Achcha toh hum chalte hain...
He made heads turn, but not of the moneybag producers, when he hung out on the pavement outside Churchgate’s once-trendy Gaylord restaurant. Girls would hang out from the balconies in the adjoining buildings to chat with the wannabe actor, but the movie merchants would say under their breath, “Hurry… or he’ll start pestering us again.”
Of medium-height at most, ruddy complexioned, eyes which crinkled at the hint of a smile, Rajesh Khanna aka Kaka possessed just about the bare minimum qualities associated with a Bollywood star back in the 1960s. He belonged to the north, as they used to say then, spoke Hindi fluently, displayed attitude and the Churchgate college girls would swoon that from certain angles he looked like Alain Delon. Music composers Shankar-Jaikishan, regulars at the Gaylord, didn’t ever think he was worth sharing a cup of the restaurant’s famous cinnamon coffee. No matter. Khanna would smoke his 555 cigarettes right till the end of the butts. His body language, resting on the cars parked there, shrugged, “Hey guys, not to worry. My day will come.”
It did and how! In my waking memory I haven’t seen an actor who commanded the hysterical fan following which he did. “Rajesh Khanna worship” was intense even if it did not have the sort of longevity which Bollywood’s first superstar could have commanded. First? Simply because the word hadn’t been coined earlier, and Khanna’s tsunami-like popularity had to be experienced to be believed. His appeal cut through generations, from the campus set to grand pops and grannies.
The Gaylord gadabout’s story was something of a Bollywood fantasy script. At long last, he had been selected as one of the eight finalists of a magazine’s talent contest in 1965. His first batch of films ranged from the whodunit Raaz (which also introduced Babita), Aakhri Khat (a black-and-white film in which the focus was more on a lost little boy), Aurat (a potboiler
from Chennai) and Baharon Ke Sapne (glam director Nasir Husain’s attempt to go realistic in vain).
Rajesh Khanna was a loser. Till Aradhana (1969) altered his life absolutely. Followed a series of major hits — Do Raaste, Bandhan, Anand, Namak Haraam and Amar Prem. He could do no wrong. Even the unconventional Ittefaq, with a minimal number of characters, was a winner, leading to his long-time association with Yash Chopra. In fact, today’s reigning film production banner Yash Raj is believed to have been a combo of the names of the director’s and Raj-esh.
The first unquestionably “wow” performance was that of the eponymous Anand, the terminally ill young man (partially inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s Ikiru). His death scene, with “Babu moshai”, Amitabh Bachchan, by his bedside is one of the most movingly written and acted scenes in Hindi cinema. It seems the two sparred over who should “die” in Namak Haraam. Rajesh Khanna did, after all he was a more powerful star then. Oddly enough, Rajesh Khanna excelled in death scenes, the other examples being Safar and Khamoshi.
Kaka’s private life was fodder for endless gossip. Anju Mahendru, his long-time girlfriend, was suddenly out with his overnight marriage to Dimple Kapadia, still in her teens. The actor, however, wasn’t making new friends, losing many of them it is said because of his mood swings and arrogance. Shakti Samanta and he parted ways. Yash Chopra moved on to the next big super-actor freshly arrived on the scene, Amitabh Bachchan. Anger was in, romance was out.
Once in Guddi, Dharmendra had said wistfully to Jaya Bhaduri, “Everyone wants Rajesh Khanna… so why me?” As it happened, the superstardom passed on to Guddi’s real-life husband Amitabh Bachchan who was just what Rajesh Khanna wasn’t: tall, swarthy and possessed of a baritone voice.
I met Rajesh Khanna on the sets of Dhanwan, when he was just about doing okay in the showdom. A rookie reporter, told about his mood swings, I wasn’t disappointed. Before I could ask the first question, he played a drum beat on the table between us. It could have been for two minutes but felt like 20. A year later I saw his other side: super-affable and chatty. “As long as you don’t ask about my early days, I’m fine,” he grinned, ordering a virtual bakery of cakes to go with a cup of tea.
Whenever I asked Dimple Kapadia about him, she didn’t have a harsh word to say about their collapsed marriage. “He’s an incredibly nice guy,” she has said repeatedly. “I was just too young to get married. And maybe it was my fault that we couldn’t make it work.”
The last time I met Kaka was on a Mumbai-Delhi air flight. We made polite conversation. He said, “I hope you didn’t review my last film (Wafaa),” and laughed. “We must meet up but promise me we won’t go into those good or bad old days. Jo ho gaya so ho gaya.”
