Great Actors

Out of the ones I have seen on screen, I would classify these among my greats-

Kishore Kumar, Mehmood, Amitabh Bachchan, Irrfan Khan, Naseeruddin Shah, Prithviraj Kapoor, Om Puri, Smita Patil, Madhubala, Rekha, Kajol, Guru Dutt, Waheeda Rehman, Dev Anand.

There are of course many others who were good, but had some flaws- Raj Kapoor imitated Charlie Chaplin a bit more than necessary, though he played the simpleton pretty well.  Rajesh Khanna was very good in some roles, but could not pull off some others, and became a stylised version of himself in his later films. Anand, though, remains one of my favourite (best?) films, and it starred him.

Smita Patil brought an element of mystique to many roles she played. Shabana was also good in some of her roles, many offbeat. Rekha also played some woman-centric roles like in Khoobsurat with great confidence. Her transformation from a raw, dark Southie to the mainstream was remarkable. Kajol is one of the most natural actresses ever, and I wish her career had lasted longer.Of recent actresses, Vidya Balan has acquitted herself well in diverse roles, and may make the list.

Dev Anand gets into this list after discounting some of his later films, which were atrocious, but he pulled off a lot of memorable roles, and acted well in at least a couple of classics like Guide and Tere Mere Sapne, while entertaining a huge fan following in a variety of roles in his early films up until Des Pardes. Johny Mera Naam is a classy masala Bollywood film of his.

Inventions

I keep changing my mind about inventions that changed my life. Here's the current list.

ATM- It was the ATM's birthday yesterday. I take my hat off for the guy who made the act of going to a bank redundant.

Diapers- a great help when parenting. Maybe adult version in future too.

Bean Bag- It gives you the perfect angle- always.

Desk calendar- Would be lost without one.

The aeroplane- Boeing, boeing, bong..beats horse carriages.

The computer. Made communicating easier-don't know about the computing.

Google- Except your lost key or glasses, you can find anything with it.

Not so thrilled about passwords, mobile phone, TV (after what we have done to it- not the inventor's fault)

Artists at Their Peak

There is something special about artists who are at their peak form. I am going to talk of a few Hindi music and film greats that I remember. All of them made an impact.

The sixties and seventies saw a few singers at their greatest form. These include Kishore Kumar, Mohammad Rafi, Manna Dey, Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle. My favourites were Kishore and Asha, but all of them produced many great songs. There were also heroes at their peak. Rajesh Khanna (Aradhana, Kati Patang, Anand, Aap ki Kasam), Dharmendra (Aadmi aur Insaan, Aankhen, Blackmail, up to Yadon ki Baraat) , Dev Anand (from Jewel Thief to Johny Mera Naam), Sanjeev Kumar (Manchali, Manoranjan, Koshish, Aandhi, Sholay) and so on.

Of course, in music, we had RD Burman, Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji who dominated the landscape, with their superhit numbers. Filmmakers in my view included Basu Chatterji (Rajnigandha, Chitchor, Chhoti si Baat, Shaukeen), Hrishikesh Mukherjee (Golmaal, Chupke Chupke), Gulzar (Parichay, Aandhi), and Nasir Husain (Yaadon Ki Baraat, Hum Kisise Kum Nahin), Manmohan Desai (Amar Akbar Anthony, Roti). Govind Nihalani with Aakrosh and Ardh Satya.

In classical Hindustani music, we had Bhimsen Joshi, unparalleled in many ways. In instrumentals, Shiv Kumar Sharma and Hariprasad Chaurasia. whom I have also heard live. Ghulam Ali, Pankaj Udhas and Mehdi Hasan, and Jagjit Singh in ghazals.

I feel fortunate that so many of these artists were at the peak and I along with my friends and contemporaries enjoyed their wonderful performances.

Great Art and Money - An Inverse Relationship?

Not too sure if this hypothesis holds, but it's worth hypothesising. Is there an inverse relationship between good/great art and money? Is the penniless artist struggling for survival just a stereotype? Is tragedy a part of an artist's life, mostly?

