Vidur’s Film Diary – January 2012

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA           fEBRUARY 01 , 2012           11.45 P.M.

It is the first Film Diary of 2012 . A new year , a new beginning and a new hope for better future , industry is waiting with anticipation .

It is the 33rd Film Diary of mine .

First release of 2012 , ” Players “ was a major disappointment . But the second important film ” Agneepath “ changed the mood . It is the first mega – hit of 2012 .

Go through the tweets of eminent trade analysts Mr. Taran Adarsh and Mr. Komal Nahta to gauge the impact of ” Agneepath ” :

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Don2 Worldwide total *after 2nd wknd* – India Rs 97.6 cr [incl Mon figures] + Overseas Rs 58.55 cr. Total: Rs 156.15 cr.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Players *India* Monday 2.17 cr. 4-day total: approx 17.25 cr nett.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Players: Cost to Viacom18 – 65 cr to 70 cr. Recovers chunk of investment by selling India theatrical for Rs 35 cr [with prints] … contd.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Players: Money recovered by Viacom18 – India theatrical [35 cr] + Satellite [17 cr] + Music [3 cr] + Digital/Home Video [2.5 cr] = 57.5 cr

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Players: Viacom18 has to recover balance amount [8 cr to 12 cr] from Overseas to just break-even. Difficult, since Overseas is dull

taran_adarsh taran adarsh

At the rate it has *opened*, the only ‘competitor’ for #Agneepath is #Bodyguard. Neck to neck at most places, better at some.

taran_adarsh taran adarsh

#Agneepath opening: Vijay Dinanath Chauhan rules. Not just Mandwa. But entire India.

taran_adarsh taran adarsh

#Agneepath opening: Not just @iHrithik ’s biggest opener, but also amongst the biggest opener of all times. Should have a record Day 1.

taran_adarsh taran adarsh

#Agneepath *early trends* Thursday figure is 24.5 cr +. Creates HISTORY.

taran_adarsh taran adarsh

#Agneepath Thursday figure *revised* Rs 23 cr nett.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Agneepath – India *actuals*:- Thu 23 cr,Fri 12.75 cr, Sat 15.85 cr. Total: Rs 51.6 cr nett.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

#Agneepath *Overseas* Thu to Sat total stands at approx Rs 12 cr. Excellent.

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

Overseas: #Agneepath amongst biggest openers http://bit.ly/zi1mRm

taran_adarshtaran adarsh

Internationally, #Agneepath *opening weekend* figures have crossed #ZNMD by a big margin.

KomalNahtaKomal Nahta

Last week’s releases, CHAALIS CHAURAASI, GHOST and SADDA ADDA, all have bombed at the box-office. No respite for PLAYERS either.

KomalNahta Komal Nahta

AGNEEPATH day one final tally: Rs 23 crore. Full report:koimoi.com/box-office/agn…

KomalNahtaKomal Nahta

AGNEEPATH 5-day total: Rs. 75 cr. Box-office report: http://www.koimoi.com/box-office/agneepath-5-day-total-rs-75-crore/

============

Obituary :

============

Darshan Sabharwal :

——————–—————-

Father of Suneel Darshan and Dharmesh Darshan , Darshan Sabharwal died on December 31 , 2011 . He was 78 years old . He was a distributor and maker of films like ; ” Yeh Raat Phir Na Ayegi ” , ” Samson ” , Kahin Din Kahin Raat ” , ” Ustaad “ and ” Naya Sansar “ .

Kalpana :

————————–

Yesteryear actor Kalpana died in Pune on January 04 , 2012 . She was suffering from cancer and was 65-year-old at the time of her death .

Shammi Kapoor’s ” Professor “ and Dev Anand’s ” Teen Devian “ were her most memorable films .

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

VidurChaturvedi Kamal N. Chaturvedi

Death of Kalpana ; A ” Gul Badan ” Ceases to Exist wp.me/ptyXI-1AJ

Anthony Gonsalves :

—————————————

A renowned music arranger  and  legendary violinist , an inspiration behind Amitabh Bachchan’s name in ” Amar Akbar Anthony “ , Anthony Prabhu Gonsalves died on January 18, 2012 in Goa . He was 84 at the time of his death . He is considered the first music arranger of India apart from being a conductor and composer .

