Inside an upscale gated community, in an elegant apartment with potted plants, a live parrot flying aroundand a Husain on one wall, Jackie Shroff discloses, “This is Tiger’s gift to his mother.”
He treks back to his days in a Teen Batti chawl, where seven families shared three bathrooms and everybody would queue up for his or her turn to go in. Even after Dev Anand’s Swami Dada and Subhash Ghai’s Hero, Jackie would wait, bucket in hand, before leaving for the studios.
On Father’s Day, it’s “aww-inspiring” to recall how life has come full circle for the Shroffs. Unlike many, Jackie’s youthful dreams were not about stardom and fame for himself but about giving his parents an apartment of their own, away from “queuing up for your turn”. Jackie made his dream come true and one of the many reasons he’s so devoted to “Bhole” (as hecalls Ayesha) is that she stood by him to build a beautiful home of their own where both his parents stayed close to him. They never had to queue up again.
Jackie has been a star for 40 years but certain financial missteps, like Ayesha producing the disastrous Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Boom, sometimes threw the family into a crisis. It was now Tiger’s turn to dream. As he watched their lovely apartment in Bandra go under the hammer and the family move from rental to rental, he vowed to give his parents a house of their own again. Tiger’s dad has seen it from both positions — as the son who wanted to give his parents a house of their own and as the father whose son wanted to buy them a house they could once again call their own. Jackie did it, so did Tiger. It’s Ideal Purush season in the Shroff family.
Today is an appropriate Sunday to recall a few unique father-son equations. With a new instalment of Gadar coming up this August, Sunny Deol’s son Jeete in the 2001 film sets a record of his own. Jeete was played by director Anil Sharma’s son Utkarsh when he was about eight years old. After courses in production and direction at Chapman University and studying acting at Lee Strasberg in New York, US, 29-year-old Utkarsh has repeated his Jeete act. He plays Sunny’s grown-up son in Gadar 2, once again under his dad’s direction. A rare father-son moment for any actor.
In a class of its own is the blockbuster team of son S.S. Rajamouli, who brings alive the story ideas that reside in his father Vijayendra Prasad’s head. A father-son team that has famously worked together ever since Rajamouli filmed his father’s story in the Telugu hit Simhadri in 2003. But how many know that within the renowned RRR and Bahubali units thrive many more father-son partnerships?
When Rajamouli went with Naatu Naatu composer M.M. Keeravani to the Oscars, it wasn’t just an excitingnew chapter for two colleagues who had collabo- rated on super hits like Eega, Bahubali and RRR. It was a family adventure for two hugely talented cousins. Naatu Naatu Keeravani (full name Koduri Marakathamani Keeravani) is filmmaker Rajamouli’s cousin. And Rajamouli’s full name is Koduri Srisaila Sri Rajamouli.
It doesn’t stop there. Look closely at the credit titles. Singer and composer Kaala Bhairava is Keeravani’s son who has helped his father with the soundtrack and has sung for Bahubali 2 and RRR, besides shaking a leg (along with Rahul Sipligunj) to Naatu Naatu on the Oscar stage this March.
Look further. There’s also Rajamouli’s wife Rama credited for the costumes of Bahubali and RRR while Keeravani’s wife M.M. Srivalli features on the production side of Eega (2012), Bahubali 2 (2017) and RRR (2023). Interestingly, Rama and Sri- valli are sisters, making it a merry foursome where two siblings are married to two illustrious cousins.
So when you watch a Rajamouli film, it’s not just a father-son collaboration. It’s a full-scale empire at work.
Inside news: while all eyes are on Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh, it’s senior citizens Dharmendra and Shabana Azmi who will spring a surprise in Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani. He wasn’t nicknamed Garam Dharam for nothing.
