Aseem has written Irrfan Khan: The Man, The Dreamer, The Star and he's here to answer your questions on Irrfan.
Know all you want to know about the star!
'I wish Ra.One had more of the evil character played by Arjun Rampal. I wish we could have seen some more sparks of evil from Kapoor. But Ra.One is mostly about Shah Rukh Khan.'
Make your Oscar predictions, and see them come true on Hollywood's biggest awards night.
Filmmaker and actor Manish Acharya died in a freak accident in Matheran on Saturday. He was only 40 years old. Aseem Chhabra salutes a friend and colleague.
Lovingly made, heartfelt stories that speak the truths about our lives.
Chennai Express is a full throttle masala entertainment ruled by Shah Rukh Khan's star power
A skinny African-American man, with goofy ears and Hussein as a middle name is going to become our 44th president. It is a win for all of us-- African-Americans, whites, Latinos, Asians, men, women and children, old and young, straight and gays. We should rejoice at this historic moment.
When Arundhati Roy wrote her first novel God of Small Things, her team reached out to Shah Rukh Khan inviting him to read a passage from the book at its Mumbai launch. Perhaps because he still held a grudge, Khan refused the invitation.
'Cinema is such a powerful medium. It is not just the emotional impact, but some of these films are so strong that your entire body cannot help but react.'
'Much later when I came to Afghanistan, I realised that there were songs in Bollywood films.'
This Hamlet and most of the film's characters are Hindus, so there is an elaborate wedding sequence with a baraat, dholki players, dancing baraatis, and a dance performance piece, set to the qawwali Mast Qalander.
'Each mother I have played is different, but the writing dictates the doing of it. If it's written well, that's half the work done for an actor.'
'One's country is the best place to live, no matter what problems, what difficulties.' 'My country is where I can breathe, where I can find the reason to live, and where I can find the strength to create.'
'I am quite impulsive when making a movie. That is the reason I need to stop sometimes, probably pause.'
Having grossed nearly $370 worldwide, Sinners filled up Warner Bros coffers when many of the studio's key 2025 films lost money, and deserves its many Oscar nominations.
'Filmmaking is such a weird line of work, artistic expression and collaboration.' 'It is letting go, then holding on to something, being democratic and then being tyrannical.'
The New York City mayor-elect's mother has made some incredible movies.
'I want to show bearded men actually caring and loving for their sons or a woman from Pakistan in a position of power. How radical is that?'
This year's Golden Globes was a test to see if Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another is still riding on an unstoppable train, similar to one that Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer rode on in 2023, observes Aseem Chhabra.
Aseem Chhabra lists his top 10 films from this year's Sundance festival, a blend of narratives and documentaries made in the US and other parts of the world.
'This story has been always there since my childhood because of missing people.' 'I remember a family member who disappeared and I kept wondering what happened to him.'
'What if a ring had gotten stolen, or a gem had fallen? There were uncut diamonds, rubies and emeralds. And the security from the jewellery shop came to watch the shoot.'
The four-day CIFF was packed with so many other new projects, like Radhika Apte's first directorial effort Koyta, with Vikramaditya Motwane as the producer, Venkatesh Maha's Ko Ko Ko, Jeo Baby's Punishment and Shonali Bose's Black Mountain Monpa.
'What interested me more than the influencers was how were they surviving in Bombay?' 'How many reels did they make per month? How much money did they need to get by?' 'Did they get a job and then come back home and do this at night?'
'It is something that he always wanted to do and he has achieved phenomenal success in doing it.'
'We have come to the point in civilisation where emotion seems to be something you hide or you have to be discreet about, or to be ashamed of.'
The 97th Academy Awards are days away and there are some strong contenders for the top awards.
'...including my baby sisters, age three and one.' 'My dad was humiliated, and he started screaming at them.'
Shriya Pilgaonkar recaps March on social media, giving everyone a look at her many emotions and events.
Aseem Chhabra ranks the Best of 2025's films that released in theatres, or went directly to OTT platforms.
'For the longest time, he was not an activist.' 'He was just trying to build his own self-identity, self-respect and ambition.'
Martin Scorsese, 'the reigning king of cinema', gets an honorary Golden Bear at the 74th Berlinale.
This weekend, we lost Diane Keaton, that piece of American heart, Hollywood's darling hummingbird. Thank God she is still alive in her films. Aseem Chhabra on the Hollywood star he was in love with.
'She was brave. She didn't care a hoot. And India was not the strongest of nations as it is now.'
'She was brave. She didn't care a hoot. And India was not the strongest of nations as it is now.'
'There have been multiple cases of people being shot for pulling into someone's driveway because they made a wrong turn or ringing the wrong bell because they made a mistake.' 'That is also the pathway to fascism.' 'The way you divide people is to make them fear each other. Then a strong man can come in and say, "I will protect you".'
With his killer smile, the sex symbol image, Robert Redford would go beyond just being an actor, remembers Aseem Chhabra.
Three days to Sunday's 96th Academy Awards, and everyone has their predictions ready!
'We are driven by a passion for storytelling and a commitment to bring fresh, diverse narratives to the forefront.'
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances