The Original All Rounder

Hi guys, I’m so sorry about being off the radar for so long. I had loads of important personal stuff to attend to. But I do miss making my updates and shall hope and try my best to be more regular. After all, writing is a form of expression for me and makes me feel better at the end of the day!

Let’s start off by talking about a few serious things this time around. I’ve been doing a lot of soul searching in the past one year and I’ve been a lot into scripture etc too since childhood. And I love to listen to the experiences and advice of the truly wise.

Well, I’m choosy about who I would like to listen to, but by the grace of God, I have found a very few such people in recent times who have set good examples. Well, I still look more like a girl than a woman, but by now, I’m smart and wise enough to get influenced or admire only a select few that don’t just talk but also have set examples.

Mahatma Gandhi had said: “An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching”. Many other wise men and philosophers have made similar comments. So it's always better to listen to the ones who practice, not just preach.

Thankfully I'm becoming a more spiritual and matured person with time. But I still have a long way to go, and wisdom and enlightenment is something which I crave for and look forward to each passing day. But don’t you worry; it's not just heavy talk time today. There will also be loads of entertaining things to talk about too!

I always keep in mind the fact that Babetude's here to entertain you. Someone wise again had said that your instinct never fails you; you are the one who fail it by refusing to listen to it.

Well, I wish I had really imbibed and practiced this saying long back. I haven’t had it easy and I kind of came up the hard way in life. The lack of guidance and mentoring was a stumbling block and so was some wrong company that was forced upon me. I wished I had known about it earlier and if I had I’m sure now that life would have much better today. Not that I’m not thankful for what God has given me. Along with realizing things, we should all be so, for multiplied blessings. Now let me give you one of my very first personal examples (there are more, some of which I shall share in my upcoming updates).

I was right all along about one of the first men I really admired in life. And he’s been quite the all- rounder in a very true sense of the term- one who balanced his career and personal life very well. As you know, that I’ve always a movie fan and so it’s but natural that he’s related to the arts.

No, I’m not talking about Ranbir Kapoor though he’s from my generation.

He sure is related to Ranbir and though he's no longer a star on the silver screen, he was and will always remain a special figure in Indian cinema.

Way back in the nineties, I saw this 70s movie ‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’ (well, the literal translation from Hindi is ‘Come, hug me’ ) on TV.

And there was this conventionally handsome, very charming young man with chiseled features, oodles of charm singing away happily and looking comfy on screen as though he was always meant to be there. He was wooing the original sensuous beauty Sharmila Tagore with the lovely,sweet and also meaningful song- ‘Tera mujhse hai pehle ka naata koi, yuhin nahi dil lubhata koi…( literal translation- You must be related to me from before, otherwise how would u feel so close to my heart…) and romancing the camera at the same time too! Well, this very song inspired my generation’s latest heartthrob Imran Khan’s very first movie- ‘Jaane tu Jaane na’ and the song was used in the film as well.

But I really wonder how many of the youngsters really remembered Shashi Kapoor or those beautiful visuals! Yes, I’m talking about Shashi Kapoor who was my favorite Kapoor and still is. He had a fruitful career spanning many years and almost 25-26 as a leading man.

In fact once after a TV shoot, a camera assistant joked with me that I'm still stuck in some other era as I like Shashi Kapoor, while my generation has moved on to Hrithik Roshan & co. Well, not everybody has substantial reasons for liking someone. They go with the flow, while I come up with logical reasons and am analytical. And I'm proud to be different.

Shashi Kapoor came from an illustrious family of actors with Prithviraj Kapoor as his father and showman Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor as brothers. He had a lot of expectations to fulfill and he did it very well,and actually ended up with a career graph that looked even more complete. And he made sure that he always maintained a style of his own in the process!
Not that I hadn't seen any Shashi movie before.


But there was something about that one song. I still find myself humming that song... It's so very romantic and I've been a been a romantic to the core person always...

I grew up on old Bollywood movies like 'Deewar', 'Trishul','Sholay' etc as I got to see them as a kid on TV many times. I wasn't lucky enough to see them on the big screen as old movies were hardly released in theatres in the small town I come from.

Balbir Raj Kapoor( his birth name)  indeed remains a remarkable man.

At a time when words like hot and sexy weren't so much in vogue in India,he mesmerized many with his million dollar smile, conventionally handsome face, very individualistic style and panache. He was a child star who then became totally dedicated to theatre and did commercial movies with great success. He was Amitabh Bachchan’s (who luckily is still going so strong) most prolific co-star in the 70s and early eighties.

He can also be considered India’s first crossover star with Merchant- Ivory productions such as ‘The Householder’, ‘Shakespearewallah’, Bombay Talkie’ and ‘Heat and Dust'( which had powerhouse performer Julie Christie as well). He also starred in other British and American films such as ‘Pretty Polly’ opposite Hayley Mills, ‘Siddhartha’, and ‘Sammy and Rosie Get Laid’.

He even got into film production with his production house Film Valas and produced critically acclaimed films and got involved with the parallel cinema movement.


Some notable movies were ‘Junoon’,’ Kalyug’, ‘36 Chowringhee Lane’, ‘Vijeta’ and ‘Utsav’. In fact, it’s been said that in the eighties and early nineties, he lost a lot financially to make quality movies.

