Damn It Ani Barach Kahi By Mahesh Kothare

मराठी, हिंदी व गुजराती चित्रपट-मालिकांतून बालकलाकार ते सिनेदिग्दर्शक म्हणून झेप घेणारे, थ्री-डी सारख्या नवनवीन तंत्रज्ञानाचा सतत ध्यास घेणारे महेश कोठारे म्हणजे, धाडसी व धडाकेबाज व्यक्तिमत्त्व. ‘बालकलाकार’ ते ‘मराठी चित्रपट दिग्दर्शक’ हा त्यांचा प्रवास म्हणजे– ‘मनोरंजन विश्वाच्या समुद्रात घेतलेली धाडसी उडी!’ आई जेनिमा व डॅडींचे आपल्या मुलाला समजून घेणे, भरभक्कम आधार बनणे, हेच महेशजींच्या आयुष्यातील पहिले यशाचे गमक. वादळात स्वत:ला झोकून देऊन ‘कलेची पूजा’ करण्याचं, अस्सल मनोरंजनाचा आनंद रसिकांना देण्याचं भाग्य त्यांना लाभलं. कृष्ण-धवल चित्रपट ते रंगीत चित्रपटांचा प्रवास व इतिहासाचे साक्षीदार म्हणून महेश कोठारे हे नाव गौरवाने घेतले जाते. सिनेसृष्टीतील जेष्ठ-दिग्गजांचा महेशजींना मिळालेला सहवास व प्रदीर्घ अनुभव नवीन ज्ञानात भर घालणाराच ठरला. कलेची साधना, मनाचे हळवेपण, घोर अडचणींवर केलेली मात, एक सच्चा कलावंत कुठल्या मुशीतून घडतो, तावून-सुलाखून निघतो याची साक्ष खर्‍या अर्थाने ‘डॅम इट व बरेच काही’ मधून दिसते. एक कलावंत व माणूस म्हणून उलगडत जाणारा त्यांचा हा प्रवास, झालेल्या चुकांचे प्रायश्चित्त, दिलदार मित्र व मनस्वी लक्ष्याचं चटका लावून जाणं, सतत नवीन प्रयोग व अथक कष्ट, हिंदी-मराठी सिनेमांतील कलात्मक योगदान, जिद्द ही प्रयत्नवादाला साद घालणारी. या पुस्तकातून महेशजी आपल्याशी बोलत आहेत, चाहत्यांशी व रसिक वाचकांशी मनापासून, खिलाडूपणे संवाद साधत आहेत... असेच वाटत राहते, हेच या पुस्तकाचे मर्मस्थान व एका सच्च्या कलावंताचे जीवनगाणे... MAHESH KOTHARE: A NAME FAMILIAR TO THE MARATHI, HINDI AND GUJRATI CINE WORLD AND DAILY SOAPS. HE STARTED AS A CHILD ARTIST AND IS A VERY POPULAR DIRECTOR TODAY. HE IS FOND OF THE NEWEST TECHNOLOGY, LIKE 3D. A DARING AND DASHING PERSONALITY, HIS JOURNEY FROM A ‘CHILD ARTIST’ TO THE ‘DIRECTOR OF MARATHI CINEMA’ IS IMPRESSIVE. IT IS A COURAGEOUS JUMP IN THE OCEAN OF ENTERTAINMENT. BEING RECOGNISED TRULY BY HIS MOTHER JENMA AND DADDY IS HIS FIRST SUCCESS. THEY WERE HIS STRONG PILLARS. HE WAS LUCKY TO WORSHIP THE ‘ART’ INSPITE OF FACING THE STORMS. HE PROVIDED PURE ENTERTAINMENT FOR THE AUDIENCE. HE IS AN ESTEEMED WITNESS TO THE HISTORY OF CINEMA AND ITS JOURNEY FROM BLACK & WHITE MOVIES TO THE EASTMAN COLOURS. HE WAS LUCKY TO BE IN THE COMPANY OF SENIORS FROM THIS FIELD. HIS EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE INCREASED HIS KNOWLEDGE BANK FURTHER. ‘DAMN IT ANI BARACH KAHI’ IS A REPRESENTATION OF ALL THE UPS AND DOWNS IN HIS LIFE, HIS PENANCE FOR ART, HIS SENSITIVITY, HIS VICTORY OVER TROUBLES AND HIS TIME-TESTED MANTLE. HIS JOURNEY WAS THAT OF A HUMAN AND AN ARTIST. HE REPENTED FOR HIS MISTAKES. HE HAD TO LOSE HIS DEAR FRIEND ‘LAKSHYA’, A GEM OF A PERSONALITY. HE EXPERIMENTED WITH ALMOST EVERY MOVIE, NEVER STEPPED BACK, AND PUT IN ACTIVE EFFORTS IN BOTH THE HINDI AND MARATHI CINE WORLD. HIS PERSEVERANCE IS BASED ON ‘KEEP ON TRYING’. MAHESH IS A UNIQUE FORMULA HIMSELF. THROUGH HIS BOOK, HE COMMUNICATES WITH US. GETS CONNECTED TO HIS FANS AND ARDENT READERS. HIS SPORTING NATURE IS OBVIOUS. THIS IS THE STRENGTH OF THE BOOK, AND THIS IS THE LIFE SONG OF A TRUE ARTIST.