Sawan Kumar Tak, A Leo, Born to Win... BY Sulena Majumdar Arora

I was on the phone, taking information about the improving health of Raju Shrivastava, and suddenly there was a message from senior journalist Indra Mohan Pannu ji, that his friend, famous producer, director, writer, lyricist Sawan Kumar Tak is no more.

He was 86 years old, had lung ailments from quite a while, his heart was also not working properly, he was kept in the ICU at kokila Ben Hospital, where he suffered a massive heart attack and he could not survive due to organ failure.

The message kept me thinking that I had interviewed him, just few months back. He talked to me constantly. He was nostalgic. From very old memories to new happenings , from the memories of pain to the beautiful ones, he scratched, explored, and Laughed out loud many times.

Many a times, Sawan Kumar, under the guise of few moments break , perhaps secretly holded his tears and cleared his throat as if coughing. He was also connected to me on WhatsApp. He wrote 'Born to Win' in his WhatsApp 'about'.

Long ago, I used to meet him frequently when I was studying in FYJC (SNDT), lived in DN Nagar Andheri and his building was near our house, Dakshina Murti Apartment. My mentor in the writing world, shri Pannalal Vyas was his dear friend and thus I also got a lot of recognition from him.

A senior PRO of the same time was Deep Sagar, who used to promote Sawan ji's films and always visited my house with the still photos and pamphlets of Sawan ji's film for publication in our magazine **Mayapuri. **

Sawan Kumar ji was a top producer director in those days, and never tolerated any film star's tantrums . Even the biggest actors used to reach his sets on time, Rajesh Khanna too.

In this case, he did not hesitate to give a piece of his mind to even topmost stars. Often while giving interviews, he used to abuse the stars, who by any means threw tantrums on the sets of his film.

But for the artists, who won his hearts with their behavior and discipline, Sawan was laid for them. While narrating his rags to riches story, he once said, "My life and my childhood was not easy, I was born in Jaipur (9 August 1936) where films were not taken in a good way in those days.

But I loved movies..I used to go crazy watching films of Prithviraj Kapoor, Sohrab Modi, Chandra Mohan, Suraiya, Naseem Bano, and Meena Kumari.

Meena Kumari was my favourite. That time, I did not even dream that one day I will be able to reach the bedroom of my idol Meena Kumari and she herself will take me inside.

One day I picked up my mother's savings of forty five rupees and quietly left for Kolkata because in those days most of the good films were made in Kolkata. There I somehow met the great, legend, world famous film maker, Satyajit Ray and expressed my desire to work in his films, but he advised me to go to Bombay instead and try my luck there.

I was always very impressed by Satyajit's films. On his behest, I came to Bombay. Meena Kumari, the goddess of my dreams, used to live here. I wanted to act in films, with Meena Kumari. But it was not that easy.

Days, months, years went by, I didn't get any work, stumbling from door to door, knocking every producer and director's office but everything remained zero. Then one day in anger and frustration, I decided that now I will not try to be an actor but make my own films and I will be the boss myself.

I wrote a letter to my sister and brother-in-law asking for their help. They gave me thirty thousand rupees on the condition that I should make a good film. Thirty thousand used to be a big amount in those days.

Now my pocket was full and the sky was in my fist. But I didn't know how to start? One day I was sitting in a local train in Mumbai, suddenly people started crying together in the train, then I came to know that Jawaharlal Nehru ji had passed away.

I was also very sad and suddenly I got the inspiration to make my first film and I produced the film 'Naunihal', (1967) I gave a chance to the new struggling actor named Sanjeev Kumar.

The film was widely discussed and praised, Indira Gandhi was also very impressed with this film. Now I started considering myself worthy to meet Meena Kumari. I began writing a script, 'Gomti Ke Kinere' and one fine day I called up Meena Kumari ji with lot of nervousness.

Her sister Khurshid picked up the phone, I introduced myself and mentioned about my film 'Naunihal'. She called me home. I was about twenty five years old, Meena ji was surprised that at this age I have written such a good story, she said, "If you direct, I will work."

I was overwhelmed, the sky was in my palm, I got the happiness of my life. Meena ji persuaded other actors of the industry to work in my film (Mumtaz, Sameer Khan). The shooting of my film started.

All was going on well but sadly within six months Meena ji fell ill and her health kept deteriorating. Shooting stopped. By that time I started loving Meena ji with my whole heart and soul, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Actually the love we had for each other should not be given the name of physical love, it was way above, it had become my worship, it was a relationship filled with joy. I was ready to do anything for her . I started serving her and taking care of her.

Keeping her happy, that became my religion and belief. By that time, whatever money I had was running out, but still I used to spend two to three hundred rupees to buy roses and mogra flowers for her.

Meena ji's face lit up seeing the flowers. She would pluck the petals of those flowers, one by one, and lay them on the bed of her bedroom and slept on it like a fairy queen and I would sit on the carpet lying on the ground, resting my head on the bed, beside her feet.

If she coughed a little, I would wake up in anxiety , give her water, wipe her mouth. Due to liver cirrhosis, she started vomiting blood. I used to hold the spit bowl near her mouth, many times she used to start vomiting even before I picked up the spit tray , and I used to lay my hands in front of her mouth and collect the blood filled vomit in my palm , change her bed sheet, clean her mouth and put her to sleep and I kept myself awake.

The world outside would scoff at what both of them were doing in the bedroom, but I was not answerable to anyone. My love, my worship for her had risen above the materialistic romance and sex.

When Meena ji was very ill, I expressed my dream of marrying her, she laughed, saying, "You are twenty five years old and I am over thirty-five, and also very ill. What can I offer you?"

