Ghost Stories, Bojack Horseman finale The Forgotten Army — What to watch on Netflix, Amazon, ALTBalaji in January 2020

Every month, tons of new movies and TV shows are added to streaming platforms. As we turn to a new decade on 1 January, 2020, we are again spoilt for choice with options - from family drama, investigative features, comedy shows, and espionage thrillers to the return of '80s slashers.

With so many different streaming services, it can be hard to keep track of them all — especially if you have subscribed to more than one platform. Hence, we sourced through the internet and curated a list of content coming on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video India, ALTBalaji, and ZEE5 this January.

Netflix

Ghost Stories - 1 January

Filmmakers Karan Johar, Zoya Akhtar, Dibakar Banerjee, and Anurag Kashyap want everyone to "start their new year with a scream" as their anthology collaboration, Ghost Stories, is set to go live on Netflix on 1 January, 2020. Ghost Stories will be the third part in the anthology series, kickstarted in 2013 with Bombay Talkies, and continued with Lust Stories (2018).

Starring  Avinash Tewary, Gulshan Devaiah, Janhvi Kapoor, Mrunal Thakur, and Sobhita Dhulipala among others, the omnibus will see four bone-chilling stories surrounding otherworldly creatures, pregnancy, and delusions, culminating to a hair-raising end.

Sex Education Season 2 - 17 January

Netflix's hit teen comedy Sex Education will return for its sophomore season on 17 January. The show revolves Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield), a socially awkward high school student who lives with his sex therapist mother, Jean (Gillian Anderson). The second season will see Otis, as a late bloomer, master his newly discovered sexual urges in order to progress with his girlfriend Ola (Patricia Allison). It will also see him dealing with his now strained relationship with his friend, Maeve Wiley (Emma Mackey).

Bojack Horseman finale - 31 January

It is going to be sucker punch to the gut galore this January, as Bojack Horsemen will conclude with the final season. The sixth season has been divided into two parts, of which the first part began streaming on 25 October, and the second and final instalment will stream from 31 January, 2020.

BoJack Horseman follows a has-been 1990s sitcom star (voiced by Will Arnett), who tries going through life with his sidekick, Todd (Aaron Paul), his friend and former sitcom rival Mr Peanutbutter (Paul F Tomkins) and a feline agent, Carolyn (Amy Sedaris). Other characters include Sarah Lynn (Kate Schaal) and Hollyhock (Aparna Nancherla).

Read the review of Part One here.

What The Love! With Karan Johar - TBA

This is probably not how presents work but on the occasion of his birthday we've decided to gift ourselves a dating show hosted by @karanjohar. What The Love? With Karan Johar, coming to Netflix!@BBCStudiosIndia pic.twitter.com/edK73FeDrU

— Netflix India (@NetflixIndia) May 25, 2019

Karan Johar has often displayed his prowess with the microphone — from hosting Koffee With Karan and Calling Karan to judging reality shows Jhalak Dikhla Ja and India's Got Talent. This time, he will don the hat of a 'love guru', dishing out advice on love and relationships. Netflix India will produce the dating show along with BBC Studios India, which was announced on the director-producer's 47th birthday this year.

Vir Das: For India - TBA

After Vir Das: Abroad Understanding (2017) and Vir Das: Losing It (2018), the comedian is all set for his third hour-long special on Netflix. Das' next stand-up comedy special — Vir Das: For India — finds the 40-year-old comedian “on a celebratory journey through the history of India, from its people and traditions to modern culture and famous films.” Das is among the eight Indian comedians, apart from Kenny Sebastian, Amit Tandon, Kanan Gill, and Kaneez Surka, who have collaborated with the streamer to release their specials.

Dracula - 4 January

While there might not be any more new episodes left for fans of BBC's Sherlock to savour, they might finally find some solace in Dracula, the forthcoming Netflix and BBC miniseries, developed by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat. Featuring Claes Bang in the titular role, Dracula depicts the mysterious count as he goes about his dubious lifestyle, raising suspicions in the few surrounding his intimidating fort. The series will follow the vampire “from his origins in Eastern Europe to his battles with Van Helsing’s descendant and beyond."

