#old bengali music

[zeherili-ankhein]

THE RAJKONNO TO THAT RAJPUTRO AHHHSHSHDGDVD YES FOUND HER TOO

I'll make a playlist I think-

This is the most thakumar jhuli rupkothar kahini song to ever exit I said what I said

LIKE??? AHHSBDHDG MY THAKUMAR JHULI LOVER HEART IS JUST- 🤌🤌

THIS RAJPUTRO IS MY SHOPNER RAJPUTRO FROM NOW ON AJSHDBDBDVD

[chyaptagolap]

if you listen to old bollywood, bangla oldies, urdu ghazals, hindi and bangla coke studio, desi hiphop, bangla rock and folk fusion we should be married rn

[riddharoykarmakar]

And when Rabindranath Tagore said,

আমি তোমার বিরহে রহিব বিলীন, তোমাতে করিব বাস,

দীর্ঘ দিবস, দীর্ঘ রজনী, দীর্ঘ বরষ-মাস।

যদি আর কারে ভালোবাস, যদি আর ফিরে নাহি আস,

তবে তুমি যাহা চাও, তাই যেন পাও, আমি যত দুখ পাই গো।

Which literally means -

Even as I am consumed by the pangs of separation, I will live by your memories,

Through the eternal day and night, through endless years and months.

If you should love another, if to me you should never return,

I wish for you fulfilment of all that you solicit, let me take all the sorrow instead.

~ Rabindranath Tagore

Presented by, Riddha

[hinsaa-paramo-dharma]

This song ✨

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Madhabi Mukherjee (Charulata, The Big City, The Coward)—Madhabi Mukherjee is legendary for her nuanced and sensitive performances in some of the classics of Bengali cinema particularly her roles in Satyajit Ray's films

Angela Lansbury (The Harvey Girls, The Court Jester, The Manchurian Candidate)—The babe, the myth, the legend. In her own words her early hollywood roles were "a series of venal bitches" and they were all glorious. Half of them wanted to kill you and you probably would have thanked them. She even goes toe to toe with Judy Garland in The Harvey Girls! That said, she was chronically underused and misused during this era - she was just 36 when she was cast as Elvis Presley's mother in Blue Hawaii and a few years later commented that she'd played so many 'old hags' that most people thought she was in her 60s. She thought she was "all talent, no looks" but she was the full package! Post-1970 I hope we all know what an incredibly talented and compassionate badass she was, but I feel like not enough people know her early roles as a hot (often villainous) young thing.

This is round 3 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Madhabi Mukherjee:

She played in some of the most critically acclaimed films in bengali cinema and she is an incredibly talented actress. Everybody should watch 'The Big City' she's so good in it!

Linked clip

Gifset 1

Gifset 2

Angela Lansbury:

"Angela Lansbury might not be where your mind goes first when you think of hot leading women, because she had a later career revival. But she began acting in the early 1940s after leaving London due to the Blitz. In the first couple decades of her film career she has an openness about her. She said she never really fit in with the Hollywood crowd and to me she gives off a friendly, untarnished vibe."

"Most of us know Angela Lansbury as old lady sleuth Jessica Fletcher, but it's important to know that she was smoking hot in her younger days as well as a damned fine actress. Although she didn't get lead roles until her early 40s, at 17 she was a supporting actress in films such as Gaslight (1944), National Velvet (1944), and The Picture of Dorian Grey, for which she won the Golden Globe for best supporting actress and was nominated for the Oscar. Even in her memorable performance as the manipulative mother in The Manchurian Candidate, she is listed as a supporting actress as she does not play the love interest. She was successful both on stage and screen, and won the Tony for her lead role in the musical Mame on Broadway in 1966. TL;DR While Angela Lansbury mostly played supporting roles in films before 1970, she had what it takes to be a leading actress, which we know from her success on stage and tv from the mid 60s onward"

"She looked like a princess but bit like a viper"

"Is there anything this woman couldn't do? Act in comedy and drama, sing, dance, be a wonderful human being - quite simply a true and wonderful lady."

"she is the fairytale princess of my dreams in court jester"

"god she had such an incredible career all throughout her life really but as a young lady she was just as incredible as she was in her later years. enchanting voice, amazing personality, and absolutely GORGEOUS. she lamented not having the looks to play leads in romance but that idea is so batshit because look at her??? she's one of the most terrific women of all time. also she's my grandmother's favorite actress and i truly get it"

[pant--eater]

what do you think fry's family is like!!! i love him sooo much every time you draw him it's like a gift 🥺🥺🥺

WAUGHGHGHJ these Fry questions make me so happy since he's my Blorbo(TM) <3 Gah I'm itching to talk about him, so ask and you shall deserve!! Also thank you SO much I'm so glad you love my art <33

little sketches related to what I'm about to yap about. ANYWAYS here's wonderwall

So on my old account I used to hc he is Indian-British, whose family hails from Travancore (Kerala nowadays). This was based on what I ASSUMED was canon info since back in January, all Chicken Run wiki articles about him mentioned he's Indian-British. But apparently that's not 100% settled info what his ethnicity is?? And the wikis have been edited since. His VA Nick Mohammed is from a mixed Cypriot/Indo-Trinidadian family though and I spent time reading about Indian-British immigrant history to get Fry's characterization accurate, so imma keep with that hc.

Anyway! I headcanon Marcus is the only child of wealthy businessmen that owned a highly successful trade company. His Vaishya grandparents moved to Britain during the late Victorian era; after all one of the only ways a PoC family could make it back then in Britain was by being filthy rich, and very early on the Fry family had been forced to adopt a "British" way of living in order to be taken seriously by the shitass imperial society. Such as switching to a British surname and avoiding to display too much of their original culture in public. A colonial trauma that still prevails, since Fry's parents christened him with a heavily English name.

I REEEALLY wanna give a try to designing Fry's parents sometime!! But I imagine his parents as sort of a healthier parallel to Melisha's parents; his father is a pristine and calm gentleman with a soothing voice and a love for theatre and literature (a trait that Marcus inherited LMAO) while his mother is more stern, headstrong and very, VERY proud of her status. (but she also has a infectuous smile and laughter and has a bombastic overdramatic streak...something that Fry inherited as well)

They're both native Malayam speakers, and while their family in public strives to keep Keralite culture hidden, they made sure to teach Marcus to speak his native language fluently as well, along with Hindi, Bengali, Tegulu and Tamil. Along with that, they frequently go on family trips to Travancore and enjoy things like inji neer, Kathakali performances (which inspired Fry on his love for theatre <3) and Carnatic music.

Both parents pushed Marcus to study hard and gain multiple academic degrees - it was all out of love and concern, because they wanted Marcus to be able to survive in the cruel world out there without only relying on his money. (Once again, a PoC immigrant family experience that I can identify with as well... even if society nowadays is not nearly as racist as it was back then, unfortunately PoC people are often forced to study waaaay harder than white people in order to make it.) Because they had lived through the years of great depression in the 1930s, and while they managed to survive with most of their wealth intact, they knew that one should not rely only on money for support since anything could happen.

Fry, as a child, was a gifted A+ grade student and a very well-behaved, so his parents called him a little ray of sunshine and a future hope. He yearned to be perfect so his parents would never be disappointed in him. Something that later on contributed MASSIVELY to Fry's gifted child burnout, and how he adopted a sinister, sadistic fascination with mind control and manipulation during his Cambridge years.

Once Marcus came out as trans and genderfluid to his parents, his father was very patient and accepting, but his mother spent several years in denial before finally accepting him. Not directly out of transphobia - but because she was afraid that Marcus would be discriminated, attacked and hurt by people, and that he should focus first on building a career for himself instead of bringing a bad name to the Fry family like this, with an outrageous gender identity. But she soon realized that hiding himself would only hurt her child on the long run. Also - the way Fry managed to fully bribe (cough mind control cough) British officials to switch the gender in his personal info and passport was nothing less than impressive to both of his parents LMFAOOOO and they're very proud

However despite all of this, Fry retains a loving relationship to his parents!! He goes to their mansion every Christmas, and they're also VERY accepting and encouraging to his marriage to Melisha. In fact, his mom was relieved to see Fry had married a very orderly, stern and no-nonsense woman, because Marcus had always been a scatterbrained mess and a reckless money-spender. He made a wonderful scientist, but business-running had never been his thing, so Melisha taking care of all that is like a lottery win to the Fry parents. ESPECIALLY since Melisha came from a poor household - a woman like this, who knows what it's like to live at the rock bottom, surely knows to keep Marcus humble and not let him make flimsy business decisions!! (either way Melisha is still a bit intimidated by Fry's mom, which says a lot considering what kind of a girl Melisha herself is LMFAO)

Pluuuus... the Harsh Expectations(TM) is something that Melisha can relate to </3 It's something that catches her entirely off guard, when she learns this detail about Fry's past. After all, the silly goofy doctor is like an endless ray of sunshine, he's rich and successful. (and we all know what Melisha's mother told her about money bringing happiness...) How could he ever have any worries or feelings of inferiority??

It's a detail that makes (in my hcs) Melisha fall even deeper in love with Fry and become tenfold more protective over him :''') <3 Once she realizes what a horrific burden this goofball is carrying on his back, and yet he still finds the energy every day to stay positive, be optimistic and support Melisha during her hard days.

[aru-loves-krishnaxarjuna]

Sup!

𝓐𝓡𝓤 or 𝓐𝓡𝓤𝓩𝓐 is what my name is but, pls just call me 𝓐𝓡𝓤

I have a real name, but I hate it. It is Samriddhi, but I have my reasons for hating it. So don't ask pls

Minor / 14yrs old

Female

An AFSian, Class 9

Indian, Bengali

Krishna x Arjuna simp (I think me name says that)

A HUUUGEE Arjuni simp

I write FFs and sometimes poems

I love the Mahabharata Epic

I also watch anime and k-drama...sometimes, but also play Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail and Wuthering Waves

I play sports like Table Tennis 🏓, chess, football, cricket, athletics, and volleyball

Dancer and draw/make art as well, tabla and harmonium player too hehe

Loves listening to music

I would rather torture myself to death than to say that I love myself– oh wait...

My Masterlist

[cult-of-the-eye]

Bengali Jonathan Sims Head canons:

Asks for black tea at work to keep up appearances but in reality would KILL for some good chai

(Martin is FLOORED at the first time he drinks Jon's chai. He's like I've literally been making the black tea for you all this time and you could do this???? And Jon's like ...well I still like your tea...Martin sulks...)

Owns a lungi. Has never worn it. Will never wear it (cut to season 5 Jon who is far too tired to dress up and one day he wears the lungi and then he finds a long skirt and he's like ...hmmm.)

Was made to learn how to sing rabindra sangeet and play harmonium but has long since forgotten. He has a smooth, deep voice and occasionally listens to some Bengali classical music to calm himself down but he doesn't usually sing (Martin finds this out one evening when he hears Jon humming to himself while cooking)

HE MAKES THE BEST BIRYANI. This is a rare Jon occurrence and would probably only happen if he wasn't this Stressed. In this timeline, when he remembers to cook, he'll batch cook plain kitchdi or like make daal sandwiches and hope it works for the week. But in a different timeline - cue archival dinner parties where everyone brings something and he comes with WAY TOO MUCH FOOD because a Bengali party means cooking for 200 people

AU where Jon brings Martin to a cultural event just to spite everyone's homophobic asses and maybe spark wonder in some children. He takes extra joy in the fact that Martin is half-Indian so he introduces the idea of an Indian partner before smacking across the face with the fact that he's Not A Girl.

Speaks Bangla atrociously. He would love to flex his knowledge of another language because it's academic and suggests that he can bitch about you behind your back but does not in fear of being asked to speak it and then being laughed out. Sometimes he will say a few words to himself just to test that old muscle and is fairly pleased at what he can remember. Eye!Jon can speak Bangla perfectly. He refuses to speak it.

