Shriram Iyengar
Chief Feature Writer
Shriram Iyengar, who was with Cinestaan.com from 11 September 2015 to 19 March 2022, belongs to the not-so-rare species of neuroses cinemanesis. A hassled Mumbaikar, he spends his mornings doing chores while singing Gulzar-RD Burman numbers. He claims a particular expertise in the 'Filmy Maa' species, the experiences of which he documents extensively on his social media pages. His penchant for Govinda hits is as notorious as his delirium of being a Shakespearean actor. When drunk, he can be found spouting poetry and his unabated love for Kalki Koechlin on empty streets. If seen, please drop him off at the nearest railway station.
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Guess how angry the Shiv Sena is with Aamir Khan?
Angry enough to offer a Rs. 1 lakh award for slapping the star, apparently Angry enough to offer a Rs. 1 lakh award for slapping the star, apparently
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The violin and the camera: V.K. Murthy's journey into cinema
The man behind some of the most iconic images of Indian cinema, V.K. Murthy would never have made it to the film world were it not for the one instrument he is never known for — his violin. Here's how it helped one of India’s greatest cinematographers to step into the limelight
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Who is .... Ustad Sultan Khan?
The sarangi is one of the most complex instruments of Hindustani music. Unknown, forgotten, it languished on the sidelines until Ustad Sultan Khan breathed life into it with his magical solos. We remember the maestro
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7 films with spectacular background scores
The secret of successful films in Indian cinema lies in their music. The unrecognised background score is the hero of a film as it adds to the plot like a good seasoning. In some films, it even becomes a part of the story. Here are 7 films where the background score became the hero of the film.
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What makes Mani Ratnam's songs so special?
His style of filming songs transformed Ram Gopal Varma's opinion of the subject. Mani Ratnam is known for his visually stunning, ethereal picturisation of songs in hard-hitting realistic films. Here's a take on this idiosyncratic quality that separates the master filmmaker from the rest.
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Whatever happened to...the cast of ‘In Which Annie Gives it Those Ones'.
At the cusp of the 90s, an unknown television film named In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones ( was released by some film students of the Delhi University. Written by Arundhati Roy, it is a fine film that documented the student culture at the beginning of the decade. Here's a look at the trajectory of the familiar faces who were a part of that experimental film.
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Remembering Dastak: The knock on a forgotten door
Beautiful, bold, and talented, Rehana Sultan was marked as the heir to Nargis' throne. But despite her best efforts, she could never outdo the brilliance displayed in her debut. Here's a reminder of what she pulled off.
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The lost romance of Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jayen
In 1990, when Sooraj Barjatya came out with his 'Prem' v.1.0 in 'Maine Pyar Kiya', a quiet, forgotten actor named Amol Palekar was turning to direction. 'Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jayen' was a wonderful film that marked the colourful style and sarcasm of its director, Amol Palekar.
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Sajid Khan and his Humshakals
From the cacophonous 'Heyy Babby' to the disastrous 'Humshakals', Sajid Khan has had a mixed ride. His style of cinema veers from the improbable to the impossible. Yet, there are a few ideas that even the impossible Sajid Khan cannot conceive. Here are four plots that belong somewhere else but ended up in his clumsy hands.
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Phool Aur Kaante: A forgotten remake of The Godfather
Two decades ago, Kuku Kohli launched a lanky youngster named Ajay Devgn with his take on the Coppola classic. The superhit established Ajay Devgn as the face of a new generation of action stars, but there was a lot more to the film. Here's why you should revisit it.
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5 times Geeta Dutt knocked it out of the park
Few actresses were blessed with the kind of looks and vocals that Geeta Dutt was. Despite any formal training, the doe-eyed beauty was the only singer to hold her own against Lata Mangeshkar at her peak during the 50s. Here are five exhibits to prove it.
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Bolly-ception – 23 Times when Bollywood went meta-cool
If Christopher Nolan were to sit down to watch any of these movies, he'd be surprised at the level of meta-references present in them. From Hrishikesh Mukherjee to Sriram Raghavan, directors have doffed their hats to the film industry in seemingly unsubtle fashions. Here are some insider references that are part of the Bollywood lore.
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12 Bollywood movies about growing up
The sight of a confused Ranbir Kapoor in his superhero tees struggling to find the balance between the realities of life and his dreams made for an immensely watchable 'Wake Up Sid'. The theme of growing up has been one of Bollywood's favourite cinematic tropes. From a cherubic Rishi Kapoor in Bobby to the rebellious Aamir Khan in Rang De Basanti, Bollywood has seen some iconic portrayals of childish men and grown up boys. Here are 12 iconic films that define this theme.
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The 10 best jazz tracks in Hindi cinema
Evocative, seductive, and danceable, jazz music has all the elements that make a great Bollywood number. Yet, there are very few music directors who have been able to successfully fuse the diverse elements of jazz and Bollywood. Here are a few eternal tunes that are the perfect marriage of these stylish musical genres.
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Ghayal - 25 years later
As Sunny Deol prepares to release the sequel, 'Ghayal' remains one of the most memorable films of the 90s decade. It launched Rajkumar Santoshi and placed Sunny Deol in the pantheon of action stars. A take on the reason why the film remains immensely watchable even today.
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10 lines no filmi maa can do without
The mother of all character tropes in Bollywood is 'Maa'. The ever present north of the hero's moral compass, the maas of Bollywood have delivered some eternal lines that will live as long as Indian films exist. Heroes might become villains and villains might stop being cheesy, but the maa of Bollywood will never go bad, because 'maa to maa hoti hai na'.