Messiah - 1 January

If Ghost Stories and Dracula are not enough to whet your appetite for thrillers, there is Messiah, which is also releasing on 1 January, 2020 on the streamer. Set in current times, Messiah is a twisted tale that raises questions about faith and religion. It focuses on one man, who claims to be the eschatological return of 'Isa' (Jesus) or the Mahdi. As he begins to amass followers across the world, a Central Intelligence Agency officer begins to investigate whether he is really a divine entity or a conman.

Amazon Prime Video India

The Forgotten Army: Azaadi Ke Liye - 24 January

Fresh off the Ranveer Singh-starrer 83, director Kabir Khan returns to steer The Forgotten Army: Azaadi Ke Liye, an Amazon Prime Video India Original series that will chart the journey of the many men and women, who fought for the country's independence as part of the Indian National Army (INA), led by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. The show features Sunny Kaushal (who made his feature film debut with Gold) and Sharvari in lead roles.

Treadstone - 10 January

A spin-off series based on the Bourne film series, Treadstone will follow fictional CIA black ops program Operation Treadstone, which was the program that created superspy Jason Bourne, played by Matt Damon in four films. The covert program uses behaviour modification protocol to turn recruits into nearly superhuman assassins. The first season of the series will follow sleeper agents across the globe as they are mysteriously "awakened" to resume their deadly missions.

Russell Peters: Deported - 17 January

If you have missed Russell Peters' Deported tour while the comedian was in Mumbai, his stand-up special from the world tour is dropping on Amazon Prime Video India on 17 January. In this special, he addresses racism, saying that he feels "comfortable being a brown man" rather than having to "keep up with white dudes" for a change.

Troop Zero - 17 January

For those who are not fans of stand-up comedy but are looking for some lighthearted fun, look no further than Troop Zero, Bert & Bertie's directorial, from a screenplay by Beasts of the Southern Wild co-writer Lucy Alibar. As per the official description, Troop Zero is set in rural 1977 Georgia, and centres around a misfit girl's dreams of life in outer space. "When a national competition offers her a chance at her dream, to be recorded on NASA’s Golden Record, she recruits a makeshift troop of Birdie Scouts, forging friendships that last a lifetime and beyond." What is more, the film stars actors Viola Davis and Mckenna Grace in the lead.

Star Trek: Picard - 24 January

Sir Patrick Stewart's iconic Captain Jean-Luc Picard will be back this January, with the upcoming Star Trek: Picard. The eighth series in the Star Trek franchise will follow Picard's life post Star Trek: Next Generation. However, it is not a New Generation reboot. Stewart headlined his Star Trek series for seven seasons, and portrayed Picard in the movies Star Trek Generations (1994), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), and Star Trek: Nemesis (2002).

Ted Bundy: Falling for a Killer - 31 January

It seems like the notorious serial killer will enjoy his moment in the sun in the next decade as well. After a biopic led by Zac Efron in 2019 (Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile) and a docu-series (Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, 2019), another show surrounding Bundy is around the corner. Amazon Prime Video Original docu-series Ted Bundy: Falling for a Killer will be narrated from perspectives of Bundy’s longtime girlfriend Elizabeth Kendall, her daughter, Molly, and multiple other women who were victims of his crimes.

 ALTBalaji/ZEE5

Gandii Baat season 4 - TBA

After three successful seasons, ALTBalaji and ZEE5's erotic drama Gandii Baat will return for yet another instalment in January. While not much is known about the storyline of the fourth season, set in the heartlands of India, Gandii Baat explores the taboos associated with sex and sexuality.

Code M

Code M revolves around an Indian Army lawyer Monica Mehra (Jennifer Winget), who discovers a conspiracy plot during her investigation of a military encounter case. The series explores mystery about how after investigation, the case brings forth several revelations that send ripples through the entire Indian Army. Apart from Winget, the show also stars Tanuj Virwani and Rajat Kapoor in the lead.

