Comic Virtuoso Jagdeep Remembered On His  86th Birth Anniversary

Many would like to remember Jagdeep not only  as Soorma  Bhopali in Sholay (1975) but also as  Badriprasad Chaurasia  in  Priyadarshan’s Muskurahat(1992).

   Recalling  the experience  of  directing  Jagdeep  in Muskurahat Priyan says, “What I  still remember  vividly   about him is  that he  would actually listen to my directorial  instructions  and then  give the shot.A  lot of actors just pretend  to listen.  Not him.He  was on it fully.I wish I  had worked  more with him. He fitted right into my situational comedies. I guess  I was just stuck in my comfort zone.”

A  lot of  movie buffs  believe Jagdeep’s performance in  Muskurahat to be  on a par with his  celebrated  Soorma Bhopali in Sholay.Sadly  Muskurahat  didn’t work. It was  Priyadarshan’s  first  Hindi film.

Writer-director Rumi Jaffery met Jagdeep   for the first time when at the age of 18  he  came from his   home town Bhopal  to Mumbai to attend a wedding. 18-year  old Rumi  dropped in  to meet Jagdeep  as a fan.Rumi  could  never forget his kindness and generosity. Not  only did he ask about Rumi’s family and  ambitions  , Jagdeep  lent Rumi  an   apartment  in  Juhu for  Rumi   to  stay in.

Rumi shared close ties with  Jagdeep  until the latter’s death on July 8, 2020. In fact Jagdeep’s  last two films Life Partner and Gali Gali Mein Chor Hai were directed  by Rumi . By then the work had  almost stopped coming to Jagdeep.

Years  before Jagdeep’s death Rumi   had  written the  dialogues for a  film called Pehla  Pehla  Pyar. It required a cameo appearance  by a comic actor. Asrani was  supposed  to do  the role . But he couldn’t make  it.There  was  no time to get anyone  else, so they  approached  Jagdeep. He asked why they had  approached him so late when the shooting was  just hours away. When Jagdeep  got to  know  he  was a last-minute replacement for Asrani he  refused the role. “Dilip Kumar Saab is also  not doing any films. Why don’t you offer it to him?”

    Not many know that  Jagdeep was  cast  as Birju  , Nargis’s  rebellious son in Mother India.  They even shot  the  film with him.But somehow director Mehboob Khan felt  Jagdeep   wasn’t getting  the  expressions right. That’s  how they replaced  him with Sunil Dutt .

Jagdeep’s son Javed Jafri too had to struggle  hard to make  an impact, despite  his extraordinary  dancing skills. Now  his  grandson Meezan  is struggling to find a foothold in  filmdom.