Happy birthday to Salman Khan.

Happy birthday to Salman Khan. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Salman Khan on 27th December, 2014. He had been the other superstar other than Shahrukh Khan who had ruled bollywood films for the last 22 years. Although he had mixed results in respect of success of his films released in 2009 and 2008, his popularity and box-office had remained intact. In 2010, he had given the greatest hit Dabanng, which had done business of more than Rs 150 crores. From that time he had proved himself as the greatest cash generator of bollywood films. His film Ready released in summer 2011 did business worth 125 crores and his film Bodyguard had broken the record of Dabanng and did business worth 160 crores. In 2012 his film Ek Tha Tiger had been the greatest grosser with business of 200 crores. His other film Dabaang 2 had already done business of more than 158 crores. In 2013 he did not act in any film. In 2014 his film Jai Ho did medium business with 115 crores. But his other film Kick became a blockbuster with business of 235 crores. He created an impression before the viewers with his romantic film Maine Pyar Kiya in 1989. After that he had acted in every type of film including comedy films, action films etc. His musical blockbusters include Khamoshi with Manisha Koirala, Andaz Apna Apna with Amir Khan, Karishma Kapoor and Ravina Tandon, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai opposite Twinkle Khanna, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega opposite Preeti Zinta, to name a few. He build a manly body from the early part of his career and from that time became the role model of many youngstars of the country. His action films included Auzaar with Shilpa Shetty, Tumko Na Bhool Payenge with Diya Mirza, Tere Naam, Karan Arjun opposite Mamta Kulkarni, to name a few. His recent action film in 2009 titled Wanted opposite Ayesha Takia did brilliant business. Although he did not shape his career as an action hero like Sunny Deol or Sanjay Dutt, his performance in action films were very impressive. He acted in landmark comedy films during his career, which included Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya opposite Katrina Kaif and Sushmita Sen, Mujhse Shaadi Karoge opposite Priyanka Chopra, Partner opposite Lara Dutta, God Tussi Great Ho opposite Priyanka Chopra, to name a few. In 2009, he acted in romantic films Mai Aur Mrs Khanna, opposite Kareena Kapoor, and also London Dreams with Ajay Devgan and Asin. Although Mai Aur Mrs. Khanna did average business, London Dreams became hit. If his films in 2008 can be analyzed it can be said that his film Heroes with Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol and Preeti Zinta, had done best business so far. The films God Tussi Great Ho did average business and the film Yuvvraaj could not rise up to the hype that was created by strong promotion of Subhash Ghai. Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif’s performance had been well appreciated by the film-lovers and the film had created aesthetic values with innovative music and good locations. In 2010 his film Veer has both romantic elements and action elements as well but the huge cost that was put up was not recovered at all. His television show Dus Ka Dum in Sony Channel got fantastic response in 2009. The leading actors of bollywood films including Akshay Kumar, Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Jeetender, Tusshar Kapoor, Amir Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, all appeared in that show and Salman Khan helped all of them for the promotion of their films that were released this year. In 2011 his show Big Boss got excellent viewership with Sanjay Dutt also sharing the role of anchoring. Salman Khan had been extremely popular for the viewers of TV Channels for his straight forward communications. He appeared in Saregamapa Music Competition in Zee TV with Katrina Kaif and asked Aditya Narayan, Himesh Reshammiya, Pritam, Shankar Mahadevan and others about the fate of Aneek, Raja and others who had won the competition before. He enquired whether they had got chance in bollywood films or whether they were still struggling. No other bollywood actor would have ever been concerned about the fate of upcoming talents including singers, dancers, actors, etc. In 2011 he came during Zee Saregamapa Little Champs program and encouraged child participants like Azmat Hussain, Niladri Chatterjee, Salman Ali, Nitin Kumar, and others. In 2012 and 2013 he did a great job in the TV Program Big Boss. The viewers expect him to break records after records as it is proved in the recent 3 years that he is the greatest crowdpuller in the country. Salman Khan had always been involved with controversies and his good deeds got neutralized due to the killing of deers in Jodhpur, offense relating to rash and negligent driving, etc. But those who had behaved well with Salman Khan know that he is a gem of a human being. 2010 had been a year with mixed fortunes for Salman Khan. While Veer did mediocre business, Dabanng ended up being blockbuster. He had also hosted the show Big Boss with huge success. 2011 had been excellent for Salman Khan with 2 of his films Ready and Bodyguard giving business of more than 125 crores each. The viewers expect Salman Khan to give an even better performance in the film Dabaang 3 opposite Sonakshi Sinha which are going to be made in future.

Happy birth anniversary of Showman Raj Kapoor.

Happy birthday to Raj Kapoor. Raj Kapoor is remembered by the nation on his birthday on 14th December, 2014. He was probably the most popular actor of bollywood films of the 40s, 50s and 60s other than Dilip Kumar. Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor still remain the most popular actors of bollywood cinema in the last 70 years. One of the reasons of their immense success includes the superlative class of music being given to the giant actors by Naushad and Shankar Jaikishan. Naushad gave classic tunes to Dilip Kumar in the films Uran Khatola, Kohinoor, Mughal-I-Azam, Leader, Dil Diya Dard Liya, Ram Aur Shyam, Aadmi, to name a few. Rafi and Shakeel Badayani were the other players in the deadly combination. Rafi’s songs for Dilip Kumar like “madhuban me radhika nachere”, “woh dur ke musafir”, “tere husn ki kya taarif karun”, “koi sagar dil ko behlata nahi”, “dilruba maine tere pyar me kya kya na kiya”, “aaj purani rahon se koi mujhe awaaz na den”, “na aadmi ka koi bharosa”, “do sitaron ka zameen par hai Milan aaj ki raat”, etc., remain one of the greatest creations of all times. If Naushad was unparallel as a composer, Shakeel Badayani was unparallel as a lyricist, Rafi was matchless as singer and Dilip Kumar matchless as an actor. Producer director Raj Kapoor was the closest competitor of Dilip Kumar during the 40s, 50s and 60s. In fact both the giants had acted together in the film Andaz in 1949. Raj Kapoor’s deadly combination with Shankar Jaikishan had produced super hit films like Barsaat, Aah, Awara, Shree 40, Chori Chori, Anari, Jis Desh Me Ganga Behti Hai, Sangam, to name a few. The music of those films were equally popular and successful. Songs of Mukesh and Manna Dey like “ramaiya vasta maiya”, “mur murk e na dekh”, “sab kuch seekha humne”, “yeh raat bheegi bheegi”, “o mehbooba”, “dost dost na raha” “aa aab laut chalen”, had not lost their flavor even after 50 years of their creation. As Raj Kapoor had other qualities besides acting including production, direction, editing, etc., he is considered the greatest showman of all times even today. As far as the compositions of Naushad and Shankar Jaikishan are considered, both the composers had very strong classical orientation. Naushad gave folk tunes to Dilip Kumar in Ganga Jumna sung by Rafi including “nain lad jaiy he” and Lata in “dhoondo dhoondo resaajna”, etc. Shankar Jaikishan gave folk tunes to Raj Kapoor in Teesri Kasam in songs like “chalet musafir” sung by Manna Dey, to name a few. If Naushad displayed the muslim culture of Lucknow, Aligarh with his classical tunes in films like Leader, Kohinoor, Mughal-i-azam, Shankar Jaikishan displayed the European tunes in Raj Kapoor’s films Sangam, Around the World, etc., where the westernized orchestrations complimented the colourful scenary of the foreign countries. In fact, SJ’s tunes “chale jana zara theheron” showed the brilliance of Lake Erie and Niagra Falls stretching from Canada to USA, and mesmerizing the audience. Even in Sangam, the creation of SJ picturised in the snow-clad Switzerland titled “ishq the ishq, I love you” showed SJ’s capability of adapting to European tunes. The musical fountain in Around the World, showed the brilliance of SJ in the film Around the World. The lyrics written by Shakeel Badayani in Dilip Kumar’s films where music was composed by Naushad were as innovative as the lyrics written by Hasrat Jaipuri and Shankar Jaikishan in Raj Kapoor’ films composed by Shankar Jaikishan. The lyrics contained urdu shairy, bhopuri language, ultramodern lyrics, rural language, etc. and appealed to the masses. Naushad had composed music in more than 15 films of Dilip Kumar and the same is the case of Shankar Jaikishan in Raj Kapoor’s films. The music of each of those films can be analysed and revisited. It is impossible to say whether Dilip Kumar’s combination with Naushad was greater than Raj Kapoor’s combination with Shankar Jaikishan, but it is true that the two giants had left assets for generations to cherish which had ended up being masterpieces. New actors, composers, singers, directors learn from the success of the Showman and Tragedy King and the works should be revisited. Raj Kapoor’s legacy is carried forward by his son Rishi Kapoor, grandson Ranbir Kapoor and granddaughter Kareena Kapoor. Both Ranbir Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor had established themselves in bollywood films and will go a long way. Different private channels showed films of Raj Kapoor on his birthday in 2013. Raj Kapoor’s creations should be preserved and restored.

Happy birthday to Tragedy King Dilip Kumar, the legend of legends.

