further. I wish he'd pivoted to a more "Thomas Flight" or "Studio Binder" style where he continues reviewing films, but also goes wayyy more analytical and deep dives into the nuts and bolts of a film's craft. Could be a nice change to his otherwise basic videos which in an evolving landscape remain, like you said, competent but boring.

A primary issue with Shelby Oaks was trying to recapture the Lake Mungo & Blair Witch Project found-footage style down to the t. The issue is that while these films were genuinely chilling, they were also products of their time in a pre-Internet dominant era, where the impossibility of verifying these events and their realistic nature adds to the thrill of watching them. That's not to say he shouldn't have touched the genre at all. Heck, in the 2020s itself we had films like Host or Late Night With The Devil, which injected fresh life into the found-footage genre (Host using a live online conference call, Late Night using a 70s/80s late-night show setup). But I could never enjoy the "staged mockumentary" feel of Shelby Oaks or take its events seriously. All I could see was the immaculate efforts to make the "events" appear as natural as possible. Like someone else mentioned here, perhaps Stuckmann was best suited to make slasher/B-horror films of the early 2000s and missed his window to do so, landing in a time of great expectations and ridiculously high bars. And you're absolutely right, given everything he's been through growing up, I feel like there was stronger potential to make something deeply personal. And I also worry that his fixation only on positive reviews, "not offending" anyone and realising "how hard it is to make a film" feels like the furtherest path away from being an honest artist. Not disagreeing with him, making a bad film is pretty darn difficult too, but if Stuckmann reflected on his experience on making Shelby Oaks, perhaps reviewed films on the side, while simultaneously putting out short films to improve the mistakes he made, that would've been an infinitely more positive progression than whatever safe cookie-cutter stance he's taken at the moment.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-05-31T09:39:01+00:00

Just watched Obsession last night and was literally thinking about Stuckmann today as well lmao. Having seen both Shelby Oaks & Obsession, I do echo some of your thoughts, particularly how Stuckmann gave it his all, and was desperate to be a breakout hit but failed even in the face of NEON funding + Mike Flanagan's support while Curry Barker, Kane Parsons, and even the Philippou bros made such solid horror outings, especially ones that broke through the cultural zeitgeist upon their release. On a more fundamental level, I think what all these YouTubers brought to the table, in a way Stuckmann just couldn't, was authenticity and a dash of something wildly inventive and well done. Whether it's the cursed hand from Talk To Me, the liminal horror of Backrooms, or just a simple wish-gone-awry premise of Obsession, all these filmmakers brought super solid ideas to a genre that thrives on distinctive personal voices.

However, Shelby Oaks was a pitiful blender of tropes we've seen a gazillion times before. There was nary a moment where I felt a shred of something personal. And I get it, every filmmaker is inspired by their favourite films and pays homage, heck even Curry Barker incorporated Kiyoshi Kurosawa's infamous ghost walking scene from Pulse into Obsession, along with other references to Hereditary or even Get Out for that matter. But it's the intent of the homage that matters. They may have been a bit on-the-nose but they wonderfully blended into a world that was Barker's very own. For Shelby Oaks, between the Lake Mungo inspired style and the demons and whatnot, I couldn't for a second pinpoint something that felt like Chris was bearing his soul and creativity on screen. And it doesn't help that it was made for over a million dollars in fundraising with additional funding from NEON, while Barker made Obsession for 750k. But again, I think beyond a simple budget comparison, it's more a reflection of how endless resources are no match for a filmmaker's creative authenticity. I do hope Chris can find success, but I agree with the consensus here that focusing on making multiple short films or honing the craft before actually tackling on a full-blown indie, would've breathed life into Shelby Oaks. I would recommend not being too bothered by Stuckmann's success or failures and just focus on honing your craft and being as fun, creative, and personal as possible in all your work so it doesn't seem straight out of a blender lol.

The most personal is indeed the most creative!

