E-Paper
This book is my guru dakshina to Raj Kapoor saab: Rahul Rawail
Filmmaker and author Rahul Rawail spoke about his book Raj Kapoor: The Master at Work at an interactive session in Chandigarh. Rawail shared anecdotes of his time as an assistant director with Raj Kapoor and how working with him changed his career path. Rawail also credits Kapoor with teaching him important lessons about problem-solving and attention to detail. The session was organised by the Prabha Khaitan Foundation and Ehsaas Women.
Filmmaker and author Rahul Rawail was in Chandigarh for an interactive session on his book Raj Kapoor: The Master at Work. The session by Kalam, Chandigarh was organised by Prabha Khaitan Foundation and Ehsaas Women.
During the conversation, Rawail says, “For me, this book is like my gurudakshina to Raj Kapoor. At the age of 16, when I saw him in action on the set of Mera Naam Joker, it was mesmerising.”
“It felt like I was watching a symphony conductor. There were around 5,000 people on set, over 3,000 extras, and 250 Russian and Indian circus artistes. My entire day was spent watching how Raj saab worked. The next day I went again and was later on very lucky to be trained by him,” he elaborates.
“After my board exams, I started working with him as an assistant. Prior to this, I intended to go to Canada to study atomic physics but after starting to work with him, I changed my mind,” he adds.
Rawail reveals that Raj saab’s son, Chintu (Rishi Kapoor), was his childhood friend. Rawail’s father was also a filmmaker but he wanted to apprentice with Raj saab.
“His way of working, from conceiving stories and shots, to choosing the colour palette were all marks of a true genius. It was remarkable how he would remember the tiniest of details,” recalls Rawail.
“Raj saab made me realise that if I never ask for a solution to a problem, the issue will persist. I think, if I’m able to practice even half of what I got to learn from him, I’d consider myself a success,” Rawail adds.
“Rahul animatedly shared anecdotes of his yesteryears with Raj saab and had the audience asking for more. He worked with Raj saab as an assistant director at RK Films. Under his tutelage, he learned the kernels of filmmaking and went on to make a mark of his own with blockbusters like Love Story (1981), Betaab (1983), Arjun (1985), Dacait (1987), Anjaam (1994) and Arjun Pandit (1999). His association with Raj saab and some fond anecdotes are shared in his book,” says Ehsaas Women, Ludhiana’s Deepika Bhalla.
Ehsaas Women, Chandigarh’s Sharmita Bhinder gave the vote of thanks while Ranjana Malik felicitated Rawail with an Uttariyo.
