Dolly Basu, Tanima Sen, Papiya Sen and Aloknanda Ray stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program.

Dolly Basu, Tanima Sen, Papiya Sen and Aloknanda Ray stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program.

Dolly Basu, Tanima Sen, Papiya Sen and Aloknanda Ray stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program on 31st March, 2014. Deboshree Roy, the anchor of the program asked Dolly Basu about her childhood. She said she was born and brought up in New Delhi. She joined theatre in Delhi and continued it in Kolkata. Then she acted in a number of serials including Rashi shown in Zee Bangla Channel. Papiya Sen said she being the sister of Sabyasachi Chakravarty had always been asked about her background. She also came from Delhi. In school days she used to beat her friends and even Sabyasachi Chakravarty when he faced attack from any friend he called his sister. After the death of her father everyone settled in Kolkata. Aloknanda Roy said that she had acted in Satyajit Ray’s film Kanchenjungha in 1962. After that she got married. She stopped acting for a long time. Then she made a comeback. When the film Kanchenjungha received a number of awards, she did not have the maturity to understand the gravity of the film and the subject. She did not even fear the strict personality of Satyajit Ray. It was fun acting in such a film. Tanima Sen was funny. She said that the first time she went with her husband for dating she ate milk. In the second round Jojo came to ask musical questions. Tanima Sen sang the song, “eh kya bolti tu, sun, suna” and made everyone laugh. She said by singing one line she had previously won the Didi No. 1 title. The same thing happened here also. She answered one after the other puzzles and riddles and became the Didi No. 1 again. Deboshree Roy anchored the program in style.

Bappi Lahiri, Chitrani, Debojit, Bandana and others stormed Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar.

Prasenjit Chatterjee and Rachana Banerjee invited celebrity couples in Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar Program on 26th March, 2014. The celebrities included Bappi Lahiri and his wife Chitrani, Debojit Saha and his wife Bandana, Raja and his wife, and Mehtab and his wife. Bappi Lahiri came and sang the song “chirodini tumi je amar, jugejuge ami tomari”. It was his super hit songs composed and sung in Prasenjit Chatterjee’s super hit film Amar Sangi. In fact Prasenjit Chatterjee rose to fame with the success of Amar Sangi. Rachana Banerjee said there are a lot of actors who are indebted to the singers like Udit Narayan, Kumar Shanu, Sonu Nigam and others for their own success. In case of Prasenjit Chatterjee majority of his hit songs were composed and sung by Bappi Lahiri. In the second round East Bengal Soccer team captain Mehtab was asked which food he liked during jamai shashti. He said mutton curry, while his wife said Ilish bhape. Raja Sen was asked to hear 3 songs including “rani mai tu raja” from film Son of Sardaar, and “raja ko rani se pyar ho gaya”. When he and his wife was asked which song both of them preferred they said it was “raja ko rani se pyar ho gaya”. Both Raja and his wife selected “Raja ko rani se pyar ho gaya” for being a soft romantic number. When Debojit’s wife Bandana was interviewed she said she had faced a lot of struggle with Debojit. He had a secured job in Assam in Public Works Department. He left it and pursued a music career in Mumbai. During the struggling days Bandana continued her own job when Debojit did not get success. Then the Zee TV Saregamapa program came up and Debojit became a star overnight. When Prasenjit Chatterjee asked Bappi Lahiri which song he used to sing for his wife Chitrani. He said it was “pyar manga hai tumhi se”. Bappi Lahiri sang many of his own songs “u lala u lala”, “ulte debo sab palte debo” to name a few. Prasenjit Chatterjee and Rachana Banerjee anchored the program very well.

Nanda's death at the age of 75 years is shocking for everyone.

