'The possibility of Nitish Babu continuing at least for some time is very much there, but don't rule out the artistic possibility of a leadership change executed very elegantly.'
'In these times of vitiated politics, we miss people like Advaniji and Atal Bihari Vajpayee in active politics more than ever.'
'It was Kishoreda who suggested to Sulakshanadidi that she should become an actress and sing her own songs in her films. This transformed her life and career.'
'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'.'
The veteran actor passed into the ages in the early hours of Friday, April 4, 2025. Sukanya Verma looks back at his most memorable performances.
120 Bahadur is underwhelming, adding little fresh perspective and generally feeling like a standard war drama we have seen umpteen times before, notes Mayur Sanap.
Dharmendra's demise means the loss of one of the biggest icons ever in the Hindi film firmament.
'Why don't I organise an auction of cinematic memorabilia?' recalls Dinesh Raheja. 'There are sure to be legions of film buffs who will cherish the chance to own souvenirs intimately associated with their favourite stars onscreen.'
'Sholay had a sargam of human emotions.'
In seniority in the BJP leadership team, V K Malhotra, who passed into the ages this week, was next only to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L K Advani and Nanaji Deshmukh, notes Sudhir Bisht.
'I have heard big stars, who are a part of Gen Z, demand not only food of their choice but also insist on taking food home for their family. And I am talking about stars who charge anything from Rs 40 crore to Rs 100 crore.'
'The heavens will be a merrier and a happier place now.' Colleagues pay homage to Satish Shah who passed into the ages on Saturday.
What we see in him today is not just stardom, but the reflection of his sincerity, humility, and an artist who carries the fragrance of his roots, asserts K R Nayar, who has known the Dadasaheb Phalke Award winner from their school and college days.
Because of Mukesh's much-hailed association with Raj Kapoor, it is often overlooked that the singer has also scored hits with almost all major heroes. On Mukesh's 102nd birth anniversary on July 22, Dinesh Raheja recalls some of his classic songs.
'While shooting the Don song, Chandra Barot ordered 30-40 paans and insisted Amitabh Bachchan eat them all.'
'Look after your own mother before looking after your neighbour's mother.' 'I don't believe in starving my own mother and feeding sweets to the neighbours.'
'Don was declared a flop because not many people turned up.' 'Luckily, Khaike Paan Banaraswala became a big hit.' 'Word of mouth publicity led to the film becoming a big hit from the second week on.'
Even after 50 years, Sholay remains a lasting reminder of unity, shared memories and the joy of cinema, notes Mohammad Asim Siddiqui.
'It's there in everyone's heart. That's the beauty of masterpieces.'
After the incident, actor and Bharatiyha Janata Party MP from Mandi, Kangana Ranaut, has reacted to it and called Jaya the "most spoilt and privileged woman"
Veteran filmmaker Chandra Barot, best known for directing the 1978 Amitabh Bachchan-starrer 'Don', passed away on Sunday due to cardiac arrest at a hospital in Mumbai. He was 86.
'Salman has never been given a reason to change his ways.'
'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.'
John Abraham releases his long delayed Tehran on OTT. Naveen Kasturia and Pratik Gandhi star in spy thrillers...
As Dilip Kumar was laid to rest, Bollywood came forward to say their last goodbyes.
'Pahlaj Nihalani came to my rescue. There was no Instagram in those days so I didn't recognise him.' 'I almost fainted when he told me he was Pahlaj Nihalani, the producer of Ilzaam, the hit film that had just made Govinda a star.' 'I told him I was a model and an aspiring actor, and he responded, "You have an interesting face. Come and meet me in the office tomorrow".'
'This is a politically motivated decision.' 'Nitish Kumar is desperate to win as many parliamentary seats as possible.'
'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.
The deceased has been identified as Naveen Kumar, who was wanted in multiple cases, including for murder and under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), a senior police officer said.
What if Sholay were produced now, in our technologically advanced era, with AI vying for our attention?, asks Atanu Biswas.
'Madhubala in Kala Pani looks divine and yet, she's not just there for glamour.' 'In Do Raaste, the character of Neelambari (played by Bindu) isn't a heroine in the traditional sense but she has such a pivotal role.' 'That Raj Khosla gave a non-heroine such a central role, instead of the heroine, says a lot about how he valued female characters.'
'The way Helen ma'am grooves, she's so seductive.'
'I played five different versions of Woh Subah Kabhie Toh Aayegi for Raj Kapoor, only to be greeted with a totally blank reaction.' 'Thereafter, for 40 minutes, he disappeared, leaving us baffled.' 'But when he emerged, he couldn't stop appreciating our efforts!' 'He said Sahir Ludhianvi's writing was sheer poetry and since all my five tunes were equally wonderful, he would leave it to my discretion to chose the final tune.' 'What could be greater appreciation for an artiste?'
'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.'
'I was super shy and awkward and had no idea what huge stars I was working with.'
Sholay's Basanti is the face of women's empowerment and gender equality. That's why, half a century after the movie first released, we're still talking about her.
'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.'
The Bachchan family have this knack of going out of their way to make you feel extremely comfortable.
'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!''
'Gen Z was devoid of love stories with sad endings like Heer Ranjha, Laila Majnu or Romeo Juliet; they have never seen something like this in their lifetime.' 'Saiyaara is a rooted love story.'
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