A day before her 80th birthday, in October, Asha Parekh was conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honour in the field of Indian cinema, in Delhi. A month later, she was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award at the ongoing International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, with a retrospective showcasing three of her films, Teesri Manzil, Do Badan, and Kati Patang.
“This has been a wonderful year, more so because I did not expect all this. I thank the government of India, the I&B ministry and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for these happy surprises,” asserts the veteran actress-filmmaker.
She admits that when she was on stage with President Droupadi Murmu, her heart was going thump-thump. “It was beautiful, but I was exhausted, having rushed back from Boston where I’d gone to receive another award. The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is such a prestigious honour that the news didn’t register immediately. But now, I will cherish the award as long as I live. My parents would have been so proud, in particular my mother. They always kept me grounded, never made me feel I was a star,” she shares.
While Asha Parekh is usually remembered for her naach-gaana, she has given some memorable performances, like Kati Patang, which won her the Filmfare Best Actress Award. “Shakti da (Samanta) was a fabulous director and I put a lot of effort into that performance. The scene with Prem Chopra when he barges into my room and I threaten him was a real challenge,” she reminisces.
Pic: Asha Parekh: The Hit Girl/Om Books International
A Padma Shri recipient, she started her journey as a child artiste in Bimal Roy’s Maa and points out that since she would perform on stage before a live audience, she was never conscious of the camera.
She graduated to lead roles with Nasir Hussain’s Dil Deke Dekho, opposite Shammi Kapoor, with whom she co-starred in other films, the most popular being Teesri Manzil, unforgettable as much for RD Burman’s chartbusters and Vijay Anand’s direction as Shammi Kapoor and her reel-life chemistry. “I enjoyed working with Shammi Kapoor. I started my career with him so there was a lot of rapport and that explains the chemistry,” Asha Parekh acknowledges.
Her mentor, Nasir Hussain, was another teacher who not only introduced her on screen, but cast her as his leading lady in all his films until Caravan in 1971. “I learnt a lot from him, he gave me the confidence to direct a TV serial (Jyoti). I was to direct a film for Mahesh Bhatt too, but that didn’t work out. I was not just an actress, but also a director, producer and distributor. Most importantly, I contributed a lot to the film industry,” she asserts.
Asha Parekh was elected the President of the Cine and TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA) for three consecutive terms, six years. “After Durga Khote, who was associated with CINTAA since its inception, there’s been no other lady, before or after me. During my tenure, we got land from the government and moved the office from Famous Studio in Mahalakshmi to Andheri’s Link Road,” she informs.
Teesri Manzil |
She was also the treasurer of the Cine Artist Welfare Trust, again the only lady, working shoulder to shoulder with Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt, Mithun Chakraborty, Dara Singh and Amrish Puri. “I was also the first woman chairperson of the Censor Board. Even at 80, I’m the secretary of the Film Industry Welfare Trust. We give monetary assistance to those in need of medical attention and for children’s education. I’ve many firsts to my credit, but not too many people know this or talk about it. Even outside the film industry, I’ve been involved with a lot of social work,” reminds the woman who set up the BCJ General Hospital and the Asha Parekh Research Centre.
Quiz her on what ails the Hindi film industry today and she rationalises, “I guess the makers have forgotten the importance of the story. Now that the audience has made them realise it, things should improve. Drishyam 2 is doing well, so also Uunchai, and OTT is giving breaks to many good actors.”
Any plans to produce or direct a film or a web series? “No, now I just want to rest, do all the things I never had time for before. I want to go out for lunch with my friends, watch movies and travel,” she signs off with a smile.
