September 2, 2008
Ahhhh masala. The very very best filmi masala has at the very very least most of these twenty-one ingredients:
- Scenery-chewing
- Prodigious use of religious symbolism, preferably encompassing at least The Big Three: Hindu/Muslim/Judeo-Christian
- Squishy dil™ (ppcc) (aka “Oh! the humanity!”)
- Fabulously mod fashions
- Outlandish nonsensically fun plots
- At least one weeping mother
- Brothers/friends on opposite sides of the law
- Incredibly pretty hero(es) and heroine(s)
- Disguises, preferably which mock some ethnic or cultural group
- At least one child lost at a fair, preferably two who are childhood sweethearts
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Posted in Hindi movies, Memsaab's lists |
29 Comments »
September 1, 2008
I can’t find words to describe this movie. Sublime? Magnificent? Classic, for sure. Fantastic romantic story; excellent debuts by “Filmalaya discoveries” Asha Parekh and music director Usha Khanna; and of course, my favorite actor of all time, Shammi Kapoor. I ask you, how can you not like a film whose credits begin with a little boy in his chaddis and a pair of wings and gladiator sandals taking aim at your heart? It’s also directed and written by Nasir Husain, who gave Shammi his first big hit with Tumsa Nahin Dekha. I’ve said it before: Nasir Husain=great entertainment.
It was such fun to watch it again! Not to mention that I ended up on the floor as a Shammi-induced puddle.
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Posted in Hindi movies, Yahoo! Shammi! |
35 Comments »
September 1, 2008
Reader Shaila pointed out yesterday that I have neglected Parveen Babi here at MemsaabStory (Bullet being her only featured film).
Egregious oversight!
Here is a photo of her from the 1973 Star & Style Annual (she’s up and coming, they say!):
Doesn’t she look sooooo young? Reminds me a little of Ali MacGraw in Love Story. I will try to do better on the Parveen front.
Posted in Hindi movies, Vintage Bollywood images |
16 Comments »
August 31, 2008
Rehana Sultan? She’s absolutely gorgeous, but I don’t think she did very well in films.
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Posted in Hindi movies, Vintage Bollywood images |
20 Comments »
August 28, 2008
This heartwarming film has some good laughs and sweet romance. I’ve noticed before, and noticed again with this, that Rajesh Khanna didn’t seem to really mind sharing screen space, and even being upstaged by, other good actors, in this case even during the peak of his career. Here it makes for a nice balance between the romantic story and the great chemistry between Ashok Kumar and Om Prakash, who play two older men—one rich, one poor—who have more in common than they think, and a lot to learn from each other too.
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Posted in Excellent Use of Helen, Hindi movies |
32 Comments »
August 27, 2008
I had worked at home for about three years when I realized that I never really saw daylight except through the windows. Also, I was talking to myself a lot more than most people would probably find acceptable.
So, I got a puppy and named her Gemma. She weighed all of three pounds but she had Attitude.
No stick was too big.
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Posted in Gemma |
38 Comments »
August 26, 2008
Here’s the saree ad featuring Jayaji that I promised to post!
Posted in Hindi movies, Memsaab in a saree, Vintage Bollywood images |
16 Comments »
August 25, 2008
Can anyone name all the actors (mostly comedians) in the two pictures above? One actor is in both photos. These are also from the 1973 Star & Style Annual.
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Posted in Hindi film history, Hindi movies, Trivia time, Vintage Bollywood images |
26 Comments »
August 24, 2008
This movie made me laugh so hard that I literally cried, and had to pause it so as not to miss anything. Apart from the two Munnabhai films, it’s the funniest (intentionally) Hindi movie I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen plenty). Comedy is the hardest genre to translate across cultures, but this one does it in spades. I would say in fact that it’s got to be one of the funniest films ever made anywhere, period, and is as close to perfect as anything gets.
The tongue-in-cheek celebration of filmi conventions, romance, student life, and friendship is hilarious; and the characters are portrayed so perfectly sweetly and heartwarmingly that you can’t help but love them, even when they do bad things. The cast is superb: Farooq Sheikh and Deepti Naval (whom I enjoyed immensely in Kissise Na Kehna and Katha) get incomparable support from Saeed Jaffrey, Ravi Baswani and Rakesh Bedi. I run short of superlatives!
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Posted in Hindi movies |
52 Comments »
August 23, 2008
These are from the 1973 Star & Style Annual.
Hema is on the cover.
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Posted in Hindi movies, Vintage Bollywood images |
18 Comments »
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