Dilip Kumar: The Substance And The Shadow An Autobiography
by Mahbubar Rahman
It is indeed a daunting task to write a review of an autobiography belonging to such a legendary figure like Dilip Kumar who has lucidly revealed the tale painted in the vast tapestry of his life. Being an ardent fan and admirer of him ever since my boyhood, with considerable trepidation, I undertake the job for the reader who may find the review interesting.
Prior to a head-long plunge into the review of the book - Dilip Kumar : The Substance and the Shadow - An Autobiography, at the very outset I would like to recall the occasion of the Launching Ceremony of the book in 2014 at Mumbai with Dilip Kumar, meticulously dressed in dark lounge suit, in the focus of the lime-lights of the show seating most intimately beside his most caring better-half - the gracious lady Saira Banu.
Largely attended by the super-stars and celebrities of Bollywood who enlighten the firmament of the Indian filmdom with their luminosity, presence of Amitab Bacchan, Dharmendra, Javed Akhtar, Vyjainthimala, Aamir Khan and lot more who graced the occasion was conspicuous. Taking a lead in the discussion, Amitab Bacchan recalled his prime time of youth as a college student at Alahabad when he watched Dilip Sahabs all-time masterpiece movie Gunga-Jumna several times repeatedly and became an ardent fan and admirer of Dilip Kumar. Dilip Sahabs unparallel skill and artistry in acting influenced Amitab Bacchan in shaping his legendary film career over the years. Amitab Bacchan wondered, being a thespian originally coming from the north-western part of the subcontinent, how Dilip sahab delivered dialogues in Guga-Jumna so flawlessly in typical Bhojpuri dialect. With a mischivous smile playing in his lips with complacence, Super--star Dharmendra recalled the colorful evenings at his Bara-Bhai Dilip Sahabs bunglow in a drinking session where, as he mentioned, his Bara-Bhai settled with a small peg of drink for long time while he (Dharmendra) set with large pegs gulping all in short time. With making a serious note of feeling in his speech, Dharmendra said that as a mark of highest degree of respect and adulation as an elder brother, Dilip Sahabs photo is the only photo-frame which is suitably placed beside the photo frame of his father in his drawing room.
Forwarding and introducing the book by the gracious lady Saira Banu and Udayatara Nayar respectively, expressed their years of hard work and experience of taking dictations from Dilip Sahab in the process of publishing the autobiography in the right order, The gorgeous lady Vyjainthimala in her speech expressed how pleasant it was to work with Dilip Sahab who is not only a great actor but a good human being always lending his hands of help and co-operation to his co-actors at time it was needed. She boastfully said that she acted with Dilip Sahab as heroine in seven films like Devdas, Naya Daur, Madhumati, Paigam, Gunga-Jumna, Leader, Sanghursh which are record number of films a single heroine worked with Dilip Sahab, over the years. Eulogising Dilip Sahab, Javed Akhtar and Aamir Khan came out in all ornamental words of literary and poetic grandeur.
The book - Dilip Kumar : The substance and the Shadow is lucid reminiscence of the author Dilip Kumars life. It is intricately laced with candid observation and comments which are uniquely his own. The varied canvas of this exciting work embraces time before and time after. Its beginning are rooted at a time before the partition of the Indian Sub-continent. By easy narratives the author takes the reader through a journey to a place in Peshawar - a north western-town of undivided India in early twentieth century where Dilip Sahab was born Yousuf Khan and had his pleasant childhood days.
At a night time on December 11, 1922 when Kissa Khawani Bazar at Peshwar was burning in great fire and when the entire town-ship was shivering in blizzard, Chacha Umar (paternal uncle) rushed to the house of an elderly mid-wife who helped a newborn male child Yousuf to see the light of the world in the house of Mohammad Sarwar Khan and Ayesha Bibi - the parents belonging to a Pathan clan. With a given name Yousuf Khan the boy was growing with love and affection of Dada, Dadi and the parents.
One day a Fakir came to the door seeking food and some money. The fakirs gaze riveted on the boy with fixing his stare on the boys and told Dadi The child is made for great fame and unparalleled achievements. Take good care of the boy, protect him from the worlds evil eye, he will be handsome even in old age if you protect him and keep him untouched by the evil eye. Disfigure him with soot if you must because if you dont you may lose him prematurely. The Noor (light) of Allah will light up his face always The author narrates Dadi took it upon herself to protect me from the evil eye of the world. She had my head shaven and every day, when I started for school, she made a streak on my forehead with soot to make me look ugly. Amma tried hard to convince her not to make her child so ugly that other children would poke fun and give him a complex. Aghaji (father) tried to reason with his stuborn mother about the consequences of what she was doing to me. But Dadi wouldnt budge. Her love and protectiveness towards me were too overwhelming for her to accept their pleading. The irrefutable exercise of Dadi shaving the head of young Yousuf and streak his fore-head with a black shoot went on unchallenging till such time Mohd. Sarwar khan kicked of his heel for Bombay to explore new possibilition of his fruit business and got young Yousuf admitted in the Anjuman-e-Islam high school with no more shaving of pate, which elicited compliments from all the ladies who visited Yousufs mother.
