Posted:
Moments in the limelight
Actor Rajendranath desperately tried to carve a niche for himself as a hero. Unfortunately none of the films that he initially acted in succeeded at the box-office, till he started doing comedy roles. Jab Pyar Kissise Hota Hain was the turning point and his character Popatlal gave Rajendranath an image big spectacles, a feathered hat, short shirt and short pants, socks and big boots one which stuck like a second skin. So impressed was his friend Shammi Kapoor that he recommended him for all his films. "I'm eternally grateful to Shammi Kapoor for suggesting my name to directors and producers. The comedy roles that he got to do were really different," he once said in an interview. A veteran of about 130 films he has worked with heroes and heroines across generations, his last films being Sauda with Neelam Kothari and Bekhudi which was Kajol's debut. But he went into oblivion as films and TV stints offered to him were stereotyped and interested him no longer.
He recently turned 75, and is truly in retirement. In fact when we called him to ask him for an interview he quizzed: "Why do you want to interview me?" Reminded about his milestone birthday, and that his contribution to Hindi films is not to be taken lightly, he consents to meet us. To most of us Rajendranath was always Mr Popatlal a character he made famous. That he was a younger sibling of the towering presence of Premnath was secondary. Mr Popatlal was a rage too. In fact, the actor even toured with the Popatlal shows, perhaps the first one to do branded shows. Best to let him share his memories of playing Poplatlal. MR POPATLAL TAKES OVER
I did many films like Dil Deke Dekho, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Pyar Ka Mausam. Then I did Nasir Husain's Jab Pyar Kisise Hota Hai with Dev Anand and Asha Parekh. It clicked very well. My character here was Popatlal, woh bada hit ho gaya, so much so that the audience even forgot my real name and started calling me Mr. Popatlal. The film gave me a distinct look with big glasses, a feathered hat, short shirt, short pants, socks and big boots and people knew that that person was none other than Popatlal. The director and I together discussed and mutually decided on the get- up of Popatlal. Popatlal's style of comedy was different from that of other actors like Mehmood, Agha and Johnny Walker. Because Popatlal was so popular I started doing The Popatlal Show. The shows became a big hit with audiences not only in India but also abroad. In the show I would crack jokes, do skits etc. I went around India and the world with the show: to Australia, Fiji, Singapore, Canada, and America. It was so exciting to see where the rest of the world has reached. I also went to Burma along with my elder brother Premnath and bhabhiji Bina Rai who were invited for a visit. When I went to East Africa, for the first time I saw tigers roaming around freely, and they don't harm you, unless you do something to provoke them. AND TODAY...
I watch TV and I am very fond of reading newspapers. Then I exercise. I am very fond of walking. I like watching the news. I also watch other programmes, but only if I like them. I can't say which are my favourite shows, I watch so many. Some are good, some are dragging. My advice to the channels is not to have programmes for only half an hour, if it's for one hour it is better. One thing that is very wrong is the ads, we might be watching a very emotional scene and suddenly we have a funny ad. If it's a comedy we are watching then we have a serious ad. That spoils the continuity of the serial. They should put the ads at the end of the serial or in the beginning not in-between. Television has some fine artistes like Smriti Irani and Sakshi Tanwar. I also watch films. Not the ones starring me - How many times can you watch yourself on the screen? I try to forget the past and try to think about the present and the future. I don't visit the cinema, it takes up too much time; you drive to the theatre, look for parking and buy tickets. I see all the films when they are shown on TV. I did some TV too. But the impact of films is immortal, TV one can forget. If I am re-born I would like to be an actor again. Acting is a great profession. I will never be a politician — politics is a dirty game.
