All for a song : K L Saigal
neha...@hotmail.com
All for a song
An Article from http://www.rediff.com/entertai/1998/feb/10sai.htm
Disclaimer: I have not read the article myself as of now:)
All for a song
--------------
Shamila Taliculam
<Picture>K N Saigal. Click for bigger pic!
There was a generation of singers weaned on his voice. And 51 years after
legendary singer Kundan Lal Saigal died, his children are fighting to keep his
memory alive, auctioning off valuable heirlooms to open a trust in his name.
That unique sonorous voice earned Saigal quite a few medals and other prizes.
These and a few pieces of jewellery are in the custody of the Dena Bank, where
Saigal and his wife had a joint account. After their deaths, their son
operated it, but without the backing of a nomination form.
<Picture>Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!
When the bank authorities finally realised what was happening, it stopped the
family from operating the account. So Saigal's belongings lay there, gathering
dust till some years later, his daughters stirred into action and demanded
that the bank release the belongings. Their claim was rejected.
Finally the family decided to depend on the good offices of the Cine Society,
which organises film festivals of vintage movies. Secretary Abdul Ali, better
known as Alibhai, was a big Saigal fan.
"I feel I could learnt a lot from New Theatres -- where Saigal worked -- and I
adored all the stars of that era," he says. Ali started the Cine Society in
1960 with New Theatres owner Nitin Bose as the president.
<Picture>K N Saigal in President. Click for bigger pic!
The reasons, says Ali, were more sentimental than commercial. For he wanted
the coming generations to see the films of that time. The current president is
Naushad Ali.
Because of Alibhai's long association with the industry and his proximity to
the Saigal family, he tried, and succeeded in, getting the bank to release
Saigal's property. The daughters were happy but wondered what to do with the
windfall when Ali suggested they auction the items and put the money collected
into a trust that would screen Saigal films and keep people informed about the
singer and his life.
Ali also intends asking the buyers to donate the belongings to the trust where
it could be displayed along with their names.
<Picture>Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!
Though a recent newspaper report suggested the daughters differed on what to
do with the heirlooms, Ali claims there was no trouble of that kind. Saigal's
two daughters Bina Chopra and Nina Merchant stay together and all they want is
to keep their father's name alive, he says.
Saigal's grandson, Tinnu Chopra, is more vehement. "Why should they fight? All
these years the medals and jewellery were in the bank; we didn't really bother
to get them out. Ali was starting this trust and that's when we thought it
would be good idea to donate these. We just thought that since my grandfather
was such a legend, it would be nice to let people know more about him and his
films," he says.
<Picture>K N Saigal. Click for bigger pic!
Ali himself failed to get donations for such a trust the one time he tried. He
was also not allowed to hold an auction.
"When I started this society, there was tremendous response. The same thing
happened when I talked about the trust. But nobody wanted to give money just
like that. So I struck upon this idea." There are a few medals, some jewellery
and a few instruments Saigal used to practice on. A building where Saigal used
to live is not put up for sale since it would be difficult to get the tenants
currently living there to go. That would also be unfair to tenants, says Ali,
with the air of one who's learnt to live with what he has to.
<Picture>Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!
Prices have not been fixed for any of the items. Ali and the Saigal family
have decided to take the best price available unless those bidding lower are
also willing to donate their purchases to the trust.
"But we can't help it if the buyer doesn't want to donate. If we get a good
enough price, we might forgo whatever the person has bought.''
He does not expect trouble with the tax authorities, as suggested by the
report we mentioned earlier. "I think when one mentions K L Saigal, one
doesn't think of it is as something clandestine... But we can't have a public
auction because that's against the law," says Ali.
--
Neha
-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
http://www.dejanews.com/ Now offering spam-free web-based newsreading
Ajay Nerurkar
neha...@hotmail.com wrote:
: An Article from http://www.rediff.com/entertai/1998/feb/10sai.htm
: Though a recent newspaper report suggested the daughters differed on what to
: do with the heirlooms, Ali claims there was no trouble of that kind. Saigal's
: two daughters Bina Chopra and Nina Merchant stay together and all they want is
: to keep their father's name alive, he says.
If no personal financial considerations are involved, they could have used
existing facilities to house these items. For example, the National Film
Archives, Pune, are certainly well placed to look after them and in
exchange could have provided the auspices for a memorial to Saigal, of either
a permanent or a seasonal nature. What they plan to do will only reduce
Saigal's effects to coffee-table status.
Ajay