Khalid Mohamed
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The music plays on...
Reenu Bahl
When you think of Rajesh Khanna a few images come up that are burned in our collective memory. But more than images, these are moods, emotions stung together by his immortal songs.
There’s the promise of a young, heady romance when Rajesh Khanna serenades Sharmila Tagore singing Mere sapno ki rani kab aayegi tu in Aradhana. She’s distracted from the novel that’s in her hand. Can’t get through a single paragraph, forget the book.
Few women in those days could, when Rajesh Khanna was on the screen or in their minds.
No woman of a certain vintage can express in words the emotion when, in Aradhana, he seduces a wet yet sizzling Shar-mila with Roop tera mastana.
As journalist Ashok Malik says, “Frankly, it is the music and lyricism in the songs of Rajesh Khanna’s films. They gave them and his films a resonance and longevity far beyond what that immediate context deserved. Many of those who remember Rajesh Khanna and his films actually remember the songs in those films. To those who listen to Kishore Kumar hits from the 1960s and 1970s on their iPod Shuffles, some songs are evergreen even if the films that encompassed them are barely within the grasp of memory.”
Safar, Anand, Amar Prem, Kati Patang. The play list is endless.
Though there is no denying that Rajesh Khanna was the first ‘romantic’ superstar who generated a unique madness among his fans, especially women, the fact is that his stardom rode on his songs. As journalist Sidharth Bhatia says, “Kaka, as Khanna was called, was personally fond of music. I shared a superstar-journalist relationship with Rajesh Khanna and observed him from close quarters. He was fond of music and he mentioned how he would be involved with R.D. Burman in their music.”
And no on can better express the Rajesh Khanna sentiment that lyricist Yogesh articulated with his song Kahin door jab din dhal jaye. You read this line from this song and you want to sing along, visualising a man in a kurta-pyjama on a beach, holding a bunch of colourful balloons and walking into the horizon. It’s all about life — bitter-sweet.
Rina Dhaka, Designer
I’m a big fan of cinema and Rajesh Khanna. I loved almost all the songs picturised on him. But when it comes to my favourite song, Yeh shaam mastani, madhosh kiye jaaye from Kati Patang is top of the mind. This is one song where he and Asha Parekh, playing a widow, present a perfect love couple out of a Mills & Boon novel. It shows their absolute chemistry amidst the best backdrop of mountains and greenery. The superstar belonged to my mother’s generation, but his superstardom spread across generations. He will surely be missed.
Bubbles Sabharwal, Theatre Artist
My all time favourite Rajesh Khanna song is Zindagi kaisi hai paheli from the movie Anand. It reminds me of him as one of the most iconic actors of those times when movies were meaningful and songs were melodious. Rajesh Khanna had a very distinct style and like Dev Anand, Amitabh Bachchan and other superstars he too had a powerful on-screen charisma.
Anjanna Kuthiala, Painter
I have not just grown up watching Rajesh Khanna and listening to his songs, but for the last 10 years I have known him personally. He only had my paintings in his bungalow Aashirwad in Mumbai. Three-four of his songs are just eternal. The one song that always rings in my head is Chingari koi bhadke… from Amar Prem. Another favourite is Kuch toh log kahenge…. And then Zindagi ka safar from Safar is just the ultimate.
Milkha Singh, Sports Person
I have stopped watching movies. But there was a time, I would visit the movie hall to watch Rajesh Khanna. His song from Safar — Zindagi ka safar hai ye kaisa safar, is by far my favourite. I can’t tell you how emotional I felt listening to it as it reminded me of my tough life.”
Panchhi Jalonvi, Lyricist
It’s really tough to pick a favourite out of all Rajesh Khanna’s songs. All of his songs are full of life and they are so wonderfully presented in his own inimitable style. One of my all-time favourites is Kahin door jab din…from Anand, which sums up the essence of our life. Another song which very beautifully represents Rajesh Khanna’s personality is Zindagi ek safar…such songs will live forever and so will Rajesh Khanna. People found themselves in his songs and his larger than life persona will never fade.
Naveen Jindal
Rajesh Khanna, the legend is no more. May his soul rest in peace. Iam reminded of his song Chingari Koi Bharke from Amar Prem
Tushar A. Gandhi
The world over today Indians of my age will hum their favourite songsung by Rajesh Khanna on screen…many eyes like mine will shed tears.
