Category Archives: Bollywood
Look at this Love Connection!
What is the internet good for? Love! And a love connection has been formed right here on this blog! Let’s meet our lucky bachelor: Mr. R. Jagannathan, editor of that much-read Indian blog, DNA (standing for Daily News & Analysis), … Continue reading
Die, Plagiarism Scandal. Die!
I’ve got a piece up over on Slate that pretty much ends the Rajinikanth/Slate/India Today plagiarism story as far as I’m concerned. Do I wish things had gone differently? Sure, I can think of a million ways that India Today … Continue reading
International Scandal!
I feel like I’ve finally made it to the big leagues. India Today is a weekly news magazine published in India that has a circulation of over 1 million readers. In the newest issue, the editor-in-chief, Aroon Purie, writes a … Continue reading
Rajinikanth is coming for you!
October 1st is the day that the second-highest-paid Asian star in the world (right after Jackie Chan) releases his new movie. His name is Rajinikanth, and the movie is ENTHIRAN aka THE ROBOT (the trailer has been all over Twitter) … Continue reading
Guru
(2007, India) Directed by: Mani Ratnam Starring: Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Mani Ratnam’s 2007 Bollywood film, “Guru”, was kept as secret as India’s nuclear program. Its two leads were stars of such magnitude that their presence attracted an entire solar … Continue reading
A Peck on the Cheek
(2002, India) Directed by: Mani Ratnam Starring: R. Madhavan, Simran Bagga, J.D. Chakravarthy Bollywood claims a number of directors whose musicals are technically equal, and intellectually superior, to anything Hollywood produced in its heyday. Mani Ratnam is one of them: … Continue reading
Lagaan
(2001, India) Directed by: Ashutosh Gowariker Starring: Aamir Khan, Gracy Singh, Paul Blackthorne In 1893 the British Empire was so evil that it taxed helpless Indian farmers during droughts. In fact, in their spare time between forcing vegetarians to eat … Continue reading
Dil Se
(India, 1998) Directed by: Mani Ratnam Starring: Shah Rukh Khan, Manisha Koirala, Preity Zinta DIL SE, Mani Ratnam’s tale of love in a time of terrorism, is the Ellis Island of Bollywood: the point of entry for millions of foreign … Continue reading
Abhay
(India, 2001) Directed by: Suresh Krishna Starring: Kamal Hassan, Raveena Tandon, Milind Gunaji, Manisha Koirala The psychopath has been worn smooth and featureless by his constant use in movies. Legions of interchangeable nutbags, primarily identifiable by their suspiciously elegant manners, … Continue reading
Devdas
(2002, India) Directed by: Sanjay Leela Bansali Starring: Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff To find fault with DEVDAS is akin to hating Claudia Schiffer because she’s too beautiful. There’s a lot of principled hatred that can … Continue reading
