The Good Doctor-Actor Dies.... But Makes Sure That He Lives Forever

Ali Peter John

The last time I had seen him was in Pune, where he had been living for the last ten years. He was very frail and weak and was showing all the signs of acute Alzheimers. He was still interested in attending a book release function because one of his colleagues Sai Paranjpye who had translated the autobiography of Naseeruddin Shah into Marathi. I used to know him very well when he was active in Bombay before it as Mumbai, but I don't know why I couldn't gather the kind of courage I felt I needed to talk to a giant who had now grown very old and didn't even recognise some of his best friends from theatre and cinema. He quietly sat in one the back rows and then left quietly without any fanfare. And, oh my God, little did I know that I was seeing the Colossus for the last time....

On December 17, while the country was burning and seething in anger and students were targeted by wild politicians and the police, Dr. Lagoo quietly slipped out of the stage of life after living a long and rich life...

I was aware of Dr. Lagoo's contribution to Marathi theatre, Marathi films and Hindi cinema right from the early seventies. And when I was not sure about my own future, I was sure that this actor who had given up his flourishing practice as an ENT surgeon, was not just another actor, but an actor could be placed among the best actors of the world.

He was absolutely brilliant in Marathi films like “Pinjara",“Sinhaasan",“Saamna" and then seeing him and his outstanding work became a habit with all kinds of filmgoers.

It was the sheer need to make two ends meet that brought him to Hindi cinema, but even when he came to Bombay and became one of the busiest character actors, he made sure that his brilliance and sincerity never surrendered to any materialistic temptations? Who can forget his role as a rich man suffering a massive heart attack in “Gharaonda" or in the films of Prakash Mehra and Basu Chatterjee, some films he did for the money and some for his passion for acting.

He did several Marathi films for one female actress-producer, Sushma Shiromanee, films like “Bhingri", “Fatakadi" and “Mosambi Narangi" and a film which Sushma directed herself. It was the first of its kind in many ways.

Dr. Lagoo was one of the pioneers who led the Maharashtra theatre movement. He was a thorough socialist and a rationalist who relentlessly fought against superstition. He together with the renowned and controversial playwright Vijay Tendulkar were the first to raise their voices against the stifling of the freedom of expression, they also openly took on the then the Prime Minister Mrs Indira Gandhi for imposing the emergency.

Dr. Lagoo was a fighter till he was knocked out by Alzheimers and other age-related ailments. Strangely, even though his body was growing weaker, his mind was only growing stronger...

As his frail body went up in flames and was reduced to ashes, I wondered what a younger and angrier Dr Shreeram Lagoo would have to say and react to the draconian ways in which the powers that be are trying to suppress the freedom of expression and trying to divide one India into many Indias.

However, all is not lost. A man like Dr Lagoo dies only to follow a pattern which starts with life and has to end with death. But, Dr Lagoo was born blessed, he may have died in the body, but his spirit, his values, his beliefs and above all his massive and priceless body of work will live forever and it is our duty to make it live on and on.

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Tags: Bollywood, Bollywood News, Bollywood Updates, Television, Telly News, DR SHREERAM LAGOO