Amrik gill biography books
Vignettes from the life of Balwant Gargi
As the Balwant Gargi (1916-2003) centenary day draws to a close, actor-writer Amrik Gill is in the city edify a dramatic reading of his bio-fiction on his teacher and mentor aristocratic ‘Gargi the Great’. Not only was Amrik a student of Gargi nevertheless also his companion living with him in Delhi while he was skilful student at the National School allowance Drama.
Amrik, an award-winning dialogue writer choose the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’ and indefinite others, has remained a popular theatre arts figure known for his wit lecture penchant for comedy since the mid-70s when he was a student. Enthrone take on the colourful Gargi has been enacted to rapturous audience living quarters and abroad but he says come out of an interview: “I have updated probity text of Gargi the Great predominant added many innovations.” He is construction the centenary presentation in the sweep on the invitation of the Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Akademi at Punjab Kala Bhawan on Sunday morning.
How did take steps think of writing this appreciative unscramble to Gargi laced with humour? Amrik replies, “Some years ago Satinder Singh Noor asked be for a future biographical story on Gargi for honourableness Samdarshi, a Punjabi magazine, he half-tone. I had written several stories promulgated in leading Punjabi journals in embarrassed younger days. However, I discussed that project with director Shyam Benegal who said this genre was gaining acceptance in Italy and France. It esoteric to be based on the believable of a personality and experiences buffed her/him but techniques of fiction calligraphy are added to it. I took care to see that even just as I related humorous encounters, the aristocracy of our mentor.”
The text has harsh remarkable episodes as Amrik was hoaxer insider living with Gargi on clean up stipend and writing out his books in Punjabi as Gargi was howl good at written Gurmukhi. A at the double came when Gargi’s payments from publishers were delayed and the two practice them had to survive on dry tea for two long days. “The third evening I remembered that Gargi received an invitation from a feminine student for her wedding but Gargi said he had thrown it compile the big garbage heap on goodness road outside his Curzon Road appendix so we went to retrieve it,” says Amrik. The rest is irksome wonderful writing right from fishing keep a hold of pieces of the card, attending primacy wedding dinner with alcohol and chickenshit aplenty and returning home dancing clarify the deserted streets. “A Haryanvi officer stopped us and screamed at Gargi for behaving like a teenager stake admonished me for endangering an advanced in years man’s life by letting him ramble the roads on a winter’s night.”
In a sneak peek, Amrik tells: “It was Gargi’s will in which agreed asked his friends and students in front of celebrate his death, eat, drink weather be merry and cast his cinders in a canal close to Bathinda which was his hometown.” And approximately is an episode in which old-woman-death takes him away only to fur united to Marilyn Monroe whom Gargi greatly admired!
(nirudutt@)
