Tears in Heaven – Kahan Gaye Who Log Part 2
When PFC was starting and was on its first leg, I had written an article called “ Kahan Gaye Who Log” and tried to discuss as what happened to some actors and actresses who, while very popular in their heydays, had suddenly vanished. People like Mamta Kulkarni, Vidya Sinha, Atul Agnihotri etc….This was in September 2006. However, what surprised me that even after 2 years, people are still reading the article and actually contributing to the knowledge kitty. Fellow movie lovers were writing about actors whom we miss, right from Polson to Ayesha Julka.
While reading the feedback, I kept coming across names of all the actors who were superstars in their own right but died unsung and unheard…. They lived like kings and queens, had more money than we can imagine and yet when they passed away there were neither hordes of fans to mourn them nor TV Channels to beam “breaking news” about them. This article is written with a tear in my eye for them. This article is for every star who feels that he is a demi-god, for every actor who overestimates his presence in the scheme of things…… and for us cinephiles as a gentle reminder that when heroes go down…its not always in a blaze of glory…
In today’s times, the media as well as the internet has created more stars than we care for…people like Payal Rohatgi, Rakhi Sawant, Tusshar Kapoor, Arbaaz Khan, Malaika Arora, Uday Chopra, Tanissha, etc are stars!!!???? We see such people hogging the limelight on TV and on page 3. However there was a time when stars were larger than life…lets look at the life and death of some of these actors:
1. Bhagwan Dada: Before Amitabh Bachchan, before Rajesh Khanna and before Dilip Kumar, Bhgwan was India’s largest and best known superstar. Super hit films like Albela had catapulted him to the top of the league. I had once read that in one of his films there was a scene of a tree being stuffed with currency notes and when the tree falls the notes fly all over the place. When the director was shooting the scene, they felt that the currency notes did not look real enough. Bhagwan had gone home and returned with a few sacks full of real currency notes that were used for the shot. After the shot when he was told that the unit hands had pocketed a chunk of these real notes, he had simply laughed it off. Amitabh Bachchan has even acknowledged that he had copied Bhagwan dada’s style of dancing. However, superstardom is never permanent and slowly he was relegated to playing bit roles in films… he even dressed up as a eunuch in some of his last films….He lost his money, cars and houses because of horse racing and because there was no control on the money being spent..lavish lifestyle… his brothers apparently also cheated him out of his money… he moved to a chawl and that was where he died. It is said that when he died, there was no one next to him. The last image that remains with me is of his large, brooding eyes which had nothing but hopelessness in them in an interview carried in filmfare a few years ago. One of India’s greatest and richest stars, Bhagwan dada died in penury, ignored by the same film industry that hailed him at one time.
2. Nadira: She was India’s first Vamp and to be honest the original Diva. Nowadays we have the likes of Dia Mirza, Tanushree Dutta, Neha Dhupia and Amrita Arora as glamourous Divas..but they cant hold a candle to Nadira. There was a dignity about her inspite of the negative characters she portrayed. Shree 420 had created a star. She acted and got top billing alongside actors and actresses like Dilip Kumar, Nargis and Raj Kapoor. She made her debut as the arrogant princess in AAN and went on to do over 65 films. She too lived the life of stars. However, as time progressed, she too moved from lead roles to character roles and then there was a time when she had no work… However, I still cant forget her in films like Saagar (brilliant performance), Cotton Mary and Julie. Nadira died in 2006 in a small dingy flat where she lived alone and had very few visitors. Other than a casual news clip….there was nothing that the media showed on TV.
3. Shetty: Shetty or Master Shetty can be easily remembered as being the ultimate henchman. A bald head combined with a muscular physique, Shetty looked the role of a Goonda like no one else could. He played the villain’s sidekick in well remembered roles such as in Yaadon ki Baraat, Seeta aur Geeta, Don, Great Gambler and of course Trishul. Shetty was also a stunt coordinator. A well known name and a well respected stunt master, it is said that when Shetty died, his family were reduced to penury and saw some very tough days. No one from the film fraternity came to stand by his family at that moment. However, this can only be corroborated by his two sons who are now well known directors in their own right – Hriday Shetty (Plan) and Rohit Shetty (Zameen, Golmaal returns).
