English Vinglish

Woman oriented films are the trend in bollywood these days. The latest to add to the list is English Vinglish. What a comeback Sridevi has made through this film directed and written by Gauri Shinde. (it seems Sridevi's character is inspired be Gauri's mother)

The movie is not just about the English classes, it is a reflection of the society. It is about the family, the attitude of the children towards the parents and how the family and society treat the person who lacks the knowledge of English language. 

The protagonist Shashi (Sridevi) instantly wins your heart with her natural acting. The emotional trauma she undergoes in her own family, the situations she faces in a foreign land, the self determination to prove herself are very well depicted through her fantastic performance. 

The co students in the class and the humor makes you feel light. Sridevi looks  perfect and beautiful in sarees in the backdrop of large billboards and the skyline of New York. You will experience a feel good factor once the movie finishes. Worth a watch, don't miss it!

Ae Malik Tere bandhe Ham....

The song Ae Malik Tere bandhe Ham....from the movie 'Do aankhen Barah Haath' is one of my favorite  Hindi classics. I can listen to this song n number of times a day. It is peaceful, meaningful, touching and immensely soothing.

It was one of my mother's favorite song and movie too. Watch this movie if you get a chance. The lyrics of this song are so meaningful. I have given the lyrics below, sing along and you will fall for it! 

The lyrics for the song Ae Malik Tere bandhe Ham

ae maalik tere bande ham aaa aise hon hamaare karam aaa neki par chalen aur badi se talen taaki hanste huye nikle dam aaa ae maalik tere bande ham badaa kamzor hai aadmi aaa abhi laakhon hain ismein kami aaa par tu jo khadaa hai dayaaloo badaa teri kirpaa se dharti thami diyaa toone hamen jab janam aaa tu hi jhelegaa ham sabke gham aaa neki par chalen aur badi se talen taki hanste huye nikle dam aaa ae maalik tere bande ham aaa aaa aaa aaa aaa aaa jab zulmon kaa ho saamnaa aaa aaa aaa jab zulmon kaa ho saamnaa aaa tab tu hi hamen thaamnaa aaa wo buraayi karen ham bhalaayi bharen nahin badle ki ho kaamnaa badh uthe pyaar kaa har kadam aaa aur mite bair kaa ye bharam aaa neki par chalen aur badi se talen taaki hanste huye nikle dam aaa ae maalik tere bande ham

ऐ मालिक तेरे बन्दे हम, ऐसे हो हमारे करम नेकी पर चले, और बदी से टले, ता की हँसते हुए निकले दम बड़ा कमजोर हैं आदमी, अभी लाखों हैं इस में कमी पर तू जो खडा, हैं दयालू बड़ा, तेरी किरपा से धरती थमी दिया तूने हमे जब जनम तू ही झेलेगा हम सब के गम ये अन्धेरा घना छा रहा, तेरा इंसान घबरा रहा हो रहा बेखबर, कुछ ना आता नजर, सुख का सूरज छूपा जा रहा है तेरी रोशनी में जो दम तो अमावस को कर दे पूनम जब जुल्मों का हो सामना, तब तू ही हमे थामना वो बुराई करे, हम भलाई भरे, नहीं बदले की हो कामना बढ़ उठे प्यार का हर कदम और मिटे बैर का ये भरम Movie -Do aankhen barah haath (1957) दो आँखें बारह हाथ  Singer -Lata Mangeshkar Lyricist -Bharat Vyas Music Director -Vasant Desai cast -V.Shantaram, Sandhya Awards Won :- 1958: National Film Award for Best Film  1958: Berlin International Film Festival: OCIC Award  1958: Berlin International Film Festival: Silver Bear,  Special Prize  1959: Golden Globe Awards: Samuel Goldwyn  Award Nominated  1958: Berlin International Film Festival: Golden Bear

Amitabh Bachchan - 70 Years, 70 Facts!

Okay, after Rekha, its Big B's birthday today. Words fall short off, describing this greatest showman of Hindi film Industry (it seems, he hates calling it Bollywood). 
Here I have put together some 70 interesting facts of Amitabh Bachchan which will help you know more of him. Check them out. Happy Birthday to the Shehensha, the Angry Young Man!
Check out some rare photos of Amitabh Bachchan, Songs sung by him and his Movies List 

