Romantic songs and contribution of Geeta Dutt in Bengali films.

Geeta Dutt was probably the most successful playback singer of bollywood films after Lata Mangeshkar in the 50s and 60s. She had sung for all the leading singers of the period including Madhubala, Meena Kumari, Wahida Rehman and others. Geeta Dutt was extremely successful in Bengali films as well. Her song “tumi je amar” sung in the film Harano Sur for Suchitra Sen became the greatest hit of the 50s. The song was played in Uttam Kumar’s film Harano Sur a number of times by the director Ajoy Kar and was used to bring back the memory of Uttam Kumar who lost it in an accident. Geeta Dutt’s songs “ogo shundara”, “jhanak jhanak madhur badhon baaje” and “nir choto khoti nei” composed by Nochiketa Ghosh and picturised on Suchitra Sen in the film Indrani stormed the bollywood viewers in 1958. The film became super hit and songs became timeless hits. Suchitra Sen and Geeta Dutt combination again struck gold in the film Hospital. The song “ei shundor sharnali shondhay” became super hit in the film. Very Geeta Dutt suited Suchitra Sen as well as Sandhya Mukherjee’s voice. Both Geeta Dutt and Sandhya Mukherjee used to be considered the most popular singers of the golden age, the 50s and 60s. Geeta Dutt’s other hit songs in Bengali films include “amar duti chokhe” and “ei mayabi tithi” sung in Uttam Kumar’s film Sonar Horin. The songs were picturised on the actress Namita Sinha. Geeta Dutt’s song “kacher chirir chotay” composed by Sudhin Dasgupta and picturised on Sabitri Chatterji became super hit in 1958. It was song in Agragami’s epic film Dakharkara where Kali Banerjee played the role of his life. Geeta Dutt sang many memorable hit songs for Mala Sinha in Bengali films. One of such songs included “nishi raat banka chaand akashe” in Uttam Kumar’s film Prithibi Amare Chay. The other song include “banshi bujhi shei sure aar baajbe na” sung in the film Sathi Hara with Mala Sinha and Uttam Kumar. The other films where Geeta Dutt made significant contribution included Lukochuri, Modhyorater Tara, etc. Geeta Dutt’s songs should be preserved and restored.

Melody in Guru Dutt's films and combination with Mohammad Rafi.

Rafi became a living legend in the mid-50s after dominating bollywood films over ten years and singing for nearly all the giant productions and leading actors of bollywood. He had very strong combination with thinking actor Guru Dutt. Guru Dutt had created his image in bollywood films in different categories being a thoughtful director and producer, dynamic actor, good choreographer. One of the numerous reasons for which his films became super hit in the 50s and 60s include the brilliant songs sung by Rafi during the golden age. Rafi’s songs in Guru Dutt’s Aar Paar, composed by OP Nayyar became super hit. It was followed by Mr and Mrs. 55 released in 1955. Songs picturized on both Guru Dutt and Johnny Walker had melody and sweetness. Rafi’s songs like “dil pe kiya aisa jaadu”, “muhobbat karlo aji karlo”, “sun sun sun sun zaalima”, composed by OP Nayyar, created landmark in the mid-50s and Rafi emerged as the greatest singer of bollywood films during that time. The same combination of Guru Dutt, OP Nayyar and Rafi gave everlasting hit in the film 12 O Clock with songs like “mai kho gaya”. When Guru Dutt used SD Burman for composing songs in the film Pyaasa and Kaagaz Ka Phool, Rafi was used brilliantly for the legendary music of those films. Both the films won national and international awards and remain a landmark in the field of story-telling. Rafi’s songs “sar jot era chakrae” picturised on Johnny Walker and “hum aapke aankho me” and “yeh mahalon yeh takhton yeh taajon ki duniya” picturised on Guru Dutt had emotions, passions, comedy, tragedy everything embedded in them. Rafi’s duet combination with Geeta Dutt was bolstered in the film. The lyrics were outstanding as well. The films marked the best music given by SD Burman in his entire lifetime. Guru Dutt can boast himself to have given lips in one of Rafi’s best ghazals sung in the history of bollywood films titled “chaudavi ka chaand”. Guru Dutt picturised the song sequence with colour, showing his passionate relationship with Wahida Rehman in the film Chaudavi Ka Chand. Ravi’s music in the film showed the pardanashin culture of muslims in India during the early 60s. Rafi also sang songs for Guru Dutt in the film Saanjh Aur Sawera, composed by Shankar Jaikishan. The title song “yehi hai who saanjh aur sawera” sung by Rafi became very popular. Meena Kumari balanced the powerful performance of Guru Dutt in the film. The other films where Rafi had contributed for Guru Dutt include Bharosa where Ravi composed melodious tunes including “yeh jhuki jhuki naina” picturised on Guru Dutt and Asha Parekh. Guru Dutt’s music in the film Baharen Phir Bhi Aayegi composed by OP Nayyar, created sensation in the mid -60s. It was a tragedy, that Guru Dutt died before the release of the film and could not see the success of the film. The songs sung by Rafi and picturised on Dharmender mesmerized the audience and still haunts people all over the world. One of those brilliant songs include “aap ki haseen rukh me aaj naya nur hai, mera dil machal gaya to mera kya kasoor hai”. The uniqueness of Guru Dutt’s relationship with Rafi lies in the fact that whether the composer was OP Nayyar or Shankar Jaikishan or SD Burman or Ravi, the music composed for whom had philosophical thoughts embedded in them and Rafi gave expression to the mesmerizing lyrics of evergreen tunes which had become immortal over a period of time. The films and the songs should be preserved and restored.

