Happy Saturday! I stayed up too late last night because I was all hyped up on social interaction, so today I am sleeping in.
I had such a great July the 3rd! In the morning I got iced coffee and ran errands (all curbside, but still so nice). Then in the afternoon I got to watch A Gentleman with y’all, which was great and you confirmed my theory that Sid was a virgin before Jackie. And then right after A Gentleman, I threw the dog in the car and drove over to my second oldest friend’s house and talked to her in the yard for like two hours while the dogs played. Then I rushed home and immediately started virtually watching Bulbbul with my first oldest friend. Finished that at like 10 o’clock at night and was so happy and contented, I knew I would be up late. So I wrote this post and scheduled it for early the next morning 🙂
First thing to talk about, share your stories of meeting up! If you want. I got together with my second oldest friend and her dog in her yard, my Mom separately met up with her two closest church friends in the pretty meditation garden behind the church last week, and my parents got to see my grandfather in an incredibly restrictive and supervised way at his retirement home two weeks ago.
Next thing to talk about, Saroj Khan! I want to say “share your favorite song of hers”, but you may not know for sure which song is hers, so I suppose more accurate is “share your favorite song that you KNOW is hers”.
And final thing to talk about, it’s the 4th of July! Quick, cast our founding fathers as Indian movie stars! John Adams is obviously Aamir Khan (smart, difficult, perfectionist, collaborates with his wife). Washington is the sexiest, so I say he is Shahrukh. Jefferson was a weird mix of good and bad, so I might say Salman, but that almost feels unfair to Salman. Maybe Nawazuddin? Hamilton, super smart and shining and strange and talented….I got nothing. Vicky Kaushal?
Follow up question I suppose, IS Washington the sexiest? Or am I wrong?

I love Chane Ke Khet Mein and I had no idea Saroj choreographed it till this morning when I saw a little clip Filmfare shared. Thanks to this video I also discovered that almost every dance I secretly love was made by Saroj e.g Kaate Nahi Kat Te from Mr. India, Dhak Dhak from Beta, Barso Re from Guru and Chane Ke Khet Mein.
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My favourite is Mujhe Maar Daalo in Geeta Mera Naam (Helen in bubbles! Super weird bdsm overtones!), but there isn’t a video of that available.
She’s listed as the sole choreographer for Awaargi and Gair Kanooni, and those incidentally have some of my favourites, so:
Man I wish Sridevi and Govinda had been in more movies together, they’re dynamite when they dance together.
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Oh – Amitabh is Washington, by both his height and his force of character. Shahrukh must be Lafayette, war hero, life long abolitionist and devoted family man..
Someone needs to make this into a quilt:
https://scontent-ort2-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/106985975_707526450089428_8367021533000927461_n.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_sid=825194&_nc_ohc=fHxPCxVc-gAAX_Y5jOn&_nc_ht=scontent-ort2-2.xx&oh=2e731838e883e79f8d1580df11e69115&oe=5F259F63
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Oh, that is amazing!
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 9:23 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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And how about a younger Naseeruddin Shah as Hamilton. With Sanjay as Aaron Burr.
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What about Om Puri as Aaron Burr? Equally unusual and intelligent feeling, but slower moving.
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 9:29 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I’ve been seeing friends outdoors only with masks but I’m putting a stop to even that for now. California’s numbers are skyrocketing so we’re hunkering down. Today we’re grilling steaks and hanging out in our yard, just me, my son and my husband.
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I just had to navigate around my neighbor who had set up camp at the foot of the fire escape with a tiny grill and folding chairs and his family. I completely forgot that cook outs are a thing on the 4th of July! Most years I have at least one invitation if not multiple and this year nothing.
On the other hand, someone was setting off fireworks literally in the courtyard of my building last night, so that part of the holiday I am still getting. The dog spent the night under my bed.
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 10:15 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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It’s been quieter for us this year! But tonight will be lit up because our neighbors always break out the big chrysanthemum fireworks and since we live in a hilly area we can climb high and see the sky lit up.
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The sun’s not even down yet and things are already heating up here. The dog is trying to crawl into bed with me, even though he knows that’s not allowed.
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 8:14 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I know most of us aren’t fans of Devdas, myself included, but Dola Re Dola kind of blew my mind the first time I watched it, so I gotta go with that.
I finally ventured out a few times within the last week after months of lockdown to go on a dinner date and get lunch with friends. I had my mask on most of the time and tried to socially distance when I could. NJ has been doing really well in containing the virus in comparison to the rest of the US, but I can get pretty anxious, and I’ve started coughing pretty much every time I’ve been out for a significant amount of time and it gets me all worried. I have a bunch of friends who live out of state, and that’s gonna be harder to get everyone together, even if we’re trying.
In happy but unrelated news! One of my best friends from college has been with her boyfriend since before I met her, about 8 and a half years at this point. And he FINALLY proposed a few days ago!! It’s been a long time coming, she’s been waiting nearly two years, we’ve been trying to figure out how he would do it, and he does it on a random Thursday night on the beach. Not surprising, considering who they are, but I’m so happy for them!
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That’s such nice news for your friend! Congrats!
You know what makes you appreciate Dola Re Dola? Watching Panga. It’s fine, nothing wrong with it, but it isn’t that immediately exciting and complicated and endlessly rewatchable feeling as Dola Re Dola.
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 2:00 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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My favourites are Dola Re Dola, Nimbooda and Chane ke Khet mein…. Chane ke khet mein has different charm to it….although if we see dance wise it’s not near the other too… but the charm is something else only….. The other too are unique and fab too in their own way!… Can’t rank honestly
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Chane Ka Khet Main is fun to me because the setting is so simple. Madhuri looks beautiful and is in a nice sari, but it is believable as a nice new sari for a friends’ wedding, not as shiny and stagey and spangly a Aish’s in Nimbooba, for instance. And everything is like that, it’s just in an open dance space, with a smaller number of back-up dancers, nothing to it beyond Madhuri dancing and the fun lyrics and gestures combined.
On Sat, Jul 4, 2020 at 3:58 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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True… Never looked at it that way though… And yes She looks stunning there
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`
Anupam Kher = Benjamin Franklin
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My favourite Saroj Khan dances are Dola re Dola and Maar Dala(ok,Devdas was a torture to sit through but the songs were a delight).I would lean towards Maar Dala because the crazy camera spinning of Dola Re doesn’t let me focus.Besides the internal rage knowing that Chandramukhi and Paro shouln’t meet,let alone dance.(“cReAtIvE LiBeRtY”).
How about going gender blind for the founding fathers when we have showstoppers like Shabana,Ratna,Neena,Tabu,Supriya and the list goes on?Shabana as W,Ratna as JA and Neena as J,with others playing meaty roles as either real or fictional characters of the era.
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OH! Ratna as JA means Naseeruddin plays AA!!!! But you probably already thought of that and that’s why you cast her. Still, I’m excited!
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So, the Dil Bechara trailer dropped, before watching have tissues nearby just FYI
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Oh, I don’t know if I can handle that!
On Mon, Jul 6, 2020 at 5:56 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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