[x-heesy]

This is a authentic Shitpost 😂

Silly Flow, when I hit the beat I've got a silly flow

Breezy on the beat okay we turning up the stereo

A lot of blunts in the morning, I ain't eating cereal

It's Breezy on the beat, I'm never running out of material

If you want the smoke okay I'll really bring Mysterio

I really gotta kill the beat and organize a burial

A lot of people in my life made me feel inferior

But now we getting money make it spread like bacteria

I don't really bop man I don't really dance

I make rap music but I really love bands

Always been stood on but I gotta take a stand

Man I gotta make it out, see I gotta make a plan

I don't really slow dance

But I like to throw bands

Brothers carry arms I don't really like to hold hands

Did it with my own hands till the day I'm old man

Fucking with lil breezy then I'm handing out toe tags

Come through, baby girl, come through

All I've got is one rule

Can you bring your friends, and drugs too?

Some sh*t that make me go dumb and numb to

I just talk sh*t when I'm on these mushrooms

What's the world come to?

Can I really trust you?

I know people in this life move like the one-two

I don't give a fuck who's your dad, I could son you

I treat these hoes like the bag - you know that I run through

Trap be jumping

Pass me the mantle

Back here thuggin'

My own two, I stand on

You already know breezy in the cut - bandage

Matter of fact I really got the block lit like candles

For my real players man this a fucking anthem

I could never have enough power that's ample

Out of all these artists man I gotta set examples

CLB, YBH, Young Bengali Handsome

Creeping

Every time you see the boy creeping No

I could really flame these rappers like phoenix

Look at my watch, and the time says demon

Look at my flow, cause I grind all weekend

Say you got stripes but you look like a zebra

Say you got bite matter of fact you teething

Say you gon' fight matter of fact you fleeing

Say you want beef? Boy I'll turn you into a vegan!

Silly Flow, when I hit the beat I've got a silly flow

Breezy on the beat okay we turning up the stereo

A lot of blunts in the morning, I ain't eating cereal

It's Breezy on the beat, I'm never running out of material

If you want the smoke okay I'll really bring Mysterio

I really gotta kill the beat and organize a burial

A lot of people in my life made me feel inferior

But now we getting money make it spread like bacteria

Or maybe like malaria, the hottest in the area

And when I hit record there is nothing really scarier

The oppas getting warrier cause I be in the area

And I be such a big dog, you looking like a terrier

You looking like i'll carry you, straight up to your funeral

Black and white diamonds man I call that shit an oreo

And I've been getting money in like all type of scenarios

And I'm the hottest rapper ever since I was an embryo bitch

Silly Flow by ABRZY

[pomegranateandcoffee]

follow my side blog if you are interested in the following:

old bollywood, hindi music, south asian cinema, urdu literature, bengali literature, pakistani pop culture, fashion and textile, culture and heritage etc

@pyarkanaghma

my Instagram is : kabhishaamdhalay

[randomlyblue]

In the early hours of the morning, a 15 year old girl trudged out to the living room, pillow in hand, before light had even broken out over the horizon. It was 4:00 a.m. but the room was charged with a fervent sort of energy, a giddiness that finaly peaked when Birendra Krishna Bhadra's sonorous voice rang out with the first words- "আশ্বিনের ��ারদপ্রাতে". 

It was মহালয়া- the beginning of 'দেবীপক্ষ'. I do not think that any words, except the ones privately spoken by each Bengali to Ma, of his wishes and woes, hopes and sorrows in silent prayers between the chants during Ashtami's Anjali, can convey the feeling in his heart as one by one, all the houses are filled with 'আগমনীর গান' while the sun slowly creeps into sight like a sleepy child unable to stay away from the excitement of all his aunts, uncles and older cousins huddled outside infront of the radio with tumblers full of steaming, milky tea.

There is a certain quiet beauty in the knowledge that every year since 1931 when the show first aired, Bengalis within Kolkata and without have been dutifully waking up at 4 o'clock to welome our Maa home. A five year old girl rubs her drowsy eyes infront of the radio as she hears the voice she will learn to eagerly wait for throughout the year when she grows older, for the first time. Lying propped up on the cushions in her hospital bed, much to the protest of her nurses, her great grandmother ruefully smiles when she realises that it would be her last time, and for a glorious hour and a half, the pain of the cancer in her liver bows down to মহিষাসুরমর্দিনী. A large joint family gathers in front of the antique record player, with endless cups of tea and aluminium tins of biscuits under the arches of their ancestral home in North Calcutta, where only a few days later, they would welcome their very own Ma Durga. In the servants' quarters, the 'rannar thakur' sits on the front steps of his tin roofed home with his thin daughter and thinner wife, and his stomach's grumbles of hunger are drowned out by the music carrying from the record player. A Muslim boy, not daring to tell his orthodox father, cycles to his Hindu classmate's house before the sun rises to catch the first strains of Aagomoni. For মহালয়া does not merely mark the coming of Ma, it marks the advent of hope in the form of our ten-armed Goddess for every Bengali, irrespective of his age, social standing or religion. Even if it may be just an old recording playing from some houses on the streets, to me and to any Bengali, it seems more like on one magical day every year, all the clouds in the sky strike up a wonderful heavenly orchestra of voices, filling all the empty spaces in the sky, till Ma Durga herself comes to fill up the place waiting for her on the mandaps and in our hearts.

-Priya

[dweemeister]

Devi (1960, India)

One year following his stunning Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) (1959), director Satyajit Ray reunited actors Sharmila Tagore and Soumitra Chatterjee. By this point, Ray was no longer the studious yet inexperienced hand that shepherded the Apu trilogy to its conclusion. But his lead actors were still only starring in their second-ever film. Bengali cinema (Tollywood, based in West Bengal) had a proud history before Ray’s Apu trilogy (1955-1959), but now had caught the attention of audiences beyond India – disproportionately so, as Bollywood (Hindi cinema, based in Mumbai) has always been the largest part of the nation’s film industry. Unlike some of the most popular Tollywood and Bollywood films of the time (and now), Ray never showed interest in romantic-musical escapism and instead dared to make films challenging India’s caste system, sexism, and religious fanaticism.

