'Once when he was on a flight, the plane hit an air-pocket.' 'The turbulence outside caused it to see-saw violently which caused a lot of panic inside. While his co-passengers were crying and praying for their lives, Salil kaku was writing a song in his head.'
'When I met him on the Bigg Boss set, he greeted me in the same way that he would during Dabangg, 'Aur Chedi Singh, kaise ho?''
'Salman is a very hard-working actor whose diligence I have to commend despite the fact that during the shoot, my heart was in my mouth.'
'The stamina and junoon you see in him, for acting, singing, dancing, working out, just about everything, makes age just a number as far as Salman Khan is concerned.'
Late one evening, strolling around Mehboob Studio's car park, he was darkly introspective, admitting that marriage had been on his mind a few years ago. But despite his anger and tears, his possessiveness and wisdom, the person had moved away and he had let them go.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
'I kept urging Salman to see Pokiri, and one day, past midnight, he finally turned up at a Mumbai preview theatre to see it. Nervously, I waited for Salman's reaction to Pokiri. After watching it, he walked past me without a word. I followed anxiously, and before sitting in his car, he just signalled thumbs up.'
'At a time when there was little awareness of world music, playing western tunes on eastern instruments like the flute and the dholak, blending vocal polyphony with Indian folk and contemporary styles, Salilkaku created a new musical genre in Bengal called Gana Sangeet.'
'I believe that whether it is Rajini sir or Shah Rukh Khan or Dilip Kumarsaab, these stars are blessed with a cosmic energy. It's a phenomenon that is hard to describe, but it makes you fall in love with them.'
'It was amazing how he controlled the crowd, not with force or even star power, but with sheer love.'
Madras Café is the only feature film he has acted in. I told him simply, "Sir, will you do this role?" and he agreed immediately.'
'I wanted to do something different, so I turned Dharamji into Hardy, making him waddle with Naseer's stick-like Laurel.' 'People enjoyed seeing him in these avatars. When you work with an evergreen superstar like Dharamji, you can make such 'items'.'
'He's been doing something we don't talk about much, working with acid attack survivors.' 'He supports them not just emotionally, but also financially.' 'His Mir Foundation helps them with the surgeries they have to go through to step out again and get back their lives.' 'He doesn't talk about it and I only learnt about this when we were in Kolkata once and some of the girls had come to meet him at the hotel.'
'What's amazing is that many of his fans are not Indians.' 'Even in countries where they don't speak or understand Hindi, Shah Rukh is hugely popular.'
'Back then, Shah Rukh Khan had no style, but he understood his strengths.' 'He knew he was appreciated for his energy and that boosted his confidence.' Rediff celebrates Shah Rukh Khan's 60th birthday on November 2 with a special series that introduces us to the man behind the superstar.
'It is his understanding of the human condition, fostered by the loss he experienced so early in his life.' Rediff celebrates Shah Rukh Khan's 60th birthday on November 2 by a special series that introduce us to the man behind the superstar.
'Vivek Vaswani came over to discuss Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman which he was producing with Aziz Mirza as the director.' 'When I asked who was playing the lead, Raju, he said it was an actor called Shah Rukh Khan. "He looks just like Aamir Khan," Vivek added.' 'It was a shock when I met Shah Rukh on the first day of the shoot.' 'He was thin and tanned, with a fat nose and thick lips.'
'For him what's important is relationships, his role, and, of course, the script.' Rediff celebrates Shah Rukh Khan's 60th birthday on November 2 with a special series that introduces us to the man behind the superstar.
'Lots of people fade away from our memory after they die, but he will stay on forever.'
'His belief that he is touched by the Almighty reflects in his performances.'
'I'm totally focussed on finding the right energies around me. A lot of the treatment is psychosomatic, as my mother keeps reiterating, if you think positive, positive things will happen to you.'
'Today, Shah Rukh is sitting so high up that it will have to be something really spectacular for him to jump up and say, "Hey, yes, let's make this film!".'
'Shah Rukh is such a generous person, such a giver, that I can only wish for life to give him all the love and happiness he deserves.'
'For all you know, in the next five years there could be a path-breaking cancer treatment and I may be absolutely fine. Or maybe I won't be. I have to live with both scenarios.'
'The second Sunday after Sholay's release, Amjad and Shehla had taken Shadaab to Juhu beach. They were strolling leisurely when, to Shehla's shock, he suddenly picked up their son, grabbed her hand and pulled her along, urging her to run. They raced towards their car and had just managed to get in and lock the doors when all hell broke loose. Hundreds started banging on the car, shouting, 'Gabbar Singh bahar niklo!''
'The way Helen ma'am grooves, she's so seductive.'
'Editor M S Shinde deserves full credit because, I'm told, Ramesh Sippy had shot 300,000 feet of footage, which was brought down to 18,000. 'He died in 2012, in a 126 square foot flat in Dharavi, penniless, a forgotten hero.'
'Panchamda created an exclusive theme music for Gabbar Singh, which is used throughout the film every time the dacoit makes an appearance, and in both concept and sound, is so eerie and evil.'
'The way the anticipation is built up for Gabbar Singh's introduction scene with sound, image and details of his personality, like the combat boots he wears.' 'The camera comes so close -- not a tele lens shot, but a wide-angle close-up -- that you can almost smell Gabbar's breath.'
'I'm a guy who is sure of what he wants and confident of getting it.' 'Jab prem kiya, I knew that one day, I would marry the woman I love and spend my life with her.'
'I wouldn't change a single shot even if I could, the film is just perfect even with a supposedly flawed script!' Celebrating Sholay's 50th anniversary on August 15 with a special series, where contemporary film folk analyse the cult classic.
'While shooting the Don song, Chandra Barot ordered 30-40 paans and insisted Amitabh Bachchan eat them all.'
'I don't know how long cinema will survive.'
'When India opened its doors to the world, moving away from an agrarian to a market economy, everything, whether life or love, was commodified.'
'I had not even realised I had done almost 100 films.'
'Even if I had the backing of a big corporate house, which I don't, in today's market, I wouldn't want the responsibility of making a Rs 300 crore-Rs 400 crore film.'
Roshmila Bhattacharya shows us just why India has lost her Mr Bharat.
Guru Dutt took an overdose of pills twice, once even swallowing opium, calling out for Geeta Dutt even when he was not fully conscious. One suicide attempt, according to sister Lalita Lajmi, was definitely deliberate with Guru Dutt leaving a letter for brother Atma Ram asking him to take care of the production company, his wife and the kids. But she always wondered if the third attempt was actually suicide since there were no calls and no letters.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances