The death of Samshad Begum is a great loss to the world of music.

Eminent singer Samshad Begum died on 23rd April, 2013. She was 93 years old. She was a very popular playback singer of the 1940s and 1950s. Composer Naushad Ali, OP Nayyar and Shankar Jaikishan made great use of the beautiful voice of Samshad Begum. Naushad Ali successfully used her voice in the film Babul.One of the songs “chor chale babul ka gha” became super hit. Shankar Jaikishan used Samshadji in the film Awaara in 1951. The song “ek do teen, aaja mausam hai rangeen”, became bumper hit. Naushad Ali used her in classical songs and folk songs as well. In the film Mother India her song “holi ayi re kanhai” became super hit. The film reached cult status in 1957. OP Nayyar used the western andaz in the film CID. The songs “bujh mera kya naam re”, “leke pehla pehla pyar” became bumper hit. The film did excellent business and the songs stormed bollywood. OP Nayyar used Shamshad Begum successfully in other films like Naya Andaz, Kismat, etc. In the film Kismat the song “kajra muhabbat wala” Shamshad Begum had the great responsibility of singing the male version of the song. Her song was picturised on Biswajeet Chatterjee. Shamshad Begum did an excellent job in the film Mughal-i-azam. The film songs composed by Naushad Ali reached cult status. The song “teri mehfil me kismet” became super hit. OP Nayyar used Shamshad Begum very well in the film Naya Daur in the song “reshmi salwar”. One article is to small to mention the achievements of Shamshad Begum in a small article. Articles after articles can be devoted to the musical queen. The entire country is vey sad to know about Shamshad Begum’s demise and pray for her soul to rest in peace.

Gulzar is ahead of Sahir and Shailendra in historyindia.com polls.

In the lyricist category poet Gulzar is ahead and leading the historyindia.com pols. The polls are conducted to understand the greatest popularity of these famous personalities over the last 100 years. Gulzar is at number one position. Javed Akhtar is after him. Sahir Ludhiyanvi is at number three position and Shailendra is at number four position. Gulzar and Javed Akhtar are writing poetry in present period. They have written songs in films like Jab Tak Hai Jaan which are released one year. Although Gulzar had written excellent shayari for last 40 years, he is younger than poets like Sahir Ludhiyanvi or Shailendra. His words “is mor se jate hai, kuch sushth kadam raste” are really touchy. He wrote the words in the film Aandhi which was directed by him and released in 1975. Shailendra shaped the world of poetry and made Indian songs modern. His words in Raj Kapoor’s film Awaara titled “awaara hoon ya gardish me hoon aasman ka taara hoon” really appealed before the people of India and also Russia. Whenever Shankar Singh Raghuvanshi composed the tunes, the lyrics were written by Shailender. Whenever Jaikishan Dayabhai Panchal composed the music the lyrics were written by Hasrat Jaipuri. All the films of Raj Kapoor like Barsaat, Awaara, Shee 420, Anari, Jis Desh Me Ganga Behti Hai, Sangam, have brilliant lyrics of Shailendra. Sahir Ludhiyanvi had been an artist. His urdu poetry made the world of bollywood films very romantic. Madhubala’s beauty was described in the song “zindagi bhar nahi bhulegi wo barsaat ki raat” in the film Barsaat Ki Raat. Roshanlal Nagrath composed the tunes for the song and Rafisahab sang the song. Sahir is alive in his numerous romantic words “mai pal do pal ka shayar hoon”, “kabhi kabhi mere dil me khayal aata hai”, etc. It is a bit unfair on the part of Shailendra or Sahir Ludhiyanvi to compete against Guzar or Javed Akhtar as they died long time back and the present generation may not know the great works to that extent.

The nation remembered Satyajit Ray on 23rd April, 2013.

