Manmohan Desai

Manmohan Desai (26 February 1937 – 1 March 1994) was an Indian film producer and director. He was one of the most successful filmmakers of the 70s and 80s.[4] Desai was an influential and sought-after film director of Bollywood and a pioneer of making Masala films along with Prakash Mehra and Nasir Hussain.[5]

Manmohan Desai
Born(1937-02-26)26 February 1937[1]
Died1 March 1994(1994-03-01) (aged 57)
Alma materSt. Xavier's College
Occupation(s)Film director, producer
Years active1960–1993
SpouseJeevanprabha Gandhi[2]
ChildrenKetan Desai
Parents
  • Kikubhai Desai
  • Kalavati
[3]

Family background edit

Manmohan Desai was of Gujarati ancestry. His father, Kikubhai Desai,[6] was an Indian film producer and owner of Paramount Studios (later Filmalaya)[7] from 1931 to 1941. His productions, mainly stunt films, included Circus Queen, Golden Gang, and Sheikh Challi.[8] Manmohan Desai's elder brother, Subhash Desai, became a producer in the 1950s[9] and gave Manmohan his first break in the Hindi film Chhalia (1960). Subhash later went on to produce Bluff Master, Dharam Veer, and Desh Premee with Manmohan as the director.

His wife was Jeevanprabha Desai. She died in April 1979. He was engaged to actress Nanda from 1992 until the time of his death in 1994. He had one son Ketan Desai who is still involved in the film industry. Ketan is married to Kanchan Kapoor, daughter of Shammi Kapoor and Geeta Bali.[10]

On 1 March 1994, as per news Manmohan Desai fell from the balcony in Girgaon as the rail he was leaning on collapsed and died.[11] Very little is known about his death.

Career edit

Manmohan Desai was known for his family-centered, action-song-and-dance films which catered to the tastes of the Indian masses and through which he achieved great success. His movies defined a new genre called masala films.[12] A common theme in his films were the lost and found plot where family members would be separated and reunited.[13]

Filmography edit

YearMovie NameCastNotes
1957Janam Janam Ke PhereNirupa Roy, Mahipal
1960ChhaliaRaj Kapoor, Nutan, Pran, Rehman, Shobhna Samarth
1963Bluff MasterShammi Kapoor, Saira Banu, Pran, Lalita Pawar
1966BudtameezShammi Kapoor, Sadhana, Manorama
1968KismatBiswajeet, Babita, Helen, Kamal Mehra
1970Sachaa JhuthaRajesh Khanna, Mumtaz, Vinod Khanna
1972Raampur Ka LakshmanRandhir Kapoor, Rekha, Shatrughan Sinha
1972Bhai Ho To AisaJeetendra, Hema Malini, Shatrughan Sinha
1973Aa Gale Lag JaaShashi Kapoor, Sharmila Tagore, Shatrughan Sinha, Om Prakash
1974RotiRajesh Khanna, Mumtaz, Om Prakash, Vijay Arora, Nirupa Roy
1977ParvarishAmitabh Bachchan, Shammi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, Neetu Singh, Shabana Azmi
Dharam VeerDharmendra, Zeenat Aman, Jeetendra, Neetu Singh, Pran
Chacha BhatijaDharmendra, Randhir Kapoor, Rehman, Hema Malini, Yogeeta Bali
Amar Akbar AnthonyAmitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Rishi Kapoor, Parveen Babi, Neetu Singh, Shabana Azmi, Pran
1979SuhaagAmitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Rekha, Parveen Babi
1981NaseebAmitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha, Rishi Kapoor, Hema Malini, Reena Roy, Kim Yashpal
1982Desh PremeeAmitabh Bachchan, Shammi Kapoor, Sharmila Tagore, Hema Malini, Parveen Babi
1983CoolieAmitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor, Rati Agnihotri, Waheeda Rehman, Kader Khan
1985MardAmitabh Bachchan, Amrita Singh, Nirupa Roy, Dara Singh
1988Ganga Jamuna SaraswatiAmitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty, Meenakshi Sheshadri, Jaya Prada
1989ToofanAmitabh Bachchan, Meenakshi Seshadri, Amrita SinghProducer
1993AnmolManisha Koirala, Rishi Kapoor, Johnny LeverProducer

References edit

External links edit