It is said that three kinds of people come into our lives. The first, for a specific reason and when that reason is fulfilled, the person disappears. The second is that a person enters our lives for a season. The person stays with us till a certain phase of our life is complete and then for reasons beyond our comprehension, the person disappears. The third and the most important, are people who walk with us for a lifetime and these include our family, spouse and children because we are connected with them by karma.

There is a fourth type too that is seldom talked about.  These are opportunities provided by the universe to learn, observe and grow and if you are conscious, you will find them around you all the time.

I feel all the beautiful actresses I interviewed over the decades fall into the fourth category. I was destined to meet them, interact with them so that I could observe and absorb from their experiences and become the person I am today.  So, get ready for personal anecdotes from my personal diary in the forthcoming days…

To be continued

After a break of almost seven years, Sooraj Barjatya brings Uunchai featuring Amitabh Bachchan, Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Sarika and Neena Gupta. It is a story of friends, of old age, of relationships gone sour and how to mend them. It is the first film of Rajshri Productions shot extensively on outdoor locations, that too Base Camp, Mount Everest. The film has just been released in the cinema halls and depending on how the audience will react to it Sooraj Barjatya and his banner will take the banner forward. They believe in tradition, in family but the banner has also changed with times without compromising on their principles.

 concluded

In 1989 Tarachand Barjatya’s grandson and Rajkumar Barjatya’s son, Sooraj Barjatya released Maine Pyaar Kiya which was a super success and became a reference point for generations of filmmakers to come.  Spontaneously or by design Sooraj had walked into his grandfather’s footsteps, combined a great story with great music, introduced a new face/ Bhagyashree, re-introduced a star/Salman Khan and most important, revived wholesome entertainer which had been the trademark of the banner.

Tarachand Barjatya was at peace that Rajshri banner was in his right hands and breathed his last. The year was 1992. At that time Sooraj was making Hum AapKe Hai Kaun and will always regret that his grandfather did not get to watch his mega success based on the banner’s old film Nadiya Ke Paar. In years to come, Sooraj remade Chitchor as Main Prem Ki Deewanee / 2003 not as successfully though and paid tribute to the joint family in Hum Saath Saath Hain/ 1997. His Vivaah/ 2006 was an insight into the arranged marriages and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo/ 2015 a peep into royalty.

Some years ago, I was invited for a wedding in the Barjatya family and I went for it only because I was curious to decipher the reel from the real but the fact is I got even confused because the celebrations seemed like being on multiple sets of Sooraj Barjatya films.

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The banner featured the best artistes in best stories be it Jaya Bhaduri/ Uphaar/1971 Piya Ka Ghar/1972, Amitabh Bachchan paired with the magnificent Nutan in Saudagar/ 1973 or Naseerudin Shah in Sunayna/ 1979 where Rameshwari met with a fatal accident falling off the horse and damaging her eye permanently.

The 80s was a decade of multi starrers but Rajshri Pictures now operating from a sprawling office in the heart of Mumbai’s Prabhadevi still retained that content is the conscience and the king. While most of them were making crime plots Rajshri Pictures focused on smaller, meaningful cinema. They were still launching new faces – Anupam Kher in Saraansh, Madhuri Dixit in Abodh /1984and simultaneously working with established actors: Raakhee/ Humkadam, Shabana Azmi/ Ek Baar Kaho/1980. Not all these films were successful in fact there came a time when all their films: Manokamna, Jiyo Toh Aise Jiyo, Tumhare Bin, Raksha Bandhan were disasters totally unexpected out of a banner of their stature.

Something was terribly wrong somewhere and the reason Tarachand Barjatya wasn’t rattled is because he saw the solution coming…

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In the following years Tarachand gave a hat-trick Dosti/ 1964 was his favorite film about two disabled friends rejected by society, Suraj/ 1966 where in music director Shankar launched singer Sharda and finally Taqdeer/ 1967 starring Bharat Bhushan was a family drama with the popular number ‘Papa jaldi aa jana’.

Life seemed like a perfect screenplay and usually this is the time comes a twist in the story! Not in Barjaya’s story though. He lived a life without villains and vamps, protected by the blessings of Shri Aurobindo and this was reflected in all his films and characters. His critics panned his brand of cinema but he continued to make wholesome family entertainers and actors looked forward to starring in his banner. Tarachand Barjatya was known for sustaining friendships. Satyajit Ray agreed to dub Kapurush Mahapurush /1965 in Hindi because Tarachand convinced him the film needed to reach a wider audience.