Suhasini Haidar
Everywhere one goes, there’s a Rajesh Khanna song playing...It’s a lovely way of remembering a man who connected with so many through them
Girish Tekchandani
Zindagi kaisi hai paheli haae, kabhi toh hasaaye, kabhi yeh rulaaye.. iconic song — iconic actor... RIP Rajesh Khanna
Ayush Mamodia
Every second retro song that we sing during antakshri comes from a Rajesh Khanna starrer movie
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Bollwood bids adieu to original superstar
Reena Kapoor
“Pushpa, I hate tears,” said Rajesh Khanna to his co-star Sharmila Tagore in his iconic film Amar Prem. While “Pushpa” may have been able to hold her tears back at his injunction, for millions of Kaka’s fans, that simply wasn’t possible when news of his passing broke on Wednesday afternoon. There was a sense of deep dismay that the man who was called the “original superstar of India” was no more.
Javed Akhtar, whose early scriptwriting career is believed to have received a boost from Kaka’s patronage, remarked that while many had tried to copy the actor’s inimitable dance moves, body language and personality, none succeeded. Rajesh Khanna was an original, and that set him apart from the rest,” Javed says, adding, “The years between the late ’60s and early ’70s belonged to him. He was a paradoxical man in many ways: if he was happy, he celebrated that, but if he was sad, he made that very evident too.”
Among the others who worked with him, Kaka’s female co-stars would always talk about how they too would bask in his reflected glory when fans mobbed him during shoots. From Mumtaz to Sharmila Tagore, Kaka’s co-stars were quite amused at the hordes of female fans who would wait in their hotel lobby in the wee hours of the morning, hoping to catch a glimpse of their heartthrob. Yesteryear actress Saira Banu, who worked with Kaka in two films, says she has fond memories of the experience. “The aura he had, of a star, was intimidating. But he also had a great sense of humour. He would always keep everyone on the sets entertained. We’d meet Dimple and him often as we had a lot of common friends. In fact, he even came home to meet Sahibji (Dilip Kumar) on his birthday. I was hoping that he would bounce back from his liver problem but he couldn’t fight the battle of life anymore,” she says.
One of Kaka’s most popular roles was in Aradhana, opposite Sharmila Tagore and Farida Jalal, and filmmaker Subhash Ghai, who worked as assistant director on the film, says it was the start of a close friendship between him and Rajesh Khanna. The 69-year-old superstar’s bout of ill health therefore, came as a shock. “I had gone to Lilavati Hospital to meet him… his health was deteriorating, but in that condition too he was discussing the changing face of cinema. That speaks volumes about the man and connection with cinema,” says Subhash.
Quite apart from his influence over popular culture (his kurta-trousers look was copied all over the country) and the mass hysteria he managed to trigger, he also had the advantage of numbers on his side. “I don’t think any actor apart from Rajesh Khanna can boast of having 15 consecutive hit films,” points out director Sudhir Mishra.
But ultimately, it was an incandescent talent that made Rajesh Khanna the icon he was, says veteran actor-filmmaker Manoj Kumar. Lamenting over the fact that contract issues prevented Rajesh Khanna from working in a film he was planning (the actor had been discovered in a talent hunt), Manoj recounts, “We were in talks about working together, but he had to opt out. I remember he was close to tears when he explained the issue to me. He went on to become a legend purely by dint of hard work and talent. It’s difficult for me to believe that a man so full of life and enthusiasm is no more with us.”
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First superstar with manic following
Age Correspondent
Much before the Khans and the Bachchans arr-ived, fan frenzy and superstardom were defined by actor Rajesh Khanna. No other actor until then made female fans squeal in excitement, cover an actor’s car with lipstick marks or write a star a love letter in blood. For a man with such charisma and manic following, his advent into the world of Hindi cinema was the result of a national talent show.
Born Jatin Khanna in Amritsar on December 29, 1942, he was adopted and raised by relatives of his parents. He spent much of his growing up years in Thakurdwar, Girgaum. The largely Mumbai boy studied at St. Sebastian’s Goan High School and took keen interest in theatre along with friend Ravi Kapoor. Kapoor, later went on to become Bollywood’s Jumping Jack, Jeetendra. The two of them attended Kishinchand Chellaram (KC) College at Churchgate and remained friends right through their respective careers. Khanna was selected amongst 10,000 other participants in the All India Talent Contest 1965, and got a chance to work with big names like G.P. Sippy and Nasir Hussain. His film Aakhri Khat, directed by Chetan Anand, was India’s entry for the Best Foreign Lang-uage Film at the 40th Oscar Academy Awards in 1967.
