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A VILLAIN WHO SINGS AND CARES: Danny
Denzongpa is a multifaceted artiste. |
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" I don't watch my own films.
I don't enjoy watching films.
I don't like songs and dances.
I don't think we make good films
I have not done a film which has been truly
memorable.
I don't plan, I just follow the heart.
Films are my bread and butter. They have helped
me gain money and fame.
I don't feel insecure if I don't sign many films. " |
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I have been in the industry for 30 years. Initially, I looked for
perfection in everything but that does not happen. If you are
looking for satisfaction here, it is not on.
Initially, people would throw pebbles at me on the streets of
Pune in the aftermath of the Indo-China War.
I am shy by nature. I don't like addressing the media. I am
meeting the Press after seven-eight years in Delhi. It does not
matter to me if the producers or directors promote the hero or the
heroine. Ultimately, people judge you by your work.
I know of a place in India where people have not heard of
Amitabh Bachchan.
HEARD THAT one? And all that preceding that one? Well, these are
Danny Denzongpa's words. A man effortlessly good in bad
roles of a badman. And a man who was not quite bad in good roles
too. Though the mention of his name only conjures up the image of
a villain out to sell his country to `videshi taqatein', a vile
zamindar, an unscrupulous politician, a corrupt policemen, Danny,
in real life, is a far cry from the image he portrays on the big
screen.
He is a painter, a writer, a singer, a sculptor. And a man whose
heart beats for the orphans, the needy, the destitute. One day, he
would like to do something about the education system of the
country and would dearly like to something for the kids of the
North-East, specially his home State of Sikkim.
Visibly proud of his origin, he minces no words when he talks of
the initial problem he had to face when he landed in Pune's Film
Institute, and later, in the big, bad world of Bollywood. "When I
was at the Film Institute, people threw pebbles at me in the
aftermath of the Indo-China War in the `60s. And in films, my face
was a distinct disadvantage. But after I had overcome these
problems, there were not many others.'' No attempt at appropriate
credit. None to hide the blemishes either.
" Well, we have a problem with the language. When I landed in
Bombay, I did not know Urdu. But I taught myself. I would go to
the beach. I would talk to the sea, give speeches to the ocean and
people around will wonder what's wrong with this strange- looking
man! I will record my speech and listen to it over and over again.
I would ask my friends who knew Urdu if my pronunciation of the
Urdu words was right. Gradually, I got it right. Today, however,
people do not believe me when I say that I can only speak Urdu but
I can't read the language.''
This ease with Urdu came in handy in films like Sawan Kumar's "Sanam
Bewafa'' and Mukul Anand's "Khuda Gawah'' in both of which he took
the roles of Pathans, replete with head scarf, moustache and all
like ant to sugar.
"Well, I did not intend to join the film industry. My ambition wa s
to join the Army. I was the Best Cadet from West Bengal. I had
come to Delhi to participate in the Republic Day parade. I never
wanted to be an actor. But then, in the `62 war with China, some
soldiers from our village lost their lives. After seeing their
bodies my mother started howling and she refused to let me join
the Army. Since I was into dramatics and other cultural events in
schools, I asked her if I could join films. From thereon, I have
been on the road but, frankly, there have not been films which I
truly admire. There have been some good films along the way but
nothing I can be really happy with or proud of. Initially, I did
films which came my way because I needed the money and needed to
settle down. By the time, I was through with these films, I had
got a certain image.''
"I don't even go to see my films. `Khuda Gawah' was the last film
I went to see. That too because Amitabh Bachchan insisted.
