NEW DELHI, April 5: Farmer Mahendar Singh points at spots in his farm where actors Manoj Kumar and Prem Chopra would act out scenes for the 1967 blockbuster “Upkar”.
The scenic village of Nangal Thakran in northwest Delhi’s Narela with its lush farms, scarcely busy streets and quiet afternoons remembers its few days with the actor who came to be known as ‘Bharat Kumar’ for the patriotic characters he portrayed on the big screen, including that of farmer Bharat in “Upkar” who joins the Indo-Pak war of 1965.
“He had come to Jhariapur to shoot a scene of the wheat farm. There, the crop was less. So someone told him that he should go to my grandfather Chaudhury Jhuman, who had a good crop here in our village. He came here and saw the place and returned after an hour, saying that he would come back. After two to three days, he came here with all his shooting equipment,” Singh told PTI Videos.
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The industry veteran, who ruled the box office in the late 1960s and 1970s, passed away at the age of 87 on Friday. He had been ailing for a while and breathed his last at the Kokilaben Ambani Hospital in Mumbai.
Singh, now in his 60s, recalled witnessing the shoot for the film as a child, parts of which were shot in his grandfather’s farm and home.
“He did the shooting in this house itself. There were scenes of a theft, working on a spinwheel, and an argument between two brothers, Prem Chopra and Manoj Kumar, with Kamini Kaushal,” he said.
“Upkar”, which marked Kumar’s directorial debut, was inspired by former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri’s slogan “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan”. In the film, Kumar played Bharat, who was both a farmer and a soldier, the two pillars of the country.
The movie’s song “Mere Desh Ki Dharti” is one of the most loved songs even today.
For the villagers and especially Chaudhury Jhuman Singh’s family, the film emotionally ties them to Manoj Kumar.
Another villager, Pandit Umesh Prakash, shared memories of Kumar visiting his house and enjoying fresh butter, curd and lassi.
“He used to come to our house in the morning and be here till evening. The scene of him limping was shot in our house. He used to take butter, curd and lassi though his food came from outside,” Prakash said.
Nangal Thakran became a tourist hotspot when the film was being shot, as college students from Aligarh, Meerut and Chandigarh would throng to the small village.
“Police had to be called in to control the crowd. Many times, shooting had to be postponed,” Prakash added.
In his illustrious career, Manoj Kumar worked in film across genres but it was his portrayal of nationalist heroes that immortalised him in Hindi cinema.
Besides “Upkar”, Kumar’s “Shaheed”, “Purab aur Paschim”, “Roti Kapda aur Makaan” and “Kranti” saw him in patriotic roles.
Manoj Kumar was cremated on Saturday with full state honours and a three-gun salute. (PTI)
