Bollywood

An Israeli director sparks outrage in India over a film about Hindu persecution

4:52pm November 30, 2022

by Lauren Frayer

Controversy has erupted at one of India's top film festivals over the screening of a movie with Hindu nationalist themes. Were the jury head's comments an artistic critique or political commentary?

The lobby of the new multiplex movie theater before afternoon screenings in Srinagar, on Oct. 1.

Cinemas have reopened in Kashmir after 2 decades — but few moviegoers are showing up

7:02am October 30, 2022

by Raksha Kumar

The cinemas, shut down after threats from separatist militants, reopened last month. Moviegoers pass through an Indian police checkpoint and are frisked at the theater entrance for bombs and weapons.

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Indian musician and composer Shivkumar Sharman playing a concert in Pune, India, in 2009. Sharma died Tuesday at age 84.

Celebrated Indian musician and composer Shivkumar Sharma has died at age 84

11:19am May 10, 2022

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Reverentially known as Pandit ("teacher"), Shivkumar Sharma took the hammered dulcimer from humble folk instrument to classical concert stages around the world. He died Tuesday in Mumbai.

The front gate of Mumbai's century-old Central Plaza cinema. The theater closed last spring.

India's Single-Screen Cinemas Were Struggling Before COVID-19. Now They're Dying Out

5:01am July 17, 2021

by Sushmita Pathak

Before multiplex cinemas, India had tens of thousands of single-screen movie houses. But the way Indians watch movies has changed, and the pandemic forced many old cinemas to shut their doors forever.

World News

#MeToo Movement Gathers Force In India

6:32pm October 16, 2018

A year after sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein catapulted #MeToo into a national movement in the U.S., women in India are using Facebook and Twitter to tell their stories.

Indian Bollywood actor Sridevi gestures during a news conference at the Karanataka Gold Festval in Bangalore, in 2006.

India Pays Final Respects To Bollywood Superstar Sridevi

7:16am February 28, 2018

by Scott Neuman

Tamil Nadu-born Sridevi Kapoor was considered one of India's first female film superstars, with a career spanning five decades. She died over the weekend at age 54.

This selfie is in the toilet: Actor Akshay Kumar poses with the object of his bride's affection in the new movie Toilet: A Love Story.

A Toilet Is The Star Of India's Hit Rom-Com

3:10pm September 07, 2017

by Kamala Thiagarajan

She loves him. He loves her. But she loves indoor toilets even more. And he is not a fan. Can they find happiness? The plot of Toilet: A Love Story addresses a very real issue in rural India.

Sonata Director Aparna Sen is a veteran of the small, artistic cinema. She says while mainstream films often "commodify" women, "the good news is that many different films are now being made about women" and by women who are starting their own productio

Feminist Films Push Boundaries In India

6:26pm June 03, 2017

by Julie McCarthy

Bollywood tends to portray women as sex objects or subservient sidekicks to male leads. But a few female directors of independent films have begun depicting women with complex or unconventional lives.

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Actor Aamir Khan plays former wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat, training his on-screen daughters in the art of wrestling, in the film Dangal.

World News

Female Wrestlers Are Unlikely Heroines Of Bollywood's Biggest Smash

3:47pm January 13, 2017

by Julie McCarthy

Disney and Bollywood teamed up to make the movie 'Dangal,' based on a real-life wrestling success story.

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Bollywood actors Sooraj Pancholi (left) and Athiya Shetty perform during a promotional event in Mumbai for the film Hero.

#LongReads: Blame It On Bollywood

5:23am April 02, 2016

by Nurith Aizenman

What happened when teens in a conservative Muslim neighborhood in Kolkata began watching lush, romantic Bollywood films.