In one of my masochistic Youtube binges, I recently watched a clip of the Filmfare best actress award, and the nominees were Tabu/Andhadhun, Rani/Hichki, Neena Gupta/Badhai Ho, Korean Eyelid Tape/Padmawhat and Alia/Raazi.
I honestly was rooting for Tabu or Neena Gupta. I have not watched Hichki, and was not sure how well Rani pulled off the tics, maybe she did. But I adored Tabu's delicious ruthlessness in Andhadhun and Neena Gupta's subtle humor in Badhai Ho. I would have picked Neena any day because she has this uncanny ability to morph into the role she's offered, almost seamlessly.
Alia was good, and she had to carry an entire film on her shoulders, but there were multiple times she looked a little too suspicious, like I do when I sneak into the kitchen to steal ice cream. Alia understands nuance quite well but the Filmfare? What's next, the Oscar for Kalank?
What are your guys' thoughts?
Vyjayantimala wasn't the first choice for Chandramukhi. She wasn't even considered and in what would have been called a "desperate" move now, she approached Bimal Roy.
> . . . we wanted Meena Kumari as Paro, and Nargis as Chandramukhi. Meena Kumari would have been the ideal Paro --- she had Paro's quietness. Unfortunately, she could not do the role because [husband] Kamal Amrohi laid down certain conditions, which Bimalda did not agree with. I remember Meena Kumari broke down --- she was that keen to do the role.
> Nargis refused --- she wanted the lead role of Paro. Then we approached Bina Rai. She refused, too. Suraiya, too, wanted Paro's role.
> We then had to go for Suchitra Sen. She was very happy. It being her first Hindi film, we had to dub certain portions. She is a legend, yes. But her face was more cultured and sophisticated than required for Parvati. That is why I say Meena Kumari would have been ideal --- she had the simplicity of a middle class young girl who is not very educated.
> But ideal things do not happen...
> I did not approve of Vyjayanthimala [as Chandramukhi], but we had no option --- no one wanted to play Chandramukhi, and we were committed to our distributors. We were in dire straits, and Bimalda's unit was big. He never compromised in the making [of his film]. That meant expenses. And we needed money.
> Actually, Vyjayantimala came to our rescue. She came to Bimalda and said, "I am ready if you think I can do it." She was, of course, a very good actress, but she was too young for Chandramukhi, as envisioned by Saratbabu.
> -Nabendhu Ghosh, scriptwriter of Bimal Roy's 'Devdas'
Rediff reports that the casting was met with mockery and apprehension.
> When industrywallahs heard he had cast the dancing star as the courtesan Chandramukhi, they were snide, "Why don't you take comedian Kishore Kumar as Devdas?"
I personally don't understand why as Vyjayantimala had already showed her acting and dancing skills through Nagin.
Subsequently, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress. She refused to accept it saying that Chandramukhi wasn't a supporting role and had as importance as Paro in the narrative.
> “The Filmfare magazine tore me to pieces after that. But I stood my ground. Bimal da had maintained there were two main actresses — Suchitra Sen and I,” says Vyjayanthima
... keep reading on reddit ➡
2000 - Karishma, Fiza (solid performance, one of the few justifiable wins)
2001 - Tabu, Chandni Bar (how that screechy overacting of Kajol can win over this is beyond me)
2002 - Rani, Saathiya (not all that, but still probably the best performance that year I can think of)
2003 - Urmila, Pinjar (preferred her in this over Bhoot)
2004 - Urmila, Ek Hasina Thi or Shilpa Shetty, Phir Milenge
2005 - Vidya, Parineeta (found Rani's acting in Black ott and unconvincing)
2006 - Kangana Ranauth, Gangster (rare scenario where a debut overshadows established actors)
2007 - Kareena, Jab We Met or Rani, Laga Chunari Me Daag (even Vidya in Bhul Bhulaiya was nearly as good)
2008 - Priyanka Fashion (not that great, but I guess she was the best of the nominees)
2009 - Kareena, Kurbaan
2010 - Vidya, Ishqiya (again it's a joke how Kajol bags the awards for screeching or playing the same boisterous role again and again)
Here, I'd like to introduce a new hypothetical idea that came to my mind, the 'Super Filmfare Award' and my first category is the 'Best Actor (Male)'.
It's quite simple. I have posted the list of all Filmfare best actor winners from 2010-19 and you comment your choice for the best performance from this lot, your winner of the Super Filmfare Award. You can also include a 'Top 3' if you wish.
Here's the list to select from:
2010: Shah Rukh Khan in My Name is Khan
2011: Ranbir Kapoor in Rockstar
2012: Ranbir Kapoor in Barfi
2013: Farhan Akhtar in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
2014: Shahid Kapoor in Haider
2015: Ranveer Singh in Bajirao Mastani
2016: Aamir Khan in Dangal
2017: Irrfan Khan in Hindi Medium
2018: Ranbir Kapoor in Sanju
2019: Ranveer Singh in Gully Boy
Depending on the interest and discussion this one generates, I will continue it for the other categories as well over the next few days.