The majestic romantic pair of Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi.

Uttam Kumar in the 50s and 60s acted opposite different actresses, some who were beautiful, like Sumitra Debi, Suchitra Sen, Sharmila Tagore, etc., while others who had wide ranging acting conceptions like Manju Dey, Sabitri Chatterji and others. Arundhuti Debi was one of the highly educated characters whose qualifications were expressed in the characters she had played in a long career spanning over 25 years. With Uttam Kumar Arundhuti Debi acted in approximately 8 films including Bokul, Shiulibari, Jhinder Bandi, Jotugriha, Nabajanma, Manmayi Girls School, Pushpodhonu and Bicharak. While in Bicharak, she expressed the feelings of a confused sister whose elder sister was married to Uttam Kumar. Uttam Kumar was attracted to Arundhuti Debi and when fire broke out in the house and his first wife Deepti Ray required his help, he declined to help her and allowed her to die. A similar type of case was adjudicated by Uttam Kumar when he was a judge, when Chabi Biswas, the Public Prosecutor talked about the liability of the accused who could have saved the life of his brother, but he did not do so. Uttam Kumar was asked by Arundhuti Debi to examine his own conscience about his liability towards Deepti Roy in Prabhat Mukherjee’s classic film. Arundhuti Debi and Uttam Kumar showed their comedy conception in the film Manmayi Girl’s School, where they had to pretend to be spouses, because their landlord rented his house to them only on the condition of marriage. But their playacting resulted in an affair with one another. In Pushpadhanu, Arundhuti Debi brought up her husband’s child after he deserted her and got attached with Uttam Kumar who understood the feelings of an established dancer who got recognition but was a loner. Jhinder Bandi was made with the historical touch of Prisoner of Zenda and Tapan Sinha astonished the viewers with his treatment in the Indian context. The royal style of living of Rajputs was well demonstrated by both Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi. Shiulibari was directed by Pijus Bose, who utilized the talent of Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti in a story based on the life of villagers of West Bengal. Jotugriha, directed by Tapan Sinha, was probably the most successful film of Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi. In that film lack of begetting a child led to disharmony of the married couple. Both Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi got separated and even after separation never lost the respect of each other. The story ends with both the spouses travelling in to trains which crossed each other. The level of performance of both Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi, was such that there were no Indian actor or actress who could match the standard of performance. Uttam Kumar was the greatest superstar of Bengali cinema and became one-man industry in the 70s. Critics argue that no Indian star other than Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor had the individual charishma which Uttam Kumar had and if his Hindi films clicked he could have created serious competition for the stars of 60s. But Arundhuti Debi’s films with Uttam Kumar were so rich in literature, script and performance that critics argue that the combination addressed the concerns of intellectual audience of the country more than any other combination. The films should be restored for their aesthetic value.

Happy birthday to Manna Dey.