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Kabir Khan condemns violence during CAA protests, says he has 'never been more aware of my Muslim identity'

Filmmaker Kabir Khan has opened up on the widespread disruption plaguing the country right now. Amidst student protests across states, and the government's policies of the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens creating a considerable furor, Khan pens a heartfelt note in The Indian Express about his university days, and how he feels most aware of his Muslim identity in the divisive environment of today.

At the outset, Khan recollects how his childhood days were spent growing up in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus, since his father (Rasheeduddin Khan) was one its founding professors. The space, he claims, encouraged healthy debating, and there was an environment of dissent. Having done his masters from the Mass Communication Research Centre (MCRC) at Jamia Millia Islamia, Khan was used to rigorous sessions on politics, especially since documentary filmmakers like him would require to be familiar with current affairs.

Khan laments the visuals of protesting students being barred by police authorities today. He questions the logic behind restricting the youth from peacefully holding protests and expressing their opinion. He adds it is only when the citizens question the government, does it reflect of an active, thinking nation. He explains students have always been a nation's conscience. Unlike adults, Khan claims, students embody idealism — a crucial factor in a flourishing democracy.

The filmmaker notes at present, questioning the government has become equal to questioning a person's national identity and loyalty — "this is dangerous," Khan says. "A government has never been equal to a country. Governments will come and go," the director says.

Citing instances of students being dragged out of college libraries and being physically harassed, Khan confesses that in the last six years, the national narrative has equated the politics of the nation to the idea of India itself.

He then moves on to explain how he plans to make his voice heard, and hopefully create a difference. He says he will ensure that he can depict his ideology and principles through his films. Comparing the Indian political canvas with that of the US, Kabir points out how the latter, despite having its own share of issues, has always thrived in an environment of healthy, constructive criticism. Taking the example of the chicken song in Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015), Khan says he has always tried to build a filmography he actually believes in. He says he can overlook a bad screenplay, editing or cinematography, but never bad politics.

Encouraging the students, Khan concludes by urging Indian citizens to raise their voices if they feel something is unfair.

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In Tamil cinema, the dominance of big superstars continues with the troika of Rajinikanth, Vijay and Ajith

It has been the year of solid changes in Kollywood, where filmmaking and marketing underwent a metamorphosis. The content may not have changed much but the business of cinema was restructured to go with the times.

Superstars will be superstars

Changes notwithstanding, dominance of big stars continues unabated with the troika of Rajinikanth, Vijay and Ajith ruling the worldwide box-office. The top five Tamil grosser’s of the year that were successful at the worldwide theatrical box-office were – Vijay’s Bigil, Rajinikanth’s Petta, Ajith’s Viswasam, Lawrence’s Kanchana 3 and Ajith’s Nerkonda Paarvai.  If you take Tamil Nadu alone, the only change will be Sivakarthikeyan’s Namma Veetu Pillai. All the top five scoring films at the box-office were toned down versions of the larger-than-life mass hero genre with some tweaking done to suit the flavour of current audiences. 

Tamil cinema is unique and different in many ways, with the most loyal fan base in the world. When Bollywood super stars in their early 50s are finding it difficult to connect with today’s youth, Rajinikanth on the threshold of 70, continues to enthral audiences. The superstar has back to back projects lined up till 2021. This comes at a time when Vijay and Ajith, in their mid 40s, have eclipsed the superstar’s openings.

Rakesh Gowthaman, managing director of the popular Vettri Theatre in Chrompet, a suburb of Chennai, explains how this situation is unique to Kollywood. “Tamil cinema from MGR days has always been superstar driven and even today the trend continues. This year too we depended on the superstars to bring in the audiences and once again they have delivered as shown in the Vettri Top Ten that we publish every year end on our social media pages.” Theatrical business in Tamil Nadu brings almost 65 to 75 percent of the worldwide theatrical share of a big hero film in Tamil. And the catch here is that Vijay and Ajith have bigger fan following than Rajinikanth in Tamil cinema. The fans can create the opening through social media hype.