4. KN Singh: A legendry villain who dominated the movie world in the 50’s and 60’s, KN Singh will be remembered for the suave yet menacing characters that he played. He acted in over 100 films and these included Howrah Bridge, Chalti ka Naam Gaadi, Who Kaun Thi, Guide, Reshma Aur Shera and Pyar Ki Kahani. While he had moved to playing character roles over the years, he had cut down the number of films due to illness and age. However, the entry of actors like Pran, Amjad Khan, Jeevan, Prem Chopra etc ensured that his time was over. He even did small roles in films like Kaalia. When he died he was over 90 years of age, ill and highly dependant on people around him. Again, when the suave star passed away, there was no presence of the media, nor any coverage in any newspaper…
5. Amjad Khan: While I would not say that Amjad Khan died in penury, I still maintain that one of India’s biggest stars died unsung and unheard. If any of the readers need an introduction to Amjad Khan or his careergraph then they are on the wrong site. Amjad khan had met with a serious accident towards the latter half of his career and as a result of the medicines, he ended up putting a lot of weight. He had directed two films – Chor Police and Amir Admi Garib Admi which didn’t work out. He also ended up acting as a buffoon in films like Patal Bhairavi and some of the other B class southie films. His biggest regret towards the end of his life was that people whom he had considered as close friends had abandoned him – including Amitabh Bachchan. He was married to Shaila Khan but his affair with Kalpana Aiyyar was well known. When he passed away, some members of the film industry turned up but it was hardly the way in which one of India’s finest on screen villain and character actor should have gone.
6. Satyen Kappoo: Satyen Kappoo had acted in a multitude of films and was a well established and well respected Character actor. He was fully entrenched in acting even when he passed away last year. However, the actor who was known for his roles in films such as sholay, pukar, naseeb, kala patthar and many more. Again, I would not say that he died in penury, but yes, its true that for someone who was next only to Pran as a character actor, Satyendra Kapoor aka Ramlal did not get the respect he deserved from either his fans, colleagues or the media.
7. Pinchoo Kapoor: Did hundreds of character roles. One cannot forget him in films like Avtaar, Karz, Damaad and Aashiq Hoon Bahaaron ka. (He was the original “star maker – GG Oberoi” in Karz…Raj Babbar looks like a cartoon in the remake) I don’t remember seeing any film of his in which he didn’t wear a suit! However, again, when he passed away, he was surrounded by only his immediate family and not by members of the film fraternity or the press.
8. Mehmood: There was a time when even lead actors were afraid to sign films with Mehmood since he would overshadow them. Mehmood was a legend. He was filthy rich and enormously popular. However, horse racing and gambling losses ensured that one of the country’s greatest comedian was reduced to living in isolation. He had to sell off his cars and bunglows and was literally living from one day to another. It was only the success of Lucky Ali as a musician, that he saw a shadow of the good times he enjoyed once. I remember seeing him at very close quarters on stage at a film awards function….with an oxygen cylinder since he couldn’t breathe properly and was very ill. He might have died a broken man, but I cant forget the twinkle he had in his eyes even at that stage.
There are so many more names that I can think of – Om Prakash, Mukri, Anoop Kumar, Vijay Arora, Anil Dhawan, Roopesh Kumar, Jeevan, Keshto Mukherjee, Pradeep Kumar, etc. While not all of them died in poverty, it is true that the audience, the film fraternity and our press did not give their passing away even a second glance.
There will be a time when all our present stars will pass away. Like it or not, they are human and death is the greatest reality of life. Shashi Kapoor is ill and has become depressed, Dilip Kumar has already been to the hospital, Shammi Kapoor does not keep good health, Amitabh bachchan has been in and out of the hospital a few times recently, Pran is also not in very good health…. Don’t get me wrong…I am not a sadist and nor am I mad. I wish everyone well and hope everyone has a long and healthy life. All I am saying is that stars are also human.
Stars will always have crowds outside their homes when they are at their peak. However, as time goes by, new stars emerge and the old ones are forgotten. That is a fact of life. However, our so called stars of today should take a lesson from the life and death of the actors named above and remember that the adulation that makes them arrogant is the most fickle thing in life. There is nothing worse in life than to live like a king and to die like a beggar. There is nothing worse than loneliness and whoever be the star, no one can escape death….
