All posts tagged: Sriram

Why Agent Vinod remains Sriram Raghavan’s most fascinating failure | Opinion-entertainment News

Why Agent Vinod remains Sriram Raghavan’s most fascinating failure | Opinion-entertainment News

Published by Parlour News

6 min readMumbaiJun 22, 2026 09:49 AM IST Manmohan Desai, Mahendra Sandhu, Godard, Prem Chopra, Iftekhar, Tarantino, Danny, Vijay Anand, Ajit, Hitchcock, Shahbaz Khan, Michael Bay, Sergio Leone, Prem Chopra, and an explosive four-minute-long take over Pritam’s Raabta. What’s not to love? Your mind would make you want to think of James Bond’s Dr. No, but somewhere along the way, you’re convinced that Sriram Raghavan is equally enthralled by Jeetendra’s 1967 spy actioner Farz. Similarly, your mind would make you want to think that Raghavan’s busy plot doesn’t have any time for serious song picturisation, but then, somewhere along the way, you see a mujra-in-the-villain’s-den thrown into the mix. The constant feeling that you get is that Agent Vinod is stranded between two traditions, making you strand yourself between the heart and the mind. But if you watch closely enough, and repeatedly, just like I have, in all these years, you would perhaps realise that Raghavan just wants to have some fun with the genre. Is that too much to ask for? Well, surely for …

Sriram Balaji’s best-ever Grand Slam run ends in quarterfinals

Sriram Balaji’s best-ever Grand Slam run ends in quarterfinals

Published by Webster

N. Sriram Balaji’s best-ever Grand Slam run ends in the quarterfinals of the 2026 French Open at Stade Roland Garros in Paris on Wednesday. He, partnering with Brazil’s Marcelo Demoliner, lost in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 to the second-seeded Finnish-British pair of Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten. This was his first-ever quarterfinal at this stage, but he could not offer much challenge to the in-form pairing, ending India’s campaign at the tournament. The match started solidly with all four players producing strong serving. However, the Indo-Brazilian pair lost their first break in the eighth game and went on to lose the first set 3-6. They failed to recover from the early setback in the second set and struggled badly on serve, conceding two breaks and losing momentum completely. The pair had a brief chance of a comeback after winning their first break of the match in the eighth game of the second set, but Harri-Henry played a perfect final game to win the match. India suffered another disappointment as Aarav Paparkar failed to maintain his …

Sriram Balaji’s best-ever Grand Slam run ends in quarterfinals

Sriram Balaji reaches career first Grand Slam quarters

Published by Webster

India’s Sriram Balaji entered the first Grand Slam quarter-final of his career along with his Brazilian partner Marcelo Demoliner, stunning sixth seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 7-5, 6-4 in the 2026 French Open on Monday. Balaji and Demoliner did not have the best of starts, going down 0-2 in the first set before bouncing back. The Indo-Brazilian duo broke in the third game to reduce the deficit to 1-2 before levelling it up by holding their own serve. From then on, both the pairs held their serves until Balaji-Demoliner broke to go up 6-5. They then held their own rather comfortably to win the first set 7-5. The second set saw Balaji-Demoliner win a break as early as the first game and they never let the advantage slip, winning it 6-4 to wrap up a straight sets win. Balaji and Demoliner will next face second seeds Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten in the quarters. Disclaimer: We do not own any of the content, ideas, images, or text presented here. All rights belong to their …

How MS Dhoni and Sridharan Sriram fixed Noor Ahmad’s broken wrist-spin — and why CSK need it to hold

How MS Dhoni and Sridharan Sriram fixed Noor Ahmad’s broken wrist-spin — and why CSK need it to hold

Published by Webster

4 min readUpdated: May 9, 2026 07:51 PM IST When Noor Ahmad runs in to bowl during CSK’s net sessions at Chepauk, MS Dhoni steps out of the dressing room. He walks to the back of the nets, stands there, watches. A word here and there — the same quiet presence he maintains in the middle of matches, standing up to the stumps, making small adjustments with his hands. For Noor, it has been a constant these past weeks. It has also been necessary. Noor arrived in Chennai not in the best of form. He had gone nearly three months without a wicket. The problem had a name — the same problem that had surfaced in 2021, when an arm injury forced him to rely excessively on his googly because bowling leg-breaks caused pain. Five years on, the injury was gone but the habit had stayed. Over-exposure to T20 cricket through a year of globe-trotting had done the same damage more slowly. The googly had become the stock delivery. And when the googly is your …

If you don’t have a winning mindset, you cannot win I By Sriram Singh

If you don’t have a winning mindset, you cannot win I By Sriram Singh

Published by Webster

I have competed in three Asian Games and three Olympics. In my second Asian Games, in Tehran in 1974, I won a gold medal in the 800m with a new Asian Record and a silver medal in the relay. And in my second Olympics in Montreal in 1976, I set a National and Asian record with a time of 1:45.77. I finished seventh in the world, and that record stood the test of time for 42 years. Montreal 1976 was the first time I saw a synthetic track. In India, I was clocking 1 minute and 47 seconds in 800m. On the first day, before the heat, I thought the heats would be my final race. But I crossed the finish line in 1:45.77s and qualified for the semi-finals with a new National and Asian record. On the second day, I ran in 1 minute 46 seconds and qualified for the final. After two days of back-to-back races, I was so fatigued and had so much muscle pain that I barely slept the night before …

