BLB and OiG exclusive – Shashi's top secret speech at the Filmfares

As most readers will know, Shashi Kapoor was recently given the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award. What you probably didn't know is that he made a lengthy, significant, and history-soaked acceptance speech that was never televised. You may have read that all he said is "Thank you," but that is far from the truth! How the entire film fraternity (well, with a few notable exceptions) managed to keep their mouths shut about this magnificent oration, we'll never know, but now you, dear readers, have a chance to hear his words in this exclusive report!

Thanks to a fantastic friend at Filmfare, Beth Loves Bollywood and I had a rare opportunity to be present for the awards - if you've seen them on tv or online, we're hunkered in the shadows at the far left of the stage. But our friend only had one pass to spare, so, like good long-lost, recently-reunited masala sisters, we promised to share and share alike. I drew the straw to go in second, so I have the second half of his speech here for you, transcribed word for word off the recording I sneaked with my phone.

Check out part-I at Beth Loves Bollywood. Here’s the second part:

Kaarnama (1979) Part IV – MAA and THE END

Before intermission, the vilaayti twin Shyam (Shashi Kapoor) was romancing Dhanno (Tanuja) and the desi twin Gopal (also Shashi Kapoor) had just left a drunk Kamini (Sharmila Tagore), to go to Kashmir to figure out why everybody was mysteriously interested in his maternal relative. I must warn you that this is a very looong post (with spoilers), since I’ve had compress the entire second half of the film in one post. For lack of space, I’ve had to concentrate on the main plot and neglect such delights as Helen trying to seduce Mr. Mehra (Shammi Kapoor), Dwarka (Pran, now Dilawar in Pakistani Intelligence) being smuggled into India, Shalu (Bindu) and her hubby Dheeraj (Ranjeet) sharing a cute romantic interlude in the police station where they’re both police officers, etc.

Kaarnama (1979) part III – the mystery edition

With the vilaayti twin on his way to his watan (country), you’d think that the found part of the lost-n-found formula is almost about to be accomplished. Well, you’d be wrong. Do not underestimate MDbhai’s genius… We leave Shyam on the plane, drinking heavily, with the mysterious lady X (Sharmila Tagore) keeping a sharp lookout a few rows behind.

We fly into India, ahead of the dimpled-duo, to meet the other twin Gopal. As I told you, MD caused him to grow up into a small-time theatre actor. Well, just as we go to find him, he’s landed his first starring role, and rehearsals are in full swing. We come upon him, in his shiny military uniform, playing Napolean Bonaparte, at Waterloo. And we realise why he isnt a big star yet, nor likely to be – he fluffs his lines something terrible.

Napolean (roaring): Wellington kameene, sherni ka doodh pasand karta hai to saamne aa (Wellington rascal, if you like tigress’s milk, come here!)

Wellington, not finding the right cue (which should have been agar maa ka doodh piya hai to… if you’ve drunk your mother’s milk), forgets his lines: Err… I prefer cow’s milk.

Kaarnama (1979) part II – SHASHI!!!

So the twins were torn asunder in the before-the-credits part of the film. Bunty strayed into vilaayti (foreign) lands, while the twin’s father – Dwarka – strayed into Pakistan. The residual family in India – Parvati and Bittu - relocate to a new town. Parvati begins to work as a domestic help when a dizzy spell at work informs her employer of her pregnancy!

Parvati’s pleasure in the latest nishaani (momento) of her now-dead hubby is a bit mixed. She is happy but worries about making ends meet. Her kindly employers – Durga (Nadira) and Inspector Dev (Ifthekar) promise to take over the child, since they are childless, themselves. So, one fine day, Parvati and Durga go off to Kashmir, leaving Bittu behind with the other half of his to-be-sibling’s to-be-parents. Soon, Mom and Durga return with Durga’s baby daughter Shalu.

