1912 - ‘RAJA HARISCHANDRA’, THE PLAY
1912 - ‘RAJA HARISCHANDRA’, THE PLAY
The whole family is at the theatre, watching the play.
Harischandra:
Beloved, why is your beautiful face so unhappy today?
Rani:
Last night I dreamed bad dreams that leave me restless today. I am filled with foreboding…
Harischandra:
Dearest one, women have timid natures. But you are the bravest of women. Why, then, are you laid so low?
Rani:
Lord, I fear for my dear ones.
Harischandra:
I, too, have had bad dreams.
By his efforts, an enraged Brahmin has acquired the power to control all the divine goddesses of knowledge.
And when I took pity on the women and went to rescue them, the Brahmin turned his rage on me.
And when I tried to pacify him, he demanded my whole kingdom in return.
Rani:
Lord, why does such a small thing bother you so much?
Harischandra:
Where will I find him now? How will I eat my daily meal without thinking of his plate?
Rani:
Lord, are you going to embrace the world of dreams as the truth now?
Harischandra:
The world of dreams is untrue in reality. Who can prove this? I gave away my kingdom, even if only in a dream.
Rani:
Forgive me, my lord, we women are ignorant.
Harischandra:
Send out the town crier. Announce that from this day the kingdom belongs to a Brahmin of unknown origins.
Guard:
Your Majesty, an enraged Brahmin is at the door.
Vishwamitra:
So, do you recognize me or not?
Harischandra:
Lord, I feel that we have met somewhere.
Vishwamitra:
True! You of the warrior caste! Why would you remember me? Cheat! Do you remember whom you gave the world away to last night? Wait! You’ll pay for your lies! As my right arm is raised to curse you in anger, the memories of my race tempt me to take my sword and kill you myself. Where is my kingdom?
Harischandra:
What’s the problem? Even before you arrived, I had already transferred to you all that I possess.
Vishwamitra:
And my fee for accepting this grand charity of yours?
Harischandra:
Whatever you want. Chief Minister, bring me a hundred gold coins at once.
Vishwamitra:
Is the treasury still yours, that you order the minister around?
Harischandra:
Forgive me. What if I no longer have any gold. Do I not still have my body?
Vishwamitra:
If I do not receive my fee within a month’s time, I will curse you with the most unbearable suffering.
Harischandra:
I am not as afraid of your wrath as I am of the wrath of righteousness. ‘Then Dr. Prabhakar came like an angel, and restored his eyesight after a year’s treatment.
‘But our economic state was even worse now.
‘The doctor had forbidden him to do reading, photography, etc. for some time, but his temperament would never allow him to sit at rest.
‘He kept writing letters, calling for catalogs, reading photography journals, etc.
By sheer luck, the surgeon Dr. Prabhakar later visits Phalke, and like some ministering angel, restores his eyesight.
‘Big people again began visiting our house, and there were talks of business. ‘Many of our visitors were Gujaratis.’
GUJARATI BUSINESSMAN
‘Sister, do not worry that Laxmi Art has been lost. If Phalke seth wishes, we can raise a Saraswati Art in one day.’
SARASWATIBAI
‘Many of us tried to persuade him but he was completely determined.
As he slowly recovers his sight, he takes daily walks on the beach with his young son, Babaraya.
With four annas in his pocket, he goes for his walks and returns late in the evening.
On Easter day, he sees that next to the Girgam Bank Road, at the America-India tent theaters a film is being shown, ‘The Life of Christ’.
It shows the birth, miracles, trials, sufferings, burial, resurrection and the ascension of Christ.
While the film is unspooling before his eyes, he mentally visualizes the gods, Shri Krishna, Shri Rama, their Gokul and Ayodhya.
He finds himself in the grip of a strange spell. He buys another ticket and sees the film again.
Later, Phalke meets the theatre manager, Mr. Mehta and sees the projection machine.
Then he and Babaraya go home.
(BA’s impressions of Bhalchandra.)
Babaraya is excited and clings to his mother saying, ‘Today we saw pictures that move.’
Saraswati asks Phalke, ‘What is cinema?’
He promises to take her to see it the next day.
He spends a restless night, reading his reference books one more time.
The next day, the whole family goes to see the picture.
The hall is crowded with Christians and Europeans.
On the way home, Phalke tells his wife that he is going to enter the picture business, and make films on Rama and Krishna.
The next morning he goes back to the theatre and finds a discarded strip of film.
He brings it home and studies it under a magnifying glass.