The nation remembered Satyajit Ray on his death anniversary on 23rd April, 2013. Not only he was the recipient of the prestigious Oscar awards, he was the path-breaker in Indian films who taught the next-generation the art of story-telling. In 2010, Society had celebrated the 89th birth anniversary of the legendary director by showcasing some of his notable works like ‘Agantuk’, (The Stranger), ‘Jalsaghar’, (The Music Room), ‘Charulata’, (The lonely wife). The films were shown in Cinemax, Metro Big Cinemas and NCPA. After the films were shown, the significance of such films was discussed by Bhawna Somayya, ex-editor of Screen, filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh and film academicians from all across the country. Besides, discussions were held to highlight the contribution of Ray as a writer, an illustrator, an activist of the film society movement and a filmmaker. Internationally acclaimed directors like Shyam Bengal, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, were greatly influenced by Satyajit Ray’s films like Apu Trilogy, Jalsagar, Nayak, Mahanagar, etc., and they themselves became eminent story-tellers of the following period. The use of nature, the birds, and background, and the use of theme music in translating an unknown event to a group of individuals had enchanted the thoughtful directors all across the world. Even directors of the present period like Goutam Ghosh are influenced by the works of Satyajit Ray. He made Abar Aranye which was a sequel to Satyajit Ray’s film Aranyer Dinratri. A personality like Ray could only make a film like Kanchenjungha, where the greatness of the Himalayas overshadowed the ego of a materialistic industrialist played by Satyajit Ray. An important part of Satyajit Ray’s creations include his literature on diverse subjects. While his Sandip Ray had taken the challenge of converting the Feluda Series into feelings, his literature relating to horror-based subject matters, his series of 12 stories are yet to be converted into films. Sandip Ray’s films Bombaier Bombete, Kailashe Kelenkari, Baksho Rahasya, based on epic literature of Ray had got good response from the viewers. But Ray’s brilliant stories in the 12 series like Ebaro Baro, Aro Baro, Ek Dojon Goppo, Aro Ek Dojon, Eker Pite Dui, are yet to see the light of celluloid. Ray’s stories like Khagam, based on the theme of human being converted into a snake, Pterodactyler dim, based on the prehistoric era, Fritze, based on the topic of life in a doll, Asomongobabur Kukur, based on the weird mannerisms of dogs, had bewildered the readers. If such stories are adapted and made into films, the viewers will enjoy them to the brim. The legacy of Ray whether in the form of neo-realistic films like Pather Panchali, or suspense –thriller stories relating to Feluda Series or Professor Shanku, still continues, even 18 years after his death. The stories should be translated in different languages, and films should be preserved and restored.

Happy birthday to Moushumi Chatterji – the charming star from Bengal.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Moushumi Chatterji on 26th April, 2013. Moushumi Chatterji, the Bengali actress acted both in Bengali and hindi films and showed her skills in both of them. She acted in the Bengali film Balika Badhu, where the film was based on child marriage and impressed the directors and producers with her performance. From that time she ventured in Bombay and tried her luck in bollywood industry. Her film Anurag opposite Vinod Mehra became super hit. She played the role of a blind girl and got appreciation of the crowd. The songs in the film became very successful including songs like “woh kya hai” sung by Rafi. SD Burman composed the music of the film. She acted in action films like Goutam Govinda. The film was related to the story of Shashi Kapoor, a police officer who came to the village and trained all the rustic villagers the manner of self-defense. Shatrughun Sinha was his own brother, which was disclosed at the end of the film. Moushumi Chatterji showed her humour in the respective role. Moushumi also acted in suspense-thrillers like Benaam, opposite Big B, where there the anxiety relating to the kidnapping of her son was at issue. She expressed her feelings very well in the film. She was brilliant in the film Manzil Manzil, opposite Big B. It was the remake of Mrinal Sen’s Bengali film Akash Kushum. Akash Kusum was based on the story relating to Soumitra Chatterji presenting a false story about himself before Aparna Sen with the help of his friend Shubendu Chatterji. In the hindi version also the story line was not changed. Moushumi Chatterji’s smile had a beauty of its own which she expressed in majority of films in style. While acting in a number of bollywood films, she stormed Bengali films with her performance in the super hit film Ogo Bodhu Sundari, opposite Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar. The film was released in 1980. The story was based on how Uttam Kumar, an academician brought a girl from the streets and taught her literature. Moushumi expressed the difficulty of forgetting her rustic language which she adopted from the environment she came from and learning the new language. The music given in the film by Bappi Lahiri became super hit. Songs like “ami ekjon shantoshisto”, “shudhu tumi nou obolakanto”, etc., sung by Kishore Kumar became super hit. It was incidentally the last film of Mahanayak Uttam Kumar. Her comedy conception was used by Gulzar and other directors very successfully. Her film Angoor opposite Sanjeev Kumar showed her comedy skills. The film was based on Uttam Kumar’s film Bhranti Bilas and had similarity with Shakespeare’s play Comedy of Errors. Sanjeev Kumar played the double role in Angoor that was played by Uttam Kumar in the Bengali film Bhranti Bilas, while Moushumi Chatterji played the role of his wife which was played by Sabitri Chatterji in the Bengali film. The two brothers were identical twins and Moushumi Chatterji got confused with her own husband and his brother. Deven Verma played a double role along with Sanjeev Kumar as his servant. Her other successful films included Pati Patni Aur Woh, opposite Sanjeev Kumar, Ghayal, as the sister-in-all of Sunny Deol and many other films. Even she had acted in landmark Bengali films like Kori Diye Kinlam based on the epic novel of Bimal Mitra. In 2013, she had acted in successful Bengali film Gainar Baksho. She had aced in the role of a widow who died and the spirit of the widow tortured the other women in the family. She acted with Konkona Sen Sharma and Srabanti Chatterjee in the film. The viewers expect Moushumi to contribute in character roles in bollywood films in future.

Yash Chopra is at No.1 position in historyindia.com polls.

