(From left) Prem Chopra and Manoj Kumar in Upkar and Shaheed

I came from Shimla to become an actor. But I took up a job in a newspaper to gain a foothold in the film industry. Manoj [Kumar] was always there to help me; he has contributed a lot to my career. I was there in almost all his films. We were the best of friends, and we did many films together, including Dr Vidya [1962], Shaheed [1965], Upkar [1967], Yaadgaar [1970], Purab Aur Paschim [1970], Kranti [1981], Sanyasi [1975] and Be-Imaan [1972]. The films he made, glorifying India, are remembered even today. [That is why] he is also known as Bharat Kumar. He was a filmmaker, writer, and producer. Some of the current generation of filmmakers are even copying his patriotic style of making movies. In every film, he conveyed a message to his country. Manoj also generated employment for so many people through his films. He was instrumental in changing the images of many actors who have sustained in the film industry because of him.

My first film with Manoj was Woh Kaun Thi? [1964]. After that, he offered me the role of Sukhdev [Thapar] in Shaheed, based on Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and [Shivaram] Rajguru. That was my big break.

Set against the backdrop of the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, Upkar [1967] celebrated the contributions of farmers and soldiers to India. The film also marked Manoj’s directorial debut. Initially, Rajesh Khanna was set to do the role, as Manoj wanted a young actor, but he had to opt out due to other commitments. So, he immediately cast me, as the set was ready, and we had to start shooting.

People have often compared him to some of the best directors of India, including K Asif and Raj Kapoor, among others. Manoj was ahead of his time; he would sketch out his characters and give them to his actors. It was so easy to work with him because he was clear about what he wanted. Manoj would tell you everything you were going to do [in the scene] and then back off so as not to disturb the actors in front of the camera. When he was directing, his mind was completely focused on the film 24/7. Manoj had directed himself in so many movies; he also wrote his own dialogues, which were challenging. He knew everything about cinema, including cinematography and music.

I will miss him; he was a dear friend. I feel sad that he has left us. Manoj’s name will be written in gold in film history.

Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; December 14, 2017)

One of Bollywood’s most iconic villains, Prem Chopra completes 60 years in the industry, today. The veteran will mark the milestone with a celebration at ISKCON auditorium in Juhu this evening, which will see Amitabh Bachchan, Jeetendra, Dharmendra and several other actors, including son-in-law Sharman Joshi, in attendance.

At 82, Chopra says he still gets offers — his next, Udanchhoo, is slated to release next month. The senior actor describes his journey as “full of twists and turns laced with failures, setbacks and rewards.”

What kept him going, he reflects, was his determination. “I always wanted to be an actor even though my family had no connection with the film industry. My father was an IAS officer. When I decided to leave Shimla [his hometown] and move to Bombay in the late ’50s, my father warned me that I was opting for the most insecure profession.”

It wasn’t a red carpet welcome into the world of movies. Chopra began by balancing his Punjabi film assignments with a day job in the circulation department of a leading newspaper in Bombay. “I must have juggled at least 10-12 films with the job till it became impossible.”

After the initial struggle, it was the National Award-winning Punjabi film Chaudhary Karnail Singh (1960) that trained the spotlight on him. This was followed by the Hindi film, Hum Hindustani the same year, which had Sunil Dutt and Joy Mukherjee as co-actors. Initially eyeing positive roles, including that in Manoj Kumar's award-winning Shaheed (1965), he later switched to negative roles when he realised that playing the baddie could keep him going for long. Chopra broke into the big league of baddies after the wild success of Teesri Manzil (1966).

When Raj Kapoor approached Chopra for Bobby (1971; pictured below), he was already an established actor. Kapoor's wife Krishna and Chopra's wife Uma are sisters. "Initially, I had reservations about doing the film as it was not a big role, but Rajji insisted I do it. I later relented. This was the film that gave me my most iconic dialogue, 'Prem naam hai mera, Prem Chopra.' I would have regretted had I not done the film," says Chopra of the role.

What set the veteran actor apart from his contemporaries was that he didn’t resort to theatrics to drive home the evil. “It was always pure acting,” he says. Chopra has seen several of his peers quit years ago. “But then, it was my goal to keep going. I worked hard, avoided politics and steered clear of controversies. This has been my success mantra.”

