Dr RAHI MASOOM RAZA ( 1927-1992)
THE STORY BEHIND HIS WRITING MEGA SERIAL
MAHABHARATA FOR DOORDARSHAN...
"I am the son of three mothers.Nafisa
Begum ( Biological Mother) , AMU and
River Ganga.i gift this book "Scene 75 " to them. Nafisa Begum is
dead.I can't remember her very clearly. But the other two mothers are alive and
I remember them well."
Dr Rahi Masoom Raza.
Kunwarpal Singh, Dr Rahi 's friend and
colleague at Aligarh Muslim university informs :
" His Decision to move to Mumbai was
triggered by his marriage to Nayyar Jahan in 1965. Nayyar Jahan was already
married and despite opposition , he went ahead with his decision to marry her.
A full blown scandal erupted at AMU by this marriage and Dr Rahi lost his job.
His rivals at AMU got a big excuse. They were opposed to his attempts of
introducing Hindi courses in the Urdu Department and Vice Versa.
In Bombay , life was tough. His friends
Kamleshwar and Dharamvir Bharati did support him initially. They published his work in the Hindi
Magazines that they edited and ensured advance payments to him. Raj khosla was
impressed by his style and work.He engaged him for his films as script cum
dialogue writer.
Rahi had a mastery over urdu and Hindi .That proved of immense
help. Soon BR Chopra brought him in his camp . When BR Chopra requested Rahi
sahib to write TV Script and dialogues for Mahabharata, he refused as he had no
time. Chopra sahib went ahead with a press conference wherein he declared that
Dr Rahi Masoom Raza shall be writing dialogues and script for his Mega TV
Serial Mahabharata. Rahi Sahib felt surprised and Chopra sahib was flooded with
letters that said:
"Were All hindus dead that you had to
give this task to a Muslim? "
Chopra sahib forwarded all these letters to
Rahi sahib.
Rahi sahib was a real Ganga Putra or a
Ganga kinare wala born at Ghazipur. Next day , he went to Chopra sahib's
Bungalow and said to him:
"Chopra Sahib ! I will write the
Mahabharata. I am a son of the Ganga . Who knows the civilization and culture
of India better than i do? "
His son Nadeem Khan (Cinematographer)
informs:
" Writing Mahabharata took it's toll
in his health.He aged fifteen years in that time. He read a lot of scriptures
and was always stressful. He could not afford to go one step wrong. He was a
Shiva-Bhakt.After Mahabharata ,he wanted to script " Om Namah Shivaye"
; But that was not to be.He died at 65 . Looking at the grand success of
Mahabharata, I urged him to charge higher fee for his work but he always
refused . Everyday we had ten or fifteen people at the Dastarkhwaan. He was
known to write films free and sometimes just for a Paan."
Dr Rahi belonged to an aristocratic family
from Ghazipur. His brother Dr Moonis Raza was among the founder chairman of JNU
and VC of Delhi University . Another brother Prof. Mehndi Raza headed Geography
Department in AMU. His fourth brother was Ahmed Raza , an Economist who worked
with IMG in Washington. Dr Rahi's sister Suraiya did her Doctorate in History.
It was Rahi sahib's idea to use SAMAY
(Time) as narrator of the epic Mahabharata on TV. He coined new words like
Pitashri and Matashri that became so popular as if the ancient characters had
actually spoken them.
He was a poet, playwright, Novelist , Film
Script and Dialogue writer, linguist who had command over Hindi, Urdu,Sanskrit
and English .His TV Serial " Neem Ka peid" was also quite popular in
entire length and breadth of the country . His book Aadha Gaon is his finest
contribution to the corpus of Indian Literature.So are his other works like
Topi Shukla, Ous ki boond and Katra Bi Aarzo.He also wrote Himmat Jaunpuri(1969)
,Dil Ek Saada Kagaz(1973) and Chhote Aadmi ki Badi kahaani (on the life and
sacrifice of PVC Havalidar Abdul Hamid ). He also compiled a book of his
Nonfiction writings under title"Lagtaa Hai Bekaar Give Hum".
He wrote scripts and Dialogues for many films.
Dialogues for "Me Tulsi teray Aangan ki "and "Mili" won him
prestigious Filmfare awards.
As young boy ,he fell victim to
Tuberclousis and had to spend about 6 years in Nainital and kashmir.
Although , he never joined communist Party
of India, he had all his sympathies for the left and underprivileged. He was a
liberal and open minded person.Due to attack of polio in childhood , he had a
little limp.
KASHMIR
CONNECTION
Both brothers
Dr Moonis Raza and Dr Rahi
Masoom Raza had strong links with Kashmir . Dr Moonis
Raza was in Kashmir for more than a decade . He served as Principal Regional
Engineering College Srinagar and also as
VC Kashmir university . So many students and Teachers remember him well. Dr Rahi Masoom
Raza was also in Kashmir when he Contracted Tuberculosis. He made so
many friends from amongst the literary and Medical Fraternity . Dr Tahir Mirza
from Chest Diseases Hospital was his closest Friend. So were many writers , Leaders , artists , Theatre Artists from kashmir became his close Friends . He kept coming to Kashmir repeatedly.