What made him the first superstar was his unparalleled spell of over 20 hit films across just five years. Among these, 15 of them were consecutive solo hits between 1969 and 1971, a feat that still hasn’t been overtaken despite generations of superstars that have followed. In these three years, Khanna starred in blockbusters like Aradhna, Ittefaq, Safar, Kati Patang, Anand, Andaz, Haathi Mere Saathi, Chhoti Bahu, Do Raaste and Khamoshi.
From the late 60s till the peak of his career, Khanna was in a romantic relationship with fashion designer and actress Anju Mahendru. Their liaison lasted a few years till he fell in love with then budding actress Dimple Kapadia. In March 1973, six months before the release of Dimple’s debut film Bobby, Khanna tied the knot with her and had two daughters with her — Twinkle and Rinke.
A great career, a good-looking and loving wife, and beautiful children, Kaka as he is popularly called, had everything going for him. But it was long outdoors schedules and alleged linkups that resulted in them going separate ways. Back then, there were strong rumours about the actor being a wife beater. And this was proved when Dimple made public appearances with swollen eyes and bruises on her body.
Kaka’s eccentric behaviour would allegedly bring the monster out of him. Finally, it was in 1984 when Dimple decided to walk out on him with her daughters. She re-stared her career in films, while Rajesh allegedly started his torrid affair and eventually moved in with newcomer Tina Munim. Their love story too turned out to be short-lived. Munim went abroad to study but returned to marry Dhirubhai Ambani’s younger son Anil.
A sagging career and failed romances made him even more aggressive and lonely. Kaka’s high-handed behaviour was always the talk of the town. He was reported to have had a snobbish attitude towards co-stars and newcomers. His alcoholism and alleged relationships were the reasons the star started fading into oblivion.
In 1992, he became a member of Parliament for the Congress from the New Delhi constituency, where he won the byelection, retaining his seat until the 1996 election. In 2000, he starred in serials like Apne Parai and Ittefaq. From 2008 to 2009, he acted in Raghukul Reet Sada Chali Aayi and was not seen in films or television ever since. He returned in a commercial directed by filmmaker R. Balki for Havell’s fans, that rather poorly punned on the word “fan”.
A large number of his fans over the years wat-ched in disbelief as a scarily gaunt Kaka tilted his head, in his erstwhile trademark style. A series of hospital trips later, Kha-nna succumbed to liver- and kidney-related complications with his closest family members by his side.
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Mumtaz, Sharmila recall glorious days
PTI
London/Kolkata: Overc-ome with emotions after Rajesh Khanna’s death, yesteryear Bollywood star Mumtaz, who acted with him in many hits, on Wednesday said the actor was “very close” to her even though he came across as an introvert to others. Speaking to PTI here, Mumtaz said she was “crying the whole morning”, but was happy that she had met the ailing Khanna — ‘Kaka’ to his fans — in Mumbai last month, when the two discussed their respective battles with cancer.
“He told me that I am a strong person, and that he knew what I had gone through, the chemotherapy sessions. He said he did not feel hungry, and we joked that when lots of food was ordered for him, it was later enjoyed by all, except him,” said Mumtaz who overcame her battle with breast cancer.
Khanna, 69, died on Wedndesday at his ‘Ashirwad’ home in Mumbai’s Bandra area. He was discharged from Lilawati hospital two days back. His family as well as hospital authorities did not specify about his illness. Khanna and Mumtaz acted in 10 films, including memorable ones such as Ap Ki Kas-am, Roti, Apna Desh and Sachcha Jhootha.
Mumtaz said that every film that she and Khanna acted in became a superhit.
She said she had lots of memories of working with Khanna. She recalled that they used to joke about him carrying her on her shoulders for nearly a week in snow while shooting for the closing scenes of the film Roti.
“It was hard work for him, carrying me through snow. I used to joke when we started shooting every day of that week that now you will have to carry 100 kg sack on your shoulders, and he would say that I was not that heavy. But I was never a slim girl,” Mumtaz said.
Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore, who paired in a number of hits with Rajesh Khanna, said no other actor ever had a fan following like the superstar. “He was most certainly the first superstar and with due respect to other actors, nobody created that kind of a craze after him,” Sharmila said.
Recalling that she was a witness to that phase of his career when the actor’s stardom was at its peak in the ’70s, she said wherever she went with him they found long queues of excited fans waiting to have a glimpse of him.
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