'Mera Naam Joker', the film that held the secret of life

Raj Kapoor's film 'Mera Naam Joker' was the deepest, most painful, and most honest part of his heart. This is the film that broke Raj Kapoor from within, plunged him into debt, yet he refused to give up on his dream. Released in Mumbai on December 18, 1970, this film came out at a time when major films like Dev Anand's 'Johnny Mera Naam', and Dilip Kumar's 'Gopi', were being applauded all over the country, but people could not relate to this unique theme of Mera Nam Joker. Who knew that the film that would be considered a classic today would be rejected as a 'flop' at that time?

Mera Naam Joker: The Man Who Made Pain Laugh

The story of 'Mera Naam Joker' is the story of a man who makes everyone laugh, but cries silently in his heart. Raj Kapoor himself plays the role of a joker named Raju in this film, whose entire life is spent amidst the circus, the stage, and applause. From childhood to youth, and then towards old age, this joker loves and trusts every person he encounters at every turn of his life, but in return, he only receives loneliness. His life is divided into three major phases, and in each phase, a woman enters his life, teaches him something, and then leaves him due to some circumstances.

The first love is from his school days, when a teacher, Mary, enters his life. This character was played by Simi Grewal. Innocence, shyness, and an unfulfilled love of s teenager Raju are the soul of this part. The second phase is his youth, where Raju falls in love with a Russian artist, Marina, while working in the circus world. This role was played by Kseniya Ryabinkina. The love between them is quite passionate, but circumstances again separate them. The third and final phase is Raju's married life, where Meena (Padmini) becomes his wife. Here, there is love, but no understanding. His wife feels that Raju is still more attached to the stage, the circus, and the applause of the audience.

The film's most poignant and truthful dialogue is when Raju says, "The show must go on." Whether his heart is broken, bleeding or tears in his eyes, the clown has to go on stage and smile.

This film was produced and directed by Raj Kapoor himself. It was the most expensive film of his career. It took about six years to make. Shooting took place in India and also in Russia. Shooting abroad wasn't easy in those days, but Raj Kapoor felt it was necessary for the story. He invested almost all the earnings of his RK Studios into this film. It is said that while making 'Mera Naam Joker', he even had to invest the money he earned from his other hit films.

The film also boasted an impressive cast. Besides Raj Kapoor, actors like Dharmendra, Manoj Kumar, Rajendra Kumar, Om Prakash, Rajendranath, and Agha were seen in powerful roles. This film is considered very important in Simi Garewal's career.

As for the music, the music composed by Shankar-Jaikishan still touches hearts today. Songs like 'Jeena Yahan Marna Yahan', 'Jaane Kahan Gaye Woh Din', 'Teetar Ke Do Aage Teetar', and 'Ang Lag Ja Balma' are not just heard, but deeply felt. 'Jeena Yahan Marna Yahan' became almost a statement of Raj Kapoor's own life. Mukesh's voice and Raj Kapoor's face, together, make the song immortal.

When the film was released, it was shown with two intermissions. This was a very big experiment at the time. The film was about four hours long. Audiences were not used to such a long and serious film. Moreover, at the same time, an entertaining film like 'Johnny Mera Naam' was running, which was a huge box office success. As a result, 'Mera Naam Joker' was declared a flop. The theaters started to have empty seats. Out of necessity, in the second week, the film was edited down to have only one intermission.

This failure broke Raj Kapoor from within. It is said that he couldn't recover from this shock for a long time. The debt piled up so much that even RK Studios was in danger to be sold. Raj Kapoor himself later admitted that if he hadn't made a film like 'Bobby' afterward, he might have lost everything.

Behind the scenes, Raj Kapoor infused many aspects of his personal life into this film. Raju's character was, in a way, a reflection of Raj Kapoor himself. The circus of life, the stage of life, fame, the crowds, the applause, and the loneliness – he had experienced all of it firsthand.

While shooting several emotional scenes in the film, Raj Kapoor actually broke down in tears. The actors and technicians have recounted that there were times when complete silence would descend upon the set.

Another interesting fact is that it was only when the film was later shown on television and re-released in theaters that audiences truly understood it. Over time, 'Mera Naam Joker' attained the status of a cult classic. The film, which was ahead of its time, failed in its own time, but subsequent generations embraced it wholeheartedly.

Today, when we watch 'Mera Naam Joker,' it doesn't just seem like a story, but rather a testament to an artist's sacrifice, his pain, and his crushed dreams.

Some more known and unknown facts about Mera Naam Joker:

Raj Kapoor invested his own money in the film and even mortgaged his house. The film took 6 years to complete and resulted in a huge financial loss.

This was Raj Kapoor's second film with two intervals. 'Sangam' was the first.

On September 16, 2017, a massive fire broke out on the set of a dance reality show being shot at Raj Kapoor's RK Studios in Chembur (Mumbai). Many valuable items from RK Films were destroyed in the fire, such as costumes, the joker mask worn by Raj Kapoor, and joker shoes.

Simi Grewal's scene where she removes her bra and panties...The scene where she bathes, and her teenage student secretly watches her bathing naked, was a scene far ahead of its time and considered very bold.

After 'Mera Naam Joker', Raj Kapoor had planned to make a romantic film with big stars. But due to the heavy losses incurred by the film, he could never make a film with big stars again.

Therefore, he decided to launch his son Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia in his romantic film 'Bobby' in 1973 so that the film's success could pay off all of Raj Kapoor's debts. This film was Rishi Kapoor's debut as a teenage actor.

Delhi's Regal Cinema closed down on March 30, 2017. As a tribute to RK Films and at the request of fans, the cinema hall management screened ' 'Mera Naam Joker' at 6:00 PM and Sangam ' at 9:00 PM  as the last two films shown in the theater on its final day, as Regal Cinema had previously premiered many RK Films.

When Raj Kapoor was shooting Manoj Kumar's scenes, Manoj Kumar wrote his own dialogues and showed them to Raj Kapoor, who was very impressed and asked Manoj Kumar to go ahead and use his dialogues, also write more dialogues for his other scenes.

'Mera Naam Joker' and 'Kal Aaj Aur Kal' were his last films for R.K. Films.

Sadhana and Sharmila Tagore were supposed to be part of the cast of the second part of 'Mera Naam Joker'. But the film was shelved.

It is said that Mumtaz was initially supposed to play Simi's role in this film. But due to the very bold scenes, Mumtaz declined the film.

Well-known Lyricist Yogesh Gaud was called by Raj Kapoor to write lyrics for his songs, but when Yogesh arrived at the gate of Raj Kapoor's bungalow, Kapoor's watchman turned Yogesh away, saying that he didn't look like a poet. Yogesh quietly left.

Mukesh suffered a heart attack while singing 'Jaane Kahan Gaye Woh Din' during a stage show in Detroit, USA. Without quitting the song, he called his son Nitin Mukesh to complete it and went backstage. He was admitted to the hospital but passed away the next day, August 27, 1976.

Lata Mangeshkar had a falling out with Raj Kapoor after "Sangam" (1964). Therefore, Lata did not sing in this film. This was one of the few Raj Kapoor films for which she did not sing.

This film is the southern superstar actress Padmini's last known Hindi film.

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