Beautiful Photograph

While searching for references for the film that I'm working on I stumbled upon this picture. It's been a really long time since I fell in love with something instantly.

At first glance you might not even think it's Indian but look closely. There's an Ambassador taxi there behind the poster of the foreign film. A perfect blend of the West and India.

The entertainment tax-free movie playing is Jack Lemmon's Days of Wine and Roses. To be honest, I hadn't heard of the the movie until now.

This picture was taking in the 1963 by photographer James Burke. Look at the ticket rates- Rs 4, 3, 2, 1, .50. Simply amazing vintage. Can someone help me with the name of the movie hall?

The fact that it is in B&W makes it even more beautiful. I don't want to dissect this picture anymore... just savour in it's beauty people!!

Added a couple more...

These photographs is copyrighted by LIFE.

The cowboy goes yonder

Phew, its been a month since my last posting... simply too much work... am out of shape as well... so now its time to get back to doing the things I always did... you don’t need to know what those things are :P

And the cowboy is dead... Feroz Khan passed away two days ago... it’s really sad that another Hindi cinema gem has left us. I still remember for some reason watching his Yalgaar on VHS... I must have seen it over 15 times... not because I liked it but well... I owned the VHS and lack of something better gave this dud more viewing...

Gaurav and I had once upon a time thought of one the most ambitious project over tiny brains could come up with and Feroz Khan was one of the actors we wanted to cast. However, that project I don’t think will ever happen. Believe me, it's not lack of creativity or lack of producer that won’t make this project happen but the fact that we had over 20 old timers in there.

There are many Indian actors and directors I want to meet in my life-time and Feroz Khan was one of them. Unfortunately, that’s never going to happen.

Feroz Khan’s biggest contribution to my growing up years was the fact that he was the one who bought Biddu to compose in India for his film Qurbani… His Aap Jaisa Koi Meri Zindagi Mein Aaye was a rage but it was Biddu’s entry into the Indipop scene that really caught my attention and the nostalgia still remains. Thank you Mr. Khan for that… R.I.P. Pasha!!

Death of a Bookman

More than any other sale, I would always wait for the annual Strand book sale to begin. And when Strand's news letter announcing their sale would arrive in my inbox I would immediately make calls to find a partner to give me company. I would curse the Crossword sales mainly because what they offer in their 10 day sale is what you get at Strand all year around. Majority of my books in my book collection came from Strand. So it was indeed sad when I read that the owner Mr. T.N. Shanbhag had passed away.

The first time I came across the man was at Strand's annual sale at Sunderbai Hall in 2004. Incidentally that was the first time I had gone for their sale. As I was exiting, Mr. Shanbhag in his suit (clearly he was dressed for the occassion) gave me a polite smile and a mini bow. I smiled back not knowing who he was but I had the feeling he might have been the owner. I was very happy with what I had purchased and I felt that he could see my joy. There seemed to be a sense of satisfacton on his face. Here is a man who offers a minimum 20% discount of every book at any time of the year. Now in this high revenue/ profit seeking world seeing someone do such a service for over 50 years is astounding. You can't help but connect with this man.

I still remember my first purchase from Strand. Their sale was on and I purchsed two books with the money I made editing student films. The first one was Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema by Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen and the other one was So Many Cinemas by B.D. Garga. The latter (also one of my favourite books) originally cost Rs. 1800 but Strand offered it for a sinful Rs. 595. Wow!! I had read the book in Wilson College's reference library and wanted a copy of my own but found it a little too costly back then. In this year's sale it cost Rs. 500. Talking about a great bargain. These books are still part of my priceless collection.

It is sad that newspapers donated only a small corner of their sheets to announce his passing away while the Khans and Kapoors and even Sawants get a full page coverage over a stretch mark.

Not knowing much about Mr. Shanbag personally, I felt this posting was kind of incomplete. So am posting a couple of links which might give you more idea of the man and his contribuion towards society in his own Strand way.

http://strayingaround.blogspot.com/2009/02/strands-shanbhag-passes-away.html

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mag/2003/02/09/stories/2003020900620200.htm

My dad had mentioned Shanbhag to me once and he was proud of the fact that he was a Mangalorian just like us. I don't know the name but I know the person who is always so involved in the sales (the thin uncle with glasses, polite smile and a soft voice) will continue Mr. Shanbhag's legacy.

