Just a few distinctive artistes are honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his or her cinematic brilliance as that is the largest movie honour one can obtain in India. Not too long ago, Mithun Chakraborty was conferred with the celebrated award by President Droupadi Murmu. However in 1988, filmmaker-actor Raj Kapoor was bestowed with the identical honour.However, sadly, the legendary actor and director had a extreme bronchial asthma assault on the identical day and was in no situation to stroll up on the stage to gather the award. In a exceptional gesture, President Ramaswamy Venkataraman broke protocol and walked over to the actor to personally current him with the honour.
In an earlier interplay with Filmfare, Raj Kapoor’s daughter Rima Jain recalled how her father suffered an bronchial asthma assault simply earlier than attending the Nationwide Award ceremony held in Delhi. She recounted, “Someplace, I consider, Papa ordained his loss of life. He was to be conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award on Could 2, 1988, in Delhi. He left from Mumbai on April 30. There was a mud storm in Delhi. As quickly because the door of the airplane opened, he was greeted with a violent gust of wind. Being an bronchial asthma affected person, it affected his lungs.” Regardless of the issue in respiratory, Rima famous that Raj Kapoor didn’t miss the award ceremony and arrived on the venue with an oxygen cylinder. Nonetheless, she additionally admitted that he was “stressed” all through the perform.
Although Raj Kapoor demonstrated immense energy regardless of his respiratory troubles, when the second got here for him to face up and stroll to the rostrum to obtain the award, he discovered himself unable to rise from his chair. Rima shared, “He saved urgent my mom’s hand exhausting to point out his discomfort. Lastly, when his title was introduced he couldn’t stand up. There was hulchul (commotion).” It was right now that President Venkataraman sensed Raj Kapoor’s discomfort and broke protocol. “President Venkataraman noticed his discomfort and got here right down to him to current the award. He stated, ‘Put him in my ambulance and take him to the hospital.’ Papa was placed on ventilator. There have been information bulletins on his well being. Ministers dropped in to verify on him. In a method, he ready the household that he was going,” she added.
Raj Kapoor’s different daughter, Ritu Nanda, additionally detailed all the incident in her e-book Raj Kapoor: The One and Solely Showman. The excerpts from the e-book learn, “On 2 Could 1988, on the thirty-fifth Nationwide Movie Competition Award presentation ceremony at Siri Fort auditorium in New Delhi, Raj Kapoor received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his excellent contribution to cinema. The award, named after India’s first film-maker, is essentially the most prestigious nationwide award of the Indian movie business. Raj Kapoor was unable to stroll to the stage, having instantly suffered an bronchial asthma assault. In a tribute to the artiste, President of India, R. Venkataraman, put aside protocol and stepped down from the rostrum to current the celebrated award to the ailing Raj Kapoor, seated within the entrance row, among the many viewers.”
Ritu additionally famous in her e-book that this was the final time they noticed Raj Kapoor standing on his toes. She added, “The curtain got here down on the showman’s life amidst cheers and applause, simply as he had envisaged on the finish of the second a part of Mera Naam Joker, a screenplay that was written however by no means made into a movie.”
Raj Kapoor handed away on June 2, 1988, precisely a month after receiving the Dadasaheb Phalke Award.
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