Blessed are those who make others laugh. These uncommon people, gifted with a sense of humour and comic timing, are treated as jokers but the fact remains that they make the world a much better place to live in. India needs more of them. It was this very month of 1984 when I encountered a film celebrity in person for the first time ever in my less ordinary life. The location was Dum Dum Airport of Calcutta (Now Kolkata) and the man…average height, average build, pinkish cheeks, clean shaven, curly haired and lost in his thoughts. Donning a light cream suit, a bag on his shoulder and a suitcase next to him, he stood quietly by himself. I had recognized the Narad in him.

I reserve special regard for every self-made guy, especially in a compartmentalized country like India, more so if he is talented. The chap standing there was both. Unfortunately, due to my own character flaw, I have never been starstruck till date. I just stood at a distance and watched my all-time favorite actor with excitement – an actor whom I mimicked in the annual Nautanki at my little village. By the time I met him, I had been fascinated by this gentleman’s performance in films like The Burning Train (1980), Pati Patni Aur Woh (1978), Chala Murari Hero Banne (1977), Sholay (1975), Chhoti Si Baat (1975), Chupke Chupke (1975), Namak Haram (1974), Abhimaan (1973), Bawarchi (1973), et al where he literally stole every scene he appeared in. I was in the........

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