Infact his wife Nayyar Jahan had also lived in Kashmir for more than two years .
I quote from comments of some friends
to a Facebook post that I wrote on Dr
Rahi Masoom Raza yesterday .
Noted English writer and Translator Prof.
Arvind Gigoo writes :
“He has come to our place a number of
times. My uncle-cum-brother Dwarka Nath Gigoo Rajkamal, Kishori Kaul and Dr
Rahi Masoom Raza were patients of
tuberculosis. Rajkamal Gigoo and Rahi Masoom Raza spent some time in
Tangamarg. Sanatorium. Raza stayed with us for many days. Raza and Rajkamal
Gigoo were same age. In Kashmir , He met all Hindi writers. Toshkhani, Pushp,
etc. I mean father of Dr Shashi Shekhar Toshakhani. Dr Tahir Mirza was his
closest friend in Kashmir. Dr Mirza of CD Hospital was an agnostic. He never
charged fees from any patient. Treated all patients free. We used to meet
often. He was married to one Sujata Mirza. She was a Shaivite. She had worked
for BBC. I still remember her radio talk On Growing Old Gracefully written in
Queen's English. She read it like an English lady. Deeply religious. A
remarkable conversationalist.”
Shri Basi Raina from Radio Kashmir Informs :
“ In 1978 ,while on Rangmanch Theatre tour to Bombay,i had the privilege of
calling on Dr Masoom Raza with late Ali Mohd. Lone at his residence .Lone
sahib knew him well and i wanted Rahi
sahib's help for procuring adds for my souvenir. To my surprise he knew every
one connected with literature in Kashmir and enquired about M Y Teng...Kamal
Ahmad Siddique ..Dr Tahir Mirza of CD
Hospital and others. He also gave me letter for Salim of Salim Javed team for
help.He had a limp and was a fantastic conversationalist.”
Prof. Nusrat Andrabi Ex. Principal Women ‘s college Srinagar
informs :
“ I know the family very well. Nayar Jahan
or Nayar Apa was the grand daughter of
Sir Aftab Ahmad of Aligarh. She was married to Col Yunus khan of Rampur,
brother in law of Nawab of Rampur. Col.
Yunus Khan was posted to Kashmir and he
took up his private family residence
at Magharmal Bagh , near my parental house. I was a daily
visitor to their house . This is
1963-65. A great pleasant couple, very loving and cultured. Then after a few
years they went to Aligarh.I was in touch
with them . Later Nayar Apa left Col. Saheb and married Rahi
Masoom Raza. His poem 1857 was very popular those days.”
Well Known Journalist Rahul Jalali son of
late P N jalali ( Journalist )
and freedom fighter Informs :
“ Moonis Raza and my father were both
interned in jail in Delhi before 47, subsequently, they spend two years in
Eastern Europe together. My father met my mother in Europe and they married.
When I was two years old my mother spend six months in Raza household
completing her MA in Library Science in Aligarh. During this period I was
looked after by Moonis and Rahi's sister's. I also remember some of the
"great escapades" of Rahi. During my growing up years, Rahi often used
to visit Srinagar and stay with Jalali and Sumitra Behen as the Raza brothers used to call my mother.
Lost touch with Rahi when he shifted to Mumbai (then Bombay). But Moonis I kept
in touch with till his last days. “
I end this post with his poetic will ....
(Will And Testament)
My art is dead,
My friends
My skin has turned blue,
My friends
Take me to the Ganga in Ghazipur,
Let me sleep in her lap.
But it could be that I die far from my
homeland
So this is my will
If a little river flows in that foreign
city ,
Take me there
Let me sleep in her lap
And tell her
That this son of Ganga is now Hers.
(Rahi Masoom Raza)
So long so much.
(Autar Mota)
PS
Source Books for this post ..
(1)
"Scene 75" ..by Dr Rahi Masoom
Raza translated to English by Poonam Saxena. Poonam Saxena is the National
Weekend Editor of The Hindustan Times. She has also translated Dr Dharamvir
Bharati's 1949 Novel" Gunahon Ka Devta" to English.
A Short , crisp and fascinating novel and equally perfect Translation .Set in Bombay of 1970 , The novel contains
Stories of stragglers , sleazy producers and film obsessed social climbers.
Raza gives a kaleidoscopic view of film world and the hypocrisy as he rips off many curtains . The central Character of
"Scene 75" is Ali Amjad,a struggling film script writer from Benaras
surrounded by the distrustful and scheming Characters, crooked producers,
narrow-minded middle class social Climbers and pushy clerks. You sympathize
with Ali Amjad ( who is possibly Dr Rahi Masoom Raza himself) .
(2)
Rahi Masoom Raza by Kunwarpal singh (
Sahitya Academy 2005)..
CHINAR SHADE by
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