Filmi Ladies

Just a catch-up episode where we discuss movies and tv shows we are watching or plan to watch. Beth discusses Alpha and Single Salma, and Pitu discusses Disclosure Day and America's Sweethearts. What are you guys watching? Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/filmi-ladies/id1642425062 @...

Love and cherry blossoms are in the air! Our actors Sadhana, Asha Parekh, and Joy Mukherjee x2 fall in love, hijinks, and misadventures in Love in Simla (1960) and Love in Tokyo (1966). Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/filmi-ladies/id1642425062 @filmiladies on Instagram Pitu is @pitusul...

It's a new series, fully embracing the RETRO LADIES we are at heart! (Some of these people should have been in our superstars series the first time through, and we beg their forgiveness.)Where better to start than Meena Kumari, one of the great queens of all time? We look at Azaad (1955), Sharada (1957), Aarti (1962), and—finally—Pakeezah (1972), with the latter two forming the bulk of our dis...

To mark our 200th—yes TWO HUNDREDTH—episode, we chose a film that celebrates cinematic history. Harishchandrachi Factory is a Marathi film about the making of the very first feature film in India, and it's a peculiarly light-hearted approach to an event with massive consequences. Dadasaheb Phalke is portrayed as a less crabby Willy Wonka, surrounded by people who mostly say yes, easily, to all...

So much to say about Maa Behen! Madhuri, Triptii, and Dharna portray wily, crafty, endearing, complicated, entrapped, strong, powerful, confusing ladies in this character study of what it means to be a woman in our world. This episode is spoiler-free until we issue a warning at 24 minutes in! Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcast...

If "Feroz Khan"="more is more," then the theme of today's episode is More More Is More. How perfectly filmi! We needed to escape the nonsense and disappointment of the modern world, so we traveled back to a mod Mumtaz in Apradh (1972) and shiny Sanjay Dutt in Yalgaar (1992), all in the very good company of the always macho, always winkingly fun Feroz Khan. For more FK, chec...

Pitu said "Let's watch Saif's new film!!" and Beth said "OK!" before realizing what it was about, and then she wanted to scream into the abyss. Overall we found this a rough watch - but only because it's far too real. This episode starts with a spoiler-free general discussion, and we tell you when we're getting into spoiler territory later on. Subscribe to Filmi...

Affable, energetic, talented, excellent hip swiveler and very versatile Varun Dhawan takes center stage in this episode. We discuss Badlapur, Dishoom, October and Street Dancer 3. For more VD discussion, here are links to the Alia and Bhediya episodes. https://youtu.be/aGoFNXxQm3o and https://youtu.be/JYyRDXVWWPw What are your favorite Varun films? Do we need to watch Baby John or Border 2? (Pleas...

A doctor and a nurse having a romantic moment at the hospital, drinking coffee in the moonlight...this romantic drama from 1960 ticks a lot of boxes (and we literally keep count). Meena Kumari, Nadira, and Raaj Kumar star. Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/filmi-ladies/id1642425062 @film...

This movie is everything the title promises plus so much more! Starring half of the 1980 film industry and putting most of them on a speeding death trap is a recipe for a great time. We discuss what makes this work so well (bravo to editors R. P. Bapat, S. B. Mane, and Pran Mehra), its songs, and what various players bring to their roles. Watch The Burning Train in youtube with English subtitles h...

We watched Toaster, the new release on Netflix with Rajkummar Rao, Sanya Malhotra, Archana Puran Singh, Abhishek Banerjee, and others in a great cast stuck a misfiring machine that somehow never really goes ding and pops out a well-done, crunchy treat. And if you _that_ was a belabored point, just wait til you watch the film. (Or don't.) What do you wish for Rajkummar Rao's career? Because...

Happy Unishe April to all who celebrate! We discuss this much-loved Rituparno Ghosh film about a mother daughter duo (Aparna Sen and Debashree Roy) who have a relationship that is anything but "shodhoran" (ordinary). Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/filmi-ladies/id1642425062 @...

In our opinion, Maneesh Sharma's Fan (2016) is a deeply unsettling work of experimentation, creativity, and importance. Join us for a long chat about why it's so weird and yet so great, what it means that Shah Rukh made this artistic commitment and statement, plus speculation on why audiences didn't seem to connect with it the way the makers hoped. Read Beth's original take on the...