Happy birthday to Tragedy King Dilip Kumar, the legend of legends. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Dilip Kumar, better known as Tragedy King on 11th December, 2014. After the death of evergreen star Dev Anand, few days back at the age of 88 years, Dilip Kumar is the only living legend still in right humour who had adorned the golden age of Indian cinema. An institution by himself, Dilip Kumar had been a torch bearer in the world of romantic acting for the last 72 years. Born in 1922, Yusuf Khan, one of the greatest actors of bollywood films of all times had created new dimensions at every decade with his unique style of acting. In 2013, he fell ill and was hospitalized for a short time. Entire Bollywood became concerned. He recovered and came home. On his birthday many guests came including Asha Parekh, Salim Khan, Rani Mukherjee and others. Although his performance in tragic roles like Bimal Roy’s Devdas and Madhumati, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Musafir, and other landmark films had made him an icon of tragedy, he had proved his variation in comedy films, social films, action-oriented blockbusters. Directors like Bimal Roy, K. Asif, Tapan Sinha, Subhash Ghai, consider Dilip Kumar as the greatest actor of all times. He had made the characters immortal which he had played in his illustrious career. He had given extraordinary lips in landmark songs of the 50s and 60s sung by Mohammad Rafi like “madhuban me radhika nachere” and “do sitaron ka zameen par hai milan aaj ki raat” in the film Kohinoor, “ek shahenshah ne banwake haseen tajmahal”, “tere husn ka kya tareef karun”, “apni azadi ko hum hargese mita sakte nahi”, in the film Leader, “dilruba maine tere pyar me kya kya na kiya”, “koi sagar dilko behlata nahi” in the film Dil Diya Dard Liya, “aaj ki raat mere”, “aye hai bahare dekho” in the film Ram Aur Shyam, to name a few. Giant composer Naushad made the greatest contribution in the films of Dilip Kumar, although Shankar Jaikishan gave quality music in the films Yahudi and Daag, Salil Choudhury contributed in the film Madhumati and Musafir. Dilip Kumar had acted opposite all the leading actresses of 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, including Madhubala in Tarana, Mughal-i-Azam, Nargis in Babul, Andaz, Meena Kumari in Kohinoor, Azad, Footpath, Vaijayantimala in Madhumati, Ganga Jumna, Leader, Wahida Rehman in Dil Diya Dard Liya, Aadmi, Ram Aur Shyam, Saira Banu in Sagina, Gopi, to name a few. Even during the 80s, his character roles created new dimension in bollywood films. His performance in the film Mashal, Masdoor, Shakti, Karma, Vidhata had inspired the new generation of actors like Anil Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt and others. He has the record of getting the filmfare award for the best actor for the maximum number of times ( 8 times ) which had not been broken by even Shahrukh Khan till now. Dilip Kumar had not learned acting from any acting school yet the way he had made Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s character Devdas immortal, the actors of the next generation consider him an institution by himself. He had played roles of even trade union leaders in the film Sagina, he was the first actor in bollywood films to perform in a double role in the film Ram Aur Shyam. He created a trend and films with double roles were created in the same lines as that of Ram Aur Shyam in Seeta Aur Geeta, Chaalbaaz, Kishen Kanhaiya. He received the highest civilian award given by Pakistan, Nishan –e- imtiaz which was previously received by only one Indian, that is the former Prime Minister Morarji Desai. He had also received Dadasaheb Phalke award for his contribution in bollywood films. It is not possible to highlight the contribution of the legend of legends in a small article, as he had created an image which made him indispensable over 70 years in bollywood films. Yet his journey is not over. Even in the present age directors like Subhash Ghai engage him with his new projects these days. Many veteran actors came to Dilip Kumar to greet him on his birthday in 2012 and 2013. The viewers want Dilip Kumar to continue acting in bollywood films if his health permits. Viewers had got addicted to his soft tune of dialogue throwing and want him to reproduce the magic again.

Remembering Salil Choudhury the great musical genius.

Remembering Salil Choudhury. Salil Choudhury, noted scholar, poet, composer and literary giant was remembered on his death anniversary on 5th September, 2014. He was also remembered on his birthday on 19th November, 2014. As he was a versatile scholar, his scholarly attributes were reflected in his creations. He was both the lyricist and the composer and numerous songs sung by legendary singers over 50 years. His creation “ami parini bujhite parini” and “tumi jaante” for Manobendra Mukherjee were created with two different andaz, one having classical orientation while the other having westernized treatment. His creation “jhanana jhanana baje” and “antabihin oi andharater shesh” for Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya showed his class in handling classical singers. On the other hand his strength in folk songs were evident in his song “sunayoni sunayoni” sung by Nirmalendu Choudhury and Sabita Choudhury. Nirmalendu became famous all across the world with his folk numbers. Salil Choudhury hugely experimented with Shymal Mitra in songs like “jadi kichu amare shudhao”, “aha oi ankabanka poth jai shudure”, “dur nai beshi dur oi”, “ja jare ja ja pakhi”, to name a few. In “jadi kichu amare shudhao”, Salil Choudhury’s orchestration was unique, half of the song was blank verse while the other half had musical treatment. Salil Choudhury used the different playback singers in Bengal and explored their talents to the brim. Some of the great compositions include “eso kache boso” sung by Tarun Banerjee, “pallabini go sancharini” sung by Dwijen Mukherjee, “Jodi jante go tumi jante” sung by Manobendra Mukherjee, “jai jai din” sung by Biswajeet Chatterjee, to name a few. The list can go on. Salil Choudhury created a gem with the song “nil nil pakhi” for Sandhya Mukherjee. Besides, bengal’s literary community were astonished with Salil Choudhury conversion of famous poetry “ujjal ek jhak paira” sung by Sandhya Mukherjee into song. The poet’s feelings were translated into musical tune by sheer brilliance of Salil Choudhury. Other examples of converting legendary poems into songs include “runner” written by Shukanto Bhattacharya and “palki chole” written by Satyendranath Dutta which were sung by Hemanta Mukherjee which both became history. In “runner” the march of the postman on foot from remote corners of village was given adequate expression by Salil Choudhury. Salil Choudhury’s national fame allowed him to do numerous experiments with bollywood singers like Mukesh and Lata. Articles after articles can be devoted to Lata Salil Choudhury creations in Bengali. Mukesh also sung hit song “jhum jhum pakshi nachona” composed by Salil Choudhury. Salil Choudury created his masterpieces in Bengali films as well like Shyamal Mitra’s song “onek ghuriya sheshe” in Hrithik Ghatak’s film Bari Theke Paliye, Nirmalendu Choudhury’s song “sojoni o sojoni” and Manna Dey’s “uthali pathali amar buuk” in Rajen Tarafdar’s film Ganga. Besides his song “he bhai re bhai” and “baje go beena” sung by Manna Dey in the film Marjina Abdulla made the listeners speechless. Even Lata’s song “bujhbe na keu bujhbena” was equally popular. Bimal Roy’s film Do Bigha Zameen was based on Salil Choudhury’s literature. His music in the films Do Bigha Zameen, Madhumati, Musafir, Parakh, Jagte Raho, Anand, Maya, Rajnigandha, etc., stand out as landmarks in Indian film history. He received filmfare award for brilliant performance in the film Madhumati. All the songs in the film including Lata’s “aja re”, “ghari ghari”, Rafi’s “tute hue khwabonme”, “jangal me mor nacha”, Mukesh’s “dil tarap tarap ke”, “suhana safar aur mausam hasin” touched the souls of numerous Indians in the late 50s. Other notable songs of Salil Choudhury in bollywood films include “tasveer teri dil me” from Maya, “zindagi kaisi hai paheli hai”, “kahin dur jab din dhal jaye” from Anand, “rajnigandha” from Rajnigandha, “jago mohan pyare” from Jagte Raho, “dil tadpe tadpaye” from Poonam Ki Raat, to name a few. Bengal and India was as a whole was indebted to a maestro like Salil Choudhury and several researches can be undertaken for finding out the history behind his creations. One article is not enough to reiterate the immortal works of the giant creator. The creations should be preserved and restored.

Happy birthday to Disco King Bappi Lahiri.

Happy birthday to Bappi Lahiri. The viewers of Bollywood films wish happy birthday singer and composer Bappi Lahiri on 27th November, 2014. His father Aparesh Lahiri was a great singer and composer and from his he inherited the skills of music composition. His father sang notable songs in Bengali like “jhar”, “bhanga ei sampan”, and also composed songs in Bengali film Netaji Subhash Chandra Basu, where Lata sang the notable song “ekbar bidae de ma ghure ashi”. His mother Bansari Lahiri was also a famous singer. In the early 1970s, his film Zakhmee gave him recognition in 1975. His song for Lata “ayo tumhe chand pe le jaye” became hit. In the early 1980s, his music in the films of Mithun Chakravarty became super hit. He started the trend of disco songs in Indian films. In Mithun Chakravarty’s film Disco Dancer all the songs were composed on disco andaz like “I am a disco dancer, zindagi hai mera gaana”, “yaad a raha hai”, to name a few. Bappi Lahiri continued composing music in other films of Mithun like Dance Dance, Commando, and other films. On the other hand Bappi Lahiri’s music in Big B’s films like Namakhalal, Sharabi became bumper hit. All the songs like “ki pag ghungroo bandhke meera nachti”, “thori si jo peele hai” became smash hits. Bappi Lahiri rose in the league of the top music directors in the 1980s. His songs in other films like Anil Kapoor’s Saheb, Sanjay Dutt’s Thanedaar became super hit. On the other hand he composed successful music in Bengali films. His music in Uttam Kumar’s last film Ogo Bodhu Sundori including songs like “ami ekjon shanto shisto potni nishto bhadrolok”, “ei to jibon jakna jete jak pran” became super hit. His music in Tapas Pal’s film Guru Dakkhina became super hit 1986. All the songs of Kishore Kumar like “e amar guru dakkhina” became super hit. Bappi Lahiri composed music in more than 500 films in different languages like Bengali, Hindi, Marathi, etc. The admirers of Bappi Lahiri expect him to continue composing and singing gems the way he started 40 years ago.

