Most of us who live regular lives often read and hear about this idea of stardom, where someone lives a god-like existence. It is made to sound like they walk on clouds and are surrounded by people who fulfil every wish they might have. Not just that, they exist in a world where the rules are different and there, they are loved and revered by everyone who they lay their eyes on. We might not experience it but we witness these stars as they are being put on a pedestal, and sometimes, we also get to witness as they lose their throne, sometimes in a rather tragic fashion. Rajesh Khanna, who is often described as one of the biggest superstars of his era, was the king of his domain when luck was on his side. His Midas touch turned every film into a hit and the craze of every hit film made him an even bigger superstar but, this era, as luxurious as it was for him, ended, and when it did, Kaka, as he was fondly known, found himself off that cloud of fame. As that era ended, he started chasing that high again, and continued to do it for the rest of his life.
It is famously said that Rajesh Khanna’s era, where he once had 17 consecutive hits in just 3 years, ended once Amitabh Bachchan entered the scene with Zanjeer. The same year, the two starred together in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Namak Haraam and it was obvious that the newbie from Anand had now come into his own. Even after Zanjeer, Kaka had hits like Aap Ki Kasam and Roti, but this didn’t last for long. He completely lost his position as the reigning superstar in 1975 when Bachchan had hits like Sholay and Deewaar, and he had only one release, which got lost in the Bachchan-mania.
Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan in Namak Haram. (Photo: Express Archives)
For the rest of the decade, there were a few hits like Mehbooba and Anurodh, but these were very few and far between. The audience had moved past the ‘Rajesh Khanna nod’, and there was no bringing it back. And to make matters worse, he refused to experiment for he was of the belief that it was his trademark style that made him a star. His frequent collaborator Sharmila Tagore shared with Gautam Chintamani in ‘Dark Star: The Loneliness of Being Rajesh Khanna, “Kaka either couldn’t or didn’t reinvent himself to remain contemporary, so much so that he became almost a caricature of himself and people began to mock him.”
The new era had some new rules. Filmmakers who once doted on him, or at least pretended to, now started talking about his unprofessionalism. Yash Chopra, who started his banner with Rajesh Khanna’s support, felt he couldn’t keep up with his “superstar tantrums.” His binge-drinking sessions were starting to become an even bigger issue as the actor would drink till early hours of the morning and expected to be mollycoddled by an army of chamchas.
The horror of the 1980s was right around the corner and the worst decade of cinema, hit Rajesh Khanna even harder. It was public knowledge that Kaka’s marriage with Dimple Kapadia was on the verge of falling apart and his career was crashing as he hadn’t had any hits in a while. Dimple was obviously worried for his safety. In a chat with India Today in 1985, she described his state as “pathetic” and shared, “When a successful man goes to pieces, his frustration engulfs the entire surroundings. It was a pathetic sight when Rajesh waited at the end of the week for collection figures but the people didn’t have the guts to come and tell him.”
Rajesh Khanna and Shabana Azmi in Avtaar. (Photo: Express Archives)
After many flops that shook his confidence, Rajesh agreed to star in Mohan Kumar’s Avtaar, and to his surprise, this film turned out to be a hit. The 1980s version of Baghban, this film had him playing an old man with grey hair, and fully grown children. He was determined to make a change as he actually gave up on his starry airs, probably for the first time since becoming a star. To shoot the famous bhajan “Chalo Bulava Aaya Hai,” Rajesh actually walked to the Vaishno Devi temple on foot, and slept on the floor like the rest of the crew. Shabana Azmi, who was his co-star here, recalled in a chat with Radio Nasha, that there were no toilets on the way, and they only had public restrooms there so Kaka, a star, who was used to getting pampered by his producers, would stand in the queue for a washroom with a dabba in his hand. “At that point in time, Rajesh Khanna couldn’t be like ‘I am a superstar’,” she said.
