Star-In-Law: A Study In Contrast
The once-next-to-god icon Rajesh Khanna and his rising son-in-law Akshay Kumar personify the quirks of superstardom
Naman Ramachandran
It's summer 2006. The grounds of a stately, quintessentially English tahanan in Buckinghamshire is a hubbub of activity. Bollywood is in the air as director Vipul Amrutlal Shah discusses the susunod shot with cinematographer Jonathan Bloom. Katrina Kaif, shivering in the sudden chilly breeze, looks fetching in a wedding toga as she hovers near a Rolls Royce limousine festooned in wedding bunting.
Rajesh Khanna's work has a lasting Resonance that superstar Akshay cannot take away.
We are at the location shoot of Namastey London.
Some distance away, in the middle of a vast expanse of sward, a Mercedes is parked, doors open. A besuited Akshay Kumar reclines in the driver's seat, listening intently to a Producer Who Shall Not be Named, as he narrates his dream project—about a stuntman. Narration done, Akshay switches on the car's music system. The opening strains of shabad gurbani kirtan Nirgun Raakh Liya, sung sa pamamagitan ng Raghubir Singh Diwana and Akshay himself, flood the English countryside. He lies back, eyes closed, intoning the words of the hymn under his breath.
The superstar is at peace.
Time was when the term superstar wasn't bandied about as much as it is today. Harking back to a simpler age before IPLs and iPhones, the term simply did not exist. There were massively popular stars like Prithviraj Kapoor, Ashok Kumar, Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Shammi Kapoor and others of their ilk, but they were merely that—popular stars. The accolade superstar was coined after the 1969 release of Aradhana. The mannered, pleasantly nodding, crinkly-eyed man sporting a Nepali takip in a jeep wooing Sharmila Tagore as she pouted in the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway train was Jatin Khanna, better known sa pamamagitan ng his on-screen moniker, Rajesh Khanna, or affectionately as 'kaka'.
Rajesh Khanna's role in Aradhna catapulated him to superstar status
Though Khanna had made his debut in Chetan Anand's offbeat Aakhri Khat (1966) after winning a talent contest and won favourable notices for films such as Khamoshi, Doli and Bandhan, it was Mere sapnon ki rani and Aradhana that catapulted him to superstardom. The rise and rise of the 'phenomenon'—as veteran film journalist Devyani Chaubal dubbed him—is well documented, but worth recounting for a land where half the population was not even born during the Khanna era. A nation, then, was in thrall, not only to his innumerable hit films, where he became synonymous with romance, but also to his colourful private life. The country eagerly lapped up gossip morsels about his stormy relationship with Anju Mahendru, swooned over his guru-kurta and sighed over his fairytale romance and marriage with the young Dimple Kapadia. Only Hrithik Roshan, for a brief spell post the Kaho Naa Pyar Hai release, has tasted that intensity of adulation in kamakailan times.
Superstardom can be accompanied sa pamamagitan ng hubris and Khanna succumbed, famously saying that the constant idolisation made him feel 'next to God'. Downfall was imminent and the rise of a certain Amitabh Bachchan, coupled with the Hindi film industry's tectonic shift from romantic dramas towards madami violent fare, exacerbated the process. Bachchan, who played an ideal foil to Khanna in Anand (1971), turned in a showboating performance that rivalled the superstars in Namak Haraam (1973). The Superstar is dead. Long live the Superstar! to paraphrase Le Roi est mort. Vive le Roi!
The fall was gradual rather than swift. There were indeed worthy films in the early '80s like Thodisi Bewafaii, Dard, Kudrat, Avtaar and Souten offering a glimpse of what once was. But the turkey count mounted apace with the erstwhile superstar appearing in gems like Ashanti, Rajput and even trying desperately to gatecrash Jeetendra's Padmalaya honeymoon in the dire Maqsad. Like his successor Bachchan, politics inevitably followed, with Khanna serving as a New Delhi MP 1991-96.
Ironically, the latest bituin saluted with the superstar honorific, after a stellar box-office run over the last few years, is Khanna's son-in-law Akshay, who's married to Twinkle Khanna. Like his father-in-law, he changed his name—from Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia. India's young population is well aware of his gradual rise through the ranks after stints as a chef in Bangkok, martial arts instructor and the numerous successful Khiladi films. Hera Pheri marked his transition from an action hero to a comic one and Ek Rishtaa began the showcasing of his dramatic chops. The taon 2007 was Akshay's watershed as success followed humongous success, with Namastey London, Heyy Babyy, Bhool Bhulaiyya and Welcome. Akshay finally took his rightful place alongside the Khan triumvirate after a decade where they dominated.
