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Misssing Om Puri

Published

1 year ago

18th October 2021

Subhash K . Jha

When Om , or Omji as I insisted on calling him, came home with his friend and companion Seema Kapoor he was not feeling well.

Excessive smoking had killed his taste buds. He couldn’t savour any of the food we served him for lunch. At the end of the two hours Om promised he would take better care of his health.

He never did. Just recently he was in hospital with a cancer scare, and again he promised to stop smoking and cut down on his drinking.

But unhappy people need an outlet, some kind of numbing comfort for their soul, even artistes as steeped in brilliance as Om.

On hearing of his sudden death I relived Om’s most glorious performances. The implosive anger he projected in his best parts in Govind Nihalani’s Aakrosh ,Ardh Satya , Droh Kaal and Shyam Benegal’s Arohan, Susaman,was squandered in the comedies he insisted on doing with Priyadarshan and David Dhawan.

With Om I could be as critical as I wished about his work. He would never take my comments amiss. Normally when actors ask for an honest opinion they don’t mean it. Om did. Each time I would see him in some frightful corny kitschy cringe-worthy potboiler with his belly hanging down to his knees I would remind him he was the actor from My Son The Fanatic and The Mystic Masseur(the latter a loving delightful adaptation of V S Naipaul’s novel and one of Om’s unsung gems).

He would remind me of his financial responsibilities. “I’ve a son. He needs careful nurturing. I can’t just sit back and relax. My colleague Naseer’s children are grown up. His responsibilities are over. And besides he has earned a lot more than me. I’ve been paid peanuts for my efforts. I was paid a mere 7 lakh rupees for playing one of the central characters and working four months non-stop in Raj Kumar Santoshi’s China Gate. I’m sure Naseer must’ve got five times more money for the same film. Surely big filmmakers like Santoshi Saab should be more cautious of my worth. But I’ve no complaints. I may return to theatre, or do a small but meaningful film that gives me satisfaction as an actor.”

Om was exhausted of hid own prolific output and deeply embittered by his professional and personal conflicts.

In one of our most recent conversations he said to me, “Enough is enough. I’ve slogged for thirty years. I’ve accumulated a decent bank balance though it may not be decent by Bollywood standards. I’ve done roles for fun and for job satisfaction. Now I need to take it easy. I keep turning down offers. I need a break.”

The break has come so suddenly and unexpectedly. Friends like Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi are in a state of shock. The two actors together with Om formed the titanic triumvirate of non-mainstream actors who changed the way we look at cinema. While Naseer and Shabana have come to terms with their lack of fluency with commercial cinema, Om till the end remained torn between the two extremities represented by ShyamBenegal and David Dhawan.

The meager remuneration as compared with actors much less skilled who were stars, bothered Om.

“I am being used like a potato in every dish—be it a comedy, thriller or a love story. The bloody bhindi costs Rs 60 per KG. But the price of potato remains unchanged. I have to make my family and I financially secure. To a large extent I’m already on the way to doing that. If today I decide to migrate to a small town , I don’t have to worry about my income. But I want a little more from my career. I do have certain ideas for films swimming in my head. Sometimes I feel being part of an escapist entertainer is just fine. At other times I feel like addressing myself to issues that bother me.”

He was an restless unhappy man who couldn’t lie to himself, trying till the end to find a peaceful ground in his personal life. The rage that imploded in his best performances often manifested in foot-in-the-mouth declarations on public platforms, like the one recently about our soldiers . Om repeatedly got into trouble with his unthinking sound bytes. He took the backlash on his chin like a man. But he wasn’t prepared for this one final blow that date dealt his life on Thursday morning.

I will miss your gravelly voice on the phone as you spoke out on your personal and professional lives. In spite of my cleaning up some of the Puri pronouncements when it was published invariably got the actor into trouble. But he never denied his quotes, never said he was misquoted. Om owned up to his mistakes. That’s what made his performances so authentic. He never lied to the camera.He never lied to himself.

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Jamuna Had A Love-Hate Relationship With Bollywood

Published

14 hours ago

28th January 2023

Subhash K . Jha

Veteran Telugu actress Jamuna who passed away on Friday, shared an uneasy relationship with the Hindi film industry.She did eleven Hindi films including the iconic Milan in 1967 where Jamuna agreed to play the second lead, or the supporting role if you will, to Nutan.

Jamuna as Gauri was the Other Woman who craved for the hero Sunil Dutt’s attention whereas he had eyes and devotion only for Nutan. In later years Aruna Irani played a similar role in Caravan.

In Milan Jamuna was not keen to do a supporting role. Producer L V Prasad tempted her with three chartbusting songs. Besides, Jamuna had played the same role in Mooga Manasulu, the Telugu original of Milan. But it was the songs composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal which convinced Jamuna to take up the second lead in Milan.