The viewers of bollywood films and music lovers all across the country wish happy birthday to Manna Dey on 1st May 2013. Born on 1st May, 1919, he had contributed in bollywood films for more than 70 years with his baritone voice. He had brilliant classical training and adorned bollywood music with versatile talent. He was awarded the dadasaheb phalke award for his immense contribution to music in India. Manna Dey learned music from Ustad Aman Ali Khan and Ustad Abdul Rahman Khan. He stormed bollywood films with super hit songs in Raj Kapoor’s film Shree 420 in 1955, with immortal songs composed by Shankar Jaikishan like “ramaiya vasta maiyya”, “pyar hua ikraar hua”, “mur mur ke na dekh”. During the golden Manna Dey was probably the only singer other than Mohammad Rafi who had been used by all the leading composers of bollywood music including Shankar Jaikishan in Basant Bahar, the song being “sur na saje”, Madanmohan in Dekh Kabira Roya, the song being “kaun aya mere man ke sware”, Roshan in Dil Hi To Hai, the song being “laga chunari me daag”, SD Burman in Meri Surat Teri Ankhen, the song being “pucho na kaise”, to name a few. Manna Dey had a very sweet relationship with Sudhin Dasgupta. He was used by almost all the leading composers of Bengal namely Anil Bagchi, Nochiketa Ghosh, Salil Choudhury and others. But probably his westernized andaz was used to the limit by Sudhin Dasgupta. Sudhin Dasgupta used Manna Dey in Uttam Kumar’s film Goli Theke Rajpoth with the song “lag lag lag lag bhelkir khela”. Manna Dey’s songs “ami agantuk” and “ke prothom kache esechi” composed by Sudhin Dasgupta in Uttam Kumar’s film Shankhabela created sensation in Bengali celluloid in 1966. Manna Dey’s songs “ami kon pothe je choli” and “bachao ke acho” in Uttam Kumar’s film Choddobeshi became super hit as well. In the 70s, Manna Dey’s songs “esechi ami esechi”, “lekha porata shikhe phele” and “paye paye joriye rakho” in Uttam Kumar’s film Har Mana Har created sensation as well. Uttam Kumar gave the lips of his lifetime in the film Har Mana Har. While major success of Sudhin Dasgupta came in Uttam Kumar’s films, he made major contribution in Soumitra Chatterji’s films as well. The songs “ei shohor theke aro anek dure”, “hoyto tomari jonyo”, “jibone ki pabona” in the film Teen Bhubaner Pare, composed by Sudhin Dasgupta and sung by Manna Dey showed the westernized orchestration of the giant composer. Sudhin Dasupta’s songs in Soumitra’s films Prothom Kodom Phul and Bosonto Bilaap were equally successful. Manna Dey’s all round musical skills were used to perfection in these films. Even the song “ogo tomar sesh bichare asay” sung by Manna Dey in bayul andaz in Kali Banerjee’s legendary film Dak Horkora, and composed by Sudhin Dasgupta made the viewers speechless. Manna Dey sang many numbers of solo numbers as basic discs under the compositions of Sudhin Dasgupta. One of the notable songs included “ami taar thikana rakhini”. The songs of Sudhin Dasgupta and Manna Dey combination should be preserved and restored. Music-lovers wish Manna Dey to continue singing till his last day of life.

