Cinema Masala Returns to Coolidge Corner Theatre for Season Two
Brookline venue to screen eight Indian blockbusters with support from Film Heritage Foundation.
The Coolidge Corner Theatre has announced the return of Cinema Masala, the monthly series of Indian films that originated at the theatre last fall. Cinema Masala is presented in association with the Mumbai-based Film Heritage Foundation, and with major support from Sapna Saxena.
This second season will include eight monthly screenings throughout the rest of 2026 and into 2027, and opens with the return of a crowd favorite, DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE, known to fans as 'DDLJ.' Perhaps the most famous film in Bollywood history, this 1995 release also holds the honor of the longest theatrical run in the history of Indian cinema: it has been a fixture at the Maratha Mandir theatre in Mumbai for nearly 31 years.
Other films featured in this season are new to Cinema Masala, including KAAGAZ KE PHOOL, a black and white masterpiece by Guru Dutt, often called the 'Orson Welles of Bollywood' given the dramatic sophistication of his work and his triple role as a writer-director-star. November's film, THE LUNCHBOX, features a late-career performance by beloved star Irrfan Khan, whose illustrious career encompassed both Hindi films and Hollywood blockbusters.
Titles slated for screenings later in Cinema Masala's second season: PAKEEZAH, AMMA ARIYAN, HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN..!, and the triumphant return of SHOLAY in its restored director's cut.
'I grew up watching so many of these films, so there's something surreal and really special about seeing them on the big screen at the Coolidge, right here in Brookline. What I loved most about our first season was seeing people come for completely different reasons — some because a film was part of their childhood too, and others because they'd never seen an Indian film before. The Coolidge has created a home for these films that feels both meaningful and genuinely joyful, and I'm so excited for what we're bringing to audiences this season,' said Cinema Masala lead supporter Sapna Saxena.
'Film Heritage Foundation is delighted to showcase the richness and diversity of Indian cinema on the big screen at a historic venue like the Coolidge Corner Theatre. The regular monthly screenings is a feast for cinephiles that will give audiences in Boston an opportunity to immerse themselves in the historical and contemporary culture of India through the lens of cinema,' noted Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, founding director of Film Heritage Foundation.
About the Coolidge Corner Theatre
The nonprofit Coolidge Corner Theatre is a premier American independent cinema renowned for its curated feature film programming and innovative signature educational, cultural, and entertainment programs. A beloved movie house, the Coolidge welcomes over 300,000 patrons per year and has been pleasing audiences with the best in cinematic entertainment since 1933.
In addition to showcasing the best in contemporary independent cinema, the Coolidge has developed a wide range of programing to reach all sectors of the community, including: Big Screen Classics, After Midnite, Senior Matinees, Science on Screen, Cinema Jukebox, PANORAMA, The Sounds of Silents, Kids' Shows, Rewind!, Relaxed Screenings, and adult education film classes. The Coolidge hosts several prominent film festivals and has welcomed film luminaries such as Meryl Streep, Werner Herzog, Jane Fonda, Liv Ullmann, Ethan Hawke, Viggo Mortensen, and more. For more information, visit coolidge.org.
Cinema Masala: Season 2
All screenings take place at 1pm unless otherwise indicated; for tickets and showtimes, visit coolidge.org.
Diwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ) (1995)
Saturday, September 19th, 2026
Audiences will fall in love with the charming Raj (Shah Rukh Khan) and the spirited Simran (Kajol), both Indians raised in the UK, who meet on a train when traveling with their friends across Europe. A frothy love story develops against picture-postcard Alpine landscapes, and the couple's romance is threatened when Simran's father takes her to India for an arranged marriage. The film wears its patriotism on its sleeve as it captures the conflict between modern attitudes toward love and traditional Indian values, where duty to the family takes precedence.
Three decades since its release, the magic of DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE (DDLJ) remains undiminished; the film still screens daily at the Maratha Mandir Theatre in Mumbai.