My elder brother Premnathji came to Bombay, when Prithvirajji called him here. They were very fond of each other and were the best of friends. When I came to Bombay, I stayed with Premnath. In those days he stayed in Parel, four of us shared a room, and all of us were from theatre - Premnath, myself, dance director Satyanarayan and Krishen Dhawan. But Premnath and I kept shifting. When Premnath became a star, we moved to Shivaji Park - Road No 5., then we moved to Chembur at Deonar Farm, after that we went to Blue Heaven at Malabar Hill, later to Anita which is close by. When I got some money I bought my own separate flat at Anita, then I moved to Darshan Apartments at Napean Sea Road. From there I moved to a terrace flat on the 29th floor in Palm Springs at Cuffe Parade. Finally I moved to Khar where I stay now. BOMBAY MEMORIES
When I came to Bombay, I got off the train and got into a ghoda gadi. I would travel by tram from King's Circle to Regal Cinema. The first time I saw the sea I was very thrilled, I walked down Chowpatty and Marine Drive. For the first time I had bhelpuri and panipuri. When I came to Bombay I was a struggler, I had very little money. So what I would do is buy one ticket of the tram or bus only once in the month. I used to dodge the conductor by going to the upper deck and when I would finally be face-to-face, I would show him the ticket which was rolled and clenched between my teeth. I did that for trains too. Bombay has changed tremendously. I don't like Bombay now, - it's so overcrowded, like New York, with Buildings everywhere. But we can't help it, it's happening everywhere in the world. MY FRIEND SHAMMI KAPOOR
I was very friendly with Mr. Shammi Kapoor. Woh mere bachpan ke dost the. There was a place at Marine Drive called Parisian Dairy . I and Shammi would go there as there was a juke-box. Our respective brothers Raj Kapoor and Premnath were very popular. If people were sitting on a nearby table, we would talk very loudly about our brothers. They would be very excited and would come up to us and say that they would like to meet them. We would tell them that in fact Raj and Premnath were on their way and would be arriving in an hour or so. Those people would then ask us to join them and would order sandwiches, tea, etc. After we had helped ourselves, we would excuse ourselves to go to the bathroom and we would escape from the back. They would be left waiting for Raj Kapoor and Premnath! RANDOM FILM MEMORIES
I worked on the stage with Prithvirajji in Prithvi Theatres. Prithvirajji's contribution is very huge. I toured all of India with the troupe, with Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor. They became such big stars. I also worked with IPTA a long time back. Then I started doing small roles in pictures. I have done so many films I can't even count them. I have done them in Hindi, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and worked in films in Madras too. I got a break with Filmistan's Hum Sab Chor Hain directed by IS Johar, with Shammi Kapoor and Nalini Jaywant. Mine was a small comic role. It clicked and people liked my work and I started getting a few more chhote -mote roles. There was another film Miss India, also directed by IS Johar that starred Nargis and Pradeep Kumar. I got a better break with HS Rawail's Sharaarat with Meena Kumari, Kishore Kumar and Raaj Kumar in which I played a harmonium player. Iss mein logon ne mujhe pasand kiya. Through Shammi Kapoor who was working with Filmistan for Tumsa Nahin Dekha I met Nasir Husain. That was the time Mr. S Mukherji left Filmistan and started his own company called Filmalaya Studios. He was making a picture called Dil Deke Dekho. It was 1958. I got a good break, picture badi hit ho gayee. After that I got a lot of offers and they were for big roles and with the biggest of producers and directors. I did two pictures with Mr. Bimal Roy - Prem Patra and Usne Kaha Tha with Sunil Dutt and Nanda. He was a very good director, very artistic. He had his own style. With Bhappi Sonie I did Janwar. Then came Jawan Mohabbat and Tum Haseen Main Jawan. Woh zamane mein picture badi hit ho jaati thi. Maine sab ke saath kaam kiya.... alag alag role mein. I worked with the best of heroes and the best of directors. Raj Kapoor was a very, very fine director, he was a born director and it was a pleasure working with him in Prem Rog, where I did a cameo. In Purab Aur Paschim I was a hippie and chanted "Hare Ram Hare Krishna". Woh zamane mein hippie ka josh tha. It was shot in London. If you have been a hit in a certain role you get more such roles. If you are a villain you are a villain, if you are a comedian you remain a comedian. But I was lucky sometimes, I was given different roles, I did Mujhe Jeene Do with Sunil Dutt and Waheeda Rehman. My role was very different I was a dacoit. It was a good film and they were good to work with. In the film I get shot trying to protect the heroine and that drew a lot of sympathy. Woh zamane mein we used to go to Kashmir for shooting, abhi to duniya bhar jaate hai. In our days, Kashmir was very peaceful, and about six-seven units would be shooting there at the same time. It was the greatest spot for shooting. We all worked like a family - the hero, heroine, producer, director - we would all sit together, eat together, have a discussion. Now after a shot, people want to be separate. Actresses like Nargis and Meena Kumari were very dedicated to their work, you can see by their performances. They would take great interest in their work, discuss their role with the director, the writer and the co-star. There would be compete coordination. Today's hero-heroine may not be on talking terms but they do a love scene. How can you make a film like that? We see that on TV, don't we? I did get a lot of varied roles in the South. They are the most organized people. They would finish a film on time, while in those days, in Bombay, a film could take even five years to complete.
Actor Rajendranath desperately tried to carve a niche for himself as a hero. Unfortunately none of the films that he initially acted in succeeded at the box-office, till he started doing comedy roles. Jab Pyar Kissise Hota Hain was the turning point and his character Popatlal gave Rajendranath an image big spectacles, a feathered hat, short shirt and short pants, socks and big boots one which stuck like a second skin. So impressed was his friend Shammi Kapoor that he recommended him for all his films. "I'm eternally grateful to Shammi Kapoor for suggesting my name to directors and producers. The comedy roles that he got to do were really different," he once said in an interview. A veteran of about 130 films he has worked with heroes and heroines across generations, his last films being Sauda with Neelam Kothari and Bekhudi which was Kajol's debut. But he went into oblivion as films and TV stints offered to him were stereotyped and interested him no longer.