1. Amitabh began his career in films in 1969 as a voice narrator in Mrinal Sen's Bhuvan Shome. 
2. His first film was 'Saat Hindustani' in 1969
3. Bachchan won his first National Film Award for Best Newcomer for 'Saat Hindustani'
4. He is the son of well known poet late Sri Harivansh Rai Bachchan and Teji Bachchan. Though the family sirname was Srivastava, his father adopted the pen-name Bachchan
5. His father Harivanshrai Bachchan wanted to name him Inquilab before deciding on Amitabh (unending brilliance).
6. He has acted in over 180 films in 43 years of his career in Hindi film industry 
7. For the past 30 years, every Sunday evening he greets his fans gathered outside his Bungalow Jalsa 
8. Amitabh Bachchan and his family have 3 bungalows - Prateeksha(New Bungalow), Jalsa(Old Bachchan house, Janak(Bachchan office)
9. Amitabh Bachchan is ambidextrous hence, can write with both hands equally well.
10. The Big B  played his first negative role as an infatuated lover-turned-murderer in 'Parwaana' (1971)
11. Jalsa was gifted to Amitabh Bachchan by film director Raj Sippy, for his outstanding performance in Satte Pe Satta
12. The name of his Piranha Dane Dog is 'Shanouk' 
13. He had a very close association with Indira Gandhi and son Rajiv Gandhi
14. Saat Hindustani was the only Hindi film of Amitabh Bachchan which was in black-and-white
15. He wanted to become an engineer and was keen to join the Indian Air Force at some point of time. 
16. His grand children are Navya Naveli Nanda, Agastya Nanda (Shweta Nanda's kids) and baby Aaradhya Bachchan(Abhishek and Aishwarya's daughter)
17. While filming Coolie (1983/I) he received a near fatal injury. He was hospitalised and the Indian press issued daily bulletins on his health.
18. He was fondly called by his mother as Munna
19. Big B has inherted a passion for collecting pens from his father. He has a huge collection of pens, counting to more than a thousand of them.
20. He has a passion for watches too. It is said that AB senior never repeats a watch that he wears. His favorite brand of watches is Longines
21. Amitabh Bachchan thinks that the most beautiful actress in Hindi cinema is Waheeda Rehman.
22. He did a double major in Science and Arts from the Kirori Mal College in Delhi.
23. He is active on Social Networking too. His official Blog is http://srbachchan.tumblr.com/ and follow him on Twitter @SrBachchan
24. Was a former stage actor, radio announcer and freight company executive in Calcutta, India.
25. He is the most-nominated actor in any acting category at Filmfare, with 37 nominations overall.
26. He is making his Hollywood debut with the film called The Great Gatsby directed by Baz Luhrmann. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguir
27. On 27th July 2012, he carried the Olympic torch in London's Southwark.
28. He has sang his own songs in 30 films so far.
29.  He is the only actor who achieved atleast one hit every for 15 consecutive years from Bombay to Goa (1972) to Aakhree Raasta (1986).
30. Vijay was his character name for over 20 films!
31. Amitabh has played more double roles than any other actor. In Mahaan, he had a triple role.
32. Mehmood was also a mentor to Bachchan in his days of struggle and offered him place to stay in his own home.
33. In 2010, he debuted in Malayalam film through 'Kandahar', directed by Major Ravi and co-starring Mohanlal.
34. He is the first Asian to have his wax statue at London's Madame Tussauds Wax Museum
35. Before entering the film industry, Bachchan auditioned at the Delhi station of All India Radio to act in plays. He was turned down because of his unusual voice.
36. In a tribute to the star, Techzone has developed a new app called 'BigB'
37. He turned down the Honorary Doctorate conferred by the Queensland University of Technology Australia in 2009, to oppose the racial attacks on Indian students in Australia
38. He received the Padma Shri in 1984 and the Padma Bhushan in 2001 for his outstanding contribution to cinema.
39. He has won fourteen Filmfare Awards in various categories. 
40. Amitabh Bachchan has a sharp memory. He never forgets the birthdays or special occassions of his close ones and makes it a point to wish them each year.
41. In his short lived political career he contested Lok sabha election from Allahabad and defeatedHemavati Nandan Bahuguna with marginal votes
42. He was one of the judges for the 1995 Miss World beauty pageant.
43. Was named Actor of the Millennium in a BBC News Poll ahead of such luminaries as Charlie Chaplin, Sir Lawrence Olivier, and Marlon Brando.
44. It's ironic that Big B who is a teetotaler has performed some of the best drunken scenes in films like Sharaabi, Namak Halal, Satte Pe Satta, Amar Akbar Anthony andDo Anjaaane.
45. "Zanjeer" (1973) is Amitabh's 13th movie and his first major success which gave him the title 'Angry young Man'
46. Sunil Dutt signed him for a mute’s role in “Reshma Aur Shera” because of a letter of introduction from Indira Gandhi, then prime minister, to her friend Nargis 
47. He dubbed for 23 scenes in 5 hours, a record, for “Shootout At Lokhandwala.”
48. Bachchan was paid Rs. 1,000 for his debut film, K.A. Abbas’s “Saat Hindustani,” on the sets of which he struck a lifelong friendship with Tinnu Anand.
49. He says he is never going to write his Autobiography because there is nothing worth writing!
50. Jaya and Amitabh acted together in two little-known movies before "Zanjeer." They got married on June 2, 1973, a month after the release of "Zanjeer."
51. A.R. Rahman has scored music for three films in which he was involved, but has never composed a song for him.
52. Amitabh-Jaya is the only real-life couple to have starred on-screen for 30 years from “Ek Nazar” to “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…”(2001), a film released 28 years after their marriage
53. He will be receiving a mobile Diabetes Testing unit as a gift from the British Deputy High Commissioner. The clinic will be named as 'Amitabh'.
54. He is a passionate advocate of vegetarianism and animal rights
55. Beginning with “Guddi” (1971), he has played himself in over 12 films in cameos.
56. He is the only actor who has played God (“God Tussi Great Ho”), ghost (“Bhoothnath,” “Delhi-6”) and genie (“Aladin”).
57. The face of the Indian comic book character Supremo is based on him.
58. So far the actor has made special appearances in more than 27 films.
59. The song “Rang barse” from “Silsila” and some lyrics from “Alaap” were penned by his father, Dr. Harvanshrai Bachchan.
60. Among his loyal filmmakers, only Hrishikesh Mukherjee cast him in a common man’s role frequently (doctor, professor etc.) and never did an action movie.
61. He also starred in home productions of Sunil Dutt, Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgan, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff and Shah Rukh Khan.
62. Amitabh is known to suffer from asthma. He also has a rare muscular disorder known as myasthenia gravis.
63. The 1994 Film Insaniyat Was Amitabh’s last release before he took a brief sabbatical from acting
64. He has yet to work with Aamir Khan, though he was narrator in his production “Lagaan.” He was also the voice of God in Salman Khan’s home production “Hello Brother.”
65. In non-film albums, Bachchan sang the entire “Aby Baby” and was a part of Adnan Sami’s album “Tera Chehra” (the track “Kabhi nahin” with Adnan).
66. He was to do films that never took off — “Lambuji Thinguji” and “Jaahil” respectively — with Amjad Khan and Kader Khan as directors.
67. Amitabh and son Abhishek Bachchan have played unrelated characters in “Bunty Aur Babli,” “Jhoom Barabar Jhoom” and “Shootout…” — in the last, they never shared a frame — and father and son in “Sarkar,” “Sarkar Raj,” “Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna.”
68. He will reunite with Vinod Khanna and Rishi Kapoor, with whom he formed the “Amar Akbar Anthony” trio, in Mayur Puri’s forthcoming directorial debut.
69. Starting with “Bhuvn Shome” (1969) even before he turned actor, “Bawarchi” (1972) and “Shatranj Ke Khiladi” (1976), Bachchan has been narrator in over a dozen films, including an international project, “La marche de l'empereur” (2005), a documentary on penguins.
70. Some of his successful movies include Zanzeer, Deewar, Mr.Natwarlal, Silsila, Bawarchi,  Don, Amar Akbar Anthony, Cheeni Kum, Bhagban, Paa, Black,....the list continues here

