Devyani

Roopa Ganguly's Birthday: The OG Draupadi - Here's How She Bagged Her Role Through Sheer Coincidence

History spun the dice - but Roopa Ganguly’s take on Draupadi was destiny’s best wild card. On a muggy Calcutta afternoon in the late ’80s, Roopa, not yet a household name, gets telegrammed by the Mahabharat team, calling her to Mumbai with urgency. In another timeline, Juhi Chawla would’ve been Draupadi. Fate twisted. Call it the cosmic roll of the dice or good old Bollywood jugaad. Not the Obvious Pick - But the Right One Roopa Ganguly as Draupadi in Mahabharat Forget glitzy auditions and read-throughs. Roopa entered the fray almost by accident. She wowed viewers in Ganadevta, a Bengali TV serial, catching the sharp eye of lyricist Pandit Narendra Sharma. Next thing, BR Chopra’s team telegrams her: “Please contact us immediately. We have you in mind for Draupadi.” No fanfare, no agent wrangling - just her raw screen-test fired straight to Chopra and his crew. Ravi Chopra, notoriously hard ...

Devyani
  • 4 days ago
  • 3 minutes read
On Indira Gandhi’s Birthday: Lessons from the Woman Who Proved Leadership Knows No Gender
On Indira Gandhi’s Birthday: Lessons from the Woman Who Proved Leadership Knows No Gender
She walked into Parliament in a saree and made the room sit up - Indira Gandhi, turning the tables and setting them too. Today marks the Iron Lady'...
Martin Scorsese Birthday Spotlight : How The Number 11  Secretly Shaped His Best Scenes
Martin Scorsese Birthday Spotlight : How The Number 11 Secretly Shaped His Best Scenes
In the shadows and spotlights of cinema, an uncanny number keeps cropping up - a quiet, almost superstitious thread weaving through Martin Scorsese’s...
Happy Birthday Aditya Roy Kapoor: From Fitoor to Malang, Bollywood’s Ultimate Heartthrob Turns Up the Heat
Happy Birthday Aditya Roy Kapoor: From Fitoor to Malang, Bollywood’s Ultimate Heartthrob Turns Up the Heat
Between poignant passion and devil-may-care swagger, Aditya Roy Kapur keeps Bollywood audiences guessing - and gasping for more. Today, Aditya Roy...
From Apu to Feluda: How Soumitra Chatterjee Became Ray's Most Trusted Muse Across 14 Iconic Films - Birthday Special
From Apu to Feluda: How Soumitra Chatterjee Became Ray's Most Trusted Muse Across 14 Iconic Films - Birthday Special
A tale of cinematic camaraderie – Soumitra, Ray, and the magic that happens when muse and maestro find each other. Strange, isn’t it? You can step...
From Panchatantra to Forgotten Legends: Bedtime Tales Every Indian Mother Must Share on CHILDREN'S DAY
From Panchatantra to Forgotten Legends: Bedtime Tales Every Indian Mother Must Share on CHILDREN'S DAY
Nobody really argues with a good bedtime story. From Panchatantra legends to epics dusted off just once a year, these are the tales every Indian mom o...
Jawaharlal Nehru's Birth Anniversary: Why Did He Always Wear a Red Rose on His Coat?
Jawaharlal Nehru's Birth Anniversary: Why Did He Always Wear a Red Rose on His Coat?
An everyday ritual that said more than words ever could - why Nehru's red rose became inseparable from his legacy. Jawaharlal Nehru's red rose was...
The 2 AM Idea That Changed Diabetes Forever: Why We Celebrate Insulin's Creator on World Diabetes Day
The 2 AM Idea That Changed Diabetes Forever: Why We Celebrate Insulin's Creator on World Diabetes Day
Sometimes, a restless night and a wild idea spark a miracle that changes countless lives - this is the story behind insulin and why we honor its creat...
Jawaharlal Nehru's Birth Anniversary: Lessons From 'The Discovery of India' - Why It's a Must-Read
Jawaharlal Nehru's Birth Anniversary: Lessons From 'The Discovery of India' - Why It's a Must-Read
