How Amrish Puri married his beloved is a story that his grandson, actor Vardhan, tells. “Dadu and my Dadi Urmila Divekar met at ESIC (Employee State Insurance Co.) where they both worked as clerks. Dadi was very shy and preferred not speaking to men. My grandfather was a strapping Punjabi munda and was attracted to her.
One day post work he asked her to be his badminton partner for the day as his regular partner was absent. She, also a sportswoman, reluctantly agreed and they enjoyed a good game on the court. Later they went for coffee and that’s when the fondness grew on both the sides. They started meeting post office hours in South Mumbai and soon they were in love.
A few years later, when they expressed their desire to get married, there was strong family opposition since Dadu was Punjabi and Dadi South Indian, but soon the family came around and the two got married in January 1959. My Dadu and my Dadi continued to be romantic with each other till the very end, and I find that adorable. He and she often held hands even while they were fast asleep.”
Not many know that Amrish Puri was a Shiv Bhakt. “He was a Shivji bhakt and believed in the magic of yoga, which he preferred doing early in the morning in our garden. As an actor, he was extremely observant of the common man, constantly making notes in a small leather diary of human behaviour and reproducing it in a character he would play possibly years later.
He was extremely punctual, disciplined, and passionate regarding his work. I used to often find him coming home after shoots at 12 midnight and rehearsing scenes until 3 a.m. and then waking up at 5:30 a.m. and leaving for shoot again. I never saw him tired. I don’t know how he did it. He preferred speaking less and listening more to people speaking. His mantra in life was ‘When you become a successful man, do not increase your standard of living, in fact increase your standard of giving.’ I miss my Dadu dearly.
My grandfather Amrish Puri was and is, my best friend, my God, my guide, my life guru, and my acting teacher. He was a gentle giant in real life, obsessed with us, his grandchildren, and was a very childlike person with a great sense of humour. Despite his success, he enjoyed the simple things of life. Watching Chaplin’s brilliant work in our home theatre while gorging on traditional Punjabi food together was our favourite thing to do on Sundays when he wasn’t shooting or dubbing. He loved cuddling and play wrestling with me.”
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