‘Raj Kapoor Could Have Married Nargis’

‘Those
were
not
kind
days
for
a
woman
with
a
break-up.’

Among
the
few
who
knew
iconic
actress
Nargis
best
is
her
niece
and
former
actress

Zaheeda
(Anokhi
Raat,
Prem
Pujari,
Gambler).

“The
love
in
her
eyes
when
she
looks
at
Raj
Kapoor!
I
challenge
any
artiste
of
today
to
emote
like
that
with
just
their
eyes,”
Zaheeda
tells


Rediff‘s
Dinesh
Raheja.

Did
you
grow
up
living
in
the
same
house
as
your
aunt
Nargis?

All
of
us
lived
together
as
one
big,
happy
joint
family
in
Marine
Drive’s

Chateau
Marine
building
(on
Marine
Drive,
South
Mumbai).

Nargisji
lived
with
my
grandparents,
my
father
(Nargis’
brother
Akhtar
Hussain)
and
his
family
as
well
as
(actor)
Anwar
uncle’s
family.

It
was
a
huge
3,000
square
foot
flat,
and
Nargisji
had
one
bedroom
to
herself.

She
was
already
a
huge
star.
Could
you
walk
into
her
room
anytime?

Of
course!
When
I
returned
home
from
school,
I
would
enter
her
room
and
see
the
beautiful
cotton
sari
which
she
had
worn
to
the
studio
and
which
was
now
kept
for
dry-cleaning.

She
never
left
home
without
applying
perfume,
so
I
would
pick
the
sari
and
smell
the
perfume…

How
involved
was
she
in
your
life?

I
loved
my
aunt,
and
she
loved
me
and
my
sisters
Rehana
and
Shahida.

She
would
put
me
on
her
shoulders
and
enter
the
swimming
pool
at
the
CCI,
then
throw
me
into
the
deep
and
challenge
me
to
swim.

She
also
taught
me
ballroom
dancing
and
how
to
use
the
soup
spoon,
dessert
spoon
etc.

Were
there
no
starry
airs
at
home?

She
was
a
simple
woman
which
simple
tastes.

Her
favourite
food
was

bhindi
and
she
could
take
a
plate
and
eat
while
sitting
on
the
floor.

She
could
take
a

chatai
and
sleep
on
the
floor.

She
was
just
Baby
which
is
what
she
was
called
by
the
whole
family
because
she
was
the
youngest.

But
we
sisters
and
cousins
called
her
Pappo
because
when
we
were
young,
we
couldn’t
say

Fufi
(aunt)
and
we
ended
up
enunciating
it
as
Pappo.

Nargis
never
considered
living
independently?

My
father
had
fixed
up
a
nice
apartment
for
her
in
a
neighbouring
building
but
she
didn’t
stay
there
even
for
one
night.

That
building
was
made
by
G
P
Sippy
(of

Sholay
fame)
and
it
was
my
father
who
recommended
that
he
turn
film
producer.
Now
their
grandsons
(Rohan
Sippy
and
my
son
Nilesh
Sahay)
have
ganged
up
to
make
a
film.

You
told
me
you
have
been
re-watching
Raj
Kapoor-Nargis’
1950s
classics.

I
thought

chalo,
I’ve
not
seen
my
aunt
in
such
a
long
time
so
I
started
watching.

Oh
my
God!
As
an
audience,
I
could
see
no
vulgarity,
just
pure
innocence
and
genuine
love
on
screen.
The
love
in
her
eyes
when
she
looks
at
Raj
Kapoor!
I
challenge
any
artiste
of
today
to
emote
like
that
with
just
their
eyes.

Do
you
remember
meeting
Raj
Kapoor?

He
would
come
to
our
house
sometimes.
On
Diwali,
an
enormous
box
of

mithai
and
firecrackers
would
come
from
Raj
Kapoor.

Dabboo
(Randhir
Kapoor)
would
come
home
with
the
invitation
card
to
all
the
RK
premieres.
And
Raj
uncle
would
call
and
say,
‘Zaroor
aana‘.

If
I
wore
my
aunt’s
sari
to
the
premiere,
he
would
immediately
recognise
it.

Nargis
came
across
as
a
strong
lady.
Was
it
difficult
for
her
to
reclaim
her
life
after
she
broke
up
with
Raj
Kapoor
and
walked
out
of
RK
Studios?

She
was
hurt.

There
was
a
time
when
he
could
have
married
her,
but
he
didn’t.

Remember,
those
were
not
kind
days
for
a
woman
with
a
break-up.
The
world
has
changed;
today,
nobody
cares.

She
soon
immersed
herself
in
the
epic

Mother
India
(1957).
What
do
you
recall
of
that
time?

