Kader Khan: A man that Bollywood forgot too soon
Veteran actor of Bollywood Kader Khan has breathed his last. Today's generation identifies him only as an actor of comedy genre. There was a time when Govinda and Kader Khan made for a superhit pair. Their roles would be created on the lines of popular cartoon series such as Tom and Jerry. Those roles used to be very powerful such as son-in-law and father-in-law, or son and father where the characters would hey into direct competition with each other in performance. Shakti Kapoor also entered into the completion equation sometimes.
Kader Khan who breathed his last in Canada on Dec 31, was a very popular actor of hindi cinema in 1990s. His pairing with Govinda or Shakti Kapoor would be a sure way of getting more comic relief into the cinema. Banarasi Babu, Hero No 1, Haseena Maan jaayegi and other films may not be his best performances, but they sure we're hits of their times. He had not only acted in more than 300 films, but had also written dialogues for more than 200 films. He had deep knowledge in classics of the world so that he could even hold lengthy discussions on them.
But looks like Bollywood was only amused by the daffy acting of this creative man. The field did not want the most creative writer and thinker who could have enriched the field with his knowledge. If he ever included some parts of good literature into the dialogues he wrote, the directors often rejected them and asked him to write perhaps the double entendre dialogues that would be relished by the young generation. Khader Khan used to be very disappointed about this. He had used the 'street style’ language for Amar Akbar Anthony for Amitabh Bachchan’s Anthony Gonsalves’ character when the film was made in 1977. He had later regretted that he even brought that language into circulation in the film industry. But he was very proud of the language he had employed for Akbar's role that was performed by Rishi Kapoor. People had loved Bachchan's role though where he says people run only two times, when there is a Olympic race or policie case.
These dialogues had been a superhit among young people. It would be significant to note that Khader Khan grew up in the red light area of Mumbai, known as Kamathipura. Even then, his family had succeeded in protecting him from the ill effects of the surrounding areas. He reminisced often about entire streets occupied by sex workers, another street was occupied by hijras and the adjoining street had bars and alcohol shops along with places for gambling. Khader Khan often saw sex workers running their business with great acumen.
As a child, Khader Khan was inspired by the works of Russian and Indian writers. Sadat Hasan Manto was his favourite writer. Khan came from theatre background. He was a Mathematics professor by profession. But his interest lie in acting and performing. He entered film industry through Dilip Kumar. He got to play a small role in Yash Chopra's Daag in 1973. Yet, IMDB lists Roti as Khan's first film which was made in 1974. Saleem Javed pair were ruling the dialogue writers world in Bollywood in 70s. They would offer a proper package to the directors such as story, screenplay and dialogue all done together by the duo. This meant Kader Khan got to work on very few films. But the film Amar Akbar Anthony opened the doors of fortune for Khader Khan.
He had written for Desai's films such as Parvarish, DharmaVeer, Suhaag, Naseeb and Coolie. He became the most sought after writer in 70s and 80s. Along with writing for films, he had also gained good reputation in anti-hero roles as well. After brand Govinda began to fade, Khader Khan also began to lose market. He was the first one to identify the growing intolerance in this country. He has even voiced his opinion against it. He brought out a book on the peace-loving aspect of Islam faith. In an interview he gave in 2012, he spoke about growing intolerance, if not going into long discussion about politics. After this, he stopped fancying Bollywood and the feeling was mutual. There were time when he had to clarify that he is alive when rumours of his death spread far and wide. His presence had been long forgotten. It's an irony that he had to be remembered that he was alive when he actually died. Bollywood truly lost a gem in his death.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