His career began with legendary Bombay Talkies in 1943 and later on he worked with many music directors like ; Naushad , Anil Biswas , Ghulam Haider , Sachin Dev Burman , Laxmikant Pyarelal and Rahul Dev Burman . In total he arranged music for almost 400 films . He even taught music to Pyarelal of Lakshmikant Pyarelal fame and later on taught music to Rahul Dev Burman and also worked with him as an arranger .

“  Mahal ” , ” Naya Daur ” , Dillagi ” and ” Pyasa “ are some of his well – known films as arranger .

SrBachchanAmitabh Bachchan

T 628 -Anthony Gonsalves .. passes away .. talented musician with LP and on his name my character name for AAAnthony was put ..prayers !!

Nikhat Kazmi :

————————-

Renowned film critic of Times of India , Nikhat Kazmi died on January 20 , 2012 in Delhi . She was only 53 at the time of her death and was suffering from breast cancer .

Born in 1958 in Allahabad , Uttar Pradesh , she was associated with Times of India for almost 2 decades .  She was one of the few film critics who started star – rating  trends . Despite her ill-health , she continued watching films and writing reviews till the end . Her last reviewed films were last week released ” Ghost ” and ” Sadda Adda “ .

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

VidurChaturvedi Kamal N. Chaturvedi

Adieu Nikhat Kazmi : A Film Critic Par Excellence wp.me/ptyXI-1Di

============================

New Hindi Film Releases & Me :

============================

First Week  – January 06

—————————————–

1 – Players ………………………………………….. Neil Nitin Mukesh

…………………………………………………………. Sonam Kapoor

…………………………………………………………. Sikandar Kher

Second Week – January 13

——————————————

1 – Chaalis Chauraasi …………………………….. Arbaaz Khan

2 – Ghost …………………………………………….. Sayali Bhagat

3 – Sadda Adda …………………………………….. x

4 – Tutiya Dil ……………………………………….. Sidhant Kapur

Third Week – January 20

——————————————

1 – Phir Ek Sazish ………………………………….. x

2 – Sweet Love ……………………………………… x

Fourth Week – January 27

——————————————

1 – Agneepath ……………………………………… Hritik Roshan

…………………………………………………………. Priyanka Chopra

…………………………………………………………. Katrina Kaif

In total ……………….. 08   ………………… films got released this month . Out of these ………………….. 08 ………………….. films , there were ………………….. 09 …………………… students of mine , who played important part in them .

============================

New Regional Films & Me :

============================

Tamil : 1 – Sameera Reddy is doing lead role in ” Vettai ” .

VIDUR

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

www.vidur.co.in

www.vidurfilms.com

www.twitter.com/VidurChaturvedi

www.jaibhojpuri.com/profile/VidurChaturvedi

Death of Kalpana ; A ” Gul Badan ” Ceases to Exist

Kalpana

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA           JANUARY 12 , 2012           07.10 P. M.

On January 04 , 2012 Kalpana , yesteryear actor a.k.a. Kalpana Mohan , died in a Pune hospital at the age of 65 . She was battling cancer for 5 years . I do know , the name Kalpana does not ring a familiar bell . Today’s generation is oblivious of her name and ignorant of her work . It is sad state of affair that news of her death appeared in national news papers 6 days later . Even a film news paper like Screen failed to report her death in the latest issue .,

But cine – goers of my generation will always remember her fondly . She did two super hit films like ; ” Professor ” and ” Teen Devian “  in 1962 and 1965 respectively .

Born in Srinagar in a family of freedom fighters , Kalpana was a trained Kathak dancer . At the insistence of Balraj Sahani and Ismat Chughtai she moved to Bombay [ now Mumbai ] and made debut in ” Professor “  [ 1962 ] , a Shammi Kapoor starrer .

A Poster of Professor

Another Poster of Professor

Later on she worked in another super hit film ” Teen Devian ” [ 1965 ] , a Dev Anand starrer .

