Bamboo Shoots: The star-spangled manner

Here’s a profile I did of the band Bamboo Shoots as it ran in India Abroad’s July 10, 2009 issue.   They’re a homegrown Jersey-based rock band, but with a variety of Indian influences – everything from classical to filmi music – in their pasts. Avir Mitra, Karl Sukhia and Shiv Puri were gathered, one […]

Sunset Bollywood

The Sundance Channel ran the 2005 documentary Sunset Bollywood this evening. Just under an hour, it tells of the rapid success and almost equally prompt descent back to earth of Rahul Roy, Kumar Gaurav and Bhagyashree after their initial hits, and the halting attempts made by all to get back on top. In between interviews […]

Waking Up to B’wood at the IFC Channel

Leading up to their August mini-series Bollywood Hero with Chris Kattan and Neha Dupia, the IFC Channel started a monthlong 12 weeklong Sunday morning screening of a recent Hindi movie, at 10am, called Wake Up to Bollywood. The debut flic on July 5th was Johnny Gaddar, to be followed by Bheja Fry, The Blue Umbrella, […]

New York

Question:   When is New York not New York? Answer: When it’s Philadelphia, or Jersey City, or Toronto, or anywhere else. It rankles when a film is supposed to be set in NYC, but isn’t actually shot here.   Last night, as I watched Kabir Khan’s New York and its car chases and street scenes, […]

YRF’s New York: Careful, people

I was born here, grew up here, went to college  and got my first tastes of independent life  below 23rd Street (admission to dance clubs on Tuesday nights for less than $10!) and above Central Park (ah, the luxury of cutting class to go to some exhibit at the Met or the Cloisters).   This […]