Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2021 i STARDUST

“I was running Creative Unit which was a very successful advertising agency of its time. Shobhaa (De) was working for me as a copywriter. So I told her that we would start this out-of-the-box film magazine that would revolutionize film journalism because film magazines like Filmfare, Picture Post and Star ‘N’ Style at that point were deadly boring. For instance, they would have on their covers Nanda, Waheeda Rehman, Asha Parekh making sandcastles at Juhu. So I wanted to start something that was totally different and so for the first issue I got the cover story from Anju Mahendru’s mother and the cover headline was: Is Rajesh Khanna secretly married to Anju Mahendru? And this was done with Rajesh Khanna knowing what we were doing because he loved the publicity…

Why Did Shah Rukh Khan Go Missing From the Silver Screen For Two Years? He’s the undisputed king of Bollywood and so when SRK goes ‘MIA’ (missing in action) on screen for two years, Sumita Chakraborty wonders why? Whenever you think of power-packed ardent love peppered with filmi junoon and tamasha …you think of… that’s right - the King of romance – the Badshah of Tinsel Town - Shah Rukh Khan. This man has indeed redefined love stories in the celluloid space like never before. Right? Who can forget the amazingly charming Raj from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge who travelled half the world to find his beloved Simran? Or his droolworthy romantic avatar in Dil Toh Pagal Hain, Kuch Kuch Hota Hain and so many other films. Indeed, Shah Rukh…

“The heart-warming response I received even though Dil Bechara was released online was just overwhelming.”– Mukesh Chhabra The year 2020 will always be looked at as the year of the pandemic. It’s the year that the entire human race had to stay socially distanced and confined in their homes in the fear of an unknown virus that could not be seen nor heard. With its numerous drawbacks also came numerous opportunities. The opportunity to spend more time with your family, to take as many holidays at one stretch which was our lifelong dream, the opportunity to reflect and ponder over our lives and so many others. One such opportunity that we all witnessed as a film fraternity was the rise in viewership on OTT platforms. Since multiplexes were shut and…

Dear Readers Roll the drums… it’s celebration time. The iconic Stardust magazine celebrates 50 Glorious Years. Pioneered by Mr Nari Hira in 1971, Stardust magazine shocked, scandalised and thrilled the readers from the time of its inception. It was everything a film magazine of those times was not supposed to be…flippant, irreverent and fun! Its glossy pages had fabulous photographs of the stars and exclusive interviews. Stardust was bold and daring, and spilt the beans on juicy ‘BTS’ scandals, affairs and gossip of the film industry. It made boring trade sheet reporting passe, so no wonder, it became the biggest and the best film magazine of its time and shot past the competitors. 2021, and Stardust remains the number one magazine. As the Editor of this iconic magazine, I’d like…

“Stardust is not just a magazine, it also gave birth to a lot of creativity, people and milestones.”- Anupam Kher He is truly iconic and a brilliant actor. Sumita Chakraborty caught up with one of India’s best actors Anupam Kher who has had a very interesting relationship with Stardust which spans 36 years and more. Here, he talks about his bond with Stardust and its numerous interesting twists and turns. When was the first time you got to know about Stardust magazine? I used to read it long time back in summer school and then I came to Bombay. Like any other juicy information that your mind wanders to find out about, Stardust too was one of them. It was glamorous and it had some great pictures and very good…

“When Star Bestsellers started – that’s when I met Anurag Kashyap, Anurag Basu, Raju Hirani, Imtiaz Ali and so many talented people, because we were all starting out at that time.”– Shailja Kejriwal. She’s fanatically passionate about her work and eats, drinks and lives it at all times. Meet the super talented Shailja Kejriwal who talks to Sumita Chakraborty, Chief Creative Officer - Zee Special Projects, who talks about her foray into television, working with Raju Hirani, Anurag Kashyap, Imtiaz Ali and so many more talented people, her film Madaari, lessons Irrfan Khan taught her and much more… Hi Shailja, let me start with: Since Stardust is celebrating 50 glorious years, let me ask you if you have any memories or association with this iconic magazine? I remember growing up…

“I might be a Jazz person at heart, but I’m a through and through lover of good and meaningful music in general.”– Jeanne Merchant Jeanne Merchant is a sheer delight to talk to. A music whiz, she’s not just ace music director Salim Merchant’s wife, she’s also an exceptional singer and musician. Read on as she talks about music, films, being the wife of Bollywood’s busiest music director and more. Jeanne, you are a singer, pianist, vocal coach since the last 10 years and of course, the other half of music maestro Salim Merchant, how has the journey been? It’s honestly been an amazing journey on so many levels. I didn’t realise then how being a musician could be more than just a professional career choice. Neither did I ever…

For all you romantic dudes who are waiting with bated breath about some ‘engaging’ news on the Katrina Kaif – Vicky Kaushal front, here’s a little gem though it was a trifle difficult to get it. Moreso, since our dear Kat believes in romancing only behind the iron curtain (literally), so not even a meow leaks out. But hey, we are masters at digging out juicy affairs, so a bit of snooping around got us this li’l natter. Supposedly for the New Year, Katrina along with her sister Isabel and Vicky along with his faithful younger bro Sunny met up at a romantic villa in Alibaug for some peace ‘n’ quiet and perhaps, a bit of TLC. Well, nothing much is known about this closed-door weekend meeting. …Perhaps they were…

Multi-talented tarot reader Jyoti Bajaj looks into her magical cards and gives the 2021 predictions of stars. Enjoy! Email: jbajab99@gmail.com Katrina Kaif Zodiac: Cancer General: It is the year of healing and taking control of your life. You will be changing your social circle by letting go of some people and taking care of any joint finances. Health: Need to take care of your chest area and any respiratory problems. Love: I see a lot of misunderstandings in your love life, though this is the year you could finally commit to someone in the last quarter of the year. Sanjay Dutt Zodiac: Leo General: Your social and work life will change in a big way. You will, however, need to let go of a lot of toxic people this year.…

“Nachaniya is based on true incidents!”-Sujoy Mukerji There’s a buzz about Sujoy Mukerji’s web film Nachaniya which is being aired on Tamasha app this month itself. It is a pulsating story of a woman who decides to avenge societal abuse in the path of her career. We ask Sujoy Mukerji who has written and directed the film, what excited him about making Nachaniya? Sujoy avers, “It is based on true incidents that have happened in Bihar and UP which I have read in the papers. I can’t reveal more about the story as everyone has to watch Nachaniya on Tamasha app.” So what’s next for Sujoy? “I am excited about starting my web series Gutka King, another film Farz Ke Aage Kuch Nahin and a Horror film.” Well, what we…