He recently turned 75, and is truly in retirement. In fact when we called him to ask him for an interview he quizzed: "Why do you want to interview me?" Reminded about his milestone birthday, and that his contribution to Hindi films is not to be taken lightly, he consents to meet us. To most of us Rajendranath was always Mr Popatlal a character he made famous. That he was a younger sibling of the towering presence of Premnath was secondary. Mr Popatlal was a rage too. In fact, the actor even toured with the Popatlal shows, perhaps the first one to do branded shows. Best to let him share his memories of playing Poplatlal. MR POPATLAL TAKES OVER
I did many films like Dil Deke Dekho, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Pyar Ka Mausam. Then I did Nasir Husain's Jab Pyar Kisise Hota Hai with Dev Anand and Asha Parekh. It clicked very well. My character here was Popatlal, woh bada hit ho gaya, so much so that the audience even forgot my real name and started calling me Mr. Popatlal. The film gave me a distinct look with big glasses, a feathered hat, short shirt, short pants, socks and big boots and people knew that that person was none other than Popatlal. The director and I together discussed and mutually decided on the get- up of Popatlal. Popatlal's style of comedy was different from that of other actors like Mehmood, Agha and Johnny Walker. Because Popatlal was so popular I started doing The Popatlal Show. The shows became a big hit with audiences not only in India but also abroad. In the show I would crack jokes, do skits etc. I went around India and the world with the show: to Australia, Fiji, Singapore, Canada, and America. It was so exciting to see where the rest of the world has reached. I also went to Burma along with my elder brother Premnath and bhabhiji Bina Rai who were invited for a visit. When I went to East Africa, for the first time I saw tigers roaming around freely, and they don't harm you, unless you do something to provoke them. AND TODAY...
I watch TV and I am very fond of reading newspapers. Then I exercise. I am very fond of walking. I like watching the news. I also watch other programmes, but only if I like them. I can't say which are my favourite shows, I watch so many. Some are good, some are dragging. My advice to the channels is not to have programmes for only half an hour, if it's for one hour it is better. One thing that is very wrong is the ads, we might be watching a very emotional scene and suddenly we have a funny ad. If it's a comedy we are watching then we have a serious ad. That spoils the continuity of the serial. They should put the ads at the end of the serial or in the beginning not in-between. Television has some fine artistes like Smriti Irani and Sakshi Tanwar. I also watch films. Not the ones starring me - How many times can you watch yourself on the screen? I try to forget the past and try to think about the present and the future. I don't visit the cinema, it takes up too much time; you drive to the theatre, look for parking and buy tickets. I see all the films when they are shown on TV. I did some TV too. But the impact of films is immortal, TV one can forget. If I am re-born I would like to be an actor again. Acting is a great profession. I will never be a politician — politics is a dirty game.
UNUSUAL FAN
There's this lady in Ranchi called Mrs. Rose, she was a teacher and then a school principal. When I became a star, she would write to me on my birthday, send me a birthday card and phone me. She's my great fan. But I haven't met the lady till today
EARLY MEMORIES
Our father was in the police, he was transferred all over the country. He retired as the IG of Police of Rewa. My sister Mrs. Krishna Raj Kapoor got married in Rewa. When he retired we went to Jabalpur and from there I came to Bombay in 1949 after the Partition. I was a Science student and wanted to be a doctor. It's good I didn't become a doctor, so many people would have died!
