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Friday, November 14, 2025
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Reel Take

Barjatya film and feminist? Meena Kumari’s 1962 film ‘Aarti’ made it possible

Rajshri Productions’ hit film Aarti showed an audacious woman who wouldn’t back down from life's challenges.

BR Chopra’s Naya Daur is still relevant for an India fighting age-old labour problems

Naya Daur remains a classic for it captured the lower income groups’ sentiment in the 1950s — not totally anti-machine, but wary enough.

Ray’s ‘Shatranj Ke Khilari’ asked difficult political questions & is an election must-watch

Ray’s 1977 classic, made during Indira Gandhi’s Emergency, is a story of a cunning political checkmate.

Lalita Pawar, Hindi cinema’s favourite vamp, played a memorable positive role in Anand

In Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand, which also stars Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan, Lalita Pawar plays a caring hospital matron.

Devdas: The tragic hero act that made KL Saigal a household name

On actor-singer KL Saigal's 115th birth anniversary, a look at PC Barua's iconic 1935 film that first put tragedy in Indian cinema’s romance.

Kissa Kursee Ka: A parody that sent Sanjay Gandhi to jail and laid bare Indian politics

Directed by Congress and Janata Party MP Amrit Nahata, Kissa Kursee Ka was made during the Emergency, and irked the Gandhi clan like nothing else.

Roti Kapda Aur Makaan: A film as relevant in Indira Gandhi’s time as it is in Modi era

As BJP and Congress promise election freebies and jobs, Manoj Kumar’s Roti Kapda Aur Makaan still rings uncannily true.

In Kati Patang, director Shakti Samanta created magic with Rajesh Khanna & R.D. Burman’s music

The film gave us evergreen hits like Yeh Shaam Mastani and Pyar Diwana Hota Hai featuring superstar Rajesh Khanna.

Shashi Kapoor’s New Delhi Times gives a true picture of journalism, warts and all

New Delhi Times conveys the fundamental duality that plagues all journalists — the thrill of chasing a ‘good story’ that is also a human tragedy.

Sahir’s poetry in ‘Kabhi Kabhie’ and our forever connection with them

Yash Chopra’s ode to complicated relationships was made immortal by the man behind its poetry – Sahir Ludhianvi.

On Camera

Bihar to finally have the first BJP CM. It’s just a matter of time

If Nitish Kumar doesn’t budge, as is likely, they may give him a grace period of a year or two, at most. He won’t be able to resist for long.

Wealth nears $99 trillion, still Asia’s rich don’t have succession plans

Much of this wealth is tied to founder-led businesses that employ millions and help anchor regional economies.

Turkey blocks transport of Apache choppers to India through its airspace, new route being worked out

Indian govt officials last month skipped Turkish National Day celebrations in Delhi, in a message to Ankara following its support for Islamabad, particularly during Operation Sindoor.

Bihar is where politics moves, and everything else stands still

Bihar is blessed with a land more fertile for revolutions than any in India. Why has it fallen so far behind then? Constant obsession with politics is at the root of its destruction.