Prakash Mehra is regarded as the man who made Amitabh Bachchan superstar with Zanjeer
The masala genre of Hindi cinema is decades old. It was created and popularised as early as the 1940s. Even blockbusters like Teesri Manzil followed this formula. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that the genre took hold in Bollywood, becoming pre-dominant. And at the forefront of it all was one filmmaker who not only revolutionised this genre but transformed the career of Hindi cinema’s biggest superstar Amitabh Bachchan.
The director who championed masala cinema, gave India the Angry Young Man
Prakash Mehra is the director credited with popularising the masala genre in Hindi cinema the most. Alongside the likes of Manmohan Desai and Nasir Hussain, Mehra did most for this genre. His foray into cinema began as a production controller in the 1962 film Professor, before he turned assistant director with Purnima. In 1968, he made his directorial debut with Haseena Maan Jayegi, a box office success. In 1973, he gave his first major blockbuster in Zanjeer. The film starred Amitabh Bachchan in his first outing in an out-and-out action entertainer. The film, penned by Salim-Javed, introduced the Angry Young Man persona of Bachchan to Bollywood. It also stemmed his run of 17 consecutive flops since his debut in 1968.
Zanjeer’s success was followed by Mehra and Bachchan teaming up for more successful films like Hera Pheri, Khoon Pasina, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar. These films, along with Deewar, Sholay, and Don, were instrumental in transforming an out-of-sorts Bachchan into a superstar. In the 80s, Mehra and Bachchan gave more hits in Laawaris, Namak Halaal, and Sharabi. In 1989, the duo had their first flop – Jaadugar. Mehra directed two more flops – Zindagi Ek Jua and Bal Brahmachari. Following this, he quit filmmaking in 1996 at the age of 57.
Prakash Mehra’s humble beginnings
Prakash Mehra was born in 1938 in Bijnor, modern-day Uttar Pradesh. Growing up, he harboured the dream of becoming a singer. As a youngster, he stole Rs 13 from his grandfather’s house and ran to Bombay. While he was unable to make it big as a singer, he worked in a hair salon to make ends meet. Eventually, he found odd jobs on film sets in his early 20s, leading to his first major job as a production controller at the age of 23. That was the beginning of his successful career.
Prakash Mehra’s later years and legacy
After his retirement from films in 1996, Prakash Mehra lived a life away from the limelight. He had tried to greenlight a Hollywood project in the 80s and kept trying to make it happen even in the next decade. But that film – titled The God Connection – never came to being. In 2009, Prakash Mehra died in Mumbai at the age of 69. He is regarded as one of the most influential filmmakers in commercial Indian cinema.
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