Shobhaa De by Gautam Rajadhyaksha

Shobhaa De by Gautam Rajadhyaksha 

Sure they were cousins - but she was also muse, model and a mother. 

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's regal gait The Reign and Supremacy of Ash as Queen in PS1 and PS2

 

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's regal gait The Reign and Supremacy of Ash as Queen in PS1 and PS2

Aishwarya Rai at Cannes

 

Aishwarya Rai as a young model for Saris

Early days, I remember cutting out Garden sari ads to have this perfect face on my walls. 

The staggeringly beautiful young Aishwarya Rai as India's youngest supermodel. 

Aishwarya Rai on the red carpet

 

Aishwarya Rai in her first Hindi film Aur Pyar Ho Gaya

 

Aishwarya Rai in her first Hindi film Aur Pyar Ho Gaya 

Aishwarya Rai in Taal (1999)

 

Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai: Bollywood's favourite unrequited love story

In real life and in reel life, they just weren't meant to be. She gave him class, he gave her sex appeal } remember reading that phrase?! 

Salman Khan was 8 years older than Aishwarya Rai. Their on and off screen magic was something else. Just wasn't meant to be... 

Aishwarya Rai attends Neeta Lulla's store opening

Aishwarya Rai attends Neeta Lulla's store opening

 

Aishwarya Rai appears on the Tyra Banks show: TBT to 2009

 Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, 36,  appears on the Tyra Banks show: TBT to 2009!

The perfection of Rekha in Silsila

 

 

Released on the summer of 1981, 14 August to be precise, Rekha, then 26, was at the absolute peak of her prowess and peacock-ian beauty when the affairs-of-the-heart, musical melodrama Silsila released.

Empowered by fellow aesthete producer/director Yash Chopra, with the camera work of Kay Gee capturing Rekha in all her polished glory, no leading lady commanded screen space with such ease and elegance. Not a strand of hair out of place, her impeccable fashion (which deteriorated dramatically by the time Khoon Bhari Maang and Geetanjali released!), has to be studied as one does an unholy book of haute Hindi film fashion. 

Rekha when reigned in by writers and directors she admired -- Yash Chopra, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Gulzar -- didn't go completely off the rails. Lesser men who didn't have the courage to edit Re' fell folly to her over-the-top sartorial shenanigans. Yash Chopra had a more deft hand; be it Silsila or Faasle, Rekha looked polished, refined... just damn near perfect.

Rekha with Yash Chopra on the sets of Faasla - a rare pic 

Aishwarya Rai's iconic pose for Taal

Stephen Fry mentioned in an interview he hates the word 'iconic' being used incorrectly. Well, over used. And I see it pop up just about everywhere. And he's so right.

However, this shot - is truly iconic. One look and you know instantly, its Aishwarya Rai in a career-defining role in Taal.

The first time India took note of Aishwarya Rai: The Famous Pepsi ad, "Hi, I'm Sanju!"

Who's that girl? 

Aishwarya Rai's ad for Pepsi... when all of India took note of this young model - who became a sensation overnight. 

Ad featuerd Aamir Khan, Mahima... but all we remember is the stunning Ash 

Akshay Kumar and Aishwarya Rai in Khakee

 

One of their best films together, Khakee was a thriller with just the right amount of twists and turns, Rajkumar Santoshi is an underrated film maker. 

Khakee is remembered more fondly for its quality and cast than its box office numbers. It performed decently but was somewhat overshadowed in a competitive year - 2004.

Aishwarya Rai in her Tamil film Kandukondain Kandukondain

 Till date, easily one of her best films, performances, music... 

Aishwarya Rai in the amazing Kandukondain Kandukondain

Aishwarya Rai in Hum Dil de Chuke Sanam: Exquisite

Aishwarya Rai in Hum Dil de Chuke Sanam: Exquisite, carved in stone face of an Indian icon
 

50 Heroines: Filmfare cover: Rekha dominates the 1980s

 50 Heroines: Filmfare cover: Rekha dominates the 1980s

Rekha: Filmfare's Most Frequent Cover Girl

Not sure Filmfare itself has an archive of all her covers. 

Though the tubby sycophant in chief Jitesh Pillai is a Rekha fan, his playlist of the same images, films, features on Rekha are now mostly yawn-inducing. 

The Filmfare arhcive needs to be injected with some serious cash - and then uploaded online as a treasure trove of images and inforamtion on Hindi cinema. As all the Vogue issues have been digitally uploaded, Filmfare team needs to do the same. Trouble is, as the glossy print magazine is a dying media, no one wants to throw money at a mdedium that's circling the drain. But this is not long term thinking. 

Filmfare needs a tech bro to inject some cash into it, and recognise that Indian cinema history is worth archiving. 

Bollywood's favourite celebrity photographer: Rakesh Shreshta

The only reason I know of Rakesh Shrestha is because of magazine credits in the late 1980s and early 90s of Bollywood based film magazines-- somehow, all my favourite images (particularly those of Sridevi, Manisha Koirala, on occasion Rekha) were by this mysterious man who seemed to have access, a deep friendship with ALL the tops stars of their time. Very little is known about him publicly... which might be his wish, but we wanted to secure his status as one of the greats that percolated Mumbai film industry and the juggernaut that is Bollywood.  

So here's a mini dive. The once prominent Indian still photographer is best known for his extensive work in Bollywood, where he captured publicity stills and special photography for over 600 films, making him a prominent part of not just film journalism, but films itself.

Born on October 5, 1956, in Bombay (now Mumbai) to a family of Nepali origin, he was raised in the city which would be synonymous with the film capital of the world. A commerce graduate, he initially worked in a colour lab handling accounts before transitioning to photography. Without formal training or assisting others, he started in the early 1980s with a modest camera, initially doing urgent passport photos and building confidence through persistence and self-taught skills.

