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Thursday, January 15, 2026
TopicOld movies

Topic: Old movies

‘Kunwara Baap’ was closest to Mehmood’s heart. Tested his limits as an actor

Mehmood made the film to raise awareness about polio, which had affected his own son, Maqdoom Ali. It also marked the acting debut of his other son, Lucky Ali.

Haqeeqat shows the painful futility of war. Doesn’t mask realities with bravado

The 1964 film offers a grim look at the lives of Indian soldiers fighting in tough conditions. Chetan Anand calls out the government’s lack of military preparedness without pulling any punches.

Kamal Amrohi’s ‘Razia Sultan’ lacked the magic of Pakeezah. Only opulence, no substance

Like Pakeezah, Kamal Amrohi’s Razia Sultan had all the right ingredients–superstar Hema Malini as leading lady, Bhanu Athaiya as costume designer, and Khayyam as music director. But none of it could translate into magic on screen.

Raj Kapoor’s Prem Rog is a flawed film on widow remarriage. Rishi Kapoor rescues the damsel

In Prem Rog, the narrative is dominated by male characters. Padmini Kolhapure who plays the female protagonist does not put up a fight.

Blind man, cheating wife, bumbling cop—Sanjeev Kumar’s ‘Qatl’ was a perfect Bollywood thriller

‘Qatl’ was Sanjeev Kumar’s last film; he finished dubbing it a day before he died. The premise of the film: Who will believe a blind man can plan the perfect crime?

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.

‘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.

‘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.


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.

Gadar, Pokiri, DDLJ — old hit movies back in theatres. Nostalgia trumps new releases

Chennai saw seven new releases this week but the movie that was running housefull was Kamal Hassan’s 2007 cop drama, Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu.

On Camera

A new Indian foreign policy consensus is emerging. That India isn’t a great power yet

After exuberance, India must now not only take difficult and costly steps toward industrialisation, but also convert growth into geo-economic leverage and military modernisation.

Geoeconomic confrontation top trigger for global crisis, cyber insecurity biggest risk for India—WEF

WEF report flags growing erosion of multilateralism, long considered stabilising force. 'Declining trust, heightened protectionism are threatening trade, investment.'

The curious case of Pakistan’s JF-17 ‘orders’

Pakistan lacks capacity to deliver aircraft at pace suggested by its claimed contracts as it depends on China for avionics, electronic warfare, weapons, and on Russia for engines. 

Thank you Donald Trump, again. India now has reason to shed fear of trade deals and risky reform

UK, EFTA already in the bag and EU on the way, many members of RCEP except China signed up, and even restrictions on China being lifted, India has changed its mind on trade.