Bhagwan Dada (1 August 1913 – 4 February 2002), born Bhagwan Abhaji Palav, was a celebrated actor and filmmaker who worked in Hindi and Marathi cinema. He made his debut in the silent era with the film “Criminal” and went on to do with more than 300 films in his career of more than five decades.
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Willum Skeener
Dubbed as Indian cinema’s first dancing star, he was perhaps the first male star to introduce Ramba, Samba, Disco, rock-n-roll, and other dance forms to Hindi cinema, which was then ruled by female dancers.
Under Bhagwan productions, he produced and directed the stupendous hit “Albela” with Geeta Bali. Released in 1951, the film has stood the test of time. Even today, in this jet age of electronic entertainment, crowds go hysterical every time they hear “Shola jo bhadke, dil mera dhadke” or “Bholi surat dil ke khote, naam bade aur darshan chhote” from the film.
Despite his phenomenal success, Bhagwan Dada had to give up producing and directing films when the films produced by him continuously flopped. He sold his 25-room waterfront bungalow in Juhu and his fleet of seven cars (one for each day of the week). He took whatever roles he could get, but apart from “Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje” (1955), “Chori Chori” (1956) and “Gateway of India” (1957), none were of note. Eventually, he took on bit parts in which he did his famous dance (made even more famous by Amitabh Bachchan using it as his default dance step).
He remained an actor till the mid-90s, doing bit roles in films like Biwi ho to aisi, Baap Numbery beta Das Numbery, Swarg, Jai Vikraanta, and many more.
Just like the evergreen philosophical song “O Beta Ji O Babuji Qismat Ki Hawa Kabhi Naram,” most of Bhagwan’s associates left him in his time of need, apart from C. Ramchandra, Om Prakash, and lyricist Rajinder Krishan, who continued to meet him even in his chawl.
His later days were spent in abject poverty in the city, where Bhagwan Dada stayed in a one-room residence in a chawl at Dadar, where he died of a heart attack at his residence in Dadar on 4 February 2002.
“Bhagwan Dada, as he was popularly called, created a new grammer of comedy through the unique style of acting and dancing, which inspired a whole generation of comedians in Hindi cinema,” Atal Bihari Vajpayee, then prime minister, told in his condolence message.
In 2016, a biopic of Bhagvan Dada Ekk Albela was released as a tribute to him to great critical acclaim. The Marathi film was directed by Shekhar Sartandel and produced by Dr. Monish Babre.
The film stars Mangesh Desai in the lead role as Bhagwan Dada and Vidya Balan in the cameo role as Geeta Bali. The supporting cast features Vidhyadhar Joshi, Prasad Pandit, Swapnil Rajshekhar, Vighnesh Joshi, Shekhar Phadke, Shriram Kolhatkar, and Arun Bhadsavle.
