He was called the most romantic actor of his times. Female fans could never stop gushing and blushing at his very sight, they still do not when watching any of his movies on DVD/TV today. Male audiences could not help but admire the natural charm of this actor. He had amazing screen presence and a style which is probably the most charming of all. Yet, you get a feeling that Shashi Kapoor has perhaps not got the recognition he deserves.
Shashi, who started his acting career as a leading star in films like Dharmputra and Prem Patra, would obviously count himself unlucky. The films, though wonderful and brilliantly directed by stalwarts like Yash Chopra and Bimal Roy, failed to do well at the box-office. People had clearly not accepted him as a star. Mind you, any actor in 1962 would have a tough time gathering crowds if his name was neither Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand or Ashok Kumar.
However, there was no doubting his talent, for that was certainly noticed by the duo of Ismail Merchant and James Ivory who later went on to have a hugely successful collaboration with Shashi Kapoor. The Householder, though terrific, was clearly ahead of it's times for Indian audiences and did not do well at the box-office.
Lady Luck did not continue to shy away from Shashi, for he came back with a bang with Jab Jab Phool Khile, his first superhit as a sole hero. Yash Chopra cast him again in Waqt, although it was the role of the youngest brother who quite evidently had the smallest part compared to two other actors with incredible screen-presence, Sunil Dutt and Raj Kumar. There was no doubt Shashi left his mark in this movie as well. Things were only going to get better for him now.
What Jab Jab Phool Khile did for Shashi was help him establish his own unique identity. It was obvious if you wanted an actor full-of-life, to infuse sparks on screen, you had to sign Shashi. That became obvious when he did marvels in his first ever crazy comedy movie, Pyaar Kiye Jaa, for he held his own despite sharing screen with Mehmood and Kishore Kumar. No wonder then, that when Yash Chopra wanted an actor to remain calm, to lighten heated moments in a film, he had Shashi signed on for those roles. Who can forget the extremely tense situation in Kaala Patthar, when Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha are fighting over a cup of tea and who should get the tea first and their fight is just about getting heated up and violent, when a joyful Shashi comes in and solves the matter by drinking the tea. Kabhi Kabhie had it's tense moments, especially when Amitabh and Raakhee faced each other after their respective marriages. Once again, it was Shashi who would lighten the mood, with his western-style, enjoying-life-kind-of dialogue delievery, a style which no one can match even today. It was Shashi who stopped matters from going worse when Amitabh faced off against Sanjeev Kumar in Trishul. There is of course the immortal 'Mere Paas Maa Hai' scene in Deewar - you cannot imagine any other actor repeating that line with the kind of honesty and integrity than Shashi did. And how about the 'Bhhaaaiiiiii ... Tum Sign Karte Ho Ya Nahin' scene in Deewar again, where he holds his ground against both Amitabh Bachchan and Nirupa Roy, which is another scene one can't tire watching again and again.
If that is one side of Shashi Kapoor, there was another side of him, which showed style need not be separated from realistic acting. As mentioned earlier, Shashi's ventures with Ivory-Merchant could probably be considered as the beginning of parallel cinema in India. Most of them did not do well in India, and that was not surprising considering the language was English, but the educated classes loved them, and the reason is there for all to see. Some of the gems from this team were Shakespeare-Wallah, Heat And Dust and The House-Holder. Shashi Kapoor turned producer in 1978 and came out with films which are amongst the best from India - Junoon, 36 Chowringhee Lane, Kalyug and Vijeta. New Delhi Times is another movie that will go down as a modern classic. Just being associated with any such movie is a huge thing; another reason why Shashi Kapoor really deserves more attention from film fans and critics today.
And these are only the most famous commercial movies and the critically most acclaimed movies. Who can forget his performances in lesser-known films like Abhinetri, Aa Gale Lag Jaa, Pyaar Ka Mausam, Haseena Maan Jaayegi, Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati, Sharmilee, Aamne Saamne, Prem Kahani (who along with Vinod Khanna totally stole the show away from Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz), Chori Mera Kaam, Chor Machaye Shor, Do Aur Do Paanch, Utsav, Roti Kapada Aur Makaan and Satyam Shivam Sundaram.
