Elaborate interviews, off-the-cuff dangling conversations, and visits to the studio sets to watch Dilip Kumar in action, were the most pleasurable perks of my long and winding career.
The departed Yusuf Khan saab respected a clutch of journalists, avoided others. He had even hosted a wedding at his bungalow for the late marriage of M. Shamim, the Delhi-anchored senior correspondent of The Times of India. Saira Banu once even sought to organise an arranged marriage for me with an airhostess, which as it happened, went through the cracks. “Don’t force him to doing anything, Sairabi,” he had laughed. “Or he will be miserable for the rest of his life”
I recall that incident now to perhaps indicate that Dilip Kumar had struck an intimacy, which he did with all those who he could chat with, minus the caveat of, “That’s off-the-record.”
Scanning the several interviews, over the decades, with the Shahenshah-e-Alam of acting, here’s a collation of his quotes, which affirmed that his childhood was a defining factor in his metier. Besides, there are his infallibly self-effacing remarks, occasional disappointments – he so wanted to become a director, a wish which remained unrealised --and more. Excerpts:
On His First Waking Memory
"The first memory is an amalgamation of images really – images like pulling the luxuriant beard of my grandfather Haji Mohammed Khan. Images of our home in Peshawar where a dastarkhan would be laid out of the carpet: bakarkhani and a pink milky tea would be served. Childhood memories remain embedded within us, they’re more significant than the turn of events and fortunes in our adulthood. I was the fifth child in a large family of 13 brothers and sisters. I had to carry considerable baggage for the others. I’d be sent to fetch ganderi from the market, to pick wild berries and run errands.
There’s also the vivid memory of two Pathan brothers. In a fit of rage, they had whipped out knives. One brother slaughtered the other one right before my eyes. I saw terror even before I knew what it meant".
On His Physical Resemblance With His Mother
"I looked like my mother, though some of my family members say that I’d grown a moustache like my father’s. I supposed I inherited my physical features from both of them. I was closer to my mother..she died when I was filming Shaheed. I was distanced from my father, like all the children I was in awe of him even though he was extremely tender-hearted.
"He’d come down to Bombay before the rest of the family; he was walking along the seafront when he saw a Parsi couple walking their child in a perambulator. The child reminded him of me, he picked it up and embraced him. The couple raised a hue and cry, they thought he was kidnapping their child. He broke into tears and explained that he was remembering me back home. They relented and let him go. That’s when he called us all down from Peshawar. His heart was aching without us".
On the First Glimpse of Bombay
"Our train stopped at Colaba, where the railway station used to be those days. We found it strange to climb up stairs and stairs to live on the fourth floor of a building. The city was crowded even then..yahan log pe log hamesha se rehte hain. My mother couldn’t quite adjust to the congestion. It started telling her on health, so we shifted to Deolali, where I studied at Barnes school, and saw my first film ever – Trader Horn (1931), a jungle adventure. We’d travel by a tonga usually, and I’d crack the chabuk to get the two horses to canter, which came in use when I did Naya Daur".
On Learning the Sitar
"I had to for a few shots for the song 'Madhuban Mein Radhika Naache Re' in Kohinoor. It meant an arduous regimen of five to six hours a day for weeks and weeks. The sitar is still with me. Perhaps I could still return to it.
On Comparisons to K.L. Saigal’s 'Devdas'
"Comparisons are odious, as they say. But they were drawn nevertheless. I made it a point not to see P.C. Barua’s Devdas with K.L.Saigal (1931). I didn’t tell Bimal Roy about this. Or else..who knows?..there could have been similarities".Dilip Kumar
On Rejecting 'Mother India'
"Mehboob Khan was an intuitive director with a flair for visuals and a dynamic narrative. I was a part of his Amar and Andaz. He did approach me for the role eventually essayed by Raaj Kumar. But, as you know, Mother India evolved around the lady, Nargis. So I begged off the assignment.
On Rationing His Films
"Aah, that’s the lazy man inside me. Moreover, I haven’t come across scripts which have aroused my interest – that’s the bottom-line in my desire to work. It’s said that there are characters in search of an author. In my case, it’s an actor is search for a script. In any case, excessive work amounts to familiarity which breeds contempt in the audience".
