I first met Shyam Benegal in Lisbon, Portugal, when he was there to inaugurate a 60-film retrospective of Indian cinema.
The retrospective was the brainchild of my fellow film enthusiast, Joao Bernardo, in the Cinemateca Portuguesa, who hunted down copies of rare films all over Europe and India.
I requested National Film Development Corporation Ltd. to please send a delegation of film personalities to Lisbon for the inauguration. They chose Shyam Benegal, Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah to do the honours and I was truly overjoyed!
We then decided to select Shyam’s film Trikal for the inaugural event, as it was set in Goa, which remained as a vital link between India and Portugal, with its amalgamation of Indian and Portuguese cultures.
I had, of course, grown up with films like Ankur, Nishant, Bhumika, and Manthan, and was a great fan of Shyam Benegal, and of Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah.
Those were halcyon days, when I drove them around Lisbon, Cascais, Sintra, Obidos and other lovely places in Portugal. We were all young and carefree, and enjoyed our adventures as we explored my beloved Portugal. As I spoke fluent Portuguese, and loved to drive, each day was a delight.
Shyam Benegal, Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi. Photo: Latha Reddy.
I was struck by this photo above which has the exact same trio celebrating Shyam’s 90th birthday recently in Bombay, or Mumbai, as preferred!
I then met Shyam again when I returned to India in 1990 where I was posted in the ICCR, the cultural diplomacy arm of the foreign ministry. We worked together on some committees in the Union information and broadcasting ministry at that time, and I was delighted to renew our acquaintance.
We met again in 1995 and 1996 when he made his film on Gandhiji’s life in South Africa, The Making of the Mahatma. It was a thrilling experience to visit the actual film sets, and the locations of the filming. That was when I met his lovely wife Nira as well, and we went on to become close friends.
I also was so happy to throw open my historic home in Durban to the homesick cast and crew, who were longing for authentic Indian home-cooked food. Rajat Kapur had us all most amused by his antics, and I also helped Shyam wherever I could, for obtaining the necessary permits and authorisations required.
I was there of course, for the inaugural showing of the film, and basked in reflected glory!
My next encounters with Shyam were in Delhi when he was filming Subhash Chandra Bose. I once again was on the sets, in 2004, as he was filming the episode of Subash Chandra Bose’s escaping from India to Afghanistan.
He was a great admirer of my grandfather B.N. Reddi’s films. Reddi was a very well known Telugu film director who won many major national awards, including the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, and the Padma Bhushan. I requested Shyam to attend his centenary celebrations in Hyderabad in 2008, and he readily agreed. He spoke at the event and also joined us for a family dinner after the event, although it meant a long night’s drive to his own film shooting. I will always remember his gracious acceptance of my invitation to honour my grandfather’s memory.
I recall some very pleasant encounters with him and Nira in Delhi, when he was a member of the Rajya Sabha (2006-2012) in their apartment there, probably during my visits to Delhi, and when I was later posted in the Ministry of External Affairs as well. That was when I met their daughter Pia, who has also become a good friend.
In recent years, I visited Mumbai often, and always made it a point to schedule a lunch or dinner with Shyam, Nira, and Pia whenever I was there. We had some memorable evenings, including at the Zubin Mehta concert in the Brabourne Stadium. I recall a dinner I hosted after the National Centre for the Performing Arts Zubin Mehta concert, where we were all together.
We had all planned to meet for lunch on the December 9, 2024, but it never happened. The reasons were his own failing health, my minor health issues and we just ran out of time. It will be my abiding regret that I could not see him on this last visit.
I think these following words by Shakespeare describe him best:
“He acted from honesty and for the general good. His life was gentle, and the elements mixed so well in him that Nature might stand up and say to all the world that ‘This was a man’.”
Latha Reddy is a former Indian diplomat who served as consul-general in Durban, ambassador in Portugal and Thailand, Secretary (East) in MEA, and Deputy NSA.