Prem Chopra, also one of the guests on Krushna Abhishek’s comedy show with Tannishtha Chatterjee, advises her to go easy on a joke
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; September 30, 2016)

Two days after Tannishtha Chatterjee slammed Krushna Abhishek’s Comedy Nights Bachao for ‘roasting’ her for her skin colour in an open letter on Facebook, Prem Chopra, who was also one of the guests on the show, has expressed surprise at her sharp reaction.

Like Krushna, the veteran actor also feels that Tannishtha’s angry social media post is a publicity gimmick. “I do not know if Tannishtha has taken up a social cause to prove to the world that dark colour is not a negative thing. As an afterthought, some one must have told her to take advantage of the situation to garner publicity. One has to learn to laugh at oneself. Even Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan make jokes about themselves. There are people who make fun of others, but when it is done to them, they just cannot take it. That’s unfair,” he says.

Chopra says one should not get offended by comedy shows. “One should not complain about what was said or take it seriously as the show’s concept is to make you laugh. It is all in good faith. If you cannot take a joke, you should not go on such a show,” he adds.

He mentions that he too was the butt of several jokes on the show, but he took them in his stride and laughed along. “I do not have hair on my head and cover it (my scalp) with a cap. They told me to remove it and then they cracked some jokes on my baldness. At the same time, I cracked jokes at their expense as well. This show is not about laughing at people, but laughing with them,” he says.

Chopra will receive the Lifetime Achievement award at the  7th Jagran Film Festival tonight.

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 9, 2014)

It wasn't just the desire to work with Raj Kapoor which led to Prem Chopra's memorable turn in Bobby. There was a family connection too. Raj Kapoor's wife Krishna and Prem Chopra's wife Uma are sisters. So when his brother-in-law requested him to make a guest appearance in his upcoming film, Chopra agreed without even asking for the details of the role. All that he knew was that the film was a teenage love story that will launch Raj Kapoor's son Rishi as a hero opposite a new face, Dimple Kapadia.

Subsequently, whenever they got together for a drink in the evenings, Chopra would ask for the script and RK would wave him off nonchalantly, saying, "Bataoonga, bataoonga." He kept the suspense alive till Prem Chopra reported on the sets.

They were shooting on the Pune-Solapur Highway near Raj Kapoor's farmhouse in Loni and the filmmaker explained that Raj Nath, the 18-year-old scion of a wealthy businessman, is madly in love with Bobby Braganza, the 16-year-old daughter of a Goan fisherman. Faced with parental disapproval, escalating enmity between the two families and a forced engagement made to expand the Nath empire, the young lovers have no choice but to elope.

On the run, Bobby notices Raju's face staring up at her from a newspaper Prem Chopra is reading at a roadside stall. Raj snatches the paper from an angry Chopra only to learn that his father has announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for anyone who can bring him back. Sensing danger, he urges Bobby to run but as she's passing Chopra, he grabs her hand and says with a menacing leer, "Prem naam hai mera, Prem Chopra."

This was the first scene he shot for Bobby and Chopra admits to a twinge of apprehension when he heard his opening line. "That's how James Bond introduced himself, 'My name is Bond, James Bond.' Rajji wanted me to do something similar. Would I be able to pull it off with the same panache?" he asked himself.

Prem Chopra, who had started out in the circulation department of the Times of India, had quit the job to act in Manoj Kumar's Upkar and became a star overnight after the film's release.

"Those days, films revolved around the hero, the heroine and the villain," points out the actor, who with films like Do Raaste, Kati Patang, Jugnu, Daag and Hare Rama Hare Krishna among others, had established himself as the numero uno bad man.

"Since I was only doing a cameo, Rajji didn't want to get into background details. All he wanted was me to introduce myself by my own name," he says.

"Prem naam hai mera, Prem Chopra," is repeated once again in a scene when Chopra apprehends the duo on a cliff. This time, brandishing a knife, he has his rogues pin Bobby down, while he punches and pummels Raj, threatening to break his legs so he won't be able to run away from him again, taking with him the Rs 25,000 booty.

