NOSTALGIA

PADMINI KOLHAPURE
MAEMORIES OF ANOTHER DAY
Barely in her early 30s, perhaps she’s much too young to be featured in a nostalgia column. But then what do you do if she set off on her on-screen journey at the tender age of seven and from a child artiste went on to become a full-fledged heroine by the age of 17, essayed some of the most powerful roles in Hindi cinema — from a young widow to a courageous rape victim -- won loads of critical acclaim as well as public adulation and then chucked it all by the time she was 22, to settle down with the man she loved?

Padmini Kolhapure, the apple of Raj Kapoor’s eye, was a born actress. Her meteoric rise proved beyond a doubt, talent not beauty, is what mattered. Her sudden exit at the height of popularity broke the hearts of her fans and had producers and critics clucking in despair.

The actress par-excellence, takes time off her busy domestic schedule and flashbacks to the early ’80s when this simple homely girl reigned supreme...

Her sea-facing bungalow, ‘Abhinay’ is humming with activity. The driver’s dashing off to collect parcels from a gift-shop, the cook wants to know whether she should use cheese or paneer and her mom’s directing her to place the prasad in the pooja room. Padmini attends to the domestic chores patiently and meticulously. Today, after all, is no ordinary day — it's her son, Priyank’s ninth birthday and mama is leaving no stone unturned in making his day a big success. Dressed in a simple handloom salwar-kameez, issuing orders and cross-checking details, Padmini is a propah haus frau today. She’s giving her all to home-making. But then that’s the only way she works — going all out. Eleven years ago, she gave herself completely to the varied roles she played. And emerged as one of the finest actresses of our times. Make-up, lights and the camera though are a distant memory today, but still a pleasant one, she assures us.

Hailing from a middle-class Maharashtrian family, her dad, a classical singer, still teaches music, “and insists on travelling by the public transport.” Her mom quit her airlines job to be her full-time chaperone and is rather fond of cooking. And as they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating — Padmini’s mom gives us katoris of wafting hot phirni that she’s specially made for her grandson. Slurping the dessert, Padmini relates, “We are related to the Mangeshkar family, my dadiji was Pt. Dinanath Mangeshkar’s sister. My grand-dad, Krishnarao Kolhapure, was a stage artiste of acclaim. He worked with Pt Dinanath in the same theatre group. In those days, men played the female roles too. The three of us sisters have been named after three famous characters that dadaji had played — Padmini, Shivangi and Tejasvini. Music and acting runs in my blood, so to say,” she smiles.

Padmini and her elder sister Shivangi started singing in chorus alongside Didi atya (Lata Mangeshkar) and Asha atya (Asha Bhosle).

The Kolhapure sisters then graduated to solo playback singing. “We’d sung, Aa, aa, ee, ee, masterji ki aa gaye chithi... in Gulzar’s Kitaab. Funnily enough, he remembered that during the recently held Screen awards ceremony which Shivangi and I attended together. We were tickled pink by the memory,” she laughs.

Young Padmini loved music and she also loved dancing. “Whenever Asha atya visited us, I danced for her and she always encouraged me. I remember, we were recording a song for Ishq, Ishq, Ishq when Asha atya suggested my name to Dev uncle. He was looking out for a young girl for the film. And just like that, before I knew what was happening, I was doing the film,” she reminisces. Padmini was only seven when she faced the camera for the first time. But even at that tender age she was a natural. She was to the camera born.

Surprisingly, Padmini herself is rather embarrassed about her debut performance. “Ishq... was recently being shown on the TV and all my friends called to tell me to watch the film. And much to my horror, I discovered what a funny little thing I was in the film. I had such a screechy voice. As I was watching the film memories flashed through my mind. How Shivangi and I used to bunk school and while away our time at Navketan. There’s a song picturised along a lake in which I’m perched on Premnath’s shoulders . I remember how while picturising the song, I was only concerned about finishing the shot without falling into the water. I always had a morbid fear of water. My dad tells me that I had become stiff and blue while we were shooting in Kufri near Shimla. Dev uncle revived me by rubbing brandy on my soles.”

Baby Padmini was a much-in-demand child artiste in those days. She recalls that when she shot for Dream Girl, they were all Babies and Masters then — Master Alankar, Master Bunty, Baby Chintu, Baby Madhoo and Baby Padmini. The film was partly shot in the US at Disneyland and Los Angeles. “All of us kids, had a real blast during that shoot. At one point of time the film had almost slipped out of hands when the producer refused to let our parents accompany us. But things were resolved amicably when my mom took her airlines pass and flew down with me,” she beams happily.

