Preview

PAPA THE GREAT -- WAKE UP, ALL YOU FATHERS!
When writer-director K. Bhagyaraj and Gulshan Kumar came together I remember him telling me that he could see all kinds of rare sparks flying all over, creative sparks, which he could recognise, sparks which ultimately inspired them to make a film which would not just be one of the entertainers being made but an entertainer with some major enlightenment which was always the motto of all the films Gulshan Kumar made under his banner, T-series, a film for the entire family, a film which will give society a message that would make a little Eden on earth. The founder of Super-Cassettes and writer-director Bhagyaraj got on to work in the true sense, men on a mission, because they knew what they wanted to make. Several meetings and discussions led them to decide on a subject no ordinary filmmaker would dare to risk and make under the circumstances prevailing then (when the film was started some years ago) . Their putting their minds together, finally led them to make a film called Papa The Great.

The title itself goes to prove what kind of film Papa The Great is going to be - a moving blend of high emotions, rich Indian traditions and values and all the elements of an healthy entertainer. Gulshan Kumar believes in his film being made with a purpose. He made every member of the unit working for him aware that he was making films with a purpose,
with a mission and not just a film to fill his coffers which had already been filled by the blessings of God.

Gulshan Kumar loved simple subjects that came out with profound messages. He followed the same principle in the making of Papa The Great, the film he was making to promote his younger brother, Krishan Kumar. He selected Bhagyaraj as a director because something within him told him that he was the ideal director to make a film that could go to every house, every family and make a little change in that family, in that society, in the nation on the whole. Gulshan Kumar was a man who came up from nowhere all because of his lofty ideas and his great love for God and God’s people.

The story is an every day story, an every day happening. And the characters are our next door neighbours. He had a special motive for making his characters so common because he wanted to reach his message to the most common man in society....

Jai is working for Bharat Shipping Corporation. He has a wife, Pooja (Naghma) and the couple have a ten-year-old son. They live a happy life in the colony built by the shipping company.

Now, this man Jai, has a very strange psychological problem. He is a very intelligent man, a hardworking man but there is something that keeps terrorising him both physically and mentally. He puts up a very brave front outwardly but otherwise he is a coward to the core, a father who is even scared of his ten year old son. He, however, puts up a brave front before his son. His only ambition is to see that his son doesn’t grow up to be a coward like him. His acts of bravery before his son makes his son believe that his papa is really Papa the great.

To add to Jai’s psychological misery he witnesses an encounter which leads to a brutal murder. The victim is none other than the father of his son, Sonu’s best friend. Jai the coward recognises the murderer. He is Raka, a contract killer,a dangerous killer who can do anything to live the kind of life he "loves". Murder, bloodshed extortion, spreading terror among innocent people gives him vicarious pleasure. He has only the form of a man without a heart that feels, without a conscience, without any principles whatsoever. He is not aware of anything in a human being’s normal life. What could be the circumstances that made him a man who was a monster more than a man?

Jai who is living a life in complete terror now keeps everything that has happened to him a complete secret from his family, specially from his son for whom he is the hero, he is a great papa. Jai is continuously threatened by Raka. He says he knows Jai is the only witness to the murder committed by him. He threatens him not to go to the police if he cares for his family.
Suddenly something strange happens one day. Jai’s son, Sonu brings his friend and his friend’s mother to his father. He is sure that his brave father would go out of his way to nab the murderer of his friend’s father. His son’s plea brings about a drastic change in Jai. The brave man in him wakes up and he takes a decision on his own to present himself before the court as a witness and identity Raka as the murderer. He is a changed man now, brave, courageous, scared of no Rakas or rakes or roughnecks. He is willing to face any consequence. He recognises the man in him finally. His son helps him to solve a mystery greater than murder. Raka is identified and arrested but before he can be sentenced, he escapes from the courtroom itself. Life becomes a nightmare for Jai. He is more worried about his wife and son than himself.

Miracles, however, happen even today. It is when Jai is almost about to surrender to Raka that he meets a strange man called Bharimama. Jai doesn’t know him but he still comes to the rescue of Jai and his family. He forces Raka to surrender to the police. This leads to a series of questions. Would Jai alone be able to save his family from the wrath of Raka? Would Raka succeed in his wild mission of destroying Jai’s family. And finally, how does the timid Jai rise like a torch in revolt and prove what a great papa he is, the real Papa The Great, a papa, a son can be a proud of, the kind of papas India needs today if the sons of tomorrow have to be great sons.

It’s not a very complicated story but there are several touches and teachings which enlighten the heart and reach the mind, things which I am sure would have given Gulshan Kumar all the happiness to see his film and his brother Krishan shine in the title role as Papa. The film like people at Super Cassettes still believe is produced by Gulshan Kumar. And is based on a story, screenplay and dialogue by K. Bhagyaraj and Bhushan Kumar is the executive producer. Krishan Kumar plays the Papa, a role very close to his heart, a role on which his future depends so much, so much. Naghma makes her comeback in Hindi films. Master Bobby makes his debut and Shatrughan Sinha makes a very special appearance. Satish Kaushik, Anil Dhawan, Laxmikant Berde, Shama Deshpande, Jugnu and Ghanshyam play other key roles. Dialogue by Nawab Arzoo, lyrics by Faaiz Anwar, music by Nikhil-Vinay, cinematography by K.S. Prakash Rao and choreography by B.H. Tharun Kumar are the other credits.

If only Gulshanji was around he would have been the happiest man to see his efforts to make a good and neat film, bear fruit. He would be specially happy to see his younger brother Krishan Kumar grow up as an actor to play mature roles whenever challenged in the future.

Ali Peter John