It is a shocking news for the lovers of Indian films that Nanda had died today, on 25th March, 2014, at the age of 75 years. She suffered a massive heart attack. Her friend Mala Sinha shared her experiences with the press and media about acting with Nanda. Both of them acted in the film Dhool Ka Phool. Nanda having huge amount of acting potentials never received her dues. Born in a Maharashtrian family she learned acting from childhood. Eminent director V Shantaram gave her a prominent role in the film Toofan Aur Diya in 1956. She was brilliant in the film Bhabhi in 1957. She played the role of the younger sister of Pandari Bai, the wife of Balraj Sahani in the film. She became widow at a very early age and the information was not given to her by Pandari Bai. She played a very juvenile role in the first part of the film and in the second part became serious. She received the nomination for best supporting actress in 1957 for her role in Bhabhi but did not win it. She was sublime in the role of the wife of Rajender Kumar in the film Dhool Ka Phool in 1959. She followed it up by a brilliant performance in the film Choti Behen. Again she had the challenge of acting with Balraj Sahani. She did a great job. In 1960s, Nanda became a stylish heroine and acted in glamour oriented roles. With Manoj Kumar she had a fantastic combination. She did a great job in the film Bedaag. Gumnaam was the blockbuster film of Nanda which did fabulous business. Shankar Jaikishan’s music stormed Bollywood in 1965 with Gumnaam. Nanda gave soft lips in the song “jaane chaman sholabadan” which was sung by Sharda and Mohammad Rafi. The she was paired opposite Shashi Kapoor in more than 7 films. The romantic pair started their journey in the film Jab Jab Phool Khilen. It was a music oriented film which created magic. Kalyanji Anandji’s music was appreciated by the audience. Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur’s duet song “nanakarte pyar humhi to kar baite” became bumper hit. The combination just gave hits after hits. The other notable films included Neend Hamari Khwab Tumhari, Muhobbat Is Ko Kehte Hai, to name a few. The movies were shot in romantic locations of Jammu Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The music created magic and the audiences admired the films. In the 1970s and 1980s, Nanda shifted to character roles. There also she showed excellence. In Manoj Kumar’s film Shor she played a compassionate character. In Dilip Kumar’s film Mazdoor she played the role of his wife. She also gave a landmark performance in Raj Kapoor’s film Prem Rog in 1982. Her character role of the mother of Padmini Kolhapuri caught the attention of the viewers. In her career around 40 years, she had acted in diverse roles. But neither was she honoured, nor recognized for the great callibre shown over the years. Her films should be preserved.

Deb won Zee Bangla Gourab Samman Award 2014 for Chander Pahaar.

Deb won Zee Bangla Gourab Samman Award 2014 for Chander Pahaar.

Superstar Deb won Zee Bangla Gourab Samman Award 2014 for his brilliant acting in the film Chander Pahaar. He could not come to receive the award. His father received the award on his behalf. Konkona Sen Sharma won the best actress award for her performance in the film Gainaar Baksho. Kanchan Mallick and Jishu Sengupta anchored the program. Kanchan Mallick called upon stage Aparna Sen, the mother of Konkona Sen Sharma to give the award. Aparna Sen, the director of the film Gainaar Baksho, said initially Konkona Sen Sharma never wanted to act in the film Gainaar Baksho. The reason was that her role had stammering. She had to stammer. But later Saswata Chatterjee and others convinced her about the significance of the role. Jishu Sengupta won the best supporting actor award for his splendid performance opposite Rituparna Ghosh in the film Chitrangada. Jishu Sengupta said that Rituparna Ghosh was his mentor. He missed him a lot after the sad demise of the director last year. A big tribute was given to legendary actress and mahanayika Suchitra Sen. Her eminent films like Saat Pake Bandha, Deep Jele Jai were mentioned and Paoli Dam danced in the music numbers of Suchitra Sen which were sung by Sandhya Mukherjee like “e shudhu ganer din e logon gaan shonabar”, “tumi na hoi rohite kache”, to mention a few. Abir Chatterjee won the best villain award for his performance in the film Kanamachi opposite Srabanti Chatterjee and Ankush. Anupam Roy received the best singer award for his song “ekhono anek raat baki”. Jeet Ganguly sang his popular songs, Deboshree Roy danced in the hit number “salaame ishq meri jaan”. The event took place in Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata. The entire program was telecast in Zee Bangla Channel from 7 pm to 11 pm on Sunday, 23rd March, 2014.

Happy birthday to talented star Akshay Khanna.

Happy birthday to talented star Akshay Khanna. The viewers wish happy birthday to talented star Akshay Khanna on 28th March, 2014. Akshay Khanna has been an exception in the list of bollywood actors who had joined bollywood films in the 90s. He has banked his resources on his decency which most of the actors hardly care about. He exhibited his softness of character in the film Taal opposite Aiswariya Rai. He did not try to be forceful in his presentation of affection in the film. In Border, he played the role of an Indian soldier who died at the border after he had been successful in destroying the Pakistani forces in the war that took place in the 70s. He loved his wife and mother which was shown in the flashback. He gave good lips in Sonu Nigam’s song “hume jab se mohabbat ho gayi hai”, composed by Anu Malik. He was also sublime in the film Hulchul opposite Kareena Kapoor. He tried to create an artificial weakness for her as his family and Kareena’s family were at war for generations. But after meeting her some time, he fell in love in reality and ultimately succeeded in marrying her against the wishes of all the family members. He played the complex role in Dil Chahta Hai, opposite Dimple Kapadia, where he was the friend of Amir Khan and Saif Ali Khan and fell in love with a middle aged lady, who was older than him. He even left his friends as the association with Dimple was quite awkward and these types of attachments are not accepted in the societies of third world countries. He expressed a thoughtful character who was different from his enthusiastic friends in the film. He had also done well in the film 36 China Town, where he played the role of a detective. The film was based on a murder that took place in 36 China Town, where Kareena and Shahid Kapoor also went and got involved in the list of suspected characters. He solved the mystery in style. In Salaame- e- Ishq his romantic andaz opposite Ayesha Takia still haunts viewers. He gave a reserve performance in the film Aakrosh in 2010. His soft style of dialogue throwing balanced the dare devil acts of Ajay Devgan in the film. Both of them did a great job. He even acted well in the film Tees Maar Khan. The film did not do great business due to the storyline but Akshay Khanna’s performance was well appreciated. Akshay Khanna acted well in the film No Problem as well. Anil Kapoor produced the film. Akshay Khanna showed his acting talent amongst veteran actors like Paresh Rawal, Anil Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt and others. The viewers expect him to do well in other films in future.

