Actor Pran has redefined the art of being ‘bad’
It was not an empty boast: “Is ilaaqe mein naye aaye ho sahabIJ... varna Sher Khan ko kaun nahin jaanta”. The legendary ‘villain of the millennium' Pran has had a marathon six-decade career in Hindi cinema, and he is one of the most celebrated actors of the industry. While the world, at least this part of the sub-continent, has been long familiar with the overwhelming presence of Sher Khan on silver screen, it has taken the Government almost that long to acknowledge the stature of veteran actor Pran Krishan Sikand. Hindi cinema's best loved villain, the 93-year-old Pran has finally been conferred the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award (2012) for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema. One of the finest actors to have graced the silver screen, Pran gave stature to screen villainy with his polished acting which made him stand out amid seasoned actors of the time. He was perhaps even the highest paid, in fact paid more than some leading actors of the 1950s-70s. Pran was a perfect foil to Hindi cinema's biggest names including the trinity of black and white Bollywood — Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand. A winner of numerous awards including the Padma Bhushan, the Filmfare lifetime Achievement Award, and the ‘Villain of the Millennium' award, he was also on the list of CNN’s Top 25 Asian actors of all time. But few know that this versatile actor who shifted gears from negative to character roles with ease, had started out as a professional photographer. He joined A Das & Co, Delhi, as an apprentice and this job took him first to Simla, where he played Sita to another Bollywood veteran Madan Puri's Ram in the local Ramlila. A chance meeting with the writer, Wali Mohammad Wali, who worked for Dalsukh M Pancholi led to Pran winning his first role as a villain in the latter’s hit Punjabi film Yamla Jat (1945). Thus began the journey of a lifetime.
With more than 400 films to his credit, Pran has played villain in about 22, imbuing the roles with his particular brand of villainy and menace that remains unsurpassed even today. Such was the terror he had created, before Manoj Kumar's Upkar changed his image, that when he celebrated his 75th birthday and invited all those persons who were named Pran to come and celebrate with him, hardly any turned up. So loathsome was he on the screen that people had stopped naming their children after him — a great tribute to the realism he brought to his performance. For the industry, he became ‘Pran saheb'. Pran's most famous performances were in Dil Diya Dard liya, love in Tokyo, Ram aur Shyam, Naya Daur, An Evening in Paris, but his most famous role for the modern generation is undoubtedly Zanjeer, where he played a gray character, Sher Khan, with his favourite opening word, “Barkhurdaar”, acquiring cult status.
The Phalke award is a most well-deserved recognition. But the fact that the nation's top cine honour should have come to Pran saheb in the sunset years of his life is disappointing. Are we as a people so self-absorbed that we don't know when to award people for their contribution to art, culture, film and industry; and should someone, who has entertained and ‘terrified’ his countless fans in equal measure, have to reach a ripe old age of 93 to get this awardIJ