While Nutan had no solo songs in Milan, she did have the chartbuster duet Sawan ka mahina . Jamuna on the other hand, had two splendid Lata Mangeshkar solos: Tohey saawariya naahin khabariya and the magnificent Ghazal Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin.Not only these, Jamuna also had a hit duet with Mukesh based on her character Gauri: Bol Gauri bol tera kaun piya.

But then, fate intervened. After the film released one of Jamuna’s solos, the poignant and memorable Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin was snipped out of the film.

Here is what happened: the Ghazal , one of Lataji’s all-time greats, was very much a part of Milan when it released on 17 March 1967. But then it was seen to hamper the flow of the film and edited out. The beautiful song occurred right after intermission. Producer Prasad, a shrewd filmmaker, got to know that audiences prolonged their loo breaks as there was a song after the break. Hence the sacrifice of a seriously sonorous melody.

Jamuna hardly did Hindi films after Milan. Her last Bollywood appearance was in Raj Kumar Kohli’s Raj Tilak where she was lost in a multistarrer as the royal queen.

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Karan Johar Moves Alia Song From Switzerland To Kashmir

Published

2 days ago

27th January 2023

Subhash K . Jha

The romantic duet in Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani which was to be shot in Switzerland and which was delayed due to the film’s leading lady Alia Bhatt’s motherhood, is now being relocated to Kashmir.

Purely out of the love for new mom Alia.

Says a source in the know, “Karan loves Alia like his own daughter. He would do anything for her. He postponed the release of Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani as the love duet could not be shot before Alia’s maternity leave. Karan had decided to shoot the song in Switzerland after Alia’s maternity love. But now he has relocated the song to Kashmir as Alia doesn’t want to leave her baby girl behind for long stretches.”

And as Karan Johar argued, snow is snow. How does it matter whether it is Switzerland or Kashmir?

This song would be Karan Johar’s tribute to his idol Yash Chopra. Alia would be dressed in chiffon sarees while Ranveer, for a change, would be seen in formals.

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Bobby Deol’s Switchover To Villainous Roles

Published

2 days ago

27th January 2023

Subhash K . Jha

After Prakash Jha’s webseries Ashram where Bobby played a sleazy godman, and Love Hostel where he was a ruthless assassin, he is playing the villain to Ranbir Kapoor in Sandeep Vanga’s Animal.

Bobby says it is not conscious career decision to play negative characters but a conscious decision to play interesting characters. “ I don’t look at characters as positive or negative.When I watch films there is always one character that stays with you. I want to play that character.”

Prakash Jha’s Ashram proved a gamechanger for Bobby. He admits finding challenging roles is tough. “I am trying. I am doing Sandeep Vanga’s Animal with Ranbir Kapoor , Parineeti Chopra. Then I am doing the family film Apne 2 which I am very excited about.”

In an earlier interview with this writer Bobby spoke about his long absence from screen before Prakash Jha’s Ashram. “My fans would ask why I wasn’t being seen on the screen.And I couldn’t tell them it was because I wasn’t getting good roles. But my fans stood by me. They gave me the strength to keep looking for the right roles. Thankfully I found the roles I liked. My new films have given me some new fans. I am thankful I am still here. Yeah , I am in a good space right now.”

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Pathaan Collects 55 crore nett in India On Day 1

Published

3 days ago

26th January 2023

Subhash K . Jha

YRF’s Pathaan has apparently wiped out all previous records as it collected 55 crore nett in India and recorded the biggest ever Day 1 for a Hindi film. The total collections of Pathaan on Day One is 57 crore nett (Hindi – 55 crore and dubbed versions 2 crore).

It is the widest Hindi release of all time in India and also the highest grossing 1st Day for a Hindi film.It is also the highest grosser on the first first for a non-holiday release. Pathhan is also the highest opener for Shah Rukh Khan.

Akshaye Widhani, CEO of Yash Raj Films, says, “It is a historic day for Indian cinema and we are humbled to see the love and appreciation that is flowing for Pathaan globally. For Pathaan to shatter records in this fashion on a non holiday, just proves that the theatrical business is here to stay, provided we make films that entice people to come to the cinemas to witness a never seen before experience that entertains them thoroughly.“

He adds, “We, at YRF, are thrilled with the start that the film has got across India and we are hopeful that Pathaan brings joy to cine-goers globally in the days to come! Pathaan is the fourth film of our YRF Spy Universe and we are thrilled that we have been able to elevate the cinematic experience of audiences with each film from this franchise. We humbly share this moment with all the stake-holders of the film who have given their blood, sweat and tears to give people a movie-going experience like never before.”