Then there was Zindagi — a family drama which had Sanjeev Kumar and Mala Sinha playing her grandparents and Aroona Irani and Anil Dhawan, her parents. “Years later, I had signed a film with Haribhai (Sanjeev Kumar) in which I was to play his heroine — the film wasn’t made ultimately. Just imagine, playing heroine to the same man who had once played your grand-dad!” In Thodi Si Bewafai Rajesh Khanna was her father-in-law — he was her hero Sushant Ray’s father in the film. But later, she played Mr Khanna’s heroine in 2-3 films. The thought still amuses her.

About the brouhaha over her bare back scene in Gehraai, she says, “I don’t remember much of that film except the fact that some of my dialogues were dubbed in a man’s voice — the ones during which I’m supposed to be possessed by a spirit. But can you believe it, I haven’t seen the film to date? I guess, I am too scared to watch it. I can’t recall anything of the infamous scene but I wonder why the media made such a hoo-ha about that scene?”

Padmini believes that she was fated to meet Raj Kapoor. The man who changed her career with his Midas touch. The man who, she acknowledges, as being the greatest influence in her life. She met her mentor at the inauguration of Roshan Taneja’s Acting Academy. She had accompanied an uncle of hers who was to play the tabla at the function. As luck would have it, she ended up dancing on the stage that evening. Raj Kapoor drew her aside and asked her if she would care to act in films. This nine-year-old chit of a girl snubbed him by promptly informing him that she had “already acted” in films. RK then asked her, “Will you work in my film?” She flashed a dimpled smile, blissfully unaware that this momentous meeting was going to alter her life and career in times to come.

Raj Kapoor asked her parents to bring her to RK Studio the next day. She was made to wear Baby Naaz’s tattered clothes and then without as much as a screen test, he approved of her.”I bagged Satyam Shivam Sundaram so very easily. Considering he had screen-tested over 200 little girls for the role, it was surprising that he had signed me on without even a screen-test. But then he was that way, he relied on his intuition,” she reasons. “He would enact the whole scene for me and I would just reproduce the actions and emotions. I observed and absorbed Raj Kapoor so much that later during Prem Rog, we could communicate without words. I knew exactly what he wanted without him having to spell it,” she reminisces with a dreamy look.

During Satyam... another association she recalls with pleasure is that with Zeenat Aman. “Zeenat was ever so graceful and oh-so-beautiful. She is a very warm person, I immediately hit it off with her since our Ishq... days. During Satyam... we would sit and chat away. But come to think of it I don’t remember what we spoke about. However we got along famously. We share the Zodiac sign — we are both Scorpios,” she points out.

Satyam... was in the making for two years and by the time the film was premiered, Padmini was a young lady of almost twelve years. “We were to fly to Delhi for the premiere and Rajji called me up to ask what I’d be wearing for the grand show — obviously we hadn’t even dreamt of stitching a new dress for the premiere. Such ostentation was unheard of those days. But the showman that he was, he got a beautiful white ghaghra-choli specially stitched for me. White was his favourite colour. I strutted around proudly in that pretty outfit that evening, but, unfortunately, on our way back my baggage was stolen and I lost my first gift from Rajji. I was so upset,” she sighs.

Yashomati maiya se... became the national chant and Padmini made a mark. Soon after the release of Satyam..., they were invited to Delhi for the Ashirvaad awards. “I won a trophy and then the organisers insisted that I sing Yashomati.... I was so nervous that inspite of being a trained singer I kept going off-key. Rajji came to my rescue by giving me taal through clapping. He boosted my confidence — always,” Padmini confesses softly.

The child-woman then took the nation by storm in BR Chopra’s rape saga Insaaf Ka Taraazu. Her innocent face and spontaneous performance struck the right chord. Her bold and no-holds barred performance was appreciated and lauded but it also exposed her to the glare of publicity. The uncalled for media attention embarrassed the fledgling actress no end. “It was a brilliant role and I didn’t think twice before grabbing it. I found nothing objectionable in the script. So, after the release of the film I was really hurt by the derogatory comments passed about my role, accusing me of resorting to pornography. It made me so wary of bad publicity that I even turned down RK’s Ram Teri Ganga Maili because it had one intimate scene and a kissing shot. I didn’t want to invite the ire of the media again,” she says. Once bitten, twice shy — what was her loss turned out to be Mandakini’s gain.

Insaaf Ka Tarazu was a remake of a popular Hollywood film Lipstick. Had she seen the original film? “I still haven’t seen Lipstick, my parents never insisted that I should see the original film to get a hang of it. I was too original to do that. I just faced the camera without any preparations and I’d give myself completely to the role, and that was it. People would be amazed at my detached way of functioning. I would give an emotion drenched shot, and the moment it was okayed, I would be back cooing on the telephone with my friends or sisters. Just like the camera, I could switch myself on and off,” she informs.

