25 Years of Dil Toh Paagal Hain

DIL TOH PAAGAL HAIN

completes 25 Years today.

Hard to comprehend how it was not mentioned by any of our contributors.

Finally I decided to cover it.

DTPH may not be as popular as DDLJ or some other Yash Chopra hits , however it is memorable as it brought together Madhuri, Karishma and Shahrukh.. all three stalwarts of that period with Akshay Kumar added in.

The plot revolves around the idea of love of three people: Pooja (Madhuri Dixit), Rahul (ShahRukh Khan) and Nisha (Karishma Kapur). Pooja believes in soulmates and that there's someone made for everyone. Rahul doesn't believe in love, and neither in the fact that you can live all your life with just one person. Nisha believes that love lies within friendship and that friendship will one day blossom into love. The film is about their journey of friendship, love, their passion for dance, heartbreaks, and, above all, hope. The moral of the story is that the heart is crazy, and no matter how much you avoid it, it will eventually lead you to your true destination of where your heart really belongs. To add is the charector of Ajay (Akshay Kumar) who is the fiancee of Pooja.

The story is fairly simple, and may be the only thing lacking in the movie. Rahul, a director, starts with describing a new play that his performing team is going to put on "Maya", translated as "illusion". The lone female dancer in his team is Nisha . Nisha, madly in love with Rahul, once tells him about her love. As Rahul starts making this play with Nisha in the lead as "Maya", she gets injured, and the real "Maya", Pooja arrives. Pooja is arranged to marry Ajay , a businessman from London. Pooja takes the part as Maya hesitantly. From there, the story rolls to the finale quite peacefully.

The music director, Uttam Singh, relatively unknown before this album released (except for a few albums in the eighties), reached a high with his compositions. Anand Bakshi’s mastered the lyrics one more time. The songs and the Dance of Envy were stupendous hits.

The choreography and technical aspects of the direction during the songs show off the real beauty of Yash Raj Films. Yash Chopra’s direction stresses his experience and delicate handling of the movie.

The movie swept away most of the awards of the year including all major awards at the Filmfare Awards in 1997 such as Best Film, Best Actor (Shah Rukh Khan), Best Actress (Madhuri Dixit), Best Supporting Actress (Karishma Kapur), Best Art Direction, Best Music Direction, and Best Dialogue. And not only this, the film also swept away two National Awards apart from many other public and critic awards.

All actors have done their job well however considering that Karishma was not the first choice for Nisha ( Kajol, Raveena and even Juhi Chawla were considered) one feels she owned the role (I am by no means a fan of Karishma Kapoor). Pooja (Maya) is mystically played by Madhuri..

And Rahul ..Naam toh Suna hi Hoga.

Available on YashRaj Video and Paid You Tube.

Image is of CD of the film.

Vinod Mehra and Ghar (1978)

Today is a tribute to a complete actor but low profile Gentleman who never got due recognition in Bollywood inspite of being part of many successful films

Vinod Mehra whose death Anniversary falls today. ( 30.10.1990).

Recently I did a post on his only Production and Semi-directed Guri Dev. 

Today I'm Revisiting his Classic Film Ghar..

Vikas Chandra( Vinod Mehra)and Aarti (Rekha ) marry each other after the boy's rich father opposes the match. He is put off by the fact that Aarti is an orphan, and not wealthy at all. But, Vikas will not relent. For, Aarti is a wonderful person. Ebullient and attractive, she loves Vikas dearly. So, as expected, Vikas is shown the door by his father when the couple tie the knot. Stripped of his ancestral belongings and rights, Vikas and Aarti now struggle to find a decent place to settle down (it is Mumbai ( Bombay) after all!). And, after much running from pillar to post, they get hold of a good house. Aarti takes up the cudgels of decorating the house and soon the couple is seen enjoying conjugal bliss. Aarti is the homemaker and Vikas earns a decent sum to feed both of them and cough up enough money to pay the bills. All is well till one doomed night...

One Evening Vikas and Aarti go to catch a night show of Loafer. The show breaks past midnight. They decide to walk home in the absence of proper transport. A pack of leery louts riding a cab attack the couple on the way. They assault Vikas and abduct Aarti. Next morning when Vikas gains consciouness, he somehow staggers to a police station. Tension mounts till Vikas gets the news of Aarti lying unconscious in the hospital. She has been assaulted and gangraped, a trauma that has numbed her to silence...

Their happy existence is rudely shattered. Life changes for ever. Their privacy is gone. As is their joy. The man feels hounded and guilty. The woman is numb with shock and defiled.

