In a Throwback Podcast with Lehren Retro, veteran star P. Jairaj expressed that movies made in the Indian Film Industry during his era were highly inspired & learnt by American Films. He also praised the actors working in the same including Douglas Fairbanks, Richard Talmadge, Eddie Polo, Paul White & others. Jairaj also elaborated about his contemporaries like Sulochana, D. Billimoria, Gohar Mamajiwala, P.K Raja Sandow, Mehtab & Durga Khote in a much respectful manner. The film star revealed portraying the main lead role in 165 movies out of the 300 movies in which he acted in. The Raj Mukut fame legend revealed that actors in those times used to garner more love and affection from fans & fraternity despite the money being involved was comparatively less. He additionally discussed about the evolution in movies and camera techniques in the cinematic world.
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00:00In those days, no producer would give us a cup of tea.
00:03We would pay for the tea and the food would come from our house.
00:06No one wanted to be their own teacher.
00:11Two types of demons came in our line.
00:13One was the camera and the other was the sound.
00:17All the pictures that the Marathi producers made,
00:21they didn't make them in such a way that there was English in them.
00:30Look, there is a special thing about Indians.
00:36No one wants to be their own teacher.
00:38They want to be their own teacher.
00:40The films that we have started,
00:44they are foreign,
00:46and especially our teacher,
00:48who is called our alma mater,
00:50he is American Films.
00:52You have to admit that,
00:54recently you must have read that
00:58such great artists and directors,
01:00like Sajid Rai,
01:02they also said that they have learned from American films.
01:04There is nothing to be ashamed of.
01:06If you look at it,
01:08we have not invented anything new.
01:10We have all done the same thing.
01:12So in those days,
01:14in the days of Salient,
01:16American films were very famous.
01:18And especially,
01:20like Douglas Fairbanks, Richard Talmadge,
01:22Eddie Polo, Pearl White,
01:24all these artists were there in those days.
01:27They used to come in serials,
01:29and also in films.
01:31We have learned all these things from there.
01:33Anyway,
01:35in my time,
01:37there were very famous artists,
01:39like D. Billy Moria and Sulochana,
01:41Gohar and Raja Sando,
01:43Jairaj and J. Munisha,
01:45who were known as Gilbert and Garbo,
01:47and Naveen Chandra,
01:49Sunand Ram Pahlwan,
01:51and my heroine,
01:53you will be surprised,
01:56I will tell you a name,
01:58she is still with us today,
02:00her name is Mehtab.
02:02Mrs. Surabh Modi has been my heroine
02:04in the days of Salient.
02:06And,
02:08when the era came to an end,
02:10new people started coming,
02:12especially from the stage.
02:14And slowly, slowly,
02:16Durga Khote,
02:18in my opinion,
02:20invented social media.
02:22Durga Bhai,
02:25her first film was
02:27King of Ayodhya,
02:29in which she played a heroine.
02:31After that, more people started coming,
02:33Shobhana Samarth,
02:35Leela Chitnis,
02:37Sneh Prabha Pradhan,
02:39all these people started coming.
02:41And apart from that,
02:43there are many good artists,
02:45with whom I have worked,
02:47like Khursheed, Suraiyya, Madhubala.
02:49Now, if I count the names of the heroines,
02:51approximately,
02:53300 films have been made,
02:55out of which, I have been a hero
02:57of 165 films.
02:59So, if I am a hero,
03:01even if I am repeated,
03:03it is a small thing that
03:05I have worked with 80-100 heroines.
03:07Divya Gharani, Neena, Veena,
03:09Madhubala, Suraiyya,
03:11as I said,
03:13all of them have been my heroines.
03:15But, one thing is for sure,
03:17in those days,
03:19we used to get less money,
03:22be it a producer, a director,
03:24an artist, or anything else.
03:26We used to work happily,
03:28as if we belong to the same family.
03:30And we used to eat food.
03:32And let me tell you one more thing,
03:34in those days,
03:36no producer used to give us tea.
03:38We used to pay for the tea,
03:40and the food used to come from our house.
03:42Today, if I want something,
03:44you will ask, what will you take?
03:46I will say, nothing.
03:48Will you eat Chinese food?
03:51In those days, there was nothing like that.
03:53There was nothing.
03:55We used to get boxes,
03:57just like the workers of the mill.
03:59We used to sit and eat.
04:01Today, I see that love is less.
04:03Sometimes, I feel sad
04:05that there are fights between us.
04:07In those days, there was nothing like that.
04:09In those days, there were no lights.
04:11In those days of silence,
04:13we used to come at 8.30 in the morning.
04:15There was no Hajri or Ujri.
04:17There was no work in the studio.
04:20In those days, we used to learn something.
04:22When there were lights,
04:24studios started to be built.
04:26Silent studios started to be built.
04:28Very good companies were made,
04:30like Bombay Talkies, New Theatres,
04:32Prabhat, etc.
