Mumbai, Sep 26 (IANS) Veteran actor Raza Murad has slammed Bollywood superstars for their absence at the funeral of veteran actor Mushtaq Khan, who passed away on September 24.
In a strongly worded video message, Raza questioned why none of the “big faces” from the film industry came to offer their final respects to the actor, who had devoted nearly five decades to the Hindi film industry.
Mushtaq Khan’s last rites were performed on September 25. Many of his colleagues and fellow actors attended the funeral, but Raza expressed disappointment that no major Bollywood star was present.
“Dukh ki baat yeh hai ki aise mauke par koi bhi star, jise hum star kehte hain, unhe apna aakhiri salaam pesh karne nahi aaya. Jabki unke bahut saare colleagues, actors, sab aaye.”
(The sad thing is that on such an occasion, no star, whom we call a star, came to offer his final salute. While many of his colleagues and fellow actors came)
Raza then made a sharp comparison, saying that Bollywood stars would readily attend lavish celebrations involving influential people.
“Haan, agar kisi industrialist ke bete ki shaadi hoti, toh ye stars na sirf wahan shaamil hote, balki wahan mehmaanon ki seva waiter ki tarah bhi karte.”
(Yes, if the son of an industrialist were getting married, these stars would not only attend, but would also serve the guests like waiters.)
“Ya jab koi political party apni laathi dikhaati hai, toh ye bheegi billi ki tarah wahan pahunch jaate hain. Lekin us shakhs ki funeral mein shaamil nahi hue, jisne is film industry ko apne 50 saal diye, apni poori zindagi de di. Aur aap uske liye 50 minute bhi nahi nikaal sake.”
(Or when a political party shows its power, they reach there like a meek cat. But they did not attend the funeral of the person who gave 50 years of his life, his entire life, to this film industry And you could not even take out 50 minutes for him)
He reminded the film fraternity that fame and success are temporary and that a person’s conduct and deeds are what ultimately matter.
“Yeh mat bhooliye ki aaj aapka yeh roshan chehra hai, kal yeh bhi marne wala hai. Kal yeh andhere mein doob jayega. Agar koi cheez aapke kaam aayegi, toh aapka achha bartav, aapke karm kaam aayenge. Aur kuch nahi aayega.”
(Do not forget that today your face is shining, but tomorrow it too will die. Tomorrow it will sink into darkness. If anything will be of use to you, it will be your good behaviour and your deeds. Nothing else will matter)
Praising Mushtaq Khan, Raza said the actor had built his own identity through his work and had never relied on flattery or misleading others to make his way in the industry.
“Mushtaq Khan ne apna bahut bada naam banaya. Unhone kabhi kisi ko gumrah nahi kiya, na kabhi kisi ki khushamad ki. Woh sirf apne kaam ke dum par yahan tak pahunche.”
(Mushtaq Khan made a very big name for himself. He never misled anyone, nor did he flatter anyone. He reached this point solely on the strength of his work.)
“Unhe apni zindagi mein kabhi aapki zaroorat nahi padi, na unhe apni zindagi ke baad aapki zaroorat padegi.”
(He never needed you in his life, nor will he need you after his life.)
He also expressed regret that several prominent stars who had worked with Khan did not come to pay their final respects.
“Haan, yeh zaroor hum sabke liye afsos ki baat hai ki aisa koi star nahi hai jiske saath Mushtaq Khan ne kaam na kiya ho, aur woh unhe kuch pal ke liye salaam karne bhi nahi aaya.”
(Yes, it is certainly a matter of regret for all of us that there is hardly any star with whom Mushtaq Khan had not worked, yet they did not come even for a few moments to salute him.)
Raza concluded by reminding everyone that fame, wealth and status do not last forever.
“Yaad rakhiye ek baat, yeh shohrat, yeh daulat, yeh izzat hamesha nahi rehti. Shohrat ki bulandi bhi ek lamhe ka tamasha hai. Jis shaakh par aap baithe hain, woh bhi toot sakti hai. Yaad rakhiye.”
(Remember one thing, this fame, this wealth and this honour do not last forever. The height of fame is also a spectacle of a moment. The branch on which you are sitting can also break. Remember this.)
For the uninitiated, Mushtaq Khan was known for his memorable supporting performances across Hindi cinema, with credits including Welcome, Aashiqui, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, Hum Hain Rahi Pyaar Ke and Jodi No. 1.
His long career spanned several decades, during which he worked alongside some of the biggest names in the Hindi film industry like Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Anil Kapoor, and others.
–IANS
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