Sourav Ganguly's Dadagiri begins with a bang.

Sourav Ganguly’s Dadagiri begins with a bang. Bengalies after every 6 months of Zee Bangla Dadagiri Program, wait for the commencement of the program for the next season. This had been the story for the last 4 years. On 18th November, 2014, Zee Bangla Dadagiri started with a bang. Sourav Ganguly started season 5 of Dadagiri with 6 contestants. It is going to be shown at 10 pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The format of the game had remained the same. In 2011 Mithun Chakravarty anchored Dadagiri. Superstar Mithun Chakravarty had hosted and anchored many programs in Bengali channels including Dance Bangla Dance. The program was excellent and credit goes to Mithun Chakravarty for pulling the crowd once again between 9.30 and 11.30 on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The first round shown was toss round. The second round was named Pack up or panga. In that round the contestants got positive marks for right answers, negative for the wrong answers. Even for bonus answers the rule was the same. Mithun Chakravarty showed a scene from Amitabh Bacchan’s film Do Anjane, where he also acted in a small role. Those were the struggling days of Mithun Chakravarty. Later on he acted in big roles sometimes matching the stardom of even Big B in films like Agneepath. In the googly round, intelligent questions were asked. A Professor of Bengali institution who participated in the program came and touched Mithun Chakravarty. He said that participating in a program by standing so close to Mithun Chakravarty was a dream to him. In the googly round a participant was asked the question how could a mug which had a crack inside could be used to draw water. The participant answered that the crack was in the handle, the water never leaked. It was a very intelligent question. Mithun also showed his wit by laughing at a special moustache of a participant. The participant said if his wife had to marry him, she had to love the moustache before marrying him. The names of the rounds have changed if compared with Dadagiri Program during Sourav Ganguly’s time. But even then Mithun Chakravarty had maintained the charm and is expected to a great job in the coming rounds of Dadagiri because his wide experience of acting dancing in the all India arena had created a national dimension which he uses in different programs. He is liked by everyone and is doing a great job. One of the participants in 2014, Sujata Chakravarty was a cricketer. She bowled a ball to Sourav Ganguly. Sourav Ganguly did a great job as an anchor in the show.

Sonu Nigam rocked Zee Bangla Saregamapa Grand Finale.

Sonu Nigam rocked Zee Bangla Saregamapa Grand Finale. Brilliant singer Sonu Nigam, came saw and conquered the Zee Bangla Saregamapa Grand Finale. The finale was held on 16th November, 2014. Along with the judges Alka Yagnik, Kumar Shanu and Hariharan, Sonu Nigam appeared as guest judge. It was meeting point of stalwarts. The six finalists sang their songs in the different rounds. Rick, Anwesha, Arfin, Ahenjita, Kamalika and Aritra were the 6 finalists. The 3 judges Alka Yagnik, Kumar Shanu and Hariharan guided the participants to the finals. Sonu Nigam said that he had started Zee Saregamapa program in Zee TV long time back. From that time the program gained popularity and later taken by the regional channels. But none of the Zee Saregamapa regional music programs were as brilliant as the Zee Bangla Saregamapa Program. The music arrangers and music players were brilliant. In the second round the contestants were asked to sing Sonu Nigam’s songs. Arfin sang Sonu Nigam’s song “tu hi tu”. He did a great job. Aritra sang the song “tumse milke dilka” from film Main Hoon Na. Ahenjita sang the song “abhi mujh me yahin” from the film Agneepath. The other participants also sang Sonu Nigam’s song “suraj hua maddhyam” and other songs. In between the song Hariharan sang a ghazal. Sonu Nigam himself sang the song “abhi mujhme yahin”. Alka Yagnik and Sonu Nigam also sang their songs. In one of the songs Jishu Sengupta the anchor danced with June Malia, Rachana Banerjee and others. Singer Shilajit himself sang a song and extended the microphone to other singers like Swapan Basu and others. At the end of the show, Anwesha was declared the winner of the show. She won many prizes. The program came to an end. It ran for more than 4 months. Presently Zee Bangla Dadagiri Program will begin.

Happy birthday to Helen.

Happy birthday to Helen. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Helen on 19th Nov., 2014. She had remained an exceptional dancer and featured in majority of bollywood fllms in the 60s and 70s. She was probably one of the most indispensable figures in bollywood during 60s and 70s. Without her films like Gumnaam, Teesri Manzil, Jewel Thief, Inteqam, Carwan, Night in London, etc. would have been incomplete. She had acted opposite leading stars of the 60s and 70s, for example, in Gumnaam she acted opposite Pran, In Teesri Manzil she acted opposite Shammi Kapoor, in Jewel Thief she acted opposite Dev Anand, in Night in London opposite Johnny Walker to name a few. She in fact filled in the empty space created by prominent dancer Cuckoo in the 50s. One of her most memorable films included Gumnaam, which was released in 1965, where she played the role of one of the few persons who were taken to an isolated island. She was killed along with a number her friends by Tarun Bose in the film who was identified by Manoj Kumar at the end of the film. Her dance number in the songs “hum kale hai to kya hua dilwale hai” and “is duniya me jeena ho to” composed by Shankar Jaikishan were brilliant by every judging standards. She was put to test in her dance no. in the song “muqabla hum se na karo” in the film Prince along with Shammi Kapoor and Vaijayantimala. She did the western part while Vaijayantimala did the eastern part. Whenever she got a scope of performing opposite Shammi Kapoor her performance used to get a different dimension as he was the only male star in the 60s to dominate bollywood films with rock and roll dance performances. Both of them did well in the film Teesri Manzil. The song “o haseena zulfonwali” is remembered for the dance of both Helen and Shammi Kapoor. Helen got a villainish role in the film and trapped Shammi Kapoor in a murder case where the actual murderer was Prem Nath. Helen even got few roles of heroines in the 60s including the role in the film Pyar Hi Pyar where she acted opposite Mehmood, where the main roles were played by Dharmender and Vaiyantimala. Her prominent roles continued in the 70s, including her cameo in the song “piya tu ab tu aja” composed by RD Burman in the film Carwan, her role in the film Sholay, where her dance number in the song “mehbooba mehbooba” amazed the viewers. The villainish roles continued like the one in Big B’s film Don, where her song “yeh mera dil” became a runaway hit. Kareena Kapoor danced in the same item number as that of Helen when the film was remade by Farhan Akhtar, with Shahrukh Khan. Her other notable films include Mere Jeevan Saathi, Hindustani, Half Ticket, etc. She even acted in character roles in the 90s in films like Akela and Khamoshi. Her performance in the film Khamoshi had been appreciated by all section of viewers. In one article it is not possible to cover the contribution of Helen, who had dominated bollywood films of 60s and 70s. The admirers of Helen expect her to make more contribution in bollywood films in character roles as she has a lot acting still left in her.

Happy birthday to Shilpa Shirodkar.

Happy birthday to Shilpa Shirodkar. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Shilpa Shirodkar on 20th November, 2014. She was a prominent actress of bollywood films during the 90s. She had been remembered the most for her performance in the film Gopi Kishen. The film was released in mid -1990s. Sunil Shetty played a double role in the film. Shilpa Shetty played the role of a simple city girl who was married to a funny constable. She delivered her dialogues with broken English and reality created sensation. Karishma Kapoor played the role of the smart girl who was cast opposite the smart Sunil Shetty. Shilpa Shetty in fact balanced the callousness of the character Gopi in the film. The film did excellent business in late 90s. Shilpa Shetty did extremely well in the film Hum opposite Govinda. In that film she played the role of daughter of military major played by Kader Khan. Although she loved Govinda, her father never allowed her to get married to Big B’s family as they were involved with India’s military, air force or naval service. Shilpa Shetty married Govinda against the wishes of her father Kader Khan. As the film had strong star cast with Big B, Rajnikant, Govinda, Kader Khan, Danny, Anupam Kher and others, her performance did not get limelight, but she was very effortless in that role. She did a great job in the film Kishen Kanhaiya. Anil Kapoor played a double role in that film. The film was based on the same story line as that of Dilip Kumar’s film Ram Aur Shyam. The twin brothers played by Anil Kapoor had contrasting characters like Dilip Kumar’s characters in Ram Aur Shyam. Shilpa Shetty acted opposite the docile Anil Kapoor who was beaten up by Amrish Puri. Shilpa Shetty had suffered due to the oppression of Amrish Puri in the film. Her role was very submissive and polite in the film. Shilpa Shirodkar also acted in serious fllms like Prakash Jha’s Mrityudand. She kept her mark opposite Shabana Azmi, Madhuri Dixit and other actresses in the film. Shilpa Shirodkar added weight and stopped acting after 10 years. The viewers expect her to make a comeback in character roles in future considering her acting capability and previous performances.

Happy birthday to style-queen Zeenat Aman.