Happy birthday to dancing queen Madhuri Dixit.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to beauty queen and dancing queen Madhuri Dixit on 15th May, 2013. She ruled bollywood films in the late 80s and 90s. In fact after her retirement of films no single actress of bollywood films could be associated with the number one position. In 2013, for celebrating 100 years of Indian cinema when polling was conducted by History TV, amongst actresses Madhuri Dixit received the maximum number of votes. From Tezaab, she dethroned Sri Devi from the number one position and created sensation in bollywood. Her dance performance in the song “ek do teen” in Tezaab, surprised the viewers. Her pair with Anil Kapoor was well accepted by the viewers. The hit films of the immortal pair include Ram Lakhan, Khel, Jeevan Ek Sunghursh, Zindagi Ek Jua, Parinda, etc. In the late 90s, she proved herself in every type of film and was cast by different directors and producers. The successful pair had produced both commercial masala films like Ram Lakhan directed by Subhash Ghai, and also off-beat films like Parinda, which was made for the intellectual audience. Sanjay Dutt and Madhuri Dixit stormed bollywood with romantic performance in the film Saajan. It was the musical blockbusters of early 90s which shook the industry. All the songs of the film were hit including “jiye to jiye kaise”, “mera dil bhi kitna paagal hai”, “mai shayar hoon”, etc. Madhuri Dixit was considered the best dancer of the country at that time. Even her performances in the other films opposite Sanjay Dutt were also impressive including Thanedaar, Khalnayak and Mahanta. In off-beat films like Nana Patekar’s Prahar and Parinda, Prakash Jha’s Mrityudand, her performance impressed the intellectual audience. She acted in those films with hardly any make up and still created her impression. She received the filmfare award for the best actress a number of times. Viewers remember her notable performance in the film Beta opposite Anil Kapoor. She fought against her mother-in –law to get justice for her husband. Her other hit films include Dil opposite Amir Khan, Hum Aapke Hai Kaun opposite Salman Khan, Aarzoo opposite Akshay Kumar, Koyla and Dil To Paagal Hai opposite Shahrukh Khan, to name a few. In fact, her film Hum Aapke Hai Kaun, opposite Salman Khan had remained as one of the greatest blockbusters of all times. She became such a phenomenon in the mid-90s, that the producers associated the success of the film with her more than the heroes of those films. In Raj Kumar Santoshi’s Lajja, in a multi-starrer film Madhuri Dixit was not cast opposite the leading actors like Jackie Shroff, or Anil Kapoor, yet her performance stands out as one of the best performance of the film. Her womanhood in the film attracted every type of audience. Also her performance in crime-thrillers like 100 days attracted viewers. It was a murder mystery, where Jackie Shroff, the boyfriend of Madhuri killed her sister Moonmoon Sen. Madhuri Dixit expressed the anxiety and horror in the film to perfection. Even her performance opposite Anil Kapoor in the film Pukar requires special mention. Anil Kapoor got national award for the best actor for the performance in the film. It was a film related to patriotism and Madhuri Dixit was probably the only actress in bollywood who could match Anil Kapoor in his struggle against terrorists. She acted in few films few year back like Aaja Nachle, but the films did not create the same magic as that of the 80s and 90s. Last year she judged the dance competition held in Private Channel in India. She came from USA and gave tips to the different participants including Shekhar Suman, Ankita Lokhunde and others. She also attended the filmfare awards. After judging the program she returned back to USA. Madhuri Dixit attended some of the award functions later on. All the superstars of the present period like Hrithik Roshan appreciated Madhuri Dixit. Shahrukh Khan danced with Madhuri Dixit in one of the award shows. Priyanka Chopra dedicated certain dance numbers to Madhuri Dixit in the same show. Viewers consider her as the best actress of the last 30 years and want her to make a comeback in character roles in future.

Tapan Sinha did great photography in the film Sabuj Diper Raja.

Director Tapan Sinha was sublime in the film Sabuj Diper Raja. The film was made especially for children. Tapan Sinha experimented with Sunil Ganguly’s detective stories relating to Kakababu. In the film, Samit Bhanja played the role of Kakababu. They travelled in a ship from Kolkata to Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Smuggler Panja employed Ramen Roy Choudhury, Biplab Chatterjee and Kalyan Chatterjee to steal a magnetic stone in one of the islands of Andaman. They travelled in the same ship. Samit Bhanja took his nephew Santu with him. In Andaman, Arun Mukherjee came to attend Samit Bhanja. When a steamer was booked to go to one of the islands, Samit Bhanja jumped from it and swamp towards the island. One of his legs was disabled and that was why he walked on crutches. There he saw one of the Bengali freedom fighters talking with the jarowa tribe. The Bengali was send by the British Government to Andaman for swadeshi activities, then he ran and settled in the islands. He stayed there for another 30 years. Panja told his men to get the magnetic stone, which always shed light, but the magnet attracted Ramen and he died due to the fire. At the end the police department came, Panja’s men were arrested and Samit Bhanja returned back with Santu to Kolkata. The freedom fighter became the king of the island, and that was why he used to be called Sabuj Diper Raja. He never wanted to return back to India. Tapan Sinha did excellent shooting in the exotic locations of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Probably Tapan Sinha did shoot the locations in the different islands of Andaman and Nicobar Islands namely Barathanda Island, Neil Island, Ross Island and Port Blair. All these islands are very unique and colourful. The performance of Samit Bhanja, Arun Mukherjee, Biplab Chatterjee, Kalyan Chatterjee and others were excellent. The film should be preserved.

