X: Past is Present is easily of the most beautifully photographed and lyrical Indian films that I have ever watched. A collaboration of eleven filmmakers viz Abhinav Shiv Tiwari, Anu Menon, Nalan Kumarasamy, Hemant Gaba, Pratim D. Gupta, Q, Raja Sen, Rajshree Ojha, Sandeep Mohan, Sudhish Kamath and Suparn Verma, X: Past is Present stars the endlessly charming and debonair Rajat Kapoor and some of the most talented young actresses working in the industry today including Radhika Apte, Huma Qureshi, and Swara Bhaskar. X: Past is Present is about a filmmaker who gets overcome by a bout of nostalgia when he meets a girl half his age at a party, as he is reminded of all the women in his life. Sounds like the master Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini's Otto e Mezzo aka 8 1/2? Well, be ready for the surprise of your life as X: Past is Present is nothing like anything you would have ever watched before. It is like a breath of fresh air that contemporary Indian cinema seems to be missing. It is really a pity that a film like this went relatively unnoticed when it should have been bestowed with all kinds of accolades. Which reminds me of Chandraprakash Dwivedi's brilliant political satire Zed Plus, a gem of a film that I reviewed on IMDb some time back. Movies like these just come and go. The loss of course is entirely ours. Of the 11 chapters in X: Past is Present, my favorite is 'Chapter III: Knot', written & directed by Raja Sen. and featuring the beautiful Huma Qureshi in a never-seen-before tantalizing avatar. How I wished the chapter never ended. Now, I know why James Bond 007 doesn't prefer the Windsor knot. Here is a film that needs to be watched.For more on the world of cinema, please visit my film blog "A Potpourri of Vestiges".

A movie that traces the life of a movie-maker (named K) who made a movie on his movie- like life with multiple relationships .... Clichéd???? But, when the movie is a collaborative effort from 11 different directors contributing to the same storyline (Unlike 'Das Kahaniya', etc.), and Rajat Kapoor (as K) tells the story in a flash-back setup in his own style the result becomes a heady, philosophical yet delicious mix.... Avoiding the controversy of being it a good or bad or average film, Kudos to all the directors for such an experiment....While depicting their (all the directors) own perspective of love, sex, and relationships, Director Pratim Das Gupta possibly made the most commendable effort in his part called '8 to 8' where K stayed in the same rented apartment with a girl but at different time. Thus could not meet despite of having a mutual-feelings for each-other's reminiscing activities... Possibly impossible, but anyone can cherish the story in an old-NorthCalcutta-setup and striking performance by Ranadeep Bose (a Young K) and Parno Mitra.... After all love is not only about distance but about time also...The worst one came from none other than Q (Qaushiq Mukherjee, director of 'Gaandu', 'Tasher Desh', etc.) as expected, where Rii (Rituparna, the only heroine Q can get nowadays) plays possibly a role of a sinister woman.... The presentation was possibly so "out-of-the-box" no one with an average IQ can get it

X: Past Is Present is perhaps one of the best as well as an ambitious take on anthology movies as there are 11 short films contributing to the overall narrative of a filmmaker 'K' who reflects on his past emotional and sexual escapades after meeting with a girl at a film festival party. The first half of the movie starts out strong, especially the first four short films that contribute a great deal in the character development of K. The rest of the movie, however, quickly falls apart especially Q's attempt to create a metaphysical masterpiece but ignominiously fails to interpret the essence on screen. Rii Sen, as usual, works well as a sex symbol but ultimately succumbs to the bitter reality that she can't act. The rest of the movie just approaches a precipitous downhill with the talent of Radhika Apte and Huma Qureshi being utterly wasted. However, in the midst of labyrinthine story arcs, Pratim D. Gupta manages to execute an engaging and poignant unrequited love story between K and a girl who stayed in the same room from 8 to 8 and never see each other, yet fall in love through the poems they write for each other. The execution is superb and this is perhaps the only short film that stands out from the rest. The cast promised much but didn't deliver. Rajat Kapoor was great and I don't think he can be bad - even in a mediocre movie. The cinematography is top notch no doubt and I really loved the camera work throughout the whole movie. What disappoints me is that a great premise is woefully smeared with poor execution and under usage of talented actors. This movie is definitely not for everyone, but if you have an eye for experimental indie flicks that have something fresh to offer, X: Past Is Present is worth a watch. My IMDb Rating: 6.9/10

I like the film very much, it has several reasons. 1st is that the selection of cast of the movie (Rajat kapoor, Radhika apte and all others) was very good. Despite of bold roles, all of them did their best. Direction is also very good. Past is shown in a very good way. The best thing is that film starts in a mysterious way and ends mysteriously (lefts you kind of shocked). Every single part of movie is connected to other. You can't get away from it once you started. If you put your concentration on any other thing while the movie is playing or you miss a part of it then after some while you will ask yourself, what happened or how did that happened? Hats off for all the cast and directors.