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All for a song

Shamila Taliculam

K N Saigal. Click for bigger pic!

There was a generation of singers weaned on his voice. And 51 years after legendary singer Kundan Lal Saigal died, his children are fighting to keep his memory alive, auctioning off valuable heirlooms to open a trust in his name.

That unique sonorous voice earned Saigal quite a few medals and other prizes. These and a few pieces of jewellery are in the custody of the Dena Bank, where Saigal and his wife had a joint account. After their deaths, their son operated it, but without the backing of a nomination form.

Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!

When the bank authorities finally realised what was happening, it stopped the family from operating the account. So Saigal's belongings lay there, gathering dust till some years later, his daughters stirred into action and demanded that the bank release the belongings. Their claim was rejected.

Finally the family decided to depend on the good offices of the Cine Society, which organises film festivals of vintage movies. Secretary Abdul Ali, better known as Alibhai, was a big Saigal fan.

"I feel I could learnt a lot from New Theatres -- where Saigal worked -- and I adored all the stars of that era," he says. Ali started the Cine Society in 1960 with New Theatres owner Nitin Bose as the president.

K N Saigal in President. Click for bigger pic!

The reasons, says Ali, were more sentimental than commercial. For he wanted the coming generations to see the films of that time. The current president is Naushad Ali.

Because of Alibhai's long association with the industry and his proximity to the Saigal family, he tried, and succeeded in, getting the bank to release Saigal's property. The daughters were happy but wondered what to do with the windfall when Ali suggested they auction the items and put the money collected into a trust that would screen Saigal films and keep people informed about the singer and his life.

Ali also intends asking the buyers to donate the belongings to the trust where it could be displayed along with their names.

Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!

Though a recent newspaper report suggested the daughters differed on what to do with the heirlooms, Ali claims there was no trouble of that kind. Saigal's two daughters Bina Chopra and Nina Merchant stay together and all they want is to keep their father's name alive, he says.

Saigal's grandson, Tinnu Chopra, is more vehement. "Why should they fight? All these years the medals and jewellery were in the bank; we didn't really bother to get them out. Ali was starting this trust and that's when we thought it would be good idea to donate these. We just thought that since my grandfather was such a legend, it would be nice to let people know more about him and his films," he says.

K N Saigal. Click for bigger pic!

Ali himself failed to get donations for such a trust the one time he tried. He was also not allowed to hold an auction.

"When I started this society, there was tremendous response. The same thing happened when I talked about the trust. But nobody wanted to give money just like that. So I struck upon this idea." There are a few medals, some jewellery and a few instruments Saigal used to practice on. A building where Saigal used to live is not put up for sale since it would be difficult to get the tenants currently living there to go. That would also be unfair to tenants, says Ali, with the air of one who's learnt to live with what he has to.

Some of the medals being auctioned. Click for bigger pic!

Prices have not been fixed for any of the items. Ali and the Saigal family have decided to take the best price available unless those bidding lower are also willing to donate their purchases to the trust.

"But we can't help it if the buyer doesn't want to donate. If we get a good enough price, we might forgo whatever the person has bought.''

He does not expect trouble with the tax authorities, as suggested by the report we mentioned earlier. "I think when one mentions K L Saigal, one doesn't think of it is as something clandestine... But we can't have a public auction because that's against the law," says Ali.