Happy birthday to Rajesh Roshan.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rajesh Roshan on 24th May, 2013. Being the son of Roshan Lal Nagrath, Rajesh Roshan had a great task of matching the great performance of his father as a composer. He was born in 1955. Although his compositions did not have the classical touch, he composed catchy tunes which attracted the attention for the viewers. He received the filmfare award for the best composer for his brilliant composition in the film Julie in the mid-70s. He composed excellent music in Rishi Kapoor’s film Aap Ke Diwane. Rishi Kapoor, Rakesh Roshan and Tina Munnim were the lead performers in the film. All the songs sung by Mohammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar were super hit including the songs “tumko kush dekhkar”, “aap ke diwane hai”, etc. He gave good music in Big B’s film Yaarana. Kishore Kumar’s song “chukar meri manko” became big hit. From the 1990s, he concentrated more on composing music in his brother’s films, that is Rakesh Roshan’s film. All the songs of the film Karan Arjun became super hit including “suraj ki peheli kiran se”, “bhangra bole”, etc. The film also became super hit. The music that he composed in Hrithik Roshan’s films became landmark hits. All the songs of Kahona Pyar Hai, were super hit including “pyar ki kashti me”, “haseeno ki mehfil”, etc. All the songs of the film Koi Mil Gaya became super hit including the title song “koi mil gaya”. All the songs of the film Krissh became super hit including “dil na liya”, “chori chori chupke chupke”, etc. He also won the filmfare award for the best music director for the composition of music in the film Kahona Pyar Hai in 2000. In 2010, the viewers expected good performance from Rajesh Roshan as well for the film Kites. It had been produced by Rakesh Roshan with Hrithik Roshan playing the lead role. Always when the dream combination had worked together they had created magic. Although the music was appreciated the film could not do good business due to use of Spanish which was not understandable to the common masses. In 2013, the viewers are anxiously waiting for the combination of Rajesh Roshan, Rakesh Roshan and Hrithik Roshan to fire in the film Krissh 2. The first part was super hit. The second part has huge expectations. The viewers expect grand performance from Rajesh Roshan, Rakesh Roshan and Hrithik Roshan whenever they work together again.

Happy birthday to Pooja Bedi.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Pooja Bedi, the daughter of legendary actor Kabir Bedi on 11th May, 2013. She was born in a star family with her mother Pratima Bedi being a classical dancerand father being an established actor. Although she came from an acting family as Kabir Bedi had experience of performing in Hollywood films as well, her contribution in bollywood films had not been that substantial. Her film Vishkanya in the early part of her career was based on the story related to snakes. In Indian films fantasies based on the life of snakes had amazed the viewers in the past. The film Nagin in the mid-70s, with Reena Roy, Jeetender, Mumtaz and others, did fantastic business. So Pooja Bedi was lucky to start her career with such films. The film was well appreciated by the audience. Later on her film with Amir Khan, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander, did fantastic business. The film was based on teenage romance. Amir Khan always had a special place in the minds of viewers as his romantic appeal always attracted the female audience right from the release of the film Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. Pooja Bedi probably had given her best. Pooja Bedi’s role of a teenage girl did fit the requirement of the story and the film. All the songs in the film became successful including the song “pehla nasha, pehla khumar” sung by Udit Narayan. Viewers of different tastes appreciated the film. Her other notable films included Aatank Hi Aatank and Lootere. She was very impressive in Mahesh Bhatt’s film Phir Teri Kahani Yaad Ayee. It was a film related to human relationship and Pooja Bedi’s performance in a supporting role was appreciated by the critics. She was as impressive as Pooja Bhatt and Rahul Roy in the film. In the late 90s, all of a sudden she faded away from the industry. But she continued to appear in television shows. She was the anchor of the TV shows Not Just Page 3 and Just Pooja in Zoom TV. These programs became very popular in the years when they were telecast. In the following period she even participated as contestant in TV shows like Jhalak Dikhlaja in Sony TV, Heart Beat, Mum Tum or Hum, Jodi Kamaal Ki, Nach Baliye, etc., in Star TV, also Fear Factor – Khatron Ki Khiladi in Colors. The viewers expect her make a comeback in bollywood films in the years to come.

Biswajeet and Sharmila were brilliant in the film Yeh Raat Phir Na Aayegi.

