Name and fame during one's lifetime is not the real deal. What truly matters is how one is perceived and remembered after one is gone. These past couple of months alone have seen several people, Shammi Kapoor, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Jagjit Singh and Steve Jobs, in particular, leave a void in our generation as we know it. And each of them will be remembered, and remembered well, for all that they have done in their lifetime. They perhaps were known in a certain way when they were alive, but their passion for their art or their profession is all that will define them in all the years to come.
Expectedly overshadowed by his elder brother, the legendary Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor had to carve out a niche for himself in the market, given that his contemporaries were Dev Anand, Dilip Kumar and all such big names whose movies would run just because they starred these people. And so he created this niche for himself as a bumbling, clumsy at times, romantic hero whose antics were more or less inimitable! Songs of his movies are still huge hits when played, and 40 odd years on, they continue to offer a light-hearted afternoon, a welcome break from the thought-provoking cinema of today. When asked what he would have done with his life, if not an actor, he said that he could conceive of no other profession!
MAK Pataudi, well, was in the news always for being the Nawab who married the then reigning supreme Bollywood actress Sharmila Tagore. But he will always be respected in the cricketing world for being the youngest Test Captain at 21 and being impeccable in the sport despite having just one functioning eye! And despite all the luxury that birth in a royal household could afford, he chose to spend hours on a pitch practising, leading the country and carving out a niche for himself. And he will be remembered as one of cricket's greatest by record-holding greats like Tendulkar as well. The underlying feature here - passion for the sport.
Jagjit Singh. Well, Indian Classical music has churned out stalwarts by the hundreds over all these years. But Jagjit Singh can perhaps be credited with the laurel of making Ghazals appeal to the mainstream audience. An audience that even comprises youth that cringes at the very mention of classical music. And with a voice as sublime as his, whether he was singing 'Woh Chandni ki raat thi', or 'Kaagaz ki kashti' as part of his ghazal performances or even songs like 'tum itna kyun muskura rahe ho' and more recently 'hoshwaalon ko khabar kya' in the movies, he could evoke any emotion in the minds of the listener. Again, passion for the art.
And finally Steve Jobs. I guess the internet is replete with eulogies and anecdotes and people expressing their sentiments about the short but completely meaningful life of a man who has managed to thrill many a life through his own endeavors! And his story would need a post of it's own to do him justice.... in part 2.
Expectedly overshadowed by his elder brother, the legendary Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor had to carve out a niche for himself in the market, given that his contemporaries were Dev Anand, Dilip Kumar and all such big names whose movies would run just because they starred these people. And so he created this niche for himself as a bumbling, clumsy at times, romantic hero whose antics were more or less inimitable! Songs of his movies are still huge hits when played, and 40 odd years on, they continue to offer a light-hearted afternoon, a welcome break from the thought-provoking cinema of today. When asked what he would have done with his life, if not an actor, he said that he could conceive of no other profession!
MAK Pataudi, well, was in the news always for being the Nawab who married the then reigning supreme Bollywood actress Sharmila Tagore. But he will always be respected in the cricketing world for being the youngest Test Captain at 21 and being impeccable in the sport despite having just one functioning eye! And despite all the luxury that birth in a royal household could afford, he chose to spend hours on a pitch practising, leading the country and carving out a niche for himself. And he will be remembered as one of cricket's greatest by record-holding greats like Tendulkar as well. The underlying feature here - passion for the sport.
Jagjit Singh. Well, Indian Classical music has churned out stalwarts by the hundreds over all these years. But Jagjit Singh can perhaps be credited with the laurel of making Ghazals appeal to the mainstream audience. An audience that even comprises youth that cringes at the very mention of classical music. And with a voice as sublime as his, whether he was singing 'Woh Chandni ki raat thi', or 'Kaagaz ki kashti' as part of his ghazal performances or even songs like 'tum itna kyun muskura rahe ho' and more recently 'hoshwaalon ko khabar kya' in the movies, he could evoke any emotion in the minds of the listener. Again, passion for the art.
And finally Steve Jobs. I guess the internet is replete with eulogies and anecdotes and people expressing their sentiments about the short but completely meaningful life of a man who has managed to thrill many a life through his own endeavors! And his story would need a post of it's own to do him justice.... in part 2.
1 comment:
Precise summary of the legeds as a prelude to ur conclusion in Part 2.
Liked both the parts
A
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