Hindi
Nondescript films got much coveted play time
It is unimaginable. The week had 10 new Indian films releasing along with two foreign films. Yet, it was not the time for the exhibitors to rejoice. These 10 films included a variety from thriller to horror adapted from Hollywood, to a kid’s film.
No major film is released during the Muslim holy month of Ramzan. Once upon a time, these film lovers made a major film going population. However, the things have changed since the advent of multiplexes.
Yet, this year, the fasting month also coincides with the Champions Trophy 2017 being played in UK where the eight major cricket playing nations are participating. And, cricket has long replaced films as the most popular medium of entertainment.
In this event, small, nondescript films got their much coveted play time at the cinema halls which, otherwise, is rationed out to them as gap fillers during shows when the footfall is scarce.
*To start with, A Death In The Gunj boasted of a familiar star cast. It starred Om Puri, Tanuja along with Ranvir Shorey, Tillotomma Shome, Kalki Koechlin alongwith lesser known but talented names such as Gulshan Devaiyah and Vikrant Massey. The film was directed by yet another well-known name, Konkona Sensharma. What failed the film was its sadistic idea for a story and poor promotion. There was no awareness about the film. As a result, the film failed to attract footfalls.
*The other noticeable film was Dear Maya if only for it being a comeback film for the yesteryear star, Manisha Koirala. It was a feeble attempt, concentrating at the limited histrionics of Koirala again, with nil promotion. The result was disastrous.
*The animation film, Hanuman Da’ Damdaar was one more film trying to cash in on the childhood exploits of Hanuman (the other popular character being childhood stories of Ganesh). Here, Hanuman was made to mouth today slangs through the voice of Salman Khan. The film also boasted of voices of Raveena Tandon, Javed Akhtar, Makrand Deshpande and Kunal Khemu. This kind of stuff works in Hollywood. Here, in India, it has yet to work. The film was lost in the crowd.
*The other releases were Sweetiee Weds NRI, Dobaara- See Your Evil (which boasted of a Hollywood film adaptation), Bachche Kachche Sachche), Lakme, Little Sholay, Mirror Game-Ab Khel Shuru, Black Future, etc were all losers.
*Sachin: A Billion Dreams, coming as it did in the footsteps of another cricketer biopic, M K Dhoni: An Untold Story, failed to make a mark. It turned out to be just a dull documentary. The film depicted Sachin, the cricketing legend, as a man full of self-pity, whining about his struggles rather than success. The film failed to be an example for the new generation
The film, which collected Rs. 23.4 crore for first three days, managed to finish its first week with just another 10 crore accounting for its first week total of Rs. 33.5 crore. . The film’s second weekend is not encouraging.
*Hallf Girlfriend does little to improve its lot as the film manages to add Rs. 8.1 crore in its second week to take its two week total to Rs. 52.9 crore. The film still stands to lose on Indian domestic market.
*Hindi Medium goes on to become a mini budget major hit. The film matched its first week collections by almost 80% which is a rare feat. The film collected 19.1 crore in its second week, the film took its two week total to Rs. 42.6 crore.
*Bahubali 2: The Conclusion (Hindi-Dubbed) is not yet fading away. The film added Rs. 12.2 crore in its fifth week to take its five week total to Rs. 492.1 crore.
Hindi
Remembering Gyan Sahay, the lens behind film, television and advertising
From a puppet rabbit selling poppadums to Hindi cinema, he framed it all.
MUMBAI: There are careers, and then there are canvases. Gyan Sahay, the veteran cinematographer, director, and producer who passed away on 10 March 2026 in Mumbai, had one of the latter. Over several decades in the Indian film and television industry, he turned lenses, lights, and the occasional puppet rabbit into something approaching art.
A graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) in Pune, Sahay built his reputation as a director of photography across a career that stretched from the early 1970s all the way to the digital age. He was the kind of craftsman who understood that a well-composed shot is not merely a technical achievement but a quiet act of storytelling.
For most Indians of a certain age, however, Sahay will forever be the man behind the rabbit. His direction of the iconic long-running television commercial for Lijjat Papad, featuring its now-legendary puppet bunny, gave the country one of its most cheerfully persistent advertising images. It was the sort of work that sneaks into the national subconscious and takes up permanent residence.
His big-screen credits as cinematographer include Anokhi Pehchan (1972), Pagli (1974), Pas de Deux (1981), and Hum Farishte Nahin (1988). In 1999, he stepped behind a different kind of camera altogether, making his directorial debut with Sar Ankhon Par, a drama that featured Vikas Bhalla and Shruti Ulfat, with a cameo by Shah Rukh Khan for good measure.
On television, Sahay was particularly prized for his command of multi-camera production setups, a skill that made him a go-to technician for large-scale shows and reality programmes. In an industry that has never been especially patient with complexity, he was the calm hand on the rig.
In later life, Sahay turned teacher. He participated regularly in masterclasses and Digi-Talks, often hosted by organisations such as Bharatiya Chitra Sadhna, sharing hard-won wisdom on cinematography, the comedy of timing in a shot, and the sweeping changes brought by the shift from celluloid to digital. He was also said to have been involved in a project concerning a biographical film on Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy.
Tributes from the film industry poured in following the news of his passing, with colleagues remembering him as a senior cameraman who served as a rare bridge between two entirely different eras of Indian cinema. That is, perhaps, the finest thing one can say of any craftsman: he kept up, and he brought others along with him.
