The discovery of a rare reel of Kishore Kumar's banned Hindi film, Begunah, six decades after the Bombay High Court ordered all its prints destroyed, has led to much excitement among both the film fraternity and Kishore Kumar fans.
The late maverick singer, actor, music director, lyricist, writer, director, producer and screenwriter Kishore Kumar's son, singer Amit Kumar was ecstatic.
"I hope they are able to find a way to get the whole film together. What a tribute it will be, as we get closer to his 91st birth anniversary on August 4."
Songstress and colleague Asha Bhosale who had teamed up with Kishoreda (as he was fondly called), for many an iconic number, said the clip should be screened publicly to celebrate the late singer.
"Even the mere mention of his name unfailingly leaves all of us who knew him smiling. No one can match his formidable talent and versatility," she said, recollecting how he had once insisted on singing while lying down in the recording studio.
Bimal Roy's daughter Rinki Bhattacharya said the government should do everything possible to retrieve and save what she called "India's cinematic legacy".
According to her, "Kishore Kumar has a special place in people's hearts and this should be celebrated." NFAI Director Prakash Magdum said the search for the film has been ongoing for several years.
"We discovered it completely by accident last week," he said, of the rare clip, which shows composer Jaikishan (of Shankar-Jaikishan fame) on the piano, actor Shakila dancing and Mukesh as the playback crooning, "Ae Pyaase Dil Bezubaan".
Controversy came calling soon after the film's completion in 1957 as Paramount Pictures America alleged it was a rip-off of ‘Knock on Wood’, their production. Paramount took the makers of Begunah to court and the Bombay HC ordered all prints destroyed. How did the current print survive then? Magdum laughs, "Thank the underground.
A copy survived and we have it with us, thanks to the cinephiles who trusted us with its safekeeping," he adds. As the only film to feature Jaikishan in a major appearance, it was much sought after. "We've found two 16 mm films of 'Begunah', each of 60-70 minutes.
One reel came two months back and another came last week. The second one has the song which has got all of us excited." Though the clips are not in the best condition, the song is intact. "The film starts abruptly and has no ending.
The credits, which would ideally be at the beginning, are missing" he said. The NFAI is exploring the legalities to see if the clip can be made public. "Finding all the paperwork to do this has been an uphill task but we aren't giving up so easily," assured Magdum.