His breakthrough came after persistently approaching actress Neetu Singh on film sets, eventually shooting her for a magazine cover that launched his career. This led to long-term collaborations with major stars, including Rekha (with whom he worked extensively starting around 1981 and praised for her professionalism, creativity, and technical knowledge of lighting/makeup), Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (whom he called one of the most beautiful actresses he photographed), Sridevi, Jackie Shroff, Sanjay Dutt, and many others.

Notable film credits include still photography for Chandni (1989), Lamhe (1991), 1942: A Love Story (1994), Vaastav: The Reality (1999), and others, often for major productions like Yash Raj Films.

He built a successful career through charm, persistence, and creating comfortable environments for stars. After the death of his first wife, Jean, in 2009, he significantly slowed down and largely stepped back from active work to support his son Rohan Shrestha’s photography career (avoiding competition for assignments) and focus on family. He has a second son, Rihaan, from his later marriage.

Shrestha is remembered as a self-made industry veteran who documented key eras of Hindi cinema through his lens. 

In the west, most photographers recap their portfolio in mighty coffee table books and so far, Shreshta has resisted the temptation to publish his incredible work over the past 40 years. One imagines the sheer volume of negatives and series of images of stars to be monumental, a herculean task awaits. We all live in hope he'll publish a book that's not only a retrospective of his personal musings and muses, but an archive of some of the greatest stars that came and went in the transient space that is Bollywood. Stars shine and fade, supernovas are forever-- Rakesh Shreshta in capturing many celebrities is at risk of being one himself. 

Aishwarya Rai in Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000)

Released on 5 May 2000, Aishwarya Rai's most flawless performance in Tamil cinema is in the much-loved Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000).

An almost flawless film, the movie is entertaining and a clever Indianised adaptation of a classic novel. Ash, 26, looks and acts so well in this Tamil language re-telling of Sense and Sensibility. 

Taal 2 without the original cast? No thanks. No Aishwarya Rai. No Anil Kapoor. No Akshay Khanna and No AR Rehman? Oh no!

Earlier this week, news filtered through that Taal 2's sequel is in the works. A collective groan rippled through the net - esp by those who know of the industry. 

At age 81, once a prominent film maker (both as producer and director), Subhash Ghai (born January 24, 1945) hasn't had a hit film since...Taal (1999), so a late sequel is unsurprising, if not unwarranted. 

A big commercial success in India and overseas, after that, Ghai has been behind one mega flop after another, including, Yaadein (2001), Kisna (2005), Black & White (2008), the painful Yuvvraaj (2008), Kaanchi (2014), and Hero (2015), all were mostly flops or disasters at the box office. Some might say otherwise about Hero - but really, no.  

Ghai has largely stepped back from directing big theatrical films since then, regaling others on recent podcasts and interviews of his glory days in the 1980s and 90s.  The magical Midas touch, the showman tag he earned... all but gone, as he lives of the faded glory of being once the most powerful producer in India. Famously ill-tempered, who spoke in a rather unique manner with his broken English. It didn't matter because he was fluent with the idiom of Hindi cinema, particularly commercial cinema. Great music, great show-piece song and dance routines, aesthetics, and even choreographed violence. He knew what mattered; mothers, mother India, and music!  Throw in some sensuality, iconic characters with catch phrases and a pacing that glossed over any errors or logic. 

His more recent involvement has been as a writer/producer, notably with 36 Farmhouse (2022), which sort of succeeded on OTT (described as a "silver jubilee hit" in terms of viewership)... but really, who can tell? Those numbers are not open to public or accounting scrutiny! Anyone at an online platform can state a film or show got more views than Superbowl - how can one corroborate it?! The film was almost universally panned (apart from the performances of the underpaid Sanjay Mishra and Vijay Raaz!) but the PR insistence that it was a ratings bonanzas makes one... suspicious. 

Ghai always had a great sense of music. Now he's gone the SLB way! 

Ghai relying on the IP and leaning heavily on the memories of his last blockbuster, by announcing a sequel to Taal is... a shoulder shrug. Sure, its making a few headlines now, but as a director, Ghai has had a string of theatrical flops in the 2000s–2010s (roughly 4–6 consecutive underperformers in big releases from Yaadein onward, depending on how you count producer-only credits or smaller films). 

He has not had a major theatrical directorial success in over 25 years. Ghai remains active in the industry as a producer, mentor, and occasional writer, and he is still respected for his earlier blockbuster era (e.g., Karz, Hero, Ram Lakhan, Khalnayak, Pardes)... but he is so out of touch now, and his constant denial of his fiascos when the writing is on the wall... is pitiable. 

We celebrate the man for his vast achievements of days long gone. He needs to pass the mantle on, perhaps as mentor and let new gen write, direct (a physically taxing job and Ghai has been looking all of his eight decades). Even Rakesh Roshan hung up his boots - and he hasn't had a flop in eons! 

Ghai is stepping on the ignoble footsteps of Dev Anand (who famously had only flops the last four decades of his life, who made films that got progressively or should we state regressively worse)... that might all but eclipse his legacy.

Taal worked for the magic of its music, Aishwarya Rai's epic beauty, the casting, writing and direction of Subash Ghai. Did I mention music? But he was 54 then, is the octogenarian willing to take on this new gen? Not only the new gen of audiences but new gen cast and crew who are no longer willing to work unethically long hours for nominal pay?! We're about to find out!

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Rumours have it that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will attend her first Met Gala this year. Lord in heaven, let her not wear something insane... 
 

The fake AI pic of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan