A yellow Ambassador glides onto the red carpet. Flashbulbs erupt as Shanti Priya (Deepika Padukone) steps out in blush pink silk, her wave choreographed for stardom. Moments later, the fabric catches Om’s sleeve, setting in motion one of Hindi cinema’s most cherished meet-cutes. Years earlier, audiences had travelled to an altogether different world, where Helen danced to Mehbooba Mehbooba inside a cave lit by flickering torches. One film recreated the glamour of 1970s Bombay. The other conjured a ravine that never existed. Both persuaded millions that these worlds were real.

If you’ve ever visited the Harry Potter studio outside London, wandered through Warner Bros’ archives in Hollywood or admired K-pop exhibitions in Seoul, you know some entertainment industries preserve their history behind glass. Bollywood, for some reason, has never done so. Here, the cave comes apart plank by plank, the palace becomes plywood again, costumes disappear into garment bags and props are counted, labelled and packed into trucks. Still almost nothing is truly discarded.

“Most costumes and many props are hired,” says veteran filmmaker Prahlad Kakkar. “You use them for the shoot, return them afterwards and pay the rental.” Furniture, crockery, chandeliers, doors, windows and architectural fragments all begin another journey once the cameras stop rolling. Every item is checked against an inventory, packed away and stored until another script calls it back into service.

Ad filmmaker and photographer Sunhil Sippy says production designers often become collectors by default. “Many own prop houses themselves, or they’ve spent years building collections from Chor Bazaar and antique markets.” It’s not unusual for things from their own homes and studios to even find a way into frames. “For close-ups, I’d often bring something from my own house, an object I lived with every day because I knew I wouldn’t find it in a rental house. The right object gives a frame its truth.”

Not every prop returns to a rental house. Some end up at Many Many Things, a Versova prop studio run by production designers Shaira Kapoor and Dhara Jain, whose work covers Gully Boy, Bombay Velvet and The Archies. Over the years, productions have left behind what many would see as a museum-worthy collection of collectibles: a miniature red vintage car sourced for a Lays commercial featuring Ranbir Kapoor, gold bricks made for a smuggling sequence in Bombay Velvet, even two cement brains created as paperweights for a radio station set in Tumhari Sulu.

“We never planned to start a prop house,” says Kapoor. “Some pieces stayed back after productions, others came from family, and many were simply too special to let go.” Every object is catalogued, barcoded and tracked before heading out to its next assignment.

That, they insist, is how Bollywood has always worked. Doors, windows, plywood, lights, furniture and fabrics are dismantled, stored and reinvented. “We pride ourselves on making the same object look completely different,” Kapoor says.

“A new lampshade, fresh upholstery or different artwork can transform it.” Nothing illustrates that better than Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies. The pair sourced nearly 10,000 vintage books, along with vintage cookware and utensils, for Betty’s (Khushi Kapoor) home from Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ooty, Bangkok, and international Etsy sellers. Once filming ended, most were sold on. “We don’t know exactly where they went,” Jain says. “But they’re still in the ecosystem. They’ve simply moved to another shelf.”

While a handful of props are preserved, Kakkar says that remains the exception. “Commercials work on rentals. Keeping elaborate sets after a shoot isn’t practical. The economics just don’t support preserving every unique creation.”

Costumes have had an even more uncertain fate. Academy Award-winning costume designer Bhanu Athaiya treated preservation as second nature, says her daughter, Radhika Gupta. “She never folded old saris or fabrics. She rolled them, wrapped them in mulmul cloth and stored them in steel trunks.”

Even that could not protect them from the weather and termites that infested them. Athaiya began designing in 1953, long before climate-controlled storage. Studio lights generated intense heat, makeup stained fabrics and colours faded under harsh lamps. “The costumes didn’t survive very well,” Gupta says, “More importantly, they belonged to the production houses, not to her.”

Until the 1970s, few studios archived costumes. Raj Kapoor was among the exceptions, though many garments, including costumes from Mera Naam Joker, were later lost in the RK Studios fire. Gupta still remembers actors arriving at their home to try on costumes as tailors and embroiderers worked around them. “My mother was a director’s designer,” she says. Directors described the character and mood of a scene, and Athaiya translated them into attire, even using colours in the black-and-white era to create tonal contrasts on screen.

Looking back, Gupta believes preserving costumes is about far more than saving clothes. “As Indians, we don’t really have a strong culture of preservation,” she says. “We tend to discard things and take them for granted.” Conservation, she adds, requires time, expertise and sustained funding.

Some of Athaiya’s surviving work has reached the public through the People of Mumbai exhibition at CSMVS, where costumes, sketches and archival material traced both her career and the city’s cinematic journey. “Bhanu Athaiya became a natural choice because her journey from the Sir JJ School of Art to costume design reflects that evolution,” says the exhibition’s architect, Nandini Somaya.

Displaying the collection required a careful process. Costumes were protected under acrylic sheets, while larger garments—including the landmark sari worn in Gandhi—were mounted on custom plastic supports and enclosed in protective cases to prevent stress on the fragile fabric. But such examples remain rare.

Madhav Agasti, who tailored costumes for more than 350 films, including Mr India and Andaz Apna Apna, says costumes usually remained with producers once filming ended. Mogambo’s military-inspired uniform, he believes, is still with Boney Kapoor. Lead costumes are never really reused, Kakkar explains. Designed for one actor and one character, they often end up with producers, collectors or members of the crew. Sometimes they become personal keepsakes. Shivam Hingorani, an assistant director on Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, still treasures the brown AllSaints jacket worn by Ranbir Kapoor. “The moment I saw it, I knew I wanted it.” And once production wrapped up director Ayan Mukerji handed it to him.

And, thus, Bollywood’s best stories survive in fragments: a sari wrapped in mulmul, a villain’s uniform in a producer’s cupboard, or a prop on someone’s shelf. They may never draw museum crowds, but for the person who recognizes one from the screen, those ordinary objects still possess the power to collapse time, carrying them back to the moment the story first came alive.

There are two Mumbais every visiting celebrity encounters. One is all premieres, luxury hotels and flashing cameras. The other is discovered through recommendations. Over the past days, The Odyssey director Christopher Nolan and actors Matt Damon and Tom Holland found themselves on the latter trail.

At the Film Heritage Foundation in Ballard Estate on Friday, founder Shivendra Singh Dungarpur took Nolan through the Foundation’s restoration facilities, where the director watched technicians at work on a 70mm print. For a filmmaker who has spent years championing celluloid, it was a rare opportunity to see India’s preservation efforts up close. Nolan, fans would know, has also served on Martin Scorsese’s Film Foundation for over a decade. That Dungarpur’s Foundation has grown into one of the world’s leading centres for restoring and preserving films probably made it a fitting stop before The Odyssey reached Mumbai.

Photographer and filmmaker Sunhil Sippy, rarely someone to be overawed by famous names, found himself unexpectedly tongue-tied. He presented Nolan with a signed copy of Opium Of Time, his 2021 coffee-table book of monochrome photographs of Mumbai. “I was nervous when he asked me to sign it,” Sippy says. “I simply wrote, ‘What an honour.’”

That evening, Dungarpur took Nolan and actor Matt Damon to Trishna in Kala Ghoda, that has fed Bombay’s old guard for decades. Nolan was, reportedly, already familiar with that menu, having eaten there with his family on an earlier trip.

If Friday belonged to cinema, Saturday belonged to Mumbai. Hours before the premiere, Nolan, Damon and Holland walked into Olympia Coffee House in Colaba. Founded in 1918, the Irani café has changed little over the decades. Its marble tables have welcomed everyone from taxi drivers and office-goers to politicians and film stars, while regulars still arrive early for bun maska, chai and its famously limited roast mutton. When Mirror met owner Mufti Ilyas Abul Rahim Saji, 56, last evening, he laughed at how ordinary the afternoon had seemed.

“Around 2.30 pm, members of their team started coming in,” he says. “We thought they were regular customers. They had tea and snacks, left, then returned again.”

Only around 6 pm did anything seem unusual – because security personnel gathered outside before a van pulled up. “We didn’t recognize them,” Saji says with characteristic matter-of-factness. “They came in, sat down, had tea and spoke among themselves. Then it was time for my prayers, so I left.”

The advance team had told Olympia only that a few VIP guests would be dropping in and requested chai and bun maska. True to the café’s old-school hospitality, Saji decided that wasn’t quite enough. He asked the kitchen to send out saffron phirni and custard as well.

The Saji family bought a 50% stake in Olympia from its Iranian owner, Mohammad Mirab, in 1954, when Mirab and his cousins were returning to Iran. Three generations later, copper vessels are still used here, because, Saji insists, “the taste changes if the pot changes.”

What has never changed, he says, is the place’s philosophy. “Our customers range from taxi drivers to celebrities, but everyone is our customer and we treat them alike. Everyone gets the same service,” says Saji, explaining that they go by the principle of equality taught in Islam.

Manager Inayat Maridiya, 40, knew only that “VIP guests” were arriving. “They stayed for seven or eight minutes,” he says. “As they left, Tom Holland gave me a thumbs up. Only later did someone tell me he was Spider-Man.”

Saji laughs. “I’ve never watched the Spider-Man films.”

