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Published: 15 January 2022

Last Updated: 15 January 2022

In the cast of Devdas (1935) a Sitara is identified as playing the role of Monorama. Sheo Khetan and I erred in assuming that it is the famous Sitara Devi. However, Isuru pointed out it is not. On further research (re-reading Shishir Krishna Sharma's interview with her), we remembered that Sitara Devi's first film was Usha Haran (1940), and so, the one in Devdas could not be her. We stand corrected and thank Isuru for pointing out our mistake.

It should be mentioned here that there is least one more Sitara who is mainly a group dancer and is also not the famous Sitara Devi. The filmography and a picture of this third Sitara will be included in a forthcoming book on Group Dancers by Upendra.

Two captures from Devdas (1935).

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Published: 15 May 2022

Last Updated: 15 May 2022

When that Julie song (My Heart is Beating) came, many ignorant people said that that was the first English song in a Hindi film. Many websites still say that.

People with a little more knowledge pointed to the poem read by Shanta Apte in Duniya Na Mane (1937) and many people still believe that.

However, people who have the first volume of Hindi Film Geet Kosh know that the first English song in a Hindi film is from Karma (1933) sung by Devika Rani. All songs of this film, including the English song, can be heard here (in the Girdharilal Vishwakarma Collection)

Karma and other songs

Disclaimer: We know that full information of Indian films is not available, many early films are lost, records were not made, magazines and books do not mention every single film ever certified, therefore, the first of anything must remain tentative, as of now, based on the present information.

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Published: 21 March 2022

Last Updated: 21 March 2022

Ali Sardar Jafri in his book on Ghalib (published in the Urdu and Hindi script says this:

Translation by me.

"Pronunciation is also important. Many words from foreign languages have become distorted in Urdu. So they have become Urdu words now. That is why I give preference to the spoken forms over Arabic or Persian versions. And I have written Savaal, Girfataar, Nashtar for Suvaal, Giriftaar, Nishtar, respectively. For the words that have two pronunciations I have preferred the spoken one. I have done this based on my personal knowledge. That is why I have preferred Ijz for Ajz and Sataaish for Sitaaish. However, I have been careful to give the other pronunciation within brackets for such words in the Hindi version. I have not changed some words like Khazaan, Charaagh and Nashaat, but I feel that in Urdu they are commonly Khizaan, Chiraagh and Nishaat, resectively, therefore one should write them like that only. Of course it is another question what Ghalib himself said when he spoke. As long as proper research on that is not done we have to use this kind of criteria."

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