Love in times of lust in the brothels
When dusk settles and the streetlights begin to glow, Munshigunge changes its character. Men, mostly taxi drivers, park their vehicles by the road. Then, depending on their mood and preferences, they...
View ArticleBlack out – When they no longer recognize Amitabh Bachchan
She wanted to remain anonymous. I chose to call her Jasmine. She didn’t object. Just as she had never done when someone had asked her if she knew the woman whom she came to meet...
View ArticleUnderneath the flyover to the grave: All in just 24 hours
Little Sultan had never come to Kolkata before. His mother – Rehana Khatoon – too had only heard about the big city. When Sultan’s father – Md Ramjani had left home on Monday morning, he...
View ArticleBorn to live
Shadows gave him the ticket to limelight. Along with friend Amar, Sabyasachi Sen became the first and perhaps the only duo to professionally present the art of hand shadowgraphy in Asia. But talent...
View ArticleSalman Khan’s ‘rape’ remark: Why so silent?
Just a fortnight back, the whole of Bollywood was in a protest mood. From starlets to superstars – almost everyone was busy slaying Pahlaj Nihalini right, left and centre for the “Udta Punjab”...
View ArticleIn the name of Mother Maa
She doesn’t remember when she was brought to Shanti Daan. She doesn’t remember how long she had spent in prison before that. All she can say is that her husband left her somewhere close to...
View ArticleThe P-factor: Parched, Pink and Patriarchy
Cinematically, there couldn’t have been a better time for celebrating women power. While the artisans of Kumartuli are burning the midnight oil to give shape to the Mother Goddess, the Indian screen...
View ArticleWhat if the victim of ‘Kahaani 2’ was a little boy?
The depiction of sexual abuse of little Mili in Vidya Balan’s “Kahaani 2” has opened up a Pandora’s box. Even after moving centuries away from the stone age, why is it still so much of...
View ArticleGrave concern: The anonymity of being India’s first English poetess
It’s one of those pleasant winter afternoons in Kolkata when one would like to sit in the sun, peel oranges and read story books. Two boys, with a cricket bat and a ball, jump past...
View ArticleThe man who sees sun go around the earth
An air rifle and a pair of red binoculars are two of the priceless possessions of Kolkata’s self-proclaimed scientist who has been plastering the city’s walls since 1974 with his theory that the “Sun...
View ArticleMeet Pakistan’s biggest star from Bangladesh whom India hasn’t celebrated!
Mehdi Hassan was performing at a concert in Dhaka. He had just begun singing when she entered the room. Hassan immediately got up from stage and announced that he wouldn’t sing any further. “Aare, yeh...
View ArticleRay’s other home
The plaque in marble in front of the house reads “Bose. 3, Lake Temple Road.” The white house on Lake Temple Road has no mention that Satyajit Ray had stayed there from 1959 to 1970....
View ArticleOf love, lust and Miss Shefali: Why did Ray’s Bengal find it difficult to...
Just a few neighbours. Some family members. Maybe, ten in number. Or even less. They were the only ones who didn’t abandon Miss Shefali – the Cabaret Queen of Kolkata – during her final journey....
View ArticleFrom penning autobiographies to taking undisturbed naps: Untold stories from...
Sonagachhi calls her by one name. But that’s only for her clients. Her Aadhaar card has a different name. That’s the real one, she says. The name that was given to her by her parents...
View ArticleDirector’s Choice: When have legends needed self-isolation to get their plots...
In the early days of his career, Mrinal Sen preferred to go outside Kolkata to write his scripts. Ritwik Ghatak was different in temperament. He stayed back at home and hated meeting anyone while...
View ArticleWill the show go on?
April truly has been the cruelest month of the year for single screen theatre owners of Kolkata. But the swan song was played at the end of January when Kolkata saw the closure of the...
View ArticleKhamoshi: How is the politics of silence hurting showbiz?
In pre-Corona times, a touch of glamour was enough to make people believe that all that glitters is gold. Permanent residents of Bengal’s tinsel town had mastered the craft of thriving on appearances...
View ArticleDoes Tollywood always remember brilliance?
Every couple of years, the debate over how nepotism and favoritism have eclipsed the scale and opportunities of some rare talents resurfaces in Tollywood. Daggers are drawn for a few weeks and then all...
View ArticleSmall is big: Is Bengali television rewriting the rules of women’s empowerment?
July 18, 1861. In Bihar’s Bhagalpur was born Kadambini Ganguly, who along with Anandi Gopal Joshi, became the first female doctors to qualify for practicing western medicine. Fraught with...
View ArticleUstad Vilayat Khan: The maestro who lived like a king
Sixteen years have passed since the demise of Ustad Vilayat Khan in the spring of 2004. Yet, his music continues to reverberate. So do stories of him living life in regal splendor. On his 92nd...
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