Prakash Jha: From assistant to film director
Prakash Jha has established himself in Bollywood as an acclaimed writer and director. He proved his mettle as a filmmaker with films like ‘Raajneeti’, ‘Apaharan’ and ‘Gangaajal’. However, his path to fame was bumpy. From assisting film director Chand to producing his films, he has been through a lot.
He recalled how he decided to become a film director while watching as an audience member on the sets of the 1973 film Dharma, directed by Chand and starring Navin Nicol and Rekha.
He spoke to ANI about this. “In Mumbai, I had become good friends with art director Agha Jani. One day he said he was going to meet director Chand and I went along. We took a train from there.” I used to live in Dahisar and came to Santacruz. The film ‘Dharma’ was being shot at the hotel. Stars like Puran Sahab, Navin Nicole and Rekha were also there. I “I stood in the corner and watched the trolley run.” “The lights were set up, the lights were set up, and the songs were playing, and there were actors and music and everything. And I… I said, “Oh, this is it. This is what I want to do. Director bangna hai mujhe” (I want to be a director).”
He further said, “I stood there for 12 hours, motionless from the corner out of fear, lest anyone take me out of there.” I returned to Dahisar, met the Aga Jin that night, and I asked him to introduce me to ‘Chand Sahib, and I would like to be his assistant. ”
Jah continued. “He was very kind and took me to a meeting with Chand Sahib the next day. I was his 13th assistant, but he already had 12. I just went to the shoot. I wish I had been involved, but I realized after four days.” “This was very difficult. I wanted to be a director. I saw the assistants continue. So, at the end of the four-day schedule, they completed the song. Then I boarded the train, I went to Pune.”
He joined FTII in 1972-1973. “I knew about the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), and since I hadn’t graduated, he was only eligible for one course, film editing. So I came back and got a job in a restaurant and… I enrolled in KC College.”
“The semester started, and the following year I entered a competition,” he said, and then went on to an editing course.
Reminiscing about his batchmate back then, he added, “My classmate and batchmate was David Dhawan. We took two different paths, but we were together in class. There were a lot of people. Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah), Om, etc.) Puri was there, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Kundan Shah were there, Ravi Ojha, the famous TV director, was there too. And I had some very good technicians with me like Vinod Pradhan and Rajan Kothari. So it was a very illustrious batch.”
He went on to talk about meeting admired industry people during the course. “We used to meet in the lab. We were buddies. It was a very small group, a group of 40 to 50 people. So we said, ‘We’re going to do it for the camera. We were working for each other because we were working for someone else, editing for someone else.”
He added that many of them worked together on films in later years. “After that, I worked with Nasir for just one film, Raajneeti, but I have worked with a few others. Tom Alter was with us as a student. Girish Karnad was once He was our coach.”
However, he came to Mumbai because the facility was closed for a while due to student riots. “The institute was closed for a while, so I came here.”
He recalled how he decided to become a film director while watching as an audience member on the sets of the 1973 film Dharma, directed by Chand and starring Navin Nicol and Rekha.
He spoke to ANI about this. “In Mumbai, I had become good friends with art director Agha Jani. One day he said he was going to meet director Chand and I went along. We took a train from there.” I used to live in Dahisar and came to Santacruz. The film ‘Dharma’ was being shot at the hotel. Stars like Puran Sahab, Navin Nicole and Rekha were also there. I “I stood in the corner and watched the trolley run.” “The lights were set up, the lights were set up, and the songs were playing, and there were actors and music and everything. And I… I said, “Oh, this is it. This is what I want to do. Director bangna hai mujhe” (I want to be a director).”
He further said, “I stood there for 12 hours, motionless from the corner out of fear, lest anyone take me out of there.” I returned to Dahisar, met the Aga Jin that night, and I asked him to introduce me to ‘Chand Sahib, and I would like to be his assistant. ”
Jah continued. “He was very kind and took me to a meeting with Chand Sahib the next day. I was his 13th assistant, but he already had 12. I just went to the shoot. I wish I had been involved, but I realized after four days.” “This was very difficult. I wanted to be a director. I saw the assistants continue. So, at the end of the four-day schedule, they completed the song. Then I boarded the train, I went to Pune.”
He joined FTII in 1972-1973. “I knew about the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), and since I hadn’t graduated, he was only eligible for one course, film editing. So I came back and got a job in a restaurant and… I enrolled in KC College.”
“The semester started, and the following year I entered a competition,” he said, and then went on to an editing course.
Expanding
He went on to talk about meeting admired industry people during the course. “We used to meet in the lab. We were buddies. It was a very small group, a group of 40 to 50 people. So we said, ‘We’re going to do it for the camera. We were working for each other because we were working for someone else, editing for someone else.”
He added that many of them worked together on films in later years. “After that, I worked with Nasir for just one film, Raajneeti, but I have worked with a few others. Tom Alter was with us as a student. Girish Karnad was once He was our coach.”
However, he came to Mumbai because the facility was closed for a while due to student riots. “The institute was closed for a while, so I came here.”
There was no looking back after that and he rose to prominence with films like ‘Hip Hip Harley’, ‘Damru’, ‘Mrityudhan’ and ‘Gangaajal’.
(Tag Translate)Screenwriter