Kaarnama (1979) part I - twins torn asunder

Now that you’ve gotten all the preliminary chatter about Kaarnama, its time for you to “see” the movie. I’ve thought about how I am going to put Fimi-eye’s reminiscences and the plot synopsis together, and decided to go the simple way. I’ll give you a scene-by-scene account of the film, and work in the most interesting stuff that went on behind those particular scenes. That way, you can appreciate MDbhai’s masala genius and Shashi’s professionalism, all in their proper context. And since the film follows a linear narrative, flowing in a straightforward, chronological order, that’s how we will talk about the making-of incidents too, ignoring their real-life chronology.

The film opens with two young children – obviously identical twins - receiving a joint first prize at school. They are gifted a copy of the Bhagvad Geeta, which they divide into two parts, in the interests of equitable distribution. After the prize-giving ceremony, the kids happily run home to play. They play hide-n-seek in their barn which is stacked high with ominous looking crates. While Bittu (Master Tito) looks away, Bunty (also Master Tito) hides in one of the crates, and pulls the lid in after him.
 

Kaarnama (1979) – A bromantic break

I know I promised to tell you about this newly discovered masala-masterpiece, after the preliminaries were over, but the need to catch up with my forty winks has gotten to me. I got so lost in chatting with Mr. Khabarwala and getting to know every kaarnama that went on the sets, that I just didnt get time to write it all up. You WILL get the whole story, minus the scandalous gossip, before long, though. In the meantime, check out this fantabulous song from the film: Is ishq mein har aashiq ko, aag pe chalna padta hai (In love, every lover has to walk on fire).

Kaarnama (1979) – an interview with Manmohan Desai

Yesterday I told you about this Shashi- treat that I stumbled across, quite recently. The film was launched in 1977, and right from the mahurat, Filmi-eye had a bird's-eye view of the proceedings. The film took a while to complete, since MDbhai's finances came in fits and starts and dictated a rather scattered shooting schedule. But Filmi-eye was tenacious, and always made a point to catch up with what was happening with the film. He was convinced that this film would be the last word in masala-movie-making and stubbornly clung to this belief, inspite of all the trouble the film attracted. I went through all his Kaarnama write-ups for the next few years to compile a story that makes sense with 20/20 hindsight. There was delicious gossip (too scandalous to be repeated here!) and lots of speculation that wasnt actually borne out by subsequent events - I've used the editor's scissors on those bits. To fit it into a week’s worth of blog posts, I’ve had to edit some of Filmi-eye’s delightful prose, too. Hopefully, the unedited story of Kaarnama will make it to print, one of these days (publishers, are you reading?). In the meantime, here is the lite version, in Filmi-eye’s own words.

Kaarnama (1979): a masala feast for Shashi-week!

Yes, its that time of the year when Beth announces a Shashi-fest and the rest of us rush to celebrate! This year, I’ve gotten my hands on something rather unusual - a newly discovered Shashi Kapoor film! Thats hardly unusual, you might say. The guy never refused a film, so one is always stumbling across "new" Shashi films, all over the place. Well, this one is a masala-swashbuckler-cum-thriller-cum-everything else – nothing less than a "new" Manmohan Desai film, in fact! Yes, I can see that you are about to bring up Aa Gale Lag Ja and Suhaag and tell me that there’s nothing new about a Shashi-Manmohan Desai collaboration.

Hear me out – this film IS rather unusual. Its more than ordinarily unknown. The film was never released for some reason, and only one copy has survived. Luckily for me, I was able to trace the owner of the last surviving copy - Mr. F. Khabarwala. A collector of old films, (and a big fan of Shashi, of course!), Mr. Khabarwala was only too happy to share this filmi treasure. But that isnt the only thing I am excited about. He also has a treasure trove of contemporary news and behind-the-scenes incidents about the film, which he also graciously shared with me. 

The glorious 70s: Awards night

Its been a week long marathon of 70s movie goodness, and a festival of fun and funkadelic delight. But whats a festival without an awards night? Considering how much hard work, time, and effort went into the making of a 70s film, it is only right that the people involved be recognised for their good work. So, we end the festival with the Masala Awesome Awards – or MAAs. The festival committee decided to call in an expert jury to judge the entries and pick the awardees. The jury consisted of a panel of distinguished film critics – Bollyviewer, Bollyviewer, Bollyviewer and Bollyviewer. With so much material to choose from, the judges had a hard time deciding between the candidates. You’ll realise just how much talent the 70s encompassed, when I tell you that the list of nominees for some awards ran into hundreds. After long deliberations, the judges finally made their choice. So lets see who gets to take a MAA home, tonight.