Director Yash Chopra is at No. 1 position in historyindia.com polls. The poll will continue for another week. Yash Chopra is leading the director category. The polls are related to 100 years of Indian cinema. In the directors category, director Raj Kumar Hirani is at number two position. Hrishikesh Mukherjee is at number three position. Raj Kapoor is at number 4 position and Guru Dutt is at number 5 position. Yash Chopra, being a great director and producer deserves to be very popular. But the only reason many voters of the new generation had voted for him because he had died last year, and in filmfare award ceremonies, Shahrukh Khan and others showed the great films of Yash Chopra including Rajender Kumar’s Dhool Ka Phool, Raj Kumar’s Waqt, Amitabh Bacchan’s Dewaar, Shahrukh Khan’s Jab Tak Hai Jaan, etc. Raj Kumar Hirani is a director of the present age. It had not been that difficult for him to get votes. His film The Three Idiots had done maximum business in bollywood films, that is 202 crores. As far as Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt are concerned it is a bit unfair for them to be voted at the same level as that of the modern directors. Raj Kapoor world famous films Barsaat, Awaara, Shree 420 were released more than 60 years ago. Guru Dutt’s films Aarpaar, Mrs. And Mrs 55, Pyaasa were released 60 years ago. Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt had shaped bollywood films and made them modern.The dream sequenes of both the directors had been a trendsetter. Other directors started filmmaking in the 1970s, learned the art of showing dream sequences from the films of Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt. The music in the films of both the giants was excellent. So the present generation might have not seen the majority of the films of the legendary directors Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt. So it is a credit that they are still in the first five best directors in the context of popularity.

Shankar Jaikishan is behind AR Rehman in historyindia.com polls.

In respect of music directors who composed music in last 100 years in Indian cinema AR Rehman is ruling the popularity category. At number two position is Shankar Jaikishan. AR Rehman has an advantage over Shankar Jaikishan in respect of the polls. AR Rehman had composed most of the music in recent films. This generation of viewers had watched the film Roja, Bombay, Taal, Ghajini, Yuvraaj, etc. Most of his films were released in the last 15 years. The viewers also had seen him winning filmfare awards one after the other. The present generation can easily vote in computer as they are internet friendly. But in case of Shankar Jaikishan, majority of their creations are more than 50 years old. In fact Jaikishan Dayabhai Panchal died in 1971. In that perspective it is great that still the musiclovers remember Shankar Jaikishan. The musical duo gave music in maximum numbers of films of Raj Kapoor, Rajender Kumar and Shammi Kapoor. All these actors had died. Even the other actors for whom Shankar Jaikishan had composed music like Joy Mukherjee, Pradip Kumar, Guru Dutt are no more there. Shankar Jaikishan’s compositions were during black and white era in films like Awara, Shree 420, Yahudi, Anari, when modern technology relating to recording of music was not developed. Even if they lose out to AR Rehman there is no even competition between Shankar Jaikishan and AR Rehman. Shankar Jaikishan can be compared with Naushad Ali, as the great composer composed music during 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Incidentally Naushad Ali is at number 4 position in the popularity chart. RD Burman is at number 3 Shankar Jaikishan has the record of composing music in the films of almost all the actors of 1950s and 1960s including Raj Kapoor in Sangam, Shammi Kapoor in Junglee, Rajender Kumar in Aarzoo, Shashi Kapoor in Kanyadan, Dilip Kumar in Yahudi, Raj Kumar in Laal Patthar, Bharat Bhushan in Basant Bahar, Guru Dutt in Saanjh Aur Sawera, Biswajeet in April Fool, Joy Mukherjee in Love in Tokyo, to name a few.

Shahrukh Khan leads the historyindia.com polls on 100 years of Indian Cinama.

The historyindia.com polls are going to ascertain the most popular personalities of Indian cinema. The poll is going on considering all the leading personalities in 100 years of Indian cinema. In the category of actors, Shahrukh Khan leads the polls. Amitabh Bacchan is at number 2 position. Aamir Khan is at No. 3 position. Dilip Kumar is at No. 4 position. Raj Kapoor is at No. 5 position. Shahrukh Khan is surely the most popular icon of the present 20 years. But the polling is a bit unfair in respect of the stars of the 1940s and 1950s. Most of Shahrukh Khan’s successful films are released in the last 10 years, films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gam, Don 2, Veer Zara. The new generation had seen those films and are knowingly voting for their popular icon. When it comes to Dilip Kumar or Raj Kapoor, most of their super hit films were released more than 50 years ago. The present generation hardly know those films. Their actual admirers, viewers who had seen Andaz, or Awaara, or Devdas either had grown old, or not that comfortable with online voting or operating the computers. Inspite of that Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor rank 4 and 5 respectively. That shows the immortal appeal of their films. Most of their films were released in black and white era. In fact Raj Kapoor’s films and Dilip Kumar’s film had taken Indian films beyond India and got appreciated in Russia, Germany and the Middle East countries. Their films showed class and still reached out before the markets. Those actors who followed them had got at least a path-bearer whom others could follow.Social issues were brought in films of Raj Kapoor like Awaara, or in films of Dilip Kumar like Naya Daur. Amitabh Bacchan had been a very popular icon of the 1970s and 1980s. But in today’s polling obviously Sharukh Khan fans will outnumber Amitabh Bacchan fans.