He buys a toy cinema and a piece of film from a British company.
At home that night, with a candlelight projector, he screens the film on a wall.
Like a madman, at the age of 40, he is absorbed in his plan to make a picture, with no thought for the future.
Phalke starts to liquidate all his assets and possessions, collects price lists, and sleeps 3 hours a day for the next 6 months.
PHALKE:
‘I used to see various cinematograph shows regularly after a stroll on the beach.
‘The art of cinematography is the next stage of the photographic art, and since I had been an artist photographer for the last fifteen years or so, I was particularly attracted towards these cinematograph shows, and I seriously began to think why this profession could not start in India as well.
SARASWATIBAI:
‘He was very fond of dramas, and our Sunday afternoons were mostly spent in seeing Marathi or Gujarati plays, then being staged at Elphinstone Theatre by Belgaokar Sangeet Mandali of which my brother, A. Karandikar, was a partner and lead player, since he was also an expert at music.
‘In this period, his daily walk on the beach with our son Babaraya (Bhalchandra) was a regular affair.
‘Keeping four annas in his pocket, my husband would go for a walk and return late in the evening. In 1910, I happened to see the film ‘The Life of Christ’ at the America-India Picture Palace, Bombay. While the life of Christ was rolling fast before my physical eyes, I was mentally visualizing the gods Shri Krishna, Shri Ramachandra, their Gokul and Ayodhya. I was gripped by a strange spell.
I bought another ticket and saw the film again.
This time I felt my imagination taking shape on the screen. Can this really happen? Will we, the sons of India, ever be able to see Indian images on the screen?
‘One day, on their return, Babaraya clung to my hand and said, ‘Today we saw a wonderful thing! All the pictures on the screen were moving. There were training tigers, elephants, and a fat man!”
‘“What did you show him?” I asked.
‘“Cinema.”
‘“What is Cinema?’
‘“Come with me and see for yourself.”
‘That night he remained very restless. He would open books and refer to them.
‘The next day, we both went to see the ‘cinema’.
‘We came to an illuminated tent on Sandhurst Road where a band was playing. It was called the America-India Cinematograph. The first class tickets were priced at eight annas.
‘It was the Christmas of 1911. The hall was crowded with Europeans and Christians.
‘The lights were switched off, and there appeared the picture of a cock moving on the screen (this was the trademark of the Pathe company).
‘Then, a comic picture started, featuring an actor called Foolshead.
‘After every part of the film, the lights were switched on and stage items of magic or physical feats were performed.
‘The main picture that day was on the life of Jesus Christ.
‘People were weeping on seeing the sufferings of Christ and the Crucifixion.
‘The film was colored in the Kinemacolor process.
‘After the show I asked, “How did these pictures move?” Then he took me near the projection room and said, “It was all done by that machine.”
‘On the way back he said, “Now you will automatically know everything, since we are going to take up this very business. Like the life of Christ, we shall make pictures about Rama and Krishna.”
‘I was not at all happy to hear that, and kept quiet.
‘The next morning, he brought home some discarded pieces of film and studied them with a magnifying glass.
‘The following day, he bought a toy cinema from an English company and also a reel of some film.
‘And that night, by putting a candle in the machine and making its light fall on the lens, he held his first cinema show on the walls of our house.’
LIGHT AND DARKNESS
Light is born from darkness, and darkness (shadow) from light.
Phalke shines the lamp into BA’s eyes. BA is blinded. He cannot see. Everything becomes white.
Phalke turns off the light and in the darkness BA can see many colors and thickening lights.
‘Where did all these colors come from?’
‘From your mind.’
When Phalke turns on the light BA sees the room anew, bright and sharp and jumping on him, closing in…
1912
All the international companies are competing for the Indian market.
The great Madans are the first to release ‘King George and Queen Mary’s Visit to India’.
Phalke realizes that to begin the business he needs at least ten thousand rupees.
He visits his friend, Yeshwantrao Nadkarni, who runs a photography and sports shop at Dhobi Talao. He tells him of his intention to set up a factory that will make Swadeshi films.
The next day, they both go to Nadkarni’s father-in-law, the solicitor Annasaheb Chitnis.
Nadkarni agrees to loan Phalke the money.
To raise the rest of the money, Phalke takes out a life insurance policy for 12,000 rupees.
He then buys a ticket to England from Thomas Cook, and on 1 February 1912, Phalke sets sail for England.
Back home, on 3 February 1912, his daughter, Mandakini, is born.