The glorious 70s: Shyam Benegal takes center stage

'Socially responsible film maker' seems to be his tag. People talk of his brilliant exploration of social issues, of his technical superiority, of the superb performances he extracted from his actors, etc. etc. All this gives one the impression that he was the party-pooper of the decade that was the 70s; that he made "meaningful" cinema which was too artistic to be enjoyed by any but the very intellectual classes (whoever they might be). Of course, there is no denying that his films were socially responsible, that they did have great performances, that they were artistically made. But what all these tags do not reveal is that his films were actually interesting and fun to watch, that he is a brilliant story teller, that his films have a sense of humor that helps you over the grim parts, without ever trivialising the subject.

For me, the Shyam Benegal love started in the 80s with his lovely tele serial Yatra. It was an almost-anthology of tales set within the compartments of a train, journeying from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and back. It sketched the stories of the people who boarded the train in a few beautiful strokes - through their actions and interactions within the train compartment. Yes, it was brilliant film making, but more important to my masala-fed kiddie self, it was fun and interesting. It felt like I was really meeting all these people and getting to know them.

The glorious 70: a decade of Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Dil hai chhota sa chhoti si asha (the heart is small, it has a small desire) could have been written for the characters of Hrishida’s movies! They live in a small world, bounded by their domestic concerns. Their lives are lit up by the small joys of everyday living – a raise at work, a smile from a pretty colleague, India defeating Pakistan in a hotly contested cricket match… They have no large bungalows in London, no plushy revolving beds or shiny Mercedes convertibles. And yet, they have fun, there is laughter and joy in their lives, and more importantly, we have fun watching them go about their filmi lives.

If I had to describe the hallmark of all Hrishida’s movies in one sentence, I’d say that they make you happy. When you spend a couple of hours laughing and crying with one of his movies, you leave with a smile on your face and a firm conviction that the world is a lot better place than you imagined it to be! The optimism and the sheer joy of living that all his characters embrace - that is what makes his films so special.

The glorious 70s: waiting for Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Hrishida says hi. He is sorry he cant make it in time for today. He's stuck in Bombay for some last minute work on his film, but you're not to worry about getting bored. He is sending his two best singers along - young men who specialise in Hindustani classical. Their jugalbandi has been known to put people in a trance of musical ecstasy, and their singing would put Pandit Jasraj and Bhimsen Joshi to flight. Here they are, now.

The glorious 70s: shining the spotlight on Gulzar

His CV reads: poet, lyricist, writer and director. That covers a wider range than most other film personalities can boast of! Born Sampooran Singh Kalra, in what is now Pakistan, he started out as a lyricist in the early 1960s. Success came early, with Mora gora ang leyi le for Bimal Roy’s Bandini, and he is still best known for his Hindi song lyrics. Not being of a poetical bent of mind, I must admit that its his directorial ventures that interest me more.

He started out as a director with Mere Apne in 1971, and went on to make ten films in the 70s decade. For me, the Gulzar love began with his wonderful tele-serials in the late 80s and early 90s – a big favorite was Kirdaar, which adapted short stories from various writers and featured Om Puri as the lead in every story. After that, looking back at some of the 70s and 80s films that I liked a lot, I was astonished to realise that a lot of them were either directed by Gulzar, or written by him! My favorite Gulzar film of all times has to be Angoor (1982) – his adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors. But that is a post for another decade! 

The glorious 70s – my masala top ten

Ask people about 70s Hindi Cinema and I bet you’ll get a different reaction from each person. A Rajesh Khanna fan would tell you that its the decade of the “Romance King” who brought more romance to the big screen in one head-twist than most actors do in a whole film. A Bachchan fan would tell you that its the decade of the Angry Young Man - the enigmatic vigilante who kicked everybody’s ass. To a masala lover, its the decade of Manmohan Desai’s cracktastic masala, the decade of Salim-Javed, and the glorious masala classic Sholay.

