Prakash Mehra the man who contributed immensely into making Big B the living legend that he is died at a private hospital in Mumbai at 8 am on May 17. The cremation will happen on May 18 because the family is awaiting the arrival of his elder son Sumeet who is currently in the US. “He had been diagnosed with a severe lung infection’’ says a family source.
The 70-year-old film-maker (born July 13 1939 in Uttar Pradesh) was one of the leading lights of the Indian film industry having made some of the biggest and most talked about Hindi film hits including - Hasina Maan Jayegi Mela Zanjeer Haath Ki Safaai Hera-Pheri Muqaddar Ka Sikandar Namak Halal Laawaris and Sharaabi.
Mehra began his career as a production controller. It was in 1968 that he found his place in the sun as an independent filmmaker with Hasina Maan Jayegi. In the 70s both he and his lead actor Amitabh Bachchan were immortalised when Zanjeer released. After that there was no looking back for either the man or his Frankenstein (Bachchan).
Mehra’s office at a hotel in Juhu and his dubbing theatre that carried huge framed photographs of Amitabh Bachchan in Namak Halal were ‘the power centres’ in Bollywood right through the 70s and 80s.
The filmmaker always dressed in white trousers and a shirt with matching white shoes would arrive at his office only after lunch time because he of his laid back lifestyle.
Absolutely intolerant of stars Mehra never indulged in sycophancy and would often call a superstar a spade. “I’m a self-made man I see no reason to fade up to anyone’’ he’d say to media members who were a 4 o’clock audience with him.
Mehra also crossed swords with Manmohan Desai the other big force in Big B’s life and the media had a field day when the two big daddies of Bollywood had a volley of words in print. Things came to a head when during the publicity campaigns of Mard (Manmohan Desai) and Sharaabi (Prakash Mehra) Desai said “Only a mard can make a Mard; and a sharaabi can make a Sharaabi.’’
As luck would have it Sharaabi was a huge box office hit; and Mehra then got back at Desai in his own way. While death seems an inappropriate occasion to raise past rubbles; the whole idea of this exercise is to show what a spirited man Prakash Mehra was.
In recent years he had become a recluse. A close friend of his son says “Uncle didn’t come out of his bedroom for days on end. And he rarely interacted with any outsiders.’’
One of the reasons for Mehra’s despondency was the fact that his wife lay in coma for years on end and passed away a couple of years ago. All through her illness the filmmaker cared for her selflessly. His sons Amit and Puneet who live in Mumbai look after their father’s business. With Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra passing away; the Hindi film industry’s golden hour has passed.
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