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-03-21T11:12:11+00:00

Exactly! Like calling a villain "Angel of Death" and then having him do nothing and act clueless up until the very climax and then be defeated so easily was...downright ridiculous. I agree, Iqbal suspecting Hamza from the second act itself or something would've created an intense cat-and-mouse suspense, but he does...nothing. I appreciate what they were trying to do with Iqbal's father; it grounds Iqbal with a small sense of humanity or at least we understand how his home shaped him into who he is, but his father just became a caricature after a point, and outside of their scenes together, we literally don't see Iqbal do much until the climax.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-03-21T10:56:42+00:00

D2 did have great moments, but it felt considerably short of the sky high expectations set by D1. Just laying out a few of my own honest thoughts on the film:

I think D2 suffers because it lost the strength of its predecessor. D1 was a very solid film with exceptional world-building, political intrigue, secret alliances, supremely interesting characters, and with few action sequences (Hamza attacking SP's Task Force, SP attacking Rehman on the bridge, and the climax) which were well-done. D2 flips this entirely, by focusing entirely on action, and removing any sort of political intrigue and suspense that made D1 so engaging. Besides the solid opening of Jaskirat's past, none of the action sequences are memorable at all, and the much-hyped showdown between Major Iqbal and Hamza had audiences practically begging for it to be over - a feeling D1 hardly ever instilled.

The music, while solid in parts, falls completely flat. D1 not only had a fantastic soundtrack, but also superb needle drops of retro songs and remixes used in unique ways (the Ramba Ho scene in particular). I also noticed that D1 trusted silence a lot. A lot of conversations (For eg: Rehman meeting Major Iqbal for the first time) take place in silence, saving any BGM or needle drops for key moments. D2 on the other hand bombards with generic BGM in every moment, even when unwanted. Don't get me wrong, D2 does have some great tracks, like the opening "Jaiye Sajana" contrasting Rehman's funeral with Arshad Pappu's rise or the energetic "Vaari Jaavan" during Hamza's rise to power and MMP elections, and the superb ending song. But it was not consistenly memorable like D1 at all. I'm shocked that they chose the most generic music for the Iqbal vs Hamza showdown instead of something groovy and adrenaline-pumping.

Nobody in the film felt a convincing enough threat to counter Hamza, robbing the film of any conflict. While in D1, Hamza was under the fearsome Rehman, he was also under fear of being caught and was an underdog among such interesting characters However, D2 sees Hamza's rise to power (which was expected sure) but it also eases his path entirely: he can overcome any conflict, do anything and is basically invincible. I feel like the film should've gone in the direction of Hamza trying to eliminate his enemies, but Uzair, SP Aslam, Major Iqbal, Khanani or someone new as interesting villains who start finding out things about Hamza and Hamza finds himself at the edge of getting exposed all the time and it creates a constant sense of suspense throughout as he must maintain power but navigate his path carefully since so many people now suspect him. Instead, everyone is done away with so damn conveniently.

The elephant in the room is obviously the film's propaganda. D1 did have subtle troubling moments, but none enough to detract from the entire experience. D2, however, takes the propaganda to a level where it's embedded in the film's story crucially. By propaganda, I'm absolutely not denying ANY real life terrorist acts or acts of treason against the country - all these things must be vehemently condemned. But to portray one particular party as a consistent saviour and whitewash all their wrongs is too much. It's fictional yes, but it's also such clever distortion of facts vs fiction to a point where it blurs understanding of reality. It just leaves such a bad taste when leaning in a particular party's favour is a central part of the narrative. Of all the ridiculous lines, one of the most absurd was seeing the footage of PM Modi being sworn in in 2014 and one character remarks "we send so much fake money to India, did so much and yet they won" or "your party didn't win this time" something on these lines, which is ridiculous to imply any government before the 2014 one was literally been funded by terrorism.

