World Cinema & Music

DADASAHEB PHALKE: Remembering the Father of the Indian Film Industry       A hundred year back, one man’s passion and vision gave birth to what has become a billion dollar industry today which has managed to carve a unique identity for itself commanding respect from a worldwide audience and holds the distinction of producing the maximum number of films in the world in a year. The man was Dhundiraj Govind Phalke or Dadasaheb Phalke as he is popularly referred to and with the release of his first silent film ‘Raja Harishchandra’, he not only became the Father of our Indian Cinema, but also inadvertently sowed the seeds of a passionate and deep-rooted relationship between movies and moviegoers in our country which has only grow deeper with the passage of time. May 3rd, 1913: This historic day marked the beginning of the journey of Indian cinema. ‘Raja Harishchandra’, the first indigenously made Indian cinema was released at Mumbai’s Coronation Cinema, Girgaum, where crowds thronged

RD Burman: 5 Reasons Why ‘Pancham Da’ Is One of India’s Greatest Composers! Despite his phenomenal body of work, this musical genius went on to win only three Filmfare Awards for Best Music Director. # In the pantheon of legendary Indian film composers, Rahul Dev Burman stands apart. Even though it’s been two and a half decades since RD Burman (aka Pancham) has passed away, his music continues to captivate the imagination of musicians and music aficionados to this day. The sheer breadth of his music, allied with a unique ability to not only make folk and classical music accessible to the modern listener, but present them in an original, yet contemporary manner for young listeners was, and remains, a game changer. It has clearly influenced the modern masters of mainstream film scores like AR Rahman, Amit Trivedi, Vishal Bharadwaj, and Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy. The melodies and harmonies he composed continue to captivate listeners even today. Although his music is steeped i

Shri Satyajit Ray: Universal Eyes   In 1948 an unknown young Bengali wrote a newspaper article entitled “What is wrong with Indian films?” He accused his nation’s directors of failing to grasp the new medium. “The raw material of cinema is life itself,” he wrote. “It is incredible that a country that has inspired so much painting and music and poetry should fail to move the film-maker. He has only to keep his eyes open, and his ears. Let him do so.” The author was Satyajit Ray, who within a few years would answer his own challenge by filming masterpieces of lyrical realism set in India. His first work and still his best known is the The Apu Trilogy – Pather Panchali (1955), Aparajito (1956) and The World of Apu (1959) – which follows the life of a boy from a village trying to make his way in the world. Lauded by the likes of Kurosawa and Scorsese, Ray made more than 35 films and received a lifetime achievement Oscar shortly before his death in 1992. Although his name is well known