Deboshree Roy stormed Zee Bangla Dance Bangla Dance Program.

Deboshree Roy had stormed Zee Bangla Dance Bangla Dance Program. On 20th March, 2014, Deb, better known as Deepak Adhikari invited Bengali superstar Deboshree Roy in the program Zee Bangla Dance Bangla Dance. Deboshree Roy had been known for her excellent dancing skills over the years. On the request of Deb she danced in her famous song “ami kolkatar roshogolla”. Everyone in the show including the judges Nusrat Jahan, Jogesh Patkar and Malabika Sen appreciated the great performance of Deboshree Roy. Even the anchor Vicky stood up and gave standing gratitude. Deb asked Deboshree Roy what was the change she found in respect of music and dance in Bengali films in the 1980s and the present period. She said during her times dance was related to a lot of expression. There were different art forms expressed by dance movements. The music of Bengali films was richer in those days with a lot of melody. That is missing these days. There had been one improvement. In her times shooting used to take place in Mumbai. On the other hand today majority of shooting is done abroad in exotic locations of Thailand, Malaysia, Italy and many other countries. But the music is too loud. Deb asked her who is her favourite actress of present period? She said she liked everyone. She also said that as she is anchoring Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program for a long time, whenever the child contestants in her program are asked about their favourite actor all of them take the name of Deb. Deb also asked her to sing a song knowing that she is also a good singer. She sang her song from the film Bhalobasha Bhalobasha. The song was titled “joto bhabna chilo, joto swopno chilo sob dilam tomay ami dilam tomay”. It was a Tarun Majumdar film with Deboshree Roy in the lead cast opposite Tapas Pal. In the early 1980s, the film ended up being super hit. Majority of the contestants danced in the song numbers of films of Deboshree Roy. Deboshree Roy appreciated all of them and gave her best wishes to Deb for anchoring such a beautiful show.

Happy birthday to Anupam Kher.

Happy birthday to Anupam Kher. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Anupam Kher on 7th March, 2014. He had been indispensable during the 80s and 90s and contributed both in commercial films and parallel cinema. In 2010, he acted in his brilliant style in Salman Khan’s super hit film Dabaang. He initially attracted the attention of critics by performing well in the film Surhansh. He played the role of an old person who had served the nation but was neglected after retirement. At that time he got the offer of playing the role old persons one after the other at a young age. His performance in the films Daddy, Janam, etc., were well appreciated by the thoughtful viewers. But the film that had made him a star was Karma. The film Karma directed by Subhash Ghai was released in 1985 and after that Anupam Kher never looked back. Anupam Kher acted opposite Dilip Kumar in Subhash Ghai’s multi-starrer venture Karma. He played the role of a terrorist leader named Dr. Dang. He was arrested by Dilip Kumar, but his men blew up the prison and released him. He then took revenge by killing the family members of Dilip Kumar. Dilip Kumar created an army full of prisoners who were suffering life sentences including Anil Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah and Jackie Shroff. He fought against the men of Anupam Kher and addressed terrorism with style. From that time onwards, commercial directors started casting Anupam Kher either in villainous roles or comedy roles. He successfully acted in comedy roles in the film Ram Lakhan, as the father of Madhuri Dixit, Jamai Raja as the brother of Hema Malini, Khel, as the partner of Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit. He received the maximum number of filmfare awards for comedy performance in the history of bollywood cinema. He showed his comedy instincts also in the film Apna Sapna Money Money opposite Ritesh Deshmukh. Apart from relief characters, Anupam Kher acted in serious films and his performance was very natural over there. His performance in the film Kahona Pyar Hai, in the role of the father of Amisha Patel was very impressive. He sent killers to murder Hrithik Roshan, yet he concealed his own involvement in the plan to his daughter in style. He did very well in the film A Wednesday opposite Naseeruddin Shah. His performance in the film 1942 a love story, in the role of the father of Manisha Koirala also require special mention. He received best supporting actor Star Screen Award for the performance in the film. He also received Padmashri in 1994. His performance in the film China Gate, Khosla Ka Ghoshla, Akhree Rasta, requires special mention. He had acted in more than 450 films in a span of 25 years. In that respect no other actor other than Amrish Puri, Kader Khan and Paresh Rawal, had such a huge contribution in bollywood films like Anupam Kher. He was very impressive in 2009 in the films God Tussi Great Ho, where he played the role of the father of Salman Khan, A Wednesday, etc. Still critics feel that had he not got typecast in comedy roles, he was more versatile and could have contributed more in serious roles. In 2013, Anupam Kher had acted in the films Special 26, Chasme Badoor and Yamla Pagla Dewaana 2. In 2014 he is busy with the hindi remake of hit Bengali film Bhooter bhabishyat. The viewers expect him to continue the good work in 2014 and in the years to come.

