Romancing The Star

Growing up in the small Bihar town of Jamalpur had its definite advantages. There were only two cinema halls, and both screened old films, which were probably cheaper for them to get, interspersed with an occasional current one. So, in  my growing years I, the utter romantic, was exposed to a tsunami of the ultimate romantic's films- Dev Anands'. I grew up taking in Kala Paani, Hum Dono, Taxi Driver, along with the newer, Guide, Johnny Mera Naam, and Hare Ram Hare Krishna all in the same span of time. By the time Jewel Thief came along, I had become a die hard Dev Anand fan. I  swooned over all his mannerisms - the  tilt of the head, the swaggering  walk and the oh so romantic dialogue delivery. Teen Devian, and Tere Ghar Ke Saamne nailed the coffin for me.

Then, along came Rajesh Khanna, the pied piper who played to thousands of teenage hearts. My friends and peers screamed and swooned every time he appeared on the screen. His charm, his romancing, his gazing right into your heart, were the ultimate, they said. But I stood by my  loyalty to my own idol. Head tilt for head tilt, swagger for swagger, dialogue for dialogue, my Dev A. was way superior, I insisted. My friends teased and often sneered at me for my outdated choice. Dev Anand was over the hill, they said. Rajesh K. will look old and haggard by the time he reaches Dev saab's age, I retorted. But as Prem Pujari came, I began to accept that Rajesh Khanna was the flavour of the day, and that my own icon  was on the decline. So I put aside my prejudices and began to savor the flavour. And accept that here was the star who deserved to take over the mantle of Dev Anand's romanticism. I became a Rajesh Khanna fan.

Unfortunately, both my icons have gone within a span of few months. Good bye old world charm. Goodbye romance. A loss for today's youth who have neither seen the charisma nor witnessed the hysteria the two stars had the power to create.We can only wait .....