Why Waheeda Rehman Left Guru Dutt

‘Everyone
at
Guru
Dutt
Productions
would
get
monthly
salaries.
Waheedadidi
would
get
Rs
2,500
per
month.
And
that
was
the
reason
why
she
left.’

Celebrating
Guru
Dutt’s
birth
centenary
on
July
9
with
this
must-read
excerpt
from
the
books,

Kagaz
Ke
Phool
and

Sahib
Bibi
Aur
Ghulam:
The
Original
Screenplay
by
Dinesh
Raheja
and
J
Kothari.

Guru
Dutt’s
younger
brother

Devi
Duttproduced
critically
acclaimed
movies

Aakrosh
(1980)
and

Masoom
(1983).

He
began
his
film
career
under
the
aegis
of
his
acclaimed
elder
brother,
and
was
his
production
assistant
for

Pyaasa,
Kaagaz
Ke
Phool,
Sahib
Biwi
Aur
Ghulam
and

Baharen
Phir
Bhi
Aayengi.

Was

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
expected
to
be
a

magnum
opus
at
the
time
of
its
release?

I
got
married
in
1959,
just
before
the
release
of

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool.

Guru
Duttji
threw
a
party
for
me
at
his
bungalow
on
September
26,
a
fortnight
before
the
film
was
to
hit
the
theatres.

The
most
prominent
filmmakers
of
the
day
—
K
Asifsaab,
Bimal
Roy,
Mehboobsaab
—
were
all
present.
After
dinner,
Ravi
Shankar
and
Vilayat
Khan
performed
a

jugalbandi.

My
brother
showed
the
assembled
guests
a
few
scenes
and
a
couple
of
songs
from

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool.

He
wanted
to
gauge
the
response
to
his
creation.
The
feedback
was
tremendous;
people
praised
the
film
to
the
skies.

One
viewer
commented
that
my
brother
would
need
to
construct
more
cupboards
to
accommodate
all
the
money
he
would
earn
from

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool.

But
something
went
wrong
with

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
and
Guru
Duttji…

According
to
you,
what
went
wrong
with
the
film?

Guru
Duttji
made
a
film
based
on
the
life
of
a
film
director.
Had

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
been
based
on
a
film
actor’s
life,
it
would
probably
have
been
a
hit.

Are
you
of
the
opinion
that
the
audience
is
more
interested
in
the
life
of
an
actor?

Yes,
definitely.
Certain
aspects
of

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool,
such
as
the
song

Waqt
Ne
Kiya,
are
definitely
memorable.
But
there
were
few
light
moments
in
the
film.

My
brother
would
cast
comedian
Johnny
(Walker)

sahab
in
each
film
and
it
would
benefit
the
film;
but
in
this
film,
the
Johnny
Walker
scenes
felt
forced.

Johnny
himself
did
not
understand
his
role.

Also,
you
don’t
feel
good
after
watching
the
film…
Guru
Duttji‘s
character
does
not
even
get
to
bless
his
daughter
at
her
wedding.

It
is
difficult
to
make
an
offbeat
film
which
is
commercially
acceptable
as
well.
But
today,
Amitabh
Bachchan
and
Aamir
Khan
call

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
a
classic.
As
it
always
happens,
a
man’s
work
is
not
valued
while
he
is
alive.

Would
you
agree
with
the
view
that
Guru
Dutt
was
devastated
by
the
failure
of

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool?

When
the
film
flopped,
it
was
the
biggest
shock
in
his
life.

He
had
spent
lavishly
on
the
film.

He
was
heartbroken.

After

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool,
he
began
to
lose
interest
in
filmmaking;
he
felt
lost
because
of
this
one
film.

The
Ahmedabad
highway
was
going
to
constructed
over
our
studio
grounds,
and
he
was
also
stressed
about
it.
And

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
had
left
him
deep
in
debt.

Chaudhvin
Ka
Chand
was
released
within
eight
months
of

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool.
The
film’s
commercial
success
makes
it
a
significant
film
in
Guru
Dut’s
production
oeuvre.

According
to
me,

Chaudhvin
Ka
Chand was
his
best
film,
his
most
satisfactory
film.

We
made
the
film
in
Rs
16
lakh
and
it
recovered
Rs
48
lakh
in
the
first
18
weeks
of
its
theatrical
run.

The
best
thing
about
the
film
was
its
music.
I
am
surprised
that
the
film
didn’t
bag
any
major
award.

What
prompted
the
decision
to
reshoot
two

Chaudhvin
Ka
Chandsongs
in
colour
after
the
film
had
been
released?

That
was
absolutely
unnecessary
because
the
film
had
already
become
a
hit.
Somebody
opined
that
the
film
would
run
longer
than
25
weeks
if
the
songs
were
added
in
colour.
So
those
songs
were
shot
in
Geva
colour.

Later,
Guru
Duttji
grew
very
interested
in
colour.
He
was
fascinated
by
Raj
Kapoor’s

Sangam.

I
have
lost
count
of
the
number
of
times
he
saw

Sangam.

