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Wednesday, November 5, 2025
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Reel Take

Bollywood’s playful resistance to Emergency was Rekha’s Khubsoorat

Khubsoorat won the Filmfare Best Film award in the 1980s. It established Rekha as a star who could carry a film on her own, even in the absence of famous male hero.

‘Insaf Ka Tarazu’ was well-intentioned but couldn’t resist rape fetishisation of ’80s Bollywood

BR Chopra's 1980 remake of 'Lipstick' revived Raj Babbar's career, stalled for three years after his banned debut 'Kissa Kursi Ka'. Despite hesitation, Babbar accepted the role of a serial rapist.

‘Dosti’ was 1964’s breakout hit. A Bollywood film with no romance, hero-villain drama

Its actors, Sudhir Kumar and Sushil Kumar, were not superstars. The music was directed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal, when they were still not the powerhouse they eventually became.

‘Aasha’ explored a different view of one-sided love—that of the woman

Aasha, played by Reena Roy, is complex and empathetic—something female characters in Om Prakash movies have in common.

Sai Paranjpye’s ‘Sparsh’ squashes the ‘lachar-bechara’ image of blind people

Sparsh also highlights that number of books in Braille is abysmally low. It also shows how stories for the blind must make sense to them.

‘Ankhiyon Ke Jharokhon Se’ was a remake of an American novel. Here, parents aren’t villains

It steers clear of the traditional Bollywood stereotype of the Christian woman who goes on dates and loves to party. Lily is shown as an intelligent, studious and ambitious woman.


‘Mashaal’ mixed news media with melodrama. It made Anil Kapoor an ‘A-grade hero’

The 1980s were a tough time for Yash Chopra. He directed Mashaal after two of his major films, Silsila and Faasle, flopped at the box office.

‘Julie’ tackled pre-marital sex and pregnancy sensitively. It still fell prey to stereotypes

What stands out the most in Julie is the music. Music director Rajesh Roshan says he created the song Dil Kya Kare in 10 minutes. And Kishore Kumar was at his magical best.

Disturbing, unsettling, but necessary—Shyam Benegal’s ‘Nishant’ could easily be a 2024 story

Benegal’s 1975 film is violent and brutal, an unflinching gaze on everything that can go wrong in a society where illiteracy is rampant and landlords hold all the power.

‘Boot Polish’, comedy drama with a critical view of a newly independent India

In an era when most Hindi films featured adult characters as protagonists, 'Boot Polish' stood out with its child lead roles—Bhola and Belu.

On Camera

Sudan shows what happens when the world is happy to let mass killers rule

Fourteen million refugees, and 25 million facing acute hunger, should be reason enough for the world to dismantle the dystopia in Sudan — even if the sadism of its rulers is not.

Kerala’s silent startup surge—work near home, smooth roads, fast internet & diaspora engagement

Once seen as a fading presence on India’s investment & startup picture, the state is slowly moving up the ladder, with policy reforms & infrastructure building.

India & Israel ink agreement to share, co-develop & co-produce advanced defence tech

Agreement signed during 17th Joint Working Group (JWG) on defence cooperation. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh met Director General in Israeli Ministry of Defence Amir Baram Tuesday. 

Trump’s trade wars have rewritten powerplay, but India didn’t get the memo

This world is being restructured and redrawn by one man, and what’s his power? It’s not his formidable military. It’s trade. With China, it turned on him.