Jab tak hai jaan

A bereaved Bollywood pays homage to exemplary filmmaker Yash Chopra

Daag, Kabhi Kabhie, Silsila, Lamhe, Chandni, Dil To Pagal Hai, VeerZaara….the list goes on and each of these blockbusters is a tribute to the legacy of late film-maker, producer and director Yash Chopra.

After an illustrious career spanning over 50 years in Bollywood, the 80-year-old doyen of the Hindi film industry passed away on October 21, following multiple organ failure brought about after an attack of dengue fever.

The news brought a wave of shock to Bollywood, as many of its most prominent luminaries rushed to pay respects to the person who was undoubtedly one of Bollywood’s most revered and respected filmmakers. For someone who had been present looking hale and hearty at the 70th birthday celebrations of megastar Amitabh Bachchan a few weeks ago, it was hard to comprehend how the veteran filmmaker could have suddenly succumbed to this illness.

The final journey

But it was not just Bollywood who mourned the passing of this undoubtedly great director and producer. From politicians to the public, tributes poured in for the man who had created memorable films to entertain the masses and had made an indelible mark on the Indian film industry.

After his demise, Yash Chopra’s body was taken to his Juhu bungalow in Mumbai for a short while and later taken to Yash Raj Studios to allow his staff and the public to pay their last respects to the late filmmaker. A large black and white picture of Chopra was placed alongside his body, decorated with white flowers. Among close family members present at the studios were his son Uday Chopra, seen supporting his mother Pamela.

Thousands thronged to the studio to catch a glimpse of the man whose films are classics of a genre.

It is testimony to the greatness of Yash Chopra that the entire film industry turned up to pay homage, with his closest family and friends accompanying his body to the crematorium where his last rites were performed.

A scintillating career

Yash Chopra was born in Lahore on September 27, 1932 and eventually came to Mumbai after Partition. In an interview some days before he was hospitalised with dengue, Chopra said to Shah Rukh Khan, a star he had created, “My mother said do what your heart says. She gave me Rs.200 and said my blessings are with you. Go ahead and don’t worry.”

And that’s precisely what Chopra did when he came to Mumbai and took on the role as assistant to his late brother and filmmaker BR Chopra, to whom he gave credit in an interview before his death. “I’m sitting here just because of B.R. Chopra and no one else. I wanted to fly on my own wings,” he said in that interview.

A romantic soul

Known as the ‘King of Romance’ for his success in that genre, Chopra created memorable love stories in Daag, Kabhi Kabhie, Silsila, Chandni, Dil To Pagal Hai, and Veer Zaara. To keep up with evolving audiences, he adapted new trends in each era and made the most glamorous and trendy romances.

However, life wasn’t always as rosy as his romantic films. Films like Faasle (1985) and Vijay (1988) bombed in succession at the box office. But it wasn’t long before Chopra triumphed once again at the box office with Chandni, a hardcore romantic film with nine songs.

Chopra knew how to keep up with the times, and instead of being caught in a warp, he began to cater to the increasingly savvy Gen Y audience. He launched Dil To Pagal Hai in 1997, a sleek, urban, musical romantic saga that reaped gold at the box office. The crossborder romantic flick Veer Zara (2004) came next, and the latest still-to-be-released venture Jab Tak Hai Jaan starring Katrina Kaif and Shah Rukh Khan was to be Chopra’s swansong.

But more than romance

However, Chopra’s oeuvre was not limited to just romance and relationships. In his five decadelong career, he experimented with all genres.

His first film Dhool Ka Phool in 1959 was the story of an illegitimate Hindu child being brought up by a Muslim. His next project, Dharamputra (1961) was another hard-hitting film on communal conflict, and was one of the first films to depict the Partition and Hindu fundamentalism. The film marked the debut of Shashi Kapoor in a full-fledged role and won the

National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.

A precedent-setter, Chopra’s 1965 critically successful drama Waqt pioneered the concept of multi-starters in Bollywood, while Ittefaq (1969) was a taut thriller, being the first Hindi film which did not have any songs or an interval.

Proving his versatility, Chopra on one hand directed intense dramas Deewar, Trishul, and Mashaal, while on the other he made family sagas like Parampara and thrillers like Kala

Patthar and Darr

Chopra’s movies were sometimes based on real life tragedies. The Dec 27, 1975, accident in a coal mine in Chasnala near Dhanbad inspired the multi-starrer intense drama, Kala Patthar starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha and Shashi Kapoor.

Yet, Chopra was one of the few directors to make two superhit films simultaneously - action drama Deewar (1975) and crossgenerational romance Kabhi Kabhie (1976) - both proved his versatility and his hold on the pulse of audiences. But, like all legendary directors, it’s not just a couple of films that can sum up Chopra’s achievements. His run of successes has earned him a permanent and well-deserved spot in Bollywood’s annals of fame.

Yash Chopra’s style of filmmaking was unique because it crossed many genres and generations. He had the ability to bring across social and emotional messages in a manner that would appeal tremendously to his audience. With the use of romanticism, a message of moral responsibility, exotic locales and adept actors in directing over 22 films, he delivered entertaining and interesting movies through his 53 years in the industry.

Star maker

Punters watching the events unfold after Yash Chopra’s demise would note that stars Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan were prominent in their assistance to the grieving family. They were seen at the hospital and accompanying the body to its residence and for the final rites at the crematorium. Not surprising as both actors, and indeed many more, owed their success to this unique filmmaker.

Of all the many stars launched by Yash Chopra, the Big B and SRK are the greatest testimony to his star-making capabilities.

Amitabh Bachchan owes his ‘angry young man’ avatar to Chopra, who consolidated that image through Deewar. SRK, the self-proclaimed King of Bollywood had Chopra to bring out the best in romance in him; and it’s hard to forget Darr, which remains one of SRK’s biggest blockbusters to date. He can claim his almost obsessive romantic tag to the filmmaker. Chopra also made other remarkably successful stars like Parveen Babi, who defied the norm of the established Bollywood heroine in Deewar, a coup for Chopra and Babi. Juhi Chawla, Karishma Kapoor, Sridevi and Rishi Kapoor were only a few of the actors who benefitted tremendously from being a part of the Yash Chopra camp.

From Ashok Kumar to Mala Sinha to the current crop of feisty actors, Yash Chopra worked with them all. Not to mention screenwriters, playback singers, cinematographers and all the many, many people involved in the film industry, who pay homage to his memory.

Accolades aplenty

In his career, Chopra won many awards, including the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2001, six National Awards, 11 Filmfare Awards and was conferred the Padma Bhushan in 2005. But there was more. Many of Chopra’s romances were filmed in the beautiful alpine landscape of Switzerland. In fact, he shot so many times in Switzerland that a lake in the Alpenrausch, a favourite shooting spot of his, has been christened Chopra Lake. Not only that, he became the first recipient of the title of Ambassador of Interlaken, and a special Yash Chopra Suite and Yash Chopra Train were inaugurated in his honour in Interlaken in 2011.

The future

Yash Chopra’s new film Jab Tak Hai Jaan was to be his directorial swansong before retirement, but unfortunately his untimely demise prevented him from enjoying what seems to be its certain success. To be released auspiciously on Diwali, the romantic saga stars Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif.

The 43rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to begin on November 20 will also pay homage to this exemplary filmmaker through a cinematic tribute.

Yash Chopra is survived by wife Pamela and two sons – Aditya, a filmmaker and Uday, an actor.