The Golden Man

Nischol was the first-ever recipient of the Gold Medal in the Acting batch of FTII in 1968. He made his debut in the industry opposite Rekha in the film Sawan Bhadon and was a member of a golden generation of actors in Indian cinema,boasting of names like Amitabh Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna. “He was one of the first students of FTII to achieve success in the film industry. He paved the way for FTII’s students to be accepted into the industry and thus was a pioneer in that sense,” continues Ghosh who was a direction student of the 1981 batch. Though Nischol was very senior to him,Ghosh says he was like a buddy to them. “He would come to the campus,sit with us and narrate interesting anecdotes. He would talk of Mohan Saigal who gave him his first film,and a girl from South India who couldn’t speak Hindi (Rekha). He would be full of masala and would even tease us that all our comfort of the institute would disappear once we entered the industry,” he recounts.

Ghosh met Nischol around three years ago when he wanted him to be the ambassador for his newly launched television channel. “But he had health problems and couldn’t oblige. He was a wonderful person,though he kept to himself in the later years. May God bless his soul,” he adds.

Nischol was en route to Pune from Mumbai,when he suffered a heart attack in his car. The news has pained many. Sunny Joseph,general secretary of the Indian Society of Cinematographers,who was also at FTII with Nischol but a few batches junior,says,“The demise of anyone that you have known is always very painful. Such people [like Nischol are bestowed with a unique artistic gift,which is why we remember them. They might physically leave us,but through their works,they are always with us.”

Cinematographer Dharam Gulati,GraFTII treasurer,worked with Nischol for the television serial Guldasta. “We shared a good working relationship. That we both were FTII alumni created a better bond. He was so well-known and yet down-to-earth,” says Gulati who is from the 1984 FTII batch. “Towards the end,he had become reclusive and I lost touch with him. But he will always be remembered for his excellent work and contribution to Indian films and serials,” he adds.