Different Strokes with M.F. Hussain

It's a painter's house. It's visible as you enter, in the huge painting of Hindu Gods and Goddesses, in a huge collection (it almost seems to be a store house) of artistic khazana,  like brushes of various shapes, different shades of water colours, oil paints, small-n-big canvas sizes with immaculate paintings on them, some rolled up, some plainly laid out… The air is filled with the smell of wet paint. Shelves full of books on literature and art. Amidst such an artistic ambience, as I try to make room for myself, in walks the tall and slender M. F. Hussain, master of the house and the paintings. He's 84 and brimming with energy. He introduces himself with his patent smile as we get down to business, first and foremost Hussain's penchant for publicity . It seems as if he loves to be in the news all the while - first as the artist whose canvas of horses became synonymous with his name, and now he has become synonymous with Madhuri Dixit.

"It's funny, that it's the media itself that makes news of whatever I do or say and then they themselves turn around and call me media savvy and publicity starved. But I wonder when have I asked them to write about me," laughs Hussain. "From utter poverty and tremendous struggle, to name, fame, money, and now a film… I've seen a lot in life to feel scandalized by any of the allegations levied against me today. There have been many times when different political parties have made an issue of my paintings purely on political and communal grounds. Remember the  entire 'Sita' painting episode that rocked the government? Other times, there have been cases of professional jealousy. Because I started getting rich and famous, many in my sphere started spreading vague rumours about me. But believe you me, I've never got bogged down by any of these pressures. Today, when I look back on all those times, I only sit back and have a hearty laugh. That's the best way to deal with such situations, I've realized with time, because not much is in my control anyway.

"Even when I'd started making my film Gaja Gamini, almost all in the industry told me that I'd never be able to complete it. It is too vague a topic to be made, they said. I still remember Yash Chopra was the first one to congratulate me when it got completed. I am very content with the way the film has shaped up. I've already got excellent reviews from all over the globe. After seeing the rushes of Gaja Gamini, a few of the foreign filmmakers, who're a part of the Cannes Film Festival, told me that they'd have selected my film had it been completed. I also got feelers from the London Film Festival. But unfortunately, due to post-production delays, I couldn't complete the final print in the stipulated time.

Is it true that Gaja Gamini is a very different film as it is claimed to be? "Gaja Gamini is not a typical box-office commercial project. I'm not even selling the film to any of the distributors.  Actually it will be more of an event that will be sponsored as and when I get sponsors. In the towns and the interiors, Gaja Gamini will be shown on the streets so that the maximum masses of the country can get access to the project. Later, I'll be going to the USA, UK and Asia to show the film there."

But what is Gaja Gamini all about?

Says Hussain, "Gaja Gamini itself means the metaphor of a woman. It is a story about the inner strengths of five women coming from different strata, who meet together on one common platform. It is about the strong bond that these five women share with each other. Being a universal topic, I've not kept any fixed conclusion to the film. I leave it to each individual to draw his/her own conclusions."

When I wonder aloud what propelled him to compare Madhuri's hundred watt smile with Monalisa's subtle one in Gaja Gamini, in he gets a huge (almost gigantic) painting of Madhuri smiling the Monalisa way. "This is my Monalisa of Gaja Gamini," exclaims Hussain proudly. "That's why I've termed her so." As he settles down again, he reveals, "I keep telling Madhuri that she  shouldn't constantly keep flashing those spotless white teeth of hers. To that she'd grin her wide grin again asking me to do something about it. So, when Gaja Gamini commenced, I decided to do something different with her smile. That's why I changed it drastically to just half a smile."

Why did Gaja Gamini run into censor problems?

Defends Hussain, "There wasn't any major censor problem as the media painted it out to be. It is just that there is a Bengali song written by Rabindranath Tagore in the film which the censor board assumed to be sexy without cross checking beforehand. Once they did that and realized that was not so, the film got okayed immediately. I'm sure hearing the very word 'censor', many must've jumped to the only obvious conclusion - that it must be due to Madhuri's exposure. But believe you me, that is not so. If skin show is their purpose of wanting to watch the film, then they will be very disappointed. Rather, though I had got one chance in the film to do that (when I show Madhuri as Shakuntala being born out of Kalidas' poem), she's completely clad from top to toe. So, in that sense, Gaja Gamini is a clean film."

Apart from censor problems, it was rumoured that Hussain had a lot of financial differences with Rikku, Madhuri's secretary and producer of the film. Hussain pooh-poohs the rumours and  clarifies, "The money is entirely mine because who do you think is going to finance this vague project? I started with only 50 to 60 lakhs and decided to make it in such a way that no matter at which juncture the film ends, it seems complete. Now the film has gone into crores. And I'm proud to say that the entire amount is all that I've earned from the sale of my paintings. It is just that Madhuri, Rikku and I formed a team and developed the entire concept together. Eventually the profit of the film will be distributed between the three of us. But this won't be a profit-making film anyway," he laughs.

