Columnists

Harneet Singh

Senior Editor

Harneet Singh, Senior Editor (Films), is fully filmi. She has imaginary conversations with Guru Dutt, Vijay Anand and Hrishikesh Mukherjee, still gets breathless when she watches Guide, or, Pyasa or, Anand; and believes the soundtrack of her life is sung by Geeta Dutt. Her love affair with cinema started at the age of three when she saw Mithun Chakraborty in Disco Dancer, at Prabhat Talkies, in Mirzapur. Singh, a senior assistant editor, won the Ramnath Goenka award for excellence in journalism, in 2009. She also likes the poems of Rumi, Ghalib, Gulzar and Neruda, loves watching cricket and is especially fond of Mahendra Singh Dhoni whom she lovingly addresses as 'MahiMan'. Her idea of happiness includes rain, thunderstorms, mountains and lots of coffee. Singh has been writing on films and film stars for this newspaper for over a decade. Cut!

Eye 2015

There’s nothing I do consciously to make all my films similar: Imtiaz Ali on ‘Tamasha’

Mon, Oct 05, 2015

Imtiaz Ali on his films, love, marriage and the 'Tamasha' that marks them all

Eye 2015

Labours of Love

Sun, Sep 27, 2015

Bimal Roy’s 1963 classic Bandini is about a woman caught between difficult choices.

Meghna Gulzar’s ‘Talvar’: Waiting to Exhale

Fri, Sep 25, 2015

Received warmly at the Toronto film Festival, Meghna Gulzar’s Talvar now faces its test in India.

How to lose friends and alienate people, the Kangana Ranaut way

Fri, Sep 11, 2015

To Kangana Ranaut - Why do Katti with your contemporaries when there is more fun in Batti?

Eye 2015

Deconstructing the classic ‘Bombay Noir’: Raj Khosla’s ‘CID’

Sun, Aug 30, 2015

CID is remembered not for its simplistic plot but as the film that launched Waheeda Rahman.

Eye 2015

Writing, for me, is like doing Yoga: Twinkle Khanna

Mon, Aug 24, 2015

Twinkle Khanna on writing a book, hating acting and being competitive over jokes at parties.

Book Review – Gaata Rahe Mera Dil: 50 Classic Hindi Film Songs

Sat, Aug 22, 2015

A book that tells the story behind some of Bollywood’s most popular film songs.

Eye

Deconstruting Rajesh Khanna’s ‘Daag: A Poem Of Love’

Sun, Aug 16, 2015

Yash Chopra’s 'Daag: A Poem of Love' is a tale of star-crossed lovers Sunil (Rajesh Khanna) and Sonia (Sharmila Tagore), who encounter all kinds of trials, obstacles and separations on their way to happily ever-after.

First Take: Shah Rukh Khan and the art of navigating social media

Fri, Aug 14, 2015

While Shah Rukh Khan might not have a release in over a year, SRK has been hard at work — shooting three films simultaneously.

Eye 2015

I don’t care for an image: Radhika Apte on finding her feet in Bollywood and more

Sun, Aug 09, 2015

Actor Radhika Apte on finding her feet in Bollywood, keeping her personal and professional lives separate and working with Rajinikanth

Priyanka Chopra, no longer just desi girl

Fri, Aug 07, 2015

Priyanka Chopra charms the American press with her star persona, fashion quotient and her gift of the gab.

Eye 2015

I’ve struggled for over 15 years, hope is what saw me through: Nawazuddin Siddiqui

Mon, Aug 03, 2015

Nawazuddin Siddiqui on his toughest role so far, learning to live with success and failure and why he hates the characters he plays.

Stars should be social media perfect else face the wrath like Salman Khan, Anushka Sharma

Fri, Jul 31, 2015

A certain kind of snobbery follows a Bollywood star who dares to share an opinion on matters unrelated to films.

Kareena Kapoor fans write open letter, express disappointment over her choice of films

Fri, Jul 24, 2015

Saying yes to films is tough. Saying no is even tougher.

‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ director Kabir Khan: I needed Salman Khan’s superstardom to discuss the Hindu-Muslim issue

Fri, Jul 24, 2015

In an exclusive conversation with Indian Express, 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' director Kabir Khan says Salman Khan internalised Bajrangi totally and brought his life'’s craft to it.

Eye 2015

Let Me Make You Mine

Sun, Jul 19, 2015

Mr and Mrs 55 is a great ride till the time the film doesn’t go all sanskari. Alvi’s dialogues are the star of the narrative.

Bollywood and the side effects of a break up

Fri, Jul 17, 2015

"Let’s not turn Shahid’s wedding into a soap opera. He’s beginning a new life and I wish him a lifetime of happiness,” is Kareena’s standard reply whenever asked about her ex boyfriend.

SRK, Salman Khan, Deepika, Shahid, Ranveer: Status update please

Fri, Jul 10, 2015

Some good-natured hacking to get into the cell phones of the newsmakers so far, to know their current status updates.

Eye 2015

The Palace of Illusions: From Madhubala’s luminescence to Lata Mangeshkar’s haunting voice

Sun, Jul 05, 2015

From Madhubala’s luminescence to Lata Mangeshkar’s haunting voice, Mahal changed many a destiny.

I wanted my first film to be special: ‘Piku’ producer Sneha Rajani

Sat, Jun 20, 2015

The success of Piku brings to the limelight its female producer, Sneha Rajani. She talks about her foray into films from TV, and the journey of Piku.

Hamari Adhuri Kahani is special as I went into it with lightness: Vidya Balan

Wed, Jun 10, 2015

Vidya Balan speaks about feeling insecure, dealing with the lows, and reclaiming the self after marriage.

Eye 2015

No Love Like Dilip Kumar’s in ‘Devdas’

Sun, May 31, 2015

In Bimal Roy’s Devdas, Dilip Kumar plays the doomed lover with great sensitivity.

Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Tanu Weds Manu Returns’ is about the girls, Manu is a passive hero

Tue, May 26, 2015

Tanu and Datto could be fighting for a teddy bear and it would not have made a difference. Manu is a passive hero.

Eye

Deepika Padukone’s mission statement these days: Live, Laugh, Love

Sun, May 24, 2015

Deepika Padukone on finding herself, being Number 1, dealing with depression and being Piku.

#SalmanVerdict

Being ‘Salman Khan’: Not an easy man to know, even more difficult to understand

Thu, May 07, 2015

Salman Khan is not an easy man to know and he’s even more difficult to understand. All guide books on how to handle a Superstar fail when you are interacting with him.