In his first work addressing religious fanaticism (and arguably his first truly political film) comes Devi, also known by its English-language title as The Goddess. Unlike 1965’s Mahapurush (The Holy Man), which also covers the same topic, Devi is thoroughly a drama, with no hint of comedy or satire. The film’s somber tone did not sit well with general Indian audiences used to lighter fare, and its willingness to criticize the extremes of Hindu religiosity saw the film’s harshest critics deem it (and Ray) as anti-Hindu. If released today, Devi almost certainly would receive a similar, if not more intense, backlash from groups and individuals in India criticizing it out of bad faith.

Somewhere in a rural town in nineteenth century Bengal, younger brother Umaprasad (Soumitra Chatterjee) is ready to depart for Kolkata for university and to study English. Umaprasad’s family is wealthy, with numerous servants tending to their multistory mansion. All is well in their richly-furnished, well-kempt home as he leaves his teenage* wife Dayamayee‡ (Sharmila Tagore) to take of his aging father/her father-in-law Kalikinkar Choudhuri (Chhabi Biswas). One night, Kalinikar awakens from a marvelous dream. An adherent of the goddess Kali, his visions lead him to believe that his daughter-in-law is Kali’s physical incarnation. Upon awakening, he rushes to Dayamayee and falls to his feet in worship. Dayamayee’s life as Umaprasad’s wife has ended. Against her will, she becomes an object of religious devotion as word spreads of Kalikinkar’s dream and a supposed miracle shortly thereafter.

Devi also stars Purnendu Mukherjee as Umaprasad’s brother, Taraprasad; Karuna Banerjee as Harasundari, Taraprasad’s wife; and Arpan Chowdhury as Taraprasad and Harasundari’s son (Dayamayee’s nephew).

Where a year prior Apur Sansar was Soumitra Chatterjee’s movie, Devi is likewise Sharmila Tagore’s. Tagore, sixteen years old upon the film’s release year, again finds herself in a role with little dialogue, even less than her supporting role in Apur Sansar. The moment Tagore’s Dayamayee becomes a devotional figure, her dialogue and ability to exert her own agency disappears. Until Umaprasad returns home shortly after the halfway mark, so much of Tagore’s performance before and after seems spliced from a great silent film. Perched on a small block, a pedestal if you will, she almost never looks at the camera or those intoning “Mā” (“Mother” in Bengali; Kali is the avatar of Durga, and both are forms of the Mother Goddess, Devi) as men and women pray and prostrate themselves in front of her. At times, Dayamayee’s mental and physical exhaustion is clear, even if she is looking sideways or into the ground, as she sits in place for several hours at a time. Is there any one there to make sure that this “goddess” is properly being taken care of? It seems doubtful.

It is unclear how long it takes for word to reach Umaprasad in order for him to return home to see the daily scenes at his family’s residence. Even for less than a day, this whole situation is intolerable to Dayamayee. Her resignation is evident in her slightly hunched back, unable to find a psychological or physical escape. The scene where Umaprasad returns home to see Dayamayee venerated as a goddess contains striking facial acting from both Tagore and Chatterjee. In Chatterjee, we see Umaprasad comprehending the situation in real time, as his horror renders him almost speechless. In Tagore, Dayamayee looks up, and in a figment of hope, there is utter heartbreak. These long days of adoration and miracle-seeking pilgrims have even shaken her sense of reality, as almost all vestiges of her past life wither away. In a rare private moment with Umaprasad, she questions her very being: “But what if I am a goddess?”

Satyajit Ray, who also wrote this screenplay based on the 1899 Bengali short story of the same name by Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhyay, was part of the Brahmo Samaj movement, which advocates for a monotheistic interpretation of Hinduism. Brahmos, crucially, reject the caste system and avatars/incarnations of gods and goddesses. Ray’s adherence to the reforms of Brahmo Samaj color his filmography more obviously as his career progresses (I have not seen too much of Ray’s work, but I have not yet encountered a film of his that inelegantly portrayed his beliefs). Ray’s reformist and Western-leaning stances are embodied by Chatterjee’s Umaprasad, who we see clash with his more traditional father over social mores (the latter is distrustful of his son’s education, and derides his son for supposedly espousing Christian beliefs). Except for the scenes of a religious procession immediately after the opening credits, at no point does Ray imbue any of the religious images with any sense of glory, wonder, or veneration. Cinematographer Subrata Mitra (the Apu trilogy, 1966’s Nayak) dispenses of any ethereal lighting until the closing seconds, and his medium to close shots capture the uncomfortable anguish on both sides – Dayamayee’s alternating ambivalence and despair, the worshippers’ desire for comfort, deliverance, and the miraculous.

Like in several of Ray’s films including Mahapurush and Ganashatru (An Enemy of the People) (1989), Devi rejects dogmatism, miracles, superstitions, and anything that cannot have a rational or scientific explanation. Simultaneously, Ray realizes that most Indians, in the face of events profound and improbable, find science and rationality cold, confusing, and unsatisfying. Faith endows meaning to such moments. Faith ascribes purpose to happiness and suffering – something rationalism cannot provide. The unsuitability of both to provide a solution in Devi is the film’s secondary tragedy, as belief systems confront a scenario where a middle ground is impossible.

Devi’s principal tragedy is the religious objectification of Dayamayee. Of all of Ray’s female protagonists from Pather Panchali (1955) to this point, none of them are as constrained as Tagore’s Dayamayee. She may not live in poverty like Apu’s sister and mother in the Apu trilogy, nor is she the wife of an indulgent husband (1958’s Jalsāghar or The Music Room). And though she is not bound by shackles or subject to physical or sexual abuse, Dayamayee is nevertheless a victim of the unpredictable whims of men (and it is almost entirely men who worship her). Her portrayal is nuanced: she does not succumb entirely to self-pity, nor does she possess the strength to tell her father-in-law and his fellow worshippers to halt their devotional displays. She is aware of the communal damage she will cause if she so much renounces her unwanted divinity. At the same time, she cannot help but yearn for freedom, for others to speak to her like a human again – complete with aspirations, desires, and fears that no one can associate with a god.

