Stuck in a time warp
A set being constructed at Mehboob studio
Once, the cars of the biggest stars in B’town would be parked outside these premises. A huge crowd of fans would always throng the entrance, hoping for a glimpse of their favourite actor or actress. At the height of their popularity, they employed up to 5,000 people each, making use of what were considered state-of-the-art techniques back in the 1940s.
Glorious sets would be erected within their walls, remnants of which would still stand today. But the curtains have now fallen on the golden days of the city’s film studios. From the dilapidated state of Bombay Talkies to the flailing Filmistan complex, these old studios have now been relegated to the status of “has-beens”, with shootings being scheduled in foreign locales or the more up-to-date environs of Film City. Many of these studio complexes have fallen into disrepair over time, sometimes used as resting place by vagabonds. Some have made the transition more successfully than others: Mehboob Studios in the suburb of Bandra for instance has reinvented itself as a cultural hub. Should the other studios take a leaf out of the Mehboob book?
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