Saturday Feeling: The best of cinema, streaming, books, food and fashion in 2025

This is the season of making lists about the year gone by and looking back even as we just want to move ahead. But often, it is reflection that helps us make better choices and to look back is to notice the signposts and the milestones that marked turning points even as we raced past them. In that spirit of slowing down to see what led us to where we are now, this week’s stories have all been about the year gone by, its ups and downs, its bests and worsts, and what we can look forward to.

Food had a great year of innovation as did art with the opening of new spaces and voices to watch for and artists like the legendary Krishen Khanna celebrating their 100th birthday, which is promising for the year ahead, but fashion’s year was plain dull—all spectacle but no true magic—as we report. Our annual lists also return—the best moments from Hindi cinema, streaming shows we’d watch again, books we loved, our best buys of the year and the trends we do not want to see going into 2026. We’re fully aware of the solipsism of this exercise—after all, we’re deciding what’s worth remembering, a bit like Swiggy or Spotify do when they unhelpfully remind you of the year’s worst choices in their ‘wraps’ (yes, we have a story on this, too). But what is a good year-end list if it is not slightly biased and composed of the personal preferences, distractions and preoccupations of a team that spends a great deal of time sifting grain from chaff? Any list, after all, is about prioritizing and hoping to make sense of the chaos that surrounds us. Our stories could also serve another purpose—of helping fill a slow weekend with the best of films, books, food, music and shows. Or if you’re staying in on 31 December, these are ways to cosily ring in the New Year.

The best soundbars to gift yourself for the New Year

Ultra-thin TVs may look stunning, but their audio often disappoints, especially since we crave a big-screen experience in the comfort of home. A soundbar could solve that problem and turn ordinary movie nights into something special. In most set-ups, you have to buy the subwoofer and rear speakers separately, which can add to the overall cost. Nonetheless, there are some very good options across budgets (starting at ₹24,000 and crossing the ₹1 lakh mark) and brands. Sahil Bhalla puts together a guide to the best soundbars in the market at the moment. Find the list here.

Can we separate art and artist?

Does it make sense to feel less than fulsome affection for Malayalam actor Sreenivasan, who died last week, based on some of his misogynistic opinions? Isn’t this a classic moment to separate the art from the artist? Nisha Susan explains why she has always found it an impossible task to see the difference between the two. Read it here.

Vinod Kumar Shukla’s literary legacy

Renowned Hindi writer Vinod Kumar Shukla died earlier this week in his hometown of Raipur following a prolonged illness. He was 88. During an illustrious career that spanned over five decades, Shukla won numerous awards for his poetry, novels and short stories. There are no real precursors of, or successors to, Shukla in Hindi literature—or in any other literary tradition for that matter, since the man himself famously did not read Western writers, writes Aditya Mani Jha. Read the obituary.

Europe’s best mulled wines

Red wine infused with spices and citrus flavours is perfect for this season, irrespective of country and culture, and while mulled wine is associated with Christmas, in many parts of Europe, it’s quaffed until mid-March. It’s easy enough to make at home, but there’s a particular joy to head out to a market to share with others. In Europe, Christmas markets serve different mulled wines and it varies by town, region and country. From London to Germany’s Esslingen to Italy, Anita Rao Kashi tells you where to find the best mulled wine in Europe.

Why the deadlift is getting no love in the gym

The deadlift is one of the best strength-building compound exercises, but fewer people are doing it. Exercise routines seem to be shifting towards working out specific and small muscles, especially since back injuries are common. The deadlift is a difficult exercise to come to grips with. One needs to learn the right technique to do the hip-hinge and pull the weight up while keeping an engaged back and core—it’s tough, but essential. Pulasta Dhar sets out to understand why it is falling out of favour and explains how to do the deadlift without injuring yourself.

Winter blues? Gardening might be the reset you need

It’s hot cocoa and mulled wine season, but even those wonderfully warming drinks might not keep the winter blues away. Gardening can offer solace—though we always associate the activity with sunshine and the outdoors. Any kind of movement helps banish the blues, and indoor gardening can provide that. Winter gardening engages the sensory system differently than summer gardening, writes Tanisha Saxena. Gardening helps one slow down—pruning leaves, watering, checking growth, handling mud, smelling soil, and seeing new shoots can be incredibly satisfying and joyful. Read the story here.