Dev Anand: Call me Dev

Zeenat Aman and Dev Anand More Pics

Always animated, always raring to go, this image captures the quintessence of Dev Anand on the sets of Hare Rama Hare Krishna. Considered one of his most ambitious films, it finds a resonance with audiences even today.

Looking for a new Zeenat This diarist fondly recalls an interaction with the indefatigable auteur, during which he shared his grand plans for his next film Hare Rama Hare Krishna, set in the 2000s Seated in his tiny office space in Khar, he longed to move to the renovated Anand Studio in Pali Hill, so that he could start work on his next venture.

With a twinkle in his ageless eyes he said, almost 80 per cent of the script is ready and the music was being worked out too. When your diarist asked him if Zeenat Aman will make an appearance in the new film, he said, "Zeenat is dead in my film." And after a moment's pause he added, "I will create a new Zeenat." Dev Sahab had prepared to start shooting for his film after he returned from London. Unfortunately, it was not meant to happen, and Hare Rama Hare Krishna will be remembered for what it was: An original, a classic, and a cult movie.

Always caring, always kind She has sung for some of his most memorable films, but Lata Mangeshkar says Dev Anand never attended any of the recording sessions. "The only time I remember him being there at the studio was for Hothon pe Aisi Baat in Jewel Thief," she revealed to your diarist. And there too, Dev Sahab sat outside not in the recording room.

It was a long, tough song. Both RD Burman and his father S D Burman were there and Burman senior reportedly kept losing his cool. "Dev Sahab finally intervened. 'Ab rehne bhi do Dada, singer thak gaya hoga," Dev Sahab reprimanded Burman dada. That's the kind of gentle, considerate human being he was," the songstress said to your diarist, overwhelmed with emotions. "Always asking about others."

Call me Dev He was credited with discovering and nurturing some of the most beautiful and talented leading ladies of Indian cinema. Among them, Waheeda Rahman perhaps holds a special place in the heart of his fans. Rehman, who made her debut with CID opposite Dev Anand, shared her memories with this diarist.

A big fan of the actor and Madhubala, she was both excited and nervous on the sets. And out of courtesy, she addressed him as 'Dev Sahab.' The actress recalled, "He turned around and said 'No no, call me Dev'. I couldn't bring myself to call him by his first name, that wasn't my upbringing. So I suggested I call him 'Anandji'. He glared at me and said, 'Do I look like a schoolteacher to you?'" Despite the instructions, Rehman addressed him as Dev Sahab the next day, and he pretended not to hear her. "I had no choice but to call him Dev and he remained Dev until the end."

Tailpiece Did the star with the evergreen smile die a bitter man? Your diarist can reveal that though not many in the industry could turn down his request to grace any of his events, there was one episode which seemed to have scarred him for life.

Apparently, whenever in the recent past he tried to get in touch with his old friend Dilip Kumar, he could not get through to him. In an interaction some time back, Dev Sahab told your diarist that it hurt him when the ailing star made the effort to make an appearance for the younger stars, but failed to respond to his invites. "Saira never allowed me to talk to him," he said in a rare show of remorse, waiting forever for his call to connect.