Was Raj Kumar really as eccentric as we have come to be believe? Co-stars, talking with Subhash K Jha, reveal that that is a complete fabrication in this special birthday feature.
Veteran actress Mala Sinha who worked in several films with Raj Kumar including Mere Huzoor, Nayi Roshni, Ujala , Phool Bane Angaray and Maryada says, “I did one of my earliest films Nausherwan-E-Adil with Raj Kumarji. We eventually did many films together. He was always courteous warm and helpful. He would often help me with my scenes. Eccentric? Not at all. Very grounded, very learned, conversations with him were about everything under the sun.”
Raj Kumar was not only an actor who left his footprints on Indian cinema with his stylized dramatic performances in Paigham, Pakeezah, Dil Ek Mandir, Neel Kamal, Lal Patthar, Humraaz and Heer Ranjha, he was also known for his eccentricities.
One such folklore on Raj Kumar’s eccentricity has it that once the legendary actor went up to our beloved gold-digger(he dug gold jewellery) Bappi Lahiri during a flight and asked, ‘Where is your mangalsutra?’
Firstly, this incident is completely unverified. Like that other anecdote about how Raj Kumar walked up to Parveen Babi at a party and chattily chirped, “Jaani, you should be in the movies.”
No one knows if it really happened. When I once asked Bappida about the mangalsutra incident he said something very interesting to me, “Firstly, nothing like this happened. It’s just one of those myths that are circulated to prove how eccentric Raj Kumar was and how much jewellery I wore. Secondly, even if he did say this, what is wrong in it? Why is it an insult for a man to wear a mangalsutra?”
Hema Malini who worked repeatedly with Raj Kumar and whom Raj repeatedly singled out as his favourite co-star among contemporary actresses in the 1970s and 80s,says she didn’t see the eccentric side of the actor. “We worked in some of my best films. Lal Patthar which I consider my most challenging role and performance, was our first film together. After that we did several films like Galiyon Ka Badshah, Kudrat, Ek Nayi Paheli, Raj Tilak. Sharara which was produced by my brother and me, starred Raj Kumarji. Why would I work with someone if he was difficult to work with?”
Shatrughan Sinha who worked with Raj Kumar in five films, puts it in his own inimitable way. “Wohkehte hain na, bad se badnaam bura hai. God bless all those who spend so much time creating false narratives about celebrities. No person in this profession can be absolutely normal. He was as normal as any of us, well-read, intelligent and a good conversationalist. I’ve worked with actors who are many times more eccentric than him. I am not going to name them.”
Naseeruddin Shah who worked with the actor in Police Public says, “I found Mr Raaj Kumar the most interesting star I’ve ever met, the only one who wouldn’t talk about himself all the time. He and the director Esmayeel Shroff shared a close bond and I was lucky I could squeeze myself between the two! The stories of his eccentricity were completely false, fabricated by PR agencies.”
