Archive for Articles
Mala Sinha – Memories
[ Back Mala Sinha's Menu ] My parents christened me Alda Sinha. Everybody in school called me Dalda Sinha. How I hated my name. Dad and mum never called me Alda though. To them, I was always their little ‘Baby’. Soon, the entire school was calling me ‘Baby Sinha’ too. …
Shammi Kapoor on Madhubala
Shammi Kapoor was a tall, lanky, thin young man (“I had no shadow”), twenty-one-year-old and on the threshold of a career in films. A stint in the theatre had given him confidence, even a slightly superior attitude to “these film people”. He was at ease working with big directors like …
Geeta Bali – Shammi Kapoor, Bhagwan and Kidar Sharma remember the glorious Geeta Bali
It was a bitterly cold winter night in Lahore. From the by-lanes emerged groups of angry Sardars, out to vandalize the make-shift theatre where Hardarshan Kaur and her younger sister Harkirtan were to make heir acting debut the next day. “That’s blasphemy,” roared the mob, “Girls from our community did …
Jeevan – Memories
Kiran Kumar My grandfather died when my father was just three years old and his mother had died at child‑birth. So my father was virtually an orphan and an unhappy child. My grandfather was the Governor of Gilgit, in Pakistan. My father had his early education in Lahore, and came …
Vikram – Memories
[ Back to Vikram's Menu ] I was born in Gadag, a place about 30 kms away from Hubli, which is where I completed my education. I come from a very large family, we brothers and sisters numbering 11. We were a typical middle-class family though by Hubli standards, we …
Nadira – Fade-Out
My family wasn’t doing well. We were almost starving. My mother was working with the Royal Air Force; when World War II ended, she was jobless. There were a lot of problems about joining films as my family was orthodox. I was asked— which good Jewish boy will marry you? …
Rehman – Fade-Out
The superbly suave Rehman, remembered for his roles, among others, in Guru Dutt’s Pyaasa, Chaudhavin Ka Chand and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, also died, in wanting circumstances. Suffering from cancer, he died a lonely man, rarely visited by his film colleagues. A film writer who did make it a point …
Rattan Kumar and Neelo in Alladin Ka Beta (1960)
According to Pakistani Film Critics, there were two reasons behind Rattan Kumar’s failure as a leading man. 1. Rattan Kumar grew up to be quite a handsome man, but his facial features were delicate, making him unsuitable for macho roles and only suitable for romantic roles. 2. Another problem facing …
Nimmi – Memories (1993)
[ Back to Nimmi's Menu ] My maternal grandfather was a small zamindar in pre-independent India. Those days few people acquired the title of Nawab. My grandfather always craved for one, without success. So, when I was born he gave me the title and insisted on calling me Nawabsaab, till …
Kamal Amrohi – The Last Emperor
Today Kamalistan studios has a new name. Kamal Amrohi studios, says the plaque on the gate. “This was the least we could do to honour the memory of our father,” says Tajdar Amrohi. ” As long as his health permitted, he’d drive down the long stretch from Bandra to Mahakali …
Jamuna Barua - Filmography
Do Aankhen Barah Haath (1957)
Bollywood – Year by Year – 1972
Rehman - Fade-Out
Lollywood - The Period full of Ups and Downs - (1991-1999)