By the next morning, celebrity had worked its familiar magic. Customers arrived asking for the table where Nolan, Damon and Holland had sat, and even the cups they had used. They were out of luck. “They’d already gone back into the kitchen and were mixed with the rest of the dishes, obviously,” says 30-year-old waiter Shahbuddin Khan. There were even those who hugged Shahbuddin, as though a little of Hollywood glamour might have rubbed off on him.

In less than 48 hours, three of Hollywood’s biggest names had visited three very different Mumbai institutions: one preserving the history of cinema, the other preserving the city’s everyday rituals.

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has referred a dispute between Bollywood film director Ramesh Sippy and his nephews and other family members over a south Mumbai property among other issues for mediation. The Sippys agreed to mediation by former HC judge, Justice S J Kathawalla.

A division bench of Justices B P Colabawalla and F P Pooniwalla, in its order on Monday, requested the mediator to file his report in court within four weeks. If the mediator requires further time, the parties are free to seek an extension. "If for any reason the mediation fails, this court will then consider" other reliefs sought by the Sippys, the HC said and posted the matter to Feb 14 for directions.

Ramesh and his nephew Sunhil Ajit Sippy, along with 12 others, were at loggerheads following the demise of his father, film producer G P Sippy.

On Monday, the HC recorded that both sides have come to a pro-tem agreement, including that Shaan and Sameer Uttamsingh, grandchildren of G P Sippy, would not part with possession, sell, or create any third-party right in a residential property at Altamount Road. Ramesh, who filed an appeal against an order in a suit that he filed for the administration of his late mother's estate, also agreed not to part with a flat in the same building on the same floor. The flat has two parts, with share certificates of each half in different names, one in Ramesh's name and the other in the names of Shaan and Sameer. The flat, however, is one single unit, the HC noted.

The parties agreed that Shaan and Sameer can renovate the entire flat without changing its layout. They cannot carry out any structural changes without court permission.

On Jan 6, the HC adjourned Ramesh's appeal to allow both sides to consider mediation as an option. The HC heard counsel Shanay Shah and solicitor B Munim & Co for Ramesh, and Archit Jayakar with Jayakar and Partners for the grandchildren of G P Sippy.

She stormed into the scene with the iconic dialogue, 'Thappad se darr nahin lagta saab, pyar se lagta hai' (Dabangg). That Sona has come a long way. She has won hearts and damned her detractors. She has shamed the body shamers and kicked some mean ass on screen. Brash and beautiful, with some 'golden' luck for company. She was criticised for her safe, sureshot hit films, but after the action-drama Akira, she confesses, “I felt like I have tasted blood.“ In her upcoming Noor, an adaptation of the novel Karachi You're Killing Me!, directed by Sunhil Sippy, she plays a journalist who hates her life. In a chat with BT, Sonakshi Sinha talks about her choices, her struggles and why she wants to interview Kim Kardashian. Read on...

In the first few years of your career, you chose only Bollywood potboilers. Then Akira happened, in which you led the show and kicked some butt, too. And now, Noor. Has your choice of films changed?
I won't say my choices have changed, but yes, they have evolved. I think in a certain sense, the industry has evolved, too. They are making films on different subjects, backing stories with female protagonists. I am adapting to the environment and loving the process.

But with such choices and big bucks riding on you comes a lot of responsibility...
I love challenges. I was comfortable in my space till a couple of years ago, but then I decided to move out of that zone and push my limits. I didn't need a trigger to do that, something just flipped inside me. I got offered a good role in Akira, and once I started shooting for it, I felt like I had tasted blood. Now, I don't want to go back to anything lesser than that. The feeling of pulling a film off on my own shoulders is a real high. It gives me a kick; in a way, it is liberating. I am not depending on anybody else for the way the film turns out; I just have a great team backing me.

Today, you wear the badge of a bankable actor, so you can take chances and risks. But was it a planned strategy to take safe bets at the start and then go this way?
I have never drawn a road map for my career, I have always been instinctive. The films that I did are the ones that I enjoyed watching as an audience. They worked. I loved the singing, dancing, drama... all of it rolled into one film. Whatever I know today is what I learnt while doing those commercial films. Well, I didn't ever plan to be an actor, I suddenly became one. Dabangg came my way, and once that happened, I didn't want to be anything else (laughs!).

You had a successful run with big-ticket films, but on the flip side, you were judged for making safe choices...
I faced criticism for being part of big, blockbuster films. It's strange, right? Why should I be apologetic about it? And this criticism is the opinion of a small section of people; majority of the audience has enjoyed my work and films. I have a certain fan following owing to the blockbuster films I have done, and today, because of those choices, I have the chance and ability to shoulder films like Akira and Noor on my own.

