The Brave Man Behind Tv's 'mahabharata'

When you think of Ravi Chopra, the first word that comes to mind is brave. He always took up subjects that went against the norm. He made The Burning Train when his dad, the veteran filmmaker BR Chopra was making serious, dramatic Hindi films. He decided to make Mahabharat, a mythological epic when Ramayan had already made a history. He also chose to stick out his neck with Baghbaan, a film with a 60-year-old man as a romantic hero when Bollywood was high on Khans and Kumars kind of masala fare. After a hiatus, he once again bounced back as a producer with a Bhootnath that had an eight-year-old kid and a 60-year-old man as its main lead.

If naysayers tried to dissuade him with 'Arrey, yeh risk kyun le rahe ho Ravi, it will not work?' , he would just smile. That was Ravi Chopra- a self assured man and clear about what he was doing. Nothing deterred him, not even the daunting shadow of his legendary father.Growing up under the shadow of BR Chopra, who made Naya Daur and Dhool Ka 

Phool was not easy. The industry always expected him to follow the formula struck by Sr Chopra, it was even more difficult when his more popular and successfull uncle, Yash Chopra began creating history with a larger-than-life cinema with Deewar. But Ravi saab chose to make The Burning Train -  it was a cinema that was much ahead of its time and a very new concept in Hindi films. Ravi managed to rope in the biggest cast of all times - Dharmendra, Vinod khanna, Jeetendra, Hema Malini, Parveen Babi, Neetu Singh, Danny Denzongpa, Vinod Mehra and Simi Garewal.Eight years later, Ravi again came out of his comfort zone and decided to make Mahabharat. 

He knew that Mahabharat would click for its novelty despite what the naysayers had to say, It did and how! Mahabharat was bigger and larger than life, while Ramayan had a soul to it. Mahabharat immediately connected with the younger generation, and became a cult. It spawned many clones after that recently, but for the audience there was only one Mahabharat. It was because Ravi had a vision for every character - Shakuni's limp and sly mannerisms, Krishna's charisma, Draupadi's glamour and grace. 

In 2003, Ravi decided to create a mature romance, and cast Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini in the lead. Will Hindi cinema ever see a beautiful chemistry than this? The answer is no. He was not just another filmmaker. He saw his characters in blood and flesh, while the writers created them on a piece of paper. Baghbaan became the comeback of the biggest star Hindi cinema has ever had (not counting Mohabbatein and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham as it had Shah Rukh Khan to sharing the glory).

With Bhootnath in 2008, Chopra invested in a film that could risk all his money as it had a kid as its central hero and Amitabh Bachchan as the ghost. It was a noval concept where Juhi Chawla had a meatier role than SRK, who just had a special appearance. Bhootnath was a hit, which encouraged Ravi to return as a producer with Bhootnath Returns after six years. But by then, Ravi was ailing. Lung cancer took its toll on his health, and could not involve himself in the filmmaking. He, however, still had a vision and managed to make a political sattire with Bhootnath Returns.

Ravi saab has passed away, but he'll always be remembered for his calm, determination and ... his heartwarming smile.