Happy Birthday to style –queen Zeenat Aman. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to style – queen Zeenat Aman on 19th November, 2014. She had dominated bollywood films in the 70s. She created attention with her successful performance in Dev Anand’s film Hare Rama Hare Krishna. Hare Rama Hare Krishna was released in the year 1971. She played the role of a girl who became addicted to drugs. She became a style icon during the period when European Hippies and other communities influenced fashion all over the world. She had acted opposite all the leading stars of bollywood films in the mid-70s. Her successful films opposite Big B included Don, Dostana, Lawaarish, etc. In Don, she had shown martial art and the ability to adapt herself in action films. She was extremely successful in Raj Kapoor’s film Satyam Shivam Sundaram. She played the role of a village girl whose face got burned and disfigured. The film was related to the romantic relationship of Zeenat with Shashi Kapoor, who was an urbanized youth. Lata’s songs in the film including “satyam shivam sundaram” composed by Laxmikant Pyarellal require special mention. Zeenat gave able lips in the songs. In the early 80s Feroz Khan gave a stylish image to Zeenat in the film Qurbani. She played the role of a hotel singer and stormed bollywood with her performance. Her lips in the songs “aap jaisa koi mere zindagi me aye”, “laila ho laila”, etc., in the film Qurbani created sensation. Feroz Khan and Vinod Khanna also gave memorable performances in the film. The film ended up being blockbuster. She also acted in serious films like Insaaf Ki Taraazu. In the 80s she acted opposite other stars as well. Her film Abdullah opposite Sanjay Khan did great business. The songs of Abdullah composed by RD Burman like “maine pucha chaand se” sung by Mohammad Rafi also became super hit. Zeenat was also known for contributing in action films like Shalimaar opposite Dharmender, Don opposite Big B, Ram Balram opposite Dharmender. In all those films the roles required action stunts. Zeenat did show her martial art stunts in the film Don. Her roles are idolized and reworked by Priyanka Chopra in Don – the Chase Begins. Zeenat gave good lips in qawallis as well. One example was in the film Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahi. It was released in 1977. She gave lips in Asha Bhosle’s song “hai agar dushman zamana” opposite Rishi Kapoor. Rishi Kapoor gave lips in Rafi’s portion with his own brilliance. Zeenat Aman left films in the mid -80s when she was at the summit of her career. Her films should be preserved.

Happy birthday to Sushmita Sen.

Happy birthday to Sushmita Sen. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Sushmita Sen on 19th November, 2014. After creating a mark in the fashion world she made notable contribution in films as well. She won the Miss World Crown in the early 90s and at that time remained one of India’s best beauties along with Aishwarya Rai. She had impressed the viewers with the film Mai Hoon Na opposite Shahrukh Khan. Shahrukh Khan came to find his own brother in an educational institution after a long time. Shahrukh Khan fell in love with Sushmita Sen in the film. The online chemistry appealed to the masses. Both of them gave able lips in the song “mai hoon na”. Zaid Khan, Amrita Rao and Sunil Shetty also did very well in the film. She faced the glamour of Katrina Kaif in the film Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya, opposite Salman Khan and yet impressed the viewers with her unique performance. She was a nurse in the medical clinic of Salman Khan and she was asked to play the role of his first wife to satisfy Katrina Kaif. Salman Khan went on saying lies one after the other and Sushmita Sen had to help him for the wrongful cause. A time came when Sushmita could not bear any more. At the end of the film Salman Khan married her as she really loved him. Sushmita Sen gave brilliant lips in the song “laga laga laga re”. She even did well in roles of second heroines like the one she played in Salman Khan’s film Bibi No. 1. Salman Khan was married to Karishma Kapoor and he lived with Sushmita after having an affair with her when he went for a foreign visit. When the question came as to upbringing of Salman Khan’s children Sushmita Sen failed miserably. Anil Kapoor and Tabu helped Karishma Kapoor to create ill-feelings of Salman Khan against Sushmita Sen and ultimately the family peace was restored in favour of Karishma Kapoor. The songs picturised on Sushmita Sen and Salman Khan became super hit like “ishq sona hai”, “chunari chunari”, etc. Sushmita Sen also acted in challenging roles in films like Chingari, which were made for response from critics and Sushmita had shown her acting skills in these types of films. Her other successful films include Aaghaaz, opposite Sunil Shetty, where she played the role of police officer, Zor, opposite Sunny Deol, etc. Both Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai joined bollywood films more or less at the same time and there was an express competition between both of them as both had come from the fashion world. Although Sushmita Sen showed her potentiality in many films and the films had done well in box-office, she was not as lucky as Aishwarya Rai in bagging the big banners of Subhash Ghai, Sanjay Leela Banshali, Ram Gopal Verma, etc. Sushmita has also appeared as judges in many dance competitions hosted in different TV Channels in recent years along with other celebrities like Wasim Akram and others. The viewers still believe that Sushmita Sen has a lot of acting left in her and she can do even better in bollywood films in future including her film relating to Benazir Bhutto. She had done a great job in Anil Kapoor’s film No Problem was released in 2010. Aneez Bazmi had directed the film. There are other stars in the film including Sanjay Dutt and Akshay Khanna in the film. The film did not do great business. The viewers wish the best for Sushmita Sen for the films that are going to be released in future.

Happy birthday to sweet star Juhi Chawla.

Happy birthday to sweet star Juhi Chawla. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to sweet star Juhi Chawla on 13th November, 2014. Juhi Chawla stormed bollywood films in the 90s. Her first film Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak became super hit in the late 80s. Her pair with Amir Khan was well accepted by the audience. The songs in the film became very successful. The landmark songs included “aye mere humsafar”, “papa kehte hai” sung by Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik and others. From that time many producers and directors did cast her opposite Amir Khan in many films. The film also started a new trend of romantic films one after other after 15 years of domination of action films under success of Angry young man Amitabh Bacchan. Salman Khan’s film Maine Pyar Kiya followed very soon. Her comedy andaz in the film Ishq opposite Amir Khan was well appreciated. Her romance with Amir Khan started with quarrels as against the affair of Kajol and Ajay Devgan in the same film. The film did great business. Juhi Chawla acted in romantic films opposite all the leading actors of bollywood, including Rishi Kapoor in Bol Radha Bol and Eena Meena Dika, Anil Kapoor in Deewana Mastana, Jhoot Bole Kowa Kate, Amir Khan in Hum Hai Rahi Pyar Ke, to name a few. In the mid-90s she acted in a number of films opposite superstar Shahrukh Khan. Her major films opposite Shahrukh Khan included Duplicate, Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman, etc. She started her production house Dreams Unlimited along with Shahrukh Khan and produced many films. One of the hit films included Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani. Both Shahrukh Khan and Juhi Chawla acted in the film. Juhi Chawla also acted in films opposite other actors. Her performance in character roles in the recent times had also impressed the crowds. Some of her recent films included Salaam-E-Ishq opposite Anil Kapoor. She played the role of a middle-aged woman whose husband got attached with another woman. She got dejected at the beginning, but keeping in mind the interest of her children, she compromised with Juhi Chawla. Juhi Chawla acted in action films like Darr as well. She performed opposite Sunny Deol and Shahrukh Khan. Shahrukh Khan acted in a negative role in the film who was killed at the end by Sunny Deol. Juhi Chawla’s dance performance in the film in songs like “tu meri saamne” still haunts the viewers. In 2012 she had acted in a number of films like Main Krishna Hoon, Son of Sardar. Son of Sardar was released in November, 2012, and there was lot of hope relating to the film where Juhi Chawla had a great role. The film did business of more than 100 crores and her performance opposite Sanjay Dutt created attention. In 2013, she had acted in the film Gulaab Gang. The film had been released. The viewers expect Juhi Chawla to continue the quality work in future.

Amitabh Bacchan, Shahrukh Khan gave fantastic speeches in inaugeration of 20th Kolkata Internatonal Film Festival.

Amitabh Bacchan, Shahrukh Khan gave fantastic speech in inauguration of 20th Kolkata International Film Festival. The 20th Kolkata International Film Festival 2014, started off with a brilliant inauguration in Netaji Indoor Stadium on 10th November, 2014. It was a brilliant occasion by every standard. Mamta Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal managed to invite the major dignitaries from different parts of the world and especially India. The 8 day film festival started with the inauguration on 10th November, 2014. The legends who graced the occasion included Amitabh Bacchan, Jaya Bacchan, Aishwarya Rai Bacchan, Abhishek Bacchan, Tanuja, Shahrukh Khan and many others. The August gathering also saw Bengali legends like Ranjit Mullick, Madhabi Mukherjee, Moushumi Chatterjee, Moonmoon Sen and others. Shahrukh Khan in his short speech made sure that he could say something in Bengali. This is the third time he had inaugurated a film festival and he said in his own words that honest creation is what the spectators expect from the creators. Amitabh Bacchan gave an extended speech. He did huge homework for that. He emphasized on women empowerment. He mentioned that both in Bengali films and hindi films, the directors and writers emphasized on women’s social standing. Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s Parineeta, Biraj Bahu told the same. Tagore’s stories also reflected them. While directors like Bimal Roy with films like Bandini, Sujata, Mehboob Khan with films like Mother India showed women’s individuality in Indian society, renowned Bengali directors like Satyajit Ray in his films Charulata, Pather Panchali had showed the different facets of women characters and also it was shown in films of other giants like Tapan Sinha who showed it in films like Jotugriha. Amitabh Bacchan’s speech was par excellence. Australian Filmmaker Paul Cox gave a brilliant speech explaining the importance of film festivals which brings expression of different countries and connects the countries together. Amol Palekar, Irfan Khan, Tanuja, Jaya Bacchan all congratulated the Bengali audience and the love for films in Bengal. Mamta Banerjee invited everyone and talked about the film festival showing films of 60 countries in Kolkata for the next 8 days. She also said what Bengal thinks today India thinks tomorrow. So Bengali writers, filmmakers and actors had been inspirations for other directors, actors of other parts of the world. So she expected everyone to enjoy the festival for the next few days.

