Rishi Kapoor and Paresh Rawal amalgamated to play the central character in Sharmaji Namkeen, a fantastic endeavour in the creative world of movies. It was neither like Face Off, where Nicholas Cage and John Travolta swapped roles after the character each represented went through cosmetic surgery, nor the representation was like Iti Mrinalini, where Konkona Sen Sharma and Aparna Sen played the younger and older self of the central character. But it was more like Ogo Bodhu Sundari where Prabir Kumar filled in the scenes, reserved for Uttam Kumar, as the latter unfortunately passed away all of a sudden with the film yet to be completed.
Having said that, the likeness of the situation stops right there and what we behold in the film of Sharmaji Namkeen might be a brave and savoury endevour to the original idea of story telling through visual media. Never have story telling seemed more earnest than when Paresh Rawal obliged by stepping literally into the shoes of Rishi Kapoor, after his sad demise, in playing the character of Brij Gopal Sharma aka Sharmaji in this picture. The bridging seemed so endearingly natural that you will forget about the gaping difference in the outward appearance of both the actors and will be immersed in the bittersweet retired life of a widower with two sons and a host of friends. Gratefully acknowledging for his gesture of coming forward to complete the still unfinished movie after the unfortunate passing away of Rishi Kapoor, a thankful Ranvir Kapoor conveys his deepest appreciations for Paresh Rawal during the opening of the movie in a short prelude to the attempt. Paresh Rawal not only played the substitute well, but played it in line with the original, maintaining the characteristics of Sharmaji as laid by the late Kapoor in the finished scenes. Applauds are due to him for the effort and same goes for the team of Sharmaji Namkeen as well for the marvel they created.
The story is very simple. A widower, forced with early retirement from Madhuban Home Appliances, tries to cope up his zest for work in various ways, often embarrassing his two sons and finally finding a recluse in cooking and a life of simple entertainment with friends both old and new, some of them being acquainted in the singularly unthought of circles. The family tiffs in a three men household, frequent comic fights with the dearest of friends that are realistically served adds flavour to the movie. Infact, the entire movie is a delicious platter with the ingredients of ordinary life that are blended in just the correct portions to emphasize the inherent deliciousness of the ordinary lives.
But the important point to realize that makes this Amazon premiere stand apart from the contemporaries is that the director had prioritized the narrative over the actors who took part. Everything else seemed less important. That Paresh Rawal imitated the gait that Rishi Kapoor established for the character of Sharmaji is just a trivial part. He imitated but was allowed to preseve originality in projecting the true nature of the central character. There was no unnecessary make up in the part of Paresh Rawal to resemeble Rishi Kapoor barring the sweater and the signature costumes which were obviously necessary. On the other hand, sincere efforts were there to preserve the signature personality of Sharmaji maintained throughout the movie. So Rishi Kapoor was followed by Rawal in consecutive scenes and vice versa but Sharmaji remained firmly similar in character.
This is what I think storytelling should be, ignoring the glam and dazzle of individual actors and pining on the characters they represent. But, in majority of the cases, the opposite happens. Actors, with their superb skills and personalitites often unconsciously overshadows the narrative so that we remember movies by the stars only. So the mention of Saptapadi, to a Bengali audience, will bring back memories of Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen initially and then about Tarashankar, if at all. Roman Holiday will be remembered more for Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn rather than the romantic comedy it unveils. Kaho Na Pyar Hai will always be the Hrithik Roshan, Amisha Patel debut rather than the original thriller of an imagination, in which it was based.
True, characters do surpass the actors that represent them. James Bond surpassed Sean Connery and is still appearing through handsome action heroes of each period. Clarice Sterling is played by Jodie Foster and Julianne Moore in two diferent periods. Byomkesh Bakshi surpassed the fame of Uttam Kumar and appeared in the form of Rajit Kapoor, clearly the best Byomkesh on screen, followed by a continuous string of actors including Abir Chatterjee, Sushant Singh Rajput, Parambrata Chatterjee and a host of others.
But sometimes, these have boomerang effects also. What Soumitra Chatterjee did to the character of Feluda on screen and David Suchet with Hercule Poirot, others casted in the roles, suffer some unfortunate criticisms. Santosh Dutta immortalised Jatayu and Amjad Khan became synonymous with Gabbar Singh. Thus, when Amitabh Bachchan played Babban Singh in Ram Gopal Verma ki Aag, mirroring Gabbar Singh of the movie, Sholay, the consequence was far from sweet. Similar fate was due to most of the actors chosen for Jatayu after Santosh Dutta.
Hitesh Bhatia should be congratulated for the immense risk he took in portraying the same character with two actors in the same movie, thus making it stand unique among the peers. The narrative is simple, the sets simpler and the idea - simply superb. Personally speaking, being a fan of the versatile Paresh Rawal and knowing nothing of the actual role he was about to play, I was seeing the movie for him only. Getting to know that he was to be casted as a substitute immediately disappointed me, but for a very short while. As the film progressed, the story took the centre stage and everything was just secondary. The metamorphosis of the actors between scenes never seemed jerky and the enjoyment was purely perfect. Infact, after watching the movie if I try to select who played better between Rishi Kapoor and Paresh Rawal, I will surely elect for Sharmaji. The naively sweet and delightfully peppery Sharmaji and his spiced up life, subtly garnished with a hint of salt, trumps everything else and Rishi Kapoor serves a pleasantly delicate dessert as he retires from life, celebrating the creative art of composing a movie, Bon Appetit!