Tags: Amitabh, amjad, bhagwan, death, mehmood, memory, nadira, stars
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
Firstly, kudos to you for a very heartfelt and nice article.Being a ardent fan of Hindi cinema and having seen all the names you mentioned above on screen I feel really sad to read what hapenned to some of the biggest names in the industry.Here I would like to add the name of Ashok kumar,our very own “dadamoni”.Again its true he did not die in penury but definitely deserved more attention from the media as well as from the industry during his last days.Among the ones who are alive I feel that Shashi Kapoor is terribly underrated and ignored by the media.I consider him a terrific actor and a great producer having produced classics like Junoon,36 Chowringee Lane,Kalyug,Vijay,New Delhi times…all during 80’s!!It requires a lot of guts and vision to back such films during such times.All the media remembers him now is as a actor who played second fiddle to Amitabh in hit films and was not very successful as a solo hero.
the only actor who never seems to get away from the limelight is Amitabh Bacchan..he has always been there..and hopefully would be there for long long time.. the question is..is there any lesson about showmanship that he gives out?..surely he has been lucky..firstly to become the country’s first and only megastar..and secondly to have the opportunity to make a comeback post the age of 60..that’s also a first & only for this country… but it can’t just be luck..
many of the above stories are of men/women who did fall from a position of luxurious lifestyle on account of some irregular indisciplined lifestyle..no doubt each of them were supremely talented..but talented people have been known to err away on such things..indulge in wastage..and such…
maybe it is his control over his lifestyle..discipline..and some serious focus on the work even at this age..that has complemented his tremendous luck & talent..to make Big B what he is..
Good post..liked reading it
Good to know about Shetty. Didnt know the two directors were his sons…
Nice.
Very heartfelt article. But i guess thats the movie industry, as Bela Lugosi says in Ed Wood about Hollywood, this place swallows you, sucks you and then just spits you out.
I thought Chor Police was a really well directed movie, very slick, very trendy, but sadly it failed. You are right about Amjad’s later movies, but one of his memorable roles in his later stages was in Chameli Ki Shaadi, as a trouble shooter, who helps to get Anil Kapoor and Amrita Singh married. Amjad Khan was a real great comedy actor, as could be seen by his performances in Love Story, Chameli Ki Shaadi. Sadly many movie directors just used him for buffonrey.
BTW Pinchoo Kapoor appeared in a totally desi get up, as a Pandit in some Randhir Kapoor flick Ponga Pandit( nothing to do with the famous play). He was a priest and Randhir Kapoor’s dad in that. You know sitting up at late night, i have a habit of watching all these 70’s masala flicks, which they show.
what about the guy that played bhim boy in that kamala hassan movie
Good post, i dint know that rohit shetty is son of Master Shetty. I used always imagine, how he used be in real life, i have never seen him outside movies i.e. any interview or tv etc
@ Vivek
That was Praveen Kumar, he was Bhim in the Mahabharat TV serial. I seen him in some desi Bond flick, where he played the role of Jaws.
praveen kumar played bhim in mahabharat and a muscleman/henchman in tons of film (yudh, elaan-e-jung etc), . He is actually an asian games medal winner in wrestling and from delhi. I had also heard that akshay kumar was engaged to his daughter and had called it off last second..pissing off the big guy. I think he still stays in delhi.
This is the the update i have on Mahabharat Cast
Mukesh Khanna(Bheeshma)- Still playing character roles in some movies.
Girija Shankar(Dhritarashtra)- He was already famous due to his role of Raliya Ram in Buniyaad. Not much heard of him now.
Gajendra Chauhan(Yudhistir)- Been appearing in some bit roles here and there. Last time i recalled seeing him in Baghban in a small role.
Arjun(Arjun)- Real name is Feroze Khan. Appeared in many movies usually playing the villian’s son who rapes the hero’s sister and is finally killed by the hero. Staple of many Mithun Da movies.
Samir Chitre( Nakul)- Came in some movies. I last recall him in DIl Hai Ki Maanta Nahin, where he played the movie star with whom Pooja Bhatt was in love with.
Nitish Bharadwaj(Krishna)- He came in supporting roles. Last heard he joined the BJP and i think was an MP from Jamshedpur.
Puneet Issar(Duryodhan)- Still active. Appearing in many Telugu movies nowadays playing positive characters for a change. Good performance in Border. Also directed Garv. He was seen in Bunty Aur Babli as Rani Mukherjee’s Dad.
Vinod Kapoor(Dushasan)- Had a resemblance to Gulshan Grover. But no idea what happened later.
Gufi Paintal( Shakuni)- Appearing in movies. Last time i recall seeing him in some crappy flick liked Koi Mere Dil Mein Hai starring Diya Mirza.
