David Dhawan on Kader Khan: He was the backbone of my films

Actor, writer and a Quranic scholar par excellence, Kader Khan left for his heavenly abode on Tuesday after a prolonged illness at the age of 81. A number of Bollywood celebrities opened up on their bond with the Hindi cinema’s most versatile writer – one of them being filmmaker David Dhawan, with whom he had delivered some of the biggest hits of the ’90s and early 2000s including ‘Hero No 1’, ‘Coolie No 1’, ‘Aunty No 1’, ‘Haseena Maan Jayegi’ and ‘Mujhse Shaadi Karogi’ among others.

David Dhawan said, “Bhaijaan, that’s what I called him, was the backbone of my cinema. After we worked together for the first time in ‘Bol Radha Bol’, I couldn’t think of directing a film without Bhaijaan. I wanted him to write and act in every film that I made, and I made sure it happened. But he was so busy. There was a time when every big commercial film had Bhaijaan’s contribution, not just as an actor or writer. He was all there for every film that he did.”

He was all praise for Kader Khan’s improvisational powers and even revealed how he would rewrite scenes and dialogues on the spot during shooting. Dhawan further added that Kader Bhai Khan contributed the most to Amitabh Bachchan’s onscreen persona, for he penned the powerful dialogues for Big B. In ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’, he even helped the megastar to speak in the Bombaiyya-Catholic style that went on to be a rage.

David Dhawan said that his relationship with the powerhouse of talent was not only professional, but also personal. He considered him like an elder brother and was in awe of his talent.

As the actor’s health started failing, Kader Khan moved to Canada with his three sons and took up Canadian citizenship. He was in a lot of pain in his final years and after his demise, he has been put to rest there. Khan is survived by his wife Hajra, son Sarfaraz, daughter-in-law and grandchildren.

May his soul rest in peace.

Also Read: Ajay Devgn mourns death of Kader Khan with a throwback picture