Meet The Man Behind Bollywood Classics

‘The moment a movie was declared a hit, he would immediately start planning his next.’

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In his long career, Raj Khosla directed classics like CID (1956), Woh Kaun Thi (1964), Mera Saaya (1966), Do Raaste (1969), Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971) and Dostana (1980).

On his birth centenary on May 31, his daughters Anita Khosla and Uma Khosla Kapur released Raj Khosla: The Authorised Biography, co-written by Amborish Roychoudhury. It has many unknown facts about the filmmaker that we don't know. For example, did you know that he choreographed the song Bindiya Chamkegi from Do Raaste?

Or that his Suchitra Sen-Dev Anand-starrer almost got into trouble for this reason?

"Dev Anand, Sunil Dutt and my dad belonged to a different generation. They did not seem to be from the Hindi industry, they spoke English so well."

Would Raj Khosla sing at home?

Yes. He would play the piano or the harmonium and sing.

What were the dinner conversations like at home?

He would talk about Shakespeare and encourage us to listen to different kinds of music. His favourites were K L Saigal, Hemant Kumar, Jagjit Singh and Laxmikant-Pyarelal.

While writing this book and revisiting your father's memories, what did you discover about him?

It was quite a revelation. I never knew he had choreographed the song Bindiya Chamkegi in Do Raaste. He used to emote the songs with gestures and expressions. When Amborish found out that he choreographed that song, it made sense. I found out he used to pay salaries to his crew even when the film was not on the floor.

Would actors visit your home?