The challenge now is to put their lives in order all over again. Both are still tranced and the way they cope up during this difficult transition forms the core of Ghar.

What is incredible about the film is the enormous sensitivity displayed by Vinod Mehra and Rekha in enacting a grim subject like this. Their love for each other is so touching that it pains you to see them go through this ordeal. Yet, it is this very edifice of love that triumphs and lays the base for a new beginning. 

Those amazing eyes! Those large, luminous eyes of Rekha revealing a lot, concealing a little more (The song Aapki Aankhon Main is apt). That wonderful smile of Vinod Mehra dissolving into eternity. That unparalleled chemistry between the two. They made ordinary moments appear extraordinary. And did even better with the special ones. Add to that some remarkably soothing tunes of R.D. Burman, an under-celebrated master then. And very, very Gulzar-like lyrics from the peerless Gulzar and you have a film that breathes, no lives, through its lead pair and its songs.  the hugely popular “Aaj kal paun zameen par nahin padte mere”, “Aapki aankhon mein kuchch” , “Tere bina jiya jaye na” and "Phir Wahi Raat hain"  are remembered as classics even today.

In many ways, the film is Rekha’s arrival card. Until then she was used for a couple of songs and dances as the hero’s sweetheart. Manik was the first to give her a role that gave her ample opportunity to prove her acting credentials. She does not let go of the opportunity. The common man might easily recall “Umrao Jaan” and “Muqaddar ka Sikandar” among Rekha’s early notable ventures. But truly it was “Ghar” that laid the foundation. Of course, Vinod Mehra is suitably charming as a lover boy and pretty mature as the helpless husband. Not to forget Dinesh Thakur and Prema Narayan with their moments of vim and shine.

Ghar in 1978 was up against three top Bachchan starrers – Muqaddar Ka Sikander, Trishul and Don –but found a place for itself in history. It won an award for best story.

It was said about Vinod Mehra that he knew how to live every character. He played the hero, hero's friend, policeman, lawyer or even the occasional Villian or grey shades (Like in Takkar and Khuddhar)

However Vinod Mehra never did quite crack the big league in Hindi cinema as he was part of an era which had a plethora of saleable stars right from Amitabh Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna to Shashi Kapoor and Dharmendra. Yet, his sensitive portrayals in Lal Patthar, Amar Prem, Anuraag, Anurodh , Bemisal, Jurmana and, of course, Ghar will always be remembered. Vinod Mehra died when he was just 45, a sad end for someone who did not quite have a Megastar status but whose talent was never in doubt.

Ghar is streaming on Disney Hotstar and also has a copy by Ultra Video on YouTube.

Images : Pin Interest , IMDb

Muqaddar Ka Sikander 44 Years

Yesterday 27th October

Muqaddar Ka Sikander completed 44 years.

which was a big hit and the highest grosser of the year which had 5 other releases of Amitabh Bachchan (Including Don, Trishul, Kasme Vaade).

MKS was the fourth movie of Amitabh Bachchan with Prakash Mehra.

Muqaddar ka Sikandar was also the 5th movie in a row which had these two top stars in parallel hero roles, the other four being Hera Pheri, Khoon Pasina Parvarish and Amar Akbar Anthony. 

This was an action movie but with an undercurrent of Devdas.

But the film was so radically mainstream that the complex imprint of Devdas was rendered almost unrecognisable.

The ‘Devdas complex’—the trope of pining over an unattainable love—as many researchers call it today is one of Hindi cinema’s mainstays. In Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Mehra used it to the hilt to create a larger-than-life sympathetic character, Sikandar (ironically named after the conqueror), and win over his massive audience.

Who can forget the iconic dialogue by Kadar Khan ( and performed by him too )

“Sukh ko thokar maar, dukh ko apna. Arre sukh to bewafa hai, chand dinon ke liye aata hai aur chala jaata hai, dukh to apna saathi hai, apne saath rehta hai. Dukh ko apna le. Taqdeer tere kadmon me hogi aur tu Muqaddar ka Badshah hoga.”

Now if Sikandar is Devdas we have Memsaab or Kaamna as Paro.. other characters from Devdas do appear. Nautch girl Chandramukhi becomes Zohra Begum (Rekha) while Chunni Babu becomes Pyarelal Awara (Ram Sethi).

On major deviations we have Vinod Khanna's charecter Vishaal and Amjad Khan as Dilawar who loves Zohra ( to complete the equation

A loves B loves C and D is fond of A but D is adored by E.