Ekta Kapoor, Konkona Sen Sharma stormed Zee Bangla Dance Bangla Dance Program.

Superstar Mithun Chakravarty called Ekta Kapoor, Konkona Sen Sharmaand Huma Qureshi in the program Zee Bangla Dance Bangla Dance on 20th April, 2013. The program is related to the dance competitions of child contestants. Mithun Chakravarty is the magician in the show. There are two other judges actress Ananya Chatterjee and Swastika Mukherjee who regularly adjudicate the performances of the contestants. Superstar Mithun Chakravaty allowed Ekta Kapoor to speak about her new film Ek Tha Daayan which had been released on 19th Aoril, 2013. Mithun gave a lot of importance to Ekta Kapoor and said that everyone should learn how to run a production house like Ekta Kapoor. He also said that being a friend of her father Jeetender, Mithun personally knew Ekta Kapoor for a long time. Ekta Kapoor told the story of the film Ek Tha Daayan. She said the story revolves around a magician in the film played by Imran Hashmi. There are spirits in the film. The characters played by Huma Qureshi and Konkona Sen Sharma depict them. Bengali actor Rajatavo Dutta had also played an important character in the film. There is a child also in the film. Ekta Kapoor did not want to tell the entire story and asked the audience to turn up in the theatres to see the film. In 2013 a number of spooky films had already been released. One of the examples are the film Aatma where Bipasha Basu and Nawazuddin Siddique played important characters. The film did not do great business. Konkona Sen Sharma said Mithun Chakravarty was the second hero, the actor with whom she had acted in the second film. From that time she knew him. Huma Qureshi also revealed that she was a big admirer of Mithun Chakavarty. They appreciated the child contestants and wondered how they could make the great expressions in the different dance numbers.

Dolly Basu, Rita Koiral and other stomed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program.

Actresses Dolly Basu, Rita Koiral, Swagata Mukherjee and Chaitali Chakravarty stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program. The sets of Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program caught fire some times back. The shooting continued in other studio and the program again revived the popularity. Rachana Banerjee brought actresses Dolly Basu, Rita Koiral, Swagata Mukherjee and Chaitali Chakravaty in the show on 19th April, 2013. Dolly Basu is a veteran actress of the serial Raashi. Swagata Mukherjee is both a singer and an actress very famous in the serial Swapath and Kanakanjali. Chaitali Chakravarty is a successful actress of the serial Swapath. Rita Koiral had acted for more than 20 years. She had acted in films and serials. In the second round, actor Koushik Banerjee came to ask musical questions. Rita Koiral sang a romantic song and danced with Koushik Banerjee. When Koushik Banerjee sang the song “phoolon ka taaronka” for her she said why did he make her a sister? Koushik Banerjee said as all the actresses played negative characters he feared them. Dolly Basu said her role was taken so seriously in villages in Bengal that sometimes she heard the audiene say if they get her they will bear her up. Chaitali Chakravarty danced and sang the song “tere hoto senese yaar chipkali saiyan fevicol se”. Swagata Mukherjee her own song. In the thirs and the fourth rounds, Rita Koiral answered the maximum number of questions. She said that it was an honour for her when director Aparna Sen once told her that she was also a fan of her acting. In the third round Swagata Mukherjee was asked to show the acting of Gabbar Singh in the film Sholay. She did very well. At the end Rita Koiral became Didi No. 1. Rachana Banerjee anchored the program very well and maintained the wit in the program while dealing with the celebrities.

Happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni.

Happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni on 20th April, 2013. She played very significant roles in the films of 90s. She was given prominent roles in successful bollywood films during that period. Rakesh Roshan gave a significant role to Mamta Kulkarni in the film Karan Arjun. She was the wife of Salman Khan in the film. Both Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan were shown to have two lives. In their first lives they were tortured and killed by Amrish Puri. In their second life they were born at other places but came to Rajasthan to stop the illegal activities of Amrish Puri and his men. Mamta Kulkarni and Kajol contributed with their respective roles along with Rakhee, who had the prominent part in the film. Although the film was related to superstitious beliefs, Rakesh Roshan succeeded in entertaining the audience and the film ended up being big hit. Mamta Kulkarni was cast opposite Salman Khan in the film Karan Arjun, while Kajol was cast opposite Shahrukh Khan. Mamta Kulkarni got the role of her lifetime in Raj Kumar Santoshi’s film China Gate. She was the relative of Om Puri who called him up to rescue the villagers from the rule of dacoits in the region. Om Puri was a retired major, who left the armed forces after one of their missions failed. Om Puri called all his friends who worked in the last mission, including Amrish Puri, Naseeruddin Shah, Danny, Tinu Anand, Jagdeep , etc., and formed a team to combat the dacoits. Mamta Kulkarni kept the retired military officers in her house and provided them food and amenities during their stay. The dacoits created pressure so that Mamta Kulkarni would have asked the military officers led by Om Puri to go way. She did not do so. The police office in that jurisdiction Paresh Rawal conspired with the dacoits and betrayed the military officers. But ultimately the military officers under the leadership of Om Puri succeeded in killing the dacoits and bringing peace within the village. The film was off-beat in nature and Mamta Kulkarni showed her acting skills in the film. Her other successful films also included Krantiveer, where she acted opposite Atul Agnihotri. Nana Patekar and Dimple Kapadia had the main roles in the action film, but Mamta Kulkarni showed her frustration after she came to know about her father being involved in the gang of lawbreakers who were responsible for riots and other destructive activities. The film was related to corruption existing in society which included the police officers, judges, the executive and politicians. After the late-90s all of sudden Mamta Kulkarni left bollywood films. Viewer remember her both in glamourous and non-glamourous roles. Now that she had attained age, she can contribute in character roles. The viewers expect her to make a comeback in recent bollywood films and entertain the viewers once again just like the way she entertained the viewers in the films of the 90s.

Moushami Chatterjee gave excellent interview in Zee Bangla Didi No. 1.

Romantic actress Moushami Chatterjee came and glorified Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program on 11th April, 2013. Rachana Banerjee invited her to share her experience with the participants of the show. She shared her experience in working with Aparna Sen in the new Bengali film Gainar Baksho. A number of other actresses are also acting with her in the film including Konkona Sen Sharma,Srabanti Chatterjee, Saswata Chatterjee, Paran Banerjee and others. The film will be released in April, 2013. Moushami Chatterjee explained to everyone the story of the film Gainar Baksho. She played the role of the widow who died and her ghost created problems for the next generations. She was possessive about the ornament box and also the ornaments. In the next generation when Konkona Sen Sharma got married and came to the house, Moushami Chatterjee’s ghost tortured her. The reasons were obvious. At the very early age Moushami Chatterjee became a widow. She could not wear the expensive ornaments which she would have been entitled to wear had her husband survived. She was asked to cut the hair short and wear white dress. All those irritation and frustration culminated into the anger which she had for the next generations. So her ghost expressed those frustrations to the new generations. Moushami Chatterjee was very witty. When Rachana Banerjee asked her to tell about a funny incident. She said when she acted in the first Bengali film for the first time in Parineeta, director Tarun Majumdar gave her role against her wishes. Everyone gave importance to Jui Choudhury in the film. When Jui Choudhury was asked for water and she replied saying she wanted one glass of water, Moushami Chatterjee told that she wanted 2 glasses of water. No one gave her even one glass of water. Rachana Banerjee wished her with all success in the film Gainar Baksho.

Sabitri Chatterjee spoke excellently on Suchitra Sen’s birthday.

Mahanayika (super actress) Suchitra Sen was remembered on her birthday on 5th April, 2013. After 1978, Suchitra Sen stopped acting in Bengali films. During the last 35 years she had not allowed any access of media in her house. ABP News covered a program on 5th April, 2013. Veteran Actress Sabitri Chatterjee was called in that program and a historian was called who kept contact with Suchitra Sen. Sabitri Chatterjee was very polite and spoke very highly about Suchitra Sen. She said there was only one hit pair of Bengal. It was Uttam Kumar Suchitra Sen. The viewers always wanted their onscreen romance. It did not mean that Sabitri Chatterjee and Uttam Kumar’s films did not do great business. Their films were super hit. But Suchitra Sen did not have any competitor. She shared an experience with Suchitra Sen during the shooting of film Grihadaha in 1967. She said whil Sabitri Chatterjee was applying her make up, Suchitra Sen called her in her room. She called her with the name Sabi. She was the only actress in Bengal who used to call Sabitri Chatterjee by that name. Suchitra Sen said before the mirror she dominated Bengali films with her eternal beauty but did not reach the level of excellence in acting to the extent of Sabitri Chatterjee. The historian gave reference to the house of Suchitra Sen in South Kolkata. She had embraced religion and found peace in doing puja and getting involved with RK Mission in different actvtities. She did not prefer to come before the media. But she had taken diksha under a maharaj of RK Mission. Sabitri Chatterjee also said that she was happy that Suchitra Sen did not accept the Dadasahab Phalke Award given to her when she was in her 80s. Sabitri Chatterjee said if awards are given to recipients at an age when don’t have the capacity to understand which award they are getting then the award makes no sense. Suchitra Sen had the courage to say that. Many people don’t have courage.

Suchitra Sen had been remembered on 6th April, 2013.

