Fatema Kagalwala | PassionforCinema

The pen, a few words, a paper and some moving images. A little bit of song and little bit of dance, a bit about joy and a tear to roll along. A lot of poetry in muted and bold colours. A dream to keep the head high with still some sleep in my eyes. A writer and aspiring film-maker this 28 yr-old is an Assistant Director working in the Mumbai film industry for the past 3 years. Cinema has always tweaked my imagination and intrigued my senses and like they say it is always nice to make your interest into your career.

Fatema Kagalwala's Blog

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Frozen with the Pfc junta @ 10.30 on 8th May
Among all the brouhaha of the multiplex-producers standoff a small film released yesterday, Frozen, winner of 18 international awards and made by our very own Shivajee Chandrabhushan. How could Pfc not watch it together? So 10.30 show at Andheri we all landed up, full of anticipation. Mind you some of us had already seen the film but if we, the so-called upholder’s...
by Fatema Kagalwala at May 9th, 2009 at 02:05 am
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Of Gulaal, Reader, Little Zizou and what’s a good film
A fantastic weekend last week and a week (and more) spent in wondering what constitutes a good film makes me write this. I saw Gulaal last week Saturday night show and next day Sunday, watched Reader and Little Zizou back-to-back. It’s a habit now. Have you done back-to-back movies anytime? It’s an experience. (As is watching movies alone, which is addictive,...
by Fatema Kagalwala at March 26th, 2009 at 11:03 am
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Oz in Bollywood!!!
18th Feb dawned pretty nice and normal. Sun rising in the east, sweepers carefully re-arranging the mess on the roads, my kaamwaali bai late for work again so n so forth. So basically it wasn’t a day that began with a sense of foreboding like in Shakespeare’s works. But then there was no reason to as it ended perfectly well too. Just maybe not that normal. Now...
by Fatema Kagalwala at February 27th, 2009 at 06:02 pm
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Rock as fashion, rock as expression
Rock seems to be the flavour of the season. But then calling rock ‘flavour’ and ’seasonal’ is not understanding it at all. Or accepting it. That was my first grouse with Rock On!! That it did not understand the music it claimed to be so passionate about. I liked the film and thought it was pretty decent but could not relate to the fuss that was...
by Fatema Kagalwala at October 9th, 2008 at 05:10 am
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19th Sept, it happened
We needed a reason to meet and make noise and Neeraja gave it to us on a platter. The maths ace studying ‘why-did-God-ever-make-that-subject’ (my words not hers) in France, (something that Thani had a huge problem with, the math-France combo i.e.) is down in Bbay for about 10 days and we decided to show her how mad and boisterous Pfc Bbay (and a bit of Blore)...
by Fatema Kagalwala at September 21st, 2008 at 01:09 pm
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Wednesday Review
Spoiler alert – I have tried my best to say what needs to be said without giving the movie away but in doing so might have suggested the unraveling of the suspense. So either read it after you have seen the movie or read it if you don’t care for the twists There was anticipation for the film from the promos. Not only because of the celebrated actors playing...
by Fatema Kagalwala at September 5th, 2008 at 07:09 am
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For the love of it
Many of us must have experienced the deep ecstasies and depressions that music can induce. By depression I mean the immense sadness one can be moved to by soul-stirring music. I have a habit of constantly singing. Whatever comes to my mind. The other day I was specially enjoying singing ‘Tu mera hero hain‘ from Subhash Ghai’s Hero. Didn’t know...
by Fatema Kagalwala at August 25th, 2008 at 02:08 pm
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The grand meet-up!
So it finally happened! When I’d first chhedofied the idea of a meet-up it was quite tentatively. You see, this was my first official Pfc meet (well, so it was for Pfc as well, hehehe) and till then I had met only Karthik Krishnan who is as scary in person as he sounds on the site so was wondering how would it be meeting others who just might be like him. Jokes apart,...
by Fatema Kagalwala at June 15th, 2008 at 02:06 pm
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Sarkar Raj Press Show…and others…
Sort of in between a rant and musings… Was at the Sarkar Raj press show at Famous yesterday. Well, as expected was house full. The sixty-seater was exploding with around hundred people from the press (we have SO many reviewers amongst us and not ONE to be proud of???) with so many sitting on the floor, including yours truly. Well, this is not the first time this...
by Fatema Kagalwala at June 6th, 2008 at 09:06 am
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What makes a good film? Who knows?
I have been at a strange phase of movie-watching since quite some time now. The natural curiosity to watch a story unfold is lost. I remember this began early this millennium when the Hindi film industry was at its all-time low in terms of stories and presentation. Not much of a Hollywood fan and back in the college days, access to world cinema was a thing almost unheard...
by Fatema Kagalwala at May 20th, 2008 at 11:05 am
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Film criticism and reviewing
As we stand on the threshold of PfC Ronin’s first round, perhaps this is the best time to discuss film criticism and reviewing. And then again, the subject needs no opportune time as it is one of the biggest banes of our industry and the art of film-making in India, needing most urgent attention. The purpose of this article is to stress upon the need of a defining...
by Fatema Kagalwala at January 5th, 2008 at 02:01 pm