Dr Joshi’s attraction for movies began as a little boy. Joshi shares that his parents had an old gramophone at home and a few records and he listened to the same records every day. His heart craved for variety but the atmosphere at home did not permit indulgence. “There was no money to buy new records and no money to watch movies at cinema halls too but once in a while, the family went for mythological movies and I was mesmerized by the big screen and the music”. He says curiosity led him to Chor Bazar and thus began a never-ending journey. With whatever little money he got, he purchased cheap records.
From the very beginning he was always curious about the film posters- how they were created and pasted on the walls, who painted them and where. He shares that MF Hussain started his career as a poster boy. When driving home from school he hopped on to the window seat of a double decker bus and waited with bated breath to pass Opera House, the Mecca of movies. A cluster of theatres showcased tall billboards and when the bus took the curve it was literally like falling into the laps of the dream merchants. Those memories still haunt him, so do the posters of Hatim Tai, Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje, Dahej and Barsaat …
More coming tomorrow, watch this space…