"I spoke the lines the way Rajji wanted, adding a touch of maniacal laughter to enhance the sense of evil, little knowing that they would immortalise me in the history of Hindi cinema," he says. Recalling how after the film's premiere in Delhi, along with Raj Kapoor for his deft direction, Rishi and Dimple for their natural performances, Laxmikant-Pyarelal for a chartbusting score, he too was flooded with compliments for that single line of dialogue which reverberated in theatres across the country and even today, four decades later, draws loud cheers.

Over the years, he has gone on to mouth other lines which have become equally popular.

Saawan Kumar also gave him some memorable dialogue in the Rajesh Khanna-Tina Munim-Padmini Kolhapure love triangle, Souten, like "Main woh bala hoon jo sheeshe se pathar ko todta hoon" and "Jinke ghar sheeshe ke hote hain, who batti bujha ke kapde badalte hain."

"There was also that famous line in Manoj Kumar's Kranti, 'Shambhu ka dimaag do dhaari talwar' which too became a rage. But Bobby's appeal is evergreen. Wherever I go, in any part of the country or the world, and this includes a recent charity show in the US, I have to say 'Prem naam hai mera, Prem Chopra' on public demand. I'm happy to oblige because I don't have to remember dialogues from other films and it's hard for one to forget one's name," the 79-year-old actor laughs.

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; April 1, 2014)

Prem Chopra, 77, has completed 50 years in Bollywood and 45 years of his marriage with his wife Uma, whom he loves the most in the world. In an industry where most people love to ridicule others, he is a man with not just a great sense of humour, but also one of the few men who laugh at themselves. He gets along with people and is extremely disciplined. Above all, he is one of Indian cinema’s most iconic villains and a man who in his private life is a family man, completely opposite of his mean reel image. His eldest daughter Rakita Nanda has written a book titled Prem Naam Hai Mera — Prem Chopra that will soon hit the stands. Over an hour-long conversation over coffee and dhoklas, he spoke to us about dealing with the mean man image in his real life, what he learnt from Dev Anand and why he still feels betrayed by his father. Excerpts:

You are synonymous with your line ‘Prem naam hai mera’. How did that happen?
It was 1973. I was a star already but had not worked with Raj Kapoorji, so was excited to be even offered a guest appearance in Bobby. I reached the set and asked for the dialogues and Rajji said, ‘The heroine is a new girl called Dimple Kapadia. The moment she enters, you will hold her hand tightly and say, Prem naam hai mera…Prem Chopra.’ I looked at him blankly and was not happy, as this would set a wrong precedent for my other films, but Rajji had said, ‘I will compensate you with a full-fledged role later.’ I shared my feelings with Prem Nath who was on the set with me that day and he said, ‘This film will be a hit and you will get publicity worth millions. Your dialogue will be a hit.’ Soon after the release of Bobby, I was on a train back to Delhi. As soon as I got off the platform, there was a huge gathering of people and all they requested me was to repeat my Bobby dialogue as they had loved it and they still do.

How did you come into films?
When I came to Mumbai from Shimla, my father said, ‘I don’t want to be an obstruction, but I want you to know that this acting is not a secure profession, so you must find employment in case you want to go to Mumbai.’ I landed at VT station and found a job in the circulation department of the Times of India. I looked after Bengal, Orissa and Bihar and was required to tour 20 days a month. I managed to cut my touring time by calling my agents to come and meet me at the station itself so that I could quickly return. A tour that would normally take 20 days would get completed in 12 and I would spend the rest of the time going from one studio to the other. My boss supported me, as he knew my dream of becoming an actor. It was during one such train journey that I got offered my first Punjabi film as lead actor. Meanwhile, my mother was detected with mouth cancer and she died leaving my nine-year-old sister Anju to be looked after by my father and my four other brothers. All of us (me and my four brothers) have told our wives on our wedding nights that our main concern is our sister and, in a sense, gave them a warning that only if she is happy would they be happy. She is a pure soul and they all took to her. Till date, she remains a first daughter to all of us. I then got a job in some of the Hindi pictures as the leading man, but they didn’t do well. In the meantime, I got some great character roles like playing Sukhdev along with Manoj Kumar playing Bhagat Singh and films like Woh Kaun Thi, where I was the suspense in the thriller and I got lapped up as a villain. I used to have regrets in the beginning when people used to coax me to be the leading man. But today, when I look back, I have no regrets. I see a lot of co-actors of mine who were superstars who stopped getting work, but I even today after 50 years, continue to get work.