Recently, however, I have enjoyed Madhur Bhandarkar's `Chandni
Bar'. It is a different film. A day or two after watching this
film, it makes you think. It is a realistic film. Then `Lagaan' is
a good commercial film. It has opened the eyes of the producers
and proved that you can make a good film without resorting to
vulgarity or compromising on the aesthetics.'' He finds the `50s
films "creatively most satisfying''. "Where are films like `Jaagte
Raho', `Do Bigah Zameen', `Ganga Jamuna', `Mughal-e-Azam and `Do
Aankhen Barah Haath'? I won't even put `Sholay', otherwise a film
-- which Danny refused -- in that category.'' Almost reluctantly
he points out that the forthcoming "Ab Ke Baras'' marking the
debut of Raj Babbar's son will be a better film - "It is nice in
patches.'' He echoes something similar about "16 December'' which
is hitting the big screen this coming Friday. ''I would not have
done the film if the director did not have such a good, tight,
ready script. It is a different kind of film. One day, Mani
Shankar -- the director -- will make a truly great film. I wanted
to be associated with this project.''
Danny, himself -- in constant search of "truly memorable roles''
-- is soon going to produce a couple of films. ''I have a couple
of subjects. They are off-beat, risky propositions for films, but
I would like to make films on these subjects. But then I don't
plan much ahead. I just follow the heart.''
He started his career with positive roles in films like "Mere Apne''
and "Kala Sona'' before vying for the audience's vituperatives in
films like "Pyar Jhukta Nahin'', "Khuda Gawah'' and the more
recent, "Indian''. "Yes, at the end if the audience claps when the
hero bashes up the villain, it is an indirect compliment for me
too.''
That he is good at badman roles almost every cinemagoer knows like
the story of an average potboiler. What very few people know is
that inside this growling, often gory man, is a sensitive heart. A
heart that takes him to canvas and brush aside a few cobwebs lost
in his own world. Danny loves painting and carving. "Well, I won
an award in painting and carving when I was in school in Naini Tal.
It is creatively very satisfying. Something you don't find in
films. But my paintings are for private collection only, not for
commercial purpose. I only show them to a few close friends.''
And Danny, again unknown to many in the younger generation, is an
able singer. He has the unique distinction of having sung a song
each with Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi and Asha Bhonsle. Why did
he not take it up as a profession? "Once my songs became a hit
every composer will come up with a similar song. I refused to
repeat myself. But I have sung folk songs and songs for films in
Nepal.''
Also, one day, he would like to open an orphanage in Sikkim. Also,
one day, maybe, he would take Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra to
Rajouri where villagers have not heard of them! And then maybe,
just maybe, he would one day go for a walk in Pune and discover
that all the guys from the North-East are being called Danny! "It
happened to a friend from Nagaland,'' he discloses, almost
self-effacing in revelation. That's Danny. Not quite a badman, one
would say.
He is one man who inspires terror in the audience with a mere look
in his eyes. The Sikkim-born actor who has played the villain in
umpteen films made his debut in Zaroorat in 1971 followed with his
bold performances in Mere Apne and Chor Machaye Shor. His song
with Farida Jalal in Kala Sona ('75) cast into a playback singer
but his intense looks, well-crafted physique and acting potential
got the best of him in The Burning Train, Ghatak, Barsaat,
Krantiveer and Allah Rakha and recently in China Gate and Kohraam,.
Whether 'Khuda Baksh' of Khuda Gawah, ?Bakhtawar' of Hum or 'Naagraj'
of Army, Danny has always lived his characters in the most calm,
composed and cultured manner.
Any other man with his kind of chinky looks wouldn't have stood a
chance in films. But Danny Denzongpa had luck, courage and what
was most important, a degree in acting. He had come all the way
from Sikkim and got enrolled in FTII and this helped his career a
lot.
Danny Denzongpa was the leading gangster in Gulzar's Mere Apne and
got noticed a lot. This landed him a role in B R Ishara's Zaroorat.
From this film onwards, there was no looking back for this
hilly-boy anymore and he soon became the prime villain of Indian
cinema.
He soon started doing many B-grade movies. But came a film called
Dhund where Danny played the role of a crippled, frustrated
husband. This B R Chopra film allowed him to show many acting
skills and emotions.