Being a film buff, how is it that he got crazy about Madhuri only after watching Hum Aapke Hai Kaun? Reveals M.F. Hussain matter-of-factly, "I'm more of an English film buff, so I hardly used to watch Hindi films. Earlier, I used to like only Nutan and then Sridevi. You'll be amazed to know that the first time I saw Madhuri was once when I happened to see her performing Choli ke peeche kya hai from Khal-Nayak, while surfing channels. I must admit that I didn't like her in it at all. It was later, on the insistence of my friends, that I went to see Hum Aapke Hai Kaun. Ironically, the first time I saw the film, except for the Indian feeling that the film exuded, I didn't find anything breathtaking about it. So I walked out midway. But later, again my friends insisted that I watch Madhuri in the song Didi tera devar deewana.

And that's where I discovered her. For those five steps that she took behind, any lesser talented artiste would've made it look vulgar. But it was because of Madhuri's performance par excellence  that they turned so elegant. There was almost a spiritual quality in her then. Later, when I met Madhuri in person, I was glad to realize that apart from being a fabulous actress, she's a very good human being too." It must hurt him when he sees the world laugh at his 'obsession' for Madhuri. Hussain bravely volunteers, "Frankly, people mocking me about my feelings for Madhuri have never really bothered me because their wagging tongues never affected me. They can say what they want. But after it took to large proportions, (a section of the press up north, almost came out with pornographic stuff), what started bothering me was that all this shouldn't affect Madhuri in any which way, professionally or personally. So, to sort things out, I decided to meet her and her parents to apologize about the way things were turning out to be. By then I'd started to feel responsible for it all. But to my dismay, all in her family were very cool and composed about the whole thing. They said they knew how the press operated and so all such things didn't unnerve them. That is what put me at ease completely."

Many in the industry claim that Madhuri treated him like any other crazy fan during the making of Gaja Gamini and that's why the venture got delayed. "Ever since the film commenced, the world has been trying to create some or the other rift between Madhuri, Rikku and me. But luckily, we're too matured and understand each other too well to get affected by such talks. All these stories that Madhuri gave me date hassles and kept me waiting are false, concocted stories."

Being so close to Madhuri, Hussain must've been privy to her marriage, right? Absolutely; M.F. doesn't deny the hypothesis. He avers, "Of course, I knew that she was getting married and I was more than glad about her decision. Why would I ask her to hold back her marriage? For her career sake? But what career are we talking about when there's no able director to get good work out of her and no perfect script for her to show her talent? Even though people talk a lot about Yash Chopra's romantic films, I don't feel that's enough to bring out the complete actress in Madhuri.

"Anyway, for the last 2-3 years Madhuri's family had been desperately trying to get her married. But being such a renowned figure that she is, most of the proposals that came her way were because those men were in awe of her or were trying to show off their own wealth. Madhuri detested all of them and thus refused them all. I used to keep telling her that to find her Mr . Right, she'd have to disguise herself in an unknown country. And that is exactly what happened in her case. Her brother who is settled in L.A. got to know of this family and just casually invited Sriram over for dinner. He's almost a complete American who knows only English and Marathi. When the two met for the first time, he wasn't even aware of her career achievements or her lifestyle. He'd never seen any of her films. So, the two met for a couple of days and on the third day itself Madhuri decided to tie the knot with him. That's what appealed to Madhuri about Sriram. That he didn't give his nod only because she wanted to marry him. He too needed to know if she was the right girl for him. That was the determining factor for Madhuri."

What does Hussain think about his favourite muse's career post marriage? He observes seriously," Though Madhuri has decided to continue working (in good projects only), I feel she'll hardly get tailor-made roles today. In an industry that doesn't accept married women as heroines, it'll be a tougher struggle for Madhuri from now on. I keep telling her, that for her kind of talent, I feel very sad and regret that she's got caught up in this mundane commercial rut." From being in awe of Madhuri, to working with her and making her world-famous…M.F. Hussain interrupts… "She herself has publicly admitted that though she has become a very famous person today and will remain so for a few more decades, it is thanks to M.F. Hussain and Gaja Gamini that now she'll be famous worldwide and will live forever.

Then again, there are many who feel that it's thanks to Madhuri that I've become a household name today. Anyway, I really have no hassles about all such things. It didn't even bother me when I lost my own identity ever since the Madhuri episode happened in my life. Wherever I go, people call out to me as Madhuri, and not Hussain." A reality Hussain accepts with a pinch of salt, and goes on to narrate an incident. "I remember when I'd accompanied the Indian cricket team to Lahore, as I entered the stadium, the entire crowd started shouting, 'Madhuri, Madhuri'. I didn't take it negatively, in the sense that my identity had got lost, thanks to my fascination  for her talent. I really liked the way the crowds reacted."

Finally, what's next after Gaja Gamini? Says Hussain seriously, "I have always wanted to make only one film - Gaja Gamini. I had the script ready since over forty years. I made the film once I managed the finance for it. And I made it in the best possible way. Taking Gaja Gamini to the interiors and around the entire globe will take me a cool two-three years at least. After that, let's see… kal kisne dekha hai ! I just live for today, for the moment. Don't they say, 'The heart has to feel young for one to be young.' At this age too, this avid literature buff is up on his feet immediately after the interview and is all set to meet his friends and colleagues. Filling vibrant colours in his life till he can, before it eventually turns all black some day.