Director of Thodisi Bewafaii’ and Bulundi’ passes away

Film director EsmayeelShroff, who delivered aclutch of box-office winners such as ‘Thodisi Bewafaii’ and ‘Bulundi’ in the 1980s and who gave opportunities to a bunch of newcomers, notably Govinda (‘Love 86’) and Kunal Kapoor (‘Ahista Ahista’), passed away at a Mumbai hospital on Wednesday.

- Avijit.Ghosh

Shroff made his debut as a director with ‘Agar’ (1977), a suspense thriller starring Amol Palekar and Zarina Wahab. The film flopped but Shroff ’s stock soared after he showcased his felicity in handling a variety of themes. ‘Thodisi Bewafaii’ (1980), a silver jubilee hit which he also wrote, was a conservative family social.

‘Bulundi’ (1981) displayed his flair for creating engrossing action drama. ‘Ahista Ahista’ was a sub-par critique of the Devda si system, with elements of youthful romance. Nonetheless, the TOI wrote in its film review, “the director does display a rare grasp of the medium, knowing exactly when to cut away from a scene.”

Tinsel town was also impressed by Shroff ’s ability to extract remarkably restrained performances from the flamboyant Raaj Kumar (‘Bulundi’) and the mannerism-ridden Rajesh Khanna (‘Thodisi Bewafaii’).