Raj Kapoor: Relevant Kal Aaj Aur Kal

Pragyan Mohanty pays a birth centenary tribute to the filmmaker who shaped the grammar of Hindi cinema. The showman was born on December 14, 1924.

The beloved Bollywood classic Anand (1971) opens with a tribute to Bombay and Raj Kapoor. Inspired by its director Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s close friendship with the star-filmmaker, it celebrates hope and human connection. The gregarious titular character was famously modelled after Kapoor’s persona.

Years earlier, when Kapoor first starred in Mukherjee’s Anari (1959), it shaped an enduring image of him emoting to Shailendra’s altruistic anthem, a timeless ode to life for generations of Indians. ‘Kisi ki muskurahaton pe ho nisaar…’ his character sang while gently removing an insect from his boot’s path. This humanistic appeal remained a defining aspect of Kapoor’s legacy, both as an actor and a filmmaker.

Be it the simple-hearted underdog hero archetype or weaving messages in melodrama, the seminal dream sequence in Awara (1951) or the magical romance of Pyar hua in Shree 420 (’55), much of Hindi cinema’s grammar is characterised by his movies. 

The relationship between cart driver Hiraman and dancer Heerabai in ‘Teesri Kasam’ is among Kapoor’s finest outings.

His father, Prithviraj and uncle, Trilok, both actors, began the family’s four-generation legacy in Indian showbiz. This included Raj’s younger siblings, Bollywood stars Shammi and Shashi Kapoor. After working in his father’s theatre and apprenticing under director Kidar Sharma, who gave him his big break (Neel Kamal, 1947), Kapoor refused to limit himself to acting alone.

In 1948, he founded RK Films with Aag, which he directed and starred in alongside his muse, Nargis. The theatre company backdrop in the narrative reflects Prithvi Theatre’s influence. The perception of love and attraction, outward appearance versus inner beauty, is explored — ideas he’d revisit later with dramatic flourish in Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978). His next, Barsaat (1949), spoke of faithful and fickle lovers and was a massive success. Lifelong associations — lyricists Shailendra and Hasrat Jaipuri, music directors Shankar-Jaikishan, and singer Lata Mangeshkar — instrumental to the RK brand of cinema, began. Singer Mukesh, already associated with Kapoor since ‘Aag’, would become his signature voice. Most notably, ‘Barsaat’'s famous visual inspired the iconic RK Films logo, cementing the Raj-Nargis legend to the studio’s identity.

Post-Independence idealism galvanised a wave of reformist films in Bombay Cinema. The era’s top stars, Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, and Dev Anand, each espoused a specific role. Stylish Anand embodied modernism and a progressive worldview, while Kumar became a comrade in people’s struggles with films like ‘Paigham’ (1955) and ‘Naya Daur’ (’57). Kapoor focused on the human side of socio-economic concerns.

Raj Kapoor and Nargis in 'Awara' (1951).

‘Awara’ was a landmark movie with unprecedented global cultural impact, giving a glimpse of Kapoor’s cinematic expression — themes, politics, symbolism — and his remarkable sense of music and visual composition. The film’s powerful critique of poverty, patriarchy, and prejudice against the marginalised resonated widely. As did the depiction of the lives of Bombay’s migrants and marginal figures in ‘Shree 420’, seen through the eyes of its tramp-like hero — another outsider. The film captures, with humour and heartache, the aspirations and anxieties of those easily invisibilised in a bustling metropolis. His other productions, ‘Boot Polish’ (1954) and ‘Jagte Raho’ (’56), with stronger touches of realism, were more discomfiting than others. 

Whether it’s the vignettes of street life (Shree 420), honouring the comradeship of street dogs (‘Awara’, ‘Jagte Raho’), or the brilliant statement in ‘Boot Polish’ — children place their shoe shine kit, their source of livelihood, in a place of worship — these small but important details enriched their humanity. Leftist writer Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, who penned the screenplay of most of these iconic RK movies, was significant to this social consciousness. In 1960, Kapoor backed his longtime cinematographer Radhu Karmakar’s directorial, ‘Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai’, about the reformation of dacoits, marking the studio’s last such social drama. 

The common man gave way to a glamorous, technicolour romance in ‘Sangam’ (1964). The introspective ‘Mera Naam Joker’ (1970) reflected an artiste’s lonely struggle between public joy and concealed anguish. Its heaviness was offset by a breezy ‘Bobby’ (1971), the debut of Kapoor’s younger son Rishi and Dimple Kapadia. He also produced and starred in memorable roles in elder son Randhir’s ‘Kal Aaj Aur Kal’ (1971) and ‘Dharam Karam’ (1975), whose ‘Ek din bik jaayega’ became another heartfelt RK song about life’s truths.

Kapoor’s unabashed approach towards portraying sensuality and the female form also gets criticised for being gratuitous. Human hypocrisy, often aimed at authoritative groups, was a recurrent theme: the insular urban middle-class (‘Jagte Raho’), corrupt elites (‘Ram Teri Ganga Maili’, 1985), and the entitled upper-caste men (‘Prem Rog’, ’82), who encourage conservatism and treat women as commodities. Still, the central love story in ‘Prem Rog’ focused on class, not caste, which remains a blind spot to mainstream filmmakers despite claiming to challenge it. 

Raj Kapoor in the song 'Ek din bik jaayega' in 'Dharam Karam' (1975).

Kapoor’s filmmaking choices also influenced his roles outside of his banner. ‘Chhalia’ (1960) is about the plight of displaced women of the Partition, who were cast aside by their families. Though inclined towards Nehruvian ideals and a firm symbol of India’s soft power, Kapoor also critiqued the socio-economic realities. ‘Shriman Satyawadi’ (1960), ‘Anari’, and ‘Do Ustad’ (’59) portrayed the ramifications of rising corruption, poverty, unemployment, and social disparities. The actor voicing these anxieties of his fellow countrymen is best reflected in the piercing irony of Sahir’s lyrics: ‘Chin-O-Arab humaara, Hindustan humaara / Rehne ko ghar nahin hai, saara jahaan humaara’ in ‘Phir Subha Hogi’ (1958).

These songs became Kapoor’s strongest bridge to his audience. A wandering soul’s carefree declaration, ‘Awaara Hoon’, transcended borders, inspired local renditions, and remains an instant connection to the Indian identity. The joker’s pledge, ‘Jeena yahan marna yahaan’, prophetically reflects the showman’s lifelong dedication to cinema. In 1988, while receiving the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Kapoor’s health declined, and he died a month later.

Songs of promise (Woh subah kabhi toh aayegi), resolve (Mera joota hai Japani), sorrow (‘Jaane kahaan gaye woh din’), patriotic anthems (‘Jis desh mein…’), and social ditties (‘Dil ka haal sune…’) echoed the collective emotions of his time. The words, ‘...gham se abhi azaad nahin main, khush hoon magar aabaad nahin main,’ remain the lived reality of countless Indians. The relationship between cart driver Hiraman and dancer Heerabai — captured in the austere monochrome frames of Shailendra’s only production, Teesri Kasam (1966) — stands among Kapoor’s finest outings. Hiraman’s existential musing in Hasrat’s Duniya bananewaale… and the sobering truth of life in Sajan re jhooth mat bolo..., conveyed with astounding simplicity by its poet-producer, made the star an unforgettable reflection of human philosophy on celluloid.