It has been two years since the Bollywood industry lost the legendary superstar, Dilip Kumar. On July 7, 2021, he passed away after battling a prolonged illness. He was 98. Revered as the Tragedy King of Bollywood, Dilip Kumar left an unforgettable legacy through his powerful performances in films such as Devdas, Mughal-E-Azam, Gunga Jumna and Mashaal among others. Now, a video of the Bollywood legend's old interview has now gone viral on the internet, where he recalled a conversation that he had with India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his daughter Indira Gandhi.
Once I was having breakfast with Jawaharlal Nehru. At that time, Indira Gandhi intervened in our discussion and said, "I was in Paris, I went to Moscow, there I watched the plays and films, I have listened to a symphonic orchestra too. How beautiful are they! Why are 'Indian films' not like that? What has happened to Indian cinema?"
What Dilip Kumar said?
"In those days we used to do shows to raise funds for various social causes because common people would think of us differently. We had to establish our connection with the people, so we used to do those shows. We developed our socio-civic identity, consciousness, and credibility. We were keen to establish how we are rooted in our culture. So, I felt that the daughter of our then Prime Minister was overstepping her limits by raising such questions on Indian cinema. Total condemnation of a medium in this way is not justified," he said.
Dilip Kumar further added, "In those days we used to do shows to raise funds for various social causes because common people would think of us differently. We had to establish our connection with the people, so we used to do those shows. We developed our socio-civic identity, consciousness, and credibility. We were keen to establish how we are rooted in our culture. So, I felt that the daughter of our then Prime Minister was overstepping her limits by raising such questions on Indian cinema. Total condemnation of a medium in this way is not justified."
Dilip Kumar's Befitting Reply to India Gandhi
Indira Gandhi then complained that Indian movies lacks Indianness. "She (Indira Gandhi) said, what kind of industry is this? And she said that Indian films lack 'Indianness'. She went on talking like this for 12-15 minutes. At last, I felt that if I reply now, it won't be an insult," he continued.
He said, "I told her that you are complaining for the last 15 minutes and it is true to a large extent, but whatever you have said for the last 12-15 minutes, not a single word of that was from an Indian language. You were continuously talking in English. Today, we are developing our roads, irrigation, education, hospitals, and all. We don't have water to drink in spite of a dedicated man at the helm of affairs, we have poor education. Yes, our films are poor. But we don't just have a film industry that is poor. We have an educational system that is poor. Our roads are poor. We have an agriculture that is poor. And if I put this to you, ma'am, we have governance that has a lot many things that are poor."
He concluded by saying, "I understood that Pandit ji might be angry after hearing this. But he said that if I were in your place, I would not have spoken so calmly."
