ID :
28694
Wed, 11/05/2008 - 19:42
Auther :

Noted filmmaker B.R. Chopra passes away

Mumbai, Nov 5 (PTI) Legendary filmmaker Baldev Raj
Chopra, better known as B.R. Chopra died Wednesday at his
residence here following prolonged illness.

He was 94.

Chopra was not keeping well for some time and the end
came at 0830 hours at his residence in suburban Juhu.

Chopra, one of India's most respected film personalities
is survived by his filmmaker son Ravi Chopra and two
daughters.

The eminent producer-director is the elder brother of
filmmaker Yash Chopra.

The funeral will take place at the Juhu crematorium at
4.30 pm, family sources said.

The filmmaker was known for converting offbeat stories
highlighting socially relevant issues into immortal classics
like 'Dhool Ka Phool' (1959), 'Waqt'(1965) and 'Naya Daur'
(1957), 'Kanoon' (1958), 'Humraz' (1967), 'Insaf Ka Tarazu'
(1980) and 'Nikah' (1982) to name a few.

Born on 22nd April 1914, in undivided Punjab, Chopra's
interest in films started as a movie journalist.

After partition, he moved to Delhi and then to Mumbai. He
began his celluloid career writing and editing film reviews
for the Cine Herald Journal.

In 1949, he produced his first film 'Karwat', which
unfortunately turned out to be a flop.

In 1951, he tried his luck again as producer and director
of film 'Afsana' which became a mega hit at the box office.
The movie, a tale of mistaken identity with Ashok Kumar in
double role, went for a silver jubilee run.

In 1955, B.R. formed his own production house 'B R
Films'. His first movie for this production house was highly
successful 'Naya Daur'.

Encouraged by this success, B.R. started off on a roll
with the release of 'Ek Hi Raasta '(1956), a drama about widow
remarriage and then churned out a string of successful films,
the most notable being 'Naya Daur'(1957), 'Sadhana' (1958),
'Kanoon' (1960), 'Gumrah' (1963) and 'Humraaz' (1967).

He also gave his younger brother Yash Chopra, his first
directorial opportunity with the box-office hit 'Dhool Ka
Phool (1959) and in the subsequent years Yash made four more
films, including 'Waqt' (1965) and 'Ittefaq' (1969).

B.R. was instrumental in developing the career of singer
Mahendra Kapoor and utilised him in most of his movies.

His foray into television led to 'Mahabharat', one of the
most successful T.V. serials in Indian television history.

B.R. always endeavoured to make socially relevant films
and at the same time tried to cater to popular sentiment.

For instance, 'Naya Daur' (1957) depicted the
confrontation between rural tradition and modern technology.
B.R. perceived mechanism as evil and allowed his protagonist,
a horse carriage rider, to defeat an automobile in a race.

He also made films that were regarded as ahead of their
time. 'Kanoon' (1960), a courtroom drama, was perhaps the
first experiment in Bollywood to make a film without any song.

'Gumrah' (1963) told the tale of a woman resuming her
affair after marriage and 'Ittefaq' (1969) showed the heroine
as a killer of her husband.

B.R. continued to make films in 1970s and 1980s, and met
success with 'Insaf Ka Tarazu' (1980) focusing on the issue of
rape, and Nikaah (1982), a Muslim love triangle.

His son Ravi did try to keep the banner going but none of
the films did well except for 'Aaj Ki Awaz' (1984), another
courtroom tale, and a family drama 'Baghban' (2003).

B R Films turned to television in 1985 and made several
successful television programmes, the most successful of the
being the serial 'Mahabharata' (1988).

It entered the 'Guinness Book of World Records' by
registering 96 percent world viewership. In 1999, B.R. was
awarded the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for his contribution to
Indian cinema.

B.R.'s third generation has also taken its bow with one
of Ravi's son turning director and another an actor. PTI MR
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