Rishi Mukherjee, Swagata Mukherjee, Biswanath Basu and others storme Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar.

Rishi Mukherjee, Swagata Mukherjee, Biswanath Basu and others stormed Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar.

On the day of Holi, Rachana Banerjee and Prasenjit Chatterjee invited celebrities in the program Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar. The celebrities includes Rishi Mukherjee, Swagata Mukherjee, Biswanath Basu, Debika Basu, singer Anindya Basu and his wife and others. In the second round, Biswanath Basu was asked the name of the first film he went to watch with his wife Devika Basu. He gave a different answer while his wife Devika Basu it was Shahrukh Khan’s Om Shanti Om. In that round Rishi Mukherjee was asked the colour of the flower put in the head of his wife Swagata Mukherjee. He gave a wrong answer. While he said it was white and black, where as it was yellow. But Biswanath Basu’s wife Devika Basu gave the right answer about Biswanath Basu’s choice of the song “aaj na chorenge” which he would have loved to dance at. He danced with his wife when the song was played. In the fourth round all the celebrity husbands were asked to get inside the bhoolbhulaiya and bring an ornament kept there for their wives. Biswanath Basu and fell in the trap of Palash Adhikari. He disguised himself as mother in law and asked him a number of questions. He also entered the cubicle of Pallabi Mukherjee who imitated the tune of Koel Mullick and asked him to imitate her. After a lot of effort Biswanath Basu found the ornament and brought it for his wife. Anindya Basu also fell in the same trap and Palash Adhikari climbed on his shoulders and everyone said Anindya was Vikram while Palash was Betaal. Rishi Mukherjee brought the ornament at the shortest time. In the last round both Rishi Mukherjee and Biswanath Basu gave right answers to all the questions asked and Rishi Mukherjee and Swagata Mukherjee became the champion. Prasenjit Chatterjee and Rachana Banerjee anchored the program very well.

Significance of Holi in the RK Studio.

Significance of Holi in the RK Studio. The holi festival has come again in 2014. The festival of colours brings a large section of the society together. These days holi is losing significance in the context of bollywood films and the stars involved with film-making. During the lifetime of Showman Raj Kapoor, holi was celebrated in RK Studio. It used to be a very prestigious affair. Other than members of the Kapoor family including Shammi Kapoor, Shashi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Rajiv Kapoor and others, celebrities from the film industry used to play holi in the studio. These days Holi party is thrown by Raj Kundra and others. The event marked the strengthening of relationship of members of the bollywood film industry. The celebration included directors like Manmohan Desai, actors like Dilip Kumar, singers like Mukesh, composers like Shankar Jaikishan, to name a few. The enthusiasm was there even during the 80s, when most of the celebrities who were contemporaries of Raj Kapoor became old. Raj Kapoor himself stopped it in the late 80s as he started having physical discomfort while playing holi. He had asthma and the contact of colours basically aggravated the disease. The prestigious celebration of holi stopped after 1988, after the death of Raj Kapoor. After that time, a number of other celebrities started the tradition of inviting the film industry to play holi. But the pomp and grandiuer that was there in RK Studio could not be replicated. Holi forms an important festival for Indians and bollywood films had devoted a lot of space for holi. It was shown in films like Paraya Dhan, Sholay, Silsila, to name a few. The songs related to holi like “holi re holi” sung by Manna Dey, “holi ke rang” sung by Kishore Kumar, or “rang barse” sung by Big B had not lost their appeal even after 30 years of the release of the films. Modern producers and directors can also portray the festival of colours in modern films in their innovative style as holi is one of the most popular festivals of the country. Ranbir Kapoor is on the way to be the new superstar of bollywood films with successful performances in films like Bachna Aye Haseeno, Wake Up Sid, Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. He can make an effort to revive the holi celebrations in RK Studio.

Happy birthday to Rani Mukherjee.