Every
day
he
would
say,
‘Devi,
arrange
tickets
for
the
last
show.’

He
planned
on
making

Kaneez
in
colour.
But
he
soon
abandoned
the
idea.

At
that
stage,
the
problem
with
Guru
Duttji
was
that
he
would
suddenly
lose
interest
in
a
project.
He
started
and
abandoned
10-12
films.

He
wanted
to
produce

Professor
with
Salman
Khan’s
dad,
Salim
Khan,
and

Moti
Ki
Maasi
with
Tanuja.
He
stopped
making

Raaz
with
Sunil
Dutt
after
a
day’s
shooting
at
Mehboob
Studios.

But
he
remained
particular
about
his
work.
Abrar
Alvi
directed

Sahib
Bibi
Aur
Ghulam,
but
didn’t
Guru
Dutt
reshoot
the
song

Bhanwara
Bada
Nadaan?

Abrar
Alvi
picturised

Bhawra
Bada
Naadan
Hain
while
Guru
Dutt
was
out
of
town
but
his
version
has
not
been
retained
in
the
film.

The
song
featured
my
sister
Lalitha
Lajmi.
Her
face
was
covered
but
her
hands
were
visible
in
the
song.

Incidentally,
the
original
song
did
not
have
any
scenes
picturised
on
Guru
Duttji
at
all.

When
Guru
Duttji
returned
to
Bombay,
he
did
not
see
the
song
immediately.
He
was
tired
and
stayed
at
the
studio
that
night
—
he
would
occupy
three
rooms
in
the
studio:
A
bedroom,
a
makeup
room
and
an
office.

He
saw
the
song
the
next
morning
with
Abrarsahab,
(cinematographer
V
K)
Murthysahab
and
a
few
others.
We
were
not
allowed
to
join
them.
He
saw
the
song
six
times
in
all.

After
that,
he
just
got
up
and
left
the
room
without
speaking
to
anyone.

We
were
mystified.

After
an
hour,
he
called
Murthysahab
and
said
that
he
would
reshoot
the
song
in
a
day-and-a-half.
And
he
did.

The
end
result
was
beautiful.

Sahib
Bibi
Aur
Ghulam
marked
the
end
of
Guru
Dutt’s
association
with
Waheeda
Rehman.

Everyone
at
Guru
Dutt
Productions
would
get
monthly
salaries.
Waheedadidi
would
get
Rs
2,500
per
month.
And
that
was
the
reason
why
she
left.

She
pointed
out
to
Guruswamyji,
the
production-in-charge,
that
all
the
other
actresses
of
the
day
were
working
on
per-film
contracts.

But
when
Waheedadidi
asked
for
a
per-film
contract,
Guru
Duttji
refused.

How
did
Guru
Dutt’s
background
shape
his
films?
Was
he
academically
bright
as
a
youth?

Unfortunately,
he
did
not
get
the
opportunity
to
pursue
his
academic
inclinations.

Incidentally,
my
mother
and
he
did
their
matriculation
together.

The
problem
was
my
father
would
never
stick
to
one
place.
My
father
was
highly
intelligent
but
he
had
a
short
temper.

Guru
Dutt
studied
dance
with
Uday
Shankar.
Did
he
choreograph
songs
for
his
home
banner?

He
would
always
take
great
interest
in
the
picturisation
of
the
songs
of
his
films.

As
for
explaining
the
dance
movements
to
the
actors,
he
would
do
that
initially,
but
he
stopped
once
he
established
himself
as
a
filmmaker.

Strangely,
as
an
actor,
he
has
never
performed
a
flamboyant
dance
number.

To
some
extent,
Guru
Duttji
did
dance
in
the

Bharosa
song

Aaj
Ki
Mulaqat
Bas
Itni
with
Asha
Parekh.

Did
Guru
Dutt’s
films
reflect
his
personality?

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool
did.

Guru
Duttji
was
also
very
soft-spoken
like
most
of
his
screen
characters.
If
he
was
sitting
across
the
room,
one
would
not
be
able
to
hear
him.
He
was
a
total
introvert.

But
you
mentioned
he
was
good
friends
with
many
contemporary
filmmakers.

There
was
mutual
respect.
He
didn’t
have
many
friends.

If
he
had
been
more
social,
his
life
would
have
been
different.

Raj
Kapoor
used
to
be
there
at
every
film
function.
Guru
Duttji
would
not
attend
any
function.

Was
Guru
Dutt
enthusiastic
about
collecting
awards?

He
would
refuse
to
attend
award
ceremonies.
We
won
16
awards
for

Kaagaz
Ke
Phool.

I
have
photographs
in
which
I
can
be
seen
holding
the
trophy.

He
would
simply
say:
‘Devi,
go
and
collect
the
award.’

Kind
courtesy:

Kagaz
Ke
Phool
and

Sahib
Bibi
Aur
Ghulam:
The
Original
Screenplay,
by
Dinesh
Raheja,
J
Kothari.
Published
by
Om
Books
International
in
association
with
Vinod
Chopra
Films