The year had a variety of films to choose from. Not all of them were successful at the box office, but had merit.
'At his wedding with Patralekha, I officiated as the groom's father as Raj has lost both parents, and that's the relationship we share today.'
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.
S D Burman is that unique composer who remained successful right up to his death with his creative engines never running on empty.
After the Iconic Gold awards, it was time for Bollywood to walk the red carpet again, this time for the Hello Hall of Fame Awards.
Malayalam actress Nazriya Nazim Fahadh, who is married to Fahadh Faasil, recently penned a heartfelt note on social media, explaining her absence from work and public engagements.
'I have always broken my image every time I went on screen. I don't know what it means to be a Greek God but people used to call me one.'
'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.'
'...including my baby sisters, age three and one.' 'My dad was humiliated, and he started screaming at them.'
'I don't know how long cinema will survive.'
The very timing of the Phalke Award on Rajini now, days ahead of Tamil Nadu voting in the assembly election, may have taken away the seriousness and credibility attaching to the Centre's decision, making it sound every bit political, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
When Kamini Kaushal passed away at 98, she missed being a centenarian by just two years. But there is very little else that she missed out on in her long, rich, creatively fulfilling life.
The 68th National Film Awards saw actors from across India get together for the prestigious ceremony in New Delhi.
'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.'
'It's a tremendous accomplishment to have a father like Amitabh Bachchan and still be so sorted, to not taste the kind of success that he should have and yet be so balanced.'
Singer-actress Sulakshana Pandit, 71, passed into the ages on November 6 after a prolonged illness. Besides her acting roles, she leaves behind some beautiful songs to remember her by.
Mithun Chakraborty started from scratch in bit roles and had no Godfather backing him. Yet, remarkably, his career now straddles six decades and he continues to win acclaim, observes Dinesh Raheja.
'We should focus on creating cinema which is entertaining, gives us solace, some message, reduces our tension and makes us think positively.'
After comedies like Bhool Chuk Maaf and Stree, National Award-winning actor Rajkummar Rao tries hard core action in the gangster film, Maalik.
Picking 10 excellent performances has been difficult but the attempt is to acknowledge the work of actors, who are often overlooked in favour of stars.
Shriya wins Best Actor...beautiful things are happening for Raashii... Dulquer is back!
'Everyone at Guru Dutt Productions would get monthly salaries. Waheeda didi would get Rs 2,500 per month. And that was the reason why she left.'
Who won at the Globes? We tell you!
15 National Awards were won by five Malayalam films together.
Srimurali gets candid about his career, and the success of his family production Ugramm.
Here's a quick look at the winners of the 81st Annual Golden Globe awards.
Rehana Sultan was all set to be a path-breaker. The time was right. Hindi cinema had emerged from the 1960s musicals era. But somehow, leading film-makers of the time did not believe Rehana had that cachet. It was Zeenat Aman who ended up being the definitive taboo-trasher of the era. Dinesh Raheja salutes the trendsetter of the 1970s, Rehana Sultan.
Through Bob Dylan's music, lyrics, and Timothe Chalamet's superb acting, we feel we have rubbed shoulders with greatness, even when it is full of flaws, self-doubts, warts and all, observes Aseem Chhabra.
'The National Award is our nation's highest recognition, being recognised at the President's hand is our privilege, our honour and our dream.' 'The nation's sentiment got left out in the choices that were made yesterday...'
'I am not a greedy film person, even as an actor.' 'While my contemporaries Dharmendra and Shashi Kapoor acted in nearly 300 films each, I've done hardly 35 films in my entire career.'
The highlights of the glamorous Brit awards, right here.
'When they took my name, I went numb.' 'Before I went on stage, my dress got caught in my shoe!' 'I said, stay calm.' 'Then I started walking and was like, okay, now think of what you're going to say, quickly!'
'With passage of time, Kamal did move away from the humdrum of commercial cinema, using it only as a peg to launch a new concept or new technology, as no other actor/film-maker has done in Indian cinema.' N Sathiya Moorthy assesses the career and politics of movie legend Kamal Haasan on his 70th brthday.
'Prior to release, we heard only exemplary things about the film, so the failure came as a complete shock to my father.'
At many stages, it has appeared as though Sunny Deol's career was running out of steam, but each time he has risen Phoenix-like from the ashes. Dinesh Raheja gives us a closer look at the man on his 67th birthday on October 19.
'When India opened its doors to the world, moving away from an agrarian to a market economy, everything, whether life or love, was commodified.'
'Star didn't think Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi was good enough to come immediately after KBC.' 'Except for Ekta, no one imagined it would become such a hit.'
The latest updates from the Malayalam film industry.
Did you know Dev Anand worked as a clerk at a salary of Rs 85 before he became an actor?
