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Jackie Shroff - Relationships on-and-off screen
The humanitarian hunk
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He's been a Hero for 20 years now,  ever since a man called Subhash Ghai ordained it. Says Jackie Shroff, 'I wanted to be a bad guy on screen, since I thought that I could not match up to the heroes of that time - Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Mithun-da and all the others. So I took up the offer of Mr Dev Anand's Swami Dada in which I stand behind bad guy Shakti Kapoor as his sidekick, hoping that producers will notice me and cast me as villain. I sincerely felt that there were too few villains around for all the great heroes!'
One producer did notice him, and the rest is box-office as well as celluloid history. Mr. Ghai launched an aggressive, curiosity-generating ad blitz and 'Hero ' became the biggest of the many blockbusters of 1983.
Jackie: The Hunk
Says Jackie, " I became the hunk, the Sexy Shroff and the sex symbol. And Ayesha, the woman whom I have been dating since she was born, kept me going. Marriage happened, and lasted, and obviously when the man is considered a symbol for all that is macho, it is but obvious that it's the woman who deserves all the credit for it."
But Jackie is also known and loved as Jaggu Dada , the man who gives respect to (and gets it from) everyone from the spot-boys (whom he knows by their first names) to the street-urchins and all his celeb associates.
Tales abound of his bonhomie and non-starry approach with everyone on and off the sets, and his conversation, is as much littered with the 'brother', 'sweetheart' and 'bhidu ' as it is with frequent bursts of laughter and kilos of expletives - all used more habitually than as terms of endearment.
Over two decades of togetherness and still going strong
They are the eternal couple. Though married for 14 years they have been together for 25 years. And they are the proud parents of two wonderful children, Jai and Krishna. Today, Ayesha has turned producer and Jackie is a proud husband. "Whilst she is at work I often stand in for her at home and play the role of a mother to our kids."
A 'Boom ' before the storm
Continues Jackie, 'Kaizad Gustad approached me to act in Boom , and Ayesha and I ended up producing it. This was partly to solve his problems as we thought that the script was fun, but mainly because Ayesha has always been a rabid Amitabh Bachchan fan who watched all his films on a first day, first show basis. To actually produce a film with him was a chance she could not miss!'
Early lessons
Jaikishan Shroff's in-depth warmth has also been honed considerably by his upbringing in a middle-class South Mumbai locale, and the tragedies that he has seen. His father was an expert astrologer who dealt with celebrity clients. 'He had advised my elder brother that a specific period was bad for him, and advised him not to go to work in the mill where he worked on one day. My brother died saving a colleague from a mishap on that day. My brother's death has remained a major blow and has proven to be a great influence throughout my formative years.'
His mother's death also made him think. She was critical on a Mumbai bandh day and only because of Jackie's political contacts could he get her to a hospital - but it was too late. The lesson that Jackie Shroff learnt was to value his fame, and also feel for the common man, who could not have his clout on such emergency occasions.
Success, well predicted
What had the father predicted about his son's stardom? 'That I would take two steps forwards and one backward. And it's come true,' says Jackie. 'I have done every kind of role in this 20 years, and I have had my landmarks. I have played a death-row prisoner in Teen Deewarein , a terrorist in Mission Kashmir , an air-force officer in Border, a doting father in Yaadein , a cop, a criminal, a surgeon, an egoistic husband, a freedom fighter - every kind of role, I have even won many awards, but there are still some critics who call me teakwood. My PR may not be good, but I look on work as a form of relaxation and I have had no qualms about playing father or father-figure to actresses who play leading ladies to my contemporaries!'
No problem
Jackie is one actor who has never had problems or tiffs with any of his co-stars and associates, and he is the actor to have worked with everyone from the veterans (Ashok Kumar, Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, Raaj Kumar, Nutan, Waheeda Rehman) down to superstars like Bachchan, Dharmendra, Jeetendra, Hema Malini and Zeenat Aman as well as Dimple Kapadia, Naseeruddin Shah, the Khans, Madhuri, Kajol and even millennium stars like Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan and Kareena Kapoor. 'After all, we are all buddies in the business of filmmaking. I believe, if you give respect, it comes back too,' he says.
An eye on the future:
Enjoying a high repeat value with his filmmakers for the same reason, Jackie looks at the future with a sense of serenity. 'I am not after some fantastic role or ambition. I want to do fewer films, chill out with good food and friends, watch my kids grow up and die peacefully.'
And what are his kids going to do on growing up? 'Oh they do want to be stars, but not in films! Tiger has football in his bheja and wants to make a career from it. Krishna is into rock music and has ambitions there.'
So what makes his stardom worthwhile? 'Well, let me tell you something. Dr Narendra Pandya is one of the topmost plastic surgeons in Mumbai. One day I called him up and introduced myself. I told him that I would like him to do a reconstructive surgery for a boy from Bihar whose face was badly burnt. He did it without charging a penny from the boy's family. And all this happened because a star called Jackie Shroff requested him.
Does that answer your question?'
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Rajiv Vijayakar
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