Movies

Short-changed in life

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, recollects the tragic story of the charismatic star Priya Rajvansh, who if she were alive would have turned 84 on December 30th Her journey down...

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Where heroines dare

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, writes on leading ladies who have donned male garbs to assert gender neutrality and equality  Javed Akhtar, would often joke, that there wa...

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Hard Day’s Night

Film historian Dhruv Somani, clocks into Bollywood films, which were set in a tension-packed time frame of 24 hours. There have been rare films whose plots have been set in a...

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Amazing Grace

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, pens the untold story of the playback singer Suman Kalyanpur, who retired from the hurly burly of the recording studios, gracefully   A swe...

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Oh, those feuds

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, rewinds to the mega-rivalry between several Bollywood heroines.  Feuds between the actresses of Bollywood would make for spicy reading in m...

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Bond, Bollywood Bonds

Film historian Dhruv Somani, in the wake of the passing away of Sean Connery, chronicles the desi Bonds that were. Sean Connery, who passed away at the age of 90 on October 3...

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Bringing up Babi

Film historian Dhruv Somani, reviews journalist Karishma Upadhyay’s riveting book Parveen Babi: A Life Alliteratively called the Jazzy Jane from Junagadh, she was a gam...

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Horror Unmasked

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, recounts the believe-it-or-not real-life story of Ajay Agarwal, who became the face of Bollywood’s horror cinema. It’s Halloween tim...

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Bhanu Athaiya: Best of the Best

Film historian, Dhruv Somani, picks his 10 favourites from the vast collection  created by the late doyenne of film costume designs. Over 130 films in a career spanning ...

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That’s Cricket

With the IPL fever on, film historian Dhruv Somani, discusses Bollywood cinema’s takes on India’s favorite sport and pastime. It’s no secret that cricket an...

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MOVIES: FAIRY TALE FALTERS IN AJOGYA

"Despite the charm of a fairy tale reference, Kaushik Ganguly's Ajogya struggles with a ...

June 11 2024

ALTERNATIVE ENTERTAINMENT: SHYAM BENEGAL’S MANTHAN

Thanks to the efforts of the Film Heritage Foundation, Shyam Benegal’s masterpiece...

June 9 2024

THOUGHT FACTORY: SILENCE IN THE FACE OF OPPRESSION

In an era of unprecedented division, the gap between mainstream and alternative opinions...

June 8 2024