Sriram Balaji’s best-ever Grand Slam run ends in quarterfinals

N Sriram Balaji-Neil Oberleitner lift title in Portugal

Published by Webster

India’s doubles tennis player N Sriram Balaji and his partner Neil Oberleitner of Austria won the Oeiras 3 Challenger doubles title in Portugal on Sunday. Seeded third N Sriram Balaji and Neil Oberleitner battled it out in a three setter in the final defeating Nicolas Barrientos of Colombia and Ariel Behar of Uruguay 6-7(7), 6-4, 11-9. Balaji-Oberleitner had a shaky start, losing their opening set 6-7 in a tie break. The Indo-Austrian duo lost a lot of first serve points. After losing their opening battle, Balaji-Oberleitner recovered and clinically won the second set 6-4. Coming from behind, Balaji-Oberleitner won the third and deciding set 1-0 in a tie break owing to their brilliant second serve performance. Early this year, Balaji-Oberleitner clinched the Bahrain Open Tennis Challenger 2026 doubles title and the Nonthaburi Challenger II in Thailand. Disclaimer: We do not own any of the content, ideas, images, or text presented here. All rights belong to their respective owners. For more information and to view the original source, please visit the following link: Source link

Director Sriram Raghavan reveals why Saif Ali Khan was hesitant to join Ek Hasina Thi

Director Sriram Raghavan reveals why Saif Ali Khan was hesitant to join Ek Hasina Thi

Published by Webster

Today, Saif Ali Khan is widely recognised for his versatility onscreen, effortlessly moving between romantic dramas, comedies and dark thrillers. But even the most seasoned actors cannot always predict which films will eventually become cult favourites. One such film is Ek Hasina Thi — a gritty thriller that Saif himself was initially unsure about. Saif Ali Khan with Urmila Matondkar in Ek Hasina Thi Released in 2004, the film marked the directorial debut of Sriram Raghavan and was produced by Ram Gopal Varma. Starring Saif alongside Urmila Matondkar, the revenge drama has since earned a strong following for its dark storytelling and sharp performances. However, according to Raghavan, Saif was hesitant about taking on the role when the project first came his way. Why was Saif unsure about the film? At a Masterclass session at the Red Lorry Film Festival Raghavan revealed that Saif was still navigating his career choices at the time. Raghavan said, “For Urmila, it was a role she was comfortable with, but Saif was unsure because he had just done Dil …

Ikkis: Sriram Raghavan examines war through the lens of a 21-year-old who believed his duty was more important than his questions | Bollywood News

Ikkis: Sriram Raghavan examines war through the lens of a 21-year-old who believed his duty was more important than his questions | Bollywood News

Published by Webster

Paul Tibbets was 30 years old when he was tasked with the responsibility of dropping a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima in 1945. This, as we now know, was a pivotal moment in the history of humankind, as wars would never be the same again. The threat of a nuclear bomb would always loom upon us, as it continues to do so in 2026. But at the time, Paul, perhaps, was not aware of the catastrophe that would happen. He was a soldier who was just following orders, and was asked to be proud of his country’s actions. He was, and he proved it by naming the nuclear bomb carrying aircraft after his mother, Enola Gay. The idea that he named the carrier of such destruction after his mother explains that for him, this was a brave, heroic act. But on the other side were countless civilians, who suffered for decades. Living in a world where brutal wars are killing thousands (maybe more) every day, one cannot help but think that much like Paul, soldiers all …

‘It will be India-Pakistan, I don’t want to do it’: Sriram Raghavan on Dharmendra turning down Agent Vinod

‘It will be India-Pakistan, I don’t want to do it’: Sriram Raghavan on Dharmendra turning down Agent Vinod

Published by Webster

Late actor Dharmendra’s last film was filmmaker Sriram Raghavan‘s war drama Ikkis. Speaking at an event organised by the Screenwriters Association (SWA), Sriram revealed that Dharmendra had turned down a role for his 2012 film Agent Vinod. Dharmendra with Sriram Raghavan during the shoot of Ikkis in Lucknow in 2023. Sriram Raghavan reveals why Dharmendra declined to be part of Agent Vinod. Sriram previously worked with Dharmendra in his 2007 film, Johnny Gaddar. He revealed that while planning Agent Vinod, he had approached the veteran actor for the role of a RAW chief, which Dharmendra declined. “After Johnny Gaddar, I told him I want to work with you again, and he said, ‘Yes, of course’. When I was doing Agent Vinod, I remember we had written a role for the head of RAW, and his counterpart was going to be Zeenat Aman; we wanted her to be in Russia. So, it was an older and a younger story,” he said as quoted by news agency PTI. “But it was all in the writing stage. When …

Ikkis director Sriram Raghavan was ‘quite baffled by response’ to Agastya Nanda film: I hope people will watch it on OTT

Ikkis director Sriram Raghavan was ‘quite baffled by response’ to Agastya Nanda film: I hope people will watch it on OTT

Published by Parlour News

Filmmaker Sriram Raghavan says he was baffled by the response to his war drama Ikkis. Speaking on the sidelines of an event organised by the Screenwriters Association (SWA), he discussed his film and hoped more people would watch it following its OTT debut. Sriram Raghavan spoke about his film Ikkis starring Agastya Nanda. Sriram Raghavan on audience’s response to Ikkis “We were quite baffled, actually, by the response after the film (Ikkis) came out. I hope people will watch the film at the click of the button (on OTT),” Sriram said as quoted by news agency PTI. Drawing inspiration from classic war cinema such as Ballad of a Soldier, Flags of our Fathers, Cranes are Flying, Battle of the Bulge, he said he sought to create a film that prioritises human emotions. Sriram talks about Ikkis plot “If I were completely against the ideology of Ikkis, I would not have made it. But for me, if it was just the story of the boy, it would not have (been) enough, I wouldn’t know how to …