RISHI -A TRUE FRIEND TILL THE VERY END

ALI PETER JOHN

It is better to have one true friend than to have a hundred relatives, even if they are blood relatives. A good and true friend knows no race, religion, caste or community. A true friend stands by a friend in good times and in bad times and never deserts a friend, come what may or who may in the way till the very end. A true friend stands all the tests, trials and tribulations of a friend faces . A true friend smiles and laughs and celebrates life with a friend and also shares moments of grief, sorrow, pain and even illness with a friend and even lives in a friend whatever the end may be. Again, these are not thoughts that I have borrowed from some books or from some philosophers, poets, writers or saints real or fake, but they are thoughts I have collected in my journey through life with some very rare friends like Rishi Kapoor...

I remember the long and serpentine queue I had stood in outside the Oscar cinema in Andheri to buy a ticket to see "Bobby "which was the first film of Raj Kapoor's son ,Rishi Kapoor. The theatre was packed and people clapped every time Rishi Kapoor and his new heroine, Dimple Kapadia were seen on screen. I saw the film with different aunties from Goa and Mangalore who had never seen a Hindi film and wanted to see "Bobby "because it was a story about Bobby who was a Gaon girl who was a Christian whose father was Mr.Jack Braganza ,whose grandmother was Mrs.Braganza and whose house help was Joseph, an actor called Sabu Rebello who Raj Kapoor had seen playing the role of Jesus Christ in a play and was so impressed that he offered him a role in "Bobby ".Little did I know then that the young hero of "Bobby "would be one of my dearest and true friends one day...

What is to happen ,happens like my mother used to say. I was working with K.A.Abbas who had written the script of "Bobby "when I first saw the hero of "Bobby "in the office of Abbas Sahab. I had seen his father Raj Kapoor pleading with Abbas Sahab to write a script for him and how Abbas Sahab had given him the script of "Bobby "within days and Rishi Kapoor who had now become a star had come all alone to thank Abbas Sahab for giving him his first big hit and how Abbas Sahab told him that it was his father who had made "Bobby "a hit and also told the young Rishi that if he had directed "Bobby "it would have been a big flop like most of his films. Abbas Sahab had introduced me to the hero and I forgot all about it .It was also the time when Abbas Sahab introduced Ghanshyam who was an orphan he had brought up and introduced as an actor in some of his films. Rishi took a liking for Ghanshyam and on the recommendation of Abbas Sahab took him on as his secretary which Ghanshyam was till the end of his life.

Destiny continued playing...I was in "Screen "and was sent to cover the Holi festival celebrated at RK Studios .I had only heard stories about the Holi at RK and was looking forward to see it and experience it .I had celebrated Holi in my own village, but I was expecting something very different at RK and my expectations were fulfilled and how !

I had hardly entered the gate when I saw someone looking like Rishi Kapoor and two other men rushing towards me and then just lifting me and throwing me into a pond full of water and colour .For moments I thought I would die because I tumbled in the pond thrice and I saw some hope for me only when I saw that young man looking like Rishi Kapoor coming towards me and pulling me out of the pond and taking me straight to an open bar laid out with the choicest of drinks.The young man who I now recognized as Rishi Kapoor gave me a bottle of beer and asked me to gulp it down and said all my fear would vanish. I had not one but three bottles of beer and my fear was still refusing to leave me. Rishi then brought a glass of whisky and after that glass I was in some colorful heaven from which I woke up only the next morning. It was my first experience of Holi at RK and I had even found a friend in Rishi Kapoor who was to be my friend for the next forty-five years....

I was sent to Ooty to cover the shooting of Subhash Ghai's"Karz"on the condition that I would interview Simi Garewal .Rishi was the hero and turned out to be my real life hero too .I was looking distraught which something Rishi had noticed. I told him I was scared of meeting and talking to Simi .He asked me to come to his suite before meeting Simi at nine o'clock I met him at seven thirty and he brought out the bottle with the magic. We had three large pegs of Scotch and at 8:30.pm he asked me how I was feeling and at 9 ,he said"abhi tu ja ,Simi kya tu Simi ke maa ko bhi interview karke aayegaa"at 2. Simi and I were singing Christmas carols and her mother was playing the piano. That meeting strengthened my friendship with Rishi and made Simi my admirer when I wrote about our meeting in Ooty....

I had seen the human side of Rishi (I don't know why I refused to call him Chintu or Chintu ji or Chintu Sahab) when my first editor, Mr.S.S.Pillai who was a bachelor and living all alone had died of a massive heart attack. I had expected most of the industry to at least visit his simple house in Chembur,but the only two stars who came to pay their respects were Manoj Kumar and Rishi. Rishi even inquired if he could help him any way that one gesture of his had made me respect him all the more...

