Personal Tribute To Raju Mavani

Jyothi Venkatesh

The film industry has lost another member. After the news of the demise of Venus Records and Tapes owner Champak Jain, news also came that actor and filmmaker Rajendra Mavanui aka Raju Mavani passed away after losing his battle to cancer at the young age of just 62. He passed away on October 31. Raju Mavani was suffering from kidney ailments for years before he was diagnosed with cancer. He was fighting the disease for three years before succumbing to the disease. The cremation took place on Friday at 6 pm at Oshiwara in Mumbai.

Raju Mavani had launched Suniel Shetty and Divya Bharathi in 1992 in Balwaan. Apart from producing films with actors like Sunny Deol, Saif Ali Khan, Raveena Tandon, he had also acted in films like Sarkar, Wanted, Shootout at Wadala, Raees, Policegiri, Kya Yahi Sach Hai , Money Hai To Honey Hai, Darwaza Bandh Rakho etc and directed films like Suraksha Raju is well known for his role of Datta Pawle in Wanted (2009), which was directed by Prabhudheva. Raju made his acting debut with Suniel Shetty led Balwaan in 1992. Apart from acting, he also produced movies like Imtihaan and directed films like Surakshaa starring Saif Ali Khan, Divya Dutta, Aditya Pancholi, Sheeba, Monica Bedi with which he had made his debut as a director, Iski Topi Uske Sir and Anuradha.

I can never ever forget Raju’s sweet gesture to me way back in 1988 when he hosted a party to mark the launching of his film Bajrang with Sunil Shetty and Divya Bharati at his own bungalow in Juhu. After Sunny Deol had left the venue because he has always been a very shy tongue tied person especially in front of the media even in those days, Raju decided to bring yet another cake to celebrate my birthday which was also incidentally on the same day when he had launched his film- January 2. That day I felt really like a super star with Divya Bharati feeding me the cake for my birthday. In fact a great bonding was formed instantly with Divya since that day which h lasted till the girl with a lovely soul died in 1992.

Not only Divya, Raju Mavani also ended up as a great friend from that day and we kept meeting each other whenever he found time to call me. One day Raju Mavani invited me to fly with him to Hyderabad to cover the shooting of his film Imtihaan. Sunny Deol, Saif Ali Khan and Raveena Tandon were shooting for a song on location the day I landed along with a few selected journalists on the location. The song which was blaring on the location in the Nagra was Is Tarah Aashiqui Ka Asar Chhod Jaaonga.

We covered the shooting for two days and on the third day when the journalists were scheduled to leave for Mumbai by flight, Raju came to my room in the hotel and requested me to continue to stay for another two days and leave only after the shooting was packed up after two days. I thanked him profusely for showering on me with love and affection and extending my stay but excused him because I did not want him to spend more money on my hospitality at Hyderabad when in the first play I had been invited to cover the location only for two days.It was only when Raju told me that if I felt that I should leave the location because Raju was spending on my room, he had an alternative plan. “You just move to my room and stay with me for the next two days, because I am also all alone in my room” and I just could not accede to his request.

In the evening, after the pack up was announced, Raju and I retreated to our room and after taking a shower  we readied ourselves to have a drink or two before proceeding to the restaurant for dinner. Just as we sat down, arrived music director Annu Malik who wanted to see how the song was being picturized as he was a friend of Raju too.  It so had happened that I had criticized Annu stating that he is a copy cat who was not composing original numbers in Mid-Day just a day before and hence he was very piqued with me. The moment he came to our room, he asked us, “Kya Aap Log Daaryu Pee Rahe Ho kya?’ I corrected Annu by telling him that we were not drinking daaru but “hum dono jam leke baitte hain”.

Not in a mood to forget or forgive me for my criticism the day earlier, Annu dared me to say whether the song that he had composed for Imtihan was also copied and challenged me to prove it if I possibly could. Raju who had a sound knowldweg fo music, winked at me and asked Annu to not start a debate with me as he very well knew that I was a connoisseur of Hindi film music and warned Annu that he would face defeat if he challenged me. Annu was not in a mood to give up and said  that I should take up the challenge to prove that I was right, if only I had the guts or say sorry to him. I did not flare up. Instead, I told Annu to play the cassette to enable me to listen to the first line of the song which was being picturized in the afternoon. And Annu retorted that the song was in the Nagra and the cassettes had yet to come out. I did not relent. I told Annu that I remembered the lines as well as the tune and told him that the song Is Tarah Aashiqui Ka Asar Chhod Jaaonga was nothing but a rehashed inspiration from the vintage song Tumhe Yaad Hoga Kabhi Hum Mile The Mohabbat Ki Raahon Mein Milke Chale The.”

Raju had the last word. Though he was the producer and Annu was his music director, since I had let the cat out of the bag and told Annu to accept his defeat and join us later for dinner. Annu too gracefully bowed out by stating that he had not copied the old song but it also had the same raga. I too did not carry any grouse with Annu and I continue to be a good friend of his as well as a fan of his immortal songs like the ones in Dum Lagake Aisha or for that matter Umrao Jaan.

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