A to E can be identified by the readers 😀.

The story is epic and iconic so won't elaborate.

Kudos to Prakash Mehra

Unlike Bimal Roy before him, or Bhansali after him, he wasn’t interested in examining the psyche of his protagonist. His pursuit was to please his audience which he did.

Kader Khan’s work in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, conveying an array of characters through dialogue, is considered among his best ever in a film that was designed to be a crowd pleasing star-vehicle for Amitabh Bachchan who was at his Zenith 

And the star overpowered everyone and everything with his larger-than-life screen presence.

As the end-credit tagline of Muqaddar Ka Sikandar reads, it’s ‘a film to remember’.

48 Years of Roti Kapda aur Makaan

#blastfromthepast 

ROTI KAPADA AUR MAKAAN (48 years)

18th October 1974

For those who read my tribute to Amitabh Bachchan on his birthday may remember that I had mentioned that my tryst with him began with this movie.

A star-spangled melodrama about love, betrayal and unemployment, RKAM saw Manoj return to the role of the Every-man Bharat,( after Upkar, Purab Aur Pashchim & Shor) The conscience of the nation pricked by the growing corruption in our society and by the inability of the common man to cope with the pressures of compromised living. While Upkar was inspired by Lal Bahadur Shastri’s slogan Jai jawan jai kisan, RKAM found its inspiration in Indira Gandhi’s Garabi hatao slogan. 

The plot is very well thought out and is directed to perfection by Manoj. It revolves around Bharat (Manoj) who after studying for years and getting a degree can´t get a job; He has two younger brothers at home Vijay (Amitabh Bachchan) and Bharat (Dheeraj Kumar), an ailing father, worried mother and a young sister. He also has a girlfriend (Zeenat Aman) who wants Bharat to get a job and fulfil her dreams in life. These dreams consist of a nice house, lots of travelling and a nice car. She loves Bharat for his honesty - the one thing that he is proud to have. Bharat has a fight with his brother Vijay after which he leaves home and vows to return only after he has become something. In the meantime Sheetal (Zeenat) gets a job and starts falling for the charms of the lovely Mr. Kapoor (Shashi Kapoor). Bharat loses Sheetal to Mr Kapoor. He finally gets a job at a construction site where he meets Moushmi Chatterjee. She is a victim of rape and is now bringing up the son that happened after the incident and a happy-go-lucky Sardar (Prem Nath). Bharat loses his father after an incident and gets done for jail after he tries to steal the medicine for his father. His father passes away and Bharat vows to become a rich man even if that means losing his honesty! How Bharat becomes a rich man, gets all his needs in life but loses his self-respect is what forms the rest of the story. In the meantime Vijay returns as a die-hard army officer and his other brother becomes a police officer. Little do they know that their idol of a brother has become a corrupt don.

In terms of performance everyone gives a great performance and lives up to their role. Manoj Kumar has never been a mind blowing actor-but it´s his character and mannerisms that enabled him to succeed

Amitabh Bachchan as Vijay ROCKS! He exudes his regressed anger which was later coined as "Angry Young Man".His role is shorter than Manoj´s but his character is one that the audience instantly LOVE! Right from his entrance his dialogues and delivery is just pure dynamite. His re-entrance into the movie as an Army Officer with one arm is also great. Infact when the movie re-released Amitabh Bachchan was on the forefront of the posters and publicity.

Zeenat Aman as Sheetal was pretty good too. She oozed oomph and in “Hai Hai Yeh Majboori”. She acts gracefully and her scenes with Manoj are great special mention in the climax. Shashi Kapoor is good in his role too; he doesnt have much to do but looks good as the law abiding citizen.

Moushumi Chatterjee was very competent in her role. She looked gorgeous and was amazing in the emotional scenes. Just witness the scene where she loses her kid and dad in the sewers. Madan Puri made a pretty ace villain and everyone else in the cast did their part well. Prem Nath also performs well and deserves a special mention. Dheeraj Kumar as the third brother throws in the Deewar angle which came 4 months later.

Music had always been a strongpoint in Manoj Kumar films and remains the same here. All songs are chartbusters.

The song Mehngayi Mar Gayi from the film still rings true. With the spectre of welfare freebies turning inflationary, it can be considered a song of all times.

My favourite "Aur Nahin Bus Aur Nahin" and "Main Na Bhoolonga" are lovely renderiyng and Lyrics.

Technically the film is also pretty good and he introduces fight master Veeru Devgan here.

