Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under R.N.I 53640/91
Vol. XXXI No. 3, May 16-31, 2021
An Old Madras Friendship
by Rochelle Shah
Sowcar Janaki in her younger days.
In December 1956, my husband – late Shantilal Shah and I came on a trip to Madras. His brief? To expand the business and office (premises?). I came along for the ride. It was my first trip to this city. We booked into The Ambassador Hotel on Mount Road (now the Head Quarters of Indian Overseas Bank).
In that first week we were invited to a Filmland Party at Majestic Studios, Kodambakkam. We drove along empty roads till we had to stop at a Railway Crossing – gates tightly shut – We waited and watched as a goods train trundled along, then a passenger train went past. We waited and waited. But the gate remained shut and the gate keeper was nowhere to be seen. Probably got bored and gone off for a cup of “Kafee”. We sat there, quite confused, wondering if we should leave.
After like what seemed hours, two three cars pulled up behind us and the gentlemen came to speak to my husband. The next moment I was being ushered out of the car and we all walked across the rail tracks where a few cars were parked to take us to the party. You had to be an old Kodambakkam hand to know how simple it was to get there!
As we walked across the vast grounds, my heart sank again. On one side there was a huge shamiana where all the men were standing and at some distance, there was a semi circle of chairs were the women were seated. Not a word was said. No introductions made. They smiled, I smiled. Meaning well, but they had no idea who I was or what I was doing there. I myself wondered what I was doing here and wished – yet again – that I had never come, and made up my mind that in future I would let my husband attend alone.
And then – like a gust of fresh air enveloped in perfume, wearing a peacock blue silk sari, came this tiny lady, with a wide welcoming smile: Hello, you must be Mrs. Shantilal. I just met your husband and I’ve come across to say hello and see that you are looked after. She sat me down with a glass of juice and she said I know you are new to Madras, and miss your family but don’t worry, I will stay in touch.
She kept her word. Two days later, she phoned and we went to see a movie. Watching movies was our relaxation. But I never visited her sets. Work is work not to be confused with relaxation. She took me along the famous Marina Beach. We went to The Mylapore Temple. I bought my first pure silk sari for the princely sum of Rs.175/- at Arni Silk House. She had a hectic shooting schedule but she always found time to stay in touch.
She invited us for dinner to her home at Giri Road. Even though she had household help, she enjoyed being in the kitchen. She was a cook par excellence. She had never attended Drama School or Dialogue Coaching Classes. FTII did not exist at that time. Similarly, she had never enrolled in any cooking classes or referred to volumes of recipe book. These were God Given instinctive talents.
My husband and I had extended our stay in Madras and found our ideal home. Between our hectic schedules we stayed in touch and she was delighted to see me settling down. The years went by By the Grace of God, we still live there. The children were born, grew up, school, university. And coincidentally, she moved from Giri Road and built her own lovely home on Cenotaph Road. We were within walking distance of each other now. We did not see each other regularly but stayed in touch with a phone call, a note or a quick visit. Suddenly there would be a call: Are you free to come and see a trial? I was very impressed with her performance in Iru Kodugal.
Sowcar Janaki at a Madras Week event.
We have never talked about this but I am very disappointed and very annoyed that after all these years devoted to the Film Industry and her many outstanding performances, she has NEVER been honoured by the Government of India with a Padma Bhushan at the very least. She has not lacked in so many other awards like Best Actress, Outstanding Achievement. Janaki is not bothered by the way she has been overlooked but this negligence is beyond my understanding.
She decided to settle in the US and open an Indian Restaurant. We said our farewells but within a few months she returned to Madras. “I need to be in India” is all she said. She then became a partner in The Coconut Grove outdoor Restaurant on Harrington Road, cooking personally and then moving about, chatting with the diners to get their personal feedback on various aspects of the Restaurant.
After some time with this, she, her beautiful sister, the actress Krishna Kumari and a few other close friends decided to retire to Whitefields in Bangalore.
She may have wanted to retire to Whitefields but she was flooded with scripts, calls, visits and eventually she was travelling back and forth between Bangalore, Madras and Hyderabad for film work – including ads.
I have no idea what plans she had made for the sojourn at Whitefields but within days she was flooded with calls from fellow actors, producers and directors with detailed scripts. An actress of her caliber to be sitting at Whitefields? Eventually, she gave way to the pressure and she was back, travelling to Hyderabad, Mysore, Kerala, working on films, TV and ads.
