It is that time of the year when the city is buzzing with film and theatre festivals. MAMI festival is in full swing and international filmmakers are in town enjoying the sun and the big screen. This year MAMI is honouring two renowned directors Mani Ratnam and Luca Guadagnino. with the Excellence in Cinema Award. The award honours individuals who have made outstanding, long-lasting contributions to the world of film and cinema and the previous recipients include Darren Aronofsky, Sharmila Tagore, Fernando Meirelles, and Chen Kaige.

Mani Ratnam is one of the most celebrated directors from South Asia. His cinema has explored different themes and addressed varied issues. His characters are complex and deeply rooted in a cultural and social context. His most notable movies include Mouna Ragam (1986), Nayakan (1987), Roja (1992), Bombay (1995), Iruvar (1997), Alaipayuthey (2000), Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), Guru (2007), and Ponniyin Selvan (1 & 2).

Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, organised by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI), has brought the best of contemporary world cinema and talent to the city of Mumbai since 1997. With its new expanded vision to spotlight South Asian and South Asian diaspora filmmakers, Jio MAMI becomes the hub for South Asia, discovering and connecting emerging talent to the worldwide festival ecosystem.

Manav Kaul’s Hindi book is translated into English A Bird on My Windowsill by Nandini Kumar Nickerson. The concept is interesting because in Manav’s world, memories are like little birds perched upon the windowsill of time. There are no boundaries between thoughts and reality and the past and the present form a mirror that disintegrates into the memory of a single day…Known for writing silences and articulating dreams, Manav once again sifts through his creative impulses, creates vignettes of his life, a long-lost love, his interactions with people as he travels. Sensitive, symbolic, this book creates a rich tapestry of emotions, isolation and reflection.

 Born in Baramulla, Kashmir, the author has been an integral part of the film world, acting, directing and writing for the past twenty years. His books Theek Tumhare Peeche (Right Behind You) and Prem Kabootar (Love Pigeon) have been dominating the Neilson bestseller list.

It is that time of the year when Prithvi Theatre starts preparing for its special day. Gearing up for its 38th edition of the festival which runs from November 3-13 and takes off with a performance by Shubha Mudgal followed by iconic directors like Makarand Deshpande, Nimmy Raphael, Akarsh Khurana and Daniel Owen D’souza. Featuring the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah there is a classical music show by the Symphony Orchestra of India and Jazz performed and curated by Louiz Banks.

It is going to be a celebration for 11 days packed with 30 shows,7 Languages
12 Theatre Groups and10 Platform Performances

We are living in times of restorations and nostalgia is a side-effect of it, so after Amitabh Bachchan Retrospective in 2022 and later Dilip Kumar festival followed by filmmaker Viddhu Vinod Chopra Film week we have international star Mira Nair showcasing her 30year-old film Mississippi Masala at MAMI festival this year. It is the only one in which Denzel Washington plays a romantic hero and features a cast from all over the world: Sharmila Tagore, Roshan Seth, Mohan Agashe, Ranjit Chowdhry, Mohan Gokhale, Charles Dutton and the luminous debut of Sarita Choudhury.

The invites for the screening are personally dispatched by writer Sooni Taraporevala, and director Mira Nair. Something tells me it is going to be a special screening.

Her life was taking unexpected turns and Hema Malini was going with the flow. As member of the Rajya Sabha Hema Malini said, “I hail from the world of films and it is my dream to see Indian cinema on par with Hollywood in technology. We must aspire to build museums in Bombay like Universal Studios in Hollywood. I have faith it will happen soon.” She started as an unlikely candidate but learnt the ropes fast. Her first project as an MP was to clean up the Juhu beach of Mumbai and worked tirelessly to shift the hawkers from the sand to the footpath. She also addressed the frequent attacks on civilians by leopards from the national park.

Currently serving as a member of the Lok Sabha and representing Mathura constituency, Hema Malini recently released a book promoting tourism titled Chal Man Vrindavan.

At 75 Hema Malini continues with her dance shows, her latest ballet is Ganga. She lives her life 70 mm and divides her time between four cities- Delhi, Mathura, Mumbai and Chennai. She says she is happiest when she is in Mumbai surrounded by her five grandchildren. “It is one life and I want to live it to the fullest. God has been kind to me. I sometimes miss my departed loved ones, my parents and my gurus but I know they are watching over me all the time, showering me with their blessings. I can sense their aura all the time and that is why I am who I am.”