Often she would ask me to finish my film 'Gomti Ke Kinere' early, because according to her, she did not have much time. Then one day I confessed to her that I no longer have money to start shooting again.

She arranged one and half lakh rupees in a few days and gave it to me. I was very obligated and said, "I'll pay you back soon." Later I came to know that she had given me money after selling her bungalow in Bandra to Mumtaz.

What else could I do, if not worship such an angel? The shooting started, Meena ji was so weak that I would hold her from behind while taking the shot, as soon as the camera was on, I would bend and hide myself over.

The day the film was completed, I spread rose petals from the set to the studio gate and she slowly walked on it and sat in her car. A few days later she fell severely ill and was admitted to the hospital.

Once, while resting her head in my arm she said, "many years back, when I just started my life, I experienced first love on the terrace of my house, and now at the end of my life I have found a true lover like you again, never leave me."

I started crying and she also cried a lot. Once while talking about all her relationships, she said,"they are like books kept on the shelves of my life. Those I didn't like, I didn't read again, those I liked, I read again and again. You are the last book of my life."

I sold my car to pay for her hospital bill and treat her, but she didn't survive. I took part in shouldering her body for cremation. There-after, I don't know how many days I sat there near her grave with roses and mogra flowers.

And then one day I rose up as a new man , I had become a new Sawan Kumar, all the sorrows, all the emotions, I buried near Meena ji's grave. Her inspiration gave me the courage to stand up again, to make many films, write many songs. Everyone thinks Meena Kumari's last film is 'Pakeezah' but in reality, the film 'Gomti Ke Kinere' is her last film.

After that I produced and directed many more movies like, 'Havas, Soutan, Saajan Bin Suhagan, Soutan Ki Beti, Sanam Bewafa, Bewafa Se Wafa, khalnayika, Maa, Pyaar Ki Jeet, Preeti, Laila, Saajan Ki Saheli, O Bewafa, , Salma pe dil aa gaya, Sanam Harjai, Chand ka tukda, also I wrote lots of poems, I wrote film songs like, 'Barkha Rani Zara Jamke Barso, Zindagi Pyaar Ka Geet Hai, Teri Galliyo mein na rahenge kadam aaj ke baad, ham bhool gaye her baat magar tera pyar nahi bhule, Yeh dil bewafa se wafa, apne dil me jagah dijiye, mujhko baho me le lijiye, shayad meri shadi ka khyal dil me aaya hai, isiliye mummy ne meri tumhe Chay pe bulaya hai, jab apne ho Jaye bevafa to dil tute, mai raat bhar na soyi re, mai teri chhoti si bahana, samajh na mujhko sautan, I am very very sorry tera nam bhool gai, chaand sitarey, phool aur khushbu, pyar ki kashti me, janeman janeman jaha teri najar hai,' while remembering all these films and songs, Sawan ji drifted somewhere in his thoughts and became quite.

It was Sawan Kumar tak who gave the first break to the legend actor late Sanjeev Kumar and Junior Mehmood. Also when Rajesh Khanna was facing really a low phase in his career, Sawan Kumar, once again made him a super hit star by giving him a chance in his film 'Soutan'.

In the same way, Sawan ji had again helped the declining careers of Rajendra Kumar and Nutan, by giving them another opportunity to reach the top in his film.

After I shifted away from Andheri, by and by my meetings with Sawan Kumar became less frequent. And then, many-many years later, just eight months ago, one day, our 'Mayapuri' s' proprietor and editor, 'Mr. PK Bajaj' gave me Sawan Kumar's phone number and asked me to interview him.

I called Sawan ji and recalled old memories, he said, "Sab yaad aa gaya Sulena , Meri Mini Tina Munim" and laughed out loud. When I asked, "What are you doing these days?" he replied bluntly, "What does an 85 year old man do, I am doing exactly the same thing, I am only resting."

When I said, "Your voice is so young, you seem quite active, you can try something new if you want." to this Sawan ji said, "What new things should I do? With whom should I make films? Mostly all the stars and financiers of my era have left the world. My days are passing in their nostalgic memories.

Really, that beautiful time has passed, those days are over and gone, those good days of mine, the days of deeds, the days of my hard work, all are lost. Today's world is not mine, today's film industry is not mine, I do not recognize this Bollywood, all seems strangers to me.

Where do today's people give respect to the elderly? There is doubt, whether today's filmmakers do get the respect that I have enjoyed in my hey days. Where is that atmosphere now? " His voice was chocked with emotion.

He controlled himself and said , "Some people still appreciate, love and respect me. My friend Rakesh Roshan insisted that I write songs for his film "Kaho Na Pyaar Hai", which I definitely wrote and both the songs turned out to be super hits (Pyaar Ki Kashti Mein, Jaaneman Jaaneman Jahan Teri Nazar.)

Sawan ji fondly remembered the actors, superstars with whom he produced, directed many films and who were his close friends, such as Meena Kumari, Rajendra Kumar, Nutan, Rajesh Khanna, Sanjeev Kumar, Rekha, Sridevi, Salman Khan.

Sawan Kumar was married to the famous music director and singer Usha Khanna, but this combination was the union of two very talented artists who may have been in harmony in the field of art, but they could not match in the worldly field of daily life.

So they parted away from each other. But whenever the 'artist mind' of Sawan, needed the 'artist mind' of Usha , they came together and composed many songs , till the very end. They don't have any children.

Sawan Kumar was very Clear and transparent in his heart, sharp in attitude and deep as ocean in his emotions. As the interview came to an end, Sawan Kumar Tak said, "I am a lion at heart, I am a Leo, the life I have lived, I have lived to the fullest. I don't have any complaints..I'm born to win, I'll never lose, not even after death." His words are still echoing in my ears.

Rest in peace Sawan ji and rule the world wherever you are.