Prior to settling in Bombay Mohd. Sarwar Khan took the family to Deolali (a hill station in Maharastra, located about 180 Km from Bombay). Being an army station, Deolali had good educational institution and one of them was Barnes School where young Yousuf was admitted. The Author narrates Deolali is of significance in my life in more than one respect. First, it was Deolali that I learned the English language and became quite proficient in it. Secondly, it was during our stay in Deolali that I began to take keen interest in soccer ............ As I grew up and progressed in my study in English, I read the short-stories (in translation) of the nineteenth century French writer Guy de Maupassant ............ That was my first introduction to published literature from abroad and I was fascinated by the plot structure and storytelling ability of the author. In a latent sort of way, I was developing a keen narrative skill by reading the works of English and European anthors that I found in the library of Barnes School.
Being an avid reader, Dilip Sahab enjoyed reading English and Urdu authors. At khalsa college the author met Raj kapoor after years as college mate. For some region the authors father had great dream for him. The father wanted his son to pursue education and acquire impressive degree. His ultimate desire was to see OBE (order of the British Empire) attached to his sons name.
As the time passed, Dilip Kumars engagement in the cine-world deepened and Mohd. Sarwar Khans desire to see OBE attached to his sons name slowly dwindled. On Chacha Omars request, Mohd. Sarwar Khan along with Chacha Omar one day visited privately a cinema hall to watch his sons acting in Mela (1948) and was convinced that his son will make a great actor in course of time. Well-bred in a strong Pathan clan with native wisdom, a straightforward man with impeccable simplicity in his trait, Mohd. Sarwar Khan related the story of the film Mela to reality of life and was deeply worried and pained to see his despondent sons (Dilip Kumar) love with heroine Nargis sadly broke in the silver screen. He asked his son Dilip Kumar to give him the address of Nargis father so that he could discuss and mend the broken relation and take the loving pair to the road to happy marriage. The proposal caused big laughter to everyone present.
By nature, a shy man, the author admits I could never get over my shyness even after I entered my twenties. I envied Raj (Raj Kapoor) who had by then become a friend as the families had once again become close, carrying forward the friendship of Peshwar days. Raj was always at ease with the girts in the college and his extrovert nature and natural charm earned him considerable popularity. If there were anything impressive about me at that stage, it was my performance in sports and my acquaintance with English and Urdu literature ............ At khalsa college, Raj Kapoor became a close pal and he used to take me to his house where his father Prithivirajji and his demure wife kept the doors of the house open all the time as the sons as well as Prithivirajjis brothers and her brother kept coming and going constantly ........... I felt completely relaxed with Rajs family. The liberal and infectiously friendly kapoors had no hesitation whatsoever in sharing their heartiness with whoever willing to absorb it. ........ I have gone into all this detailing for specific purpose. It is meant to inform those readers, who may have been misled into imagining that Raj Kapoor and I only professed friendship while a deep professional rivalry brewed between us, that ours was not merely a friendship of two individuals in the same profession but a bonding that grew from well-placed trust and respect.
Reminiscing the great family ties and friendship between his father Raj Kapoor and uncle Dilip Kumar, Super-star Rishi Kapoor writes I have never been Rishi nor chintu (Nick name) for Yousuf uncle. I am his sunny boy. ............... I must admit with all sincerity that all of us sons and daughters of Raj Kapoor address him as Yousuf uncle but he is no less than a father figure to all of us, now and forever.
Rishi further narrates The memory which still haunts me ever to this day goes back to the last time papa was in coma in the hospital and we knew the end was near. Yousuf uncle was in Pakistan to attend a felicitation by the President of Pakistan when papa was shifted to hospital in Delhi where he suffered a cardiac attack. The day Yousuf uncle returned to Mumbai, he took a flight to Delhi and rushed to the hospital. I remember very clearly how he walked into the room where papa was lying unconscious. He said with high emotion get up and sit and listen to me. I have just come back from Peshwar and I have brought back the aroma of Chapli kebab to tempt you. You and I will go together and we will walk through the bazar like we used to and enjoy the kebab and rotis. Raj, wake up and stop acting. I know you are a great actor. His voice was now choking and tears were brimming over from his eyes as he spoke. Randhir and I stood still and mute. The other memory is from a day in our studio when we were filming Prem Rog (1982). I had to bring the intense expression of a despondent lover, and as hard as I was trying, Raj Kapoor, the director, was not getting the look he wanted, which was irritating him. Then he shouted at me in the presence of the entire unit, Mujhe Yousuf Chahiye. I want the look in his eyes when he expresses love, his intensity, his realism. The unit was silent. Nobody could believe that he was talking about his professional rival Dilip Kumar. I thing it was the ultimate acknowledgement of the actor-director Raj Kapoor for Yousuf uncles unmatched ability to portray love with all his agony and ecstasy. It was possible only because they had that kind of genuine respect and love for each other.