My elder brother Premnathji came to Bombay, when Prithvirajji called him here. They were very fond of each other and were the best of friends. When I came to Bombay, I stayed with Premnath. In those days he stayed in Parel, four of us shared a room, and all of us were from theatre - Premnath, myself, dance director Satyanarayan and Krishen Dhawan. But Premnath and I kept shifting. When Premnath became a star, we moved to Shivaji Park - Road No 5., then we moved to Chembur at Deonar Farm, after that we went to Blue Heaven at Malabar Hill, later to Anita which is close by. When I got some money I bought my own separate flat at Anita, then I moved to Darshan Apartments at Napean Sea Road. From there I moved to a terrace flat on the 29th floor in Palm Springs at Cuffe Parade. Finally I moved to Khar where I stay now. BOMBAY MEMORIES
When I came to Bombay, I got off the train and got into a ghoda gadi. I would travel by tram from King's Circle to Regal Cinema. The first time I saw the sea I was very thrilled, I walked down Chowpatty and Marine Drive. For the first time I had bhelpuri and panipuri. When I came to Bombay I was a struggler, I had very little money. So what I would do is buy one ticket of the tram or bus only once in the month. I used to dodge the conductor by going to the upper deck and when I would finally be face-to-face, I would show him the ticket which was rolled and clenched between my teeth. I did that for trains too. Bombay has changed tremendously. I don't like Bombay now, - it's so overcrowded, like New York, with Buildings everywhere. But we can't help it, it's happening everywhere in the world. MY FRIEND SHAMMI KAPOOR
I was very friendly with Mr. Shammi Kapoor. Woh mere bachpan ke dost the. There was a place at Marine Drive called Parisian Dairy . I and Shammi would go there as there was a juke-box. Our respective brothers Raj Kapoor and Premnath were very popular. If people were sitting on a nearby table, we would talk very loudly about our brothers. They would be very excited and would come up to us and say that they would like to meet them. We would tell them that in fact Raj and Premnath were on their way and would be arriving in an hour or so. Those people would then ask us to join them and would order sandwiches, tea, etc. After we had helped ourselves, we would excuse ourselves to go to the bathroom and we would escape from the back. They would be left waiting for Raj Kapoor and Premnath! RANDOM FILM MEMORIES
I worked on the stage with Prithvirajji in Prithvi Theatres. Prithvirajji's contribution is very huge. I toured all of India with the troupe, with Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor. They became such big stars. I also worked with IPTA a long time back. Then I started doing small roles in pictures. I have done so many films I can't even count them. I have done them in Hindi, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and worked in films in Madras too. I got a break with Filmistan's Hum Sab Chor Hain directed by IS Johar, with Shammi Kapoor and Nalini Jaywant. Mine was a small comic role. It clicked and people liked my work and I started getting a few more chhote -mote roles. There was another film Miss India, also directed by IS Johar that starred Nargis and Pradeep Kumar. I got a better break with HS Rawail's Sharaarat with Meena Kumari, Kishore Kumar and Raaj Kumar in which I played a harmonium player. Iss mein logon ne mujhe pasand kiya. Through Shammi Kapoor who was working with Filmistan for Tumsa Nahin Dekha I met Nasir Husain. That was the time Mr. S Mukherji left Filmistan and started his own company called Filmalaya Studios. He was making a picture called Dil Deke Dekho. It was 1958. I got a good break, picture badi hit ho gayee. After that I got a lot of offers and they were for big roles and with the biggest of producers and directors. I did two pictures with Mr. Bimal Roy - Prem Patra and Usne Kaha Tha with Sunil Dutt and Nanda. He was a very good director, very artistic. He had his own style. With Bhappi Sonie I did Janwar. Then came Jawan Mohabbat and Tum Haseen Main Jawan. Woh zamane mein picture badi hit ho jaati thi. Maine sab ke saath kaam kiya.... alag alag role mein. I worked with the best of heroes and the best of directors. Raj Kapoor was a very, very fine director, he was a born director and it was a pleasure working with him in Prem Rog, where I did a cameo. In Purab Aur Paschim I was a hippie and chanted "Hare Ram Hare Krishna". Woh zamane mein hippie ka josh tha. It was shot in London. If you have been a hit in a certain role you get more such roles. If you are a villain you are a villain, if you are a comedian you remain a comedian. But I was lucky sometimes, I was given different roles, I did Mujhe Jeene Do with Sunil Dutt and Waheeda Rehman. My role was very different I was a dacoit. It was a good film and they were good to work with. In the film I get shot trying to protect the heroine and that drew a lot of sympathy. Woh zamane mein we used to go to Kashmir for shooting, abhi to duniya bhar jaate hai. In our days, Kashmir was very peaceful, and about six-seven units would be shooting there at the same time. It was the greatest spot for shooting. We all worked like a family - the hero, heroine, producer, director - we would all sit together, eat together, have a discussion. Now after a shot, people want to be separate. Actresses like Nargis and Meena Kumari were very dedicated to their work, you can see by their performances. They would take great interest in their work, discuss their role with the director, the writer and the co-star. There would be compete coordination. Today's hero-heroine may not be on talking terms but they do a love scene. How can you make a film like that? We see that on TV, don't we? I did get a lot of varied roles in the South. They are the most organized people. They would finish a film on time, while in those days, in Bombay, a film could take even five years to complete.
I have worked with two actresses in their first films - with Raakhee in Jeevan Mrityu and Kajol in Bekhudi. We shot in Canada and it didn't do well, but I knew she would be a good actress.My last film was Sauda with Neelam Kothari.
Anupamaa
Cricket