Cinemaesque

Now this comes before Danny Boyle tried to show the poverty stricken India in Slumdog Millionaire. My friend Chelsea had sent me this link more than a year ago and I thought these pictures were some of the most beautiful ones I had ever seen. Considering my love for cinema, I just couldn't take my eyes of some of them. Jonathan Torgovnik obviously a foreigner has captured some of India's present day yet to be eventually forgotten cinema marvels with elan. It's pretty amazing how so much of this beauty is in front of one's eyes yet we cannot see them. Torgovnik has captured the simplest thing like buying the orange movie ticket and made it more than wonderful or the classic village touring cinemas. Just check out these beauties and go gaga!!

You can find the rest of the pictures on the following link.
http://digitaljournalist.org/issue0306/jt_index.html

These images and text are all extracts from the book Bollywood Dreams and are subject to copyright.

Near the tent small metal ticket booths are set up. A young boy purchases a 10Rs. ($0.25) ticket to his first film ever. in the village of Palli.


An Usher displays 12rs. ($0.25) tickets collected at the 80 year old "Imperial" cinema one of the oldest in Mumbai (Bombay),


The front row of New Shirin Cinema in Mumbai (Bombay), while the film is projected. The cinema is divided to sections and ticket price. The people which sit in the front rows are considered the biggest fans.


The interior of the tuck with two projectors mounted on the floor, projecting the film through a hole in the back wall of the truck. The films are projected all night, and the projectionists take turns in sleeping between shows.


A food stall near Alfred cinema, Mumbai (Bombay).


Artists at "Mohan Arts" studio, in front of their freshly painted "cut outs" which will be placed out side movie theaters in Chennai. The cut out can be up to 60' high. The cost for these larger than life hand painted advertisements is still cheaper to produce than printed ones. In south India, particularly in Madras and Hydrabad, the hand painted film advertisements are still more common than printed ones. In Bombay the hand painted banners hardly exists today.


Film projector operators at the "Padmam" theater projection room, Chennai (Madras). Cinema-goers became accustomed to dim projection, poor focus and quavering sound. Things are now changing for the better.


Beside the main hero and heroine, other characters carry the narrative in Indian films. These roles, whether father or friend, are played by a number of actors known as 'character' actors. Razak Khan is known to play a gangster side-kick. on the set of "Dil Ke Aas Paas" (nearest to the hart) in "Filmaliya" studios Mumbai.


In the court yard of " Roopam" cinema in Chennai (Madras). A boy stretching his hand, trying to touch the lips of a painted larger than life image of his favorite actress film star.


Amar Touring Cinema camped in the village of Palli, with Kisan the projector operator sitting on the truck.


Young kids pounce on cars stuck at traffic lights in Mumbai (Bombay), and thrust glossy gossip film magazines at them. Stardust and Filmfare are two of the local film monthlies, reporting gossip on who’s secretly seeing whom, which star is furious with which, etc.


Actresses Madooh and Urmila embrace, and a film crew man blocking the light from the camera by hand holding a black cloth. As labor is very cheap in India, this film crew worker is acting as a human 'flag' for blocking the light, where in western productions a stand would be used.

Filmdom lookalikes

Thought I would put up this forward up... old one but some timepass...



Think MJ and SRK's one is the best!!




Frieda Pinto can also be added here...

Suga Daddies

Recession is in and how… after endorsing the big cola giants our top Bollywood superstars are now relegated to promoting ganna juice.



On my recent trip to Kanpur while being the pillion rider on a never heard before LML Freedom, I spotted this sugarcane vendor whose vinyl banner had Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra holding a glass filled with ganna juice. Asked my friend to stop the bike. I had to take a picture of this. Everyone was staring at me and my friend… we were looking like A-grade city folk horny for a pic of Priyanka… It was so cheesy, corny whatever you call it and not something you would find back here in Mumbai.



The next day I found out that almost every sugarcane vendor has similar banners. Salman, Akshay, Katrina, Kareena, Abhishek too had joined the Rs. 3 per glass bandwagon. Photoshop has indeed arrived!!

I don’t really know having these stars on your sign board would help on not… however, if my office maid Vijaya ever saw the board with SRK, I’m sure she would leave town in the very next train to Uttar Pradesh!! (Read next posting)