04:34Good companies were made.
04:36Good movies were made.
04:38Let me tell you one thing.
04:40I am often told that
04:42we got our freedom in 1947.
04:44Before that,
04:46I have worked
04:49with famous artists
04:51like Devi Kairani,
04:53Veena, etc.
04:55Before the shoot,
04:57the heroine's hair used to be combed.
04:59They combed their hair
05:01and got ready.
05:03We heroes used to wear
05:05dhoti, kurta, pyjama.
05:07But do you know
05:09what happened after 1947?
05:11Our heroines started to have
05:13buffons and frocks.
05:15Our heroes started to wear dress suits.
05:17There is no Hindustanism in it.
05:19It is a pity.
05:21Especially,
05:23Marathi producers
05:25have not made
05:27such pictures
05:29that are English.
05:31I have worked in four Marathi
05:33and one Punjabi films.
05:37I have worked in foreign films
05:39like Pardesi,
05:41Nine Hours to Rama,
05:43Maya, etc.
05:46It is often said
05:48that the heroine
05:50wears such a dress
05:52and is such a character.
05:54But there is no such animal
05:56in a jungle.
05:58There are elephant's teeth
06:00and rabbit's ears.
06:02Where do we find such animals?
06:04We do find such animals
06:06in our films sometimes.
06:08So, the dress they wear today
06:10is not Hindustanism.
06:12It is a pity.
06:15Our heroines
06:17used to dress up
06:19as if they were Indians.
06:21They used to tell us
06:23about their life,
06:25their hunger,
06:27and their condition.
06:29After that,
06:31there was a period
06:33called Family Dramas.
06:35It used to be made in Madras.
06:37It used to be made in Madras
06:39and in our area as well.
06:41There were many people
06:44who used to show their true
06:46Hindustanism in their
06:48historical or mythological films.
06:50Now,
06:52if I go to
06:54a police officer
06:56and tell him
06:58that I need a revolver
07:00for my safety,
07:02he will say,
07:04just give it to me
07:06and you will get it
07:08after 3-4 years.
07:10I come home and think
07:13that I saw a film
07:15with so many machine guns
07:17and pistols,
07:19where did they get them from?
07:21This is something
07:23to think about.
07:25Anyhow,
07:27I would like to say
07:29that whatever our artists
07:31and directors do in the industry,
07:33for example,
07:35the theatres have increased
07:37and there is a competition
07:39for videos,
07:41I am proud of the fact
07:43that our artists
07:45are no less than
07:47any other artist in the world.
07:49I am proud of that
07:51and I would say
07:53that our industry has improved a lot.
07:55In our time,
07:57there was a Gujarati magazine
07:59called Moj Maza
08:01and an English magazine
08:03called Moving Picture Monthly
08:05and in Kolkata
08:07there was a magazine called Filmland.
08:10These were the three magazines
08:12and the studio people
08:14used to give pictures
08:16and the news of the studio
08:18used to be published
08:20and there was no mention
08:22of private life.
08:24Even then,
08:26the pictures of the heroine
08:28used to be published
08:30and the pictures of the hero
08:32used to be published
08:34a little less,
08:36whereas the pictures of the hero
08:39used to be published.
08:41Anyway,
08:43time has passed
08:45and today,
08:47when I go to a newsagent,
08:49I see such beautiful magazines
08:51like Cineblades,
08:53Movies,
08:55and Stardust.
08:57What do you get after reading them?
08:59It is just that
09:01the blood is a little hot
09:03and the news of this and that
09:05is published.
09:08But, we have to see
09:10what impact it has on our work.
09:12But,
09:14it is difficult
09:16because you don't get money
09:18from the Government of India
09:20or the Reserve Bank.
09:22Foreign magazines like
09:24Sight and Sound,
09:26Films and Filming,
09:28all these magazines
09:30come from there
09:32like Scenarios
09:34and books are published.
09:37I have many good friends
09:39like Dwarka Divecha
09:41or Fali Mistry
09:43or Jaal Mistry.
09:45They are all my friends
09:47because I was also a technician.
09:49They used to read
09:51about the progress
09:53of cameras.
09:55In our time,
09:57cameras were operated by hand.
09:59Let me tell you about a director
10:01who used to operate
10:03a camera on 16 frames.
10:05When there was a fight,
10:07he was a cameraman.
10:09He used to rotate the camera
10:11so that he could feel the heat.
10:13We used to fight
10:15in slow motion.
10:17We used to think
10:19how it would work.
10:21He used to say
10:23that he would close his eyes
10:25and crank the camera
10:27and let us do whatever we wanted.
10:29These were the type of cameras
10:31that were operated.
10:34In those days,
10:36there were wooden cameras
10:38followed by Ascania,
10:40Debris, Bell & Howell cameras
10:42and then Mitchell.
