Vidur’s Film Diary – April 2012

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA           MAY 07 , 2012           03.30 P.M.

Today I am posting 36th film diary . It’s now 3 years , since I started writing my film diaries . 3 continuous and uninterrupted years are quite long time to survive in writing diaries . Sometimes boredom , sometimes fatigue over – powers you and you leave writing in between . So , as I post 36th diary , a sense of fulfillment , a sense of satisfaction engulfs me completely .

One day , may be these diaries will be published in a book form . But , who knows ? May be one day …….. or may be not .

As usual , re – posting some of the relevant tweets of eminent trade analysts Mr. Komal Nahta and Mr. Taran Adarsh :

Tweets

7 Apr Komal Nahta ‏ @KomalNahta

First day all-India net of Housefull 2: approx. 14 crore. 2nd highest opening this year. Collections very good today also

6 Apr Komal Nahta ‏ @KomalNahta

Housefull 2 opens very well in India, abroad.My prediction:profits wil start from 5th day itself.Of total cost of 72, 37-38 already recoverd

2 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#AgentVinod witnessed a drastic decline in business in its second weekend. Will entail losses. Flop.

2 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#BloodMoney collected approx Rs 5.90 cr to Rs 6 cr nett [estimates] in its opening weekend.

3 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#BloodMoney *actuals* Fri 1.84 cr, Sat 1.72 cr, Sun 2.12 cr, Mon 1.01 cr. Total: Rs 6.69 cr nett. Steady!

13 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#Housefull2 *India* Weekend 42.5 cr, Mon 6.75 cr, Tue 5.65 cr, Wed 5 cr, Thu 4 cr. Total: Rs 64 cr nett. Excellent!

16 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#Housefull2 accumulated Rs 20 cr in Weekend 2, taking the 10-day total to Rs 84 cr nett. Fri 4.5 cr, Sat 6.75 cr, Sun 8.75 cr. Superb!

18 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#BittooBoss Fri 40 lacs, Sat 50 lacs, Sun 50 lacs, Mon 18 lacs, Tue 15 lacs. Total: Rs 1.73 cr nett. Dismal!

6h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

Those asking, here’s the review of #VickyDonor: Small film with a big heart. Vastly enlightens and hugely entertains http://bit.ly/InCcg4

20 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#BittooBoss recorded dismal collections in Week 1. Collected Rs 1.90 cr in Week 1. Flop.

20 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#HateStory movie review: Banks on the age-old vendetta theme, but a watchable experience http://bit.ly/IZF8SF

20 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#VickyDonor, #HateStory start slow, but reports favorable. #VickyDonor better in plexes, #HateStory at s screens http://bit.ly/IsBMVL

20 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

Those asking, here’s the review of #VickyDonor: Small film with a big heart. Vastly enlightens and hugely entertains http://bit.ly/InCcg4

20 Apr taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#Housefull2 collected approx Rs 29.5 cr nett in Week 2, taking the 2-week total to Rs 93 cr. Super Hit.

19h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#VickyDonor performed the best in North India. Collected approx. Rs 12.5 cr nett in Week 1. Excellent.

19h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#Housefull2 collected approx. Rs 12.5 cr in Week 3, taking the 3-week total to Rs 106 cr nett. Super Hit.

19h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#HateStory scored at single screens outside metros. Collected approx. Rs 11 cr nett in Week 1. Good.

11h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#Tezz recorded dismal figures in its opening weekend. Fri 3.5 cr, Sat 3.5 cr, Sun 4 cr. Total: Rs 11 cr nett [early estimates]. Flop.

11h taran adarsh ‏ @taran_adarsh

#VickyDonor collected between Rs 7 cr and Rs 7.5 cr [early estimates] in Wknd 2, taking the 10-day total to Rs 21.5 to Rs 22 cr nett. Hit.

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Obituary :

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Mona Kapoor :

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Studio owner and ex – wife of producer Boney Kapoor , Mona Kapoor succumbed to her illness on March 25 , 2012 in Mumbai . She was only 48 at the time of her death .

She was CEO of Future Studio . Her mother Sattee Shourie was also a producer and produced ” Farishtey “ , a Dharmendra , Vinod Khanna , Rajnikant and Sridevi starrer .

As a producer Mona Kapoor produced serials like ; ” Hera Pheri ‘ [ on Star Plus ] , ” Yug ” [ on Doordarshan ] , ” Vilayatee Babu “ [on  Doordarshan ] and ” Kaise Kahoon ” [ on Zee TV ] .

Her Future Studio is the largest ready – to – shoot , fully furnished indoor studio in Mumbai .

Her son Arjun Kapoor is making his debut in Yash Raj Films ” Ishaqzaade “ very soon . Incidentally , Arjun Kapoor took few diction classes with me .

Achala Sachdev :

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Zohara jabeen of Yash Chopra’s ” Waqt ” , Achala Sachdev died on April 30 , 2012 in Pune . She was 91 years old at the time of her death .