Her

Mother
India
co-stars,
Sunil
Dutt,
Raaj
Kumar
and
Rajendra
Kumar
would
land
up
at
our
home.

My
aunt
would
send
us
to
get
sandwiches
and
pastries
from
Gaylord
and
I
would
say
sarcastically:
‘Don’t
these
people
eat
at
home
and
come?’

Then
there
was
the
famous
fire
on
the
set
and
Sunil
Dutt
gallantly
rescued
Nargis.

It
was
a
harrowing
time.

When
they
returned
from
that
outdoor
shoot
of

Mother
India,
I
had
accompanied
my
father
to
the
railway
station
to
receive
her.

A
part
of
my
aunt’s
hand
had
been
badly
burnt
and
there
were
some
burns
on
her
forehead.
But
Sunil
Dutt
had
been
very
badly
burnt.

How
did
their
love
story
develop?

Sunil
Dutt
was
a
very
shy
man.

Whenever
he
came
home,
he
would
stare
at
the
Persian
carpet.

He
would
wait
for
hours
for
her
to
return
from
the
studio.

We
would
ask
if
he
wanted
tea
but
he
would
say,
‘Nahin
jee,
main
pee
ke
aaya.’
Very

shareef.

Was
theirs
a
big
marriage?

It
was
a
simple
marriage.

The
family
got
to
know
only
afterwards,
when
they
came
home
to
seek
their
blessings.

After
marriage,
they
shifted
to
a
one-bedroom
apartment
in
the

Stardust
building
on
Napean
Sea
Road.

Was
it
a
difficult
decision
for
her
to
leave
films,
especially
on
the
heels
of

Mother
India?

She
was
being
offered
fabulous
amounts
of
money
and
stories
written
around
her
character.

But
Sunil
Dutt
said,
‘Nahin
madam,

bas
ab
ho
gaya.’

She
had
always
craved
for
a
family
and
loved
children.
Look
how
she
looked
after
us
like
her
own
children.

Did
you
see
her
less
often
after
marriage?

She
had
made
it
clear
to
Sunil
Dutt
that
her
family
meant
the
world
to
her
and
nothing
would
change
that.

She
could
not
live
without

Chateau
Marine;
every
morning
she
would
be
home
till
evening.

We
nieces
eventually
became
more
like
her
sisters,
and
would
regularly
meet
her
for
shopping,
movies
and
lunches.

Was
she
an
indulgent
mother
to
Sanjay
Dutt?

His
mother
always
had
a
slipper
in
her
hand
to
discipline
him
(laughs).

His
father
believed
in
tough
love.

Yes,
Sunil
Dutt
had
his
quirks.

When
he
was
making

Man
Ka
Meet
with
his
brother
Som
Dutt,
he
got
angry
when
his
brother
refused
to
jump
down
from
a
height.

He
told
his
son
to
do
the
jump,
and
Sanjay
obliged.

My
aunt
said
she
almost
had
a
heart
attack.
But
his
father
wanted
his
son
to
be
a
tough
boy.

How
did
she
get
involved
in
social
work?

If
she
knew
anybody
was
in
trouble,
she
would
go
out
of
her
way
and
use
her
offices
to
help.

She
helped
introduce
Amitabh
Bachchan
and
Leena
Chandavarkar
to
so
many
people
in
the
industry.

She
stood
by
Meena
Kumari
too
during
her
fatal
illness.

When
I
was
shooting
in
London
for
(Dev
Anand’s)

Prem
Pujari
(1970),
I
asked
Dev
for
permission
to
meet
Meena
Kumari
in
hospital
there.

My
aunt
had
sent
woollen
coats
for
Meena
Kumari
through
me
because
she
knew
she
was
in
a
bad
financial
situation.

Her
health
was
in
a
very
bad
state.

Tragically,
Nargis
too
died
young.
Only
51.
What
was
your
last
conversation
with
her?

Sunil
Dutt
called
and
said,
‘Come,
your
Pappo
wants
to
meet
you
all
for
the
last
time.’

When
I
went
to
see
her
in
the
ICU,
I
can
never
forget
the
way
she
looked
at
me.

She
just
said:
‘I
am
finished.’

I
said,
‘Please
don’t
say
that.’

She
had
every
religious
support
at
her
bedside.

I
said
they
will
look
after
you.

Then
I
left
the
room
because
I
didn’t
want
to
burst
into
tears
in
front
of
her.

I
miss
her
and
remember
her
every
day
so
fondly.

I
love
her
children
Anju,
Sanju
and
Priya
too
because
she
had
said
before
dying:
‘Don’t
abandon
my
children.’