The Petta-Viswasam success story

This year, for the first time ever in January during the Pongal holidays, Rajinikanth’s Petta and Ajith’s Viswasam clashed and released on the same day – 10 January. Normally a Rajinikanth film gets a solo wide release in Tamil Nadu with other stars preferring to keep away.  But the trade was in for a big surprise when the younger star’s film pitched against the superstar’s and took a better opening. Viswasam ended up collecting more in the key Tamil Nadu territory, though both films turned out to be hits. In the rest of India and overseas, Rajinikanth Petta was way ahead. A similar pattern was seen when the Diwali releases, Vijay’s Bigil and Karthi’s Kaithi, became top grossers.  

Tamil film producer and historian G Dhananjayan says, “I have never seen this anywhere in the world, the kind of fan frenzy reserved for Tamil superstars. They have huge cut-outs, music and dance, bursting of crackers at first day first shows in the wee hours of the morning around 4 AM. The fans also make the film and their hero trend with hashtags on social media.  The opening weekend is made into a glitzy event as fans try to create hype and new collection records around their favourite hero’s new release.”  

Social media explosion and fan wars

The social media explosion in South India has made Vijay and Ajith not only trend nationally but also created an overseas market for their films. In the top 10 “most tweeted about hashtags in India”, the most retweeted tweet in entertainment was the #Bigil tweet from Vijay’s official twitter handle @actorvijay. Vijay’s #Bigil tweet also became the post that received the most tweets with comments. Similarly Ajith too trended on Twitter when #Viswasam became No.1 hashtag in the first half of 2019. The youth audiences passion for mass cinema creates super stars and trending provocative hashtags to prove one actor is above another is the root cause of fan wars. Today if you want to get a fan base, a social media handle is a must with even veteran actors joining the bandwagon. An actor like Kamal Haasan has used the social media to his advantage to build his political party and today Kamal (5.7 Million) has more followers than Rajinikanth (5.6 Million) on Twitter.  

This had led to ugly fan wars on Twitter. There was recently a Vijay death hoax with the hashtag  #RIPActorVijay  trending nationally. Vijay fans, in turn, responded with their own hashtag #LongLiveVijay.

The challenge of being a "small-budget" film

As per industry analysts Tamil cinema box-office in 2019 has grown by 10 % over the previous year , hitting the Rs 2000 Cr mark this year, compared to last year’s Rs 1800 Cr. There were 206 Tamil releases in 2019, out of which 19 can be classified as super hits, hits or average grossers that broke even or made marginal profits. The rest of the films bombed and some of these small budget films could hardly survive the weekend. Most theatres in Tamil Nadu from this year onwards have introduced weekend (Friday to Sunday) and subsequent weekday (Monday to Thursday) programming. It means films that do not perform during weekends are dumped and replaced from Monday with films that had better footfalls and canteen sales from Friday to Sunday. And multiplex operators prefer playing other language content which gets them more revenue in Chennai City and suburbs. 

G Dhananjayan explains this: “The biggest challenge faced by Tamil Cinema this year was for small budget films, which are finding it difficult to get any pre-sales (sale of rights of digital, satellite or Hindi dubbing) and during release, getting sufficient shows and screens. The much talked about Oththa Seruppu film by R. Parthiban was removed by most screens after its first week. Parthiban had to seek the help of the State Government, which intervened and advised theatres to continue the film. This is not the scenario in Bollywood or Tollywood where small films with good actors who may not be superstars get their due recognition at box office if the content gets good buzz.”

As it stands, for any Tamil film without prominent or known faces to perform, it has to get positive word of mouth from its first show. Tamil cinema had its share of classy films this year like Super Deluxe, Oththa Seruppu , Thadam,  Peranbu, Asuran, House Owner, Kaithi, Sarvam Thaala Mayam, Monster and a few others. Here again it is films with popular stars like Dhanush’s Asuran, Karthi’s Kaithi, Arun Vijay’s Thadam  that managed to get proper theatrical release with showcasing. They became hits and were able to run only due to the aggressive marketing and clout of their producers and distributors.

Lakshmi Ramakrishnan, a director who also produced the critically acclaimed House Owner says, “To be frank House Owner and Oththa Seruppu made Tamil cinema proud at the recent IFFI in Goa. I only want the industry bigwigs to give both these and other meaningful films their due. Let superstar driven films dominate the box-office , but the industry should not belittle or run down our efforts, give us also some playing time to built upon the good reviews. Only then small independent filmmakers can survive.” 

