A woman of many talents, Tanuja Chaturvedi recently added another feather to her cap, as an author, as her book ‘Hum Dono: The Dev and Goldie Story’ was published recently. Tanuja’s literary work revolves around two Indian cinematic icons, the evergreen Dev Anand and his bother Vijay (Goldie) Anand. The author used her long correspondence with the Anands as source for the book.
She recently sat down for an exclusive virtual interview with Connected to India’s Himanshu Verma, wherein she recalled and regaled with several anecdotes about Dev and Goldie and her book.
Asked how her first meeting with Dev Anand was, Tanuja says, “Just a blast of energy I remember.” She first met Dev Anand as a kid at the premiere of Pyar Mohabbat. Though too young to understand the importance of the meeting, Tanuja says the actor picked her up on his lap. Years later, she mustered the courage to rang up Dev’s residence on her birthday. Fearing that she would not get a favourable response, it turned out to be a happy surprise as the star picked up the call and invited her over. That started a life-long correspondence between the two.
“He was very curious about me. I was a newcomer, and he was asking me how much rent do you pay? Where do you eat in Bombay? How do you commute? How are you managing in such an expensive city? It was I who felt like I’m such a big star,” she says, recalling the first meeting as an adult.
Asked how the book came about, Tanuja says it started six years ago. This, too, was by chance. Tanuja, who taught at a film school, says she was appalled to see the lack of knowledge amongst students about renowned film makers like Guru Dutt. She took it upon herself to educate her pupils about Indian cinema.
“On Facebook, I wrote a little article about Goldie Saab and Dev Saab’s first film, Nau Do Gyarah. Then a friend said, and my husband said and then lots of friends started saying why don’t you do it as a book?
“I have never written a book, and I never felt I was worthy enough to write a book, but there was just one thing that sort of, that voice which went on saying ‘If not you, then who?’.
She says, “I’ve learnt so much life lessons from Dev Saab, I’ve worked with him. And in a small measure, no comparison though, I share Goldie saab’s skillset. I’m a trained editor, I’m a writer. I write dialogues, screenplays. I’m a director. So, I said if it’s anybody else, it’s like the blind man and the elephant. I could look at the whole picture and then the combination that these two people were.
She further elaborates: “They were very individualistic people, they were extraordinary talents, but there was something that sparked when they came together. It was the collaboration, it was the coming together which was so exciting.”
Watch the full interview below.
