Mehmood | The Champion Of Comedy | Statesmen

‘Mehmood’, the Arabic word means ‘praiseworthy’ and that’s so true for the beloved comedian of hindi film industry.  He was the King of Comedy and in the 60s made the comedian’s role an integral part of the story line so much that it proved more interesting than even the hero’s romance.

He was not just a jester, he was an Actor. There were many other comedians before him, but they merely functioned to take the audience’s mind off the melodramatic plot for a few minutes. But he had a creative style to blend the comic and the tragic with innovative idealism.  None can forget his performance in “Padosan” and the Tamil-coated Hindi accent that sent everyone rolling with laughter. But you can also not miss out his emotional best in “Kunwaara Baap” where he successfully made the audience to come down with tears. He also became a sterling director with “Bombay to Goa”. This is sheer versatility!!

What is more, many of his starrers nearly always eclipsed the so-called lead characters, and a time came when main stars hesitated to act in a film that had Mehmood. Also, as the hits poured in, he began to command a price that was sometimes rumored to be much higher than some of the then lesser hero’s. This caused a lot of insecurity and anxiety in Bollywood acting circles. He was accused by many of downgrading the quality of comedy in Hindi films, which turned out to be one of the reasons for his premature decline.

But Mehmood knew his responsibilities towards film industry and had a strong touch of humanness in him that saw him encourage newcomers. He turned producer and director, and gave Amitabh Bachchan his first break as a hero in "Bombay to Goa". Bachchan remembers his days of struggle when Mehmood offered him even shelter. R.D. Burman and Aruna Irani were also given their first break by him.

By the time the 90s set in, Mehmood had played his entire hand -- as actor, director, storywriter and producer. Like all other contemporaries he had not made wise investments and his financial prosperity began to decline. He was now keeping indifferent health too. Death came to him silently in his sleep in 2004 in Pennsylvania, US, where he had gone for treatment of heart disease. The roars of laughter were no more, and his fans shed tears at Mehboob Studio in Bandra, Mumbai.

Written By: Neha Jain