Legendary actress Suchitra Sen had been remembered on her 83rd birthday on 6th April, 2013. In Star Ananda Channel veteran actress Sabitri Chatterjee had been invited to speak about Suchitra Sen. She acted with the legend in many films like Annapurnar Mondir, Grihadaha, etc. Suchitra Sen started her career with the film Saat Number Qaidi in 1953 and ended up with the film Pranay Pasha in 1978. After that she retired from film acting. Within the span of 25 years she acted in 3 films opposite Uttam Kumar making the romantic pair immortal over the last 60 years. She also acted in bollywood films including Devdas opposite Dilip Kumar, Bombai Ka Babu opposite Dev Anand, Mamta opposite Dharmender and Ashok Kumar, Aandhi opposite Sanjeev Kumar, to name a few. Suchitra Sen had a tremendous combination with singer Geeta Dutt and their understanding both in Bengali films and bollywood films had created history during the golden age, that is the 50s and 60s. In the film Indrani, all the songs sung by Geeta Dutt for Suchitra Sen including “jhanak jhanak madhur badan”, “nir choto khoti nei”, “ogo sundoro”, etc., all became super hit. Suchitra Sen provided hit films one after the other with Uttam Kumar, during that age and Indrani also falls in that category. Even in films where Geeta Dutt had sung only one song for Suchitra Sen, even in those films, the songs had a great impact in the success of the films. The song in the Ajoy Kar’s epic film Harano Sur, in 1957, titled “tumi je amar” had a unique appeal for the audience. Uttam Kumar lost his memory due to meeting with an accident and Suchitra Sen sang the song a number of times in the film. It haunted the viewers and touched the souls of numerous admirers of Bengali films. Geeta Dutt’s song for Suchitra Sen also in the film Hospital also became extremely successful. Ashok Kumar acted opposite Suchitra Sen in the film and the song was “ei shundar sharnali sondhae”. In bollywood films, SD Burman used Geeta Dutt for Suchitra Sen in the film Bombai Ka Babu. Dev Anand acted opposite Suchitra Sen in the film and all the songs were super hits. The main songs included “dekhne me bhola hai”, “pa ma ga”, etc., out of which some of them were duet songs with Mohammad Rafi and their romantic by every musical standard. As Suchitra Sen made memorable contribution in bollywood films for more than 30 years, a lot of legendary singers contributed for her during that period. There were hit songs sung by Sandhya Mukherjee in landmark films like Sagarika, Pathe Holo Deri, Sriti Tuku Thak, Uttar Falguni, Bipasha, etc. At the same time in bollywood films Lata had sung landmark songs for Suchitra Sen including “rahe na rahe hum” composed by Roshan in the film Mamta, “is mor se jate hai”, “tere bina zindagi me shikwa” composed by RD Burman in the film Aandhi. Even then Geeta Dutt was probably the only singer who sang songs for Suchitra Sen both in the Bengali films as well as the bollywood films. As Suchitra Sen’s hindi films were restricted to only Devdas, Champakali, Musafir, Bombai Ka Babu, Mamta, Aandhi, etc, Geeta Dutt got a limited scope of contributing in Suchitra Sen’s hindi films. Even then, the songs are still remembered by many generations and for those reasons the films should also be preserved. It is a pity that Suchitra Sen had gone behind the purdah. The media people cannot approach her to get interview. The films of Suchitra Sen should be preserved and restored.

Rachana Banerjee’s Didi No. 1 Set was burst to flames.

Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program was running in Zee Bangla Channel for a long period of time. It was a very popular show. On Friday, 5th April, 2013, the set of Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Channel in Dassani Studio in Tollygunge caught fire. Rachana Banerjee herself was shooting inside the studio. All the technicians were there inside the studio. It is a very unfortunate event. The fire-brigade came and brought the situation under control. But huge damage was caused by the fire. Rachana Banerjee was sent to hospital. She got traumatized with the situation. No person died, but many were injured. The studio had been sealed for some time. All the news channels in Bengal namely Kolkata TV, Star Ananda showed the Dassani Studio after the damage took place. It is a huge loss for the program Zee Bangla Didi No. 1. Other artists who were working in other studios came and get interview before the news channels. Biswanath Basu said he was shooting in another studio. The damage could have happened in any other sets as well. Actress Kalyani Mondol came and said that the Studios of Tollygunge should have better fire evacuation systems. The actors, actresses and technicians work within the studio with risk of life. If they are committed to entertainment of the audience then the studio owners should also care for the lives of the artists working within the studio. The viewers expect that the damage is recovered and the Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program continue in near future. The State Government of West Bengal should come forward and help the cuase so that Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 program continues in the same way as before.