For films like Noor and Akira, is it challenging to find male actors for various parts, especially a parallel hero of that stature?
Well, it all depends on the kind of film you are doing and the story. Having said that, it would be nice if our male stars are open to doing what we have been doing in all their films. It would be great if sometimes, the roles are reversed. Honestly, John Abraham did that for Force 2, in which we were at par even though it was an action film. I was never made to feel that I was lesser than him and that was very encouraging. I hope that other actors are also as open to it. Like in the West, actors think of what value they are adding to the film and not how big or small the role is.

You have interacted with so many journalists in your career. Did your observations help sketch your character in Noor?
I don't prepare for any role; I am a complete director's actor. I prefer to go with the way they have visualised the character and the film. The role was so well written that I didn't need to prepare. Noor is also very relatable; there are so many situations where I would react the same way like she does in the film. Like, being kept at work beyond a certain time (laughs). But yes, I do observe people and pick up nuances for my parts. You come across so many kinds of journalists. Some are extremely passionate about their job, some are ethical, and then there are those who will cross the line. There are also some who are very cautious about what they do and say, and there are those who are not. I am sure that there are reporters who want to cover something and aren't able to... and they question their own ethics, like Noor does. It felt nice to be on the other side, hold the boom (mic) and see their world.

Do you also step back and question yourself and your choices from time to time?
Yes, that's part of life and coming of age. You need to stop, take a deep breath and think of what you are doing. You need to think if you are doing the right thing. Are you hurting someone, or are you helping someone? We all need to go through this process; this is how we grow up.

Having led such a privileged life, which part of Noor's struggle did you relate to most?
I've had struggles too, like everyone has. We are today's girls, who want everything in life. We want a great career and love life, we want to party, enjoy and we also want our space. We want to make a difference, too, and that is what we are chasing. My struggles and insecurities as a girl would be different from yours. Honestly, even Noor is chasing perfection - she is looking for the perfect love, job, and weight. She finds happiness only when she realises that she needs to embrace her imperfections. I have never chased perfection and I am very content and happy with that. I don't think perfection is all that it seems to be. I think it is nicer to be imperfect; it makes you more real and relatable.

Your journey to this super-fit stage of your life was hard and probably, emotionally tough, too. We still see you take on body shamers on social media...
Yes, I still do that. It is not right to body shame anyone as you don't know what struggles they are going through. While growing up, I was always an overweight kid, but I never once felt that my weight made me any lesser as a person. I had a great personality and I was a confident girl, so my weight was something that I didn't pay attention to. I knew this is how I looked and there were other more important things in my life. Even as an actress, when I was subjected to scrutiny for my weight, my attitude was the same. I was confident that I had so much more to offer; I knew that I acted well, I danced well and people enjoyed watching me on screen. Gradually, when I started finding more time for myself, the change in my fitness levels came about. There was a time I was doing three-four films simultaneously, and that would send everything for a toss as I would skip my workouts and eat whatever I wanted to. I still don't like going to the gym, but now that I am doing one film at a time, I have more time for myself. I am fitter; I am eating better and feeling better.

If you were a reporter in real life, which beat would you like to cover?
I have always been interested in sports, so I would like to cover that.

What about covering entertainment? Movies?
No! I have a punctuality issue, I believe in being on time. If someone is not on time, it makes me really angry. I don't make journalists wait, you know that. So, I wouldn't want to run around and wait for actors (laughs!).

Which international sports star or celebrity would you like to interview as a journalist?
I would like to interview Kim Kardashian, not because I am a follower, but just to understand how she has built this entire empire around herself. Anything that she touches turns to gold, so it would be interesting to know more. In India, I would like to interview my dad (Shatrughan Sinha) and Mr Amitabh Bachchan. If I interviewed my dad, I would start by telling him not to say 'khamosh' to any of my questions.

Rumours of your engagement often do the rounds. Is it on the cards? Is there any pressure from your parents to settle down?
I have nothing to say now, I will comment only when I have something to say. As of now, there is nothing on the cards. There's no pressure from my parents either. When I am ready to do it, I will.

Noor is an adaptation of Pakistani journalist writer Saba Imtiaz's 2014 novel, Karachi You're Killing Me!. Do you ever feel that your city, Mumbai, is killing you?
Honestly, this film made me see Mumbai in a different light. Director Sunhil Sippy is a street photographer too, so we shot in such interesting locations that I've heard of but never explored. Like the Worli Village, cement factories, salt pans in Wadala where we saw the sunset, areas of Govandi, which is a different ecosystem altogether. It is great when you can rediscover your city through a film. We all have our frustrations with our city, yet, we are so attached to it. The energy of Mumbai is brilliant, and we all want our city to change for the better. I wouldn't leave Mumbai for anything in the world.