The hypothesis is inspired by a movie I saw on TV after maybe two decades. The movie is Rajnigandha. It was made by Basu Chatterjee in the early seventies and remains one of my favourite films. The budget would have been modest, no big stars, sets or ostentation of any sort. It had lovely music, good technique (Vidya Sinha speaking with herself often, imagining or re-imagining herself alternately with the two men in her life, symbolism through the bouquet of flowers) and a simple, riveting story. If you compare it with expensive, crass extravaganzas churned out by the dozen, this one warms your heart (at least mine) any day.

Another movie made in the same period was Anand, by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Rajesh Khanna was paid a limited amount though he was a star of sorts, and the tight screenplay, wonderful dialogue, great acting from all the actors (I remember Ramesh Deo and Seema speaking some homely Marathi-mixed dialogue, Lalita Pawar in the role of a lifetime, Johny Walker likewise). Absolutely brilliant!

A third example, and I will rest my case. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro from the eighties. Ravi Baswani and Naseeruddin Shah, Satish Shah and Om Puri, Bhakti Barve or any of the other characters, they all were just right, Neena Gupta added the oomph without any effort, and it made for wonderful viewing. A top-class comedy. Kundan Shah never directed anything better.

Now I will await your views.

Jo Baat Tujhme Hai

This one is inspired by an episode of Raina Beet Jaaye hosted by Roop Kumar Rathod on TV that I was watching. It is on Sony Mix from 9 to 10 p.m. for those interested in such things. This episode was on some Hindi/Urdu lyricists (these are likable cysts). I got re-introduced to some wonderful work by various lyricists and poets who wrote for films. Many, alas, are not alive. Their work is.

Taj Mahal is an ancient movie, that had some great songs. Example- Jo baat tujhme hai, teri tasveer mein nahin. I think Pradeep Kumar and Bina Rai were in it. Music was by Roshan, the father of both Rakesh and Rajesh Roshan. The songs? By Sahir Ludhianvi.

Raatkali ek khwab mein aayi, from Buddha Mil Gaya, was written by Majrooh Sultanpuri. He wrote from the days of K.L. Saigal (pre-historic) to Shah Rukh Khan's (historic?) time. Teesri Manzil (O haseena zulfon wali) , Yaadon ki Baaraat (Chura liya hai tumne) and Mere Jeevan Sathi (O mere dil ke chain) are some of his creations.

Jab chali thandi hawa, jab uthi kali ghata mujhko aye jaane wafa tum yaad aaye- Shakeel Badayuni in Do Badan. O.P. Nayyar was the music director.

Sahir Ludhianvi wrote great lyrics for B.R. and Yash Chopra in several films. My clear favourites are Humraaz and Gumraah. Neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyar pale, kisi patthar ki moorat se mohabbat ka iraada hai from the first and Chalo ek baar phir se, from the second are a class act. And from Hum Dono, my favourite is 'Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya'. The other well-known one is Abhi na jao chhod kar ke dil abhi bhara nahin.

Qamar Jalalabadi is not such a well-known name. But he wrote a few good songs. Example- Aaiye meherban, from the Madhubala-Ashok Kumar starrer Howrah Bridge- a black and white era movie. Another hummable song of his is Dum dum diga diga, mausam bhiga bhiga..from Chhalia starring Raj Kapoor.

World's Greatest Inventions- Food

There are many foods that qualify to be included in this list. Let me attempt to put down a few.

Avakai- a mango pickle that is delicious and hot! An Andhra speciality.

Rasagolla- needs no description.

Appam- A Kerala version of the dosa, with a puff.

Ice cream. A perennial favourite of all ages.

Chocolate- another favourite over centuries. Can also be combined with ice cream for a double delight.

Prawn/Fish curry in coconut milk. Delicious stuff.

Chicken Chettinad.

Puran poli, a sweet roti which is a staple in Maharashtrian festivals.

Gilawati kabab, also called Tunde kabab. Originated in Lucknow with a melt-in-your-mouth softness.

Hyderabadi Biryani, exemplified by the stuff you get at Paradise (the restaurant).

Noodles- China would not exist without this.

Burger- Americans, and McDonald's would not exist without this.

Tandoori roti- the process of making it is itself fascinating.

Aloo tikki- simple yet great tasting.

Bhel- you can get creative with the ingredients here!

Pan- Banaraswala or any other, its taste and feel is unique.