Also Nariman Irani is the Cinematographer and the germ of "Don" was born during the second shooting schedule of this film as Chandra Barot was assistant to Manoj Kumar.

Roti Kapda Aur Makaan remains one of the highlights from classic Indian cinema with strong themes, affecting performances and timeless music from the greats.

42 Years of Dostana

42 years of Dostana

17th October 1980 

Released 40 years ago this day Dostana never makes the cut when it comes to the oeuvres of the people involved — it would not feature in the top-five Salim-Javed scripts, or the best of Raj Khosla, Amitabh Bachchan, and Shatrughan Sinha’s filmographies.

Although a commercial success when it first released, the film itself appears to fall short of its potential considering the names attached. While Dostana’s plot more than qualifies to be fully ‘filmi’- childhood friends Vijay (Amitabh Bachchan), a cop and Ravi (Shatrughan Sinha), a lawyer, often find themselves on opposing sides of law – Vijay nabs bad guys and Ravi represents them in the court of law – they never let anything come in between till both of them end up falling for the same woman, Sheetal (Zeenat Aman) – it’s probably the only love triangle attempted by screenwriters 

Salim Javed .

On the face of it, Dostana is typical 1980s film that packs in a little of everything in terms of standard Hindi cinema fare. Yet, beneath all this, Dostana has a few things going for it and perhaps this is why the film still continues to work its magic in a silent but resolute manner. Directed by Raj Khosla, Dostana is the first film that was produced by the late Yash Johar, who is today better known Karan Johar’s father. Yash Johar had originally wanted Vijay Anand to direct the film but incessant delays on the filmmaker's part to commit, saw Johar approach Raj Khosla through a common thread ( Navketan ).

The other thing that separates Dostana from all the other Salim-Javed scripts is that along with Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973) it might be the only other film where music plays a vital role in the narrative. It is not as if Salim-Javed films do not feature memorable music but almost every single script of theirs is chiseled to near perfection and this often makes the need for songs almost irrelevant.

Dostana is one of the few movies done by Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha together and both of them have done superbly. Alongwith the seasoned writers, the seasoned director (Raj Khosla) has also left no stone unturned in utilizing the talent and the popularity of the twosome to the optimum. Zeenat Aman was at the peak of her career at that time and she has completed the glamour quota alongwith some good acting too. Pran, Prem Chopra and Helen have also done exceedingly well. The character of Helen is such in the script that it takes you aback as the story heads towards its ending scene. All others are also perfectly in place.

Technically and production value wise, the movie is up to the mark. Editing is sharp. The fight and chase sequences have been executed very well the climax is superb. The narrator has not allowed the momentum of the movie to slacken at any place.The courtroom scenes involving Shatrughan Sinha (playing the role of a criminal lawyer) are quite impressive and the seasoned script-writers who are the dialog-writers as well have shown their class once again. Despite being too simplistic, the court-room scenes are just too good and must have been able to generate claps in the theatres when this movie was released. And keeping the angry young man image of the larger than life hero - Amitabh Bachchan, scenes have been written specially for him. The scene in which Amitabh slaps Prem Chopra's man (Amrish Puri) in his presence is highly effective and quite in line with the towering personality of the legendary hero of the Indian cinema.

There is a good balance between romance and comedy on one hand and action and thrill on the other in the script. The friendship of the heroes and its breakage proves to be the icing on the cake.

Amitabh Bachchan was outstanding and his equation with Zeenat Aman and Shatrughan Sinha is played with equal aplomb. A feast for his fans.

Seen in first week at Chitra Dadar .

I think main theatre was Eros.

Zeenat Aman played the sole heroine with two competing heroes in 3 movies in 1980. She played a role in Dostana with Amitabh & Shatrughan, Qurbani with Vinod Khanna and Feroz Khan, and Bombay 405 miles with Shatrughan & Vinod Khanna. Truly in Demand

Doctor G A review

Doctor G

Knowing Ayushmann Khurana's penchant for doing different track cinema with a lining of comic timing one goes to this film in expectation of something slapstick. A Thought passed if it would be an extension of Munna Bhai MBBS or and Vicky Donor or even an inspiration from Carry on Doctor (1967).

It's not so.

Doctor G is a typical Ayushmann Khurrana film. It’s about a small town ( Here Bhopal) guy, stuck in a situation that society considers unusual. Over time, with the help of his family and friends, he learns that there is more to life than people’s perceptions and he overcomes his hesitations and embraces his flaws.

