'He taught me the values of life, the lessons of poverty'

Jagdeep and Jaaved Jaaferi. Picture courtesy/AFP

Following the demise of his father and legendary comic actor Jageep (originally Syed Ishtiaq Ahmed Jafri), Jaaved Jaaferi has poured his heart out in this emotional letter, posted on social, remembering 'Soorma Bhopali'. The actor, through his long post, thanked his fellow Bollywood celebrities and fans who mourned the death of his father and shared the grief with him. He also threw light on his father's struggle in life and his survival on Mumbai's footpath at a very young age.

Jaaved Jaaferi also wrote about father's love for cinema and expressed how he loved the cinema. Read on:

"My heartfelt thanks to all those who shared the pain of my father's departure with so much love, appreciation, and regret. Itna pyaar..itni izzat..itni duaaein..? Yahi toh hai 70 saalon ki asli kamai.

From 10 to 81, all he breathed and lived was film. After losing his father at 7 and losing everything else that existed of a good life after the partition, it was a head to head combat with poverty and survival on the footpath's of Mumbai. An 8 yr old with his mother thrown head first into the ocean. It was either sink or swim. So he swam. From working in small scale tin factories, to making kites, selling soap, to walking behind a Maalishwala holding his canister of oil and shouting 'Maalish, tel maalish'. At 10 yrs of age what destiny choose for him, as the light at the end of the tunnel, was cinema.

Also Read: Ramesh Sippy remembers Jagdeep: He imbibed character beautifully

The journey began with #BRChopra sahab's first film 'Afsana' (shot in '49 but released in 51)and as the adage goes 'a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step', there was no looking back. His father figures and guide's were the likes of BimalRoy, GuruDutt, MehboobKhan, KAsif.

From the most natural child actor I have witnessed in Hindi cinema to a sensitive leading man, to the craziest improv comedian with impeccable timing in latter years, he never failed to entertain and amaze.

The best of directors, producers and co-stars like Dilip Kumar, Guru Dutt, Balraj Sahni, Kishore Kumar, Sunil Dutt, Ashok Kumar, Johny Walker, Mehmood, Helen, Nanda, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Shammi Kapoor, Leela Mishra, Aruna Irani, Kanhaiyalal, Jeevan, Feroze Khan, LV Prasad, Dharmendra, Jeetendra, Shatrughan Sinha, Rekha, Rajesh Khanna, Vinod Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Rajshri Productions, Subhash Ghai, Salim-Javed, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Amrish Puri, Danny, RK Santoshi, Inder Kumar, Sridevi, Madhuri, SRK, Aamir, Salman and many more, were and are, full of love and praise for him. The word 'legend' is thrown around freely these days but in his case it is so amply justified.

A father who taught me the values of life, the lessons of poverty, the importance of dedication and the finesse of craft, with innumerable stories of positivity and inspiration. Always smiling, with words of encouragement for all, and reminding me that true success is gauged by what one 'is' and not what one 'has', and by 'what' one knows and not 'who' one knows.

What a man, what a journey. Also Read: Jagdeep (1939-2020): Soorma and lovely curse of Sholay!

Hindustaan ke logon ko do cheezon se bohot lagaao hai, ek hai Ma, doosra, Cinema. Mere father ko bhi in donon se behad lagaao tha.

I would like to end with his favourite couplet which his Maa quoted under dire straits and which he constantly used as a reminder - "Woh manzil kya, jo aasaani se teh ho; Woh raahi kya, jo thak kar baith jaaye"

Magar afsos zindagi kabhi kabhi thak kar baithne per majboor kar deti hai. Hausla bulund hota hai par jism saath nahi deta.

To the man I called 'papa' and who the world knew by his various avatars, SALAAM! Aapka naam Sooorma Bhopali ayysaee naee tha!!

The late Bollywood actor appeared in more than 400 films, however, his role as 'Soorma Bhopali' in the hit movie 'Sholay' made a huge imprint in the audience's minds. Jagdeep started the acting career as a child artist, Jagdeep was also seen in movies like 'Purana Mandir' (1984), 'Andaz Apna Apna' (1994), and many more.

Jagdeep's other major roles were in Khilona, Brahmachari, Phool Aur Kaante, among others. From a child artiste to lead actor and then comic icon, Jagdeep appeared in around 400 films.

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