Naseeruddin Shah is always known to call a spade a spade. All hell broke loose when in a self-penned tribute to the great Dilip Kumar in the Indian Express , Naseer said, “It’s incomprehensible why an actor of such immaculate craft, one whose very presence elevated any film he was in, one who just had to nod his head to set any project he fancied into motion, one justly acclaimed as the finest in the country, one financially secure for several generations, chose to play safe the way he did…. It is also no mystery why, instead of using his clout to encourage filmmakers deviating from the norm, to scripts depicting the truth of their times, and thus to films which may have altered his understanding of the actor’s contribution, he opted instead for a series of indulgent, clunky embarrassments some of which did set the box-office on fire, but also compelled many ardent admirers, myself very much included, to perceive him anew… If being a star does curious things to people, being resident l...