The film Yeh Raat Phir Na Aayegi was released in 1966. It was a crime-thriller film. Director Brij directed the film. OP Nayyar composed the music of the film. HDM Arora produced the film. In the film Prithviraj Kapoor was a Professor who was interested to unearth historical truth through excavation activities. He discovered an idol which was 2000 years old. His daughter Mumtaz and student Sailesh Kumar witnessed the idol. From that time Sailesh Kumar thought of a plan. Biswajeet Chatterjee, the son of a rich person was engaged with Mumtaz. It was written in the will of Biswajeet’s father, that if he died after marriage all his property would go to his wife. So if Biswajeet married Mumtaz and thereafter died the property would have gone to her. Sailesh Kumar would have taken the property from her. Mumtaz was also involved in the conspiracy. They compelled Sharmila Tagore to tell a false story to Biswajeet that she was an old dancer, 2000 years old. Her soul had been roaming around. She wanted Biswajeet to jump from a cliff and die and then get united with Sharmila. At the end of the film Sharmila Tagore told the truth. Biswajeet had a tussle with Sailesh Kumar and the police came and arrested both Sailesh Kumar and Mumtaz. Prithviraj Kapoor was surprised to find his own daughter Mumtaz involved in the conspiracy. The film did well and one of the reasons of its success lied on the romantic music composed by OP Nayyar. The songs were written by Shamshur Huda Bihari. Rafi’s song “aap ko maine meri jaan muhobbat ki hai”, “phir miloge kabhi is baat ka waada karlo” and Asha Bhosle’s song “yehi wo jagaah hai” had haunting effect. OP Nayyar’s western andaz was intact in the film. Biswajeet and Sharmila did a great job. The suspense was unfolded at the end of the film. The viewers thought Sharmila Tagore was a ghost. The film and the songs should be preserved.

Feluda Sabyasachi Chakrvarty stormed Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program.

Sabyasachi Chakravarty came in the Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program on 6th May, 2013. He was invited as guest judge. Paran Banerjee and Rajatavo Dutta were the other judges. When Mir Afsar Ali asked Sabyasachi Chakravarty about the next film in the Feluda Series, he replied that he had requested director Sandip Ray to select a new Feluda. Sabyasachi Chakravarty is aging and he want another actor who is younger and suit the character of Feluda. Paran Banerjee rejected that plea and said that Sabyasachi Chakravarty looked smart and could continue portraying the detective character for more number of years. Sabyasachi Chakravarty talked about his new film where he played another detective character. It was written by writer Samaresh Majumdar. Sabyasachi Chakravarty had acted in many films of Sandip Ray where the character Prodosh Mitra or Feluda was involved. Some of the successful films where Sabyasachi Chakravarty acted included Gorosthan Sabdhan, Bombaiyer Bombete, Baksho Rahasyo, Tintoretor Jishu, to name a few. Sabyasachi Chakravarty had acted in the role of Feluda even in the Tele-serials made by Sandip Ray based on the character of Feluda. Due to the death Santosh Dutta as the character of Lalmohan Ganguly (Jatayu), Sandip Ray had to take the help of other actors. But whoever Sandip Ray had chosen to play the character of Jatayu, the person have died one after the other. Robi Ghosh played the character for some time, he died. After that Anup Kumar played the character for some time, he also died. Then bibhu Bhattacharya played the role of Jatayu for the maximum number of films. He also died last year. But after Soumitra Chatterjee, Sabyasachi Chakravarty played the character of Feluda for the longest period of time. Mir and the entire unit of Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program greeted Sabyasachi Chakravarty and wished him all the success in the years to come and asked him to continue in the films of Sandip Ray in the character of Feluda.

Shootout at Wadala should do 100 crores business.