Padmini was known for her spontaneity, her total lack of method acting. She wasn’t overly ambitious and was happy with what she did on screen, she never contemplated, procrastinated and analysed her performances. Once she gave her shot, she got out of the character and away from the film. “While I was dubbing for the climax of Insaaf Ka Taraazu I got so tired of screaming and shouting that I actually called up Shivangi for help. Her voice sounds like mine, so I kept asking her to dub for me. She just laughed me off. I never had the killer instinct, I just took my roles as they came. Never weighing the pros and cons — all I was bothered about was giving my best shot and be done with it. I am quite a fatalist really,” she observes.

After a gap of a couple of years, the talented teenager returned to the movies as a full-fledged heroine opposite Rishi Kapoor in Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai. The film flopped but gave a major fillip to her nascent career. “When Nasir Husain signed me up as the heroine, Rajji heard the news and called me up promptly. ‘You are a grown-up now,’ he observed and asked me to play the lead in Prem Rog — the film was initially being directed by Jainendra Jain. I was a wee bit disappointed because, I was looking forward to working with Rajji again. But I consoled myself with the thought that working for the RK banner was a great honour. As luck would have it, Rajji took over the direction himself, eventually. This time though, he screen-tested me because he wanted to make sure I didn’t look too kiddish. I passed the test and we formed a mutual admiration society. As I said earlier, we vibed so well that we didn’t need words to communicate. He always called me ladki. ‘Tu to Meena Kumari ki maa hai, ladki,’ he would compliment me. I could hardly believe him. ‘Tu janti nahin tu kya cheez hai’, he would rebuke me gently,” Padmini recalls fondly.

Raj Kapoor was the greatest showman ever, she asserts. His Diwali and Holi bashes and birthday celebrations were grand affairs. “I never missed a single party of his. I adjusted my schedules so I would be in town for them. Women would spend days together in selecting the right outfit and the most stylish hair-dos for the RK bashes. They used to be real galas — food and wine flowing, crackers bursting — his parties used to be simply divine,’she says dreamily.

Even during his shoots, Raj Kapoor retained his style. He was like a king and the atmosphere on his sets was majestic — lavish sets, massive star-cast and a relaxed way of working. “He was never in a hurry to finish a film, if it were the morning shift, he would turn up by noon — take 4-5 shots and wrap up. But he was a perfectionist, he didn’t compromise on anything. He made sure his cast and crew were given the best of the best. Lunch break was an occasion to celebrate. There would be one long table. The entire unit would be seated together and food would be specially prepared, carefully served. Mogra was his favourite flower. When we were shooting in Mysore, we would be greeted by the heady fragrance of a basketful of Mogra every morning. For sure, he was the ultimate showman,” Padmini says reverently.

Padmini says she never regretted letting go of Ram Teri Ganga Maili. “Rajji wanted me to do the film desperately, he would call me up every now and then about script details, music etc. He wanted me to ask him for the role and I wanted him to make the offer. Eventually he did come upto me, threw his hands up and declared, ‘I can’t think beyond you, you are doing this film.’ I was thrilled to bits, he had narrated the story in such a lucid manner that I had practically started living the role of Ganga in my mind. We were all set to go to Gangotri for the first schedule when he disclosed that I would be required to do a bedroom scene and a kissing shot. I was visibly unnerved. I asked my dad to request him to drop those objectionable scenes. Rajji was furious with me. I walked out of the film. I was wary of getting into any controversy after Insaaf Ka.., it was the case of once bitten twice shy,” she relates. Even after shooting three reels of the film, Padmini informs that Rajji had told her that he was ready to start afresh if she was ready to come back on his terms.” That was not to be,” she sighs. “I regret not having done another film with Rajji, I would have loved to do every film he made.”

Being an RK protege opened the floodgates of commercial cinema to Padmini. “Producers felt that if you were considered good by RK, you were good enough for anybody. I was naturally flooded with offers. Unwittingly, I had become a star. But somehow stardom never affected me. And I have my middle class values to thank for that,” she remarks.

During the time, Padmini was offered the sensitive role of a Devdasi’s daughter in Aahista Aahista. It was the remake of Gejje Pooje a Kannada film, her role was played by a much older actress in the original. But despite her age and inexperience, Padmini did a brilliant job in the remake. “The best compliment for that performance came from my dad who after watching the film said, ‘Even if you give up films now, I wouldn’t mind. You’ve achieved the superlative’.”

