One day in August, I checked my blog roll and discovered that not one, but two, of my favourite bloggers had posted reviews of films based (even if only in spirit) on The Arabian Nights. Anu had reviewed Ali Baba … Continue reading ![]()
Johny Mera Naam (1970)
↧
↧
… and back from the Pune Lit Fest
As I’ve mentioned earlier (nearly a year ago, to be precise), I am – despite being an author and not an absolute recluse – not really one of the regulars at Literary Festivals. Which, if you’re keeping track, are now … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Flower Drum Song (1961)
A very belated tribute to an actor I’ve actually seen only in a couple of films, but whom I like a lot: James Shigeta. The Hawaiian-born Shigeta passed away on July 28 this year, and it came to me as … Continue reading ![]()
↧
On the blackness of Delhi’s monuments…
Ever wondered why a lot of Delhi’s medieval monuments—the ones with plastered exteriors, not stone—have that blackened look about them? With Delhi’s humid climate (particularly the fact that several months of the year are taken up by the monsoon) means … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Rustom Sohrab (1963)
Who would’ve thought that the Ramsay Brothers’ first production was a historical worthy of a Sohrab Modi [granted, it does have two far-too-chubby leading men and its fair share of violence, but still; Rustom Sohrab is no horror film, not … Continue reading ![]()
↧
↧
And another Lit Fest!
Last year, when I was attending the Bangalore Literary Festival, I heard an interesting fact at one of the sessions (about literary festivals): at last count—in autumn 2013—India boasted of 63 literary festivals. That’s quite a whopper of a figure, … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Ten of my favourite string instrument songs
After I’d done my piano song posts, I began to think of other musical instruments that appear in the picturisation of songs. Songs where it’s not an orchestra (Ted Lyons and His Cubs, anyone? Or The Monkees?), but a hero … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Restaurant Review: Yum Yum Cha
One of my favourite places to eat—irrespective of cuisine—in Delhi is the fabulous Yum Yum Tree. My husband and I discovered it the day after it opened, when we happened to be in New Friends Colony Community Centre. We ate … Continue reading ![]()
↧
The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954)
Looking through the blog posts I’ve published over the past few months, I realized what a long time it’s been since I reviewed one of those Hollywood classics, the type of film that people tend to recognize the name of, … Continue reading ![]()
↧
↧
Delhi’s historic monuments – and 1857
Last week, on my Facebook page, I’d posted a brief history of the origins of one of Delhi’s most unique festivals, the Phoolwaalon ki Sair (also known as the Sair-e-Gulfaroshan). In the discussions which ensued, one reader pointed out that … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Restaurant Review: Café Lota
I’d been hearing good things about this café for a long time, but the mere fact that it’s outdoor—even if there is a skylight-like roof, and there are fans—made me blanch at the thought of eating here in the summer. … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Godaan (1963)
I am not a one to make New Year’s resolutions; more often than not, it’s just something I silently tell myself I should attempt to do over the course of the coming year. At the start of 2014, I decided … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Restaurant Review: Mamabuns at Mamagoto
Or, to be precise, Mamabuns at Mamagoto. Mamagoto has been our go-to place for good, informal, fun South Asian food for several years now, ever since it opened its first outlet at Select CityWalk Mall. I love the easy-going ambience, … Continue reading ![]()
↧
↧
Mohabbat Zindagi Hai (1966)
Considering ‘arranged marriages’ were—and still are—so common in India, the fact that old Hindi cinema tended to focus mostly on ‘love marriages’ seems rather odd to me. It’s more romantic, I suppose, to imagine that one will fall in love … Continue reading ![]()
↧
1857: Monuments that still bear the scars
A couple of weeks back, I wrote a post on the repercussions, in Delhi, of the revolt of 1857—not just on the people of the city, but on the monuments. Especially the mosques of Delhi. A couple of readers made … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Dynamite (1929)
This post is a consequence of the last film review I did: that of the 1966 Dharmendra-Rajshree starrer, Mohabbat Zindagi Hai. A ‘marriage of convenience’ theme about an heiress who must marry in a hurry in order to inherit the … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Ten of my favourite Geeta Dutt solos
Looking back at the six years this blog has been in existence, I find myself surprised that I’ve never done a post on Geeta Dutt. Geeta Dutt, née Geeta Ghosh Roy Chaudhury, the woman with that beautifully melodious, faintly nasal … Continue reading ![]()
↧
↧
Restaurant Review: Maharashtra Food Stall, Dilli Haat
It’s the perfect season in Delhi to be eating alfresco. The winter’s beginning to set in—and, what with Christmas just a little over a month away, I realized it’s time to go shopping for gifts. And, since a lot of … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Ten of my favourite Geeta Dutt duets
This was not the post I’d got planned for this week. But then, when so many people commenting on my Geeta Dutt solos post began writing about Geeta Dutt duets, I decided I may as well compile my list of … Continue reading ![]()
↧
Not quite a restaurant review: About the Palate Fest
‘Food festival’ is a term that’s been happily applied to just about any food-related (or remotely food-related event) in Delhi. Restaurants are fond of doing food festivals, often focusing on a specific cuisine, or a specific event. Dilli Haat (and … Continue reading ![]()
↧
More Pages to Explore .....
