Filmindia (1941)

October, 1941 FILMINDIA into the hand that shaped him and helped him. And then the crest of the wave, lifted him up and deposited him right ilnto his master's fchaij: and how. Baburao was going on a foreign tour, his greatest worry was 'filmindia'. He had b^uilt up a imique standard and clientele. Who will carry on the good work, as ably, smartly and humorously as he himself had been doing, and so right earnestly he took up Abbas and knocked and tapped him into shape as regards the policy, the style and the modus operandi of the journal — and then he went on his European-cumAmerican tour for five full months. While Baburao was touring Utopia (to the rest of us), Abbas, shy and overburdened, sat on Baburao's throne and we all managed for Baburao's sake to keep him there. REALLY A SHREWD GUY Baburao returned. He brought with him many useful things and some girls' photographs, and some American opinions that he was a Million Dollar personality. I can't understand why Baburao didn't protest. He always sho\vs a bjit of careless dislike for filthy lucre. Anyhow Baburao came and Abbas had to get up from the chair and stand by its side, and it was then that he perceived the value of that cliair and the beaconlight of 'filmIndia' that illuminates the personality occupying that chair, and something went wrong in his inside. But he is a clever guy, too shrewd to show that he coveted his benefactor's crown. He stuck more closely to Baburao, realizing that the Big Boy had now become a Bigger Boy after his world tour and it would be more paying to remain a retainer still. The Big Boy though sharp and clever has scanty suspicion in his constitution. To him Abbas was still the yc^unger brother. Prabhat studios wanted to make "Omar Khay^yamV Baburao wrote the story. Shantaram liked it and asked Baburao to elaborate it. Baburao probably took clerical help from his "P^chhu", sent him to Poona to run little errands on his behalf, awarded him half his fame by the caption "Shantaram's 'Omar Khayyam'" — Story By: Baburao Patel and Ahmed Abbas". While at Poona "Bachhu" is reported to have attempted to worm himself into the good graces cf Shantaram by belittling Devki .'^ose in converse with him, but was rightly snubbed by the great director. IDEALIST BECOMES SALESMAN Abbas now became a clever salesman. He had got the push, he had wanted all his life. The "Chronicle" on Sundays and week days did not i'ail to record the fact that Ahmed Akjbas was writing a story for the great Shantaram. Kardar, Mehboob, Mukherjee all became aware of the event one by one. Baburao Patel was unapproachable. He never cared for money. He wrote for sentiment. The next best was Ahmed Abbas. And very soon "Naya Sansar" came on the anvil. Gone were those days when with a dry nose Abbas found himself broke and often picked up Rs. 30]on an article from 'filmindia', confident that with polish and the preening at Baburao's expert hands his articles would still be outstanding. And now Ahmed Abbas sold articles, thoughts, stories and strangely enough probably sold his principles of which he once made such a fetish. 'vVhen Baburao Patel praised Kardar's "Puja", Ahmed Abbas did not make a secret of his ridicule for the picture. And yet with characteristic manoeuvring he managed to sell a story to Kardar. Yes, Ahmed Abbas became a successful businessman — a very successful one seeing that he will get Rs. 2000/ for Kardar's "Nai Duniya," after receiving only Rs. 750/ for "Naya Sansar". And the memory of the thirty-rupee-pickings is still fresh in every memory. Of all people, Baburao Patel has made into men, Ahmed Abbas ought to be the most grateful. SPORTSMANSHIP OF BABURAO Can anyone imagine, a human being once obscure and starving as Ahmed Abbas was and put on a pedestal of fame and plenty, a human being — the image of his maker — could be so ungrateful, so foul as to bite the hand that had led him and placed him on the pedestal of fame and fortune? And yet it is what Ahmed Abbas did or tried to do to Baburao. Imagine 'filmindia' charging Rs. 150/ for a full page advertisement, giving free pages month after month to Ahmed Abbas to skyrocket him to fame and paying him to boot, and imagine the same Ahmed Abbas trying to sting his patron through the selfsame pages of 'filmindia'. What would you call a man like that? Recently Abbas has wrritten a paid-for article in 'filmindia' in which he writes that though 'filmindia' is the only journal worth reading, it preaches immoral ideals, exciting its readers whose mental age, he says, is not above 12 years. The whole article is so poisonous that one can't believe it could have been written by Ahmed Abbas, a friend and protege of Baburao Patel and who is what he is because of 'filmindia'. I really appreciate and applaud Baburao's frank and bold sportmanship, by accepting, printing and paying for this dirty, damaging article. It is hardly necessary for me to comment on this article, as one Mr. Bashyam, a reader has very ably done so already in a recent issue of 'filmindia' and it clearly shows what the readers of the famous journal think of Ahmed Abbas. As I said before, I am not v^nriting this to discuss the ethics of his article, but am doing it to convey to the film world how far selfish and covetous human ingratitude can go as to convert a godly creation like a human being to a crawling, disgustible worm. THE STORY OF THE PET MOUSE Abbas says, 'filmindia' prints tricoloured photos of females to excite the romantic fancies of its readers, but while saying this, he for-, gets that those are only the dumb prints of those film artistes, whose colourful personalities are ever sing 63