MUMBAI: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has reminisced about Raj Kapoor and spoke about his ” incredible showmanship” by sharing that the way the late icon envisioned the dream sequence in “Awaara” had never been seen before.
The cine icon took to his blog, where he spoke about 100 years of Raj Kapoor.
He wrote: “Continuing our commitment to bringing classic cinema back to the big screen, I am so happy that Film Heritage Foundation has joined hands with R.K. Films for "Raj Kapoor 100 - Celebrating the Centenary of the Greatest Showman" - a grand showcase of 10 milestone Raj Kapoor films in 40 cities and 135 cinemas across the country that will keep his legacy alive and give audiences all over India an opportunity to revisit the films of an artist who lived for cinema and whose films gave voice to the common man.”
He then shared that Raj Kapoor’s 1951 film “Awaara”. The film stars Raj Kapoor along with his real-life father Prithviraj Kapoor, as well as Nargis, Leela Chitnis and K. N. Singh.
Other members of the Kapoor family make an appearance, including Raj Kapoor's youngest brother Shashi Kapoor, who plays the younger version of his character, and Prithiviraj's father Dewan Basheshwarnath Kapoor, playing a cameo in his only film appearance.
The film expresses socialist themes, and blends social and reformist themes with the crime, romantic comedy and musical melodrama genres.
“Even today Awara is a film that is etched in my mind. Talking about Rajji’s incredible showmanship, the way he envisioned the dream sequence in the film had never been seen before, ” he wrote.
The thespian added: “You are amazed by his fantastical imagination that visualized the surreal setting, the ethereal Nargisji emerging through thick clouds of smoke, Rajji surrounded by demonic figures and burning fires – there is a powerful, mystical symbolism in the dream sequence, and that is my favourite.”
Talking about “Awaara”, which was considered a milestone in the history of Bollywood, the story revolves around the intertwining lives of a poor thief Raj, the privileged Rita, and Judge Raghunath who is unaware that Raj is his son. In the film, Raj Kapoor’s poor "little tramp" character references Charlie Chaplin and was further developed in other films such as Shree 420.