Little has been done for Uday Shankar, says his wife

Ninety three-year-young Amala Shankar, who will be off to Cannes for screening husband Uday Shankar’s ‘Kalpana’ as part of the Cannes Classics, shares her love story with the iconic dancer...
Are you personally going to Cannes in May for the screening of Uday Shankar’s “Kalpana” that has been restored by Martin Scorsese?
Yes, I will be going to Cannes. I’d want my daughter Mamata and daughter-in-law Tanushree to go with me.“Kalpana” was restored by the World Cinema Foundation of which Martin Scorsese is the founding member. I have interacted with Scorsese regarding the restoration and hope to meet him when I am at Cannes.
Going back in time, how were you first introduced to Uday Shankar?
My father took me to Paris at the age of 11 for an exhibition of our jewellery house. At the show, I was introduced to him and was invited to their residence in Paris. That’s where I first met his (Uday Shankar’s) mother and Robu (Pt Ravi Shankar). I’d often go over to their house, have regular Bengali meals, play with Robu and even change into a sari from my frock. Back then, I used to address him as Borda.
Was it love at first sight?
No. I was completely mesmerized by his art and joined his troupe. At our first show in Belgium, I was so scared with the adulation that I literally ran to the greenroom when I heard the defeaning sound of encore. However, I wasn’t in love with him then. Things changed when one day, I went to see his show in Kolkata. So impressed was I with his performance as Karthik that I actually blurted out in front of my parents and his mother that “this is the man in my life”. Thankfully, nobody asked me any further questions. It was on the insistence of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose (who had seen my performance) that I was sent to the Uday Shankar Dance Centre in Almora.
When did you decide to get married?
On December 8, 1939, we were celebrating his birthday in Chennai. After the party, I had retired to my room when he came in and said that he had decided to get married. “Don’t you want to know the name of the girl?” he had asked. When I nodded in affirmation, he said: “Her name is Amala.” However, it took some years for us to go public with our relationship and we tied the knot in 1942. Though we had an age difference of 19 years, he’d always say we looked good together.
Gossip mills keep talking about the relationship Uday Shankar shared with the French danseuse Simki…
A lot of rubbish has been written on this issue. I have no qualms about saying that I could never do Parvati the way she did. However, I know there was nothing going between my husband and her. Simki was in love with another man.
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Apart from being a dancer, my husband was a magician too. One evening, he was doing a show where he had made a boy levitate. Seeing my apprehensions, Zohra Sehgal, who used to train under my husband, teased me saying: “Amala, you are going to marry this man. He might do black magic!” I was scared and ran to Simki who immediately got rid of my apprehensions. On our wedding, Simki had given us an antique bronze statue of a lady holding a lamp which had the line inscribed saying: “May you keep the lamp of art burning!” Simki is no more but I miss her a lot.
When did work on “Kalpana” begin?
That was in 1934. The story revolved around a young dancer’s dream of setting up an academy. Though many said it was our story, fact is it wasn’t. Guru Dutt, who later became a filmmaker, used to train under my husband in Almora. He would often prod my husband to direct a movie. Shooting for “Kalpana” began in Chennai and my husband insisted on casting unknown faces. My husband told me that you should compose and sing and that’s what I had done. The likes of Rekha and Vyjayanthimala Bali’s mothers would call him up and ask him to cast them. But my husband refused.
While the likes of Martin Scorsese has come ahead to restore “Kalpana”, many feel there isn’t much that India has done for Uday Shankar...
That’s true. India has four icons — Gandhiji, Vivekananda, Tagore and my husband. But how little has been done for him. The former chief minister of Bengal, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy, had insisted that we shift base to Kolkata. He gave due respect to my husband. But what’s happened after that? I doubt if the heritage house in the memory of my husband on Golf Club Road is being properly taken care of. However, I still hope that Bengal will do something.
You often talk about your interactions with Norah Jones and her mother, Sue...
Yes, I do. Sue is a wonderful lady. Decades back, when Norah was a toddler, Sue had come down to Kolkata with Robu. Sue had wanted to visit Belur Math. Norah was very young then and I offered to give her a bath while Sue got ready. The little child was such a darling. Sue and I went to Belur Math and I still have memories of how the two of us had spent the afternoon talking to Bharat Maharaj. Today, when I hear that Norah is so popular globally, it fills my heart with pride. She is truly talented.