Doctor G is the story of a reluctant gynaecology Masters student Uday Gupta (Ayushmann Khurrana) who lives in Bhopal with his mother Shobha (Sheeba Chadha). His best friend is Chaddi (Abhay Mishra) who is also his tenant and an IAS aspirant. Thanks to Uday's apparent low marks and rank, he is not able to get into his favourite stream orthopaedics. He is asked to opt for gynaecology. His orthopaedic cousin Ashok (Indraneil Sengupta), who is also his role model, asks him to take up gynaecology and keeps trying to get a better rank next year so that he can try for orthopaedics again. Uday begins his course and he is the only male in his batch. He gets into a tiff with his batchmates and the head of the department, Dr. Nandini Srivastava (Shefali Shah) who detests him for not being passionate about the course. Hence, his life is hell. Also, his girlfriend Richa breaks up with him after she complains that he’s too possessive and also that he doesn’t understand women. Meanwhile, he slowly gets interested in the course and becomes a close friend of Fatima (Rakul Preet Singh), who is also in the same batch and develops a crush on her .

She tries explaining to Uday that they should remain friends and that they can’t get into a relationship. But due to Uday’s immaturity and his misogynistic attitude, he fails to understand Fatima’s point of view. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

It’s like two different movies pre & post the interval where the first half will give you a proper ‘humour/drama’ balance but the second half would leave you thinking did you really like the first hour so much to enjoy this overall? Credit where it’s due, it’s really funny where it should be as there are multiple moments which will leave you in splits.

Coming to the performances

Ayushmann Khurana is amazing with his skills as an actor and this film showcases the same,

Rakul Preet’s subtle-yet-quirky performance is balanced and she looks pretty. Shefali Shah and her ingenious presence add the desired weight to Dr Nandini’s school of thought but the character arc remains pretty weak by the climax.

Sheeba Chaddha plays the role of a forward mother turning romantic & her crafty ways of approaching the character help to be with her in the scene.

Then there is a parallel track of Kavya (Ayesha Kaduskar)

No spoilers..

I enjoyed the film

Rating 3.5 * stars.

Happy Birthday Amitabh Bachchan #ab80

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMIT JI

A HEARTFELT ASSOCIATION WITH YOU

ALERT : Very Long Post 

It's 11th October. Amitabh Bachchan completes 80 years and 53 years of entertaining us. It was 1969 he made his debut. I was just 5 years old. In 1970 we left for Brighton England for my Fathers doctorate, ( before which in 1969 a superstar came on the horizon in form of Rajesh Khanna I remember the last movie we saw before leaving India was Aradhana). We were in England for almost 4 years. So I missed the phenomena of Rajesh Khanna and the blooming of Amitabh Bachchan. I remember the first movie I saw was Roti Kapada aur Makaan it was 1974 at Heer Palace Kanpur. I fell in love with the charismatic character of Vijay .

The second movie I remember was Benaam. A suspense thriller and my admiration for him increased. This was followed by Majboor and reruns of Anand Namak Haraam and Abhimaan.

I used to ask my parents to take me to see his releases.We had to try thrice before we could see Deewar and Sholay both released in the year of emergency 1975. Faraar, Chupke Chupke and Mili were the first movies I saw more than once in those days as a 11 year old. .

After almost 2and half months during my Diwali Vacation of 1975, we finally got tickets to Sholay. The movie then was ruthlessly edited with Asranis scenes as also Jayas Holi Scenes being cut . But that movie had a great impact on me, esp the character of Jai.

It was later in 1976 in its Golden Jubilee week we saw Deewaar.

After Deewar I was totally smitten with Amitji, I used to tie a knot on my shirt like he did. Since then somehow or the other I saw every movie released.

In 1979 in 9th Standard I bunked school and went to see The Great Gambler ( which my parents would not allow as it was for Adults ). In Pune I understood the concept of Advance Booking, where bookings for a movie used to open on Monday and if one wished to see a film First day then that booking needed to be done. I remember that I saw Muqaddar Ka Sikander 4 times on the trot in 4 days.

 Sholay I saw there 5 times in a week, this was thankfully the uncut version .

It is a well-known chapter of Indian film history beginning with the release of Prakash Mehra’s Zanjeer in 1973 which turned Amitabh into a goldmine—.

This movie I finally got to see first on DD and in the theatre as late as 1980 during a re-run. Smouldering in the Salim-Javed dialogues and refracted through the Amitabh flamboyance fired the imagination of a whole nation as nothing had ever done before a trend which was carried ahead in Deewar, Sholay,Trishul, Don, Kaala Pathhar, Shaan, Shakti.

