Last week brought another opportunity to wallow in nostalgia, as I watched Ramesh Sippy’s magnificent Shakti (Power) of 1982, from 40 years ago, spellbound. Starring powerhouse performances by Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan, who are trapped in an elemental dilemma between love and duty. Not only does Shakti remain one of the enduring films of Bollywood, but it effortlessly surpasses most of the Hindi films that I’ve seen in 2022, revealing how much the film industry has “progressed”.

The screening was part of Film Heritage Foundation’s two landmark, very popular film festivals of Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar, in theatres nationwide. Bachchan: Back To The Beginning ran in October, while the Dilip Kumar: Hero Of Heroes festival ran on December 10-11, with Aan (1952), Devdas (1955), Ram Aur Shyam (1967) and Shakti (1982). Held in collaboration with PVR and Inox, Dilip Saab’s films screened at 30 all-India cinemas. Along with the older generation, it was wonderful to see a large number of youngsters in the audience, always a very healthy sign.