Before the turning point of his life in the cine-world came and before the prodigal son was back home to join his parent, Dilip Sahab had the occasion to live in Poona for sometime where he fetched a job in the Army club restaurant and worked for sometime as Asstt. Manager. He earned the expertise to make good sandwiches and opened a counter of his own in the corner of the restaurant from where he earned good money and saved Tk. 5,000/- which he brought back home and gave to his mother as his first earning in life. Dilip Sahab had had to go behind the bar with a handcuff for his delivering a speech in the Army club emphasizing the struggle for freedom of India was a legitimate right. Having branded as Gandhiwala, he discovered in one of the prison cells Sardar Vallabbhai Patel and others were on hunger strike. Dilip Sahab was, however, got released by a army major next day. He writes As I sat alone in my room that night. I kept hearing the jailors words in my sub-conscious and a sense of pride built up within me that I had spent a night in jail with Gendhijis followers and even if it was for a few fleeting moments, I was unafraid of expressing my pride about my country and my compatriots. At the Army club, Dilip Kumar have had lot more interesting and funny episodes which I make no mention in this review and leaving those sensational episodes for the readers to read from the book.
The turning Point of his life came when Yousuf Khan met Devika Rani - the then reigning star and boss of Bombay Talkies in 1942 who, having discovered eminence in his face and good demeanor, offered Yousuf Khan an employment as actor in the studio for a monthly salary of RS. 1250 with a name Dilip Kumar thus transforming the Substance Yousuf Khan to the Shadow Dilip Kumar in the silver screen. In the Bombay Talkies Studio, Dilip Sahab met legendary figures like Amiya Chakraborty, S.Mukharjee and Ashok Kumar who were very kind helping him shaping a film career. Devika Rani was pleased to cast Dilip Kumar in Jawar-Bhata in 1944 for making his debut in the film industry which stretched more than long six decades to make Dilip Kumar a living legend. Believing in perfectionism, with utmost attention and dedication, he acted in not more than 62 movies in long 60 years of film career with making every films with land mark achievements. As few film like Andaz, Mela, Deedar, Daag, Aan, Amar, Moghul-eAzam, Gunga Jumna, Devdas, Kohinoor, Shakti, Vidhata, Karma etc. are the moving masterpiece films of all time which refuse to lose their flex, glamour and great artistry even at the passage of time.
To cut this review short, I am not going to highlight on his films which transcends the barrier of any critical analysis and remain etched in the indelible memory of cine-goes of all time. This re-view will, however, be an incomplete one if I do not mention about Dilip Kumars heroines in the silver silver screen. Dilip Kumar acted against all the beautiful heroine of those day. I will be failing my duty in doing justice to the readers if I dont make special mention about beautiful Modhubala who acted as heroine against Dilip Kumar in four great movies like Tarana (1951) Sangdil (1952) Amar 1954, Mughal-e-Azam (1960), It was said that the pair were made for each other with their gifted beauty and elegance. Dilip Kumar and Modhubala were not only a romantic pair in the silver screen, rather were in deep love with each other in their personal lives. The relationship went to the extend of ending in a happy marriage but in the mid-way unfortunately fizzled out due to undeserving interference of Modhubalas father, film producer Ataullah khan on some flimsy ground which Dilip Kumar could not succumb to, for valid reasons. Years after the relationship broke, Dilip Kumar chose to marry a beautiful spinster Saira Banu with pomp grandeur in 1966. His bridal party with Dilip Kumar in horseback was largely attended in waltzing waves by almost all the stars of Bombay film world except one great maestro and family friend Nausad Mia who refrained from attending the party due to his utter disappointment and eccentricity that Dilip Kumar was marrying a girl who was half of his (Dilip Kumars) age. Pran, a great friend of Dilip Kumar who acted negative roles in the films against Dilip Kumar attended the bridal party after taking a turbulent flight from outside location of Bombay in a stormy weather. With geity and bonhomie the wedding ceremony was followed by a big feast where even the uninvited gate-crashers were not deprived of their share of food. Dilip Kumars brothers and brother-in-law Sultan had to take all the pains buying all the foods available in the neighborhood restaurants to contain the belly of the gate-crashers at the dead of night.