Standing in the Advance Booking Queues from 7am on the Monday of the release week that's another experience.

From Pune used to go for Summer Vacations to Mumbai and saw many movies there. Namak Halaal, Dostana, Desh Premee, Mahaan were all seen there.

Once I decided to go and visit his house, then Prateeksha. I had gone alone and after I reached just looked at the house in awe.

I always used to think if I could ever meet him, see him.

Thats a long story and long time ahead.

One incident I remember that in 1991, my father was travelling from Delhi to Mumbai,( and from Mumbai to Pune by road, as Pune airport was not functional then). On reaching home he asked me during dinner , guess who was next to me on the flight ( He was eligible for Business Class then ). I couldn’t guess and he told me, your favourite Amitabh Bachchan. I was zapped, I said Dad did you get his autograph ? Dad replied, “why should I , Iam not his fan, when you meet him, take it"

Cut to 1994 , I had won the All India award for Best Sales performance and the award was to be given at Mumbai. We were invited to Mumbai and put up at Ajantha Ambassador hotel.  As I reached the Hotel, I saw a Mercedes Van coming out of the gate, I wowed it and came to the reception where my colleague told me “You should have come a bit earlier, Amitabh Bachchan was in the lobby to pick up Jaya Ji {who had her office on the second floor ( Saraswati Audiovisuals, the makers of the TV hit series Dekh Bhai Dekh). So I Mercedes I saw was his 

The Journey moved on..

Insipte of the ups and downs, odds and evens Amitabh’s box-office records can be described only in superlatives. Producers and distributors seemed to believe still that “even a flop with Amitabh’s name on the marquee is a good enough grosser”, which was proved by the trade.

His image of the “angry young man” had viewers reeling under the magic of neorealism, where dream and daydream coalesced in a brave new world. The myriad manifestations of Amitabh’s no-holds-barred rebellion offered a blissful release to the repressions of a whole generation. The star became a cult figure of radical dynamism, of iconoclastic change.  The Amitabh archetype continues to reflect variations on a simplistic mould, magnified to a brilliant potency; it has now become part of the collective psyche of a nation of filmgoers. Amitabh individuates his roles with the utmost confidence and conviction. He makes the unsubtle seem subtle, touches the crass with class, makes melodrama credible. Certainly, no other Indian actor had the speaking eyes and spellbinding voice to infuse nuanced suggestivity into stereotypical situations. His finesse did not alienate his characters from the masses.

In the mid 90s he moved towards central Character roles .

Then in 2000 came the super hit T.V. show ‘Kaun Banega Carorepati’ anchored by Amitabh. It gave an entire new life to his career which was under the dark shadow.

Finally out of the blue came the date, 12thNovember 2018.

The prelude to this date was the fact that I had connected to Amitji on all his social media accounts , also my senior colleague  DrManoj Mehta who was an active participant of ABEF ( Amitabh Bachchan extended Family ), offered us a chance to be a spectator at the KBC show , we ( My friend / ex senior from Godrej Sanjay Pandey  , and ex Mahyco colleague Kapil Sharma  ) . The date was 12th November. It was the last week of shooting of that season. We reached the sets at Film City at 2 pm sharp but had a long wait till 8pm till we were finally seated, alas in the third row. It was another wait for an hour before the shoot began. Finally at @ 9.00pm he came in a Maroon Suit, seeing him I froze.. There he was some 25 feet away from me. Very interactive with the crowd, very sportive, responding to our comments and jokes. How almost 4 hours past, and it was well after 12am that the photos he has with the audience started and well after 1 am that he left. Look at his dedication reached the sets at 9 am completed 2 episode shoots and left at 1 am. He had just turned 76 then. I had finally seen with my eyes, my hero , my idol, or even if I may say My god.

But better things were ahead, The 2019 edition of KBC started in August 2019.

We had epressed our wish to be a participant again. It was 18th July, at 7.12 pm got a message from Dr Manoj that we could attend the shoot on 6thAugust as the show restarted on 5th August. This time the procedure was different. There was an online procedure which need to be followed up with the invite.

We did that. But July end, rains started in Mumbai and Pune, everywhere there were spells of flooding, roads closed. Sanjay and Myself were the only two left from Pune and a friend of Sanjay, Kailash Agarwal was to join us at Mumbai.

The forecast was rains, we debated till late evening weather to go or quit, but the urge of seeing him was so much that we decided to take the risk.

