Even as the highest paid actors from Amitabh Bachchan to Dharmendra to Rajesh Khanna were prepared to halve their fee to be in a film directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee in the 1970s, the filmmaker was gripped by self-doubt. The stars, and some of India's finest writers and composers including sitar maestro Ravi Shankar (Anuradha), loved working with him for they knew the soft-spoken but resolute filmmaker would get good work out of them.
But the filmmaker wondered from time to time why he was not able to make something half good as a film by Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen or Ritwik Ghatak.
While many who worked with him will remember his landmark films, they will also miss the warmth and affection he brought to the workplace.
As an editor, he worked on some of the most notable films of his time. Apart from his own films such as Anupama, a bittersweet story of a father who never could never forgive his daughter (played by a remarkable Sharmila Tagore) for a tragedy over which she had no control, he edited films such as Madhumati for his mentor Bimal Roy. Many filmmakers including Ramu Kariat (Chemmeen, the award-winning Malayalam hit) working on their ambitious projects sought him out as an editor.
But Mukherjee was not happy with his filmmaking. In 1975, he felt that he had overworked himself and was wondering if he could make a film that could win an award at a major film festival. He was afraid to make films that were really radical, he admitted.
In the 1980s, the half a dozen films he directed including Rang Birangi were non-events. In 1998, when his comedy Jhooth Bhole Kauwa Kaate starring Anil Kapoor and Juhi Chawla bombed, he decided he would not make any more films. He was 76.
Whether it was Rakesh Roshan (who starred in the delightful comedy Khubsoorat opposite Rekha in 1980) or Amitabh Bachchan who acted in eight films (including Anand and Mili) directed by Mukherjee, the stars felt very secure in his company.
"He maintained old-fashioned values and work ethics that you could not easily find in our film industry," Bachchan said about Mukherjee. The actor had made a terrific impact as an idealist physician in Anand, in which Rajesh Khanna gave a solid performance too, in the year 1970.
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"He was tough and demanding," Bachchan said. "But he was also fair and inspiring. Working with him was something we looked forward to, film after film."
Mukherjee, who directed over 40 films, was proud of a few things. "You will not be embarrassed watching my films with your family," he had said. "I could never tolerate vulgarity or violence."
Even as he had become a recluse in the last decade Mukherjee was aware of his legacy. And what a legacy it is...
Also read: Hrishikesh Mukherjee's best films
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