There was an offer to portray a detective, but I wouldn’t have been motivated at all to play a hackneyed jasoos wearing dark glasses and striking a mysterious posture. Many actors have played a Sherlock Holmes type of sleuth. I’m afraid a totally new kind of detective hasn’t been evolved yet.
If an actor overworks, he’s performing the job of an assembly-line labourer. On the other hand, if an actor underworks, he’s being far too self-indulgent and wallows in contemplation. Fortunately, my idleness never takes that form of a devil’s workshop. That’s because I have varied interests like sports, travelling and reading prose and poetry. It seems that the majesty of Urdu is going extinct. To that, I’d say it’s reviving, to quite a heartening extent, since mushairas are being held even in London, Manchester, New York and Toronto.
"Sports is also developing healthy minds. The enormous number of people glued to their TV sets during a cricket match cannot be matched by entertainment, be it films, dance or serials.
On Prince Salim of 'Mughal-e-Azam'
"Prince Salim was a big problem for me. I couldn’t possibly know how a Mughal prince speaks, walks and behaves. I asked K. Asif to set up a tent for me where I could rehearse my scenes wearing those ostentatious costumes. Yet, within me I used to find myself an alien. I wasn’t getting into the script and soul of the character. Perhaps that’s why there was a sadness, a sense of despondency about the prince".
On Being Called a Consummate Tragedian
"I have been either dubbed a comedian or tragedian. I have always felt that they are talking about someone else. I’m a bit of everything, mujh mein sab ka thodasa thodasa hai. Right know, I would love to play a grumpy old man, but the directors already have their scripts ready and want me to fit into the groove. Truly, an actor can’t always get his way, can he? By the way, of all the directors I’ve worked with, only Mehboob Khan, Tapan Sinha, Ramesh Sippy and Subhash Ghai have had the special ability to say 'No' when they disagreed with me".Dilip Kumar
On the Allegations During the Communal Riots in Bombay, 1992-‘93
"I’d be using a mild term, if I said I was hurt. I almost lost faith in the way facts and information are presented. I’m still mystified why all sorts of baseless calumny were hurled against me. Yet, weighed against the love and affection given to me by thousands of people all over the years, these were minor injuries inflicted by people who had their own axes to grind. Although the injuries haven’t quite healed I’ve chosen to forget them".
On the New Generation of Actors in the Mid-‘90s
"I would first say, that look at Ashok Kumar. He had a personality and gave some excellent performances in Kismat, Chal Chal Re Naujawan and Naya Sansar. He had a style. So did Motilal. The current generation has personality and style but they have a very indifferent approach to their work. Perseverance and dedication are missing. Even the language used by the youngsters on the sets is very cheap and inconsiderate. During my time, foul language was unheard of".
On Shah Rukh Khan
"From the little I’ve seen, he seems to be very aggressive. He appears to be ready to accept challenges before the camera though. But in the long run, he has to take care of his attitude".
On Being Imitated Vastly
"I’m neither happy nor distressed about being imitated. I ignore this. Even while working, I have come across a few co-artistes trying to ape me. That’s when I change my own rhythm, timing and throw of voice instead of asking them to change their act".Dilip Kumar
On Marriage
"Marriage has helped me considerably. Because I used to lead a wild lifestyle with no one to control me. I’d be on a location shoot for a fortnight in a month and I’d be up to all sorts of awaaragardi. Marriage has been a stabilising factor. I didn’t surrender my freedom at one go. Over the years, I’ve forfeited it slowly but surely".
On Unrealised Dreams
"By that, you obviously mean my first bid at direction Kalinga (it was shelved eventually). The experience made me realise that much water has flown down the bridge of film production. Ever since institutions and men like S.S. Vasan, Mehboob Khan and Bimal Roy made their exit much has changed…and not for the better.
I would have certainly liked to go beyond the camera for good. But the filmmaking conditions have become excruciatingly oppressive. The unpleasant episode of Kalinga in my life went on for over six months if not more. It was tremendously frustrating to have been embroiled with a producer (Sudhakar Bokade). It was also frustrating vis-à-vis my work ethics. My loyalty to my work and to my producers has been unquestionable. I have never gone through legal notices and airing one’s grouses through the media. Which is why I wouldn’t like to utter another word on the subject".
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