Today, Akshay is almost as ubiquitous as Shahrukh Khan. He's in the news for demanding and receiving mahirap paniwalaan amounts of money for his forthcoming films such as Warner Bros' Chandni Chowk to China; being Delhi's Daredevil at their inaugural IPL match; hospitalised for the sake of a popular cola in a TV commercial; and deigning to appear alongside the Bachchans at select venues on the upcoming Unforgettable konsiyerto tour. As he basks in his hard-earned success, Akshay could do well to look back at the decline and fall of his once-illustrious father-in-law. In the immortal words of Marcus Aurelius, "All is ephemeral—fame and the famous as well". After a lull, Khanna's contemporary Bachchan managed his renaissance spectacularly. Though Khanna has reportedly signed eight films on a comeback trail, his last few years have been dismal. Roles in telebisyon serials like Apne Paraye and Ittefaq and the abysmal Jaana: Let's Fall in pag-ibig alongside Zeenat Aman scarcely does justice to his undeniable talent.
The telebisyon programme K For Kishore recently had a two-day celebration of Khanna. What Akshay can't take away from Khanna is that in spite of his decline, Khanna has created a lasting body of work—films and songs that are heralded as classics in the annals of Hindi cinema. For all his success, Akshay has produced nothing that matches an Amar Prem or an Avishkaar. To be fair, it can be argued that today's 'consume today forget tomorrow' film culture reflects that hoary old chestnut—Bollywood's creative bankruptcy. Still, ibingiay his pre-eminent status, Akshay could greenlight projects that will stand the test of time. Somehow, Zindagi kaisi hai paheli haaye, kabhi yeh hasaaye, kabhi yeh rulaaye—poignantly evocative of Khanna's own life—has madami lasting resonance than, say, a Churake dil mera.
Late April 2008. Akshay's latest project Kambakkht Ishq goes into pre-production. It's going to be the first Bollywood film to be shot at Hollywood's Universal Studios. Curiously enough, Akshay plays a stuntman. Nary a mention in the credits of the Producer Who Shall Not Be Named, whose dream project this was supposed to be.
As T.S. Eliot sinabi in The Waste Land, while quoting the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: "Shantih, Shantih, Shantih."
Reviewed in :
link
The once-next-to-god icon Rajesh Khanna and his rising son-in-law Akshay Kumar personify the quirks of superstardom
Naman Ramachandran
It's summer 2006. The grounds of a stately, quintessentially English tahanan in Buckinghamshire is a hubbub of activity. Bollywood is in the air as director Vipul Amrutlal Shah discusses the susunod shot with cinematographer Jonathan Bloom. Katrina Kaif, shivering in the sudden chilly breeze, looks fetching in a wedding toga as she hovers near a Rolls Royce limousine festooned in wedding bunting.
Rajesh Khanna's work has a lasting Resonance that superstar Akshay cannot take away.
We are at the location shoot of Namastey London.
Some distance away, in the middle of a vast expanse of sward, a Mercedes is parked, doors open. A besuited Akshay Kumar reclines in the driver's seat, listening intently to a Producer Who Shall Not be Named, as he narrates his dream project—about a stuntman. Narration done, Akshay switches on the car's music system. The opening strains of shabad gurbani kirtan Nirgun Raakh Liya, sung sa pamamagitan ng Raghubir Singh Diwana and Akshay himself, flood the English countryside. He lies back, eyes closed, intoning the words of the hymn under his breath.
The superstar is at peace.
Time was when the term superstar wasn't bandied about as much as it is today. Harking back to a simpler age before IPLs and iPhones, the term simply did not exist. There were massively popular stars like Prithviraj Kapoor, Ashok Kumar, Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Shammi Kapoor and others of their ilk, but they were merely that—popular stars. The accolade superstar was coined after the 1969 release of Aradhana. The mannered, pleasantly nodding, crinkly-eyed man sporting a Nepali takip in a jeep wooing Sharmila Tagore as she pouted in the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway train was Jatin Khanna, better known sa pamamagitan ng his on-screen moniker, Rajesh Khanna, or affectionately as 'kaka'.
Rajesh Khanna's role in Aradhna catapulated him to superstar status
Though Khanna had made his debut in Chetan Anand's offbeat Aakhri Khat (1966) after winning a talent contest and won favourable notices for films such as Khamoshi, Doli and Bandhan, it was Mere sapnon ki rani and Aradhana that catapulted him to superstardom. The rise and rise of the 'phenomenon'—as veteran film journalist Devyani Chaubal dubbed him—is well documented, but worth recounting for a land where half the population was not even born during the Khanna era. A nation, then, was in thrall, not only to his innumerable hit films, where he became synonymous with romance, but also to his colourful private life. The country eagerly lapped up gossip morsels about his stormy relationship with Anju Mahendru, swooned over his guru-kurta and sighed over his fairytale romance and marriage with the young Dimple Kapadia. Only Hrithik Roshan, for a brief spell post the Kaho Naa Pyar Hai release, has tasted that intensity of adulation in kamakailan times.