Too often in cinema – wherever and whenever it hails from, including midcentury India – women play simplistic roles: the lover, the damsel in distress, the spurned wife. Where numerous filmmakers and actresses in the Hollywood Studio System were actively working to dismantle this element of patriarchy, I do not detect a similar level of rebellion in mainstream Indian cinema in the 1950s and 1960s (and, to some extent, this remains true). Ray did not stand alone in attempting to endow female characters with complexity (within and outside Bengali cinema), but his contributions to this development within the context of midcentury Indian cinema are crucial. Many of his films attempt a cinematic dialogue that critiqued patriarchal abuses with subtlety and bluntness – often to the chagrin of the public and government officials. The public outrage following Devi’s initial domestic release saw the film banned from seeking international distribution. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru intervened and reversed that decision.

Nevertheless, consider some of the works in Ray’s first decade as a filmmaker: The Apu trilogy, Devi, Teen Kanya (1961), The Big City (1963), and Charulata (1964). Together, all seven of those films reveal a filmmaker willing to take mainstream Indian filmmaking to task for regressive and simplistic portrayals of women, whether in lead or supporting roles. Devi might be the most shattering of that collection, caught between human weakness and the unknowability of the divine.

My rating: 8.5/10

^ Based on my personal imdb rating. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found in the “Ratings system” page on my blog. Half-points are always rounded down.

For more of my reviews tagged “My Movie Odyssey”, check out the tag of the same name on my blog.

* There were no child marriage laws in India in the nineteenth century, when this film is set. Child marriage remains prevalent in India, despite loophole-filled laws and a lack of enforcement.

‡ Multiple spellings of the protagonist's name are out there from reputable sources. I am using either the most or second-most common spelling here.

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 4.15

Holidays

Anime Day

Anniversary of Tarija (Bolivia)

AR-15 Day

Ariadne Asteroid Day

ASL Day (American Sign Language Day)

Banyan Tree Day (Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii)

Bija Mangala (Field Cultivation Festival)

Buck Rogers Day

Children’s Day (Spain)

Criminal Investigation Department Employees Day (Ukraine)

Da Vinci Day

Day of Love (Georgia)

Day of People (Aysellant)

Day of Radio-Electronic Fight Troops (Russia)

Day of the Sun (North Korea)

Father Damien Day (Hawaii)

Fluff Appreciation Day

415 Day

Freak Out Day

Gallaudet Day

Good Roads Day (Illinois)

Great Stichwort

Hardware Freedom Day

Hillsborough Disaster Memorial Day (Liverpool, UK)

Himachal Day (India)

Historical City Day (Malacca)

Hug Your Boiler Day

Income Tax Pay Day

International Biomedical Laboratory Science Day

International Pompe Day

Ivory Soap Day

Jackie Robinson Day

Kim Il Sung Day (North Korea)

Lilac Day (French Republic)

Lover’s Day (Kazakhstan)

Mariah Carey Day (California)

Melaka UNESCO Heritage Day (Malaysia)

Microvolunteering Day

National Anime Day

National ASL Day

National Collegiate Recovery Day

National Griper’s Day

National Hookup Day

National Keaton Day

National Laundry Day

National Poet Day (Peru)

National Rubber Eraser Day

National Security Education Day (Hong Kong)

National That Sucks Day

National Titanic Remembrance Day

One Boston Day

Purple Up Day

Quantum Teleportation Day

Rubber Eraser Day

Swallow Day (UK)

Take a Wild Guess Day

Tax Day (US)

Tax Resistor's Day

That Sucks Day

Tipsa Diena (Traditional start of plowing; Ancient Latvia)

Titanic Remembrance Day

Type 1 Diabetes Day

Universal Day of Culture

World Art Day

World Tiny Art Gallery Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Fast Food Day

McDonald’s Day

National Glazed Spiral Ham Day

National Takeout Day (Canada)

3rd Monday in April

Boston Marathon Day [3rd Monday]

National Stress Awareness Day [3rd Monday]

Landing of the 33 Patriots Day observed (Uruguay) [3rd Monday]

Patriots' Day (Maine, Massachusetts, Wisconsin) [3rd Monday]

Sechseläuten ends (Six Ringing Festival; Zurich, Switzerland) [3rd Monday]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 15 (3rd Week)

National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week [thru 4.19]

Undergraduate Research Week [thru 4.19]

Week of the Young Child [thru 4.19]

Independence & Related Days

Independence Day Holiday (Israel)

Unitedlands (Declared; 2022) [unrecognized]

Vishwamitra (f.k.a. Children’s Group; Declared; 2007) [unrecognized]

New Year’s Days

Day after Sidereal New Year (South and Southeast Asian) (a.k.a. …

Bengali New Year (India)

Bohag Bihu (Parts of India)

Himachl Day (Parts of India)

Lao New Yar (Laos)

Masadi (Parts of India)

Nababarsha (Parts of India)

New Year Holidays (Myanmar)

Sarhul (Parts of India)

Songkran (Thailand)

Water-Sprinkling Festival continues (Yunnan, China)

Poila Boishakh (Bengali New Year)

Festivals Beginning April 15, 2024

Boston Marathon (Boston, Massachusetts) [3rd Monday]

Coquina Beach Seafood & Music Festival (Coquina Beach, Florida) [thru 4.17]

Singing in the Sun (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina) [thru 4.20]

TED Conference (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) [thru 4.19]

Feast Days

Abbo II of Metz (Christian; Saint)

Arshile Gorky (Artology)

Bananas with Everything Day (a.k.a. Banana Day; Pastafarian)

Basilissa and Anastasia (Christian; Martyrs)