A Poster of Teen Devian

Another Poster of Teen Devian

One More Poster of Teen Devian

I remember Shammi Kapoor serenading her with super hit songs  ; Ai Gul Badan ….. Ai Gul Badan and Khuli Palak Me Jhootha Ghussa , Band Palak Men Pyar ……… Jeena Bhi Mushkil ….. Who can forget these immortals songs ; Aawaz De Ke Hamen Tum Bulao ……… or Koi Aayega …. Aayega ….. Aayega …… and Main Chali Main Chali ……. Peechhe Peechhe Jahan …… ?

Shankar Jaikishan‘s super hit music and interesting story plot made this film ” Professor ” a rage in the 60s . Kalpana arrived with a bang .

She then did ” Teen Devian ” in 1965 with Dev Anand . Sachin Dev Burman‘s melodious music added ethereal quality to Kalpana’s beauty . Can any Hindi movie buff forget Dev Anand entreating Kalpana with Kishore Kumar , Asha Bhosle duet , Are Yaar Meri Tum Bhi Ho Ghazab , Ghoonghat To Zara Odho …… ?

Are Yaar Meri .... Song

I still remember another gem from the same movie , Khwab Ho Yaa Tum Koi Haqueeqat ….. Kaun Ho Tum Batlao ….. Mr. Dev Anand singing this song on piano and Kalpana and Simi sharing screen space with him .

Khwab Ho Ya Tum .....Song

In ” Professor ” , she was in solo lead . In ” Teen Devian “ , she shared screen with much senior Nanda and another beauty Simi Gerewal . Still she got top billing .

Kalpana

She just did only couple of films . ” Professor ” [ 1962 ] , ” Naughty Boy ” [ 1962 ] , ” Teen Devian ” [ 1965 ] , ” Saheli ” [ 1965 ] , ” Pyar Kiye Ja ” [ 1966 ] , ” Biwi Aur Makan ” [ 1966 ] , ” Tasveer ” [ 1966 ] and ” Nawab Sirajuddaula ” [ 1967 ] .

She quit films after her marriage with story – screenplay writer Sachin Bhowmick . They both were as different as the chalk is from cheese . So marriage failed . She got married again in 1967 , got divorced again in 1972 and then moved to Pune , where she lived till her death .

I was saddened when I saw a recent photo of Kalpana , which was published in Times of India . Age had dimmed her beauty . An aging and lonely Kalpana Mohan caught my fancy once again . I was not a huge fan of hers but I did like her in films like ; ” Professor ” , ” Teen Devian ” , ” Pyar Kiye Ja “ and  ” Biwi Aur Makaan ” .  In the conservative India of 1965 , ” Teen Devian “ got A Certificate from censors , so the film got famous and the craze was enormous . And I , like other youngsters of my age , was charmed by Kalpana and this film .

I did not like her recent photo and I was pained but I am posting it for the record and for the posterity . This photograph of Kalpana is a sad reminder of the ephemeral world we are living in ; real and reel , both .

Kalpana : Then & Now

Farewell Kalpana ji !

In the last quarter of 2011 , your two illustrious co – stars ; Shammi Kapoor and Dev Anand left us . Now you too have gone !

Mortal people ; immortal memories !

VIDUR

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

www.vidur.co.in

www.vidurfilms.com

www.twitter.com/VidurChaturvedi

www.jaibhojpuri.com/profile/VidurChaturvedi

Related articles

• Naughty Boy (1962) (memsaabstory.wordpress.com)

Aah Shammi Kapoor ……….” Tum Sa Nahi Dekha ” !!

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA          NOVEMBER 16 , 2011          08.15 P.M.

When I got the news of Shammi Kapoor‘s sad demise on August 14 , 2011 at the age of 79 , flood of memories engulfed me and inundated me completely . Though , initially , I was not a huge fan of Shammi Kapoor , but later on , as I watched his films and understood his importance in Hindi films , I succumbed to his charm completely.