Superstardom can be accompanied sa pamamagitan ng hubris and Khanna succumbed, famously saying that the constant idolisation made him feel 'next to God'. Downfall was imminent and the rise of a certain Amitabh Bachchan, coupled with the Hindi film industry's tectonic shift from romantic dramas towards madami violent fare, exacerbated the process. Bachchan, who played an ideal foil to Khanna in Anand (1971), turned in a showboating performance that rivalled the superstars in Namak Haraam (1973). The Superstar is dead. Long live the Superstar! to paraphrase Le Roi est mort. Vive le Roi!
The fall was gradual rather than swift. There were indeed worthy films in the early '80s like Thodisi Bewafaii, Dard, Kudrat, Avtaar and Souten offering a glimpse of what once was. But the turkey count mounted apace with the erstwhile superstar appearing in gems like Ashanti, Rajput and even trying desperately to gatecrash Jeetendra's Padmalaya honeymoon in the dire Maqsad. Like his successor Bachchan, politics inevitably followed, with Khanna serving as a New Delhi MP 1991-96.
Ironically, the latest bituin saluted with the superstar honorific, after a stellar box-office run over the last few years, is Khanna's son-in-law Akshay, who's married to Twinkle Khanna. Like his father-in-law, he changed his name—from Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia. India's young population is well aware of his gradual rise through the ranks after stints as a chef in Bangkok, martial arts instructor and the numerous successful Khiladi films. Hera Pheri marked his transition from an action hero to a comic one and Ek Rishtaa began the showcasing of his dramatic chops. The taon 2007 was Akshay's watershed as success followed humongous success, with Namastey London, Heyy Babyy, Bhool Bhulaiyya and Welcome. Akshay finally took his rightful place alongside the Khan triumvirate after a decade where they dominated.
Today, Akshay is almost as ubiquitous as Shahrukh Khan. He's in the news for demanding and receiving mahirap paniwalaan amounts of money for his forthcoming films such as Warner Bros' Chandni Chowk to China; being Delhi's Daredevil at their inaugural IPL match; hospitalised for the sake of a popular cola in a TV commercial; and deigning to appear alongside the Bachchans at select venues on the upcoming Unforgettable konsiyerto tour. As he basks in his hard-earned success, Akshay could do well to look back at the decline and fall of his once-illustrious father-in-law. In the immortal words of Marcus Aurelius, "All is ephemeral—fame and the famous as well". After a lull, Khanna's contemporary Bachchan managed his renaissance spectacularly. Though Khanna has reportedly signed eight films on a comeback trail, his last few years have been dismal. Roles in telebisyon serials like Apne Paraye and Ittefaq and the abysmal Jaana: Let's Fall in pag-ibig alongside Zeenat Aman scarcely does justice to his undeniable talent.
The telebisyon programme K For Kishore recently had a two-day celebration of Khanna. What Akshay can't take away from Khanna is that in spite of his decline, Khanna has created a lasting body of work—films and songs that are heralded as classics in the annals of Hindi cinema. For all his success, Akshay has produced nothing that matches an Amar Prem or an Avishkaar. To be fair, it can be argued that today's 'consume today forget tomorrow' film culture reflects that hoary old chestnut—Bollywood's creative bankruptcy. Still, ibingiay his pre-eminent status, Akshay could greenlight projects that will stand the test of time. Somehow, Zindagi kaisi hai paheli haaye, kabhi yeh hasaaye, kabhi yeh rulaaye—poignantly evocative of Khanna's own life—has madami lasting resonance than, say, a Churake dil mera.
Late April 2008. Akshay's latest project Kambakkht Ishq goes into pre-production. It's going to be the first Bollywood film to be shot at Hollywood's Universal Studios. Curiously enough, Akshay plays a stuntman. Nary a mention in the credits of the Producer Who Shall Not Be Named, whose dream project this was supposed to be.
As T.S. Eliot sinabi in The Waste Land, while quoting the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: "Shantih, Shantih, Shantih."
Reviewed in :
link
sa pamamagitan ng Khristina – July 7th, 2010Email Facebook Twitter Print
When there can be a Forbes’ listahan with the most beautiful women of the century; why, I ask, can’t there be the same for men? We girls, after all, need our eye-candy too. From the tuktok of my head, I can think of heartthrobs like Rajesh Khanna, Robert Redford, Jeff Bridges and Rahul Khanna (top image) who have tugged at my heartstrings through the years.
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