We reached at 3 pm sharp , but this time there wasn’t a long wait. We enrolled ourselves and it was an hour and half later that we were inside. This time being enrolled from the ABEF , we got privileged entry, and were in the first row.

Oh what a feeling it was !! Another hour Later Big B made his majestic entry. Again he was interactive with the crowd, and the shooting ended at 8.30 pm.

Then the photographs moments came. Finally he was in front of me, I had taken a token gift for him, which he accepted. Took his Biography along which he autographed. I was trembling in joy as I shook hands with him, talked to him, it lasted a minute but the emotions were beyond eternity.

This year after a two year gap again KBC happened and that too from VIP Gallery ..

Finally at the age of 55 & 58  and 45 years of being his devoted fan later I got to meet him.

Just last Friday his latest film Good Bye released..but certainly there is no Good Bye from him in reality for many years ahead.

Nobody else ever had this deadly combination of unmatched talent and charisma and nobody else will ever have it in future. Then there was style, polish and a great deal of seclusion encouraging rumours and augmenting the aura. Anyway one looked at it, the man radiates power. To recapitulate there has only been one super star in India, and that is Amitabh Bachchan

Thank You for reading and for your patience 🙏

BACK TO BEGINNING : AMITABH BACHCHAN FILM FESTIVAL DAY 1

BACHCHAN BACK TO BEGINNING

DAY 1

DEEWAR

Yesterday I saw Deewar on day one of the Amitabh Bachchan Back to Beginning film festival.

MEMORIES

I remember seeing Deewar for the first time in its Golden Jubilee Week in Kanpur.

26th January 1976.

Earlier we missed the opportunity during 1975.

My tryst with Amitabh Bachchan started with Roti Kapda Aur Makaan and then later saw his earlier films in reruns.

I remember the impact Deewar had on me. After the movie we went shopping and I insisted on buying a shirt larger than my size then so I could tie a knot to it. My parents were not amused but allowed it. 

Exactly a year later in January 1977 we had gone to see

Imaan Dharam, but it was House Full (Yes it has a great start but it fizzled out subsequently). In a theatre nearby Deewar had been re-released and we saw it a second time.

After that we shifted to Pune and I used to see the movie whenever it was released in Morning shows or otherwise.

I last remember seeing it twice in Amravati at Prabhat Theatre in 1984-85 where it had released as a stop gap arrangement.

That was the 25th and 26th time I saw this classic.

Since then I regularly watch it on the small screen and also have a DVD of the same.

Yesterday thanks to this festival I saw it a 27th time.

What an experience..

The Ceetees..the Dialogues being recited by the excited and enthusiastic public. 

मैं आज भी फेंके हुए पैसे नहीं उठाता

मैं यहां तुम्हारा इंतजार कर रहा हूं

ये सड़क क्या पीटर के बाप की है?

etc etc

The awe at which the new current generation was seeing this classic was a stupendous experience.

Looking ahead to the other films to be seen over the next 3 days till his birthday on 11th.

I will pen similar memoirs of all the selected films.

GOOD BYE..A first Day Review

GOOD BYE

Hum Aapke Hain Kaun had come across as a film which was called Story of a Wedding and after.

Good Bye can be called Story of a Funeral and after.

The film is about a dysfunctional family of Harish Bhalla ( Amitabh Bachchan) his wife Gayatri ( Neena Gupta) and his two sons and a daughter Tara (Rashmika Mandhana). They also have an adopted son Angad and an almost adopted house help.

The film starts with Tara who is shown a budding lawyer  winning her first case and hence goes out to party.

Her mother Gayatri (Neena Gupta) calls and messages but Tara ignores it and the phone discharges. The next day, her father Harish (Amitabh Bachchan) calls and that's when she learns that Gayatri has passed away. (She lives in with her boyfriend Mudassar (Shivan Narang).)

Tara rushes to her hometown, Chandigarh to be with Harish.

As mentioned Harish has three more children - Karan (Pavail Gulati) who is abroad and married to Daisy (Ellie Avaram), Nakul and an adopted son, Angad. All of them are away. Karan and Angad also book the first available flight to Chandigarh. Nakul, meanwhile, is unreachable as he is on a trek (His story and track is not well established). Tara is the first one to reach. She and Harish don’t see eye to eye and both clash over the funeral ceremony type. Harish also gets upset with Karan and Angad as he feels that they don't seem moved by their mother's demise. Harish's behaviour leads to induced disharmony in the house ( A bit extension of Baghban but just that small portion). But all of them have no choice. They have to stay together under one roof for a few days. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

The story is relatable and well-intentioned. Most of us will be able to relate to certain goings-on and moments in their own lives 

I personally recollected the moments after my mother passed 14 years back and father five years ago and confess had me teary eyed.

