ALIII, YOU ARE NOT LEAVING, COME BACK....

Ali Peter John

It had taken me less than a month to have a formidable "reputation"in "Screen "there was a man who everyone referred to as "Supremo "who  branded me a communist because of my association with K.A.Abbas and because I had long hair (how I wish I could tell him that I  had long hair because I couldn't afford a haircut ! ). He was so  kind to me that he even advised my editor ,

Mr.S.S.Pillai to throw me out as I could be a danger in the future.There was another section of people who called me a "brat".There was my Chief  Reporter who  called me "dimaag kharab " and the rest  were  indifferent to my existence. The only man who had faith in me and stood by me was Mr.Pillai. It took me three months to get a byline for my articles, but I continued only because of the support of my editor...

One evening , Mr.Kumtakar who  was the one who called me "dimaag kharab "asked me to wear a clean shirt the next day and didn't tell me why

I borrowed a shirt from my friend and reached office. Mr.Kumtakar looked at me and said, "dimaag kharab ,shirt achha hai, lekin jhoota kyun nahi pehna ?".Before I could answer him, he said, "Dev Anand ke party mein lekar jaaneka hai tereko ".   I didn't take him seriously.

But ,around seven in the evening , Mr.Kumtakar said, "chalo re dimaag kharab, mooh doh lo aur bal bana lo ".

I followed him like a lamb, but he said, "dimaag kharab, udhar party mein kuch masti nahi karna, nahi toh ghar bhej dunga". I was both  angry and excited  .The only reason for me to be excited was the name Dev Anand. I had seen most of his films in matinee (my friends called it maternity)shows,but  I had never ever seen him in real life, like I had seen some other stars of the time.

As we entered the  Ball Room of The Taj Mahal Hotel ,

Mr.Kumtakar had one good look  at me and said  ,"dimaag kharab, jhoota pehnta tha toh  tera kiya jata ? " I wanted to  tell him that I  had never worn shoes because I didn't like wearing them  .

I followed Mr.Kumtakar who  led me through a crowd of celebrities and stars and took me straight to the man who I could see was"The Dev Anand ". My entire body shook with delight when Mr.Kumtakar introduced me to  him. I didn't like the  way Mr.Kumtakar bowed  and  pleaded when he talk to Dev Anand, but I couldn't say  a word for the fear  of his throwing me out.

I was a  stranger to  the entire atmosphere and all the faces  I  saw  were also faces I had seen for the first time.But after two drinks which I had after seeing that Mr.Kumtakar was not around, gave me a  glowing and warm feeling and I  was feeling confident and comfortable.

Halfway through  the party, Mr.Kumtakar came upto me and said ,"dimaag kharab, daru toh  nahi peeta hai na " ? I  wanted  to  loving strangle him, but the fear of being thrown out was still there in me .

It was midnight and I  wanted to leave because I  was  staying very far  away . I was slowly trying to  slip out of the hall, when I heard a voice calling out my name and saying , "Aliii,you are not leaving  come back ". I couldn't believe my ears ,but the voice called out my name again. It was the voice of

" The Dev Anand ".He asked me to enjoy myself as I was his special guest and what a way  I enjoyed myself  ! He must have met  and interacted with hundreds of well-known people in the three hours that had passed after Mr.Kumtakar introduced me to  him. Then, how did he remember the name of a "dimaag kharab"? . At two in the night, he "killed " me with his love and  care when he came to the entrance to see me off and asked me to meet him in his office anytime I had time. I had time the very next morning and that meeting was the beginning of our association which lasted for more than thirty years.