Well-known documentary maker Nasreen Munni Kabir tells Karan Bhardwaj that luck and connection are the two most important factors to make it big in Bollywood
It won’t be an exaggeration to call her darling of legends. Else, who has access to icons like lata Mangeshkar, Waheeda Rehman, AR Rehman, Javed Akhtar, Shah Rukh Khan, Aditya Chopra and many othersIJ In her over three-decade long career, Nasreen Munni Kabir has interviewed, featured, made documentaries on Bollywood’s most sought-after icons. But her connection with Indian film industry started in early 80s when she says “there was less media buzz.”
“There were no channels in those days and it was slightly easier to reach out to celebrities. Today they give hundreds of interviews on thousands of channels. Then there are unique publicity ways. So celebs are also tired of publicity. It’s much tougher now,” she tells us. Kabir moved to Paris, where she lived for two decades, to study cinema. She also worked with French film director Robert Bresson as his trainee assistant on the film Four Nights of a Dreamer. Working as a consultant with Pompidou Centre in Paris, she organised two Indian film festivals in 1983 and 85. She relocated to london where she directed and produced a 46-part television docu-series on Indian cinema titled Movie Mahal.
Having narrated stories of the legends, she says that luck and connection are extremely important to make it big in Bollywood. “Besides talent, you need luck. It’s important to be at the right place at the right time. You need the right people and right support. If you get it, then you can make it. You need to have have the best people around you who can refine you and help you tap your potential. Waheeda Rehman has been a gifted actress but she is a legend today not only because of her hard work but also the people she worked with. How can you her fromPyaasa or Guru Dutt’s contribution to her careerIJ You cannot separate lata Mangeshkar from the geniuses she worked with. They could extract the best of her voice,” she says.
Kabir says among all her interviewees, she finds lata Mangeshkar and Bismillah Khan as “divine” and “pure talent”. “I can vouch that lataji and Bismillah Khan sahab are the purest talent. If you give any role to a talented actor or actress, it doesn’t mean they will make it good. But if you give any song to lata Mangeshkar, she will make it to her standard. There’s a difference in this,” she says. Kabir writes interviews in conversations and she says it is important to surprise the other person to keep the dialogue flowing.
“You have to surprise them with your questions.Wahi Biryani garam karne se nahi chalta kaam yaha... You have to develop a fresh and new understanding of their work. For instance, when I was interviewing Khan sahab, I found he was disinterested. So I asked him how does he rejuvenate himself if he is put off before any concert of performance. What does he like to play when he reaches a venue with least enthusiasmIJ “Ye hua na sawaal,” Khan sahab said responded telling me that he plays a kajri,” she says.
Kabir says working with Robert Presson made her realise that she would never make any feature film. “I didn’t have clarity like he had. Now I cannot start a fresh innings. I am happy with my documentaries and interviews,” she says. little do people know that Kabir has given sub-texts to hundreds of Hindi movies, the latest being Gunday, Highway and Dhoom 3. She says sub-titles play a crucial role in success of Hindi movies abroad. “If you do not understand the language, how would you tolerate the filmIJ You have to have sub titles. We know of world cinema through translations only,” she says.