Guru Dutt the reluctant actor
Shammi Kapoor was to be the hero in Aar Paar (1954) and Dilip Kumar was the choice for the role of Vijay in Pyaasa (1957) but Guru Dutt, ever the…Continue Reading →
Watch: Interval at a cinema hall in the 1970s screening a Hindi film
Now that multiplexes (and piracy) have altered our movie watching experience for good, ever wondered what it was like inside…
Don (1975) and the curious case of duplicates
In Chandra Barot’s Don (1978) Pran’s duplicate (for stunts) was a woman, while Zeenat Aman’s was a man. (Hat tip:…
Filmfare magazine cover dated April 2, 1954 featuring the first Filmfare Award winners
60 years ago on Sunday, March 31, 1954 the first Filmfare Awards ceremony (for films released in 1952-53) was held at Bombay’s Metro Cinema and the subsequent issue of the…Continue Reading →
First Ghazib ghazal to be used in a film
‘Aah ko chahiye ek umr asar hone tak’ was the first Mirza Ghalib ghazal to be used in a movie…
Why Gulzar learnt Bangla
Gulzar learnt Bangla because having read the translations, he wanted to read Rabindranath Tagore’s writings in their original form.Continue Reading →
Suchitra Sen unofficial Google doodle
Suchitra Sen (April 6, 1931 – January 17, 2014) "I am to be seen only on screen because I am…
Hum Aapke Hain Koun and piracy
Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994) is possibly the first Bollywood movie to be CamRipped. Pre-HAHK films had simultaneous theatre/VHS releases.
The Sholay scene that didn’t follow the script
The only Sholay scene that didn’t follow the script is the one in which Veeru asks Jai to talk to Mausi about Veeru and Basanti’s marriage. This was because Dharmendra…Continue Reading →
Sholay 3D: The unofficial Google doodle
That film, that we have watched uncountable times, has been re-released in 3D. That I want to watch Sholay in…
