In 2003, Mike Tollin directed a film about a real life character called James Effinhimer Robert ‘Radio’ Kennedy — a nickname he acquired because he was fascinated with radios and would carry one everywhere. The film was called, yes, Radio. How powerful and dangerous radio can be as a medium was captured in Talk Radio, […]
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Month: June 2014
The Shock Jock We Won’t Have
It is easy to grit your teeth at the irony of FM radio commercials. One entreats you like Gandhi, to become the change you want to see in the world because when a small change occurs, it could lead to a big one. Like living in a gated community named after an American valley, or […]
Ameen Sayani: The Voice Of Forever
Nostalgia has a name. It is Ameen Saayani. For those of us who cut our teeth on Hindi film music via Binaca Geeta Mala (later rechristened as Cibaca Geet Mala) in the 70s, Saayani was the voice that brought it all together. The music of Naushad, Shankar-Jaikishan and SD Burman. The liquid gold of mega […]
That Story Again..
I watch her as she adjusts the cushions on her bed, wraps the blanket around her little body, hugs her teddy tight and looks at me eagerly and asks ‘Won’t you come to bed with me Mamma’. I lie next to her in bed, my face resting on the side of her shoulder, her tiny […]
Ek Villain: Recycled To Death
Before we get into whether Mohit Suri’s Ek Villain has snatches of the Korean thriller I Saw a Devil, or shades of Jack Reacher, let us first deal with Remo Fernandes. Yes, Remo of O Meri Munni and Humma and countless memories of Goan susegad. So here he is, trying to fill the shoes of […]
Highlights And Deep Shadows
Sometime last month, artist Milind Nayak was admitted in a hospital for blood infection and dangerously high creatinine levels. “I almost reached the pearly gates but the doctors pulled me back,” he says. Milind went through dialysis and was not even conscious of all the medical procedures done to bring him back from the brink […]
Time Travel With Irani Chai
The best way to travel back in time is to step in to any of the Irani cafes in Mumbai. Many have written about their old world charm, the no-frills ambiance, the authenticity and the distinct personality of this vintage generation. Their stoic presence is a pleasant reminder of Bombay that was. Koolar & Co. at Matunga […]
Old Hills, New Eyes
If you live in Maharashtra and are searching for that ‘lovely’ hill station to escape the heat, think again. There is no brilliant hill station close by. Lonavala is hardly a hill station anymore. Matheran – you’ve been there, love it but it’s too dusty to go in the summers; you need to wait for the rains… You […]
Convenience Is Not Always Fulfilling
Nestled in a cane casket, hung a foot or two above the ground, and wrapped in embroidered cotton cloth, the baby slept peacefully. This is a rare sight to see and that’s why it caught my attention amongst the many other photographs displayed in an art and culture magazine. Times have changed. ** Recently, I […]
`There will never be another Pancham’
On June 27, India will commemorate trend-setting music composer R D Burman’s 75th birth anniversary. Something unprecedented will also happen. For the first time ever, a mainstream television channel will showcase a documentary on prime-time. Pancham Unmixed: Mujhe Chalte Jaana Hai (an unending journey), a national award-winning feature-length documentary on R D Burman will be […]
‘Sahab, Saira’s love story is mythological’
“Groom her and she will go places. She has the potential to become a biographer someday,” said Dilip Kumar to SS Pillai, the editor of Screen many decades ago. He was of course referring to Udaytara Nayar, the woman to whom destiny would entrust the task of putting together his autobiography in 2004. Over the […]
Much Ado About Nothing
When I was a little kid, I remember often noticing grown-ups having conversations with very serious expressions on their faces. They were usually huddled around a table or standing outside a meeting place, discussing about the discussion that just took place. I always wondered what it was that they were talking about. I wondered if […]