It was the day Abbas Sahab had died and Rishi was the first celebrity to call at Abbas Sahab's house in Philomena Lodge and again he asked if there was any way he could help....

There was a special screening of "Henna "at RK and Rishi made it a point to Invite me ,my wife and my daughter both to the screening and to the dinner at his father's Deonar Cottage. It was the first time that Rishi introduced us to his mother and the entire Kapoor family. It was also the first time I saw M.F. Husain who had painted the backdrop of the titles of "Henna". It was the same Husain Sahab who was to be one of my greatest treasures ...

I had taken to drinking very heavily in the nineties and there were times when I used to be dead drunk before lunch time. It was on one such day that I had fallen on the road outside the Natraj Studio and Seth Studios. I had lost consciousness and only remembered that a huge white van had stopped and my body was carried and placed into it . I regained consciousness only around 8 o'clock in the night and my friend Rishi Kapoor was walking up and down in the air conditioned room .He gave me the kind of tongue-lashing that no one had given me. I remember him saying , "Why do you drink so much when you cannot take it ,you idiot ? if you want to die, please die, but if you die what about people like us,we care for you and love you ?"That night I decided to give up drinking, but couldn't for long. I have written a book about my adventures and misadventures with alcohol called "Alicoholic".

It was Rishi's wedding reception. It looked as if the whole country had descended on the grounds of RK. And Raj Kapoor and his brothers, Shammi and Shashi were busy beating up gate crashers when Rishi the bride groom called out loudly and said "Ali ko mat maro,woh mera dost hai" I felt proud to have a "dost"like him...

Years later, it was the wedding of his daughter Riddhima. He was welcoming and receiving guests with Neetu on the stage. When it was my turn to wish the couple and congratulate Rishi and Neetu,Rishi held my hand and said, "achcha ho gaya,tu aya.Mar gaya hoon yaha teen ghante se khada hoon.Jake please Tukaa (his driver and right hand man)ko dekh aur usko bol ek bottle lekar mere peeche khada ho jaye ,curtain ke pichee ".I did as my friend had told me and he showed me a thumbs up sign and smiled brightly.

He had heard about my attempts to name a road after Abbas Sahab. Sunil Dutt and Amitabh were the special guests, but he made it a point to be present at the function "to represent the Kapoor Family ".

Vyjayanthimala had published her autobiography in which she had written that she never had an affair with Raj Kapoor and it was only a publicity stunt to promote "Sangam ". I had a strong feeling that Rishi would react to it and even told some of my friends about what I felt. The following Sunday, there was a big splash of an interview given by Rishi in which he said "The lady is lying. Of course, my father had an affair with her for which we had to suffer by staying in a different flat and then in a hotel ".That interview damaged the sales of Vyjayanthimala's book and it was not heard off again.

Rishi had bought an old and ramshackle "bhoot bangla ", on Pali Hill with the idea of building his own bungalow. His father came to see it and called him a "bewaqoof "for buying it and walked away. Some years later Rishi and Neetu built one of the most beautiful bungalows on Pali Hill where the "bhoot bangla "was and named it "Krishna Raj".

Rishi never shot in a night shift. His working day ended at seven thirty in the evening and then no one could stop him from opening his bar and having the first of his many pegs of the evening. He gave up some very good films because of this schedule he had made for himself and followed very strictly.

He had hardly finished school, but the kind of English he spoke could make some of the best pundits of the English language squirm in their seats. He could speak about any subject with ease. His only problem was that he was very impatient and lost his temper very fast and even made up very fast .It was for this reason that many in the industry called him "Chidku Kapoor ".

He was my senior when it came to marriage. I got married several years after he got married. I had a very simple reception which turned out to be a multi-starrer reception, thanks to friends like Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi who sent his man to the hall where my reception was to be held. The man told him there were no arrangement for music and Rishi sent a team of men to set up the music in the hall . He was also the first to arrive at the reception and stayed on till Amitabh came and the two made a big difference to my reception.

His son Ranbir had taken his first steps towards stardom and I had seen how youngster were moving him in a mall I called Rishi and told him"tera beta toh bada star ho gaya" .And he said "Hoga hi naa ,beta kiska hai ?".

I had to cut down all my meetings with friends like Amitabh and Rishi after my nasty accident. These meetings have grown lesser during these lockdown times. I was planning to meet these friends and many more after the lockdown was lifted, but look at what has happened in just two days, Rishi gone, Irrfan gone and the world has grown so dark and poor without friends like them.