Welcome to star-driven Kollywood 2020

A spokesperson of a popular multiplexe chain says, “Despite economic slowdown, 2019 has been good for the Tamil movie industry as there have been many films which did well at the box-office. But today it is more or less a weekend business, so we have to recover our investments and huge maintenance cost from sale of ancillary products through theatrical advertisements and from concessions. It is not profitable to run a screen with single digit occupancy, that’s the only reason we play films which bring in enough footfalls to sustain our business model.”

This year the digital or OTT rights for big hero Tamil films have almost reached the price of their satellite television rights. It has opened a new revenue stream for producers making films with saleable stars.  And a film like Karthi’s Kaithi, which is a super hit in theatres, was shown on a digital platform 30 days after its release. Its producer SR Prabhu says it was to beat the pirates and also the theatrical revenue share between exhibitors and distributors drops drastically after two weeks. But the sad part is that the OTT platforms want to buy only star driven Tamil films and a select few depending on their box-office report.

Tiruppur Subramaniam, a leading exhibitor and distributor, says, “How many films made profit on return on investment (ROI)? Most of these top grossers in some area or the other were sold at very high and unreasonable prices, and the buyer had even lost money. From next year we are planning to stop releasing Tamil films which have been sold to streaming platforms in window of  less than 100 days after its theatrical release.”

In many ways next year is going to be crucial, as it is going to be another year of superstar driven movies at the box-office. This has led to a situation where a “star date” is premium and actors are signing up back to back projects with known producers who can deliver them their “asking rate” without looking at the commercial feasibility of the project.

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Indian sports in 2019: Shooters impress, Amit Panghal packs a punch, PV Sindhu creates history and other highlights

The revered cricketers did most things right save for the World Cup heartbreak but 2019 became a 'Year to Remember' in Indian sports for trailblazing performances in Olympic disciplines, raising hopes that Tokyo 2020 might just make up for the disaster that was Rio 2016.

The shooters, who drew a blank in 2016 Olympics, were, to put it mildly, on fire this year. They strode away with 21 gold, six silver, and three bronze medals to take India to the top in the Rifle-Pistol World Cups and Finals. En route, they also sealed 15 Olympic quota places, the most that the country has ever achieved.

The stars of this performance were the young bunch of Manu Bhaker, Saurabh Choudhary, Divyansh Singh Panwar and Elavenil Valarivan, who showed no fear even when faced with the best in the world.

The wrestlers and boxers too delivered unprecedented hauls at the World Championships and in the case of the former, there was the additional joy of securing four Olympic quotas to go with one silver and four bronze medals.

More than a decade older than Panghal but still among the most ambitious athletes around, Mary Kom brought home a record-shattering eighth world championship medal, which made her the most successful boxer in the history of the marquee event.

Then there was Pankaj Advani, redefining consistency with his 23rd world title in billiards.

The cricketers hogged the spotlight thanks to a stellar run spearheaded by the redoubtable Virat Kohli and his hungry-for-wickets pace attack. The highlight for the Men in Blue was their first-ever Test series victory on the Australian soil, while the World Cup semifinal exit would definitely count for the biggest disappointment for a team that was perhaps the strongest pre-tournament favourite.

That run out of Mahendra Singh Dhoni which Martin Guptill effected with a superhuman effort didn't just end India's World Cup in tears but also left a question hanging on what's next for the man who was dismissed.

For a change, there were some positive developments off the field with former captain Sourav Ganguly taking over the administrative reins. He made a ground-breaking decision just a week into his stint by getting the team to embrace the Day/Night version of Test cricket.

On the badminton court, which has been India's happy hunting ground for a few years, P V Sindhu became the country's first world champion in the sport. She, however, could not win anything else apart from that while Saina Nehwal was mostly laid low by injuries.

The world championship in Switzerland became a big one for India in more than one way when B Sai Praneeth emulated the iconic Prakash Padukone by bringing home a men's singles bronze, ending a 36-year wait.

