Hindi cinema has cast a seductive spell over its spectators for close to a century now. Visually arresting, dynamic in outlook and pulsating with life, Bollywood has entertained and enthralled moviegoers over the years with its melodious music, its colorful drama and its lively plotlines. At the very heart of the Bollywood mystique is the towering presence of its galaxy of stars—demigods and divas who have shaped and defined popular cinema, and popular imagination, from one generation to the next. Bollywood’s Top 20 is an exciting collection of brand new essays by renowned writers that pays tribute to Hindi popular cinema’s biggest stars of all time—from Ashok Kumar, Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Nargis and Madhubala to Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol and Kareena Kapoor—who are indispensable to the Bollywood pantheon. Each piece offers unique insights into the lives of Bollywood’s most exceptional legends—their struggles and triumphs, downfalls and scandals, and the inscrutable x-factor that made them carve a niche for themselves in an industry bursting with talented professionals and desperate hopefuls.
