There is one name today that is everywhere from movie screens to feminist discussions, from news rooms to newspaper columns and movie posters to magazine covers. Hindi cinema has suddenly discovered a new icon in Vidya Balan. Post The Dirty Picture, Vidya has suddenly become a new sex symbol and has leapfrogged to the number... Continue Reading →

The news of Dev Anand’s death caught me unawares. Sure, he was 88 (or as someone said he turned 22 for the fourth time) but I could never imagine Dev Anand to be dead. He was "full of life" as everyone said during the last few days while paying him tributes. Somehow, I feel even... Continue Reading →

Those among us who have seen the cinema of 1980s would be familiar with the sensation called Silk Smitha. She broke conventions and arrived like a storm in the Tamil film industry and spawned many imitations like Rayon Revathi and Polyester Padmini (yes such names did exist). Though Milan Luthria's The Dirty Picture is not... Continue Reading →

In 1935, Himanshu Rai was shooting Jeevan Naiyya. In a quick turn of events, his wife and the movie’s heroine Devika Rani eloped with the lead actor. Devika was traced and the actor fired. Search for a new actor began, the trail of which stopped at the lab assistant of the studio Kumudlal Ganguly. Kumudlal’s... Continue Reading →