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An era does come to an end with the sale of RK Studios: Padmini Kolhapure
You can sense the disappointment in actor Padmini Kohlapure’s voice when you talk to her about the iconic RK Studios being put up for sale by the Kapoor family.
“There were so many films that I had shot for inside the studio [premises],” she says, “Prem Rog (1982), Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978)... I probably must have shot for 20-25 films definitely.”
She reminisces, “I have very distinct, great memories of the time, especially when I was doing films for the RK banner. When you are an RK heroine, they take you to the moon! I also have memories connected [with other things], right from Raj uncle’s cottage, where he used to sit and literally rule the industry and Indian cinema. The stages there were so lovely, and big. In those days, it was one of the state-of-the-art-studios.”
Sadly, RK Studios has been losing shoot bookings to the newer, more conveniently located Film City, and the final blow might have been a huge fire last year, destroying not only infrastructure but an entire legacy.
“All the memorabilia of RK films was destroyed in the fire. It was heartbreaking. I was told by another reporter that my costumes from Prem Rog were destroyed. It’s painful,” Padmini says.
Does she feel that the sale will bring an entire era to an end? The actor says,
“I guess it’s an amicable decision; all the Kapoors are together in it. Otherwise, you see so many others with so many disputes and fights over property. I guess it does come to an end.”
But the Insaf Ka Tarazu (1980) actor signs off on a chirpy note: “There used to be so many festivals that’d be celebrated inside the studio. I was a part of them.
The Ganpati celebrations, and, of course, during Raj Kapoor’s glory days, the Holi party, for which we all used to wait eagerly. The entire industry would be there. There are also many memories attached with Rishi Kapoor’s wedding.”