Golden Era of Bollywood: Chetan Anand was a role model for Dev Anand

Friday 17 August 2018

Chetan Anand was a role model for Dev Anand

It was 75 years ago before coming to Bombay Dev Anand visited the famous Doon School at Dehra Dun to spend time with his elder brother, whom he idolised. The elder brother was a teacher of history, English theatre and tennis at this prestigious institution, which was then just eight years old.
Dev hero-worshipped Chetan, who was a tennis player (he had played at Wimbledon), swimmer, appeared for the ICS (now IAS) exams at England and spoke fluent flawless English. "I had always looked up to my brother. He was a model of everything I admired, handsome, intellectual, fashionable, England-returned, and now teaching in one of the most elite schools of the country," he writes in his biography.
Dev Anand admits that it was Chetan who inspired a style in him. The Doon School and Chetan together taught him many a thing about personality, and with it he evolved his own unique style that he was perhaps known for as much as he was celebrated for his acting.
During his visits to the school, Dev came to learn "the manners of a proper Englishman". He writes that Chetan taught him table manners as "he put me amongst the affluent, pick-of-the-upper class students at Doon School, with their spick - and span-manners - breakfasting and dining on tables laid out for them by uniformed khansamas.
He would wear his brother's big leather boots, imported from London, as well as his woollen check-shirt, black and maroon, typically English, both of which he loved to flaunt.
Chetan Anand, the elder brother of Dev worked at the Doon School from 1940 to 1944. In 1944, he resigned from the job and started his journey towards becoming a writer, actor and director. His first film as a director - "Neecha Nagar" went on to win the Golden Palm in the very first year of the Cannes Film Festival!
Chetan's erudite, polished and sophisticated personality, which one can see in films like Haqeeqat and Hindustan ki Kasam, greatly inspired young Dev
The two brothers worked as a team under their Navketan banner, doing films like Afsar, Andhiyan, Taxi Driver and Funtoosh. They then parted ways with Chetan forming his own company. Dev retained the Navketan banner. The brother whom he held in high regard went another way, professionally.
Chetan Anand appeared in Humsafar made in 1957. In 1957 he directed two movies Arpan and Anjali, in which he played lead roles too. He went on to act in Kala Bazar, Kinare-Kinare, Aman, Kanch Aur Heera and Hindustan Ki Kasam, which he directed too.