In 2013, there are not many films which have the big budget status. Not many films are going to do business worth 100 crores. Only film Race 2 had done business of more than 100 crores. Himmatwala was a high profile film. But it could not do business of 100 crores. Shootout at Wadala is other film which has huge hype and grandieur. It had been released on 3rd May, 2013. In the first 2 days it had done business of more than 20 crores. The film had been directed by Sanjay Gupta. It had been a sequel to the film Shootout at Lokhundwala. The film had been produced by Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor, Sanjay Gupta and Anuradha Gupta. The music had been composed by Anu Malik, Mustafa Zahid, Anand Raj Anand, Nadeem Saifi and Anjaan Meet. The film is based on the literature of Hussain Zaidi titled “Dongri to Dubai.” In the film John Abraham was a law-abiding citizen and good student. But his brother was involved in underworld activities. When he brought Kangana Ranaut to meet his mother, the gangstars attacked his brother, he tried to save him. His brother killed one of the gangstars. The police office instead of framing the charge of section 302 IPC only against his brother, also framed it against him. He got more than 78% marks, but had to get life imprisonment. The police officer was bribed by Ranjit and his anti-social group. John Abraham met Tushar Kapoor in the jail and got training for body building from another prisoner in the jail. He fought against other men in the jail. Mahesh Manjarekhar and other police officers built a team of Sonu Sood and his brother Manoj Bajpai. They killed the underworld gangs whom the police could not kill with their uniform. Anil Kapoor resumed duty in his jurisdiction and started encountering the underworld mafias. John Abraham got out of the jail and initially went to Manoj Bajpai with Tushar Kapoor to work under him. When he raised his voice against Sonu Sood, Manoj Bajpai slapped him. From that time, John Abraham built his own “bhai-gang” with Tushar Kapoor and others. He used the rivals of Manoj Bajpai to kill him. Then Anil Kapoor took the details of John Abraham from Kangana Ranaut and killed him at an encounter at Wadala. The film was full of action. There were a number of item songs like “bubli badmash hai” on Priyanka Chopra, “Laila” by Sunny Leone, and “aala re aala” by Sophie Choudhury. But the performances of John Abraham, Anil Kapoor, Manoj Bajpai and Sonu Sood were excellent. The killing of John Abraham at the hands of Anil Kapoor may not be liked by many audience, as he wanted to surrender. Instead of taking him to the prison, Anil Kapoor shot him to death. 2013 can be the year of John Abraham, his first film Race 2 did more than 100 crores business. Shootout at Wadala is definitely going to be a blockbuster. No films of Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan had been released in 2013 till now. So John Abraham is the clear winner at this time. The film was based on real life incident, and showed the weaknesses of the Mumbai Police in combating the underworld. The film has all the potential to cross 100 crores business.

Biswajeet and Saira Banu were impressive in April Fool.

Actors Biswajeet and actress Saira Banu were impressive in Subodh Mukherjee’s film April Fool. The film was released in 1964. Subodh Mukherjee was the director and the producer of the film. Shankar Jaikishan composed the music of the film. In the film Jayant had two daughters Saira Banu and Nazima. He loved them. Saira Banu made a mistake in understanding the identity of Biswajeet and she thought he was Ashok. In reality he was not a rich person and neither had property. He worked in the office of Jayant. Saira Banu fell in love with him. Later she came to know that Biswajeet was not Ashok. In the meantime Sajjan ran a gang of conspirators. He sold the information to foreign countries. Jayant hatched out a plan. She asked Saira Banu to play a fake character and get involved with Sajjan. Jayant would be able to know the informations about Sajjan better. In the eventuality there was a fight and Sajjan was killed by Biswajeet. Biswajeet and Saira Banu did a great job in the film. But the factor which made the film super hit was the everlasting music by Shankar Jaikishan. Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur sang a number of romantic duets in the film including “kehdo kehdo jahan se kehdo”, “meri muhobbat pak muhobbat”, “tujhe pyar karte hai karte rahe hai”, to name a few. All the songs became super hit. Mohammad Rafi’s solo numbers for Biswajeet became bumper hit including “April Fool banaya”, “aa gale lag ja”. The film was in the list of first 10 hit films of 1964. The exotic locations of the hills and melodious music enchanted the viewers. The film should be restored and preserved.

Remembering Satyajit Ray on 2nd May, 2013.