What are your learnings of being in the industry for over five decades?
My experience in this line is that everybody from top to bottom is insecure. Here the competition is so much that they always have the fear that they have done a good job, but not good enough to stay where they are. Our success depends on our audience and while for them, their own fates are decided when the lights are on, our fate is decided when the lights are off. And when the lights come on, their verdict is already there. I too felt insecure a lot of times initially, fearing that I would not get work if the films did not work well. But I always believed in honesty and hard work. Dev Anand told me, ‘In this profession you should mind your own business. Don’t listen to bad things about anybody and don’t talk badly about anybody.’ He was right and I follow that.

What was the effect of your mean reel image on your real life?
Once I was walking with my paaji (father) in the gardens of Panchkula. When people saw me, they started shouting, ‘Hide your wives, Prem Chopra is here!’ My father was aghast, as he thought I had become a star. I requested my father to call them and convinced them that I was in reality a nice guy. My eldest daughter Rakita was eight when she went to see one of my films, where I had been really mean. During interval people were complimenting me, but my eyes were on her. She looked at me so curiously and I could see that she was thinking that this man is such a comedian at home, but he is such a dangerous guy. I got very disturbed and sat her down and explained to her that an actor has to do his job and our luxuries are a result of his professional efficiency. She understood. My wife’s niece’s son Nikhil Nanda came to our house as a child when his eyes fell on my shoes and he yelled, ‘Prem Chopra ke joote.’ He ran out of the house and didn’t even want to wait for the lift and ran down fourteen floors to his car. Despite my family trying hard to convince him that I was away for a shoot, he refused to come back. That remains a family joke to date.

In an industry where actors are known to have multiple affairs and marriages, you have been loyal and married for 45 years.
Uma and I have a lot in common and are also very different in many ways. We too have our bad days as a couple, but she has been a source of great strength for me. She has freed me from all financial problems. An actor needs a very trustworthy person to look after money. She did wrong things in the beginning, but she learnt. People are scared when they see me on the streets, but I am scared of my daughters. They are extremely lovable and my wife has brought them up like normal children. They are emotionally attached to me and so am I. We are a close-knit family.


Talk about your father?
My father passed away in the 80s and I believe he was made to sign a will favouring one of my brothers, taking away my rights in the bargain. It was a bungalow I had built with my money in Delhi, which was jointly owned by me and my father. I had got my brother a job in Delhi and put him up in a house. We were not a rich family as my father was a government employee and was honest to the core. I feel very proud that I have a hand in settling all my brothers, directly or indirectly. Otherwise, we would have all been in Shimla or Delhi or somewhere in ordinary jobs. My aim was to secure my brothers and give them a respectable status. My father had even put our names ‘Prem and Uma Chopra’ outside the bungalow. If he wanted to give away something that was rightfully mine, I wished he had just asked me, I would have given it to him. He spoke to me in the evening and called me to Delhi saying that he wanted to talk to me. May be he wanted to share his guilt with me. I was supposed to go to Delhi the next morning, but that night itself he died. I was extremely attached to him and was inconsolable when he died. I then came to know that he had willed my house to my brother. While I believe that my father was not at fault, it hurts me till today as I felt betrayed at that time and till today, I feel betrayed. There was an income tax raid in that house a few years later, where they asked my brother, ‘How come you live here as it is in your brother’s name?’ But his wife said, ‘It was gifted to us.’ People told me that had I fought legally, it would come to me, but I said, ‘I will be the last person to do that. If he has a conscience, he will realise.’ I was so much involved in work that I did not know what was happening. I had two houses in Mumbai also, which were sold off cheaply by my other brothers without telling me as they needed the money. I couldn’t manage those things at that time. I have been a trusting man and was emotional about my family. I wanted them to have a certain amount of status and dignity. My own wife and daughters felt that I was misused in some way. But I can tell you that I am very positive and content in life.

Jeetendra, Rakesh Roshan, Rishi Kapoor and you are a gang of friends. What binds your friendship?
All of us value our families a lot and are very committed and passionate towards our profession.

Do you have a favourite actor?
I am very impressed and in awe of one name and if you want me to say that name, it is Prem Chopra.