So you liked Slumdog?
I loved it. Nobody gets Oscars just for the sake of it. The way it was conceived and mounted impressed me. In our movies, drama is incorporated in rather forced ways. There is a lack of pretension in foreign movies.
Your life has been a brimming river. Any regrets, any failures?
In 1960, I was written off. It was said there were no possibilities in me. I became desperate. I was unable to work. I spent three years in a mental dungeon. But then things changed and success came my way. I realised that those three years of solitude were very important. Otherwise we keep on work ceaselessly. We have no time to reflect on life and its intricacies. Those were the most precious three years of my life. Were you ever drawn to astrology, spells and superstition?
I loved it. Nobody gets Oscars just for the sake of it. The way it was conceived and mounted impressed me. In our movies, drama is incorporated in rather forced ways. There is a lack of pretension in foreign movies.
Your life has been a brimming river. Any regrets, any failures?
In 1960, I was written off. It was said there were no possibilities in me. I became desperate. I was unable to work. I spent three years in a mental dungeon. But then things changed and success came my way. I realised that those three years of solitude were very important. Otherwise we keep on work ceaselessly. We have no time to reflect on life and its intricacies. Those were the most precious three years of my life. Were you ever drawn to astrology, spells and superstition?
No way. I never ever showed my palms to anybody. Not even for entertainment. I believe in scientific theories. But there is one incident that still bothers me. It was in 1952, and I got an invite to travel abroad. I had no passport. I needed my birth certificate and I wrote to the school authority. They replied that since I had not cleared my dues there, I would not be given the certificate. So I did an affidavit and put my birth date as September 17. After that, my career just took off.
What time of the day do you work?
Twenty-four hours. I paint six hours in the morning and six hours at night. In between, I read books. I've never had an assistant. As a painter I do everything myself, even the menial work.
Where do you draw your energy from?
Passion is the biggest driving force. The Bhagavad Gita says one should focus on work. That is supreme. Allama Iqbal used to say, “Amal se zindagi banti hai, jannat bhi jahannum bhi…” And since my childhood, I used to accompany my grandfather to akhadas and I used to do all sorts of exercises. And I was brought up on the wheat of Malwa.
Indore was once famous for cricket stars. C.K. Nayudu and Mushtaq Ali were from Indore. The game never caught your fancy though…
I never liked this game. But I like to see Tendulkar play. Mushtaq Ali was my batchmate. He used to play cricket, and I was fond of hockey. Their mannerisms were that of the elite. I played tennis and football. I love football. Even today, I spare time for this game.
So, who are your heroes in football?
There are two names worth mentioning — Pele and Maradona. For quite sometime, Pele was everybody’s hero. Then came Maradona. He was magnificent but people destroyed him. He got entangled in sex and drugs and the world never saw much of his game.
How do you spend your usual day…
There is no delight better than a cup of morning tea. When I was in Mumbai, the first thing I used to do was to take a sip of Irani tea. In Delhi, I loved teas from Nizamuddin dhabas. I used to go out alone. It has not changed here too.
What do you like in food?
I was considered an avid meat-eater once; but no more though I still love keema. I can eat anything but the truth is, there is no better food than dal-chawal and dal-roti.
Do you smoke, or have liquor?
I never smoked. After the open heart surgery in 1988, doctors recommended red wine for me. So, like Ghalib, I drink red wine of the best quality.
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