Posting the link of my blog , which I wrote about her :

13h Kamal N. Chaturvedi ‏ @VidurChaturvedi

Achala Sachdev : The ” Zohara Jabeen ” of ” Waqt ” Fades Away http://wp.me/ptyXI-1XD

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New Hindi Film Releases & Me :

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First Week – April 06

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1 – Housefull 2 ………………………………………. John Abraham

…………………………………………………………… Jacqueline Fernandez

…………………………………………………………… Shazahn Padamsee

…………………………………………………………… Sajid Khan

Second Week – April 13

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1 – Bittoo Boss ………………………………………. Pulkit Samrat

………………………………………………………….. Amita Pathak

………………………………………………………….. Raghav Sachar

2 – Chhodo Kal Ki Baatein ……………………….. x

3 – Ab Hoga Dharna Unlimited ………………….x

Third Week – April 20

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1 – Vicky Donor ……………………………………… John Abraham

2 – Hate Story …………………………………………. x

Fourth Week  – April 27

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1 – Tezz …………………………………………………. Sameera Reddy

……………………………………………………………. Zayed Khan

……………………………………………………………. Bhavna Pani

2 – Life Ki Toh Lag Gayi ……………………………. x

In total …………… 08 …………….. films got released in April . Out of these ………….. 08 ………… released films …………….. 04 ………………. films have …………………. 11 ………………. actors , who are my students . Out of …………. 11 ………… students ; John Abraham comes twice as actor and as a producer . Sajid Khan is director and Raghav Sachar is music director . So the tally comes to …………… 08 …………….. actors and the rest ………. 03 ………… are from the various other fields of film – making .

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New Regional Films & Me :

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1 – Telugu : Ram Charan is playing main lead in ” Racha ” .

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TV Trivia & Me :

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1 – Gaurav Bajaj is doing  very important role in ” Uttaran “ on Colors TV .

VIDUR

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

www.vidur.co.in

www.vidurfilms.com

www.twitter.com/VidurChaturvedi

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Achala Sachdev : The ” Zohara Jabeen ” of ” Waqt ” Fades Away

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA           May 07 , 2012           00.55         A.M.

I was busy writing my pending travel diaries of Madhya Pradesh visit , when the news came of the death of Achala Sachdev . She died in Pune on April 30 , 2012 at the age of 91 .

She was not the leading actor but was a very popular character artiste and did many significant and important films in her illustrious career spanning 64 years [ " Fashionable Wife " 1938 to " Na Tum Jaano Na Hum " 2002 ] . In total she did 130 films . I came to know her through Yash Chopra directed film ” Waqt ‘ [ 1965 ] .

I still remember the first encounter with her on-screen . The year was 1967 . The cinema hall was Amarjyoti Talkies , Deoria . A film called ” Waqt “ was being screened there . Every one in the town was going gaga over it . So I decided to watch it . One fine evening I went  , bought ticket and entered the auditorium . Film started and the first scene was greeted with claps , loud uproar and whistles . Soon Balraj Sahni appeared on-screen and started crooning  in the voice of Manna Dey ‘ Aye meri zohra jabeen ; tujhe maloom nahin ; Tu abhi tak hai haseen aur main jawan , tujh pe qurban meri jaan , meri jaan ………………. ” . Throughout the song sequence , close – up of a lady , who was smiling coyly , continuously appeared on-screen in intercut . My film pundit friends informed me that name of the lady is Achala Sachdev .

Waqt (1965 film)

Opening Scene of ” Waqt “

” Waqt ” – Aye Meri Zohra Jabeen Song Sequence

Last week , when I read about her sad demise , a floodgate of memories got opened and I was transported to my home town Deoria in Uttar Pradesh . Evening of that day in 1967 appeared on my mental firmament . Even after 45 years , the first encounter of Achala Sachdev is not obfuscated even a bit . It is so uncanny that music director Ravi , who created ” Aye meri zihra jabeen …….. for her , also died last month .

