The white walls of the National Gallery of Modern Art, held more than photographs on Thursday evening. They held grief, glamour, memory, and the peculiar ache of an industry coming to terms with the legends it has recently lost. ‘Lens & Legacy: Bollywood in Focus’, presented by the NGMA Mumbai and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, opened on April 30, Thursday, chosen deliberately to coincide with the birth anniversary of Dadasaheb Phalke, the man who started it all. But the most arresting moment of the evening had nothing to do with history. It was entirely present tense.
Hema Malini, veteran actress and Member of Parliament, stood before a tribute wall bearing photographs of her late husband Dharmendra – the man Bollywood called its He-Man – and visibly struggled to hold herself together. “I was really blessed to be with him. I miss him a lot. Now he’s not there. So I don’t know how I’m going to cope with it my whole life,” she told the audience, her voice barely above a murmur. She gathered herself, and in the same breath turned to the exhibition around her – one that spans decades of Indian cinema through rare archival photographs, studio portraits, film stills, and painted portraiture. “Each frame carries profound memories and immortalises the character, the subject, the artist, the visualiser, and all who helped create that frame. Each poster takes us down memory lane,” she said. The tribute wall for Dharmendra shares space with one dedicated to Asha Bhosle, who passed away on April 12 at the age of 92. Two giants, gone within months of each other. The NGMA director, Nidhi Choudhari, had already anticipated the emotional weight this would carry: the tribute walls, she said, felt “both natural and necessary”. “Mumbai was conferred the prestigious UNESCO Creative City of Films recognition in 2019. This year, when we were invited to collaborate on an exhibition celebrating Indian cinema and Mumbai, it felt like the perfect opportunity to honour that milestone. The core vision of ‘Lens & Legacy’ is to celebrate Mumbai’s identity by tracing the rich visual and cultural journey of Indian cinema through archival and contemporary lenses.” she said. The event drew Maharashtra Governor Jishnu Dev Varma and Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar alongside a gathering of film personalities. Actress Poonam Dhillon arrived with an energy that balanced the evening’s more sombre notes. She emphasised photography’s role in preserving life’s fleeting joys, telling reporters, “Photos capture what time erases. I’ve always adored getting clicked; now, everyone wants those old pictures back.” She laughed recounting how she was once teased for her love of being photographed, and how that same quality is now what makes those images invaluable. Standing before the portraits of Dharmendra and Asha Bhosle, though, the lightness gave way. Through CINTAA, she offered a formal tribute to both legends, highlighting Asha Bhosle’s iconic track Tu Tu from her own career peak, and hailing Dharmendra as cinema’s ultimate icon. Photographer Avinash Gowariker, who contributed works to the exhibition at NGMA director Nidhi Choudhari’s invitation, brought a cross-generational sweep to the show — his photographs span from Amitabh Bachchan to rising stars Ahaan Shetty and Ananya Panday. He offered a note of caution on the future of the craft: “Digital eased processes, but wisdom in application is key.” The exhibition itself is a formidable undertaking. Curated by Shruti Das, Deputy Curator of NGMA Mumbai, it brings together works by photojournalists Pradeep Chandra, Shantanu Das, Sudharak Olwe, and Bandeep Singh, alongside a meticulous archival section assembled by SMM Ausaja — archivist, author, and film historian — covering the 1930s through the 1960s. Neha Kamat, granddaughter of pioneering photographer Damodar Kamat, rounds out the curatorial ensemble. Veteran photographer Pradeep Chandra, whose career stretches more than five decades, put it simply: what was once a spontaneous act of documentation has become irreplaceable history. A photograph of Amitabh Bachchan at RK Studios. Dev Anand at Bombay Central. Images made without commissions, without intent, that now carry the weight of eras that no longer exist. The exhibition, free to all, will remain on view for 45 days, closing June 13, 2026.