He looked best on screen with many a beautiful B-Town dame, for me personally Dream Girl Hema Malini and the original sexpot Sharmila Tagore, the much younger than him, young Poonam Dhillon as well as western actresses such as his real life sister-in-law Felicity Kendal( with whom he made 'Shakespearewallah' which was loosely based on his father-in-law Geoffrey Kendal's travelling theatre group Shakespeareana), Hayley Mills ( in Pretty Polly) Greta Scatchhi( In Heat and Dust) and the western  looking Nafisa Ali.Sodhi.


He was comfortably paired with Babita and Neetu Singh who later got married to his nephews Randhir and Rishi respectively. In the1980s he looked good with the then younger bunch of actresses too such as Rati Agnihotri, Poonam Dhillon( he also played her brother in ‘Trishul’) and Jaya Prada.

In fact, he played leading man, even till as late as the mid and late eighties but now that seems to be so long back. His last and most recent film appearances in 1998’s ‘Jinnah’, a biopic of Mohammed Ali Jinnah in which he was the narrator and another Merchant-Ivory production titled ‘Side Streets’ were acclaimed too. Right now, things are not the same again. Like many of his fans I was disheartened to see him change so much, more recently at the Film Fare awards this March.

Award functions don’t interest me much, but I got interested as Shashi ji (now when you give someone respect,Indians tend to add a 'ji' to his/ her name) was getting the award. It was nice of them and before that MAMI(Mumbai Academy of Moving Image)to give him the life time achievement awards which was so long overdue. But catching that up on the video on youtube was a heart wrenching moment. Looking at a one upon a time Adonis, a heartthrob of millions now confined to a wheel chair isn’t an easy task at all. :( :( Many of his fans couldn’t believe their eyes, and some said they couldn't hold back their tears.

I could see the tear in his eye and feel how much he was overwhelmed. Sometimes one really wishes, one could turn back time… And I'm one of them...

Shashi ji changed a lot after his wife of many years, English stage actress Jennifer Kendal passed awayin September 1984.He was not taking care of himself any more.

Shashi ji was not only a great professional but also a dedicated family fan. He was loyal and devoted to his wife and so was she to him. I read that she was the one who took care of his diet and helped him with his styling. The love for theatre had brought them together and they stayed together for a long time and would have forever. Someone noteworthy once said in an interview after she passed away, he became like the chubby kid once again in life. The husband and wife duo even made some memorable movies together- ‘Bombay Talkie’, ‘Junoon’ and ‘36 Chowringhee Lane.’

Together they were instrumental in reviving Prithvi Theatre in Mumbai and currently it’s the lifeblood of many theatre personalities and gives hope to new talent. Their children Kunal, Karan( who’s currently settled in the UK as a professional photographer) and Sanjna Kapoor are doing their part to take their legacy forward by actively involving themselves in the fields of cinema, theatre, ad film making, photography etc.

In B-Town talks of affairs were in vogue even then, but this Kapoor's name wasn't linked to anything like that.He later said that it's because they avoided film parties. Sanjna Kapoor also said in a interview later how her father made it a point to have breakfast with the family every morning, no matter how over worked or tired he was from the day before. So it's obvious that the ideal husband and wife duo excelled in their parenting capabilities as well.

I remember a few years back, when I went to interview veteran writer Prayag Raj who collaborated with Shashiji on movies like ‘The Householder', 'Shakespearewalla' , 'Bombay Talkie'; I told him of my wish to meet Shashi ji. He called me back a few days later to remind me and said, “You wanted to meet Shashi, right?”…Of course, I so wished and hoped to meet Shashi ji.

But somehow, thanks to me being caught up with life, difficult personal issues and  the fact that I was still a student of media,  the meeting never happened. Very, very unfortunate, I must admit.
Prayag Raj wanted to arrange an interview for a big , established name.

But I still believe it will happen someday soon. I am now learning acupressure, reflexology and learning about Dr Brian Weiss's work which helps in healing. I wish to share the same with him. And when I do meet him some day God willing, I would love to share my experiences with you.

I have followed the Indian film industry since childhood but I've hardly come across anyone copying him. From the first family of Hindi cinema, I've seen people trying to mimic the late Raj Kapoor( initially he was likened to Charlie Chaplin), Shammi Kapoor( many called him the Indian Elvis), Rishi Kapoor etc as well as Rajesh Khanna and Big B, but no one has really mimicked Shashi Kapoor...Simply because I think he had a very original style of his own which wasn't easy to just copy...

He’s contributed immensely as an actor, producer over the years. Not very long ago, I read one of his interviews where he said that quality roles in Hindi movies are quite less now and more so if you are a character actor. And that's why he's hardly seen on the screen. He was quoted saying in the interview, "It’s only service to the needy that gives you peace. In the end it is only this which will give you strength. Not your wealth not your stirring performances."
Such noble thoughts.

Even though many of us sorely miss him on screen!

It seems now he wishes to just see new talent from the industry enjoy the limelight, while he concentrates on other things closer to his heart, like charity, his family which now includes his five blessed grand children,Prithvi Theatre and preserving the memory of his late wife.

Almost like Shah Jahan preserving the memory of Mumtaz forever with Taj Mahal! No wonder, I always found this Kapoor fascinating.

With everything he does, he seems to prove that he's a truly amazing gentleman!

For Babetude, you'll always be special Shashiji.

Wish you health, happiness, peace, a long, long life and hope to hear many more wonderful stories even as the days go by.