Rajesh Khanna's most popular Dialogues

Rajesh Khanna's mannerism, his unique style of dialogue delivery are not only appreciated and admired but are imitated countless number of times by his fans. Apparently his last words were,'Time Ho Gaya Hai, Pack Up!' Some of his dialogues continue to live even after him.

• Top 10 Rajesh Khanna Songs
• Rajesh Khanna Movies List
• Rajesh Khanna's Rare Photos

Here are Rajesh Khanna, the great legend's some memorable and most popular Dialogues from his films

• Babumoshai, zindagi aur maut to upar wale ke haath mein hai jahapanah, jise na aap badal sakte hain na mein - Anand
• Kisi ko apni ore kheechna to koi khoobi nahi, khoobi hai to kisi aur se khich jaane main - Kati Patang
• Yeh lo, phir tumhaar aankho me paani? Maine tumse kitni baar kaha hai ki, Pushpa, mujse ye aansu dekhe nahi jaate. Pushpa I hate tears.. - Amar Prem
• Ham sab to ranmanch ki katputliyan hai, jiski dor upar wale ke haath bandhi hai. Kab kaun kaise uthega, ye koi nahi jaanta - Anand
• It is simple to be happy but it is so difficult to be simple - Bawarchi
• Iss ek glaas main ek majdoor ki ek mahine ki roti hai aur parivaar ki saans. Kabhi socha hai ki iss ek glass ko pite hi hum ek parivaar ko bhooka maar dete hai - Namak Haram
• Seth jise tum khareedne chale ho, uske chehre par likha hai, not for sale - Avtaar
• Main marne se pehle marna nahi chahta, agar zindagi ek diya hai, to mere diya ka tel badi tezise jal raha hai. Apni is diye ki umar badhane ke liye, main uski roshni ko kam nahi kar sakta - Safar
• Main derr se aata nahi hun lekin kya karu, der ho jaati hai. Isliye maafi ka haqdar hu, agar phir bhi kisine na maaf kiya ho toh main yahi kehna chahta hoon, Humko maafi dedo saahib - Ram Balram

