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Veteran actor Asrani, whose portrayal of the jailer in Sholay has become a collective memory for the nation, passed away yesterday afternoon in Mumbai at the age of 84. While he was widely celebrated for his comic roles in films such as Sholay and several Priyadarshan comedies, some of his most nuanced performances were seen in Abhimaan and Chhoti Si Baat.
A trained actor with a degree from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Asrani initially struggled to find work in Mumbai. To support himself, he returned to the institute as a professor, where he taught Jaya Bachchan, who was enrolled in the screen acting course. Around that time, the casting for Guddi was underway, and filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee consulted Asrani, who had been recommended to him by Gulzar.
“As Hrishida asked me where Jaya was, I immediately directed him to the canteen where she was having tea. Anil Dhawan and Danny (Denzongpa) were also present. Jaya dropped her cup of tea when I told her that Hrishida had come to meet her! While he spoke to Jaya, I pestered Gulzar for a role. He quietly told me that there was one, but not to let Hrishida know that he had told me about it,” Asrani shared in a 2016 interview with Cinestaan.
Guddi turned out to be a sleeper hit, bringing both the teacher, Asrani, and his student, Jaya, into the limelight. The bond between Jaya and Asrani endured over the years. He even played a special role in her wedding to Amitabh Bachchan. He told Filmfare, “Even today when Jaya meets me, she calls me ‘Sir’ as I was once her teacher. I was one of the four ‘brothers of the bride’ at Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan’s wedding along with Gulzar saab, Ramesh Behl and a cousin. Sanjay Gandhi was also present at the private gathering.”
Another interesting anecdote from his struggling days involves then Information and Broadcasting Minister Indira Gandhi, who, according to Asrani, came to the aid of FTII graduates when they were struggling to find work. In an interview with Bollywood Thikana, Asrani recalled his early days: as a young man, he arrived in Mumbai and spent a month searching for music director Naushad, hoping for help in securing an acting role. When that plan fell through, he returned to his hometown Jaipur, where his parents urged him to join the family carpet business. But Asrani had other dreams. He applied to FTII and was admitted to its very first batch.
Yet, reality soon proved harsh. Asrani realized that holding an FTII certificate meant little in Bollywood. To make ends meet, he went back to FTII as a professor. Reflecting on the challenges, he said in Hindi, “I would roam around with my certificate, and they would shoo me away and say, ‘You think acting requires certificates? Big stars don’t have training here, and you think you’re special? Get lost.’”
He continued, “For two years, I was struggling to find work. One day, Indira Gandhi came to Pune. She was the I&B minister at the time. And we complained to her. We told her that despite having a certificate, nobody gives us the time of day. Then she came to Mumbai and told producers that they should hire us. After that, work started coming in. Jaya Bhaduri was cast in Guddi, as was I. When Guddi became a hit, people started taking FTII seriously.”
Asrani’s last rites were held privately by family members late last night at Santacruz Cremation Ground, in accordance with his wishes to keep the ceremony away from media coverage.
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