“Golmaal was entirely shot in my Bandra bungalow in just 40 days” – Hrishikesh Mukherjee

R D – Gulzar- Kishore magic I have never relied on music for my films’ success. I never put too many songs, I prefer three or four good ones, Read More">which is the minimum requirement for a commercial film. R.D. Burman was my favourite. I knew him from the time when Dada (S.D. Burman) composed tunesRead More

R D - Gulzar- Kishore magic

I have never relied on music for my films' success. I never put too many songs, I prefer three or four good ones, which is the minimum requirement for a commercial film. R.D. Burman was my favourite. I knew him from the time when Dada (S.D. Burman) composed tunes for my films like Mili and Chupke Chupke. I wanted songs that went with the film, I told Pancham. He came up with lilting numbers like 'Golmaal Hai Bhai Sab Golmaal Hai', 'Sapne Mein Dekha Sapna' and 'Aane Wala Pal'. I remember, I asked Gulzar, the lyricist 'What is this lamha - tamha?' and he sportingly replied 'Dada, this is poetry, you won't understand.' During the final recording of 'Aane Wala Pal', I was in Calcutta, but when I heard the composition I was mesmerised. It had a soothing effect and Kishore Kumar's voice lent it an amazing depth. The music of Golmaal became very popular and is hummed even today.

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Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s evergreen laugh-riot Golmaal continues to enthrall cine-goers and filmmakers, while two more films have used the same title, Read More">YRF’s Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is reportedly “loosely” inspired by it. We reproduce Late Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s interview about the making of the film: A comedy to combat depression Despite the good storyline and liltingRead More

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's evergreen laugh-riot Golmaal continues to enthrall cine-goers and filmmakers, while two more films have used the same title, YRF's Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is reportedly "loosely" inspired by it. We reproduce Late Hrishikesh Mukherjee's interview about the making of the film:

A comedy to combat depression

Despite the good storyline and lilting music, my 1977 film Alaap starring Amitabh Bachchan as the hero flopped. I was completely shattered by it and went through depression for several months. To snap out of it I decided to make an out and out comedy.

It was during this low phase that I happened to watch a Bangla film entitled Kancha Meetha (sour and sweet). The hero kept fabricating tales and to cover one lie he would invent several other stories. This goes on till the last reel. I was fascinated by the character and decided to make a film with 'the web of lies' as the central theme. When I discussed it with producer N.C. Sippy, he approved of it instantly and the film was launched. Right from the outset we decided to make a complete family entertainer interwoven with many rib-tickling moments. I teamed with writer Sachin Bhowmick for the screenplay. Once the story was conceived we worked on every scene and infused many hilarious situations. Thus there is an even tempo of humour throughout the film.

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Twin trouble The story is about Ram Prasad (Amol Palekar) who clears his exams and his uncle (David), Read More">brings him a job offer of a Chartered Accountant in his childhood chum Bhavani Shankar’s (Utpal Dutt) trading firm. But he warns Ram not to reveal his relationship to his prospective employer as he is averse toRead More

Twin trouble

The story is about Ram Prasad (Amol Palekar) who clears his exams and his uncle (David), brings him a job offer of a Chartered Accountant in his childhood chum Bhavani Shankar's (Utpal Dutt) trading firm. But he warns Ram not to reveal his relationship to his prospective employer as he is averse to nepotism. Also a whimsical person who has a great penchant for flourishing moustaches, Bhavani loves ethnic wear and chaste Hindi. Ram plays his part perfectly through the interview and is selected. In the days to come he wins the old man's heart. But his happiness seems short-lived. One day he shirks duty to watch a hockey match on the pretext of looking after his ailing mother and is spotted by Bhavani at the stadium. A cross examination follows. To save his skin Ram, on the spur of the moment, cooks up a story, that he must have been mistaken for his good-for-nothing twin brother Lakshman Prasad. The fictitious character ushers in hordes of problems as Bhavani insists on meeting both the brothers together. To save his skin he tells too many lies and the situation snowballs into a big laugh-riot. There is not a single dull moment as the story builds up with every scene.

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‘Amu’ my son, my hero I chose Amol Palekar for the hero’s role because I was assured of his acting potential. He is also a close family friend and like a son. I call him Amu. He is a committed actor. Generally, Read More">I never discuss the artiste’s role with them before filming begins but inRead More

'Amu' my son, my hero

I chose Amol Palekar for the hero's role because I was assured of his acting potential. He is also a close family friend and like a son. I call him Amu. He is a committed actor. Generally, I never discuss the artiste's role with them before filming begins but in Amol's case I did. I knew he always tried to get under the skin of the character, and being an intelligent actor, he came up with valid suggestions. As I narrated the story of Golmaal he became worried about the scene where he had to shave off his moustache. 'I have never done it before. I might look funny,' he protested. But I allayed his fears saying that it could be replaced with an artificial one.

My favourite scene is the one in which where Bhavani Shankar trying to test him gives him a balance-sheet with minor errors for scrutiny. Ram Prasad points out the mistakes and asking deliberately, 'Yeh kis duffer ne banaya hai, sir?' Amol fully understood the situation. He faced the camera after a couple of rehearsals and did the entire scene in one take!

Another scene I like is when Lakshman Prasad comes to Bhavani's house for the first time and ends up 'mistaking' him for a gardener. I explained the sequence to Amol in detail and then asked him do it as naturally as possible. And the result was simply superb! Working with him was a great pleasure, that's why I cast him again in my films Naram Garam and Rang Birangi.

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Read More">Rekha replaced with Bindiya Rekha had worked in my earlier film Alaap and she was my original choice for this film. But I felt I wouldn’t be doing justice to such a brilliant artiste as there were not many scenes for the heroine in the film. By then Rekha had established herself as a hugeRead More

Rekha replaced with Bindiya

Rekha had worked in my earlier film Alaap and she was my original choice for this film. But I felt I wouldn't be doing justice to such a brilliant artiste as there were not many scenes for the heroine in the film. By then Rekha had established herself as a huge star. I didn't want to take undue advantage of her popularity. I opted for Bindiya Goswami instead. Rekha was furious when she learnt about it. But I convinced her that since the entire film revolved around the hero, there was no scope for her in the film. I also promised that after completing Golmaal, I would start a film with her in the lead. I made Khubsoorat, a film that remains synonymous with Rekha.

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