10:44In those days,
10:46there were no silent cameras
10:48so they used to place
10:50mattresses on the cameras.
10:52They used to say
10:54that it was cold
10:56so they placed mattresses
10:58on the cameras.
11:00In those days,
11:03two types of monsters
11:05came in our line.
11:07One was a camera
11:09and the other was a sound.
11:11Today,
11:13we have such cameras
11:15that can be used
11:17in a small room
11:19or in a studio.
11:21They are called Airiflex
11:23and Nagra Sound.
11:25In those days,
11:27you could take a truck
11:29with a camera and a sound recorder
11:32and use it.
11:34Today,
11:36we have
11:38very good
11:40instruments
11:42with which
11:44we can work.
11:46This is a development.
11:48When you were a hero,
11:50were there any rumors
11:52or scandals
11:54about you?
11:56You have asked
11:58a very good question.
12:01It is human nature
12:03to work with people
12:05so there was a kind of friendship.
12:07However,
12:09we respected each other
12:11because if I
12:13fall in love with a girl
12:15and she gets married tomorrow,
12:17she will be defamed
12:19if I have an affair with her.
12:21We used to come in the morning
12:23and leave in the evening
12:25to watch a movie.
12:27We had no relation with anyone.
12:29We used to leave.
12:31Even if there were such rumors,
12:33it was just a cover-up
12:35in which we respected each other.
12:37Today,
12:39the world has changed
12:41with discos, dances and music.
12:43Naturally, there will be scandals
12:45but what is the benefit
12:47of it?
12:49The readers
12:51have a human nature
12:53which is called curiosity.
12:55What happened to him?
12:58You can buy a magazine
13:00for 15,000 rupees
13:02and read it for an hour or two
13:04and then there is no need
13:06to read it again.
13:08If there are pictures,
13:10then you can put them
13:12in the pan.
13:14Such magazines are also
13:16available in foreign countries
13:18and they are called fan magazines.
13:20There is nothing to learn from them.
13:22They give good news
13:24which is a good thing.
13:27Those who want to hear bad,
13:29will hear bad and read bad.
13:31There is no difference.
13:33This is the development of today.
13:35However,
13:37printing
13:39is the pride of today's magazines.
13:41Printing is the same
13:43as it is in foreign countries.
13:45We have such good magazines.
13:47In every department,
13:49be it architecture, art
13:51or news,
13:53we have developed in everything.
13:56However,
13:58there are very few
14:00work magazines.
14:02Where have you worked in foreign countries?
14:04I have worked in
14:06Russian studios
14:08and in English studios.
14:10I have toured the whole of Europe
14:12and I have met
14:14famous directors
14:16like Alfred Hitchcock
14:18and
14:20Russian directors
14:22and artists
14:25like Laurence Olivier.
14:27I have met all of them.
14:29However, I must say
14:31whether it is a stage, a screen or a video,
14:33it is our individuality
14:35which outsiders do not understand.
14:37They do not understand
14:39what our problems are,
14:41what our pain is,
14:43what our desire is,
14:45what our happiness is.
14:47That is why I say
14:49that we have one family
14:51in the whole world
14:53which is called
14:55the show business.
14:57I am one of them
14:59and I am proud of it.
15:01You can go to any country
15:03and the show business is the same
15:05as it is here.
15:07Do you still work in films?
15:09I do not
15:11work in
15:13feature films
15:15because
15:17I have seen a lot of people
15:19and they ask me
15:22for money
15:24and they get it cheaply.
15:26I told them
15:28that I have opened
15:30a shop in my house
15:32and I have chili, turmeric, salt
15:34and tea.
15:36They can buy whatever they want.
15:38My shop is open and my door is open.
15:40As far as the video is concerned,
15:42I told them
15:44that if there is not a character
15:46in the video in 5-6 episodes,
15:48people do not remember it.
15:51That is why I said
15:53that the video is a one-day cricket match
15:55and the film is a five-day test match.
15:57People remember
15:59who played how many runs
16:01and what they did.
16:03Is there anything else
16:05that you would like to say?
16:07We will shoot the album later.
16:09Is there anything else
16:11that you would like to say
16:13that is meaningful
16:15and interesting?
16:17Well,
16:20I would like to say
16:22that the people
16:24who gave me a chance
16:26were very good writers
16:28like Mama Barerkar
16:30and Indulal Yagnik
16:32who was the minister
16:34of Gujarat.
16:36They told me
16:38that film is one thing
16:40and house is another
16:42if you want to make the world.
16:44The difference is
16:46that you are Jairaj inside
16:49and outside.
16:51They also told me
16:53that you can get stardom
16:55but you should try
16:57to be a good actor.
16:59I have remembered
17:01that they taught me
17:03and I am doing the same.
17:05That is why I am standing
17:07in front of you
17:09and you are seeing
17:11that I am Jairaj
17:13the actor and Jairaj
17:15the man.
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