Ustaad (2023)

The hero grows up in a small town with a crippling fear of heights, yet the sight of aeroplanes in the sky stays with him. His closest companion through boyhood and youth is his beloved motorbike, which he calls Ustaad, and the film follows the two of them through first love, family troubles, setbacks and stubborn effort as he works his way towards a career in the cockpit. Gautham Vasudev Menon, the Tamil director, appears as a senior pilot who becomes a mentor figure. Ustaad is a gentle coming-of-age drama rather than an action film, with a nostalgic tone and an emphasis on chasing a dream. Sri Simha Koduri, son of composer M. M. Keeravani, plays the lead, and Kavya Kalyanram, once a child actor, plays the woman he loves.