{"id":59,"date":"2020-06-29T22:10:30","date_gmt":"2020-06-29T16:40:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/temp.outwork.dev\/?p=59"},"modified":"2021-10-07T14:25:17","modified_gmt":"2021-10-07T08:55:17","slug":"farrukh-jaffar-keeper-of-the-old-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/farrukh-jaffar-keeper-of-the-old-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Farrukh Jaffar: Keeper of the old world"},"content":{"rendered":"[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1633596890638{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]\n
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Note: This article was first published in The Hindu<\/a><\/i>.<\/p>\n

Farrukh Jaffar, just like Gulabo Sitabo<\/i>\u2019s writer Juhi Chaturvedi, is a Lucknow girl. So, what does Jaffar then think of the portrayal of her city in the film in which she is the centre of attention as the spunky and spirited nonagenarian Fatima \u201cFatto\u201d Begum? \u201cIt is true that parts of Lucknow are exactly as shown in the film. But like all cities there is the more modern side [to it] as well,\u201d she tells The Hindu<\/i> on an email interview.<\/p>\n

Jaffar\u2019s character, despite the sharp tongue, is actually the keeper of old world, genteel values of loyalty and love, even when it comes to something inanimate like her crumbling ancestral haveli Fatima Mahal. A belief system and philosophy that is fast on the decline; on its way to becoming extinct, in fact.<\/p>\n

Starting out<\/h3>\n

Just like Shoojit Sircar\u2019s Gulabo Sitabo<\/i>, Jaffar\u2019s first foray on to the big screen\u2014Muzaffar Ali\u2019s Umrao Jaan<\/i>\u2014was also set in Lucknow. She played the courtesan\u2019s mother. In an earlier interview with me she had referred to it as \u201cfilmi duniya ki sair ka pehla jeena<\/i> (the first step in the journey through the world of films)\u201d. Both recreations of the city are vastly different, set as they are in different times and cultures. \u201cEvery city has different corners. When you watch Umrao Jaan<\/i> you may get the impression that Lucknow is one big brothel. After watching Gulabo Sitabo<\/i> you might think that the entire population of the city is decadent and decaying. But each film is only a small part of the whole city,\u201d she asserts.<\/p>\n

Born in 1933, Jaffer was 16 when she left her village in district Jaunpur, to come to Lucknow following her marriage to eminent journalist and freedom fighter Syed Muhammad Jaffar. Her maternal grandfather and father were landlords. \u201cI was very excited to leave the village behind. In Lucknow, I was glamour struck,\u201d she recollects. Jaffer wanted to do many things but was not sure what. In Lucknow University she participated in cultural programmes and theatre. After graduation she did not want to remain a housewife, and so began her career in radio in 1963. \u201cI landed a job at the radio station by accident, and I began to like the idea of speaking to countless people, some of whom fell in love with my voice,\u201d she shares. She wrote and acted in several radio plays and also did a brief stint on stage.<\/p>\n

Born to be loved<\/h3>\n

How do you relate to the world of radio and theatre as opposed to films? I ask her. \u201cI like the idea of being loved by so many people and the idea of plays and films allowing me to play so many different characters in one life. The biggest high of showbiz is to be able to communicate with the whole world. Radio, films and theatre all work for me. All these are a medium for me to be loved by a maximum number of people. I love to be loved,\u201d she declares.<\/p>\n

I remember seeing her first on big screen in Anusha Rizvi\u2019s Peepli Live!<\/i> as the crochety old amma. In between, there have been outings in Sultan<\/i>, Photograph<\/i>, Tanu Weds Manu<\/i> etc. But her character in Gulabo Sitabo<\/i> has made an impact, like no other of Jaffer\u2019s. She gives the credit to the direction of Shoojit Sircar and the writing of Juhi Chaturvedi. \u201cI am a director\u2019s actor. Shoojit explained my work so well to me, that it became easy for me to play it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Fearless Fatto<\/h3>\n

It was the first time for her to have been working with Sircar’s unit and she can\u2019t seem to get enough of him. \u201cHe is able to explain what he wants in few words. He gave me tremendous confidence by saying \u2018There is no other actress in the film except you. You are my leading lady. You are the heroine. It is just you and the Big B\u2019,\u201d she recollects. He told her that during the shoot she should not see Amitabh Bachchan as a super star but as the \u201ccreep\u201d Mirza. \u201cThat made me dialogue with Amitabh fearlessly,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s clear that she has an energy and vivacity \u2014 similar to Fatto \u2014 that totally belie her age. Though she thinks that she isn\u2019t as bold and cheeky as her latest on screen avtaar. \u201cWhat I do give her character, is that twinkle in the eye. I believe in having maximum fun in life despite age or the economic situation,\u201d she emphasises.<\/p>\n

She loved her birthday scene in the film, \u201cFatto is happy that she, as a woman with age not on her side, still smarts the crooks.\u201d She also liked it for getting to wear lovely clothes, jewellery and make-up which made her look good on the screen. However, in her own family, birthdays are not a big deal. \u201cThere is no celebration. When I do remember, I wish my grandchildren on their birthdays. I routinely forget the birthdays of my children.\u201d I ask her whom she\u2019d want to elope with in real life just like she does in the film. Her reply makes me smile, \u201cI would not like to elope with anyone. I am very happy where I am in life today. Even Fatto Begum did not elope for love or for a man. She staged the elopement to spite the very greedy Mirza.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The much loved Fatima \u201cFatto\u201d begum of ‘Gulabo Sitabo’ fame tells Namrata Joshi that she\u2019s a firm believer in a zest for life.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,5],"tags":[9],"class_list":["post-59","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hindu","category-profiles","tag-films"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":380,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59\/revisions\/380"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outwork.dev\/namratajoshi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}