After ” Waqt “ , I started following her career and watched some of the important films . Out of all the 130 films , her most memorable films are :” Foot Path ” [ 1953 ] , ” Pardesi ” [ 1957 ] , ” Miss Mary ” [ 1957 ] , ” Adalat ” [ 1958 ] , ” Char Dil Char Rahen ” [ 1959 ] , ” Kalpana ” [ 1960 ] , ” Manzil ” [ 1960 ] , ” Nazrana ” [ 1961 ] , ” Meri Surat Teri Aankhen ” [ 1963 ] , ” Dil Ek Mandir ” [ 1963 ] , ” Shagun ” [ 1964 ] , ” Sangam ” [ 1964 ] , ” Raj Kumar ” [ 1964 ] , ” Haqueeqat ” [ 1964 ] , ” Chitralekha ” [ 1964 ] , ” Arzoo ” [ 1965 ] , ” Waqt ” [ 1965 ] , ” Mere Sanam ” [ 1965 ] , ” Janwar ” [ 1965 ] , ” Himalaya Ki God Mein ” [ 1965 ] , ” Bahu Beti ” [ 1965 ] , ” Akashdeep ” [ 1965 ] , ” Shagird ” [ 1967 ] , ” Hamraaz ” [ 1967 ] , ” Sapno Ka Saudagar ” [ 1968 ] , ” Mere Hamdam Mere Dost ” [ 1968 ] , ” Kanyadaan ” [ 1968 ] , ” Aadmi Aur Insaan ” [ 1969 ] , ” Bandhan ” [ 1969 ] , ” Prem Pujari ” [ 1970 ] , ” Mera Naam Jokar ” [ 1970 ] , “  Heer Ranjha ” [ 1970 ] , ” Hare Rama Hare Krishna ” [ 1971 ] , ” Andaz ” [ 1971 ] , ” Paraya Dhan ” [ 1971 ] , ” Kal Aaj Aur Kal ” [ 1971 ] , ” Daag ” [ 1973 ] , ” Kora Kagaz ” [ 1974 ] , ” Geeta Mera Naam ” [ 1974 ] , ” Julie ” [ 1975 ] , ” Laila Majnu ” [ 1976 ] , ” Chandni ” [ 1989 ] , ” Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge ” [ 1995 ] , ” Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham ” [ 2001 ]  and ” Na Tum Jaano Na Hum ” [ 2002 ] .

Poster of Nazrana

Poster of Dil Ek Mandir

Poster of Sangam

Poster of Rajkumar

Poster of Chitralekha

Poster of Arzoo

Poster of Himalaya Ki God Mein

Poster of Mere Hamdam Mere Dost

Poster of Aadmi Aur Insaan

Poster of Kora kagaz

Poster of Geeta Mera Naam

Poster of Na Tum Jaano Na Hum

Out of her 64 – year – long career ; 3 particular years ; 1964 [ 5 films ] ; 1965 [ 7 films ] and 1971 [ 6 films ] could be considered her most successful years in films . After ” Chandni ” [ 1989 ] she disappeared from the films for 6 years . She again returned with Yash Chopra’s ” Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge ” [ 1995 ] . And after 6 years gap , she again gave a super hit ” Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham ” [ 2001 ] .

Born in Peshawar in 1920 , she started her career as child artiste . She did her first film ” Fashionable Wife ” [ 1938 ] at the age of 18 years . She rose to prominence at the age of 45 years with ” Waqt ” [ 1965 ] , a film produced by B. R. Chopra and directed by Yash Chopra . She worked with Ashok Kumar , Dilip Kumar , Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand . Then she worked with Shammi Kapoor , Rajendra Kumar , Sunil Dutt and Dharmendra . Generations changed but she continues to play stellar roles . She , during her later years , worked with Amitabh Bachchan , Rishi Kapoor , Shah Rukh Khan and Hritik Roshan also . She was there in ” Sapno Ka Saudagar ” [ debut of Hema Malini ] , ” Prem Pujari ” [ debut of Dev Anand as director ] , ” Mera Naam Joker ” [ debut of Rishi Kapoor ] , ” Paraya Dhan ” [ debut of Rakesh Roshan as actor ] , ” Kal Aaj Aur Kal ” [ debut of Randhir Kapoor as actor and directed ] , ” Daag ” [ debut of Yash Raj Films ] , ” Geeta Mera Naam ” [ debut of Sadhna as director ] and above all ” Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge ” [ debut of Aditya Chopra as director ] .

She worked , before partition , for All India Radio , Lahore and after partition for All India Radio , New Delhi .

During her later years she married Clifford Douglas Peters and settled in Pune . From there she occasionally came to Mumbai for Yash Chopra’s films .

3 Phases of Achala Sachdev

In 2011 she fell in her kitchen and since then was admitted in a Pune hospital . Her end came on April 30 , 2012 .

Beginning & End of Achala Sachdev

I was saddened to see her these two photos . A young Achala Sachdev of ” Waqt “ and a bed – ridden Achala Sachdev befor her death . Her only son from her first marriage is settled in U. S. A. and had no time for her . I am no one to comment on his relationship with his mother but it is heart – wrenching to know that Achala Sachdev died a lonely death . From September 2011 to April 2012 , she was bed – ridden with fractured leg , total paralysis and loss of vision and her only son was leading a comfortable life in U. S. A. with his nuclear family . I have no authority to say anything to him but I know that I would not have abandoned my mother like this .

Achala Sachdev on Death Bed

I can only offer my prayers for Achala Sachdev ji . May God give her peace and tranquility .

Farewell ” ZOHRA JABEEN ” !!  You are gone but ” star – like glitter of your forehead ” shall always remain with us .

As long as we have prints of  ” Waqt “ , you will live in our heart .

VIDUR

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

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