Category: Film

Bawas and Bollywood A quick quiz question: Which dialogue is probably Bollywood’s most memorable line after Shashi Kapoor’s ‘Mere paas maa hai’ from Deewar and Amjad Khan’s ‘Kitne aadmi thhe’ from Sholay? The answer is ‘Tumhara khoon khoon aur hamara khoon paani’ from Yahudi. And the man who delivered that line was Sorab Modi, who… Continue reading Bawas and Bollywood

Boman Irani talks about playing his first Parsi character onscreen and dating Sushmita Sen! Faheem Ruhani ednesday, March 22, 2006 18:35 IST What was it it like finally playing a Parsi in ‘Being Cyrus’? It’s a mixed feeling. I am glad to play a challenging character, but I am wary of being stereotyped. I played… Continue reading Boman Irani talks about playing his…

Being Cyrus, a psychological thriller by debutant film maker Homi Adajania will open in theatres this Friday. The cast of the film may not be star laden but it sure has some fine actors – Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia, Saif Ali Khan and Boman Irani Set in the Parsi milieu the film is in English… Continue reading Being Cyrus – A Psychological Thriller Set in…

The only serial based on Zoroastrian religion and culture, completed 100 episodes recently Funded only by donations, Humata Hukhta Hvarashta — the only serial on air based on Zoroastrian religion — completed 100 episodes last Sunday. “Through this serial we wish to promote awareness of the significance of our rituals and a deeper understanding of… Continue reading Humata Hukhta Hvarashta strikes a century

As the Parsi couple in their jalopy who often gave a lift to the troubled heroine, Dinesh Hingoo and Piloo Wadia immortalized the quintessential Parsi eccentricity on-screen. Piloo in her traditional gara-saree and Dinesh in the shining black topi highlighted the Parsi accent and their penchant for autumnal romance. Thanks to this comic pair that… Continue reading Joy Ride

The only thing that people are talking about Dev Anand’s latest release Mr. Prime Minister is his onscreen smooch with an NRI actress in the film. And while Dev Anand is known for the skin-show in his films, what nobody might have noticed is that this is the first time that he is smooching onscreen.… Continue reading The first female to smooch Dev Anand onscreen

These are the choice of men to play women’s parts, and the use of European or ‘white’ actresses posing as Indian. Both these masquerades can be located in prior theatrical traditions of western India, especially the Parsi theatre. The spectatorial pleasures that such performances divulged will be illustrated through a series of slides from the… Continue reading Gender, Race, and Spectatorship in Early Indian Cinema