Shah Rukh Khan takes credit step to honour women

Plus, survey names greatest Indian actor, actress, film, director and composer.

Shah Rukh Khan, left, with actresses Anushka Sharma, right, and Katrina Kaif. AFP

SRK takes credit step to honour women

The Indian film superstar Shah Rukh Khan says he will ensure that the names of his female co-stars precede his in the credits of his forthcoming films in order to help change attitudes towards women in India. Khan told the NDTV news channel on Thursday that the change will begin with his next film, Chennai Express, which is currently under production. Khan, 47, is one of Bollywood's biggest stars. Male superstars in India are seen as the big draw for audiences and their names usually come first as a film's credits roll. In Bollywood films, for the most part, the female lead's job is to make the male protagonist look good, according to the actor, who says he wants to help change this tradition. – AP

Survey: NTR greatest actor in India

The late Telugu actor and former chief minister Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao has been named the greatest Indian actor of all time, while Sridevi was voted the best actress, in a CNN-IBN Poll survey conducted in celebration of 100 years of Indian cinema. NTR took 53 per cent of the total votes, while the actor and filmmaker Kamal Haasan received 44 per cent of rest of the votes. The southern actors Rajkumar and Mohanlal came in third and fourth. Sridevi, who recently made a comeback with English Vinglish, garnered 39 per cent of the votes, while Madhuri Dixit and Savitri finished second and third respectively. Aishwarya Rai, Saroja Devi, Madhubala and Smita Patil also received votes. Mani Ratnam's 1987 action-drama Nayagan, starring Kamal Haasan, won 42 per cent of votes to be named India's greatest film, while Ramesh Sippy's Sholay (1975) finished second. Rounding out the top five are Swayamvaram (1972), Mughal-E-Azam (1960) and Pather Panchali (1955). Among the directors, Mani Ratnam was voted India's greatest director and earned 29 per cent of the votes. The Tamil director K Balachander placed second and Satyajit Ray finished third. Illayaraja garnered 49 per cent votes to be named India's greatest music composer, while the Oscar-winner A?R Rahman took the second spot. – IANS