Happy birthday to Meenakshi Sheshadri.

Happy birthday to Meenakhi Sheshadri. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Meenakshi Sheshadri on 16th November, 2014. She had been one of the leading actresses of bollywood films of the 80s. She entered the film industry at a time when there was serious competition amongst the actresses in bollywood. Jaya Prada and Sri Devi established themselves as lead actresses and new stars like Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla entered bollywood. The same period was famous for action films and stars like Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Sunny Deol became famous in action roles. She started her career in Subhash Ghai’s film Hero. Meenakshi acted opposite Jackie Shroff in the film who also started his career with the film Hero. After that Meenakshi acted opposite all the leading actors of bollywood films. She was very successful in the film Meri Jung opposite Anil Kapoor. In that film Anil Kapoor being a lawyer contested against Amrish Puri in a keenly contested case. Meenakshi was successful opposite Big B in the film Shahenshah. Big B played the role of a police officer who did his duty during the day and attached criminals at night with the name of Shahenshah. Meenakshi gave able lips in the song “jane do jane do mujhe jana hai”. Meenakshi acted in successful films of Raj Kumar Santoshi one after the other. She was at her best in the film Damini. In that film she had seen a girl being raped. When she went and gave her testimony before the court about the happening she was considered to be an insane person. But she did not care about the allegation and testified before the court about the happening. Sunny Deol and Rishi Kapoor also did extremely well in the film opposite her. Meenakshi could have won a national award for the brilliant performance in the film, had Dimple Kapadia not won it for Rudaali. Sunny Deol and Meenakshi formed a deadly combination especially in the films of Raj Kumar Santoshi. Their other hit films included Ghayal and Ghatak which did fantastic business. In Ghayal Meenakshi played the role of a dare devil character, the journalist who did not fear to write the truth related to a corrupted businessman played by Amrish Puri. Sunny Deol was falsely implicated in a case and fled from the jail to kill Amrish Puri. Meenakshi also acted opposite other actors like Vinod Khanna. Even in less known films like Joshiley, Meenakshi Sheshadri did extremely well opposite Anil Kapoor. She had very successful opposite all the leading stars of the 80s and 90s including Rishi Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Sunny Deol, Big B and others. Meenakshi also acted in South Indian films and was successful there too. She left films at a time when she was very matured. The viewers expect her to make a comeback in character roles in future.

Happy birthday to Mala Sinha.

Happy birthday to Mala Sinha. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Mala Singh on 11th November, 2014. She had been a legendary actress of bollywood films and contributed in both bollywood films and Bengali films for more than 40 years. In the 50s, Mala Sinha had acted in classic films like Parvarish, Phir Subah Hogi opposite Raj Kapoor. The music composer of Parvarish was Dattaram, while it was Khayyam for Phir Subah Hogi. These films became immortal for their unforgettable songs like “anshu bhari hai”, “woh subah kabhi to ayegi”, etc. Mala Sinha was sublime opposite Dev Anand in the film Love Marriage. The music of the film composed by Shankar Jaikishan was equally grand. The hit songs included “dheere dheere chal”, “kahan ja rahete”, etc. Mala Sinha contributed well in Guru Dutt’s classic film Pyaasa. The romantic andaz displayed by Mala Sinha was very significant in the film in the songs “hum aapke aankho me”, sung by Rafi and Geeta Dutt. Guru Dutt loved Mala Sinha during college life, but failed to marry her. The realistic film received a lot of public appreciation. Mala Sinha continued her dream run in the 60s by performing in historical films like Jahanara opposite Bharat Bhushan. The film was a musical block buster. The songs “baad muddat key eh ghari aye”, “kisi ki yaad me”, etc., composed by Madan Mohan created history. The biggest achievement of Mala Sinha lies in sustaining in bollywood industry amidst high competition from other leading actresses like Nargis, Meena Kumari, Madhubala, Vaijayantimala, etc. Mala Sinha was brilliant in the film Gumrah opposite Ashok Kumar and Sunil Dutt. She displayed her personality very well in a triangular love story. The songs of the film composed by Ravi was brilliant including “chalo ek baar phir se” and :in hawawon mai” sung by Mahendra Kapoor. Mala Sinha also acted with the next generation of actors like Rajender Kumar and Dharmender. Her successful films opposite Rajender Kumar included Dhool Ka Phool, Lalkar and Geet. Her successful films opposite Dharmender included Ankhen, Neela Akash, Jab Yaad Kisi Ki Aati Hai, etc. which did great business. She was sublime in her performance opposite Dharmender in the film Baharen Phir Bhi Ayegi. She did very well in films opposite Biswajeet like Night in London and Shammi Kapoor in Dil Tera Diwana. Mala Sinha played a very long innings in Bengali films as well. Her successful films opposite Uttam Kumar included Khelaghar, Shaharer Itikatha, Bandhu, Putrabadhu, Saathihara, to name a few. She gave able lips in Geeta Dutt’s songs namely “nishi raat banka chaad”, “baashi bujhi ei sure aar dakbe na”, etc. Her other notable films include Dhuli opposite Prashanto Kumar, Abhaya Srikanto opposite Basanto Choudhury, etc. She even featured in modern films in the 90s like Khel where she had played character roles opposite Madhuri Dixit. The viewers expect her to continue in character roles in films in future.

Usha Utthup glorified Zee Saregamapa Little Champs Program.

Usha Uthup glorified Zee Saregamapa Little Champs program. The listeners wish happy birthday to singer Usha Utthup who now had become a cult figure. Her birthday is on 7th November, 2014. In the recent past she had come in a number of TV shows and rocked the shows. Padmashree winner Usha Uthup glorified Zee Saregamapa Little Champs Program by being the Mahaguru on 5th and 6th August, 2011. Alka Yagnik had gone for a holiday and Usha Uthup came to judge the performances of the participants in the program. Very significantly the day was dedicated to the golden music of 1960s. Adnan Sami dressed up like Shammi Kapoor, Javed Ali dressed up like Dev Anand, Kailash Kher dressed up like Guru Dutt. The participants dressed up like the actors and actresses of the golden period and sang their songs. Very significantly the participants mainly sang the songs of Mohammad Rafi. Niladri Chatterjee sang the song “yahoo chahe koi mujhe jungle kahen” from the film Junglee, sung by Mohammad Rafi and composed by Shankar Jaikishan. Azmat Hussain sang the song “mere pairon me ghungruu bandhade” from the film Insaniyat sung by Mohammad Rafi and composed by Naushad Ali. Usha Uthup mentioned that God was there in the heart of Azmat Hussain and that was the reason he sang so well. Anmol Khatri sang the song “nain lad jai he wo manwama kasak oi bekari” sung by Mohammad Rafi in the film Ganga Jumna, composed by Naushad Ali. Usha Uthup said he was looking like junior Dilip Kumar. The child participants were excellent in the rendition of the songs. Rimsha sang the song “yeh dil tum bin kahin lagta nahi ab kya Karen” sung by Lata and Rafi in the film Izzat, composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal. Sanjana sang the song “kajra muhabbat wala” sung by Asha Bhosle and Shamshad Begum in the film Kismat composed by OP Nayyar. Barnali Hota sang the song “parde me rehne do” from the film Shikar, sung by Asha Bhosle composed by Shankar Jaikishan. Salman Ali sang the song “akele hai chale awo” sung by Mohammad Rafi and composed by Kalyanji Anandji in the film Raaz. Javed Ali praised Kalyanji Anandji for their unique composition and said that they had encouraged new talents. It was Kalyanji Anandji who had brought them in the industry. Nitin Kumar sang the song “na ja kahin ab na ja” sung by Mohammad Rafi and composed by LP in the film Mere Humdum Mere Dost. Usha Uthup sang the song “haal kaisa hai janaab ka” herself. She had given her musical instrument khanjari to Nitin Kumar as a token of love. In other episodes, Alka Yagnik used to make her valuable comments along with Javed Ali, Adnan Sami and Kailash Kher. On 5th and 6th August, Usha Uthup did the same, she had literally ignited and glorified the atmosphere of Zee Saregamapa Little Champs program telecast in Zee TV. Her English was as brilliant as her hindi as brilliant as her Bengali. She should be invited frequently in this program.

Happy birthday to elegant actress Tabu.