Top 10 Hinglish Movies

I am quite a fan of this genre of movies called Hinglish movies. Movies with a blend of English and Hindi.

These Hinglish movies are not only fun to watch, but they depict the culture and lifestyle of modern society. The subjects seem so realistic. We can connect well with the situations and issues portrayed in those. May it be a girl wanting to make a career in soccer as in 'Bend It like Beckham' or the guy who is torn between American culture in the society and traditional Indian culture at home and dislikes his name as in 'The Namesake'.

Here is a list of Top 10 Hinglish Movies I have watched. I have included the list of other Hinglish movies also at the bottom. 

	1. Monsoon wedding(2001) A wonderful depiction of a modern day Indian wedding. A drama-comedy revolving around the preparation for the wedding and the arrival guests to attend the wedding in the month of monsoon. Things get serious as some dark secrets of the family get revealed. The movie touches sensitive issues like sexual abuse in the family.
	2. Mr. and Mrs. Iyer(2002) The story of Meenakshi Iyer, a conservative hindu brahmin housewife who is travelling with her infant son, and a fellow muslim traveler faces Hindu-Muslim communal riots on the way of her journey and how she saves the situation introducing him as Mr.Iyer
	3. Bend it Like Beckham(2002) A young girl from a middle class Punjabi family, settled in London, desperately wants to make a career in soccer because she is a huge fan of Bechkam. But her family is against her wish. Though a comedy flick, the movie throws light on about making dreams come true. The catchy Punjabi-Hindi-English dialogues are worth the watch
	4. Mitr :My friend(2002) A warm hearted tale of a middle- aged woman, her daughter and her husband. She sacrifices and devotes herself completely to her family and homemaking, but finds herself deserted. In order to overcome the loneliness and negligence, she turns to a stranger friend online and discovers herself that there is much more to do in life than looking after the family
	5. The Namesake(2006) One of Mira Nair's best. Brilliant acting by Tabu and Irfan Khan. The story of an immigrant couple and how they try to inculcate Indian culture and tradition to their children. Gogol, their son who struggles to make his own identity.
	6. Outsourced(2010) A call center manager who comes to India to train his replacement witnesses the cultural  difference in work, friendship, love and effect of global economy on national and personal identity. He understands that the key to survival is adaptability and tries to adapt to his host's culture and language.
	7. Slumdog Millionaire(2008) With the Slumdog Millionaire, the category of hinglish film making achieved new heights. The story of 3 slum kids and how they survived through their childhood . In order to prove his innocence and his knowledge, Jamal khan reflects his childhood for tv reality show.
	8. Amrtisar To LA(2004) Based on the classic novel, Pride and Prejudice, the movie is a visual delight. The story travels from Amritsar to Britain and then to America. Directed by Gurinder Chadda, the movie tells story of a family living in Amritsar and having four daughters of marriageable age. It is a musical family drama.
	9. Freaky chakra(2003) Not one of my favs, still am including in the list. The story of 40-something doctor who leaves her medical practice as she couldn't save her husband's life. Her monotonous life changes when young boy walks into her life.
	10. Morning Raga(2004) A story that brings modern and traditional worlds together, unites present with the past, Carnatic music with the western music. The love for music brings together the three characters whose lives are ruined by past tragedies.

Updates:
Other Hinglish Movies

1. Hyderabad Blues(1998)
2. Bombay Boys(1998)
3. Everybody Says Am fine (2002)
4. Being Cyrus(2006)
5. My Brother Nikhil(2005)
6. The other End of the Line(2008)
7. Bollywood Calling(2001)
8. American Desi(2001)
9. The Last Lear(2007)
10. Provoked(2006)
11. Its a Wonderful Afterlife(2010)
12. English Vinglish(2012) (This movie definitely tops the list of my favourites! Loved Sridevi in it :))
13. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011)

Any more movies to add to the Lists?