Soon after that he was offered many author-backed roles as in Chor
machaya shor, Chandi Sona, Devta, 36 Ghante and Fakira. Danny is a
man of many talents. Most of Danny's time and money goes in
looking after his beer factories, writing and directing scripts of
his liking. So far Danny has done a serial called Ajnabi which was
highly appreciated by viewers. But as far as his film roles are
concerned, he has become very selective now.
Having come up the hard way, Danny has tasted both success and
hardships. No wonder, he doesn't let his stardom affect him in any
way and is as down-to-earth as he was earlier. |
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Movies starring Danny Denzongpa |
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1971:MERA AAPNE- Shatrughan Sinha, Vinod Khanna, Pantal, Meena
Kumari, Kanwaljeet 1971: ZAROORAT (introduction) Reena, (introduction) Danny
1974: CHOR MACHAYE SHOR Shashi Kapoor, Mumtaz
1975: DHARMATMA Feroz Khan, Hema Malini, Rekha
1975: KAALA SONA Feroz Khan, Parveen Babi
1978: NAYA DAUR Rishi Kapoor, Bhavan Bhatt
1980: ABDULLAH Raj Kapoor, Zeenat Aman
1980: THE BURNING TRAIN Dharmendra, Hema,Vinod Khanna
1984: MANZIL MANZIL Dimple Kapadia, Sunny Deol,
1984 : MERA DOST MERA DUSHMAN Shatrughan Sinha, Smita Patil
1984: PYAR JHUKTA NAHIN Mithun , Padmini Kolhapure
1985: PATTHAR DIL Padmini Kolhapure, Danny
1985: DH Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor, Tina
1987: DILJALAA Jackie Shroff, Farah
1987: PAAP KI DUNIYA Sunny Deol, Neelam, Chunky
1988: YATEEM Sunny Deol, Farah
1989: KASAM SUHAAG KI Dharmendra,Rekha,Suresh Oberoi
1989: SAAYA Shatrughan Sinha
1990: AGNEEPATH Amitabh , Mithun Chakraborty
1990: BAAGI Salman Khan, (intr.) Nagma,
1990: SHESHNAAG Jeetendra, Rishi Kapoor, Rekha
1991: HUM Amitabh ,Kimi Katkar, Rajnikant
1991: SANAM BEWAFA Salman Khan, Chandni, Pran
1991: VISHNU DEVAA Sunny Deol, Neelam, Aditya
1991: YODHA Sunny ,Sunjay Dutt, Sangeeta
1992: BALWAAN (intr.) Sunil Shetty, Divya Bharti
1992: KHUDA GAWAH Amitabh , Sridevi
1993: DHARTIPUTRA Farah, Rishi Kapoor
1993: GURUDEV Sridevi, Rishi Kapoor, Anil Kapoor
1993: PRAKTIKSHA Govinda, Shilpa Shirodkar
1993: SANGRAM Ajay Devgan, Ayesha Jhulka,
1994: KRANTIVEER Dimple Kapadia, Nana Patekar,
1994: VIJAYPATH Ajay Devgan, Tabbu
1995: BARSAAT (intr.) Bobby Deol
1995: SARHAD Raj Babbar, Farah, Deepak Tijori
1996: ARMY Sridevi, Shah Rukh Khan
1996: GHATAK Sunny,Meenakshi,Mamta Kulkarni
1996: RAJKUMAR Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit
1996: SHASTRA Sunil Shetty, Anjali Jathar,
1997: HIMALAYA PUTRA Vinod Khanna,(intr.) Akshaye
1997: RAM AUR SHYAM Samrat, Manik Bedi, Divya Dutta
1997: UDAAN Saif Ali Khan, Madhoo, Rekha
1998: VINASHAK Sunil Shetty, Raveena
1998: KOHRAM Amitabh, Nana Patekar, Tabbu
1998: 1942-A LOVE STORY Anil Kapoor, Manisha
1998: China Gate Om Puri, Mamata
2000: PUKAAR Anil Kapoor, , Madhuri Dixit |
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Address: |
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Dzongrilla, 11th Road
JVPD Scheme, Juhu
Mumbai 400 049 |
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