145;The poet146;s poem146;

That was how Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru would introduce Teji Bachchan at social gatherings

It is said that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had an interesting way of introducing his friends Harivanshrai and Teji Bachchan at social gatherings. 8220;He is a poet,8221; Nehru would say, and then pointing to Teji, he would add, 8220;And this is his poem.8221;

Even before the couple8217;s first son Amitabh8217;s now-illustrious acting career took off, they were names to reckon with in India8217;s accomplished literary circuit and high society.

On Friday, an illustrious chapter of the Bachchan family came to an end with the demise of 93-year-old Teji Bachchan8212;her poet husband passed away in 2003. Teji Bachchan died at 1.05 pm at Lilavati Hospital, said Doctor Narendra Trivedi, vice-president of the hospital. She was in the hospital for one-and-a-half years after being admitted with 8220;age-related problems8221;.

She was shifted to the ICU last month after 8220;developing internal bleeding8221; and the entire family was by her side on Thursday night after her condition deteriorated. She is survived by sons Ajitabh and Amitabh, his wife Jaya, their daughter Shweta and son and daughter-in-law Abhishek and Aishwarya. 8220;Amitabh became a star to the rest of the world, but to Teji Aunty he continued to remain 8216;Munna8217;,8221; says actor Shatrughan Sinha, a close friend of Amitabh. 8220;Amitabh8217;s sense of humour can be attributed to her.8221;

Born in a Sikh family as Teji Suri, she got married to Hindi poet Harivanshrai, who was a professor of English in Allahabad University, in 1941. Harivanshrai was still recovering from the tragedy of his first wife Shyama8217;s death when the couple met at a common friend8217;s place and fell in love after the former recited one of his love poems, Kya Karoon Samvednayein Lekar Tumhari. After marriage, the couple often sang at close-knit literary meets and Teji Bachchan even displayed her skills as a stage actor8212;she played Lady Macbeth in her husband8217;s Hindi adaptation of Macbeth. They also played a cameo in Yash Chopra8217;s superhit Amitabh-starrer Kabhi Kabhi. During one of her performances in the play Othello, it is said Teji Bachchan suddenly spotted friend Nehru at the back seat of the auditorium accompanied by his secretary.

Later, on Teji Bachchan8217;s request, Indira Gandhi wrote a personal letter to actress Nargis Dutt, recommending Amitabh as an actor in popular Hindi films. It is also said that director Manmohan Desai too gave in to her wishes when he altered the ending of the blockbuster Coolie8212;Amitabh was supposed to die in the film8217;s last scene according to the script.

8220;I8217;ll always be grateful to Teji Bachchan. She had persuaded Amitabh to act in my film Shahenshah,8221; says actor-director Tinnu Anand. 8220;She is our family friend. Our families became close during our stay in Peshawar.8221;

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A woman ahead of her times, Teji was also known to be a strict disciplinarian in the family and a constant source of support for her elder son during his times of hardship.

8220;Tejiji attended the premiere of my film Naya Zamana in Delhi8217;s Regal Theatre. I touched her feet after the film and I still remember that she hugged me as a mother,8221; says actor Dharmendra, who co-starred with Amitabh in films like Sholay and Chupke Chupke. 8220;It was quite an honour for me when Tejiji asked if she could join me for tea during one of my shooting schedules in Kashmir. Amitabh was also shooting close by,8221; says actor Rajesh Khanna.

Subrata Roy, Akbar and Fardeen Khan, Anil Ambani, Aadesh Srivastava and other friends of the family visited the Bachchans at the hospital.

At the Bachchan8217;s residence 8216;Prateeksha8217; in Juhu, Prem Chopra, Asrani, Amar Singh, Ajay Devgan, Kajol and Ritesh Deshmukh were among those to offer condolences.

with inputs from Jinal Shah 038; Jaidev Hemmady