And we'd better not forget his performances a sweet, innocent child in films like Awaara and Aag. Very rarely can you find child actors giving such brilliant and intense performances, which immediately touch your heart!
Shashi Kapoor's greatness also lies in the fact that despite being the most sought after and busiest actors of his time, he invested most of his money and time in resurrecting Prithvi Theatre, which was his father Prithviraj Kapoor's dream. Prithvi theatre was closed years back but that was the place Shashi had began his acting career in. He ensured people would flock to the theatre by charging really low admission prices. He was not after money, he was only living his dream; his and his father's. Shashi was only making movies for the satisfaction they gave him. The movies he produced were gems. They were hugely critically acclaimed and brought India global recognition in the world of cinema, but they left him with heavy debts and he had to ultimately stop making films.
It's such a pity that he will always be remembered as an actor who got overshadowed by his other co-stars. Deewar, Trishul and Kabhi Kabhie are always considered as Amitabh's films, although it was Shashi's intense performances that made each scene memorable and help bring out the best in Amitabh. Waqt is always known for the roles that Raj Kumar and Sunil Dutt portrayed, along with the songs and the wonderful car race. Shashi came and stole the show in Ijaazat, which is now remembered as Naseerudin Shah's film. The same goes for Prem Kahani, which people recall as yet another Raj Khosla - Rajesh Khanna - Mumtaz collaboration. Do Aur Do Paanch had Shashi Kapoor at his comic best, but that's another role that is very much forgotten, perhaps because of Amitabh's towering presence in it, yet again. Shashi's bad luck was not confined to male co-stars only. Baseraa is always looked upon as a battle between Raakhee and Rekha, but what about Shashi who did such a marvellous job as a man stuck between the two? And talk about Satyam Shivam Sundaram and you immediately imagine a scantily clad Zeenat Aman! What about Shashi Kapoor's wonderful performance as the man who falls in love with Zeenat's voice and gets married to her, yet can't bear the sight of her!
The films he produced have won several National Awards, but then again, a very small percentage of Indians today have even heard of them. He is one of the rare actors you have a lot of respect and admiration, yet some sympathy towards as well.
Shashi Kapoor could emote like no other, be it his loud laughs or his sad scenes, his honest roles or wild comedy scenes. His dancing style remains unparalleled.
Clearly, he is one star who never gotten his due.
Shashi, who started his acting career as a leading star in films like Dharmputra and Prem Patra, would obviously count himself unlucky. The films, though wonderful and brilliantly directed by stalwarts like Yash Chopra and Bimal Roy, failed to do well at the box-office. People had clearly not accepted him as a star. Mind you, any actor in 1962 would have a tough time gathering crowds if his name was neither Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand or Ashok Kumar.
However, there was no doubting his talent, for that was certainly noticed by the duo of Ismail Merchant and James Ivory who later went on to have a hugely successful collaboration with Shashi Kapoor. The Householder, though terrific, was clearly ahead of it's times for Indian audiences and did not do well at the box-office.
Lady Luck did not continue to shy away from Shashi, for he came back with a bang with Jab Jab Phool Khile, his first superhit as a sole hero. Yash Chopra cast him again in Waqt, although it was the role of the youngest brother who quite evidently had the smallest part compared to two other actors with incredible screen-presence, Sunil Dutt and Raj Kumar. There was no doubt Shashi left his mark in this movie as well. Things were only going to get better for him now.
What Jab Jab Phool Khile did for Shashi was help him establish his own unique identity. It was obvious if you wanted an actor full-of-life, to infuse sparks on screen, you had to sign Shashi. That became obvious when he did marvels in his first ever crazy comedy movie, Pyaar Kiye Jaa, for he held his own despite sharing screen with Mehmood and Kishore Kumar. No wonder then, that when Yash Chopra wanted an actor to remain calm, to lighten heated moments in a film, he had Shashi signed on for those roles. Who can forget the extremely tense situation in Kaala Patthar, when Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha are fighting over a cup of tea and who should get the tea first and their fight is just about getting heated up and violent, when a joyful Shashi comes in and solves the matter by drinking the tea. Kabhi Kabhie had it's tense moments, especially when Amitabh and Raakhee faced each other after their respective marriages. Once again, it was Shashi who would lighten the mood, with his western-style, enjoying-life-kind-of dialogue delievery, a style which no one can match even today. It was Shashi who stopped matters from going worse when Amitabh faced off against Sanjeev Kumar in Trishul. There is of course the immortal 'Mere Paas Maa Hai' scene in Deewar - you cannot imagine any other actor repeating that line with the kind of honesty and integrity than Shashi did. And how about the 'Bhhaaaiiiiii ... Tum Sign Karte Ho Ya Nahin' scene in Deewar again, where he holds his ground against both Amitabh Bachchan and Nirupa Roy, which is another scene one can't tire watching again and again.
