Today is a good day to revive this blog (yet again), which tends to get severely neglected as I juggle my professional and personal commitments. Let me start off by wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May this season bring good cheer and joy to all! … More Bhumika (1977)
A few days back, the FM channel was blaring “old” songs from the 80s and 90s – some passable tunes and some not-so-bearable. And then a familiar, much-forgotten tune wafted through the sound waves – bringing with it memories long forgotten; something seemed wrong to me. Here was an extremely popular Tamil song (from a … More Ilaiyaraja reprised – Same tune, different language…
The first time I heard of Sadhana was when my mother and aunt had dragged me, aged 10, to a hairdresser in Bangalore. Something had to be done about my unruly hair, they had decided. My hair was assessed and so was my broad forehead and the hairdresser pronounced that I should get a “Sadhana … More Love in Simla (1960)
This is a book review that has been long overdue. Jaishree Misra has been one author whose books I have read and enjoyed over the years. I was introduced to her writing when I read her debut novel, the bestseller Ancient Promises, way back in 2000 shortly after it was published. Since then I have kept … More Book Review: A House for Mr. Misra – Jaishree Misra
The past few years have seen a number of books on SD Burman, like Sun mere Bandhu – The musical word of S.D. Burman by Sathya Saran or S.D. Burman: The World of his music by Khagesh Dev Burman ( a relative of S.D. Burman – the original book being Sachin Kartar Gaaner Bhubhan). I … More Book Review – S.D.Burman – The Prince Musician by Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal
A tribute to Shashi Kapoor who died last December had been long overdue but I did not want to draw up another song list. An unplanned break from work this week meant that suddenly I had time to read and watch some movies. And when this movie and its music was analysed in a delightful … More Sharmeelee (1971)
There is something charming about train journeys. As the locomotives whizz past different landscapes, routes and places, towards their destination, taking a whole set of travellers with them, they become a bit more than just a convenient mode of transportation. Accidental meetings take place – people meet, connect and go their separate ways. Long journeys … More Of train journeys….a song list
This has been a long overdue post. The last two years, just before Jan 4 and June 27, I would make (mental) plans to come up with a song list of my favourite RD Burman songs, but the two days pass by; and the song list post never happened… up until now. Yes it is … More Remembering Rahul Dev Burman – a song list – Part 1
I came across this book sometime last year when I was trying to educate myself on the early days of Indian cinema. Since my interest in Indian cinema is in movies from 1950s and onwards, when it comes to the two preceding decades, barring certain iconic names such as K.L. Saigal, Pankaj Mullick, Devika Rani, … More Book Review – Kanan Devi – The First Superstar of Indian Cinema by Mekhala Sengupta
I have been meaning to restart this blog for a while – the hiatus, as before, was entirely unplanned – as work and other real-life matters took up much precedence. Many unfinished drafts later, finally back here with a movie review. Why this movie? I read Asha Parekh’s autobiography, The Hit Girl some months back … More Ziddi (1964)
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