Day of Tellus Mater (Pagan)

Elizabeth Catlett Mora (Artology)

Father Damien (The Episcopal Church)

Festival of Hero/Bast (Ancient Egypt)

Festival of Matsu/Mazu (Goddess of the Sea; Taoism)

Fordicidia (Old Roman Festival of Fertility to honor Ceres)

Henry James (Writerism)

Hippachus (Positivist; Saint)

Hunna (Christian; Saint)

Jeffrey Archer (Writerism)

Kanamara Matsuri (Iron Phallus Festival; Japan)

Leonardo da Vinci (Artology)

Munde (Christian; Saint)

Padarn (Christian; Saint)

Pammy (Muppetism)

Paternus of Avranches (Christian; Saint)

Peter Gonzales (Christian; Saint)

Ruadan of Lothra (Christian; Saint)

Rusalja (Celebration of River Spirts Rusalki of the Lemko People of Carpathia; Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Tellus Mater (Old Roman Mother Earth Festival)

Vlad Tepes Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Fortunate Day (Pagan) [14 of 53]

Sakimake (先負 Japan) [Bad luck in the morning, good luck in the afternoon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because the Titanic Sank and it’s also Tax Day.)

Premieres

The Adventures off Marco Polo (Film; 1938)

Aftermath, by The Rolling Stones (Album; 1966)

The Art of Real Happiness, by Norman Vincent Peale (Book; 1950)

The Black Island, by Hergé (Graphic Novel; 1938) [Tintin #7]

Catalogue d’Oiseaux, by Olivier Messiaen (Pieno Pieces; 1959)

Colors (Film; 1988)

Dark Command (Film; 1940)

Donald’s Nephews (Disney Cartoon; 1938)

Don’t Speak, by No Doubt (Song; 1996)

84, Charing Cross Road, by Helene Hanff (Novel; 1970)

El Amor Bruno (Love, the Magician), by Manuel de Falla (Ballet; 1915)

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (Film; 2022)

Fargo (TV Series; 2014)

The Fitzgeralds and The Kennedys, by Doris Kearns Goodwin (Book; 1987)

Flashdance (Film; 1983)

Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes (Short Story; 1959)

Genghis Khan (Film; 1965)

Girls (TV Series; 2012)

The Hypo-Chondri-Cat (WB MM Cartoon; 1950)

The Little Goldfish (MGM Cartoon; 1939)

Little Red School Mouse (Noveltoons; 1949)

In Living Color (TV Series; 1990)

The Last Emperor (Film; 1988)

The Lumberjack (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit; 1929)

The Moon and Sixpence, by W. Somerset Maugham (Novel; 1919)

Mouse Come Home (Andy Panda Cartoon; 1946)

Outer Banks (TV Series; 2020)

Outer Range (TV Series; 2022)

Rattus Norvegicus, by The Stranglers (Album; 1977)

Ride ‘Em Plowboy (Oswald the Luck Rabbit Disney Cartoon; 1928)

Rio (Animated Film; 2011)

Robinson Crusoe’s Broadcast (Terrytoons Cartoon; 1938)

Rock & Rule (Animated Film; 1983)

Rock for Light, by The Bad Brains (Album; 1983)

Stage Fright (Film; 1950)

St. Matthew’s Passion, by Johann Sebastian Bach (Oratorio; 1729)

Think, recorded by Aretha Franklin (Song; 1968)

To the Finland Station, by Edmund Wilson (Novel; 1940)

The Twenty-One Balloons, by William Pène du Bois (Novel; 1947)

Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On, by Jerry Lee Lewis (Song; 1957)

Wild, by Cheryl Strayed (Memoir; 2012)

Today’s Name Days

Anastasia, Damian, Una (Austria)

Rastislav, Teodor (Croatia)

Anastázie (Czech Republic)

Olympia (Denmark)

Uljas, Uljo, Verner, Verni (Estonia)

Linda, Tuomi (Finland)

César, Paterne (France)

Anastasia, Damian, Una (Germany)

Leonidas (Greece)

Anasztázia, Tas (Hungary)

Anastasio, Annibale (Italy)

Aelita, Agita, Balvis, Gastons (Latvia)

Anastazijus, Liudvina, Modestas, Vaidotė, Vilnius (Lithuania)

Oda, Odd, Odin (Norway)

Anastazja, Bazyli, Leonid, Ludwina, Modest, Olimpia, Tytus, Wacław, Wacława, Wiktoryn, Wszegniew (Poland)

Aristarh, Pud, Trofim (Romania)

Fedor (Slovakia)

Telmo (Spain)

Oliver, Olivia (Sweden)

Mstyslav, Mstyslava (Ukraine)

Kenya, Octavia, Tavia, Tucker (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 106 of 2024; 260 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of week 16 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 2 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Wu-Chen), Day 7 (Ji-You)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 7 Nisan 5784

Islamic: 66 Shawwal 1445

J Cal: 16 Cyan; Twosday [16 of 30]

Julian: 2 April 2024

Moon: 50%: 1st Quarter

Positivist: 22 Archimedes (4th Month) [Varro]

Runic Half Month: Man (Human Being) [Day 6 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 28 of 92)

Week: 3rd Week of April

Zodiac: Aries (Day 26 of 31)

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Cyd Charisse (The Bandwagon, Brigadoon, Singin’ in the Rain)—LEGS LEGS LEGS I would sell my soul for the legs of Cyd Charisse - she oozed style and glamour and sex appeal!! And she could DANCE! She was dancing next to the greats - Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire but they are never who you're looking at because why would you when you can look at her. I will only sit through too long ballet breaks for her. If there was any woman who you could call sex on legs it was her. These dances are everything to meeee (she comes in at the minute mark) and this dance too of course is iconic. In the words of Fred Astaire 'When you've danced with Cyd Charisse you stay danced with'

Suchitra Sen (Harano Sur, Chaowa Pawa)—Suchitra Sen! She had a 25-year career in Bengali films, and was at the height of popularity for a solid two decades as half of the wildly beloved pair of Uttam-Suchitra, who were practically the entire romantic genre of Bengali films by themselves. She acted in literary adaptations, romantic comedies, (melo)dramas and inspired-by-current-events films. She was the first Indian actress to receive an international award at the Moscow International Film Festival. In 1978, after the release of her last film (a box-office flop) she pulled a Garbo and put herself out of the public eye completely. She made no appearances, gave no interviews, refused awards, all of it. She didn't even show up for her daughter's or grand-daughters' debuts! She was taken for funerary rites in a covered hearse! The glamour! The mystery! That blinding smile!