Runtime: 3h 10m
Format: DCP
Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959)
Saturday, October 10th, 2026
The first Indian feature film to be shot in the widescreen CinemaScope format, this cinematic swan song by multi-hyphenate filmmaker Guru Dutt matches show-business drama with stunning black and white cinematography. Dutt stars as Suresh Sinha, a famous director who senses star potential in Shanti (Waheeda Rehman), a stranger to whom he lends his coat on a rainy evening. As Shanti's movie career blossoms, so does romance between the lonely director and his muse, but Suresh's chaotic personal life and the prejudices of the public create tragedy from their ill-fated romance. Widely considered a commercial failure on release, KAAGAZ KE PHOOL was rediscovered by cinephiles in the 1980s and now commonly ranks on critics' lists among the best Indian films of all time.
Runtime: 2h 22m
Format: DCP
The Lunchbox (2013)
Saturday, November 21st, 2026
In Mumbai's crowded commercial districts, office workers are fed by an army of dabbawalas, workers who deliver hot lunches from home using an elaborate and efficient distribution system. In Ritesh Batra's romantic drama, a rare fault in the system leads to an unexpected connection between Saajan (Irrfan Khan), a middle-aged widower training his own replacement at an accounting firm, and Ila (Nimrat Kaur), a housewife who hopes her delicious cooking will regain her husband's affection. As the two trade messages using the misdirected lunchbox, they discover that 'the wrong train may take you to the right station.' Warmly received by Cannes audiences and in theaters around the world (including at the Coolidge), THE LUNCHBOX was a major crossover hit for Hindi-language cinema.
Runtime: 1h 44m
Format: DCP
Pakeezah (1972)
Sunday, December 13th, 2026
When director Kamal Amrohi set out to make a film dedicated to his wife, the actress Meena Kumari, he had no way of knowing that the project would take him across two decades, multiple pauses in production, and the breakup of the marriage that inspired him in the first place. It's a story that almost rivals the tale of Salim (Ashok Kumar), a chivalrous forest ranger, and Sahibjaan (Kumari), the tawaif brothel worker whose beauty captivates him. Shot in rich Eastmancolor on gloriously sumptuous sets, PAKEEZAH wraps its tortured romance in an eye-popping fabric of warmth and visual texture.
Runtime: 2h 33m
Format: DCP
Amma Ariyan (1986)
Saturday, January 23rd
In Western appreciations of Indian cinema, the legacy of films made in South India has often been left out, an omission that is beginning to be rectified after the recent stateside successes of action epics in the Telugu language. John Abraham's 1986 film AMMA ARIYAN, made in the Malayalam language of India's coastal Kerala state, provides an utterly different window into South Indian filmmaking. The down-to-earth story of Purushan (Joy Mathew), who journeys through the country to find the mother of a dead jazz drummer, was made under the banner of the Odessa Collective, which raised the production budget through street performances and small donations, rather than studios or financiers. Deeply engaged with the radical politics of its time and place, AMMA ARIYAN's recent restoration was the only Indian film invited to the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.
Runtime: 1h 55m
Format: DCP
Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994)
Sunday, February 7th, 2027
A tale of matrimony, loss, and undying love, centering on orphaned brothers Rajesh (Monish Bahl) and Prem (Salman Kahn), who become enamored with family friend Pooja (Renuka Shahane) and her spunky sister Nisha (Madhuri Dixit). What starts with an arranged marriage between families, and changes to a charming double romance, takes a turn for the tragic when Pooja dies unexpectedly, leaving behind an infant and questions about Nisha's duty to her family. This blockbuster of blockbusters took the Indian movie-going public by storm, breaking box-office records and bursting at the seams with drama, romance, and 14 different musical numbers. Today, it's credited with pushing Bollywood toward more romantic stories after the action-heavy 80s, and its iconic songs are still wedding staples.
Runtime: 3h 27m
Format: DCP
Sholay (1975)
Sunday, April 18th, 2027
Conceived as the biggest action-adventure film ever made in India, Ramesh Sippy's deeply influential 1975 'Curry Western' remains a towering landmark in film history. Seeking revenge against a nihilistic dacoit bandit leader (Amjad Khan), a retired cop enlists the help of two slick, charismatic crooks whom he put behind bars (unforgettably portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra). Naturally, the criminal duo soon fall in love with two local village girls, but danger remains on the horizon. A delirious four-course meal of action, musical numbers, ultramagnetic performances from Indian cinema's most iconic actors, and jaw-dropping wide-screen cinematography, SHOLAY is here presented in its recently completed director's cut, the most faithful approximation of Sippy's original ending before it was censored by the Indian Censor Board.
Runtime: 1h 36m
Format: 35mm
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