Writer-director B R Ishara passes away

In another set back to the film industry, the news of the passing away of writer-director BR Ishara has brought everyone and everything to a standstill. He was recently diagnosed with Tuberculosis and was undergoing treatment at Criticare hospital in Juhu. Ishara, known to be the first director to have started the tradition of shooting in bungalows, shot into prominence with his first film Chetna that starred Rehana Sultan – whom he later married – and Anil Dhawan. The film was completed in just twenty five days. Starting his career as a tea boy, Ishara went on to make as many as 34 Bollywood films between 1969 and 1996. Notable among his films besides Chetna were Hum Do Hamare Do, Charitraheen, Aurat and Kaaran. He was the one who introduced stars like Parveen Babi and Bappi Lahri to the industry. He even gave chances to many newcomers of that time including Danny Denzongpa, Rakesh Pandey, Vijay Arora, Jaya Bhaduri, Amitabh Bachchan, Reena Roy, Shatrughan Sinha, Raj Kiran and Raza Murad. He even introduced cricketer Salim Durrani into films and featured him in Charitraheen which also marked Parveen Babi’s entry in the industry. Said a grieving Raza Murad, “What more can I say of Ishara saab who introduced me in his film Ek Nazar along with Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri, that he was a man of substance and will power. He never made films for money but did one on his own conviction. He never compromised in life, so much so in his lean days never asked help from anyone. One thing that all the industry people knew is like Shirdi Saibaba, no one knew from where exactly in Himachal Pradesh he came from. On the whole, he was a great person.” He always tackled burning issues in his films. He wrote himself for his movies and his thought provoking stories always shook the audience. Ishara is survived by his actress wife Rehana Sultan.