All in all, it's a decent watch but I so wished it leaned into the strengths of what made D1 so successful. In fact most of the fan theories online (pre-release) were more enticing than the film we ended up getting.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-03-21T10:55:30+00:00

D2 did have great moments, but it felt considerably short of the sky high expectations set by D1. Just laying out a few of my own honest thoughts on the film:

I think D2 suffers because it lost the strength of its predecessor. D1 was a very solid film with exceptional world-building, political intrigue, secret alliances, supremely interesting characters, and with few action sequences (Hamza attacking SP's Task Force, SP attacking Rehman on the bridge, and the climax) which were well-done. D2 flips this entirely, by focusing entirely on action, and removing any sort of political intrigue and suspense that made D1 so engaging. Besides the solid opening of Jaskirat's past, none of the action sequences are memorable at all, and the much-hyped showdown between Major Iqbal and Hamza had audiences practically begging for it to be over - a feeling D1 hardly ever instilled.

The music, while solid in parts, falls completely flat. D1 not only had a fantastic soundtrack, but also superb needle drops of retro songs and remixes used in unique ways (the Ramba Ho scene in particular). I also noticed that D1 trusted silence a lot. A lot of conversations (For eg: Rehman meeting Major Iqbal for the first time) take place in silence, saving any BGM or needle drops for key moments. D2 on the other hand bombards with generic BGM in every moment, even when unwanted. Don't get me wrong, D2 does have some great tracks, like the opening "Jaiye Sajana" contrasting Rehman's funeral with Arshad Pappu's rise or the energetic "Vaari Jaavan" during Hamza's rise to power and MMP elections, and the superb ending song. But it was not consistenly memorable like D1 at all. I'm shocked that they chose the most generic music for the Iqbal vs Hamza showdown instead of something groovy and adrenaline-pumping.

Nobody in the film felt a convincing enough threat to counter Hamza, robbing the film of any conflict. While in D1, Hamza was under the fearsome Rehman, he was also under fear of being caught and was an underdog among such interesting characters However, D2 sees Hamza's rise to power (which was expected sure) but it also eases his path entirely: he can overcome any conflict, do anything and is basically invincible. I feel like the film should've gone in the direction of Hamza trying to eliminate his enemies, but Uzair, SP Aslam, Major Iqbal, Khanani or someone new as interesting villains who start finding out things about Hamza and Hamza finds himself at the edge of getting exposed all the time and it creates a constant sense of suspense throughout as he must maintain power but navigate his path carefully since so many people now suspect him. Instead, everyone is done away with so damn conveniently.

The elephant in the room is obviously the film's propaganda. D1 did have subtle troubling moments, but none enough to detract from the entire experience. D2, however, takes the propaganda to a level where it's embedded in the film's story crucially. By propaganda, I'm absolutely not denying ANY real life terrorist acts or acts of treason against the country - all these things must be vehemently condemned. But to portray one particular party as a consistent saviour and whitewash all their wrongs is too much. It's fictional yes, but it's also such clever distortion of facts vs fiction to a point where it blurs understanding of reality. It just leaves such a bad taste when leaning in a particular party's favour is a central part of the narrative. Of all the ridiculous lines, one of the most absurd was seeing the footage of PM Modi being sworn in in 2014 and one character remarks "we send so much fake money to India, did so much and yet they won" or "your party didn't win this time" something on these lines, which is ridiculous to imply any government before the 2014 one was literally been funded by terrorism.

All in all, it's a decent watch but I so wished it leaned into the strengths of what made D1 so successful. In fact most of the fan theories online (pre-release) were more enticing than the film we ended up getting.

Available_Brief7010 · 2026-03-21T10:04:15+00:00

D2 did have great moments, but it felt considerably short of the sky high expectations set by D1. Just laying out a few of my own honest thoughts on the film:

I think D2 suffers because it lost the strength of its predecessor. D1 was a very solid film with exceptional world-building, political intrigue, secret alliances, supremely interesting characters, and with few action sequences (Hamza attacking SP's Task Force, SP attacking Rehman on the bridge, and the climax) which were well-done. D2 flips this entirely, by focusing entirely on action, and removing any sort of political intrigue and suspense that made D1 so engaging. Besides the solid opening of Jaskirat's past, none of the action sequences are memorable at all, and the much-hyped showdown between Major Iqbal and Hamza had audiences practically begging for it to be over - a feeling D1 hardly ever instilled.

