Best Of Best

Mrinal Sen, Filmmaker

Best 5 directors? Not five, I can tell you about three, just three. As I drop names, you are free to count them. Just three:

• Satyajit Ray
• Satyajit Ray
• Satyajit Ray.

Bejoy Nambiar, Writer-Filmmaker

Movies I love? Movies I can watch any number of times. Movies that made me want to pursue this medium. Movies that connected with me and spoke to me in so many different ways. Still everytime I visit them again they still find something new to say.

• Iruvar
• Thoovana Thumbikal
• Katha
• Salaam Bombay
• Parinda
• Satya
• Sadma
• Katrodu Thamizh
• Sukrutham
• Raakh

Namrata Rao, Editor

• Vanaprastham edited by Sreekar Prasad is very well crafted film about a Kathakali dancer
• Dil Chahta Hai broke a lot of rules in technique and craft.
• Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro was a film that came together wonderfully on the editing table
• Ardh Satya: Many consider Parinda to be Renu Saluja’s best but I find Ardh Satya and Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro as the lesser talked about but very well-edited films.
• Chupke Chupke, Golmaal and Anand… They worked so brilliantly that you don’t know what’s good—scripting, direction or editing
• Page 3 is another film that was constructed on the editing table.

Om Puri, Actor

I did my schooling in a village and started watching films only in college. The films that affected and touched me as a young man were

• Oonche Log
• Jaagte Raho
• Ittefaq
• Pyaasa.

Later at NSD and FTII I saw:

• Saara Akaash
• Anubhav
• Uski Roti
• Ankur
• Bandini
• Sujata
• Satyakam
• Anand
• The films of Ray, Mrinal Sen, Ritwik Ghatak, Bimal Roy, V. Shantaram.

I think 50s and 60s was the golden period of Indian cinema and the 70s when the New Wave set in.