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Her dance concerts continued all through her superstardom, post marriage and motherhood. On her father’s suggestion she expanded from pure classical dance form to folk and semi-classical ballets, portraying the lives of mythological and historical characters like Durga, Meera, Ramayan, Savitri, Radha Krishna and more. With time her choice of roles got more adventurous. She was willing to experiment with complex characters like Rihahee, Ek Chadar Maili Si and an over-the-top Jamai Raja. Around this time, she was approached by a publisher who convinced her to become the editor of their newly launched Meri Saheli /New Woman in English and found a voice.

The 1990s proved a landmark decade for the actor. She launched her home production and directed a television serial called Noopur inspired from her own life. Having gained confidence as a director, she next made a feature film Dil Aashna Hai that launched Shah Rukh Khan opposite late Divya Bharati. Around this time, she was mostly doing tele-serials when Vinod Khanna asked her to feature in his son’s debut film Himalay Putra /1997. Next Khanna asked her to campaign for him as Bharatiya Janata Party candidate for the 1999 general elections and Hema Malini agreed. In 2000, Hema Malini was appointed as the first female chairperson of the NFDC. In 2003 she joined BJP and also made a comeback in films with Baghban.

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The film was Sapnon Ka Saudagar and the year, 1968. The title ‘Dream Girl’ was coined by Ananantha Swamy and all the bill boards in the city had her face smiling at you.  In just a few weeks, Hema Malini had become a household name and by the end of the decade, she was the undisputed number one star of Hindi cinema. From 1970 to 1979 Hema Malini had 65 releases and barring a few all of them were superhits. Some of the memorable films include Johnny Mera Naam with Dev Anand, Andaz with Rajesh Khanna and Ramesh Sippy’s Seeta aur Geeta and Sholay.

She was working with all the top heroes of that time, Rajendra Kumar, Manoj Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar, Shashi Kapoor and of course Dharmendra. Hema -Dharam pair got the box-office into a tizzy and they went to do close to 28 films together. Sharafat, Tum Haseen Main Jawan, Naya Zamana, Raja Jani, Patthar Aur Payal, Dost, Sholay, Charas, Jugnu, Apna Khoon, Azaad and Dillagi include some of them. Both were young, passionate, successful and cupid was more than eager to strike the arrow.

The decision to get married was not easy for both but they were committed and tied knot in a quiet ceremony held at Hema Malini’s home. Their fans were jubilant and the film industry supportive but their detractors maligned them. Hema Malini and Dharmendra did not offer any explanations. They continued with their lives and work. They were still in demand as  a pair and did Aas Paas, The Burning Train, Alibaba Aur 40 Chor, Baghavat, Samraat, Razia Sultan, Raaj Tilak and more in the 1980s. Hema Malini continued to sing/ dance/ ride and perform action pregnancies during both her pregnancies and the result shows in sequences of Kranti, Razia Sultan and Satte Pe Satta.

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Stories of her box-office success are legendary, be it the sale of tickets outside the cinema halls of Seeta aur Geeta in the 70s or her fiery dialogue delivery as Basanti in Sholay. She was the only female superstar, filmmakers dared to invest in big budget biopics like Meera and Razia Sultan. Her small budget films were equally significant be it Khushboo or Kinara, about women who maintained dignity despite adversities. Her screen presence, her dance ballets on stage, inspired millions across the globe. More than 50 years have gone by but the sparkle has not faded. On October 16 2023, the actor/ dancer /parliamentarian turns 75 and it is time to rewind and revisit her milestones….

When Jaya Chakravarti was pregnant third time, she attended a dance recital and was so enamoured by the performer that she made up her mind that if she had a daughter, she will groom her to become a classical dancer. Hema Malini was enrolled in Bharatnatyam dance class at the tender age of five and began performing on public platforms at the age of 10. Ananatha Swamy spotted Hema Malini at a private concert organized by a common friend in Madras and recommended her to Raj Kapoor. This was in the wake of Sangam 1964 when the showman had committed bulk dates to a South production house. They were keen to launch the film immediately and were desperately on the lookout for a new face and Hema Malini being an accomplished dancer fitted the bill.

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