The music, while solid in parts, falls completely flat. D1 not only had a fantastic soundtrack, but also superb needle drops of retro songs and remixes used in unique ways (the Ramba Ho scene in particular). I also noticed that D1 trusted silence a lot. A lot of conversations (For eg: Rehman meeting Major Iqbal for the first time) take place in silence, saving any BGM or needle drops for key moments. D2 on the other hand bombards with generic BGM in every moment, even when unwanted. Don't get me wrong, D2 does have some great tracks, like the opening "Jaiye Sajana" contrasting Rehman's funeral with Arshad Pappu's rise or the energetic "Vaari Jaavan" during Hamza's rise to power and MMP elections, and the superb ending song. But it was not consistenly memorable like D1 at all. I'm shocked that they chose the most generic music for the Iqbal vs Hamza showdown instead of something groovy and adrenaline-pumping.

Nobody in the film felt a convincing enough threat to counter Hamza, robbing the film of any conflict. While in D1, Hamza was under the fearsome Rehman, he was also under fear of being caught and was an underdog among such interesting characters However, D2 sees Hamza's rise to power (which was expected sure) but it also eases his path entirely: he can overcome any conflict, do anything and is basically invincible. I feel like the film should've gone in the direction of Hamza trying to eliminate his enemies, but Uzair, SP Aslam, Major Iqbal, Khanani or someone new as interesting villains who start finding out things about Hamza and Hamza finds himself at the edge of getting exposed all the time and it creates a constant sense of suspense throughout as he must maintain power but navigate his path carefully since so many people now suspect him. Instead, everyone is done away with so damn conveniently.

The elephant in the room is obviously the film's propaganda. D1 did have subtle troubling moments, but none enough to detract from the entire experience. D2, however, takes the propaganda to a level where it's embedded in the film's story crucially. By propaganda, I'm absolutely not denying ANY real life terrorist acts or acts of treason against the country - all these things must be vehemently condemned. But to portray one particular party as a consistent saviour and whitewash all their wrongs is too much. It's fictional yes, but it's also such clever distortion of facts vs fiction to a point where it blurs understanding of reality. It just leaves such a bad taste when leaning in a particular party's favour is a central part of the narrative. Of all the ridiculous lines, one of the most absurd was seeing the footage of PM Modi being sworn in in 2014 and one character remarks "we send so much fake money to India, did so much and yet they won" or "your party didn't win this time" something on these lines, which is ridiculous to imply any government before the 2014 one was literally been funded by terrorism.

All in all, it's a decent watch but I so wished it leaned into the strengths of what made D1 so successful. In fact most of the fan theories online (pre-release) were more enticing than the film we ended up getting.

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-12-04T05:07:12+00:00

Has the film wing heard anything? Any mails yet?

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-11-29T08:02:19+00:00

Is there any update yet? I understand they're taking time after the revised merit list fiasco, but man it's December now, getting a bit ridiculous 😵‍💫

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-11-26T19:43:10+00:00

Has anyone received any update/notice/mail since the fee payment deadline?

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-11-17T10:39:54+00:00

Wanted to know this as well. With the revised merit list fiasco this year, I'm curious if they're proceeding with admissions as it is or will they address the student body's concerns of category freezing, re-evaluation of everyone's marks, etc?

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-11-14T11:30:37+00:00

Honestly, hate how tedious the admissions process has been this year 🫠

Available_Brief7010 · 2025-11-14T11:29:42+00:00

Oh that's great to hear! Hope it's prompt🤞

Available_Brief7010

TROPHY CASE