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Bollywood's quintessential villan, Prem Chopra, who was born in Lahore, was once invited by Zia-ul-Haq, the former President of Pakistan to visit the neighbouring country.
During Partition, the 88-year-old versatile actor's family relocated from Lahore to Shimla where he was raised. In an exclusive interview with ANI, the thespian said, "In Lahore, I used to stay in Krishna Gali. There were many galis, I stayed in Gali No 5. After so many years, someone in Pakistan found my house and featured it on television." Chopra said that he got a chance to see his childhood home on TV. Asked whether he had ever returned to the place of his birth, Chopra said that he had received an invite by Zia-ul-Haq to visit Lahore, but he was unable to go. "Mujhe invitation aya tha Zia ul haq sahib ka, lekin us samay main Delhi mein tha, main aur Shatru (Shatrughan Sinha) aur Yash Johar jaane vaale lekin the ...I got very busy and then suddenly that very day I had fever so I couldn't do it." In 1999, the late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee travelled from Amritsar to Lahore in a bus which Bollywood legend Dev Anand, writer Javed Akhtar and cricket icon Kapil Dev. Chopra reiterated the Punjabi saying "Jis Lahore Nai Dekhya O Jamyai Nai" a Punjabi saying that means "one who hasn't seen Lahore has not lived." "Abhi bhi there are dramas, very good dramas.. you should see them," Chopra said. "Lahore was a chota sa shahar (small city) and my father was a government service he was transferred to Shimla after Partition ... We left Lahore seven days prior in 1947, I used to hear that there was chaos everywhere, I did not understand much and used to be lost in my own world," he said. Chopra said there were many theatres, such as Gaiety that was recently remodelled, in the city that was the preferred summer capital of the Britishers. He recalled that he too developed an interest in acting and took part in plays in his college days. The actor said that recently he visited Shimla and essayed the role of Shakespeare's villain 'Shylock' in a play. "One special thing about Shimla was that there were many theatres nearby. I, recently, went to Shimla after many years and I performed the role of Shylock in an English play. I was happy about that as it was very well accepted by the people. And there I got the best actor awards also," he said. Notably, Prem Chopra was often cast in negative villain role in his career that spanned over 60 decades. His roles in 'Bobby,' 'Do Anjaane,' 'Trishul,' 'Kati Patang,' and 'Kaalia' among others captured the imagination of cinegoers of the 1970s and 1980s and he became Bollywood's favourite villain. Prem Chopra was last seen in 'Animal' in a supporting role. He received a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for 'Do Anjaane.' Last year, he also received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 68th Filmfare Awards. (ANI)
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