WHEN ALL YOU NEEDED WAS DASHING GOOD LOOKS

Back in the fifties and early sixties, the times were much simpler. Movie scripts were basic storytelling, with the camera holding on to the actor’s faces for several minutes at a time as they delivered lengthy monologues. Songs too were filmed with slow, easy moves – a nod of the head, a wave of the hand enough for an actor to carry off an entire stanza. Yes, acting was a profession where one didn’t really break into a sweat…unless the scene required the actor to perspire.

Compare that with today, where movie making is all about fast cuts, bizarre camera angles and unpredictable editing. There is a frenetic pace about today’s films, in the storytelling, the music and the choreography. And of course, every film strives to have a climax scene, that no one has ‘seen before.’ The result of all this progress that movies have made in execution is that actors now need to be the complete package.

A typical hero in today’s era needs to have quicksilver feet to dance like a Travolta, the willingness to be strung from wires to do death defying stunts like Jackie Chan, sob believably (preferably without a bottle of glycerin) and just generally be good at everything the script demands. Today’s hero and heroine (once in a while, there’s a woman-oriented subject too) need to be the complete package.

So can you think of that time, when all that a career in acting needed was two words on your resume – good looks.

This story is about the actor Feroz Khan, whose entry into films began with him going to a party. Born on September 25^th, 1939, he studied in Bangalore and came down to Bombay in search of a career. In those times, he stayed with his elder sister, Dilshad Bibi and a career in films was furthest from his mind.  

One day however, he went to a party with some of his friends where he was spotted by a big producer of those times – S. Mukherjee. He noticed the young Feroz Khan, was impressed enough by his dashing good looks to walk up to the stranger and ask him, “Do you want to act in films?” 

Feroz Khan was too stunned to react, after all what did he know about acting to say yes? So he just gaped at S. Mukherjee as if the man had just landed from Mars and asked him a question in an unintelligible language. S Mukherjee smiled at Feroz Khan’s reaction – he had seen it many times before. An awestruck expression on people's faces whenever they met somebody from the film industry.

So he told Feroz Khan to take his time and decide…handing him his visiting card, should he be inclined towards films.

When Feroz Khan went home and told his sister about it, she told him excitedly that S Mukherjee was a well known producer and he must consider his offer seriously. So he went for a meeting with him, and by the time it was over, Feroz Khan had walked out with the contract for his first film – Zamana.  

Though the film didn't get made for other reasons, Feroz Khan was soon signed up by many other lesser known producers for their films – all on the basis of his good looks. His first film release was the 1960 film, “Didi” where he played the second lead. And after he proved his talent in a host of hit B-grade films like Samson, Ek Sapera Ek Lootera, and Chaar Darvesh, he was signed up for the film, Aarzoo, costarring Rajendra Kumar and Sadhana.

This top grosser of 1965 was his big break into the league of A-grade movies and after he won the Filmfare Award for the Best Actor in a supporting role, there was no looking back for Feroz Khan. He was now a proven talent, one who would go on to give Bollywood a legacy of style, macho panache and ruggedly handsome good looks.

The good looks that had started it all.

Check out one of Feroz Khan's most endearing songs from the film, "Oonche Log." A song where he sings in praise of the heroine's beauty. But considering the heroine is very rarely seen in the song, it seems more of a tribute to Feroz Khan's good looks.

JAAG DIL-E-DEEWANA