Keep the gods laughing, Burjor

Life begins at 80 was never simply the name of his column It was the way veteran actorproducer Burjor Patel spent his last eleven years It was what he fervently believed and proved he did It was what he mentioned yet again at 91 just two months ago when I visited his Colaba homeServing fragrant bhakras thoughtfully noting Irsquod loved these at chai break in practices for popular NCPA seasons of Laughter in the House he said ldquoPandemic slowed me I want to resume writing for Rubyrsquos sake She would immediately read me on opening the Jame on Sundays and in DNA where the series started in 2013rdquoIn Hrishi Krsquos studio announcing Draame Bawas on radioThose words warmly encapsulate two of the thespianrsquos longstanding associations Burjorrsquos beloved wife Ruby dazzling three generations of theatregoers on the Parsi and English stage whom we lost two years back And JameJamshed right from when writerdirector Adi Marzban editing his familyowned paper offered the law grad a job in its advertising department Burjor found himself bitten by the theatre bug on earning a prize as Cassius in Julius Caesar at Bharda High School A keen cricketer too he represented school at Giles and Harris Shield matches Further recognition at intercollegiate competitions emboldened him to try for Marzbanrsquos ensembleHanging on the sets for a month he landed four lines in the Shirinbai Nu Shantiniketan grand rehearsal ldquoAdi mentored aspirants gradually to the acting drill not blooding them instantly That taught enormous disciplinerdquo The play totted a sixnight run then considered a healthy innings Burjor met Ruby when Marzban cast him as her father in Piroja Bhavan 1954 They spent more time together at the Jame office she as his secretary and later Marzbanrsquos Theatrersquos most devoted couple married in 1959 going on to rule as the widely adored lead pair of Marzbanrsquos Cooperative Players comedies till the mid1960sThe stars enact Meherzad Patelrsquos sketch for the stage production Laughter in the HouseWorking next at Times of India and The Statesman Burjor ventured as a producer with the Parsi wing of INT Indian National Theatre delivering charmers including Tirangi Tehmul Gher Ghungro ne Ghotalo Taru Maru Bakalyu Lafra Sadan Lagan Khel Rang Rasiya and Hello Inspector Finally came a rich repertoire in both languages from Burjor Patel Productions which toured East Africa and AmericaSpotting potential with astute vision he produced Bottoms Up the ldquomusical tamashardquo garnering rave reviews with Gujarati Parsi Hindi English and Marathi powerhouse performers The consummate producer created that Hinglish juggernaut brimming with innovative ideas from the formidable combination of having helmed English and Gujarati plays The smash hit revue necessitated topical switches between showsmdashldquoChanging skits songs and dances was an expensive affair Burjor had the junoon sparing no expenses for that to happenrdquo recalls Bottoms Up director Bharat Dabholkar ldquoI was a novice he had huge experience With respect that I cherish not once did he correct me in front of actors Making notes he called at night to give suggestions A true doyen of theatre he was a dream producerrdquoWith Kanti Madia in Piroja Bhavan 1954 PIC COURTESYMEHER MARFATIA LAUGHTER IN THE HOUSEPlaywrightdirector Rahul daCunha acknowledges ldquoI lay my break in theatre at the feet of Burjor His daughter Shernaz and I wanted to do a play called Nuts in 1984 With nothing but our passion to break into Mumbai theatre Burjor backed us to the hilt producing my next two plays as well My lasting gratitude to the great manrsquos unchanging belief that I had a pulse on what audiences enjoyed He was my barometerrdquoShernaz ldquoShernz betardquo to him says ldquoAs Rage producers wersquove learnt from him and Hosi Vasunia Rahul directed for dad Rajit Kapur acted in his plays I saw basic things my father always paying actors their dues never letting any production quality slip Ensuring everyone is comfortable because nobodyrsquos doing this for big bucks treating people equallymdashbackstage makeup man or lead actor In our system we pay the same no discrimination letting some travel by train others by air Dad even gave people booze which we donrsquotrdquoOver several vibrant INT years Burjor Patel Productions delighted Gujarati and English drama buffs The Patels left for Dubai in 1988 where Burjor headed Khaleej Timesrsquo marketing operation On their return to Bombay 20 years after I was elated to interview them for a weekend paperFrom 2009 I began recording the journey of 20thcentury Parsi theatre We got closer teaming for the revue based on that book Laughter in the House Helping backstage brought immense fun and learning being around Burjor a master class that was educative and entertaining Dapper in corduroy draping his frail frame he sat quietly sharply observant exchanging views with director Sam Kerawala With enviable zest in the last decade of his life he shone at parallel careers In demand as a model for ads think Vodafone Hitachi Cadbury Havells and starring in film cameos for Kapoor amp Sons Brothers and the awardwinning Jonaki in Bengali Not forgetting how fulsomely he encouraged community spark energetically masterminding the Draame Bawas and Bawas GotTalent contestsAmong rare playwrights writing fresh Gujarati scripts Meherzad Patel partner Silly Point Productions admires ldquoBurjor Uncle sent us an email the day after watching our shows giving such good feedback Never too critical never full of praise Always on point Hersquos the one who pushed us to do shows in Dubai a true godfather The icing on the cake being an exclusive short sketch I got to write for him and Ruby Aunty where they complain about the new Parsi Airlines not being Parsi enough To see them so beautifully act out onersquos words even at their age is a benchmark one strives to reachrdquoBumping into Dabholkar at the CCI before lockdown Burjor shared happy ambitions for what he conceived as Parsi Bottoms UpmdashldquoAt 90 he had the enthusiasm to plan that as his last hurrah I hope one day it will happen Till then hersquoll find most of the original Bottoms Up gang in heaven who keep the gods laughing as only they can Bottoms up to you Burjor Cheersrdquo