A dog-eared paperback on your shelf, “The Discovery of India” still packs more wisdom than a hundred viral TED Talks. Nehru’s classic doesn’t just tra...
On Juhi Chawla's Birthday: How Juhi Chawla Navigated Family Tragedies While Shining on Screen
On Juhi Chawla's Birthday: How Juhi Chawla Navigated Family Tragedies While Shining on Screen
On her birthday, let's have a look at Juhi Chawla’s journey through loss and resilience that shaped the star we adore today. A star that glimmers n...
Ryan Gosling Birthday Special: From La La Land To Barbie, A Career Full Of Unexpected Turns
Ryan Gosling Birthday Special: From La La Land To Barbie, A Career Full Of Unexpected Turns
Sometimes you stumble into a career that defies expectations - and Ryan Gosling’s journey is a perfect example of taking the road less traveled, with...
Happy Birthday Leonardo DiCaprio: When a Near-Death Shark Encounter Fueled His Environmental Mission
Happy Birthday Leonardo DiCaprio: When a Near-Death Shark Encounter Fueled His Environmental Mission
Swimming past fangs and fate - DiCaprio’s adventures reveal how close calls and fierce instincts shaped a lifetime of protecting our untamed planet....
This World Diabetes Day, Look Beyond Sugar: Unusual Warning Signs You're Missing
This World Diabetes Day, Look Beyond Sugar: Unusual Warning Signs You're Missing
Fed up of “watch your sugar” warnings? This World Diabetes Day, let’s shine a light on those sneaky signs almost nobody talks about - your body’s not-...
Happy Birthday, Usha Uthup: The Icon Who Rocked Kanjeevaram Sneakers and Redefined Comfort in Style
Happy Birthday, Usha Uthup: The Icon Who Rocked Kanjeevaram Sneakers and Redefined Comfort in Style
Who says style and comfort can’t shake hands and dance? On Usha Uthup’s birthday, let’s riff on Kanjeevaram sneakers, oversized bindis, and the glorio...
On Kamal Haasan's Birthday: How His Movie 'Aalavandhan' Inspired Quentin Tarantino’s Iconic 'Kill Bill' Animation Scene
On Kamal Haasan's Birthday: How His Movie 'Aalavandhan' Inspired Quentin Tarantino’s Iconic 'Kill Bill' Animation Scene
Celebrating Kamal Haasan: the journey of a creative risk that surprised even Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino, sitting cross-legged in some Venice back...
Kamal Haasan's Birthday: The Untold Secret Behind His 7 Oscar Submissions - A Record No Indian Actor Has Broken
Kamal Haasan's Birthday: The Untold Secret Behind His 7 Oscar Submissions - A Record No Indian Actor Has Broken
Let's take a deeper dive into a legacy that has rewritten Tamil cinema’s ambitions and left the Oscars’ doors, if not flung open, at least visibly aja...
Kamal Haasan's Birthday: Revisiting 'Dasavathaaram' - When the Actor Played 10 Different Roles in One Film
Kamal Haasan's Birthday: Revisiting 'Dasavathaaram' - When the Actor Played 10 Different Roles in One Film
Ten faces, one film - Kamal Haasan’s jaw-dropping ‘Dasavathaaram’ was more than a star turn; it was a bold, eccentric whirlwind that still gets cineph...
Birthday Special: Kamal Haasan - The Pan-India Star Who Redefined Stardom Before ‘Baahubali’
Birthday Special: Kamal Haasan - The Pan-India Star Who Redefined Stardom Before ‘Baahubali’
Before pan-India was a buzzword, Kamal Haasan made it a belief. Long before ‘Baahubali’ turned into a nationwide phenomenon and “pan-India cinema”...
Happy Birthday, Anne Hathaway: From Disney Princess to Oscar Winner - All It Took Was 15 Minutes in Les Misérables
Happy Birthday, Anne Hathaway: From Disney Princess to Oscar Winner - All It Took Was 15 Minutes in Les Misérables
From being a charming princess in high school hallways to a powerhouse who has redefined what it means to be a versatile star, Anne Hathaway’s journey...