Happy birthday to Rani Mukherjee. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rani Mukherjee on 21st March, 2014. Born on 21st March, 1978, she started her career with the film Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat. She ruled bollywood films from 2002 to 2006. After that all of a sudden her stardom got affected. She rose to stardom with brilliant performance in Karan Johar’s film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. She acted opposite Kajol and Shahrukh Khan and superseded both of them in the film. She received the filmfare best supporting actress award for her performance in the film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. After reaching stardom she acted opposite all the leading stars of bollywood films. Her films Badal and Bichhu opposite Bobby Deol, which involved terrorism and narcotics respectively, did great business. Her film Ghulam opposite Aamir Khan was successful. Her lips in the song “aati kya khandala” were well appreciated. She got critical acclamation for powerful performance in the film Saathiya opposite Vivek Oberoi. All the songs composed by AR Rehman were super hit and film took Rani Mukherjee’s career to a different dimension. She played significant roles in other films like Nayak opposite Anil Kapoor, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke opposite Salman Khan, Chalte Chalte opposite Shahrukh Khan. She played the role of her life in Black. In the film she played the character of a blind girl. The entire process rediscovering herself earned her the filmfare award under the category of both best actress and best actress under critic’s choice. Then her combination with Abhishek Bacchan was well received by the viewers. Films like Bunty Aur Bably and Yuva was well received by the viewers. Rani Mukherjee started showing her versatility in any type of role, including the role of surrogate mother, aspiring model, etc. Her other successful films included Mujhse Dosti Karoge opposite Hrithik Roshan, Veer Zara opposite Shahrukh Khan, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega opposite Salman Khan, to name a few. Her attachment with the Yash Raj Banner had led to downfall after 2007. None of the films like Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, Ta Ra Rum Pum, did good business, and Rani Mukherjee lost out of competition with successful actresses of the present period like Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Vidya Balan, etc. In 2011, her film No One Killed Jessica did well. She acted opposite Vidya Balan and the performance of both the actresses was well appreciated by the audience and the critics. She received awards also for the brilliant performance in the film No One Killed Jessica. In 2012 she acted two films. Her performance opposite Aamir Khan in the film Talaash was well appreciated. The other film Aiyyaa did mediocre business. In 2013 she acted in the film Bombay Talkies. The viewers expect Rani Mukherjee to make come back in character roles because a lot of acting is still left in her.

Malabika Sen, Jojo, Madhumanti Maitra and others stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program.

Malabika Sen, Jojo, Madhumanti Maitra and others stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program. On the 100th episode of Zee Bangla Didi No. I Program, Deboshree Roy invited celebrities like Malabika Sen, Jojo, Madhumanti Maitra and Chaiti Ghoshal in the show. All the celebrities were handled cordially by Deboshree Roy. In the second round singer Aneek asked musical questions to the celebrities. Aneek sang Manna Dey’s famous songs “sei to abar kache ele”. Then he asked Chaiti Ghoshal to sing a song of Gupi Gayin Bagha Bayin series. He sang the song “aha ki ananda akashe batashe”. Chaiti Ghoshal sang the song “maharaja tomare selam”. For jojo he presented the request of singing a song full of energy. Jojo herself was a singer. So it was easy for her. Madhumanti Maitra showed a skit relating to her announcement commitments which took place in Science City, when the anchor mis-pronounced majority of words. Malabika Sen acted out the part of the actor and actress of the 1930s. She made everyone laugh. Aneek sang Mohammad Rafi’s song “dil jo na keh saka” with absolute elegance. In the third round Jojo answered maximum number of answers. In the clue box there was a clipping shown where there were pictures of ilish fish, pona fish, chingri fish and picture of Usha Utthup. Jojo caught the clue and sang the song “ilish macher paturi, pona macher kaliya, chingri macher malaikari debo ami radhiya, amaye koro biya”. It was a hit song of Usha Utthup. Jojo sang it with style. At the end of the show, Jojo gave maximum number of answers and became Didi No. 1. Deboshree Roy cut the cake for 100 episode celebration of Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 and gave the slice of the cake to Jojo, Malabika Sen, Chaiti Ghoshal and Madhumanti Maitra.

The biggest blockbusters of 1961.