However the emotional quotient is accompanied by underlying humour which is unique and never looks forced or out of place.The tracks of the neighbourhood aunties and P P Singh (Ashish Vidyarthi) are funny. They are very relatable as we have all come across such people at funerals. The scene where the family members imagine Gayatri is talking to them is sweet and well edited. The Haridwar track in the second half, involving Pandit ji (Sunil Grover) is also entertaining and enlightening.

Amitabh Bachchan, as always, gives his best and delivers a bravura performance. The way he brings out the sadness and anger over the situation is beautifully portrayed ( There is also an animated portion of him as he narrates the story of his marriage). Rashmika Mandanna has a fine screen presence.(I couldn't believe she was the lass Srivalli of "Pushpa".) Unfortunately having a Panjabi premise , her noticable accent seems out of place but she has given a first rate performance for her first nondubbed Hindi film. Her eyes do a lot of talking indeed.

The rest have done their roles well including their pet "Stupid".

Amit Trivedi's music is well woven into the film. 'Jaikal Mahakal', 'Chann Pardesi' and 'Maaye' are quite touching. 'The Hic Song' is peppy. His background music is also very apt. 

If anything the film slips in the second half with many loose ends not connected.

However I will give it **** ( Four stars ) for meaningful emotions and Amitabh Bachchan who delivers this just 4 days before his 80th birthday.

Baaghban

Today is 19th Release Anniversary of Baghban.

A film which was scripted and was to be made in the 1973 ( after Daastaan) by B.R.Chopra with Dilip Kumar and Rakhee, but she opted out and later he fell ill. It never got made.

B.R.Chopra went on to launch his son Ravi Chopra in Zameer .

Irony was that 20 years later Ravi Chopra revived the project and cast Big B and Hema Malini. Certain changes were made in the script to make it relevant with the time, but the core essence of the script remained the same.

BAGHBAN is the story of Raj Malhotra (Amitabh Bachchan), his wife Pooja (Hema Malini) and their four sons (Aman Verma, Samir Soni, Sahil Chadda, Nasir )

They have an adopted son, Alok (Salman Khan). Arpita (Mahima Chaudhry) is his wife. After retirement, when Raj expresses his desire to stay with his sons (not Alok, because he is currently abroad), they are none too pleased. They come up with this plan of splitting the two of them, knowing fully well how much their parents love each other, with the thought that the two would refuse.

Pooja does not see through their scheme. Raj does. But she manages to convince him. So, they split up with the intent of staying on a rotation basis with each of their sons. It's needless to say how unwelcome they are made to feel there.

During his stay, Raj pens down his life on the insistence of his friend Hemant (Paresh Rawal) and his wife Shanti (Lilette Dubey).

Finally when both of them find things difficult to handle ,they leave their sons home and decide to stay together. Sometime, Alok happens to find them ( He owns a car agency and Raj test drives that very car and is humiliated by Alokama store Manager. Alok takes the manager to task and is overjoyed to be able to take care of them.

Raj's memoirs are titled Baghban and  becomes a best-seller, and also wins the Booker Prize .

In the climax speech, Amitabh Bachchan speaks about the relationship between children and parents metaphorically. He said that the children in the present times treat their parents like a ladder, they will climb on and they will forget the ladder and it’s importance once they are on the peak. He further said that the parents are actually not ladders, parents are like a huge tree with several branches and children can get absolute peace and comfort in the shadow of this tree provided they have tried hard to flourish the tree and not to make a ladder of it’s wood.

The sons want to reconsile but are shown their place by the parents and the grand children.

That is the story, in brief - very brief. The film is loaded with emotion, most of it melancholic. 

Amitabh Bachchan delivers a scintillating performance. Hema Malini looks gorgeous even in her old age. The chemistry between Amitabh and Hema is still groovy.

Paresh Rawal is apt as also the other co actors .

Baghban reminds one of many movies

Zindagi ( Sanjeev Kumar, Mala Sinha)

Avatar ( Rajesh Khanna)

Swarg (Rajesh Khanna)

And a Marathi movie

Tu Thithe Mee (तू तिथे मी) which has an identical script and was a big hit.

But one can overlook the similarity as this is a class of its own.

#Repost