About Modhubala, Dilip Kumar narrates, Another sterling quality she posseses is her ability to forget the past and live in the present. Soon after our nikha (marriage), while we were staying in Madras, I received a message from Modhubala that she wished to see me urgently. I confided in Saira at once insisted that I should meet Madhu since it must be something she was distressed about. When I went to Madhus home, I was pained to see that she was frail and looked very weak. The pallor on her face not only belied her ill health, but her magnificent, impish smile seemed such an effort. She was happy to see me and said Hamarey shehzade ko unki shehzadi mil gayi hai, Main bahut Khush hoon! (our prince has got his princess, I am very happy). She was worried about some personal matters that she needed my advice on and we discussed them untill she was somewhat satisfied that they could be sorted out. She then relaxed. That was the last time I saw her. She passed away on 23 February 1969.
To break the monotony of all serious issues in the autobiography, Dilip Sahab reminiscenced some interesting light issues with humor which readers will equally find interesting and humorous.
At this point I only mention one such episode which, Dilip Sahab has described in good humor and that is all about his dear friend Omar Mukri a short statured comedian of great fame who acted in Aaan, Kohinoor, Ram aur Sham, Amar, etc. Dilip Sahab wrote .............. I cautioned Mukri against taking rash decisions of his own and gave a standing instruction about two issues. One was that he would not trail behind me in hotel rooms and make-up rooms because I valued my privacy and independence. The other request to my dear friend Mukri was to stay away from alcohol during working hours. I was aware that he slid away quietly between shots at times to gulp down a small dose of what he called energizer. It was all right as long as it was small measure that there had been occassions when he went overboared and embarrassed me. So he was told very strictly by me not to touch the staff during the shooting of kohinoor (1960). I also gave instruction to the unit hands not to oblige him if he asked for a drink during shoots. One afternoon, while I was wrapped up in a serious discussion with Sunny, I was taken by surprise by a swaying Mukri walking up to me and asking me as to what I thought of myself! He was very angry that the unit boys refused to arrange a drink for him, so he had made his own arrangement and had got hold of a bottle. He repeatedly slurred the question : you think I cant help myself? I am Mukri, your best friend and you told the boys not to give me a drink! In that state, he was not in a position to work and it upset my concentration. I called for pack-up and drove out of the studio leaving Mukri to find his way back. He soon realized I was angry with him for the right reason, too. As it always happens between friends, we forgot the episode when we met after a few days and he promised me that it would not happen again. I am leaving many more funny episodes about Mukri for readers to read from the book.
As a recipient of almost all the prestigious highest awards, with his unparallel skill in acting, Dilip Kumar curved a niche in the hearts of his millions fans and admirers for his unmatching presence in the film industry for long more than six decades. His presence and domination with unflinching dedication to the cause has been duly reflected in the autobiography.
An avid humanist from head to toe, Dilip Kumar always rose to the occasions when any humanitarian services were ever needed from him. Apart from being a thespian of Himalayan height, Dilip Sahab served the public office of the Sheriff of Bombay and member of the Moharashtra Raijja-shava. His secular beliefs spring straight from his heart. Being a pure secular person blended with the spirit of unflinching patriotism, nevertheless he fell victim to the brunt of Shiv-Sena and Balthackery when he received a highest civilian award - Shitara-e-Imtiaz from the President of Pakistan in 1998. Being under attack of the vile Balthackery politied and communal outfit, Dilip Sahab sought the advice of the then Indian prime Minister Atal Bihari Bajpayee whether to renounce the award. With sagacity and high political acumen Prime Minister Bajpayee responded in the negative thus protecting Dilip Sahab from the outrage of Shiv-sena hoodlums.
As a fatherly figure to all the members of his large family with twelve siblings, Dilip Kumar weaved a strong fabric of bonding which still continues and reverberates with all tender feelings and emotions. Having no children of their own, both Sairajee and Dilip Sahab accepted it as the Will of Allah. Nevertheless their Bunglow at Pali Hill always brims with the presence of their nephews, nieces and grand Children all the time.
In the concluding remark made in the book, Dilip Kumar wrote As I reflect on the absence of my brothers Noor sahab, Ayub Sahab, Nasir and my sisters Sakina Aapa, and Taj, I cannot but sorely miss some of the wonderful men who were with me in my journey, including Raj Kapoor, Ashok Kumar, S. Makharjee Sahab, Mehboob Sahab, Nitinda (Nitin Bose) Bimalda (Bimal Roy) Tapanda (Tapan Sinha), B.R. Chopra, Dev Anand, Pran, Yash chopra and producer Yash Johar. I miss them as much as I miss my own brother who are no more.
As a voracious reader, Dilip Kumar earned extensive erudition in subjects of varied interests ranging from literature to social sciences and duly curved a niche in the gallery of intellectualism.
Revealed by an erudite and splendored personality, autobiography of Dilip Kumar exceeds all expectations of readers. A captivating personality and a living legend ends up narrating a fascinating story of his life. It is easy and pleasant read and I trust that this unique work will attract keen interest of discerning readers.
The writer is a former Civil Servant.