In the 70s Tarachand Barjatya was assisted by his three able sons Kamal Kumar, Rajkumar and the second generation of Rajshri Pictures. During this decade the banner produced approximately 20 films that launched multiple careers. It introduced Raakhee with Dharmendra in Jeevan Mrityu then reintroduced her after marriage and baby in Tapasya/ 1976.  It unveiled teenage sensation Sachin and Sarika in Geet Gaata Chal/ 1975, girl next door Rameshwari in Dulhan Wajhi Jo Piya Man Bhaye/1977, was the first to pair Amol Palekar and Zarina Wahab in Chitchor/ 1976 first to bring together Mithun Chakraborty and Ranjeeta Kaur in Tarana/ 1979.

To be continued next week…

Call it destiny, Chandralekha was a roaring success in Hindi and there was no looking back for Rajshri Pictures. Some of the films Rajshri Pictures chose to distribute then included films nobody was willing to touch at that time like Sohrab Modi’s Sheesh Mahal/1950 and Vijay Bhatt’s Baiju Bawara /1952 but again they proved super successes at the box-office.

Those were days of freedom struggle and while the country was fighting for independence, Tarachand Barjatya was aspiring for his personal freedom. Call it a coincidence but Tarachand launched his Film Distribution Company on August 15 1947 and named it Rajshri Pictures Pvt Ltd.  All the relationships he had built as General Manager, Moti Mahal Theatres came handy. Rajshri Pictures is among the first to bring all the leading South banners into Hindi mainstream cinema. The producers trusted Tarachand and that his company would be distributing their films was a further incentive. Gemini Productions’ big budget film Chandralekha released in 1948was a super duper hit and there was no looking back.

In the coming decade as Tarachand Barjatya settled down in his personal life and expanded his family, he felt time had come to take another leap in his career. In 1960 after consulting friends, he launched Rajshri Productions Pvt Ltd. In 1961 he was ready to roll his premier production and in 1962 came Aarti a super story featuring Ashok Kumar, Meena Kumari and Pradeep Kumar packaged with super compositions from Roshan and lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri.

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It is reported that Tarachand Barjatya’s father wanted him to study law after doing his Bachelor of Arts but Tarachand was not interested, he would stretch on the back bench of the class and read film magazines and when senior Barjatya discovered this, he wasted no time to enroll his son as an apprentice with Moti Mahal Theatres even though they could not afford to pay him any stipend. The year was 1933.

For five years Tarachand worked tirelessly and won everyone’s heart. Moti Mahal also owned a film distribution business in South India called Chamaria Talkie Distributors which was not doing well and where Tarachand was deputed to take care of the business in Madras, today Chennai. It was his astute business acumen and communication skills that changed the destiny of Moti Mahal theatres and they have always acknowledged this. His good relations with all top producers be it AVM Productions, Gemini Studios, Vijaya Productions and SS Vasan proved fruitful to his company and ultimately himself.  

There is an interesting story about how Rajshri Pictures was born. SS Vasan had produced an exorbitant production Chandralekha that failed miserably all-over South India. Vasan was distressed and Tarachand advised him to dub Chandralekha in Hindi. Vasan was unfamiliar with the language and therefore unconfident but Tarachand assumed all responsibilities. Vasan was overwhelmed and suggested Tarachand distribute the film all over India.  It meant opening offices overnight all over India but Tarachand took the leap and thus Rajshri Productions was born. The year was 1948.

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This year marks the 108th birth anniversary of Shri Tarachand Barjatya, the founder of Rajshri Pictures. It is the 75^th year of the banner and Uunchai is Rajshri Pictures 60^th film.  Recapping how the legacy was created.

A young boy from a traditional family is sent out of the city to study. He is hardworking and honest and becomes so popular with everyone that his seniors support him to follow his dream. There is no looking back but no matter how high he rises; his family comes first.

If the plot sounds like a Rajshri film you are not far from the truth.  This is the story of the man who built Rajshri Pictures, Tarachand Barjtya, born in the summer of 1914 in a Marwari family in Kuchaman, Rajasthan. His father emphasized on education and sent Tarachand to Vidyasagar College in Calcutta now Kolkata to complete his graduation.

To be continued