The hockey teams also enjoyed a reasonably successful year even though neither the men nor the women faced any major challengers. To their credit, both teams qualified for the Olympics by grabbing the chances they got.

The tennis circuit didn't have much to offer in terms of performance, barring the one memorable set that Sumit Nagal took off the great Roger Federer in the US Open first round.

As has been the case for most years, more headline-grabbing developments took place outside the court when the administrators and the players battled over a Davis Cup trip to Pakistan despite seemingly being on the same side. The tie was eventually played at a neutral venue but not before it cost Mahesh Bhupathi his job as India's captain for refusing to travel to Islamabad owing to security concerns, which were acknowledged by the International Tennis Federation.

Bhupathi's former partner and old warhorse Leander Paes logged his 44th doubles Davis Cup win during the tie and weeks later announced that 2020 would be his last year in the professional circuit, setting the stage for a long-drawn and emotional farewell to the sport he has dominated with his sheer perseverance.

Injuries to top stars such as javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and sprinter Hima Das ensured that track-and-field didn't have much to show this year. But what made it bad for the sport was doping and age-fraud controversies.

On a more positive note, the country booked Olympic berths in mixed 4x400m relay and men's 3000m steeplechase event (Avinash Sable).

Football was disappointing save for the heroics of Sunil Chhetri, who remained ahead of Lionel Messi in the international goals count. But the team bowed out early from the World Cup as well as the Asian Cup qualifiers and ended the year with an 11-rung fall in its FIFA standings.

The archers were on target but their bungling administrators ensured they had no national flag to compete under even though a couple of Olympic quotas were secured.

The paddlers didn't have a full-time coach for most of the year but that didn't stop G Sathiyan becoming the first Indian to break into the top-25 of the ITTF world rankings, rising to 24th in July.

It was also a year in which India's para-athletes secured 22 quotas for the 2020 Paralympics, bettering Rio 2016, which featured the largest-ever contingent of 19.

Towards the end, Koneru Humpy rose back to prominence with the world rapid title, adding chess to the reasons Indian sports would look back at 2019 with fondness and pride.

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Indian speedster Jasprit Bumrah says 2019 has been a year of 'accomplishments, learning and memories'

New Delhi: India speedster Jasprit Bumrah on Tuesday described 2019 as a year of "accomplishments, learning and memories" on and off the field and said he was eagerly looking forward to another successful year in 2020.

"2019 has been a year of accomplishments, learning, hard work and making memories, on the field and off it too. And on the last day of the year, I'm looking forward to everything that 2020 has to offer," Bumrah tweeted along with a few pictures of his achievements in the year gone by.

2019 has been a year of accomplishments, learning, hard work and making memories, on the field and off it too. And on the last day of the year, I’m looking forward to everything that 2020 has to offer! 💪🏼 pic.twitter.com/YishbcuYWO

— Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) December 31, 2019

In 2019, Bumrah not only emerged as India's pace spearhead in all three formats of the game, but also became one of the best bowlers in the world.

Bumrah, 26, finished 2019 as the numero uno bowler in one-day cricket while occupying the sixth spot in the ICC Test bowlers rankings.

In the year gone by, he also achieved a rare feat, becoming only the third Indian to scalp a hat-trick in Tests after Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan.

Bumrah picked up 62, 103 and 51 wickets respectively from 12 Tests, 58 ODIs and 42 T20Is that he played for India so far.

But the right-arm pacer has been out of action since August after India's tour of the West Indies because of a stress fracture on his back.

Bumrah, however, has recovered from the injury and is set to make his return in the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka starting in Guwahati on 5 January.

He has also been picked in the squad for the three-match ODI series against Australia which will begin on 14 January in Mumbai after the Sri Lanka rubber.

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Music trends of the decade: The Spotify effect, Lana Del Rey's summertime sadness, Kanye vs Kendrick and genre fluidity

Over 10 years ago at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, then 19-year-old Taylor Swift’s first moment of glory was ruined by Kanye West who jumped on stage and grabbed the microphone from her to protest against her victory over Beyoncé. In the decade since, the same three artists have gone on to become the supernovas that defined this musical era. By transforming pop, R&B and hip-hop and almost every genre in their wake, they have had an undeniable and far-reaching cultural impact. They also made a ton of money in the process.