That golden era  of Hindi films belonged to film industry’s towering triumvirate ; Dilip Kumar , Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor . Like other youngsters of my age , I was very much enamoured by the trio . So naturally for me , Shammi Kapoor was nowhere in the picture . While in school and college , I was intrigued by the fact that whenever any new film of Shammi Kapoor used to hit the cinema halls, class – rooms wore deserted look and seeing the empty class , our irritated teachers used to say few nasty words for Shammi Kapoor because majority of the boys had no quam in bunking the class for the first day , first show of a Shammi Kapoor film . I got intrigued and decided to uncover the persona and unravel the mystique of Shammi Kapoor , the dancing star , the rebel star . I started watching his films and to my amazement , realized that Hindi Cinema doesn’t belong to the above mentioned triumvirate alone but it consists of the quartet ; Dilip Kumar , Dev Anand , Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor . Without these four one cannot even think of Hindi cinema .

Dilip Kumar

With Dev Anand in His Office

In those days of my asinine childhood and carefree adolescence , Dilip Kumar symbolized romance and pain of the Nehru era , while Raj Kapoor was the face of Nehruvian socialism . Dev Anand represented urbane and educated youth of this nascent nation . Shammi Kapoor was unique because he gave face and voice to the aspirations of the emerging middle class youth . His first hit ” Tum Sa Nahin Dekha “ came in 1957 . It was the year of second general election also . First general election was held in 1952 .  So after testing democracy for five years , youth of India were bubbling with enthusiasm and ” I don’t give a damn ” kind of attitude . Their aspirations , their liking for good clothes and better life – style was palpable and Shammi Kapoor Saheb represented these feelings to the fullest . And naturally he became icon of the liberated youth of the nascent , new and emerging democratic India .It is not for nothing that he is called Rebel Star and Dancing Star of Hindi films .

So obviously , when I heard the news of his demise , an era ended for me . One more chapter of my growing years was lost completely .  I wanted to write the obituary  immediately but I thought that best moment to pay my last respect would be on the occasion of the release of his last film ” Rockstar “ . Ranbir Kapoor starrer ” Rockstar “ got released on November 11 , 2011 and it created history . It became legendary Shammi Kapoor‘s last film. It signals the end of one of the most glorious chapters of Hindi Cinema . It brings curtain down on the memories of legendary Shammi Kapoor . One more icon of my childhood left the world finally and ” Rockstar “  is the cruel reminder of that fact . The journey , which started with ” Jeevan Jyoti ” [ 1953] , ended with ” Rockstar ” [ 2011 ] . It is 58 years long , gigantic and glorious reel journey .

Shammi Kapoor in Teesri Manzil

Shamsher Raj Kapoor , better known as Shammi Kapoor started his career with ” Jeeva Jyoti “  [ 1953 ] , a film directed by Mahesh Kaul , who incidentally , years later gave break to Hema Malini in ” Sapno Ka Saudagar “  , who incidentally was his last romantic lead in ” Andaz ” [ 1971 ]. Chand Usmani was Shammi Kapoor’s first heroine in ” Jeevan Jyoti ” .

” Rail Ka Dibba ” [ 1953 ] , ” Laila Majnu ” [ 1953 ] , ” Shama Parwana ” [ 1954 ]  ,  ” Chor Bazar ” [ 1954 ] , ” Miss Coca Cola ” [ 1955 ] , ” Daku ” [ 1955 ] , ” Mem Sahib ” [ 1956 ] , ” Rangeen Ratein ” [ 1956 ] , ” Mirza Sahiban ” [ 1957 ] , ” Mujrim ” [ 1958 ]  and ” Char Dil Char Rahen ” [ 1959 ]  “ came in quick succession and most of them bombed miserably .