Happy birthday to Tabu on 4th November. All the viewers of bollywood films had wished happy birthday to Tabu on the 4th of November, 2014. Although these days Tabu is not in the news to the extent she used to be few years back, she still enjoys popularity from bollywood audience. In 2014 her performance in the role of elder sister of Salman Khan in the film Jai Ho was well appreciated by the audience. When she entered films, within very short period of time she was recognized by the directors of parallel films and realistic films and experimented with her in dynamic roles. Gulzar gave her a challenging role in the film Machis. It was related to the story on terrorism existing in Punjab in the 90s. Tabu represented a member of a family who was affected by such terrorism. Her performance stand out among other notable performances of Om Puri and Chandrachud Singh in the same film. She played a challenging role in the film Tarqeeb. The film was related to suspense of her death. She was killed and Nana Patekar did an impressive investigation to unearth the truth as to her killing. The first part of the film showed Tabu’s struggle in maintaining her family and her fight against poverty. The early part her relevance in respect of finding the motive of killing her in the film. She played the role of a strict police officer in the film Kohram with Nana Patekar. Nana Patekar took the disguise of a journalist to unearth the identity of Big B in the film who was alleged to have been involved with criminal activities. At the end of the film both Big B and Nana Patekar co-operated with each other in their fight against Danny and his men who were really involved with anti-national activities. Tabu was very impressive in her respective role in the film Hu Tu Tu. She also changed her image by performing in serio-comic performance in the film Bibi No.1, where she played the role of the wife of Anil Kapoor who helped Karishma Kapoor to bring peace in her family after her husband Salman Khan got involved in extra-marital affair with Sushmita Sen. Tabu had acted in off-beat films like Chandni Bar and received critics acclamation for her performance in those types of films. She also acted in Mira Nair’s Hollywood film Namesake. Last year she played a notable role in the film Cheeni Kum with Big B where she depicted the character of a middle-aged lady who entered into an affair with an old man. She is probably one of the Hyderabadi actresses, who had done well both in bollywood films as well as South Indian films. Even more than that her performance in the comedy film Hera Pheri, where she acted opposite Sunil Shetty had no similarity with the role of village girl in Virasat where she acted opposite Anil Kapoor. She had showed her range of acting over the last 15 years and other than Dimple Kapadia there are no actresses of contemporary period who has equal potential as that of Tabu. Although she had acted in Telegu films in 2008 like Pandurangadu, she had not played any important role in any bollywood film in 2009. In 2010, she acted in the film Toh Baat Pakki, but that film did mediocre business. In 2012 Banda Yeh Bindaas Hai opposite Salman Khan and Govinda was supposed to be released. But it is supposed to be released in 2014. The other film Life of Pi was released and she got critical acclamation. In 2014, she was seen in Salman Khan’s film Jai Ho, which was previously name as Mental. Jai Ho did business of 115 crores. Her admirers expect her to make a strong comeback in bollywood films and contribute in both commercial and off-beat films.

Happy birthday to dashing star Esha Deol.

Happy birthday to dashing star Esha Deol. The viewers wish happy birthday to dashing star Esha Deol on 2nd November, 2014. She studied in Mithibai college in Mumbai. She was good soccer player and also learned Bharatnatyam and Orissi dance. 2011 was a special year for Esha Deol. She acted in the film Tell Me O Khuda which had been released on 27th October and Chai Garam which was released in 2011 itself. In Tell Me O Khuda Dharmender, Rishi Kapoor and Vinod Khanna acted opposite her. The other film Chai Garam was released in December, 2011. Govinda, Sunil Shetty and Celina Jaitley had acted opposite her in the film. The film had been directed by Aditya Dutt. In 2013 she got married and faded out of the industry. Esha Deol started her career with the film Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche. But within 2004 she got big hits like Dhoom. The film did excellent business and Esha Deol never looked back after that. She played her part very well in the film LOC Cargill. She did a great job in the film Kaal opposite other established stars like John Abraham, Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi and Lara Dutta. It was a suspense thriller, with Ajay Devgan playing the role of ghost to perfection. She played her role very well in the film Yuva. There also she acted opposite other big stars like Abhishek Bacchan, Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi. In No Entry she played a cameo role opposite Salman Khan. She was the wife of Salman Khan, who had extra-marital affairs and went on telling lies after lies. At the end of the film Salman Khan’s lies were unfolded and that worsened the cause of his friends Anil Kapoor and Fardeen Khan. No Entry was the biggest hit film of 2005. She continued acting in other comedy films like Shaadi No. 1 opposite Sanjay Dutt, Fardeen Khan, Zayed Khan and others. In 2007 her films Darling and Cash were very impressive. In 2008, her film One Two Three opposite Tushar Kapoor and Sunil Shetty did well. Her comedy timing was well appreciated by the viewers. In 2010, she was busy with the films Kaanch –the broken glass, and Ghost Ghost Na Raha. Ghosh Ghost Na Raha had not been released and remained a future project. Being the daughter of superstars Dharmender and Hema Malini, there is still a lot of expectation from Esha Deol. Viewers expect that she will return to films and will do even better in future.

Happy birthday to Kamal Hassan.

Happy birthday to Kamal Hassan. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to versatile actor Kamal Hassan on 7th November, 2014. He had been a versatile figure both in bollywood films and South Indian cinema. In 2013 he was busy with the film Viswaroopam II. In the early 80s, his film Ek Duje Ke Liye stormed bollywood. It was a teenage love story where Kamal Hassan and Rati Agnihotri reached their performance to huge number of Indians. Kamal Hassan also showed his exceptional dancing skills in songs like “hum bane tum bane ek duje ke liye”. The music was composed by LP and the music astonished the viewers. He followed it up with his brilliant performance in the film Saagar. In Saagar, Ramesh Sippy experimented with a triangular love story with Kamal Hassan, Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia. The songs of the film composed by RD Burman became super hit. Some of them included “o maria”, “chehera ho”, “saagar kinare”, “jane do na”, etc. Kamal Hassan brought tears in the eyes of his audience through his sacrificing performance as died at the end of the film to save Rishi Kapoor. Besides he also exhibited his acrobatic skills in the film. The film did brilliant business due to power pact performance of Kamal Hassan, Dimple Kapadia and Rishi Kapoor. From that time onwards he acted in different types of films, both having commercial significance and also art value. He acted in the film Geraftaar opposite Big B and Rajnikant. The viewers remember his comedy film Chachi 420. He received a number of national awards for best actor in the last 30 years. He had remained an all-time superstar in South Indian film industry. Kamal Hassan used all the legendary actors of bollywood in the film Chachi 420 as a director and emerged victorious. Om Puri, Paresh Rawal, Amrish Puri, Tabu were balanced by the brilliant performance of Kamal Hassan himself who played the role of lady Chachi. He took a brilliant make up and created a hilarious script and Om Puri, Amrish Puri, did their best to make the film super hit. He had proved his worth in every department of film making, whether acting or direction. In 2009 also Kamal Hassan came up with ten roles in the film Dasaavatharam. He had acted opposite Asin, Mallika Sherawat and others. He played ten different characters and all the roles were played with different dimensions. Besides he had played many daunting characters in Tamil films and bollywood films like the one in the film Hindustani. Kamal Hassan, received Padmashree, but that had not been a right recognition of his success. His film Viswaroopam also created sensation. The viewers expect him to show the dynamism in future too as they still know that Kamal Hassan still has a lot of acting left in him.

Ravi Shankar Sharma and Mohammad Rafi's combination is remembered for generations.

Ravi Shankar Sharma and Mohammad Rafi’s combination is remembered for generations. Renowned music director Ravi Shankar Sharma died on 7th March, 2012, at the age of 86 years. His music had remained immortal over the years. From the film Vachan and Albeli in 1955 he started his musical journey. In 1960, Mohammad Rafi’s soft ghazal “chaudavi ka chand” in the film Chaudavi Ka Chand made him a musical star. Guru Dutt’s picturization was as outstanding as the lyrics and the brilliant performance of Rafi Sahab in both the songs “chaudavi ka chand ho” and “mili khak me muhobbat”. Even Rafi Sahab’s songs for Johnny Walker in the film namely “mera yaar bana hai dulha” and “yeh duniya gol hai” caught the attention of the music lovers. From that time it was magic been created whenever Rafi Sahab and Ravi Sahab combined together. In Rajender Kumar’s film Chirag Kahan Roshni Kahan in 1959, Rafi Sahab’s song “ajab hai maalik tera jahan” was very impressive. Ravi Sahab used Rafisahab in films of Raj Kapoor also namely Nazrana in 1961. The song “baazi kisi ne pyar ka” stood out among the other hit songs of the same film including “bikhrake zulfen’ sung by Mukeshji and Lataji. In 1961, Rajender Kumar’s Gharana stormed bollywood with the soft music in the songs “husnwale tera jawab nahin”, “jab se tumhe dekha hai” where Rafi’s velvety voice made the audience spellbound. Ravi Sahab and Rafi Sahab created in Rajender Kumar’s other film Pyar Ka Saagar in 1961, where the song “mujhe pyar ki zindagi denewale” made viewers spellbound. In many of the film of Ravi Shankar Sharma, Shakeel Badayani wrote the lyrics. In Shammi Kapoor’s China Town, Ravi’s music for Rafi had loud numbers like “baar baar dekho”. The magic combination did magic in Biswajeet’s film Shehnai. Rafi’s song “na jhatkon zulf se pani”. In Sunil Dutt’s film Nartakee in 1963, Rafisahab’s song “zindagi ke safar me akele the hum” created hypnotizing effect. Although Ravi created majority of songs for Rafi, he composed lots of successful songs for Mahendra Kapoor like “chalo ek baar phir se” in Gumrah, “neele gagan ki tale” in Humraaz, especially in the films of BR Chopra. The sarengi that had been used by Ravi had been excellent. No other composer other than Roshanlal Nagrath had used sarengi, the way Ravi used in the film Kaajal in 1965. Rafi’s songs for Raj Kumar namely “ye zulf agar khulke” and “chulene do nazuk hotonko” had made the audience intoxicated. Rafi Sahab’s song for Raj Kumar Nai Roshni in 1967, “kis tarah jeeten hai yeh log” really enchanted the audience. The 2 other songs composed by Ravi Sahab for Rafi Sahab were impressive “garibon ka jeena hai koi jeena” and “teri ankh jo ishara”. Biswajeet and Ashok Kumar played important roles in the film. All the songs of the film Do Badan in 1966 were smash hits. Rafi and Ravi were unparallel in the songs “bhari duniya me akhir dil”, “raha gardishon me hardam”, “naseeb me jisko jo”, etc., which were picturized on Manoj Kumar. Shakeel Badayani’s lyrics were meaningful and soulful. Even in Joy Mukherjee’s film Door Ki Awaaz, Ravi Rafi combination gave all super hit songs. They included “muqaddar azmana chahta hoon”, “banake mera muqaddar”, “dil mera aaj kho gaya hai kahin”, “husn se chand bhi sharmaya hai”, to name a few. The combination created magic in the films Ankhen, Do Kaliyan and Neel Kamal in 1968. Biswajeet’s song “tumhari nazar kyun khafaa ho gayi”, “yeh samaa yeh rut yeh nazaare” sung by Rafisahab had brilliant romantic andaz. All the songs in the film Neel Kamal were touchy including “tujkho pukare mera pyar”. It became a cult song. Rafi’s song “babul ki duyayen leti ja” had become a cult song during the marriages of daughters in India. It was also a gift of the Rafi and Ravi combination. The magic continued in the film Ek Phool Do Mali. Rafi’s songs “o nanhe se farishte” and “aulad walon” made the viewers and listeners mesmerized. In the 70s, Ravi faded out of the industry and made a comeback with the film Nikaah. Although Mahendra Kapoor and Asha Bhosle made notable contribution in Ravi’s songs, his magic of soft romantic tunes could be given right expression by Mohammad Rafi. The list of Rafi songs for Ravi is so long that it cannot be covered in several articles together. Even then the films and the songs should be restored. Although Ravi did not get the same honour as Shankar Jaikishan, or Naushad Ali or Roshan Lal Nagrath, his contribution in bollywood films cannot be ignored and he is one of the 10 best composers India had produced during the 50s and 60s and his combination with Mohammad Rafi had been unique.

