One week to remember; Watching RK films at cinema

Hi everybody it's been quite a lot of time I was absent from this forum.
I'm back with a report of an unforgettable week end in Florence.
It all started few weeks ago when I came to know that the River to River Film Festival was showing some RK's movies honoring him twenty years after his death.

I went there with a group of aficionados willing to see the films as much as I did...
Florence itself is some amazing city you want to visit once in your life, but the excitement was all for the movies...needless to say that it has been the first time for me to watch RK films at a movie theater...well it was Sunday 7th of December and me and my group of friends came to lunch at an Indian restaurant, we were 12 at that time, chatting and eating happily and checking for the clock as we did not want to miss Awara!!
Yes on the afternoon we were going to watch the special film and we were all so happy, up till now I still can't believe it but...we arrived at the cinema and there we met other friends for a total of 17 people almost.
The magic was about to begin, just from the entrance of the movie hall as there were posters from the films Awara, Shri 420 and Bobby.


The hall was full and many among the audience were watching the film for the first time.
How can I express the magic, the dream that has been being there, looking at people's reactions to the film, I was totally fascinated from seeing for the first time in my life Raj saab on a big screen...geez was he the handsomest or what?? So young, elegant, soulful
The audience was captured by the story, the characters and the songs...in the darkness of the cinema I got emotional more than once!!
At the end a big applause came spontaneous from the audience and my friends and I were so happy, the air around us was electric with the magic of RK's Awara, that lovable little/big vagabond has had the ability once again to conquer the hearts of people no matter the distance in time, place or culture.

Next day it was the turn of Shri 420, before that we went to a meeting about RK and his music in films, quite an interesting meeting with a musician and then a fan of RK films too.
it has been so touching listening to a professional in music, a guy from the west saying the same exact things I felt about Raj Kapoor, at some moment this musician, whose name is Paolo Scarnecchia, was pointing to us how RK could reach his audience through "a wave of warmth" the warm of his feelings... I could have said word for word all that he was saying, the innocent gaze of the little vagabond, his humanity... if this wasn't touching enough, later it has come the totally unforgettable expierience of watching my all time beloved movie, again at the beautiful old Odeon Cinema in Florence, with friends...
The copy they did use was original, not a dvd or something and fortunately it all has worked well...you know how it could be with old movies...
Needless to say that during that day I felt happy, more happy than ever before, I knew I had something more in my life, some more richness inside coming from the beauty of watching Shri 420 at the cinema.
Of course I did notice before how handsome Raj saab was, but watching him on a big screen has made me live some unforgettable moments I can barely write and put on words.
I could follow the entire film without reading subtitles for the so many times I had already watched this film on my tiny tv set.
So I could appreciate every single second of it, the songs, the dialogs, costumes and the magic this film can create again and again...looked quite as Raj saab himself was around us during those couple of days...I wish he could have been alive and knowing...maybe somehow he knows how he can touch and let his audience dream, hope and feel a better person through this film all over again.
I wish he could be here now as I could thank and bow to him again and again for the beauty, humanity and innocence he has created with his art/heart.
Of course at the end of the movie the applause has come again, and I left Florence a happier person, aware of the fact that this experience maybe has made me a better person, it has caused my sense of life to grow in a dense and sweet mood.
Wherever you are, thank you so much Raj saab, you heart was big enough to reduce whatever distance between us!

Write By RKfan from Raj Kapoor Fanclub
http://s6.zetaboards.com/RajKapoorFanclub/topic/8518568/1/#new

Aag Film, conversation from the Forum

kkm:

ok first some off screen stuff the begining

The film was ready to go on the floors and Raj was determined to get himself the best studio in town. Famous Studio in Mumbai’s central suburb, Mahalaxmi, had been highly recommended to him. He’d heard that Jaddan Bai was at Famous Studio where her son Akhtar Hussain was shooting Romeo and Juliet, the first production of Nargis Art Concern. Raj rushed to the studio to meet bibiji with the intention of quizzing her about the facilities that Famous offered. But he missed her by minutes. The unit, he was told, had packed up for the day and gone home.

Raj impulsively decided he’d drive on to Marine Drive where Jaddan Bai had her apartment. A quarter of an hour later he was outside her door ringing the bell. Jaddan Bai’s eighteen-year-old daughter Nargis was in the kitchen frying bhajias. Hearing the doorbell peal she rushed to open the door and was so startled by the sight of a blue-eyed, rosy-cheeked stranger shuffling outside her door, that she put a hand nervously up to brush away her untidy locks and smeared her forehead with the besan dough on her fingers. Raj was enchanted by the image of this lovely girl with besan on her forehead and hair. The crimson blush staining her cheeks as she realized what had happened, enhanced the pretty picture. Stammering with embarrassment Nargis asked him shyly who he was. Raj introduced himself as Prithviraj Kapoor’s son. Nargis recalled seeing him in the play, Deewar, at Prithvi Theatre and invited him in. But when Raj enquired about bibiji and learnt that Nargis was at home alone he refused to enter the apartment and hurried away.

He went straight to the home of his scriptwriter, Inder Raj Anand. “I must have that girl in my film. Write her into the screenplay of Aag,” he commanded. And Nargis walked into Aag in the ninth reel.

after reading this
now notice in the opening titles that nargis name comes first

RajKapoorFan:

Thanks again for the good info kkm.

Did you know that Raj make two shoots in this movie?
It look like Raj kapoor do shout of the first song on this movie. You can see that before the song Raj Woes with out his Masestach and then on the song he have at.

kkm:

I think the mustache scene was shot after the completion of the film its more like a portrait for example when we sometimes pose infront of a still camera for a nice photo.

in the above article from net it says that nargis kicks in the movie on 9th reel the total number of reels is 13 so nargis appearance is only 30% in this movie
and what an apperance

RKfan:

While watching Aag I got to see some similarities with Mera Naam Joker, as a matter of fact two of his most personal films.
The first that came to mind is about the "phases" into witch both movies are devided, ok Aag doesn't have the three chapter division but it is build in three times of the life of the main character, the first being his days as a child, then his youth and highschool days, the last one is his adult days with him finding his way in life and his work as a theater director.

A second thing is about visual situations that are found in the two films... the first image is the one while Keval is alone on stage and expressing his feeling in a form of monologue in front of void seets, so similar to the scene where Raju the joker is singing one of the songs into the circus tent and yet again in front of a void place...

A third one is about a clown that in Aag Keval, as a child sees while a circus is coming to his hometown, the clown is just announcing the coming of the shows with the circus...same image is in MNJ only this time the clown presenting the show at the gathering crowd is Raju himself.

Even though I did not analize in full the meaning if any, certainly to me it seems too specific to be only random coincidences.

RajKapoorFan:

Rita I like you Article about the movie and You right The Movie has have three time.

Kkm now that I start play with my video camera I start to know what run in Raj Kapoor Mind when He think to make the second shoot. When you shoot same part You know that you don't always get what you won't. I woes won't to Shoot the Airplain that Woes drive over my sister Work place but then He Over on our Car so close and I missed him and turn the Camera fast to the Second side.

When you work with Camera You have to Be in the Right place in the right time and If you not get what you won't You mast try again and again.

This what I LEARN TODAY.
http://s6.zetaboards.com/RajKapoorFanclub/topic/8526234/1/