To me, the 70s stand out as the decade of infinite variety. From small budget romantic comedies and sweet little films about middle class people, to art-house fare and its exact opposite - the masala potboilers – the 70s had a movie for every mood and every taste. If Manmohan Desai came into his own in the 70s, so did directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Gulzar, Basu Chatterji and Shyam Benegal. It was my intention to concentrate on the films of the last four, since masala will be amply represented elsewhere in blogland this week. But I really cant NOT write about all the masala goodness in this decade! Considering how much masala-madness the 70s encompassed, one blog post cant really do justice to it. Such a complex subject clearly calls for a list – a top ten list of masala movies from the 70s. Simple? Not really! How does one pick and choose just 10 from that sea of masala greatness? The only way is to pick out the first ten, fun masala films that come to mind. And here are the first ten that I remembered:

The 70s are here!

Thanks to Beth, blogland has parked its time machine in the 1970s, this week. YAY!!!! There is so much fabulousness in the 70s – big bell-bottoms, loud and lavish interiors, carefully crafted villain-lairs, lots and lots of masala-madness, and a ton of non-masala goodness, as well. Needless to say, I am ecstatic to be back in my favorite decade, and shall do my best to keep my one-post-a-day resolve. So stay tuned for some exclusively 70s programming…

And before I sign off for today, Gabbar has a message for all of us:

Sadly, I have no idea what he’s trying to say. Can any of you help?

Shashi Kapoor’s hairy-tale (PartII)

In Part-I you saw that Shashi decided to seek out the help of his tiger friend to escape The Eagle. Here’s what happened next:

Shashi Kapoor’s hairy-tale (PartI)

Shashi-week has brought forth a fount of information on our hero #1. So far we’ve learnt all about his emotional problems, his fashion sense, his romantic entanglements, his smooth pick-up lines, his effect on women and the effect his popularity has on Big B and other men.

So, by now you know that he went from:

to  this:

 

Neeyat (1980) - more Shashi-masala

Three friends who are closer than brothers and sing it out, for the world to know. All three in love with the same girl. Doesnt it ring alarm bells? You expect a lot of sacrifice and the poor girl getting the short end of the stick. Well, this is where Neeyat scores. The friends dont sacrifice for each other – at least not in a Damon-and-Pythias way – and friendship, though upheld as a most virtuous state, just barely survives various trials and tribulations. For the rest, its a fun masala-thriller with all the recommended masala ingredients: friendship/bromance, good songs, cute romance, misunderstandings, sacrifices, nasty villains and best of all, some interesting murders and a very fast paced story.

Ek Aur Ekk Gyarah (1981)

What do you do when you want to bring down a helicopter? You attach a sturdy metal chain to it and then run a road-roller on the chain to progressively shorten it. This automatically brings down the chopper. See? As simple as 1+1=11 (ek aur ek gyarah)! If you are in the mood for such delights and some very, very beautiful people, drop in at Shaitan Chowki (literally “Devil Post” but actually a poor neighbourhood in masala-land).

My 10 favorite Shashi Kapoor films

Shashi-mania is sweeping blogland. Fellow blogizens Beth, Babasko, Shweta and Cindy have caught the bug. How can Old is Gold be far behind in Shashi-pyaar? Inspired by Beth’s Shashi week, I’ve decided on a film festival of sorts featuring films of OiG’s favorite #1! And to kickstart it, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite Shashi Kapoor films.

In a career spanning half a century (if we count his child-acting phase) and more than 150 films, he did everything from mainstream-masala to parallel cinema to cross-over films (yes, cross-dressing too, though, thankfully, not often!). Though I love his masala films, I must confess that I prefer his more restrained performances in parallel cinema. Anyhow, masala or parallel, any Shashi is better than no Shashi! So without much ado here are my favorite performances of his, in movies that I liked.