Viewers of international films all across the world remember Oscar Winning Director Satyajit Ray on his birth anniversary on 2nd May and death anniversary 23rd April, 2012. Ray was born on 2nd May, 1921, and critics feel it was the birth of legend of legends and probably one of the greatest talents the world has ever produced after Rabindranath Tagore. Ray showed his excellence in every different of film making including script writing, costumes, music direction, costume designing, etc. My father, Chitta Ranjan Chatterji, Ex-Chief Public Prosecutor, Bankshall Court, North, Calcutta, represented Sandip Ray, the son of Satyajit Ray, in a case relating to recovery of manuscripts from Uday Acharya, the brother of Nirmal Acharya, a renowned critic. When the manuscripts of Ray’s films were seized from Udai Acharya’s house and opened from sealed trunk it was seen that they were pictographic in nature. Script of the film Pather Panchali, Gonoshotru had illustrations at every part which showed the secret of Ray’s brilliant characterization in films. Probably some of the actors and actresses in Ray’s films rose to stardom through the images portrayed by Ray. Chabi Biswas mesmerized the film lovers with his dignified performance in the role of Bishambhar Roy in the film Jalsaghar. Charu Prakash Ghosh was unparallel in the role of Birinchibaba in the film Kapurush Mahapurush. Anil Chatterji was unparallel in the role of Post Master in the film Teen Kanya. Utpal Dutt gave his performance for his life in the character Maganlal Meghraj in the film Joy Baba Felunath. Similarly Om Puri and Smita Patil were sublime in their roles in the film Sadgati. Sanjeev Kumar entered the skin of the character played in the film Shatranj Ki Khiladi. Uttam Kumar could not have been replaced by any other actor in the film Nayak. Karuna Banerjee had made the role of mother of Apu immortal in the film Pather Panchali. Sharmila Tagore was outstanding in the film Debi. Tapen Chatterji and Robi Ghosh are still remembered by filmlovers through their character Goopi Bagha. All the Indian directors like Shyam Benegal, Adoor Gopalakrishnan ,had agreed that they learnt the art of story-telling from Ray’ films. Even the theme music of the legendary director had moved the directors all across the world. Audrey Hepburn, the Oscar winning actress while awarding the Oscar award for lifetime contribution of Ray, said in her speech that Ray’s direction had the soul of Apu in the Apu Trilogy march out from the village of West Bengal and explored India and expressed the struggle for existence of every middle-class individual of the country. Whenever classic literature of novelists and writers were used in films, Ray created his own dimension in those films, including the standard of excellence in the films Charulata and Ghare Baire which were based on the epic literature of Tagore. Films made by Ray from his own literature like Sonar Kella, Joy Baba Felunath, Agantuk, etc., were equally brilliant. The films of Ray should be preserved to disseminate the art of script writing, costume designing, theme music, camera work, neat direction, etc. Satyajit Ray is remembered on 23rd April, 2012, his death anniversary. Oscar winning Director Satyajit Ray had been remembered all over the country on 23rd April, 2012. He had died on this day in 1992 at the age of 71 years. He was considered to be a legend of legends. Right from his first film Pather Panchali he changed the world of story telling in Indian films. He used classic literature of noted novelists like Rabindranath Tagore, Munshi Premchand, Bibhutibhushan Banerjee, Tarashankar Banerjee, and others and created a new dimension in the films with those classic stories. He changed the views of directors from shooting within studios and ventured out and captured the different moods of nature. He made crime thrillers like Joy Baba Felunath, Sonar Kella which were written by him and became popular with the children with the name of Feluda series. His use of theme music in films had been a learning experience for noted directors of the 70s like Shyam Benegal, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Govind Nihalini and others. His Apu Trilogi showed the path of a middle-class Indian who travelled the roads of villages and ventured into the urbanized town. Most of his films including Pather Panchali, Jalsaghar, Teen Kanya, Mahanagar, Nayak, were masterpieces. His films and literature should be preserved for their immense artistic value. A big section of intellectuals feel that he was the greatest creator in India to have born after Rabindranath Tagore. His Son Sandip Ray had directed many of the films based on his father’s literature including Bombaiyer Bombete, Tintoretor Jishu, Royal Bengal Rahasya, etc.

Runa Laila stormed Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program.

Renowned Bengali singer Runa Laila stormed Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program on 24th April 2013. She was invited as guest judge in the program. Mir Afsar Ali at the beginning sang her song “tumhe hona ho mujhko to itna yakeen hai” which was originally sung by Runa Laila. The song was picturized on Zarina Wahab in the film Gharonda. It was written by Gulzar, and composed by Jaidev. Gulzar directed the film. In the mid-70s Runa Laila was used by a number of composers in Mumbai in Bollywood films. Mir Afsar Ali asked Runa Laila why did she fade away from Bollywood industry and concentrate in music in Bangladesh. She in reply said that more restrictions came in the 1980s in respect of singers from other countries singing in India. So that led to less number of songs of Runa Laila in Bollywood films. In Gharonda her duet song with Bhupinder Singh also gained prominence. She sang the song “do diwane shahar me, raat me aur dopahar me”. It was composed by Jaidev again and picturized on Zarina Wahab and Amol Palekar. On request Runa Laila sang the song “o mera babu chail chabila mai to nachungi”. It was her popular song. She also sang the folk song “bondhu teen din tor barite gelam dekha pailam na”. It was a bengali folk song which she used to sing in all the functions in 1980s. She asked the other judges Rajatavo Dutta and Srilekha Mitra to also dance with her in those songs. They did so. Even the contestants like Sajal, Apurbo Roy danced with her in the songs sung by her. Mir anchored the program very well.