The biggest Bollywood blockbusters of 1961. 1961 was an important transition phase in the history of Bollywood films in India. A number of Indians became coloured in that year like Junglee, the producers and directors started shooting in romantic landscapes and the music got modernized to every extent possible. In addition to the superstars Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor, new stars gave hits like Rajender Kumar, Shammi Kapoor, Joy Mukherjee, Biswajeet and others. Along with Vaijayantimala, Meena Kumari, the new comers created impression like Saira Banu, Sadhna, Nanda and others. Junglee was the biggest blockbuster of 1961. It was produced and directed by Subodh Mukherjee. Shankar Jaikishan was the music director of the film. The story was related to an arrogant person Shammi Kapoor, who was ill-tempered and rude, who fell in love with an innocent girl Saira Banu who softened his character. The rock and roll image of Shammi Kapoor was created in the film Junglee which continued for the next 10 years. Shankar Jaikishan composed music in 22 films of Shammi Kapoor. The Rafi Shankar Jaikishan magic flabbergasted the music lovers of the country with songs like “meri yaar shabba khair”, “ehsan tera hoga mujhpar”, “yahoo, chahe koi mujhe jungle kahen”, “ai ai ya karoon me kya sukoo sukoo”. The list continues. Shashikala and Lalita Power also did well in the film. Ganga Jumna was the second biggest blockbuster of 1961. Dilip Kumar was the uncrowned king of Bollywood films between 1940s to 1970s. Ganga Jumna was produced by Dilip Kumar and directed by Nitin Bose. Dilip Kumar was his brother Nisar Khan faced huge amount of oppression at the hands of the zamindars. So Dilip Kumar became a dacoit while his brother Nisar Khan became a police officer. Dilip Kumar loved Vaijayantimala who was killed at the end of the film. The music of Naushad Ali and the Naushad Shakeel Mohammd Rafi combination created magic again in Ganga Jumna. All the songs were super hit including the Bhojpuri style song “nain lad jai he o manwama kasak hoy bekari”. Even Lata’s songs “dhundho dhundo re saajna”, “do hanson kaa jora” became smash hits. Dilip Kumar Vaijayantimala pair rocked Bollywood at that time. All the films that acted before Ganga Jumna ended up being blockbusters including Naya Daur, Madhumati, Paigham. Ganga Jumna also received a number of awards. Vaijayantimala received the best actress award for her performance in the film. Ganga Jumna received the best film award in 1961. Nitin Bose received the best director award for Ganga Jumna. Gharana was the third biggest blockbuster of 1961. It was a multi-starrer film directed by SS Vassan. Ravi composed the music of the film. It was a family story where the karta of the family Bipin Gupta did not have personality and his wife Lalita Power manipulated events in the house. So there was misunderstanding among the brothers and sisters in the house including Raj Kumar, Rajender Kumar, Shubha khote and others. Rajender Kumar married Asha Parekh and from that time there was peace in the house. At the end of the film Bipin Gupta showed his personality and over powered the dominance of Lalita Power. Ravi’s music was brilliant. He received the best music director award for his music in Gharana. Rafi’s songs “jab se tumhe dekha hai” and “husnwale tera jawab nahi” created magic. Raj Kumar and Rajender Kumar were elegant in their respective roles. Aas Ka Panchi was the fourth biggest blockbuster of 1961. It was produced by J. Om Prakash and directed by Mohan Kumar. The music of the film was composed by Shankar Jaikishan. It was a film based on the ambition of young persons in joining the Indian army, navy and air force. Rajender Kumar did not want to join the clerical job that his father Nasir Hussain used to do. So he joined the Indian army. He loved Vaijayantimala who married him inspite of the hard days he faced. The music of Shankar Jaikishan was awesome. SJ gave chance to Bengali singer Subir Sen, who sang the hit song “dil mera ek aas ka panchi”. Mukesh and Lata’s song “tum ruthi raho” was also hit. Rajender Kumar gradually became jubilee kumar and majority of his films started doing business of more than 25 weeks in the following years. Bollywood was blessed with the superstar of his calibre who just gave hits after hits from 1957 to 1970. Vaijayantimala was at the top of her career in the early 1960s. There were other critically acclaimed and good films released in 1961 like Raj Kapoor Vaijayantimala’s Nazrana, Balraj Sahani’s Kabuliwala, Rajender Kumar’s Sasural, Zindagi Aur Khwab, Dev Anand’s Hum Dono and Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, Dharmender’s Shola Aur Shabnam and others. Among music directors still Shankar Jaikishan dominated Bollywood films. The artistic composers like Naushad Ali, Madanmohan Kohli, Roshanlal Nagrath, OP Nayyar were still at their top. The films and the music require restoration.

Imon Chatterjee, Anindya Chatterjee and other stormed Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar Program.

Imon Chatterjee, Anindya Chatterjee and others stormed Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar Program.

Imon Chatterjee and his wife Ananya Chatterjee, Anindya Chatterjee and his wife Pampa Chatterjee, Samidh and his wife Asmita, and Sumon and his wife Nibedita came and stormed Zee Bangla Tumi Je Amar Program on 11th January, 2014. They did a great job. Prasenjit Chatterjee and Rachana Banerjee are the anchors of the program. The program is related to rounds devoted on husband and wife relationship. In the second round there were video clippings of control of animals by artists. One of the scenes were from film Sholay, where Hema Malini controlled her horse to ride the tanga in the right direction. When Ananya Chatterjee, the wife of Imon Chatterjee was asked if she had to control her husband how will she do it, she showed the clipping of the film Sholay. Samidh’s wife Asmita was a Gujarati. Three songs were played all having Gujarati stick dance rhythm. Samidh selected the song “dhol baje”. Pampa Chatterjee was asked that if any reason of quarrel with her husband if she was asked to throw things at Anindya Chatterjee what would he have used to save him. She said it was helmet. In the first and second round a number of questions were asked when the celebrity couples were asked to undergo the saptapadi around the fire. The rule is in the first round the celebrities were expected to answer the questions without the eye-lashes falling. In the fourth round, the celebrities had to enter a bhoolbhulaiya and find an ornament for the wives. Samidh and Imon Chatterjee entered into the cubicle of Palash Adhikari who disguised himself as the mother-in –law. He told Samidh, as Samidh was bald, that for a long time he had the desire of “near porano” before holi. Same thing happened with Anindya Chatterjee. In every round, the winner was given number of awards. Prasenjit Chatterjee and Rachana Banerjee anchored the program very well.