The record labels, which were subjugated by piracy in the 2000s, now lick their wounds in a post-Spotify era where all of the world's music can be legally streamed for a reasonable fee. With Amazon Music and YouTube Music entering the fray, music lovers are sure spoilt for choice. This streaming revolution has coincided with a musical evolution, where artists have started to blur musical boundaries and blend genres to create more fluid, hard-to-categorise sounds. By refusing to be boxed into traditional labels, they have made our jobs — as music journalists and critics — harder but still ultimately satisfying.

To get a better understanding of the decade in music, just like we did with cinema and TV, we study the trends that painted its musical panorama.

The pop music landscape strangely became the platform for some of the decade's most fascinating innovations. Artists became possessed by a pervasive spirit of the avant-garde as they coupled distinct musical forms and mixed codes from multiple soundscapes to reinvent themselves with each album. Following in the footsteps of David Bowie and Björk were artists like St. Vincent, FKA Twigs, Charli XCX, Grimes and SOPHIE, whose experimentation with different musical styles have broadened pop music's ambition and scope. Thus, the underground experimentation, which was previously limited to indie music, has now entered mainstream musical productions.

Women have been the pioneers at the forefront of this phenomenon. Of course, behind some of these successful female artists is a male producer. You might not be familiar with the name Jack Antonoff but his music has sure been stuck in your head more than once in the past decade. He not only produced Taylor Swift's last three albums (1989, Reputation, Lover) but also three of the best pop records of the decade in Lorde's Melodrama, St. Vincent's Masseduction and Lana Del Rey's Norman Fucking Rockwell. The Bleachers frontman has put his auteurial stamp on all their music with his predilection for powerful chorus melodies, piano ballads and synthesisers. It's like the entire musical spectrum of the '80s have been condensed into many of these songs, but they still sound contemporary and reflect modern anxieties. Vulture's Craig Jenkins thus called it the “Antonoff-isation of pop music”.

Along with Antonoff, producer Justin Meldal-Johnsen has similarly embraced '80s synth-pop in his production of Metric's Art of Doubt, Wolf Alice's Visions of a Life and Paramore's After Laughter. Even Carly Rae Jepsen went from being a subject of memes and parodies (due to her song "Call Me Maybe") to critically acclaimed pop queen, after some synth-pop-aided soul-searching and experimentation in Emotion and Dedicated.

On the other end of the spectrum, Lana Del Rey proved that pop music need not always be awash in sugary synths or be life-affirming. Del Rey set the template for melancholic pop with records drenched in a seductive sadness. Lorde (Pure Heroine, Melodrama) and Billie Eilish (When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?) followed suit with angst-ridden balladry of their own. David Bowie even called the former “the future of music”, while Dave Grohl compared the latter's impact to that of Nirvana in the '90s.

The globalisation of pop music saw the US lose its grip on cultural hegemony as K-pop (like BTS and Exo) and reggaeton acts (like Luis Fonsi and J Balvin) began to rise up the charts. But Scandi-pop artists are still the chief purveyors of experimental, cathartic and dance-able earworms. Veterans like Robyn, Röyksopp and The Knife paved the way for emerging artists like Karin Dreijer (Fever Ray), Tove Lo, Lykke Li, MØ and Sigrid.

Hip-hop also got more and more experimental this decade, starting with Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in 2010. The album saw a maximalist blending of a variety of instruments (tribal drums, violins, pianos) and styles (soul, progressive rock and more) into its sprawling melodies, as West came face-to-face with his inner demons. Following it up with equally masterful albums in Yeezus and Kids See Ghosts (the collaborative effort with Kid Cudi), he sure made the case for the most influential artist of the decade. Of course, the case may be challenged by the Pulitzer Prize-winning efforts of a certain Kendrick Lamar, who delivered three stunning records (Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, To Pimp a Butterfly, DAMN.) of musical and socio-political urgency. Vince Staples (Summertime '06, Big Fish Theory) and Chance the Rapper (Acid Rap, Coloring Book) also produced consistently compelling work. Similarly, a budding group of new artists led by Frank Ocean, Janelle Monáe, Kelela, SZA, Sampha, Lizzo and FKA Twigs pushed the boundaries of R&B and soul. They mixed messages about the black identity and empowerment with unique musical innovations, forcing us to evaluate their artistry in their own right, rather than boxing them into labels like alternative R&B and neo-soul.