Shammi Kapoor in Teesri Manzil

Very few hits and 18 flops later, Shammi Kapoor became a major star with ” Tumsa Nahi Dekha ” [ 1957 ] , ” Dil Deka Dekho ” [ 1958 ] and ” Ujala ” [ 1959 ] . After this there were blitzkrieg of hugely successful films like ; “College Girl ” [1960 ] , ” Singapore ” [ 1960 ] , ” Boyfriend ” [ 1960 ] , ” Junglee ” [ 1961 ] , ” Dil Tera Diwana ” [ 1962 ] , ” Professor ” [ 1962 ] , ” China Town ” [ 1962 ] , ” Bluff Master ” [ 1963 ] , ” Rajkumar ” [ 1963 ] , ” Kashmir Ki Kali ” [ 1964 ] , ” Janwar ” [ 1965 ] , ” Teesri Manzil ” [ 1966 ] , ” Budtameez ” [ 1966 ] , ” An Evening In Paris ” [ 1967 ] , ” Laat Saheb ” [ 1967 ] , ” Brahmchari ” [ 1968 ] , ” Prince ” [ 1968 ]  , ” Tum Se Accha Kaun Hai ” [ 1969 ] , ” Sachchai ” [ 1969 ] , ” Pagla Kahin Ka ” [ 1970 ] , ” Andaz ” [ 1971 ] , ” Jawan Mohabbat ” [ 1971 ] , and ” Jaane Anjane ” [ 1971 ] . After last mentioned film , he stopped playing romantic lead .

Shammi Kapoor in Kashmir Ki Kaali

There after he started playing character roles and created some major milestones as well , ” Zameer ” [ 1974 ] , ” Manoranjan ” [ 1974 ] , ” Bundal Baaz ” [ 1976 ] , ” Parvarish ” [ 1977 ] , ” Shalimar “[ 1978 ] , ” Meera “[ 1989 ] , ” Rocky “[ 1981 ] , “Naseeb “[ 1981 ] , “Prem Rog “[ 1981 ] , ” Vishaata “[ 1982 ] , “Desh Premi “[ 1982 ] , “Hero “[ 1982 ] , ” Betab “[ 1983 ] and finally ” Rockstar “[ 2011 ] .

Among the above mentioned films ; ” Manoranjan ” [ 1974 ] and ” Bundal Baaz ” [ 1976 ] were his directorial ventures .

I consider myself fortunate that of the quartet of Dilip Kumar , Dev Anand , Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor , I Could meet all the three barring Raj Kapoor . In early 90s I had written a serial ” Mitti Ke Diye “ and along with my director , went to Shammi Kapoor Saheb‘s Malabar Hills apartment to narrate the story to him . We reached his Blue Heaven apartment in the morning and were ushered into his room . He was working on his computer . He greeted us warmly , told us to sit down and ordered tea for us .I narrated the story in trembling voice and to my utter shock and dismay he liked the story and agreed to work in the serial immediately .

The serial was not made because of my bad luck . But I still remember his towering personality , his booming voice and benign smile . He made me feel important , though he had achieved gigantic successes and I was a struggling nonentity . After some years I again bumped into him at the marriage reception of grand – daughter of legendary singer Mukesh . After that I could not meet or see him . I followed him on twitter , though . And then came the news of his illness and the death .

I feel blessed to meet you sir . I imbibed your spirit , your love and zest for life . I got your blessings and I know that it will guide me in the slippery world of film industry . Farewell sir ! I will definitely meet you in heaven to learn cinema from you . Till then , rest in peace sir !

There shall never , ever be another Shammi Kapoor .

VIDUR

MUMBAI – MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

www.vidur.co.in

www.vidurfilms.com

www.twitter.com/VidurChaturvedi

www.jaibhojpuri.com/profile/VidurChaturvedi

Related articles

• Shammi Kapoor, Popular Bollywood Actor, Dies At 79 (huffingtonpost.com)
• To Shammi Kapoor with love (askjayaa.wordpress.com)
• Shammi Kapoor: Flamboyance stays forever (vishalbheeroo.wordpress.com)
• ROCKSTAR built on Ranbir’s award winning performing but poor, disjointed script (vishalbheeroo.wordpress.com)
• Hindi movie icon Shammi Kapoor dead. (birminghamurbannews.wordpress.com)
• Shammi Kapoor: Leading star of Fifties and Sixties Hindi cinema (independent.co.uk)
• Bollywood Actor Shammi Kapoor passed away (kish.in)
• Bollywood vet Shammi Kapoor dies (cbc.ca)