If that is one side of Shashi Kapoor, there was another side of him, which showed style need not be separated from realistic acting. As mentioned earlier, Shashi's ventures with Ivory-Merchant could probably be considered as the beginning of parallel cinema in India. Most of them did not do well in India, and that was not surprising considering the language was English, but the educated classes loved them, and the reason is there for all to see. Some of the gems from this team were Shakespeare-Wallah, Heat And Dust and The House-Holder. Shashi Kapoor turned producer in 1978 and came out with films which are amongst the best from India - Junoon, 36 Chowringhee Lane, Kalyug and Vijeta. New Delhi Times is another movie that will go down as a modern classic. Just being associated with any such movie is a huge thing; another reason why Shashi Kapoor really deserves more attention from film fans and critics today.
And these are only the most famous commercial movies and the critically most acclaimed movies. Who can forget his performances in lesser-known films like Abhinetri, Aa Gale Lag Jaa, Pyaar Ka Mausam, Haseena Maan Jaayegi, Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati, Sharmilee, Aamne Saamne, Prem Kahani (who along with Vinod Khanna totally stole the show away from Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz), Chori Mera Kaam, Chor Machaye Shor, Do Aur Do Paanch, Utsav, Roti Kapada Aur Makaan and Satyam Shivam Sundaram.
And we'd better not forget his performances a sweet, innocent child in films like Awaara and Aag. Very rarely can you find child actors giving such brilliant and intense performances, which immediately touch your heart!
Shashi Kapoor's greatness also lies in the fact that despite being the most sought after and busiest actors of his time, he invested most of his money and time in resurrecting Prithvi Theatre, which was his father Prithviraj Kapoor's dream. Prithvi theatre was closed years back but that was the place Shashi had began his acting career in. He ensured people would flock to the theatre by charging really low admission prices. He was not after money, he was only living his dream; his and his father's. Shashi was only making movies for the satisfaction they gave him. The movies he produced were gems. They were hugely critically acclaimed and brought India global recognition in the world of cinema, but they left him with heavy debts and he had to ultimately stop making films.
It's such a pity that he will always be remembered as an actor who got overshadowed by his other co-stars. Deewar, Trishul and Kabhi Kabhie are always considered as Amitabh's films, although it was Shashi's intense performances that made each scene memorable and help bring out the best in Amitabh. Waqt is always known for the roles that Raj Kumar and Sunil Dutt portrayed, along with the songs and the wonderful car race. Shashi came and stole the show in Ijaazat, which is now remembered as Naseerudin Shah's film. The same goes for Prem Kahani, which people recall as yet another Raj Khosla - Rajesh Khanna - Mumtaz collaboration. Do Aur Do Paanch had Shashi Kapoor at his comic best, but that's another role that is very much forgotten, perhaps because of Amitabh's towering presence in it, yet again. Shashi's bad luck was not confined to male co-stars only. Baseraa is always looked upon as a battle between Raakhee and Rekha, but what about Shashi who did such a marvellous job as a man stuck between the two? And talk about Satyam Shivam Sundaram and you immediately imagine a scantily clad Zeenat Aman! What about Shashi Kapoor's wonderful performance as the man who falls in love with Zeenat's voice and gets married to her, yet can't bear the sight of her!
The films he produced have won several National Awards, but then again, a very small percentage of Indians today have even heard of them. He is one of the rare actors you have a lot of respect and admiration, yet some sympathy towards as well.
Shashi Kapoor could emote like no other, be it his loud laughs or his sad scenes, his honest roles or wild comedy scenes. His dancing style remains unparalleled.
Clearly, he is one star who never gotten his due.
No comments:
Post a Comment