Enchantment of the Mind Manmohan Desai's Films

Synopsis

'Anhonee ko honee karna hamara kaam hai,' (Making the impossible possible is our job). This line leading into the title songs of the blockbuster "Amar Akbar Anthony" sums up the magic of Manmohan Desai, the master entertainer whose desire to please his public made his name synonymous with success during much of his career in popular Hindi cinema from 1960 to 1998. In "Enchantment of the Mind: Manmohan Desai's Films", Connie Haham delves into the director's work and analyses some of his cinematic signatures - speed, fun, adventure and delight, alongside a devotion to motherhood and a stance in favour of inter-religious harmony. His cinema is fondly remembered for its many catchy tunes and for characters brought to life by leading stars from Raj Kapoor to Amitabh Bachchan. Lending extra magic to this book is Manmohan Desai's own account of a life dedicated to cinema - a medium he wielded artfully to depict both struggle and an affirmation of life. '...My plots are not realistic. My characters are realistic. You see, If I make the stories real, they're not interested in seeing them. But put those characters on a trip of fantasy! When I was kid I went to the stadium and saw Dara Singh, the famous wrestler who was in many stunt films. I imagined I was Dara Singh. I would go to the wrestling bouts full of arranged gimmicks...There were challenges: 'Next Saturday I'll fight you!' I used to think if I were Dara Singh, if I had a body like that, I'd also hit ten people. Now, I like to make these people into what they would like to be aren't. What's wrong with that? They feel, 'Re, I could've been like that chap! I could've been like Anthony!'