Sadashiv Amrapukar will remain immortal in his works.

Sadashiv Amrapurkar will be remembered for his acting. On 3rd November, 2014, actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar passed away at the age of 64 years. He was suffering from lung infection for more than 2 weeks. He had contributed a lot in Bollywood films. He was born on 11th May, 2050. He was brought up in Ahmednagar. In 1981 he acted in the play Hands Up. He was a great break by director Govind Nihalini in the film Ardh Satya in 1983. He acted in the role of a Mafia Don and balanced the brilliant performances of other stalwarts like Om Puri and Amrish Puri. He also received the filmfare best supporting actor award for the performance in the film Ardh Satya. From that time onwards his image as a villain was recognized. He played notable characters in Jackie Shroff Film Teri Meherbaniya, Amitabh Bacchan’s film Akhree Rasta, Amitabh Bacchan’s film Indrajeet, to name a few. In 1991 his performance in Sanjay Dutt’s film Sadak in role of a eunuck Maharani, made him a big star. The negative role not only gave him the filmfare award for the best villain in the same year but created a new dimension in the world of negative roles. He also acted in many relief roles and comedy roles. In films like Amir Khan’s Ishq, Bobby Deol’s Gupt, Akshay Kumar Sunil Shetty’s Mohra he played positive roles and comedy characters. His ease in respect of getting into the character of the different models helped me to get important character roles for more than 30 years. The list of his successful films are very long. Right from Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya to Khatarnak, Insaniyat to Mohra, Janam Samjha Karo to Ankhe. The list of heroes against whom he played the role of villains is also very long including Salman Khan, Amir Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Bobby Deol, Amitabh Bacchan, Sunny Deol, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Mithun Chakravarty and others. He also acted in regional films like Bengali films, Marathi films, Hariyanvi films, etc. Out of more than 300 films where he played important roles, at least 50 films stand out to show his versatility in acting. He had acted in both parallel films and commercial films. His films and works should be preserved.

Sudesh Bhosle stormed Zee Bangla Saregamapa Program.

Sudesh Bhosle stormed Zee Bangla Saregamapa Program. Sudesh Bhosle stormed Zee Bangla Saregamapa Program on 1st November, 2014. He was a sensation. On that day he came as a guest judge in addition to judges Kumar Shanu, Alka Yagnik and Hariharan. One of the participants sang his song “jumma chuma de de” from the film Hum. It was picturised on Amitabh Bacchan in the film. After the participant sang the song, Sudesh Bhosle was asked to sing the song. He did set the stage on fire. Kumar Shanu asked Sudesh Bhosle to sing one of his songs in the manner of Hemant Kumar. He sang in the same style of Hemanta Mukherjee. He was also asked to sing the same song in the style of SD Burman. Again he sang the song very well. Then Sudesh Bhosle was asked to sing one of the songs of Hemant Kumar. He sang the song “yeh nayan dare dare, yeh jam bhare bhare”. He imitated the deep voice of Hemant Kumar and made the crowd spell bound. He also sang one of the songs of SD Burman in style. After the songs were sung by Sudesh Bhosle he was asked to imitate big actors. He acted the way Asrani had acted and used the lyrics of the song “yashoda ka nandlala” for acting in the manner of Asrani. The he imitated Sanjeev Kumar in the style he delivered his dialogue in the film Aandhi. Then he imitated Amitabh Bacchan both in the song “shawa shawa” and also told the dialogues of Agneepath. One of the participants sang Manna Dey’s song and everyone appreciated his effort. One of the female participants sang the song “man saat samandar” and one of the other participants sang the song “mohuae jhoreche aaj mou go”. Hariharan and the other judges appreciated her. Shanu said phataphati meaning brilliant. Alka Yagnik said wallah wallah subhanallah. One of the participants were eliminated at the end of the show. Jishu Sengupta anchored the show in style.

Composer Robin Chatterjee had huge contribution in the films of Uttam Kumar.

Superstar Uttam Kumar was the uncrowned monarch of Bengali films during the golden age, that is the 1950s and 1960s. Robin Chatterjee was a genius composer and composed many romantic tunes during that decade. In Uttam Kumar’s film Sabar Upare, Sandhya Mukherjee’s song “ghum ghum chand jhiki miki tara” picturized on Suchitra Sen became super hit. Even Dhananjoy Bhattacharya’s song “kataron aghate chino paye rakta jhare” became hit. In Uttam Kumar’s film Sagarika released in 1956, Sandhya Mukherjee’s songs were as successful Shyamal Mitra’s song “amar sapne dekha rajkanya thake”. Robin Chatterjee gave excellent tune to Alpana Banerjee in the film titled “hridoy amar shundoro taba pay”. The film became super hit. In Uttam Kumar’s film Pathe Holo Deri, Sandhya Mukherjee’s song “tumi na hoy rohite kache”, “ei shanj-ghera logone aaj” and “e shudu ganer din” became very successful. The romantic tunes took the audience to a different world. The magic combination of Robin Chatterjee Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen continued in the film Shilpi. Dhananjoy Bhattacharya’s song “bondhu re” had folk tune embedded in it. Robin Chatterjee gave beautiful tune “sunaha baranari” to Shyamal Mitra in Uttam Kumar’s film Suno Bara Nari. In Uttam Kumar’s film Bipasha, Robin Chatterjee gave excellent tunes to Sandhya Mukherjee in the song “klantir poth bujhiba phuralo mor”, “ami sapne tomay dekhechi”. Robin Chatterjee composed tunes in Uttam Kumar’s other films like Momer Alo where Subir Sen sang notable songs, Shaharer Itikatha, etc., and all these films did great business due to the excellent music composed by Robin Chatterjee. Robin Chatterjee gave excellent tunes in Uttam Kumar’s film Kamallata. Shyamal Mitra and Sandhya Mukherjee’s song “o mon kokhon shuru kokhon je shesh ke jane” was appreciated by the religious-minded audience. In 1969 Robin Chatterjee died and the great combination with both Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen ended. The films and the songs of Robin Chatterjee Uttam Kumar combination should be restored.

Happy birthday to superstar Shahrukh Khan.