Never one to be swayed by praises and presents, Padmini continued acting diligently — “Three shifts a day at times.” She was known for her professionalism. She never cancelled shootings. She even worked when she was unwell. “I never made my producers suffer. I was burning with fever in Do Dilon Ki Dastaan opposite Sanju Dutt but I made sure that the show went on,” she declares dramatically.

Padmini completed a hat-trick of award-winning performances with Prem Rog. Aahista Aahista won her a special award, Insaaf Ka Taraazu fetched her the best supporting actress award and Prem Rog won her the coveted best actress trophy. “Three awards in three consecutive years, sounds like a big deal today. But at that time it was no bolt from of the blue. I didn’t even have a party to celebrate — I just took the trophies home and placed them on the shelf. I was really a cool one, I must say,” she jokes.

Of her box-office bonanzas, Padmini fondly recalls Saawan Kumar’s Souten in which she, Tina Munim and Rajesh Khanna formed the romantic triangle. “Saawanji always treated me with affection. He’s such a dear, contrary to the nasty image that’s been thrust upon him by the press. I got along very well with Tina too. But, with Kakaji there was this distance — partly because of the age difference and partly because of the respect that stemmed from the superstar aura around him. Kakaji tried telling me how to react in a particular scene, how to avoid covering my face with my hand. He was always imposing so many restrictions on me and I wasn’t game for it. I could never act under duress, I told the director so. After than he let me be on my own. Nobody except him told me what to do in front of the camera — not even Raj Kapoor!,” she says stormily.

Calming down, Padmini smiles and reveals, “Once upon a time, I used to be a great fan of Rajesh Khanna. My mom would call me up if he was on her flight and I would rush to the airport to get a glimpse of him. I’ve witnessed the frenzied fan-following he enjoyed, once at Mahalaxmi Studio. There were girls kissing his car! I was one of his crazy fans, but that image came crashing down the day I was called for a role in Chalta Purza. I was a child artiste then. He rejected me and picked up the other girl — I couldn’t forgive him for that! Later I mellowed down and did 2-3 films as his co-star. But the distance remained,” she recounts.

Padmini still cannot get over the surprise success of her Mithun starrer, Pyar Jhukta Nahin. The film was initially offered to Rishi Kapoor but he turned it down saying it was just another Bobby. It was KC Bokadia’s first Hindi film and he signed Mithun instead. Padmini still wonders how she was signed to play a grown-up child’s mother at that age and is amazed that the audience accepted her in the role. After the film was completed, no distributor was ready to touch it. Out of sheer frustration Bokadia decided to distribute the film himself. “And wonder of wonders, the film clicked and the man raked in the megabucks,” recalls Padmini shaking her head in disbelief.

After that she found herself paired opposite Mithun in more than a dozen films. Swarg Se Sundar, Hawalaat, Aisa Pyar Kahan, Daata and Sagar Sangam to name a few. “I was shooting 25 days in a month with Mithun, I was so bored with him. He would keep pulling my leg from morning to pack-up. He would crack jokes and tell me not to laugh saying it wasn’t lucky to laugh in the morning. If I rubbed my eye he’d stop me saying ‘Hey, that’s inauspicious.’ He really bugged the life out of me!” she cribs.

Padmini names Saajan Bin Suhagan and Vidhaata as her most memorable films because those afforded her the opportunity to work with all-time greats like Nutan and Dilip Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar and Shammi Kapoor.

She remembers Nutan as a very friendly but non-interfering soul and Dilip Kumar as “so approachable”. She also enjoyed working with Naseeruddin Shah in Woh Saat Din. “We had a wonderful director from the South — Bapu. He’s a cartoonist himself so the whole film is like a portrait painted painstakingly by its creator,” she relates. Anil Kapoor was a newcomer then but he was no stranger to her. “I had known him from my RK days, but I was closer to Sanjay Kapoor and his sister Reena than Anil. They were more in my age-group,”she maintains.

1 By now this young talented actress had had her fill of choicest films, co-stars, success and stardom. She then ran into young Tutu Sharma who signed for his film, Aisa Pyar Kahan. “Marriages as they say are made in heaven and at the right time will you meet your Mr Right.Tutu was a close friend of Boney Kapoor’s. I didn’t meet him even during the making of Woh Saat Din. We met only when he signed me for his film. Nothing happened during the shooting of that film. He started wooing me only after the film was completed. I was rather wary of this footloose and fancy-free bachelor but slowly and steadily he won me over. Within six months we were married. I had always wanted to quit films after marriage. It was easy for me to give it all up because of my strong convictions,”she says reflectively.