But in a decade which saw a U2 album show up on everyone iTunes library without anyone asking for it, the question on the mind of many a music aficionado was: Is rock dead? The answer is, of course, subjective but we may have given it a death certificate a little prematurely. Rock is very much alive in the burgeoning indie scene, where it coexists with other musical styles. Its presence is more pronounced in the sounds of The National, Vampire Weekend, Sleater-Kinney, Foo Fighters and Dirty Projectors, and less so but even in St. Vincent, Mitski and Angel Olsen. However, the guitar riffs and endless solos do not have the same prominence they did in decades past.

In an interview with Dallas News, The Who's Pete Townshend rightly elaborated on this: “The guitar may be losing ground, but in part, that's because if you spend an hour on Instagram or YouTube, you will quickly discover unknown people playing the guitar the way a great orchestral violinist like Yehudi Menuhin once might have played his instrument. These are virtuosos of the highest order. They can shred like Eddie Van Halen or play jazz like John McLaughlin. They've literally exhausted the possibilities of the guitar. This kind of virtuosity is already happening with beat box-based rap, and with laptop-supported pop. Everything will change again, maybe faster than it did for guitar music - who knows. It is ‘guitar-based rock ’n’ roll’ that is losing ground, not rock itself. Hip-hop is rock to my ears: music for the neighbourhood, the street, the disenfranchised, the downtrodden, the young, the ignored. That used to be what I focused on. Now, I try to write real operas, and want my stage work to be like art installations - and why not? Kanye West has been doing the same thing.” Rock/guitar-driven music has simply transformed as the music continues to evolve. But one thing is certain: it can't, and shouldn't, be forced into a rebirth with holograms of legendary artists of decades past.

Read more from our 'Decade in Review' series here.

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India U-19 suffer defeat against South Africa by five wickets in inconsequential third youth ODI

East London: Skipper Priyam Garg's fifty went in vain as India Under-19 team suffered a five-wicket loss to South Africa in an inconsequential third Youth ODI at the Buffalo Park.

Before this match, India Under-19 had already taken an unassailable 2-0 lead after winning the first two matches of the series.

Sent into bat on Monday, India lost three wickets before crossing the fifty-run mark with Achille Cloete striking twice for the hosts.

Garg and N Tilak Varma (25) then steadied the ship as the two added 58 runs together.

The partnership was broken when Garg, who scored 52, got out soon after India reached hundred. N Tilak Varma got out soon after as South Africa restricted India Under-19 to 192 for 8 on the board.

For South Africa Under-19, Pheku Moletsane (2/36) picked up two wickets and was involved in two run-outs.

South Africa Under-19 then returned to overhaul the target with 10 balls to spare, riding on Jonathan Bird's 121-ball 88.

Chasing 193 runs to win, South Africa Under-19 lost Bryce Parsons (15) in the ninth over after a first-wicket partnership of 35 runs.

Opener Andrew Louw (31) and Bird then shared a 49-run stand for the second wicket before the former and Levert Manje (0) departed in space of a run.

Luke Beaufort (14) then gave company to Bird as they shared a 48-run partnership to take South Africa Under-19 to 130.

Jack Lees (29) and Bird then added 67 runs before Yashasvi Jaiswal dismissed the former in the 48th over.

Bird then took South Africa home.

Brief scores:

South Africa Under-19 193/5 (Jonathan Bird 88 not out, Andrew Louw 31; Yashasvi Jaiswal 2/40) beat India Under-19 192/8 (Priyam Garg 52, N Tilak Varma 25; Pheku Moletsane 2/36) by five wickets.

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