'Raj Khosla was unsung, not applauded': Mahesh Bhatt remembers his mentor on birth centenary

Mumbai, May 31 (PTI) Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt says his mentor Raj Khosla was not a person who sought validation from anyone, which is why he remains one of the most underrated filmmakers of Hindi cinema.

On Khosla's birth centenary on Saturday, Bhatt remembered the late director as a quiet figure driven purely by his passion for storytelling.

“There is no denying that Raj Khosla is not one of the sparkling icons in the pantheon of the greats of the Indian film industry. But that was because he had so brilliantly said once to me, when I was still his assistant, that, ‘I love movies, I love the film industry.' "He couldn't play the game of the film industry, of pushing himself into the art, life. He was not a person who sought validation from anyone else, but from himself... He is perhaps one of the most underrated filmmakers of the '70s,” Bhatt, who assisted Khosla on "Mera Gaon Mera Desh", and "Do Raaste", told PTI.

Raj Khosla was a significant voice in Hindi cinema, with a string of memorable hits to his name, including “C.I.D.” (1956), “Woh Kaun Thi?” (1964), “Mera Saaya” (1966), “Mera Gaon Mera Desh” (1971), and “Dostana” (1980).

His films were also known for their outstanding music with songs that have stood the test of time.

Bhatt believes it is something that Bhatt incorporated in his filmography as well, whether it was through the songs of "Aashiqui", "Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahin" or "Zakhm".

He said he grew up watching a lot of American movies and he didn't understand the relevance of songs in movies.

"We found that to have songs was to move away from realism and Khosla would pull us up and say, ‘If you don't have music in this country, the movies will not percolate down to the masses, and it’s they who write your destiny’. He would say, ‘Unless the man on the street sings your songs, you have no future’.

"He would insist on having a great song, creating a situation for it, and a room for it. That's something which stayed with me. I started the process of weaving songs into my movie," he said.

Giving the example of the timeless track "Lag Jaa Gale" from Khosla's 1964 movie "Woh Kaun Thi?", Bhatt said there is no other song which could hold a candle to Lata Mangeshkar's hauntingly beautiful rendition.

"It has journeyed through so many decades. Songs or movies are made from the heart, they don't live with the time," he said.

In the digital age, where movies are forgotten soon after their release, Bhatt said he is not surprised that so many people don't know about Khosla's cinema.

"In those days, there was no presence of the media as there is today, and with the digital age entering the human race, memory has taken a beating. I'm not surprised that they don't remember what kind of a filmmaker he was, the diversity that was there in him, from family dramas, to dacoit dramas, to crime, and semi-horror films." The 76-year-old director said the current generation should take a moment to appreciate the cinematic legacy that has shaped their contemporary film experiences.

“You must never forget the water that we drink from today was dug by the wells of people like him, our founding fathers... We are a nation which forgets its cinematic legacy," he said.

Bhatt described Khosla as not only “well-groomed and educated” personality.

To commemorate Khosla’s legacy, the Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) is organising a one-day retrospective, titled “Raj Khosla 100 – Bambai Ka Babu”, which will showcase three of his notable films at Mumbai’s Regal Cinema on Saturday.

The three acclaimed films are "C.I.D." (1956), "Bambai Ka Babu" (1960), and "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971).

"I'm very happy that the restoration of his movies will make the content now available to the people. I'm also happy that it's a people's event. It's not some privileged people who are coming there to watch, or the insiders. This is something great that they have started," Bhatt said about the retrospective.

Bhatt recalled when he met Khosla during this tumultuous time in the 80s and 90s, his mentor was thrilled about his success. At the same time, he was yearning for a hit as well.

Khosla died in Mumbai in 1991.

“I met him in the 80s, and then he asked me, ‘How does it feel riding the tide?’ His narrative arc was on the downward journey, he was in the dusk of his career. I told him, ‘Sir, this is not what I wanted’ and then he said, ‘Shut up. Savour it, you don't get hit so often. Ask me, I'm trying for a hit. I don't seem to get it now’,” Bhatt said, recalling their conversation. PTI KKP RB BK RB RB