The other day my 5 year old cousin got a gift from his father and in his cute voice said, “Mogambo Khush Hua !!” That was the moment I realized that character of Mogambo is immortal in Indian cinema. Once, Amjad Khan’s Gabbar Singh act in Sholay was considered to be the height of villainy but when Mogambo hit the screen – Gabbar Singh had found himself competition.
At the age of 40, when most of leading role heroes are about to retire and play character roles, Amrish Puri got his first break. This is the only thing he repented in his career, that if he started earlier he could have got much stronger author-backed roles to play. Yet, his towering height, deep, resonant, baritone voice, often put to shade even the lead actors in the frame. He realized the importance of that voice, when he began getting offers for ad jingles in the early days of radio commercials while he was working in Mumbai’s Prithvi Theatre. He often attributed his success and talent to the rigorous training in theatre.
Reshma aur Shera was his debut movie. This was the ‘70s -- the era of the parallel cinema. He was then offered roles (mostly as bad guys) by Shyam Benegal in his art films. 1984 also saw him achieve a target that most Indian actors would have killed for. A Hollywood studio offered him a significant role in a Steven Spielberg film! It was Indianna Jones and the temple of doom. Spielberg said to him, "You are the real devil”, “my best villain...". He also worked with Ben Kingsley in Gandhi. Just a note, that both his international films, became great hits. In 1987, one film made him the highest paid villain in the industry. Mogambo and Amrish became like peas in a pod. In 1995, he got to play one of his most endearing roles, as an authoritarian father, Bollywood’s mega-hit - DDLJ. He also played comic role in Chachi 420 & emotional in Ghatak. Amrish Puri added a punch to the roles by lending them his persona, charm and liveliness. Still, having done numerous films in a positive role, he is always introduced as the biggest villain in the industry.
It is very difficult to be popular in villainous roles, because you are not a villain in real life. There have been many famous heroes, but you can count the number of successful villains on your fingertips. The villainous characters played by him were so loved, that I can very well remember from my college days, that boys used his character names as each other nick names, be it, Dong (Tehelka), Chuniya (Saudagar), Paasha (Hero) or Tau (Divya Shakti). . But the villain which slowly venomed his life was a disease called myelodysplastic syndrome. On 12 January, he fought his last battle.
Hope from somewhere up, when you read this article Amrish Ji, you say, in your perfect style, Mogambo Khush Hua !!
Written By: Neha Jain