Pankaj Dheer( Karna)- Appears in movies, mostly in character or bad guy roles. Last appearance i recall was the main villian in Tarzan The Wonder Car. A totally B movie, only notable point being that it was Ayesha Takia’s debut.
Surendra Pal(Drona)- Keeps comming in movies. Last seen in Jodha Akbar as Rana Uday Singh.
Dharmesh Tiwari(Kripacharya)- No idea again.
Arun Bakshi(Dhristhadhyumn)- Keeps appearing in bit roles.
Rupa Ganguly(Draupadi)- Played the role of Jackie Shroff’s first wife in Rituparno Ghosh’s Antarmahal recently.
Kiran Juneja( Ganga)- Keeps appearing in movies. She played Anupam Kher’s wife in Khosla Ka Ghosla.
Varsha Usgaonkar( Uttara)- Appeared in some Bollywood flicks, not much known now.
Raj Babbar who played Bharat and Sharat Saxena who played the role of Keechaka are still active in movies.
Can anyone do an update on the Ramayana cast?
As far as Ramayan cast is concerned
Arun Govil(Ram)- Appeared in some 90’s flicks. Also came in a Telugu movie as Lord Venkateshwara. I think he recently produced Shoot At Sight.
Deepika(Sita)- Before Sita, she appeared in some Ramsey horror flicks, and boy she was quite hot. Too bad after Ramayan, she becomme Ms.Goody Two Shoes. Last i recall seeing her in Agni Pankh. She was also BJP MP from Baroda.
Dara Singh(Hanuman)- As active as ever. Also with the BJP. Was delightful in Jab We Met.
Arvind Trivedi(Raavan)- Joined BJP. In fact there was a joke in 1991, that both Raavan and Sita are on the same side now. Have not heard much again of him.
Vijay Arora(Indrajit)- Passed away in 2007. Came in some movies.
Jayshree Gadkar(Kaushalya)- Appeared in some movies, nothing known as of now.
Sanjay Jog(Bharat)- No idea at all.
Padma Khanna(Kaikeyi)- The 70’s vamp and sex symbol, famous for that Husne Ke Laakhon Rang in Johnny Mera Naam. Again not much known in recent times.
Sunil Lahiri(Laxman)- Just appeared in some random movies. No idea again.
very good article about our forgettable heroes… After reading your article i cherished some old memories. I remember everybody mentioned by you accept roopesh kumar.? sometimes i use to wonder where Shety has gone.. I also remember that award function picture of great Mehmood with oxygen cylinder and last he was seen in movie directed by him called dushman dunia ka. Few lines for Mehmood- (Mehmood mere Mehmood mere tu hai to filme kitni haseen hai, jo tu nahi to kuch bhi nahi hai) About K.N.Singh i still remember his act of raising eyebrows & yes i know last days of Bhagwan Dada were very painfull. Another unsung person is Johny Walker and great actor named Asit Sen ( gauna nahi hua hai na.. in purab & pashchim)
Bhagwan Dada’s grandsons run a photo studio in Vashi…the walls are adorned with the awards he got for albela and stills of his dancing to that song in andaaz: “nam bade aur darshan chhote”….
@Ratnakar, Pankaj Dheer is still somewhat active in soaps e.g. Woh Rehnewali Mehlon Ki or whatever….
Niketan Dheer (Mission IStanbul and Jodha Akbar) is Pankah Dheer’s Son. Pankaj Dheer also acts in Punjabi films.
@ akash: Johnny Walker and Jagdeep were amongst the most sensible film actors. They had invested properly, invested in other business opportunities and not splurged their money away. They had isolated their children from the industry and thats why their children (Jaaved Jaffery, Naaved, Naseer etc) have tried to do something different from their fathers and succeeded in their own right.
Excellent Post! Sophocles!..Also mention about Parveen Babi!..A Diva and legend in her own right,her death was a sad story, I saw her story on Bollywood Case Files,Zoom. And it was a sad experience.
Sanjay Jog expired ,many many years back.t least 10-15 years back.Padma Khanna is not sexy any more.She is 68 anyway.She is running a dancing school.Jayshree Gadkar expired about 3-4 months back.Deepika Chikhaliya’s first movie was Sun Meri Laila (1983).
In a comment it is mentioned that Grandson of Bhagwandada is runninng a studio. Can the same person help me give detail address of his Grandson? I would love to see him and share old memories..
A good article congratulations…
I would like to some more film personalities like like Mr Nissar; 1st singing star of bollywood had a to past last year of his life in dharavi.