Sneha Chatterjee stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program

Actresses Sneha Chatterjee, Sujata Da, Suchandima Sen and Indrakshi Nag stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program on 5th April, 2013. The anchor Rachana Banerjee called all of them on Friday. Sneha Chatterjee became Sneha Chatterjee Bhowmick after marriage. She has acted both in Bengali films as well as serials like Subanalata. In the first round the contestants were asked to eat panipuris or phuckas within short time. Sneha Chatterjee topped the group. All the contestants Suchandima Sen, Sujata Daa, Sneha Chatterjee Bhoumick and Indrakshi Nag agreed that their passion towards films and acting had brought them to the present profession. In the second round actor Biswanath asked musical questions. Sneha Chatterjee danced in the song “mai to raste se jar aha tha” which was picturised in the film Hero No. 1, where Govinda and Karishma Kapoor played the main roles. Biswanath said he was invited in the marriage of Sneha Chatterjee while Rachana Banerjee was not invited. In the third round Suchandrima Sen was asked to act out the song “chahe koi mujh jungle kahen” from the film Junglee. She showed the dance steps of Shammi Kapoor. The other contestants identified it and got points for that. In the fourth rounds relating to riddles Sneha Chatterjee Bhowmick asked the maximum number of questions and became Didi No. 1. In the last round which was rapid fire round, Sneha Chatterjee Bhowmick could not answer the question properly otherwise she would have won all the prizes.

Happy birthday to Jaya Prada

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Jaya Prada on 3rd April, 2013. Jaya Prada was considered as one of the most gifted actresses of bollywood films of the 80s. She shook the Indian audience with her dancing skills in the film Shankaravaranam. In the late 70s her film Sargam opposite Rishi Kapoor became superhit with a brilliant story and excellent songs. She played the role of a deaf and dumb girl who had immense dancing callibre which was unearthed by Rishi Kapoor in the film. The film created sensation in both in North India and South India. The film was released in 1978 and did brilliant business. The music composed by LP was brilliant by every musical standard and Lata and Rafi were sublime in the songs “dafliwale dafli baja”, “koel boli”, “ramjiki nikli sawari”, etc. In an age of action pact films of Big B, Vinod Khanna, Sargam being a romantic film with Rishi Kapoor and Jaya Prada did excellent business. From that time Jaya Prada became the no. 1 bollywood actress and acted opposite all the leading stars of bollywood. Her other superhit films include Sharabi, opposite Big B, Akhree Rasta opposite Big B, Kamchor opposite Rakesh Roshan, to name a few. She acted in a number of films opposite Jeetender as well and all of those films were successful. At that time she got stiff competition from Sri Devi, another South Indian actress who had both acting talent and dancing talent. The films where both of them acted together, the viewers were confused to choose between the two. In Akhree Rasta Jaya Prada did equally well like Sri Devi. In the 90s, also Jay Prada’s films especially opposite Big B did good business, like Indrajeet or Aaj Ka Arjun. In those films while Big B concentrated on action sequences, Jaya Prada played the romantic part to perfection. With the emergence of new actresses in bollywood films in the 90s like Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla, Jaya Prada faded away from the bollywood industry. She joined politics and had been the parliamentarian for more than a decade. Besides she had played important roles in tamil films and other South Indian films over the years. A number of cinema halls in Mysore and Bangalore were named after her. In 2010, she had been expelled from the Samajwadi Party by Mulayam Singh Yadav along with other primary members. That can give her some time to devote in bollywood films as well. The viewers expect her to make a comeback in bollywood films in character roles as many of them feel that she still has a lot of acting left in her.

Alpona Goswami stormed Zee Bangla Rannaghar Program.

Eminent Bengali actress Alpona Goswami stormed Zee Bangla Rannaghar Program on 2nd April, 2013. She was a very gorgeous actress of the 1980s. She acted in Tapan Sinha’s super hit film Baidurja Rahasya. The film was released in mid-80s. Tapas Pal, Bosonto Choudhury and Moon Moon Sen were the other lead actors and actresses in the film. She also acted in the film Bidrohi opposite Ranjit Mullick and Santu Mukherjee. She cooked pepper chicken in the show. It was a simple chicken dish where onion is not used. She used curd, black pepper and other ingredients on chicken. She had settled in New York, USA. Her daughter has started yoga school in Vienna. Her other daughter and son also had grown up in New York, USA. Sudipa Mukherjee asked her if she wanted to make a comeback in Bengali film who will be the actor opposite whom she would have acted. She answered that Ranjit Mullick would have been the actor. She was very comfortable with Ranjit Mullick. Then Sudipa Mukherjee asked her who was her favourite director who worked with her. She said both Dinen Gupta and Tapan Sinha were great directors for her. She said she missed the life of Bengali actress in USA. She also said that actress Moon Moon Sen was her great friend. Still both of them had great relationship. Whenever Alpona Goswami came to Kolkata then she was invited by Moon Moon Sen. This time also she was being invited.

Ajay Devgan’s Himmatwala will do 100 crores business.

