Dr Joshi reveals that he collected pictures of heroines because our movies portrayed their diversity. She was the vamp, the dancer and also the diva and what was wonderful was that all of them played all these roles. He says Fridays was and remains his favorite day of the week because it is the day he strolls around the neighboring theatres, inhaling the fragrance of movies. He visits the busy streets of Chor Bazar for the familiar sights and picks up faded photographs, lobby cards, song booklets. Joshi informs that in the olden days, song booklets were handed over to the audience when they entered the cinema halls. Slowly, the practice discontinued when technology changed.
He is sentimental about movies, about music, “Songs in our movies carried forward the narrative. The trend continued till the 70s but after that the music and the narrative were disconnected. I’m not saying that our present movies don’t have melody, they do except that music is no longer a part of our story telling”. What is remarkable is that time has not diminished Joshi’s passion for cinema and memorabilia. Even today, whenever time and love beckon, Joshi is at his favorite haunt digging for memories. The important question is where does the collector store his treasures and how does he safeguard it from damage?
Stay tuned…