Holiday Films, Xmas to Holi

Santa Claus vs. the Devil, Hazelnuts for Cinderella and more

Welcome to Vignettes, our new weekly cabinet of curiosities. It’s part of our just-launched set of expanded offerings. Here you’ll find unexpected facts, intimate portraits of interesting people, interviews and more. Vignettes is for paid subscribers—thank you for your support! If you’re not yet a paid subscriber, what are you waiting for?

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Unknown/Cinematográfica Calderón S.A., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Pre-dating the Dr. Seuss book The Grinch Who Stole Christmas by two years, the 1959 Mexican classic Santa Claus follows the Devil's plot against Santa Claus—and Santa's battle to save Christmas. Directed by René Cardona, a Cuban-born giant of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, the movie’s title, Santa Claus, was translated into English as Santa Claus vs. the Devil.

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When the Bollywood film Sholay was released in 1975, it was so popular that it screened at the same Mumbai theater for five years. In perhaps its most famous scene, the characters sing "Holi Ke Din," as they celebrate the Hindu Festival of Colors and the plot reaches a dramatic peak.

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The Swedes have a beloved tradition of watching the 1958 Donald Duck special, Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul (Donald Duck and His Friends Wish You a Merry Christmas) at 3pm on Christmas Eve. Every year, around 40 percent of the population tunes into Sweden’s main public television channel to watch this special—in fact, in 2016, during the airing of the special, cell data usage fell 29 percent.