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Thursday, October 30, 2025
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Reel Take

From Kasegaon to LSE — documentary brings Gail Omvedt and Bharat Patankar to global stage

Director of Gail & Bharat documentary Somnath Waghmare said even upper-caste scholars who have worked on Dalit literature are not called Dalit scholars, but Omvedt is addressed as an Ambedkarite scholar.

Bachchan’s revenge drama Adalat heralded the ‘woman in refrigerator’ trope of 1980s

‘Adalat’ was one of the biggest blockbusters in 1976. However, it is often not counted among Bachchan’s iconic portrayals in the '70s.

A Kannada short film uses Udupi’s Janmashtami to ask who belongs, and who doesn’t

'Rakkasa' was shot in four days, with all Janmashtami visuals captured in real time during the actual celebrations. Director G Vishnu highlights the everyday rhythms of life and the spirit of Udupi.

Mammootty, Mohanlal reunite after 17 years in espionage thriller Patriot

Mohanlal had a cameo appearance in Mammootty’s film Kadal Kadannu Oru Maathukutty (2013). However, their last film together was Twenty:20, which released in 2008.

Barsaat ki Raat was a rain-soaked romance. It had a qawwali that Shah Rukh Khan loves

If a luminous Madhubala is the heart, Sahir Ludhianvi’s Urdu poetry is the soul of Barsaat Ki Raat, 1960’s second-biggest hit after Mughal-e-Azam.

RD Burman was the last resort for Rajesh Khanna’s ‘The Train’. It gave him 12 more films

A robbery, a hotel, and criminal masterminds—suspense thriller ‘The Train’ took Rajesh Khanna beyond romance.

A pocket watch, a broken toy, and a lifetime of regret —Anmol Ghadi was blockbuster

In Anmol Ghadi, Noor Jehan, Suraiya & composer Naushad made longing a box office hit.

Aamne Samne is one of Bollywood’s best thrillers. Somebody’s out to kill Sharmila Tagore

Director Suraj Prakash manages to hoodwink his audience till the very end, with a new red herring at every turn. Sharmila Tagore and Shashi Kapoor hold the film together.

Gharana wasn’t just any family drama. It exposed a hypocrisy at the heart of Indian homes

In SS Vasan’s 1961 film Gharana, Lalita Pawar plays Shanta, a stern matriarch who rules her house and its members. But she also has a softer side.

Anamika married melody and mystery. It gave two evergreen songs — for romance and heartbreak

Raghunath Jhalani’s 1973 film Anamika starring Sanjeev Kumar and Jaya Bachchan shows how inherent biases can blind someone to reality.

On Camera

Starbucks was once progressive. It’s now approaching a dangerous spot in culture wars

Former CEO Howard Schultz once told shareholders those who opposed his support of same-sex marriage were free to invest elsewhere. But now, CEO Brian Niccol seems to be selling Starbucks as a place that just, well, sells coffee.

Consumer Price Index gets up to date. Airfare, OTT plans, e-commerce prices in new basket—MoSPI secy

New CPI series will take 2024 as base year, will provide more accurate measure of inflation, spending on digital services. Expected to enhance representation and reliability, says Saurabh Garg.

India pulled out of Tajikistan’s strategically important Ayni air base in 2022. Here’s why

Tajikistan did not want to extend the lease because of apparent pressure from Russia & China over non-regional military personnel at the air base, it is learnt.

Deepfake on duty: when I asked AI to read Op Sindoor citations

On 21 Oct, a buzz went up that the govt had released full list of gallantry award recipients along with Op Sindoor citations. I put an AI caddy on the job. It took me into a never-ending rabbit hole.