EVERGREEN DEV ANAND AT A GLANCE- BY SHRI DINKAR CHOWDHARY
Dev Anand—His real name was Dharam Dev Pishorimal Anand. Born on 26th September 1923 in Gurdaspur district, now in Pakistan, Dev Anand’s film career spanned over more than 65 years during which he acted in 114 Hindi Films playing the main lead in 110 of them!. Besides innumerable national & international awards and recognitions, the Govt. of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2001 and highest film honour Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2002 for his outstanding contribution to the Indian Cinema.
After graduating in English literature from the Government College, Lahore, he left for Mumbai (Bombay) in early 1940s to make a career in films. Like everyone he too struggled hard in the beginning and for survival he served as a clerk in military censor’s office at Churchgate, for a monthly salary of Rs. 165/-. Dev Anand quoted in an interview that “I remember when I gate crashed into the office of the man who gave me the first break; he kept looking at me – Babu Rao Pai of Prabhat Film Studios. At that time he made up his mind that this boy deserved a break and later mentioned to his people that ‘this boy struck me because of his smile and beautiful eyes and his tremendous confidence.” He was soon offered the lead role in Prabhat Films’ Hum Ek Hain (1946), a film about Hindu-Muslim unity, where Dev Anand played a Hindu boy and was paired opposite Kamala Kotnis. While shooting for the film in Pune, Anand befriended director Guru Dutt. Between them, they agreed that if one of them was to become successful in the film industry, they would help the other to be successful. They formed a mutual understanding that when Anand produced a film, Dutt would direct it and when Dutt directed a film, Anand would act in it.
Dev Anand did not forget his promise and when he became Producer, chose Guru Dutt as director for the crime thriller, Baazi (1951). The film starring Dev Anand, Geeta Bali and Kalpana Kartik was a trendsetter regarded as the forerunner of the spate of urban crime films that followed in Indian Cinema in the 1950s. Baazi saw the debut of Kalpana Kartik (aka Mona Singh) as the female lead and Guru Dutt as director. The collaboration was a success at the box office and the duo of Dev Anand and Kalpana Kartik were offered many films to star in together. They signed all the film offers and subsequently films like Aandhiyan, Taxi Driver, House No. 44 and Nau Do Gyarah went on to become big hits too. During the making of film Taxi Driver, the couple fell in love and Dev proposed marriage to his heroine Kalpana. Once Dev Anand admitted in an interview that before Kalpana came into his life he fell in love with Suraiya, a top heroine of that time, but this love could not turn in to a marriage.
A rapid-fire style of dialogue delivery and a penchant for nodding while speaking became Dev’s style in films like House No. 44, Pocket Maar, Munimji, Funtoosh, C.I.D and Paying Guest. In the 1950s his films were of the mystery genre or light comedy, love stories or were films with social relevance like Ek ke baad ek and Funtoosh. His style was highly appreciated by the audience and was widely imitated. He starred in a string of box office successes for the remainder of the 1950s opposite newcomer Waheeda Rehman in C.I.D. (1956), Solva Saal, Kala Pani, Kala Bazar and Baat Ek Raat Ki. Waheeda first became a star with C.I.D. becoming a hit. In 1955 he also co-starred with Dilip Kumar in Insaniyat. Kala Pani (1958), in which he portrayed the role of a son willing to go to any lengths to clear his framed father’s name, got him his first Filmfare award for Best Actor. He attempted films of tragic genre occasionally like Pocketmaar (1956)), Kala Pani (1958), Bombai Ka Baboo (1960) and Sharabi (1964) and tasted success in them. Dev also played a few characters with a negative shade, like in Jaal (1952) where he played a smuggler, then as an absconding gang member in Dushman, as a black marketer in Kala Pani. Apart from his pair with Suraiya and Kalpana Kartik, his pair with Nutan and Waheeda Rehman was popular among the audiences in late 50’s and 60’s. His films Rahee and Aandhiyaan, were screened along with Raj Kapoor’s Awaara. From the early fifties till mid sixties, the trio of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand ruled the roost.
I was very lucky to have come in contact with Dev Saheb during my training at Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. This was around 1964 when he was planning his film Guide; and his love and affection for me continued till his end. Guide which is an internationally recognized film, explains his Philosophy (in the climax scene) where he says that “Atma Amar Hai Jo Kabhi Nahi Marti Ye Shareer Mit Jayega Per Main Rahoonga”. Truly, Dev Saheb may not be physically present among us now, (having left for his heavenly abode on 3rd December in London - 4th December 2011 by Indian Time), but will certainly live forever through his work which he continued to do till his last breath. Such an evergreen filmmaker and a great human being never dies, but continues to inspire filmmakers. |
