A young actor pays tribute to the late great filmmaker Yash Chopra.

“In utter shock & sadness I wake up to hearing about the passing away of Mr. Yash Chopra. With my eyes already moist, no words will ever be good enough to describe Yashji’s stature in giving Bollywood the platform and the recognition that it sits on today, and for giving audiences around the globe the ability and heart to smile, cry and love through his soul-stirring vision.

There will NEVER be another Yash Chopra ever again. For me personally, no filmmaker has touched my life and captured my passion and love for Indian Cinema the way Yashji’s films have.”
Guest blog by aspiring actor Zoran Saher

While ‘English Vinglish’ is about a big starry comeback – that of the wonderful superstar Sridevi, it’s also about new beginnings – that of Gauri Shinde’s directorial debut. And there’s yet another story in there of particular interest to New Yorkers – that of the debut of local model-actress Neelu Sodhi in a big Bollywood film, playing the niece of Sridevi.

Neelu Sodhi has gone from a career in finance to modeling and commercials to the big desi dream – Bollywood. Indeed, such is the power of Bollywood in Indian lives that you never know when it’s going to enter your life and give it a 360 degree turn. Read on for a heartwarming Cinderella story. Yes, Bollywood Dreams do come true…

In a very material world of designer haircuts and stylish togs, Vikram Gandhi, 33, did a radical thing: he grew his hair long and nurtured a massive beard. Forsaking all, he donned saffron robes, a fake accent and armed with a trident, became Kumare, the enlightened founder of the Sri Kumare spiritual movement.

Really?

Well, not really. Vikram Gandhi, you see, is a New York based-filmmaker and he is a fake guru in a real documentary, ‘Kumare’. Or as the film is billed, ‘The true story of a false prophet’.

He was India’s first big superstar, the one for whom that title had been virtually created. In fact, with his stylish mannerisms and his heart-stealing smile, he had gone where no other major Indian movie star had gone before. Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand had fans – but Rajesh Khanna had fevered followers. His female fans were legion and there was a new word invented especially for him – The Phenomenon. Women, it is said, married his photograph, applying sindoor of their blood to their foreheads. His romantic eyes, his matchless smile did something insane to them.
And that brings us to the point: when and where does the pact between actor and audience end? Does the connection end as the reels roll off and the screen goes dark or does the audience pursue the actor into the real world?

What would be the best way to spend 95 minutes? I would recommend catching ‘Patang’, a small, spunky colorful kite of a film which will make your spirits soar. Made by US-based Prashant Bhargava, it’s his first feature film and took six years to make. With it, he’s thrown filmi convention to the winds – going off on a limb, using hand-held cameras, no storyboards and mostly non-actors.

The little film has won big praise, showing at The Berlin Film Festival and the Tribeca Film Festival, and scores of other festivals. I think the biggest compliment one can pay ‘Patang’ is that you forget it’s a movie, that it’s all been ‘shot’. ‘Patang’ is the real life of small towns, the intricacies of familial bonds and the joy of small moments shared together.

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Like any good movie, the five-day festival had lots of action, drama, side stories and even back stories. There were panels, discussions, parties and after-parties, all a shorthand for absorbing the diverse material and networking with film buffs.

It was in many ways a New York story, with the opening day red carpet taking place outside the historic Paris Theater (a favorite of the late Ismail Merchant), right opposite the glitzy Plaza Hotel on Fifth Avenue. Horse carriages trotted by near Central Park, horns honked as cars sped and pedestrians rushed by in frentic NY fashion, a few stopping to see what the hullabaloo was about.

Take away Bollywood from the masses and there would probably be a national uprising! Indian cinema has something for everyone: the emotional storylines, drawn out romances and musical numbers soothe the soul, and the comedy, often unintended, can bring a smile to the grimmest life.

It is amazing to see how all of India awaits the release of a Bollywood movie with bated breath. The film is ‘Bol Bachchan’ from Rohit Shetty who hit box office gold with the Golmaal series and the Ajay Devgn starrer ‘Singham’ last year.

Now he’s brought all those fail-proof elements and combined them with the Bachchan factor – not one, not two but three Bachchans! Junior Bachchan plays a dual role in the film and dad Amitabh Bachchan features in a rousing musical number in the movie with the two hunks Ajay and Abhishek and hordes of sexy dancers. Now trending on Twitter!

Celebrities may wear the armor of success but as Anupam Kher shows they all have human failings and frailties and he shares ways to deal with everything from stress to fear to failure. And that is why readers will catch glimpses of themselves in the pages of his new book, find strength for the days they lose confidence or feel useless. Says Kher, “They need to discover that the best thing about them is them. It is the truth, it is not just a catchy title. I believe in it.”

2012 marks the 100th year of Indian Cinema, so what better time to go on a filmi marathon?
Luckily, the 2012 New York Indian Film Festival is just around the corner, so we can eat, drink and dream cinema for 5 days!
But Indian cinema is so much more than just Bollywood and here are 10 tips to help you get the best of this multifaceted festival which brings you a rich mix of regional and Hindi cinema.
The 12th annual New York Indian Film Festival is presented by Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) and runs May 23-27

If the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was really a hotel in Rajasthan, I think I’d like to spend a few weeks there for there’s just such a kookie charm about the going-to-seed establishment and the young manager Sonny Kapoor, played by Dev Patel with maniac energy and chutzpah, is such an exuberant, happy host.

Indeed ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ gives outsourcing a whole new dimension. What if old age could be outsourced – to India? The film follows a group of British retirees who decide to move to India to get more bang for their buck – and discover a whole new world at the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel ‘for the elderly and beautiful’. Recently the stars of the film were in New York and weighed in on their experiences in India.