Happy birthday to Shreya Ghoshal.

Happy birthday to Shreya Ghoshal. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to sweet singer Shreya Ghoshal on 12th March, 2014. From national awards, Zee Cine Awards, Starscreen awards and filmfare awards, she had remained a frequent recipient of the awards due to her sheer brilliance. Bollywood films in the 50s, 60s and 70s were dominated by Lata, Geeta Dutt, Shamshad Begum, Suraiya, Sudha Malhotra, Suman Kalyanpur, etc. In the 80s and 90s Alka Yagnik and Kavita Krishnamurty made a very notable contribution in bollywood films. Shreya Ghoshal had established herself the future singer of bollywood cinema for the last few years. Born in a Bengali family in Rawatbhata, in Kota district of Rajasthan, Shreya Ghoshal learnt classical music from Mahesh Chandra Sharma. She participated in the musical competition in the TV Channel titled Saregamapa, and when she reached the finals after defeating renowned female singers, the producers, directors and composers were moved by her performance. She made her presence felt with her song in the film Devdas, directed by Sanjay Leela Banshali, with the song “bairi piya” and after that she never had to look back. Just like Sonu Nigam had created a gharana by himself and composers agree about his versatility, similarly Shreya Ghoshal is undoubtedly the future of Indian playback singing. She received the filmfare award for the best female singer along with Kavita Krishnamurty for the song “dola re” from the film Devdas, picturised on Madhuri Dixit and Aiswariya Rai. Her other hits songs include “jadu hai nasha hai” from the film Jism. She also amazed the listeners with the song “piyu bole, piya bole” picturised on Vidya Balan, from the film Parineeta, where Sonu Nigam sang it for Saif Ali Khan. The sweetness of her voice matched the period (late 19th century) when singers of the Bengali traditional families used to present their talent in soft style She also the song “apne aansoo peene ke liye” from the film Paheli, very well, along with powerful performance from Rani Mukherjee and Shahrukh Khan in the film. She also received filmfare award for the best singer for her song in the film Guru, titled “barsdo re” composed by AR Rehman. She had song notable Bengali songs like “pagla hawa” in The Bong Connection, “mon diye mon niye” in Agnipath, etc. In 2010, her song “bahara bahara” in the film I Hate Luv Stories was striking. She was extremely sweet in the duet song “tu ne to palbhar me chori kiya re jiya” with Sonu Nigam, in the film Dabanng, which went to do a business worth 150 crores. She sang brilliant songs in 2012 in different films like Agneepath, Jab Tak Hai Jaan. In 2013 she received a number of awards for her song in the film Ashiqi 2. With a number of songs which are going to be released in different films in 2014, she is expected to continue her good work and the viewers and listeners expect her best in the years to come.

Happy birthday to Kangana Ranaut.

Happy birthday to Kangana Ranaut. The viewers of Bollywood films wish happy birthday to Kangana Ranaut on 23rd March, 2013. She had been a successful actress for the last 5 years. In 2013, her negative character in the Rakesh Roshan film Krishh 3 really astonished everyone. She balanced the powerful performance of Hrithik Roshan in the film. She played impressive role opposite John Abraham in the film Shootout At Wadala in 2013 and opposite Ajay Devgan in Tezz released in 2012. In 2010, Kangana Ranaut had acted in many films, where her individual performance may get appreciated. She did well in guest role in the film Kites opposite Hrithik Roshan in the first part of the year. The film did not do great business, but her performance was appreciated. She had played the role of a journalist in the film Knock Out which will be released in first week of October, 2010. She is going to act opposite to veteran actors Sanjay Dutt and Irfan Khan. She already did well in the film Once Upon a Time in Mumbai which had been released recently. One more of her big releases include No Problem opposite Akshay Khanna which is scheduled to be released in the first week of December, 2010. She will also work in the films Game, Dhamaal 2 which are slated to be released in 2011. There are few factors relating to Kangana Ranaut which no one can dispute. Firstly she is very beautiful. Secondly she had experimented with many challenging roles at the early part of her career, like Raaz – The Mystery Continues opposite Imraan Hashmi, which many actresses would not have done. Actresses generally want to stay in the comfort zone of dealing with romantic stories. If the viewers appreciate Kangana Ranaut’s all round skill, she will be one of the lead actresses in future competing with Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra and others. 2014 has many releases for her including Queen and Revolver Rani. The viewers wish their best for Kangana Ranaut’s new releases.

Mimi Dutta and team of Kache Aye Shoi stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program.

