At home with Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Gol Maal
Gol Maal, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s 1979 comedy of chaos, would undoubtedly make it to any cinephile’s list of 100 mustwatch Bollywood movies. Bindya Goswami, who played Utpal Dutt’s daughter Urmila, admits that even today, three decades later, strangers come up to her and want to talk about the film.
For Bindiya, the very mention of Gol Maal evokes an image of Hrishida dressed in his usual kurta-pyjama, sitting on the sofa in his living room, engrossed in a solo game of chess.
“Ninety-per cent of the film was shot in his bungalow. Amol Palekar, who played the dual roles of Ramprasad Dashrathprasad Sharma and his carefree twin Lakshmanprasad aka Lucky, 'lived' on the ground floor while I took residence on the first floor with Utpal Dutt, who essayed the role of Amol's boss and my dad Bhavani Shankar. Amol, a brilliant actor would change clothes, peel off his moustache and switch personalities like a chameleon as he shuttled between the floors,” she reminisces, adding that a small portion was also filmed in the Sippy bungalow, today popular as Amitabh Bachchan home Jalsa.
“The other Bengali director I worked with, Basu Chatterjee, whose Khatta Meetha is the other evergreen classic in my repertoire, would stand behind his cameraman and nervously chew up his handkerchief. But Hrishida was chilled out and didn’t even bother walking up to the camera to okay a shot,” says Bindiya.
Gol Maal is memorable for its crazy climax which Bindiya recalls shooting in the bylanes of Juhu. “We wrapped up the marriage scene in a small mandir close to the Mahalakshmi Temple. After that we moved to Juhu, which wasn’t quite so crowded then. We canned the climax in a day without an action director,” she recalls.
In the hilarious chase scene, Urmila’s dad, Utpal Dutt, ends up damaging a police jeep. Senior Inspector Om Prakash, who mistakes him for the thug Pascal D'Costa, is about to lock him up when his inspector recognises him as Bhavani Shankar. He is let off and returns home to find his daughter married to Lakshman. He refuses to give the newlyweds his blessings but eventually relents when he learns the truth about Ram’s errant moustache and shaves off his own. Eeesh!
That distinctive ‘Eeesh’ was Bindiya’s introduction to the laugh riot. She recalls her first moment in front of the camera was the scene in which she is rehearsing for a college play. Her aunt overhears her saying, “Main tumhare bachche ki maa bannnewali hoon,” and goes rushing to her father with the news.
He storms into the room looking for the person who has shamed the family. His daughter is alone and pouts, “I was only natakking daddy.”
Finally, convinced that she was only playacting, Bhavani Shankar settles down to watch her performance. But as soon as she repeats the earlier dialogue, he stops her with an embarrassed “Eeesh!”
That scene makes not just the audience roll with laughter, but evokes much mirth in Bindiya’s own family. “When my younger daughter Siddhi is in a good mood, she calls me Urmi,” she smiles, admitting that playing such chirpy, bubbly characters came easy to her. “They were me. I didn’t need to act!”
For Bindiya, the very mention of Gol Maal evokes an image of Hrishida dressed in his usual kurta-pyjama, sitting on the sofa in his living room, engrossed in a solo game of chess.
“Ninety-per cent of the film was shot in his bungalow. Amol Palekar, who played the dual roles of Ramprasad Dashrathprasad Sharma and his carefree twin Lakshmanprasad aka Lucky, 'lived' on the ground floor while I took residence on the first floor with Utpal Dutt, who essayed the role of Amol's boss and my dad Bhavani Shankar. Amol, a brilliant actor would change clothes, peel off his moustache and switch personalities like a chameleon as he shuttled between the floors,” she reminisces, adding that a small portion was also filmed in the Sippy bungalow, today popular as Amitabh Bachchan home Jalsa.
Bindiya remembers the assistant directors handing them their dialogue sheets. Once they stepped out in their get-up, the veteran director would look up and say, “Chalo batao, kaise karoge scene?” After the rehearsal, he would call for “Action” and announce “Cut” without stirring from the settee or interrupting his game.
“The other Bengali director I worked with, Basu Chatterjee, whose Khatta Meetha is the other evergreen classic in my repertoire, would stand behind his cameraman and nervously chew up his handkerchief. But Hrishida was chilled out and didn’t even bother walking up to the camera to okay a shot,” says Bindiya.
Gol Maal is memorable for its crazy climax which Bindiya recalls shooting in the bylanes of Juhu. “We wrapped up the marriage scene in a small mandir close to the Mahalakshmi Temple. After that we moved to Juhu, which wasn’t quite so crowded then. We canned the climax in a day without an action director,” she recalls.
In the hilarious chase scene, Urmila’s dad, Utpal Dutt, ends up damaging a police jeep. Senior Inspector Om Prakash, who mistakes him for the thug Pascal D'Costa, is about to lock him up when his inspector recognises him as Bhavani Shankar. He is let off and returns home to find his daughter married to Lakshman. He refuses to give the newlyweds his blessings but eventually relents when he learns the truth about Ram’s errant moustache and shaves off his own. Eeesh!
That distinctive ‘Eeesh’ was Bindiya’s introduction to the laugh riot. She recalls her first moment in front of the camera was the scene in which she is rehearsing for a college play. Her aunt overhears her saying, “Main tumhare bachche ki maa bannnewali hoon,” and goes rushing to her father with the news.
He storms into the room looking for the person who has shamed the family. His daughter is alone and pouts, “I was only natakking daddy.”
Finally, convinced that she was only playacting, Bhavani Shankar settles down to watch her performance. But as soon as she repeats the earlier dialogue, he stops her with an embarrassed “Eeesh!”
That scene makes not just the audience roll with laughter, but evokes much mirth in Bindiya’s own family. “When my younger daughter Siddhi is in a good mood, she calls me Urmi,” she smiles, admitting that playing such chirpy, bubbly characters came easy to her. “They were me. I didn’t need to act!”