One more before this series is a wrap: ALIA! We love her. But what's her special sauce? To answer this, we looked at Highway (2014), Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (2014), Shaandaar (2015), Dear Zindagi (2016), and Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017). We also briefly touch on Gangubai, Gully Boy, and Udta Punjab. If you want more Alia, check out our episodes on Darlings, Rocky aur Rani, Brahmastra, Udta P...

Sometimes you just need to get stuck in the 90s. We watched Raja Babu (1994) and Haseena Maan Jayegi (1999) and wonder whether this epic partnership is worthy of so much (possibly mostly nostalgic) love and discuss what else we wish Govinda would get the chance to do now. Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.ap...

Bindu is the last and most wicked of our trio of vamps! If Helen is glamorous and amoral, and Aruna Irani is desi and moral, Bindu is scheming and immoral. We explore two of her films: Hawas (1974) and Do Raaste (1969) that resulted in Filmfare nominations for her. We also discuss her amazing dance numbers! A great Bindu playlist includes Hangama Ho Gaya: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xG5J8YJWW-...

No mere Merchant and Ivory for us: we're going much further afield with Siddhartha (1972), based on the Herman Hesse novel and directed by American Conrad Rooks, and Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), directed and written by Brits Stephen Frears and Hanif Kureishi. These films have more in common than we thought, but one of them is much less irritating than the other. Either way, these are films...

What's at the end of the rainbow? This episode! We've reached the last stop in our series exploring colors in film with the undisputed fanciest color of them all. Films under discussion: royals and wealth and class with Eklavya (2007) and Bappi-da + Rekha + jewelry + hidden treasure = Locket (1986). What is your most iconic gold moment in Hindi cinema? Ours is actually from a film we'v...

Does her gobsmacking smile make her a superstar? Maybe - it totally works on us. Films discussed: Chandni Chowk to China, Cocktail, Race 2, and Finding Fanny, with mini-detours to Piku and Om Shanti Om as we (spoiler, but come on) list our top 5 Deepika films. Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/p...

One of the filmiest ladies of them all! The great Elizabeth Taylor plays the great Cleopatra in this absolutely spectacular epic film. Both co-hosts are absolutely bedazzled by everything, so join us for a gushing discussion. Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/7Ib9C1X5ObvN18u9WR0TK9 or Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/filmi-ladies/id1642425062 @f...

Happy (belated) Valentine's and Galentine's Day to all! To celebrate this holiday of pyar, ishq, aur mohabbat, we each picked a movie with the word 'dil' in the title. Pitu picked Dil Deke Dekho (1959) and Beth picked Dilruba (1950). There's also a little quiz! Completely unrelated: Beth's friend and an absolute connoisseur of the more fringe aspects of Hindi cinema Aseem C...

Both Beth and Pitu adore the incredibly talented Madhabi Mukherjee. Even if she had only worked in Satyajit Ray projects, hers would still be a phenomenal filmography but she is a prolific Bengali actress apart from her Ray films. In this episode we discuss Charulata, Biraj Bou, Kapurush, Dibratrirkabya and Garh Nasimpur. We also briefly mention Mahanagar. Subscribe to Filmi Ladies on Spotify http...

Kabhi Kabhie contains many, many elements familiar in the Yash Chopra Universe, but how well does he combine them here? We actually disagree a bit about how effective this film is, but an initially unimpressed Beth is overall convinced by PItu's more positive interpretations, and we agree the film has some interesting ideas at its core. Plus amazing music, costumes, and set design! What did yo...

Love her or hate her, there was a time when you couldn't ignore her. We're talking about Kangana Ranaut—probably the most polarizing person in our superstars series. Actually, we aren't even sure she is a superstar! We have spoken about Queen in a prior episode (https://youtu.be/uKrUDONBS2A?si=Mnl2Jhib4dHixyH3), but in this one we discuss Raaz 2, Fashion, Tanu Weds Manu 2, Rangoon, and...

We've reached the SHINY part of our rainbow series: silver! In Indian movies, it can be futuristic (like the tech of Enthiran), disco (like Shaan), or earthy (like Urmila's jewelry in Chamma Chamma Baaje Re), and it can evoke elegance and romance like no other. Silver always has something to say. If you want more time with Enthiran or Love Story 2050, check out Beth's essays. https://w...