From Boot Polisher to Star Photographer: How P.K. Bajaj Helped B.K. Tambe Build His Remarkable Journey

By Sharad Rai

Renowned photojournalist late B.K. Tambe was often called Amitabh Bachchan’s favorite photographer. Amitabh Bachchan had visited Tambe’s small home several times and even attended the weddings of his children. Tambe passed away a few years ago. A few days before his death, he narrated the story of his life to me. He had said that his story should be published in Mayapuri after his death. We published his story as a tribute to him. An excerpt from that article is presented here.

Recalling his past, photographer Tambe’s eyes had become moist. He began to narrate:

“Sharad, it has been 50 years for me in this film industry. From Dilip Kumar to Arjun Kapoor, I have captured them all through my camera. Today I feel proud to be a part of an industry where humanity still exists, where there is passion, and where there was space even for a man like me. And the first name among those people is Bajaj Sahab (P.K. Bajaj), who not only helped me financially many times but also told several stars about me so that they would support me by posing for photographs. By publishing my photographs in Mayapuri, he helped me become a favorite among stars.”

Tambe had said, “The story of my life is full of tension and rough struggles. Every star had affection for photographer Tambe, but a few years ago…” He paused and then dived deeper into his memories.

“A small boy whose shirt buttons were always broken used to run from platform to platform shouting—‘Polish your shoes… polish!’ This is not a dialogue from a film; it is my life story,” Tambe said.

“From Churchgate to Grant Road station I used to run around polishing shoes. If I didn’t do that, my sister (Shanta) and I would have had to sleep hungry. We were about ten or twelve years old then. After polishing shoes, I started delivering tea at Shankar Vilas Hotel. Around the same time I also took up another job—carrying bangles on my head and selling them on the streets. I am not sharing this to gain sympathy, but so that people can learn from my experiences. Life does not move forward with despair but with struggle.”

“My father worked as a lift operator in a Parsi building. People like Vinod Khanna and sound recordist Meenu Katrak lived there. I used to visit that building, and that is where my love for films first began to grow. The footsteps of struggle leave marks on the ground of life. Something similar happened with me. The boy who later photographed Amitabh Bachchan, Sunil Dutt, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, and Salman Khan during regular shoots once worked as a sweeper in a photo studio.

That boy—me—after sweeping the studio would also learn the finer points of photography from the studio owner. Dingu Studio in Gowalia Tank had got work at Mehboob Studio, and I started going there with them. I used to watch all the stars and try to talk to them by saying ‘Salaam Saab.’ Everyone started calling me ‘Tingu.’ Later I began renting a camera to photograph the stars. I paid the camera rent from my own pocket—there was no payment coming from anywhere.”

“It was during those days that the owner of Mayapuri, P.K. Bajaj, and J.N. Kumar came to Mumbai. I met them during my studio work. Seeing my condition, Bajaj Sahab felt pity and said, ‘You should do your own photography.’ Then he told Kumar, ‘We need to get him a camera.’ That day he also fed me food. After that, I gained a lot of confidence. Gradually I built my identity and became one of the regular photographers. Dharmendra knew the story of how I got my camera, and for a long time he used to tease me—‘Hey, did you get your camera?’”

“Once Amitabh Bachchan was shooting for Khuda Gawah at R.K. Studio. It was the time of my daughter Anita’s wedding. I had three children—Anil, Anita, and Sunila. I asked Bachchan Sahab, ‘Will you come to my daughter’s wedding?’ He nodded yes. The wedding was at National College in Bandra, and Amitabh Ji came there. Seeing him, the groom’s family and the wedding guests were stunned.”

“I had asked many stars to come to the wedding. They would say, ‘You won’t even give us an invitation card!’ But when I saw them actually arriving, I was speechless. Amitabh Bachchan came with Manoj Desai, Shatrughan Sinha with Pahlaj Nihalani, Akbar Khan, Penaz Masani, Jackie Shroff, Salman Khan, Anil Morarka, and Vilasrao Deshmukh were all present. Even Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan sent messages from Madras. Smita Thackeray sent money. From the Marathi film industry, Mahesh Manjrekar, Ashok Saraf, Sachin, and many other stars attended the wedding. That day, the boy who once polished boots had tears continuously flowing from his eyes.”

“Later, Amitabh Bachchan even named my grandson Manish. I would also like to mention another incident. Once, Abhishek and Aishwarya were leaving an event when they saw me. Abhishek pulled Aishwarya back and said, ‘He is my dad’s photographer friend, let’s meet him.’ Honestly, my heart was filled with emotion. Once Sunil Dutt had said similar words to Sanjay Dutt about me. And once Dilip Sahab had even called Haji Mastan for me. Someone had tried to cheat me by claiming to be Mastan’s nephew. Mastan Sahab found out and made sure I got my money back.”

“There are countless stories—how many should I tell? Once, Mithun Chakraborty said something about the kind of people I bring along. Jeetendra was standing beside him and heard it. Jeetu told Mithun not to speak like that about me.”

“I must definitely mention P.K. Bajaj, the owner-editor of Mayapuri. During my difficult times, he fed me and even packed food for me to take home. He helped me financially and always encouraged me. If his early support had not been there, the boy polishing shoes on the pavement would never have become a photographer loved by stars. Truly, I feel proud to work in such a film industry full of people who care.”