India's theatre practitioners rue the gradual deterioration of the country's premiere drama institute and the shrinking space afforded to institutes of culture in general, ever since the BJP government came to power in 2014.
The composer’s transcultural experiments were always intense and persuasive
“The Brahma-rakshasa needs more lines!” “The chorus can’t drown out the High Priest!” “The duet works, now shorten the moonlight aria!” For six years, between 2003 and 2009, enigmatic communications like these would fly across Mumbai by phone, by fax, and by courier between Vanraj Bhatia’s studio and mine. During those years, I worked closely with the legendary composer and music director on an opera, Agni Varsha (‘The Fire and the Rain’), based on Girish Karnad’s play, which the playwright had translated into English from his original Kannada. While I developed the libretto, Vanraj composed the music. In the process, I spent many delightful and sometimes exasperating hours with the maestro, listening as he played passages from our evolving work on the piano, imbibing a series of masterclasses on tempo, orchestration, polyphony, and the seemingly impossible project of creating
Renuka Shahane on being a director, her co-stars and more
by Vedanshi Pathak | April 27, 2021, 21:57 IST
My parents used to watch Surabhi and loved it. What they liked most was the ever-smiling anchor Renuka Shahane, who together with Siddharth Kak regaled the viewers for 10 years. The actress made her mark in films with Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994) playing Madhuri Dixit’s elder sister. Though strangely, she never capitalised on that success. She married Ashutosh Rana in 2001 and afterwards got busy with her married life. Her sons Shauryaman and Satyendraand kept her busy. She did come on and off in TV serials but didn’t pursue acting actively. Renuka was seeking different horizons and made her debut in direction with Marathi film Rita (2009). Now a decade later, she has made her directorial debut in Hindi cinema with Tribhanga. She has some fond memories of working with Madhuri Dixit Nene, Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan in the past and also of directing Tribhanga. She also sp
A joyride to storytelling
Published : Jan 19, 2021, 8:12 pm IST
Updated : Jan 19, 2021, 8:12 pm IST
Renuka Shahane is currently directing a film starring Kajol, called Tribhanga Tedhi Medhi Crazy
Renuka Shahane
Renuka Shahane, who brightened up homes with her dazzling smile co-hosting the cultural magazine TV show
Surabhi from 1990 with Siddhart Kak, was set to grow even more famous in 1994 after being cast as Madhuri Dixit’s elder sister in the blockbuster
Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. Apparently, the film brought her so many followers, when she got married to Ashutosh Rana over nineteen years ago, her posters were exhibited all over to his hometown, gesturing an open arm welcome to their real ‘bhabhi’ (older sister-in-law).