This is round 2 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Suchitra Sen:

Not to take away from her costars in Devdas (1955), but the great Indian cinematic tradition of Tragic Romantic Yearning would not, I argue, be what it is without Suchitra Sen's performance in that film. I root for things to turn out better for her every time, even though I know how things are going to go.

A Bengali cinema icon. Liked crows (per Gulzar, "It was an astonishing sight. The crows used to pick at the grapes from her hand").

Linked gifset

She once rejected Raj Kapoor's movie offer (one of the most successful actor and director at the time). She was quoted saying, “In men, I don’t look for beauty. I look for intelligence and sharp conversations. I had refused Raj Kapoor’s offer almost immediately. He came to my residence offering a lead role and, as I took my seat, he suddenly sat near my foot and offered me a bouquet of roses while offering the role. I rejected the offer. I did not like his personality. The way he behaved – sitting near my foot – did not befit a man.”

Legendary poet, lyricist, director and writer Gulzaar had this to say about her "Glad that my ‘Sir’—that’s what I call her— got the Dada Saheb Phalke award during her lifetime. Contrary to people’s perceptions, Suchitra Sen is an extremely warm and very very friendly person. I adore and respect her. But she has the right to choose her friends. Surely she’s justified in keeping away from every Tom, Dick and Harry. She’s the only example of such quiet dignity in show-biz. That’s why the media compares her with Great Garbo. Suchitra Sen is my Sir. I’ll explain. During the shooting of Aandhi she started calling me Sir. Everyone in Kolkata calls her Madame. Since I’m her junior I requested her not to call me Sir. But she insisted. (We always converse in Bengali). So I call her Sir and she calls me Sir.”

Linked musical number [won't let me display embedded for some reason]

Cyd:

Photos do not do Cyd Charisse justice, unfortunately, because she is at her hottest while dancing, which she was exquisitely good at. Just go watch her first number in Singin' in the Rain, in that green dress; nothing I could say here will be more convincing that that.

She had amazing legs, and she knew how to use them! You probably know her best from the dream sequence in Singin' In The Rain. She was such a stunning dancer, and all her dance scenes are hard to look away from.

Dancing in the Dark clip:

She's an amazing dancer and my favorite from the period. Here's her and Fred Astaire in the Band Wagon:

I just like a woman who's there to be really incredibly good at dancing.

One of the most talented female dancers in Hollywood history, but what sets her apart from other competitors for that title is that she...umm...well let's be blunt, she was the dancer who put sex into it. The one who said "Hey, you know that A+ leg tone that naturally develops from doing this for a living? Why don't I let people see that? Like at every opportunity?" She reportedly insured her legs for five million dollars after hitting it big, which just goes to show that fame makes you crazy. It should have been ten million.

Arguably the Best female dancer of her time, she supposedly insured her legs for $5 million dollars. Stole the show whenever she had a dance number, even if she went uncredited. Musicals started to go out of fashion so unfortunately she didn't have as many big roles as she should have, but those she did are unforgettable. The Broadway Melody number in Singin' in the Rain - the green dress!

She could pirouette in pointes or tear it up in taps. Fred Astaire called her "beautiful dynamite" and wrote, "That Cyd! When you've danced with her you stay danced with." Gene Kelly partnered with her three times. Her legs were (reportedly) insured for $5 million in 1952 ($57.8 million in 2024 dollars)! Everyone in this poll will be iconic, but for raw physical grace, Cyd is up there with the best.

Legs for days, beautiful dancer in the most iconic scenes of Singin in the Rain. She's glorious. As some guys sung to her in It's Always fair weather, 'baby you knock me out!'

Incredibly, Cyd Charisse only started learning to dance as a rehab exercise to strengthen her body after a childhood bout of polio. She was in high demand as a dance partner, Fred Astaire called her beautiful dynamite and said "When you've danced with her, you stayed danced with". She was one of a few leading ladies to dance with both Astaire and Kelly, declaring them both delicious. Kelly apparently was stronger, while Astaire was more coordinated. She also said her husband would always know who she had been dancing with because Kelly left her bruised, while Astaire didn't leave a mark. She's better known for her dance numbers today, but she was a leading lady in her time! Her Scottish accent in Brigadoon leaves a lot to be desired, but compared to the other actors in the movie, it's almost good. She appeared in The Harvey Girls alongside Judy Garland and Angela Lansbury in her first speaking role, but she really burst onto the scene with Singin' in the Rain and her infamous Broadway Melody Ballet number with Gene Kelly (no one could handle a length of fabric like Cyd Charisse). She was brought in because Debbie Reynolds wasn't really a dancer and Kelly was notoriously a stickler about his Vision. After that she starred opposite Astaire in The Band Wagon, which was a bit of a flop but created some enduringly incredible dance numbers. She went on to star in a number of MGM movies, and was one of the last of the Studio era stars to remain on contract. Since we've got up to 1970, I'm including her opening routine in The Silencers (1966) to show just how long she was making a splash - she's into her 40s here and still a siren:

and of course, the iconic Broadway Melody Ballet -

[depressedraisin]

song diaries: damon albarn edition

i thought i'd wait until the end of this week to do this weekly library entry for the music i've been checking out, but you know what? fuck it let's to it today, i've just got too much to say.

so this week i've been on a damon albarn discography expedition. listening to the ballad of darren over and over for like a month and consuming hours worth of concert and interview content has clearly broken something in my brain and this old geezer's music is my new hyperfixation. not complaining though cause there's just SO MUCH. there's like five lifetime's worth of music he's put out in 40 years give or take, and i can't think of one genre he hasn't dipped his toes into. also he's worked with so many SO MANY amazing musicians and artists!!!!! which is always so cool so many new people to discover and get obsessed with <3

now blur and gorillaz on their own are pretty much lifetime achievements but albarn also has such rich body of work outside them as well. i've kinda been familiar with those two for years, my recent forage has mainly been into his non-blur, non-gorillaz music.

here are some highlights i need y'all to be obsessed with just as much as i am:

The Moon Exalted (from the opera Dr Dee, 2011)

did u know damon albarn is an composer of operas as well?! i had no idea! a couple days back i heard him mention working on orchestrating one of goethe's unfinished librettos and i, of course had a very Normal reaction to that. (my obsession with classical music might be sleeping but never dead) so i went checking and learnt he already has 3 opera compositions under his belt. woah.

anyway this piece/song is from the 2011 production dr. dee: based on the life story of some elizabethan magic dude. there's a bunch of traditional elizabethan folk instruments- viola de gamba, lute, shawm, recorder etc etc, the wonderful kora (malian instrument, a blend of lute and harp), the harmonium (literally never saw harmonium being used in any music from the west lol im bengali so i get terribly excited abt this) and the iconic, the legendary tony fucking allen featured on this. the vibes are more folksy, earthy than renaissance-lite which i find pretty cool.

the moon exalted is such a lovely, lovely song though. one of the prettiest things albarn's ever written probably. the kora interlude makes me sob like a baby every single time.

check out this live from his solo concert at the globe theatre:

Go Back (feature on Tony Allen's album Film of Life)

legendary drummer tony allen (i've been listening to afrobeat a bit as well, that's for another day) and albarn has had a long working relationship and friendship. they've worked together on gorillaz, they were in two supergroups together, they worked extensively to champion western african music.

this track is a personal favourite already. wonderful afrobeat elements and tony's distinctive style coupled with some solid jazz keyboard-ing from albarn.

this performance tribute to tony allen makes my heart especially ache (he sadly passed away in 2020). albarn's talked a lot about how much allen meant to him, as a collaborator, mentor and friend, and it's all quite emotional.

This Is A Low (live from Shakespeare's Globe)

listen listen listen i said no blur- but. you gotta listen to this version of this is a low (from Parklife, 1994). he plays quite a bit of blur on the piano for his solo shows but they are kinda a hit or miss tbh. but this one works. for this 2021 solo concert albarn introduced a discordant piano solo in place of graham coxon's rather iconic guitar solo. and omfg it came outta nowhere and hit me straight in the face i love it so much

(don't tell anyone but ipreferthepianosolo)

The Nearer The Fountain More Pure The Stream Flows (from The Nearer The Fountain More Pure The Stream Flows, 2021)

damon albarn has two Solo ™ albums and the second, and lastest, one of these is the nearer the fountain more pure the stream flows released in 2021. initially starting out some sort of an orchestral piece inspired by the changing scenery outside the window of his home in albarn, it eventually ended up becoming this set of very melancholic and intimate set of songs. about so many things: loneliness and our changing relationship with nature and anxiety over life etc etc. post-pandemic feels basically.

it's a deeply emotional listening experience, with sweeping strings at places and gentle piano in others. quite a good showcase of albarn's pianowork imho (u see a pattern here right?). my fav out of them is the title track. the name comes from a john clare poem and it's absolutely stunning.

Mr. Tembo and The Selfish Giant (from Everyday Robots, 2014)

albarn's first solo record, everyday robots of 2014, is up there are one of his best works in my books. it's a set of autobiographical songs inspired by various moments in his life, with elements of triphop, folk and electronica and general themes of isolation and nature/technology etc: which are such quintessentially damon albarn, y'know?

mr. tembo is a adorable lil folksy song about this orphaned baby element he met in tanzania. aaaaannnnd, it features a gospel choir because mr. tembo grew up take care of by forest rangers who listened to a lot of gospel radio. cute.

speaking of the selfish giant........oooffff. big ooooffff. such a gut punching song, goodness. like when i heard the line "it's hard to be a lover when the tv's on" it knocked me out of service for a while.

Waterloo Sunset (The Kinks cover with Ray Charles, somewhere in the late 90s)

this one's quite a legendary performance. in the early blur days, damon albarn was often talked of as like a successor to sir ray davies, he of the kinks fame and witty observational character studies of english life.

this performance of them duetting the iconic the kinks song waterloo sunset was a passing of the baton moment of sorts. and when davies breaks into parklife in the end- all the feels, man, all the feels.

Mali Music (2002 album)

written in collaboration with afel bocoum, toumani diabaté & friends featuring ko kan ko sata, this album explores- you guessed it- music from mali. now i know next to nothing about mali or west african music really so i'm gonna be using this album as a reference point to learn and research more.

Poison Tree (from the 2018 The Good The Bad And The Queen album, Merrie Land)

the good the bad and the queen is 100% for sure one of the most underrated supergroups ever. i mean paul simonon (the clash), simon tong (the verve), tony allen and albarn- can you imagine the sheer level of awesomeness?!

they have two albums, and it's unlikely they'll ever have another. poison tree from their second album is perhaps my fav tgtb&tq song. merrie land was written about and as a reaction to brexit, and there's feelings of farewell and isolation and desolation prominent throughout. but poison tree also reminds me strongly of blur songs like battery in your leg and sweet song and no distance left to run. so yeah, emo hours.

(*for those uninitiated in blur lore the first two songs albarn wrote for/about graham coxon when he left the band in 2003, and the latter was written about his breakup with justine frischmann in 1998)

On Melancholy Hill (live from Matera, 2019)

blur got a cheat entry, so to balance things out, gorillaz gets one as well. on melancholy hill is a heartbreakingly tender song as it is but solo piano version makes it heartbreaking-lier and tender-er *sniffles*