Mimi Dutta and team of Kache Aye Soi stormed Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 Program on 10th March, 2014. Deboshree Roy, the anchor of Zee Bangla Didi No. 1 program invited all the celebrities from the popular Bengali serial Kache Aye Soi on 10th March, 2014. Chadni Saha who played the title role in the film Kache Aye Soi, was asked by Deboshree Roy about the transformation of her role. She said that when the serial started the story was related to a rustic girl Shoi which she played. The story was written at the backdrop of coal mine. She was shown as a dare devil character who even stole things from the mines. But later on the character became calm and composed. So she had found it challenging in accepting the role and presently she had gained popularity also by acting in the title role Shoi. Mimi Dutta said that when director Anjan Dutta came to her house when she was very small, he asked her to give a screen test. She was selected and her acting career started at a very early age. When she became bigger the acting career continued. She had a big role in Kache Aye Shoi and she was appreciated by the audience. Sanghamitra Talukdar, another actress of Kache Aye Shoi was asked by Deboshree Roy about her experience in the serial. She also said that she had enjoyed acting in the serial. Rupsha Chakravarty, another actress of Kache Aye Shoi also shared her experience of acting in the serial. She said from the early childhood she was demanding. One day her mother complained to her father about her that she was not studying properly. She poured in ice cubes from the refrigerator on top of the mosquito net where her mother was sleeping. In the second round, Deboshree Roy brought actress Swagata Mukherjee to sing songs and ask musical questions to the celebrities. She sang the song ‘tomar ghare bash kore je’, a folk song. All the celebrities including Rupsha Chakravarty, Chandni Saha and others sang their songs very well. At the end of the show Mimi Dutta answered maximum number of questions and became Didi No. 1. Deboshree Roy anchored the program very well.

Happy birthday to Shashi Kapoor.

Happy birthday to Shashi Kapoor. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Shashi Kapoor on 18th March, 2014. In 2011 he received the filmfare lifetime achievement award. In 2011, he received Padmabhushan, the civilian award for his excellence in bollywood films. His sickness prevents him from freely walking, but he receives most of his awards on wheel chair. Born in 1938, Shashi Kapoor started his acting career in the film Aag in 1948 directed by his elder brother Raj Kapoor. He also showed his acting skills as a child artist in the film Awara in 1951. The film won different awards in international film festivals and ended up being super hit. Shashi Kapoor acted in off-beat films at the beginning of his career like Prempatra opposite Sadhna. He entertained the audience with the film Jab Jab Phool Khilen in 1965. All the songs of Rafi composed by Kalyanji Anandji in the film became super hit like “pardesiyon se na”, “yahan mai ajnabee hoon”, “na na karke pyar”, etc. From that time Shashi Kapoor acted with Nanda in a number of films like Muhabbat Is Ko Kehte Hai, Neend Hamari Khwab Tumhari, etc. Rafi’s songs in many Shashi Kapoor films did magic including “o dilbar janiye”, “dilbar dilbar”, “bekhudi me sanam”, to name a few. Shankar Jaikishan gave notable tunes to Shashi Kapoor in the film Kanyadan. Madanmohan gave notable tunes to Shashi Kapoor in the film Neend Hamari Khwab Tumhari. In the late 60s Shashi Kapoor acted in many romantic films like Pyar Kiye Jaa, Kanyadaan, Abhinetri, Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati, etc. In Pyar Kiye Ja, he acted opposite actress Nanda, in Kanyadan he acted opposite Asha Parekh, in Abhinetri he acted opposite Hema Malini, in Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati he acted opposite Babita. In the 70s, Shashi Kapoor acted in action films along with Amitabh Bacchan, at a time when action films dominated either types of films in bollywood. His dialogue in the film Dewaar opposite Big B titled “mere paas ma hai” became immortal over the years. He acted in many films opposite Big B like Shaan, Do Aur Do Paanch, Iman Dharam, Namakhalal, Suhaag, Kala Pathhar, Kabhi Kabhi,Trishul, Silsila, etc., and most of those films ended up being blockbusters. Some of these films were multi-starred in nature. For example in Shaan and Kala Patthar he acted opposite Big B and Shatrughun Sinha. It was his sheer talent, that he could adapt himself in the new regime of anti-establishment films in the 70s, starting from Dewaar, which were quite different from the society shown in the romantic films of the 60s. He acted with other bollywood actors like Shatrughun Sinha in films like Gautam Govinda. He was a close friend of Ismail Merchant and featured in many of his English films like Siddharta. He produced impressive films like Junoon directed by Shyam Benegal and Vijeta directed by Govind Nihalini. His sons Kunal Kapoor and Karan Kapoor acted in many films. In the 1990s, Shashi Kapoor put on a lot of weight and stopped acting. He was in tears to receive the filmfare lifetime achievement award. The viewers pay homage to the veteran actor and wish him good health.