CHENNAI: Not many filmmakers have the good fortune of seeing their debut project become a classic. Kundan Shah, who passed away on Saturday, was one of those who did.
In 1983, at the age of 36, Shah, a fresh graduate of the Pune Film and Television Institute of India made his first film, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro. Initially, the movie did nothing at the box office, typical of parallel cinema output of the time. But it proved to be a sleeper hit as word travelled around, and young urban audiences lapped it up. As they say in the film trade, it was different. Unlike the dark films being made by the average FTII grad at that time, Jaane Bhi Do Yaro was a comedy. But also, it was not the typical Bollywood romp. There were no superheroes in it, nor any very angry young men. It was people by relatable characters -- Naseeruddin Shah, Ravi Baswani, Om Puri, Pankaj Kapur, Satish Shah, Satish Kaushik, Bhakti Barve and Neena Gupta -- the kind you meet in your neighbourhood.
It proved to be the first sleeper hit of that era, tasting the kind of success that Ardh Satya and Parinda later notched. In fact, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro lay out the path for them. Today, it is celebrated as one of the best satirical feature films Hindi cinema has ever produced and allowed dozens of other directors and actors to dream of success even if they didn't have the big budgets of the big studios -- its budget was Rs 7 lakh -- or the backing of the big stars.
Jaane bhi Do Yaaro was a commercial as well as a critical success. It won Kundah Shah the Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director. Years later, Shah said, “When I was making the film, I never thought it would be such an acclaimed movie. Every filmmaker has some dreams and this film gave me more than I dreamt of. It surpassed my expectations.”
According to Jai Arjun Singh, Kundan Shah's biographer, the film-maker worked at a publishing house for four years before joining the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune. His father was worried but Shah was adamant that he wanted to make sure whether or not filmmaking was his calling. So the young Shah left home and headed to Pune.
When he appeared for the interview at FTII, Shah was told that filmmaking was a frustrating business, and asked how he would cope with it. He replied: “But frustration is a part of every creative activity—you have to turn your frustration into creativity.” According to Jai Singh, the interviewers were impressed.
Not the angry bearded revolutionary
During his stint at FTII one of the things that distinguished Shah from the other students was that he did not sport a beard, the typical look of the subaltern intellectual of that time. In those days, as in later years, he lived a simple life. “If he were to walk past you, you would take him for an accountant,” wrote Naseeruddin Shah. His films and TV shows reflected his persona: they were all about ordinary people.
After completing his first film, Shah went into making TV serials. His first project for TV, Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, starring Satish Shah and Swaroop Sampat, was the first sitcom in India. It was widely popular, becoming a must-see every Friday night.
Besides 'Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi', Shah gave us such gems as 'Nukkad', 'Wagle Ki Duniya', which gave the Indian telly audiences a reason to laugh away their worries with stories of everyday struggles. With its simple yet compelling narrative, 'Nukkad' told stories of lower-income people of a Mumbai locality battling issues while trying to survive in a tough world.
Seven years later, he returned to Bollywood. Unlike 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro', the 1994 blockbuster, 'Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa' starring Shah Rukh Khan did well at the box office. For Khan, it was one of his most memorable roles.
Seven years after 'Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa', Shah came up with 'Kya Kehna'. With teenage pregnancy at its core, the Preity Zinta-starrer was ahead of its time but did well. His subsequent projects 'Hum To Mohabbat Karega', 'Dil Hai Tumhaara' and his last movie as a director 'P Se PM Tak' failed to get commercial success.
Bollywood remembers Kundan Shah
Actor Preity Zinta: He would yell at me all the time and then get away with it by offering me a box of chocolates. So now if I am a pound heavier, you know who to blame! But he is a great director to work with. He knows his mind.
Actor Satish Kaushik said Shah gave "comedy a new face", while filmmaker Sudhir Mishra, who was his friend and assistant on 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro', said Shah was "wise, crazy, academic, imaginative and mourned the impossibility of true love".
Director Rakesh Sharma @rakeshfilm
JaaneBhiDoYaaron isn’t just a cult classic, but a vignette of the times we could freely laugh at our scriptures & politicians!
Actor Farhan Akhtar @ FarOutAkhtar
Will never forget his genuineness, his cinematic knowledge & his unique sense of humour. RIP
Actor Shah Rukh Khan @iamsrk
Oh my friend I miss you. I know u will bring smiles around wherever u are…but this world will laugh less now
Director Shekhar Kapur @shekharkapur
KundanShah was too humble. Too shy. Wish he was more assertive about his genius.
Director Prakash Jha @prakashjha27
Itni Jaldi Bhi Kya Thi Yaar! Common Man of Cinema, #KundanShah was a brilliant & passionate story teller!
Director Mahesh Bhatt @MaheshNBhatt
A brave man Kundan Shah, who added vigour to the alternatecinema stream with movies like Jaane bhi do yaaro has left us. Adieux Kundan