Raj Kapoor’s Centenary Celebrations

For several decades, the trio of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand dominated the Indian film industry, with each one of them having their very own special unique points. They were incomparable in many ways. If Dilip Kumar was the tragedy king, Dev Anand the debonair heartthrob and super star.

Raj Kapoor, the youngest of the trio was not only a successful producer, director and actor but has been regarded by many as the greatest showman of the Showbiz in this country. The celebrated filmmaker’s birth centenary falls this year and it is not surprising that his fans have got together to mark the event.

Manish Chaudhury, a young Delhi University Assistant Professor, who heads a cultural organization, Respect India, is working overtime to give shape to the celebrations which entail programs to be held in the national capital on December 14th, Raj Kapoor’s birth anniversary, as also in Mumbai and Uzbekistan. A committee under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Petroleum, Hardeep Singh Puri, has already been constituted, and work is in full swing to mark the occasion and recall the immense contributions of Raj Kapoor to the world of cinema.

Manish Chaudhury has already been to Mumbai and has established contact with many of those who worked closely with the showman, though most of his contemporaries are no longer there to provide insights related to his style or working. Manish has received some inputs from director Rahul Rawail and is hoping to meet music composer Pyarelal, Simi Grewal and Siddhartha Kak, who made documentaries on him as also the innumerous admirers of the showman in this country as well as the states of the erstwhile Soviet Union where Raj Kapoor and Nargis were household names, and the music from their films was extremely popular. In this context, it is important to mention that Raj-Kapoor Nargis combination is considered to be the most successful romantic pair in Bollywood and years after both of them passed away, their magic on the silver screen remains evergreen. Raj Kapoor after his stint as an assistant to his illustrious father, Prithviraj Kapoor, started his own company under the RK banner.

With this was born, one of the most successful teams that provided entertainment to millions of people over a span of several decades. Central to this team were music composers, Shankar Jaikishen, decidedly the most sought-after duo of their times, lyricists, Shalendra and Hasrat Jaipuri and host of others such as Radhu Karmarkar, the cinematographer, Allaudin, Sound Recordist, MR Archekar, Art Director and above all Raj Kapoor himself.

The Kapoor clan was well established in Mumbai, but Raj Kapoor emerged as the exceptional member with contributions which far exceeded others. His movies, ‘Barsaat’, ‘Awara’, ‘Shri 420’, ‘Jagte Raho’, ‘Boot Polish’, ‘Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai’, ‘Sangam’ and ‘Mera Naam Joker’ are still remembered by film historians.

Equally popular though during Raj Kapoor’s second innings, post ‘Mera Naam Joker’, were ‘Bobby’, ‘Ram Teri Ganga Maili’, ‘Satyam Shivam Sunderam’; and ‘Prem Rog’. During my only trip to Moscow in 1985, I could see how people referred to India as the land of Raj Kapoor, Nargis and Indira Gandhi.

In Tashkent during the same visit, the commissar of the Hotel, greeted the Indian delegation by bursting out with popular songs from Raj Kapoor movies. It is significant to point out here that when Raj Kapoor made his magnum opus, ‘Mera Naam Joker’, there were artists from Soviet Republics who were part of it. Actress Ksenia Ryabinkina played the main role in the second chapter of the film where there were innumerable others from the Soviet Circus who provided entertainment. Raj Kapoor was greatly inspired by Charlie Chaplin and his tramp image both in ‘Awara’ and ‘Shri 420’ was an attempt to replicate the great comedian and film maker. RK Movie’s also had an ideological slant tilting towards Nehruvian socialism.

His favoured writers were Khwaja Ahmed Abbas and Inder Raj Anand and movies like ‘Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai’ coincided with the movement to give dacoits of the Chambal valley a new lease of life. ‘Sangam’ was a path breaker and amongst the earliest shot on foreign locales and in colour. Its success was also attributed to stellar performances by Vyjayantimala and Rajinder Kumar, besides its music which was an added attraction.

There are many who believe that Shankar Jaikishen outdid themselves whenever they were scoring music for Raj Kapoor. It is another tale that after Jaikishen’s untimely death in 1971, Raj Kapoor switched to Laxmikant Pyarelal for ‘Bobby’. Outside the RK banner, Raj Kapoor also played many good roles in films. Mehboob Khan’s ‘Andaz’ where he was paired with Dilip Kumar and Nargis. It is one of the best remembered films of its era. He was outstanding in ‘Anari’ directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and it is said that the director’s first choice for ‘Anand’ which he finally made in 1970 with Rajesh Khanna was the showman himself. Raj Kapoor was also a great host and his Holi parties at the RK studio were the occasion where virtually everyone in the industry would converge to celebrate the festival of colour. Equally popular were his New Year get togethers.

Raj Kapoor had a strong association with Delhi as well. All his movies would always be screened besides other theatres at Moti in Chandni Chowk and Regal in Connaught Place. With his centenary celebrations getting the final shape, it is expected that Manish Chaudhury and his team would help in recalling the greatest showman of Indian Cinema later this year at a mega event they have planned.