Happy birthday to superstar Shahrukh Khan. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to superstar Shahrukh Khan on 2nd November, 2014. He was the ruler of bollywood industry in the 90s. Right from Baazigar, Shahrukh Khan gave blockbusters one after the other. After Amitabh Bacchan, he is the next superstar, whose screen presence had carried through many big budget films. 2011 had been a great year for Shahrukh Khan. He had produced the costliest film in Indian history Ra One. The film in the first week had already done business of more than 50 crores. Although the film had not broken the record of Salman Khan’s film Bodyguard this year which had done business of 150 crores, the film had created a new trend, and Shahrukh Khan’s excellent acting, stunts and enthusiasm had been praised a lot by the viewers. In 2012, Shahrukh Khan’s romantic film Jab Tak Hai Jaan was released on Diwali, on 13th November. It was the last film of Yash Chopra. He died recently. This was the first time Shahrukh Khan had acted opposite Katrina Kaif. AR Rehman composed the music of the film. The film did business of 115 crores. 2013 had been even more successful year for Shahrukh Khan. His film Chennai Express released in August, 2013, did business of more than 210 crores. The film broke the record of Amir Khan’s The Three Idiots and stands as the biggest blockbuster ever. 2014 had been a bigger year. Shahrukh Khan’s film Happy New Year did business of more than 150 crores in the 1st weeks. It has the potential of doing business of more than 200 crores. Shahrukh Khan had a grand combination with Director Karan Johar, and most of the films directed by him ended up being super hit. The notable films include Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, etc. Shahrukh Khan also gave able lips in hit songs of these films including “kuch kuch hota hai”, “suraj hua madhyam”, etc. In 2010, their grand combination gave another hit titled My Name is Khan. Shahrukh Khan played the lead role in the film and did a great job opposite Kajol. Shahrukh Khan also succeeded in negative roles. The greatest example includes Darr. There he played a negative character opposite Sunny Deol and Juhi Chawla. On one hand he gave good lips in the songs “tu mere samne”, on the other hand his attack on Juhi Chawla made the viewers understand that he could act in any type of films. He received filmfare award for the negative category as well. He was played a challenging role in Mani Ratnam’s film Dil Se. The film was related to terrorism in North East India and Shahrukh Khan died with Manisha Koirala in the film. Shahrukh Khan has the record of bagging 7 filmfare awards for best actor, which is the second best record after Dilip Kumar who had won it 8 times. Shahrukh Khan, better known as King Khan, had acted in the films of almost all the leading directors of the country, including Amol Palekar’s Paheli with Rani Mukherjee. Besides he had acted opposite different actresses like Kajol in the film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Preeti Zinta in the film Veer Zara, Anushka Sharma in the film Rab Ne Bana Di Jori, to name a few. Shahrukh Khan opened own production house titled Dreams Unlimited with Juhi Chawla, and the films produced by such combination like Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani also did good business. Shahrukh Khan had ruled the industry for more than 15 years. Shahrukh Khan is also known for high level of energy. He had sponsored the Kolkata Knight Riders IPl team which had been captained by Sourav Ganguly. Although the team had performed is a disastrous manner, Shahrukh Khan had always encouraged his players. Shahrukh Khan’s team under the captainship of Gautam Gambhir had also won the IPL Trophy this year. The viewers are waiting for his next film that is going to be released in 2015. He is breaking his own records. So there are more surprises in future.

Happy birthday to Beauty - Queen Aishwarya Rai.

Happy birthday to Beauty –Queen Aishwarya Rai. The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to bollywood beauty-queen Aishwarya Rai on 1st November, 2014. She had been the first woman in India whose wax Statue had been made in Madam Tussadd’s Museum in London , UK. After winning Miss World Crown she stormed Bollywood films with Jeans. Her film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam opposite Salman Khan and Ajay Devgan, released in late 1990s became super hit. Her screen presence in traditional Rajasthani dress flabbergasted the viewers. She gave elegant lips in the songs “nimura nimura” and “dhol baaje”. She gave the best performance of her life in the film Taal. Her softness in the film opposite Ashay Khanna and Anil Kapoor charmed the viewers. AR Rehman’s music in the film was sensational. All the songs in the film became super hit including “ishq bina kya jina”, “rabba jogi”, etc. Ash in that period was at the top of her career. She also did well opposite Anil Kapoor in the film Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai. In that film she was raped by Puru Raj Kumar and was given shelter by Anil Kapoor. After that her docile image balanced the strong performance of Anil Kapoor in the film. The film got huge box-office. Ash created spark in item numbers as well. The best example can be “kajra re kajra re” in the film Bunty Aur Babli. Gulzar wrote the lyrics which was sung by Alisha Chinoi. The music was composed by Shankar Ehsaan Loy. In fact the best dance performance of the film was related to the song which pulled the crowds. Aishwarya’s other hit films include Josh, Kuch Na Kaho, Sarkar Raaj, etc. 2008 was a great year for Ash. After success in the film Dhoom 2 opposite Hrithik Roshan, she amazed the viewers with her powerful performance in the film Jodha Akbar, again opposite Hrithik Roshan. If Dhoom 2 showed her westernized dimensions, Jodha Akbar proved her royal andaz. That was the best film of the year and of her career till now. Aishwarya Rai played a very notable role in the films Bride and Prejudice and other Hollywood films. Articles after articles can be devoted on Aishwarya Rai’s Hollywood performances. In 2010 the viewers appreciated her performance in the role Sita in Mani Ratnam’s film Ravan. Her film Action Replay opposite Akshay Kumar did not do great business. Viewers appreciated her performance in the film Guzarish where she had acted opposite superstar Hrithik Roshan and it was critically acclaimed film. She discontinued acting for 2 years after giving birth to a daughter. The viewers expect Ash to continue the great work that she had started 15 years back.

Amrita Chatterjee, Biswanath Basu, Manashi, Arjun rocked Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program.

Amrita Chatterjee, Biswanath Basu, Arjun, Manashi rocked Mirakkel Program. Actresses Manasi Sinha and Biswanath Basu came to Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program on 28th October, while Amrita Chatterjee and Arjun Chakravarty came to Zee Bangla Mirakkel Program on 29th October, 2014 to promote the film Janla Diye Bou Palalo. Mir Afsar Ali the anchor of the show asked the guest judges the story of the film. Biswanath and Basu and Manasi Sinha said that the story was related to a girl who was forced to marry a boy by her family never wanted to marry. Aniket Chatterjee directed the film. Amrita Chatterjee played the role of the girl. Thereafter the girl got irritated and escaped from the window of the house. Thereafter she met Arjun Chakravarty and fell in love with him. The film is related to slapstick comedy. The director Aniket Chatterjee had used huge number of comedy stars in Bengal right from Biswanath Basu to Manashi Sinha, Kharaj Mukherjee to Kanchan Mullick to name a few. In the show Mir Afsar Ali talked about doing a show in Jodhpur Park with a python. After some period of time the python started pressing the neck and he stopped the song after 1 minute and gave the snake to a snake charmer. Rajatavo Dutta said that he had acted in the Bengali film Badshahi Ungty directed by Sandip Ray. The film is yet to be released. It was based on Satyajit Ray’s first story on Feluda written in 1969. In that film also Rajatavo Dutta had to shoot with a snake and it was a terrifying experience. All the celebrities appreciated the participants in Mirakkel and the judges Rajatavo Dutta, Srilekha Mitra and Paran Banerjee wished best of the luck for the upcoming film Janla Diye Bou Palalo.

Satinath Mukherjee had unique singing talent in the golden age of bengali music.

Satinath Mukherjee was one of the versatile classical singers who did not get dues during the golden age. The 50s and 60s were categorized with notable classical and semi-classical singers in the Bengal arena where Manobendra Mukherjee, Manna Dey, Dhananjoy Bhattacharya, Akhil Bandhu Ghosh and other giants galvanized the world of modern songs. Satinath Mukherjee, the guru of notable singer Shyamal Mitra, had a huge partnership with lyricist Shyamal Gupta and presented his flora of classical ragas in Bengali modern songs. His songs “pashaner buke likhona amar naam”, “bono patho majhe”, “jibone Jodi deep”, etc. were milestones of Bengali modern songs. He sang separate private songs involving “raag pradhan” which described the movement of separate ragas like Imon, Baghesri, Darbari Kanada, Behag, Ashawari, etc. His song on raag bageshri included “elo jochona se tobu”. His song on raag bairagi included “dake na keno je banshi”. His song on raag behaag included “gelo je logon chole”. His song on raag bhairav included “jagiche bhore probhat robi”. His song on raag bhupali included “kotha je banshori baaje”. His song on raag darbadi kanada included “e bedona kemone sohi”. His song on raag desh thumri included “boroshar rate jagi”. His song on raag kalawati included “baje keno beena”. His song on raag komol ashavari included “modhu rati bhor hoi”. His song on raag madhab todi included “ke jano dake nishibore”. His song on raag manj khamaj included “tomare bhulite ogo”. His song on raag nandkauns included “kotha tumi ghanashyam”. His song on raag pahari thumri included “emono dine se kothay”. His song on raag patdeep included “kano janina baje”. His song on raag yaman included “na go na jeyona”. Some of his classical songs included “bojhona keno ami je koto eka”, “jedin jibone tumi”, “baluka belay kurai jhinuk”, to name a few. Very significantly most of the songs were composed by himself. As a composer he used to be considered a giant of giants. His compositions for other legendary singers included “tomar pother prante moner monideep jele rekhechi” and “bhule gechi kobe” sung by Manobendra Mukherjee, “eto alo aar eto hasi gaan” sung by Shyamal Mitra, “ami cheyechi tomay” sung by Dhananjoy Bhattacharya, “tomar moto amiyoto koto soyechi” sung by Pannalal Bhattacharya, to name a few. Besides his own student Dipak Maitra had sung few songs composed by Satinath Mukherjee included “koto kotha bola holona”. Satinath Mukherjee is associated with the compositions for the two maestros in Indian music namely Mohammad Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. Lata’s first record in Bengali namely “akash pradeep jale” and “koto tara” were the compositions of the genius Satinath Mukherjee. Satinath Mukherjee’s landmark compositions for Mohammad Rafi included “ekhono biday bolona”, “pakhitar buke jeno teer merona”, etc. It is very sad that Satinath Mukherjee’s immense musical talents were not used in Bengali films. He had sung rare songs like “majhe nodi bahe re” in Tapan Sinha’s film Atithi, songs in Uttam Kumar’s film Bon Palashir Padabali, etc. Otherwise Satinath Mukherjee, the sincere student of Ustad Bare Ghulam Ali Khan was one of the revolutionary singers and composers who remained an institution by himself. His students included singer and composer Jotileshwar Mukherjee who carried on the legacy of Satinath Mukherjee. The songs and creations of Satinath should be preserved and restored.