In the recent years, Ajay Devgan is the next most popular star after Salman Khan. In the recent past, 3 of his films crossed 100 crores business; namely Singham, Bol Bacchan and Son of Sardar. Even his film Himmatwala that has been released on 29th March, 2013 will also cross 100 crores. In 3 days it has collected more than 35 crores in India. Sajid Khan had directed the film and Vashu Bhagnani and Siddharth Roy Kapoor produced the film. It was made with the same story as that of original Himmatwala released in 1983. Jeetender and Sri Devi played the main roles in that film. Ajay Devgan and Tamanna played the main roles in this film. Sajid Wajid composed the music of the film. In the film it was shown that Ritesh Deshmukh was killed in an accident. His friend Ajay Devgan who was a street fighter came to his village Ramnagar to take care of his mother Zarina Wahab and sister Leena Jumani. The entire village was under the tyranny of Mahesh Manjarekar. His brother –in-law Paresh Rawal was also a curse for the village. Leena fell in love with Paresh Rawal’s son Adhyayan Suman. Ajay Devgan agreed to get her married to Suman. Paresh Rawal started torturing her. Ajay Devgan married Mahesh Manjarekar’s daughter Tamanna and blackmailed him to return the land of the landless which he captured with force. At the end of the film Ajay Devgan fought against the men of Mahesh Manjarekar and became the sarpanch of the village. The fight sequences were good. Ajay Devgan even fought with tiger. The dance sequences were not at par with the Jeetender Sri Devi standard. The songs “taki o taki” and “naino me sajna” were kept same in the new film. Amit Kumar, Mika Singh and Shreya Ghoshal sang the songs. Tamanna did well in her debut film. Mahesh Manjarekar, Zarina Wahab and Paresh Rawal were impressive. Ajay Devgan was extremely charishmatic. Due to his own brilliance the film will do business of more than 100 crores. Viewers should watch it.

Happy birthday to Ajay Devgan.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Ajay Devgan on 2nd April, 2013. He had contributed a lot in bollywood films in the last 20 years. He started his career with the superhit film Phool Aur Kaante. As his father Veeru Devgan had a great background of training actors for action sequences and Ajay Devgan started his career with the latent quality of an action hero. The action sequences in Phool Aur Kaante were excellent. Also the music of the film became hit with songs like “premi pagal awara”, “tumko milne ko dil karta hai”, etc., sung by Kumar Shanu and Alka Yagnik, which were picturized on Ajay Devgan and Madhu. The other successful films of Ajay Devgan include Ishq, Dilwale, Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, etc. In Ishq, he acted with Amir Khan, Juhi Chawla and Kajol, and contributed well in the comedy sequences of the film. The film was based on the story of affairs between rich and poor people and the fathers of Juhi Chawla and Ajay Devgan never wanted to get their children married to poor people. The music of the film was very successful with songs like “ishq hua”, “humko tumse pyar hai”, etc. Ajay Devgan also acted in very serious films like Raincoat opposite Aishwarya Rai, which was directed by Rituporno Ghosh, Zakhm, Gangaajal , etc. He had created an identity of a reserve actor and that image helped him in getting landmark roles for the last 10 years. His other successful films include Golmaal and Golmaal Returns. In both Golmaal and Golmaal Returns Ajay Devgan acted with other comedians like Arshad Warsi and Tushaar Kapoor and maintained the rhythm of the film. Tushar Kapoor played the role of a deaf and dumb character in the film and at the end of the film got the job, the girl for marriage, as against the interests of his other friends. Ajay Devgan married successful actress Kajol and both had acted together in a number of films like Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, Ishq, You, Me and Hum, etc., most of which were successful. Even Ajay Devgan’s role of a ghost in the film Kaal opposite Lara Dutta, John Abraham and others were well appreciated by viewers. His performance in patriotic roles like that of Shahid Bhagat Singh also requires special mention. His film All the best did brilliant business in 2010. Although the credit for the success of the comedy film goes collectively to the effort of Sanjay Dutt, Fardeen Khan, Bipasha Basu and others, but Ajay Devgan’s anticipation of viewers accepting comedy stories require appreciation. In the following year also he had acted in the comedy film Atithi Tum Kab Jayoge with Konkona Sen Sharma and Paresh Rawal. He also acted in other challenging films like Aakrosh with Bipasha Basu and Akshay Khanna, Once Upon A Time in Mumbai, to name a few. 2011 had been a successful year. Ajay Devgan’s Singham had done business more than 100 crores and ranked among the 5 big hits of the year. In action films he had shown his skills over the years. The expectation from Ajay Devgan had just grew and grew. 2013 had been an excellent year for Ajay Devgan. 2 of his films Bol Bacchan and Son of Sardar did business of more than 100 crores. In 2013 his film Himmatwala in the first 3 days had done business of 30 crores. He is hoping that the film will also cross the 100 crore club. The viewers expect Ajay Devgan to continue his good work both as an actor and also producer, director in the years to come.