The film’s success was nothing less than divine blessing and Kaka too was surprised by what he had achieved after a long time. Avtaar wasn’t as big as Amitabh’s Coolie or Andha Kanoon, or Sunny Deol’s debut film Betaab or Jackie Shroff’s debut film Hero, but for Rajesh Khanna, it was like he had managed to get a foot in the door again. Like he had proved that he could do it again.
Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia’s marriage continued on paper until his death, but the couple separated in 1982, during the filming of Souten. It was around this time that Rajesh found love with Tina Munim, and believed that she was the antidote to all the problems in his life. In Yasser Usman’s book, ‘Rajesh Khanna: The Untold Story of India’s First Superstar’, he is quoted as saying, “I know over the past few years the lean patch in my career was attributed to my bad acting or bad habits. I was often advised to change. But I did nothing like that. What has actually changed is that over the last year I have been happy in my personal life. That is why I am not irritated any more. It has nothing to do with my films.”
After Avtaar and Souten became hits, Kaka felt he was back. But, as soon as he was successful again, he went back to his old ways. Salim Khan, in Usman’s book said, “When his films started flopping, he didn’t look within to evaluate what was going wrong and where. He started blaming others. He used to feel that there was some conspiracy against him.”
Tina Munim and Rajesh Khanna in Souten. (Photo: Express Archives)
Rajesh Khanna tried his hand at production but since he knew nothing about it, this was a sinking ship right from the start. He put in his own money, cast Tina Munim, with whom he had established a great on-screen and offscreen relationship, hired trusted director Shakti Samantha, brought in his on screen voice Kishore Kumar and music composer RD Burman, hoping that the same team would recreate the same magic but, nothing worked. His professional frustration bled into his personal life, and so his relationship with Tina ended too.
He tried to produce another film titled Jai Shiv Shankar, and this time, he cast his estranged wife Dimple with him. One of the major points of contention in their marriage was that Dimple wanted to work and he didn’t allow her, but now, he had changed his tune as Dimple had made a strong comeback in the movies. But, this movie never saw the light of day.
Rajesh Khanna had a short career in politics. (Photo: Express Archives)
Like many of his seniors and contemporaries, he joined politics. It seemed like he wanted to chase fame via a new route. Some saw it as Congress’ attempt to replace Bachchan after the Bofors debacle, Rajesh saw it as a new opportunity. But, he couldn’t let go of his old ways. Journalist Gargi Parsai told Yaseer Usman, that Rajesh actually called her in the middle of the night in a drunken state. Ironically, around the same time, he told India Today, “We can’t afford to be rude to reporters, because they are our link with the public and it is they who are largely responsible for our public image.” The political career barely lasted for five years. He enjoyed the mad euphoria he saw at political rallies. When he recited his film dialogues, the public went nuts, but these were momentary highs, and after the election season was over, the high dried up.
Rajesh then moved on to television production as TV was the bright new hope in those days. And he hoped that he would achieve what he had achieved in his movie days. The only legit offer he got during this time was RK Films’ Aa Ab Laut Chalein, but the film sank without a trace. In a chat with Usman, Dheeraj said that on television, Kaka was more than eager to make it work, as he felt like this could be the last shot. “He used to sit even after pack-up, discussing the shoots. Kaka used to ask the director for the script for the next day. We used to laugh and tell him, ‘Kakaji, yeh television hai… Yahan kal ki script kal hi milegi’,” he shared.
Sachin Pilgaonkar, who had worked with him in Avtaar, said that Rajesh’s reputation had taken a hit, and there was no recovery from that. “Our industry functions on image. If the image is bad, it is very difficult to change it. Rajesh Khanna, towards the later phase tried to change, but perhaps it was too late. Unka naam kharab ho gaya tha (His reputation was ruined),” he told Usman.
So when he appeared on the poster of a film named Wafaa, with a female actor who was less than half his age, in an erotic pose, the audience was shocked. He tried to explain that he was moving with the times but it only came across as a sad attempt for relevance.
Rajesh Khanna lived till 69. He spent some of his best years enjoying his stardom, and for the remaining ones, he tried chasing it relentlessly.