Sukanya Verma looks at the jhoola, and how it's an unforgettable part of many a Bollywood imagery in celebration, romance, frolic and, sometimes, even menace.
Sukanya Verma remembers some of his greatest solo numbers in our fondly curated playlist.
'During this dry despondent period I understood that I needed to do something extraordinary to get the focus of people on me and my music.' 'I worked and worked and composed Munni badnaam hui.'
'He had wanted to present me in the likes of the heroines of the 60s whose churidar-kurta look with winged eyeliner and bouffant had captivated fashionistas at the time.'
Melodies that stayed on in the mind and memory are too few and far between. Except the ones that do make an impression are definitely worth celebrating for their refreshing style and substance.
'One genre cannot survive 365 days of the year. It can be the flavour of the season.'
The Supreme Court of India has issued pan-India guidelines on property demolition, emphasizing that no property should be demolished without a prior show cause notice and 15 days for the affected party to respond. The court strongly criticized 'bulldozer justice', stating that the Executive cannot demolish homes simply because individuals are accused of a crime. The verdict cites the importance of shelter as a fundamental right and highlights the unconstitutionality of demolishing houses based solely on accusations or convictions.
'I want to show that we are also part of this society and want to participate just as much, whether it is for security or whatever community work there.'
Countless screen pairs have come together but only few can lay claim to that extra something called chemistry.
These six male megastars have formed popular pairs with two starkly different leading ladies. Dinesh Raheja compares and contrasts the chemistry between the onscreen couples, and asks you, dear reader, to vote for your favourite jodi.
It was a hit and miss for some but each one of them revelled in the opportunity to showcase their talent.
'Songs are a commercial compromise.' 'I had to invent tricks to fit songs into my films.'
I remember a showbiz wedding during which guests had to sit through several painstakingly rehearsed but awkward dances performed by the bride's and groom's relatives. When Karan rolled his eyes, I smiled and said to him, 'You started it, now you suffer it.' An enchanting excerpt from Anupama Chopra's A Place In My Heart.
'Don't be scared of the people who are trying to make a fool of you, those people who trying to pull you down...it is their insecurities that make them behave the way they do.'
'I don't think marriages break because of infidelity, they break up because of disrespect.'
Bollywood stars like to keep US updated about what is on their minds!
Sukanya Verma raises a toast (he'd like that very much) to the magnificent Rishi Kapoor and his 25 essential performances.
'In Mumbai, isolation is a very different isolation.' 'It's not about actual physical loneliness.' 'It's the loneliness in the company of others, and I felt that that is a very Mumbai thing.' 'You can be travelling in the ladies compartment squashed against everybody's armpits and still be really, really sad and alone.'
Sukanya Verma quizzes you to find out just how much you know about the movies.
On his 50th birthday on May 25, Sukanya Verma celebrates the man and his movies.
'Rishi Kapoor was a complete original.' 'He dazzled the screen and stayed a livewire off it as well,' remembers Sukanya Verma.
Dinesh Raheja tips his hat to his favourite Raj Kapoor movie, as we continue celebrating the legend's birth centenary.
All India Rank achieves a fine balance of authenticity and sensitivity in the fine portrayals of its young actors and old.
DIVINE's journey reveals four important lessons.
On his 90th birth anniversary, Sukanya Verma lists 20 of her favourite scenes that reiterate his extraordinary grasp on the language of cinema and connect with the viewer.
As a uniquely multi-hyphenated writer-director-lyricist-author, Gulzar has built a reputation across multiple spheres of film-making and literary creative endeavours. Dinesh Raheja salutes the Master who turns 90 on Sunday.
Delhi, daddy issues, drivers, domestic help, politics, patriarchy, sexuality, sexism, choices, compromises, community, religion, real estate, motherhood, marriage -- Gulmohar offers a loaded, layered understanding of familial relationships and its indirect impact on the people at the periphery, notes Sukanya Verma.
'Even after Awaara Hoon and Mera Joota Hai Japani, between 1946 to 1963, there were plenty of upheavals in his career. My parents had moved into two rooms of a chawl, with an attached bathroom, by then, but life was hard, and often there was no food at home.'
'...changed my image, changed everything.' 'Now I make calls with great confidence.' 'Day before yesterday, I sent a message to a director that I heard you are making a film, is there any role for me?' 'I have confidence now. Earlier, I could never do.'
'Some months before his death, when I had inquired about his health, he was annoyed that people assumed the worst.' '"I am not going anywhere," Rishi snapped as only he could.'
Ekta Kapoor invited her friends from the television industry for a brunch at her home to celebrate the Ganpati festival.
'Here are 25 stories special to me for one reason too many,' says Sukanya Verma who scored 25 years writing about the movies last week.
Though he went back to writing "beautiful scenes" for other Bollywood directors, his deep interest in the lives of ordinary citizens never slackened, evident from the way he made himself available to human rights groups whenever they called him.
Sukanya Verma looks at husband and wife filmi collaborations.
Sukanya Verma makes a playlist of 15 profound Rajesh Khanna ditties.
Sukanya Verma looks at 12 times the superstar offered food for thought on subjects as varied as nation building, team spirit and the stupidity of big fat Indian weddings while wolfing down a meal.
Using snatches of a cult favourite or evergreen classic in its original form for action, comedy or romance can transform the entire vibe of a scene.
Sukanya Verma presents a playlist of 100 Lata Mangeshkar songs from different decades of Hindi films -- songs that make me sing, smile, sob and sigh.
'I went to Nagpur for my engineering. I used to model there, those amateur fashion shows. Then you know, I thought why not try my luck in films and all?'
Kumkum, who featured in some of the most memorable songs in Hindi cinema, passed away on Tuesday. She was 86.
