At the age of 95, and away from the land that inspires his art, painter M.F. Husain has lost none of his legendary flamboyance and passion for life. Here, in an intimate, freewheeling interview with Parvez Ahmed in Dubai, he bares his heart. The artist talks about his early years, his decision to take up Qatari citizenship, his likes and dislikes, and the many things that still keep him going
You penned poetry, or rather shayri, wrote prose and made films. Was canvas and paints not enough to assimilate all your ideas?
I don’t think like that. I used the canvas and paint as my voice for long. But every art has its importance. In my heydays, I did stories and wrote shayri too. It was no more than a hobby. I adopted ‘Haya’ as my nom de plume. My friends used to say jokingly it should be changed to ‘Behaya’. I wrote poetry in English too. Octavio Paz organised a discussion on my poems in Mexico.
What poem was that?
It was titled ‘Landscapes: My Words born in you are yet unspoken’. But film is the most powerful medium to articulate your ideas with force. It has actors, dialogues, songs, music and yes, colours.
Indira Gandhi gave you some responsibility in Films Division and you did a movie. It was mute.
I am a man of paintings. There is no sound in my world. I did the same with the movie camera. Long ago, we did have silent films. The difference was, I did not allow any kind of sound in my film and not the human voice alone.
You have been so closely linked with the film world. Who has been your favourite actor?
The country is yet to see a better actor than Dilip Kumar. But he was a misfit in Mughal-e-Azam. So was Prithviraj Kapoor. Madhubala was the best in the film. I preferred Dilip Kumar in Devdas.
And among directors?
Every one of them stands pale in front of Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak.
And if you have to name a film…
I consider Ray’s Pather Panchali among the top ten films in the world.
You liked Madhubala as well as Madhuri. What parallels did you find?
I loved Madhubala’s smile. But Madhuri’s talent and beauty have no parallels. She can't be compared with anybody. No director used her talent well. Her career passed like that.
I don’t think like that. I used the canvas and paint as my voice for long. But every art has its importance. In my heydays, I did stories and wrote shayri too. It was no more than a hobby. I adopted ‘Haya’ as my nom de plume. My friends used to say jokingly it should be changed to ‘Behaya’. I wrote poetry in English too. Octavio Paz organised a discussion on my poems in Mexico.
What poem was that?
It was titled ‘Landscapes: My Words born in you are yet unspoken’. But film is the most powerful medium to articulate your ideas with force. It has actors, dialogues, songs, music and yes, colours.
Indira Gandhi gave you some responsibility in Films Division and you did a movie. It was mute.
I am a man of paintings. There is no sound in my world. I did the same with the movie camera. Long ago, we did have silent films. The difference was, I did not allow any kind of sound in my film and not the human voice alone.
You have been so closely linked with the film world. Who has been your favourite actor?
The country is yet to see a better actor than Dilip Kumar. But he was a misfit in Mughal-e-Azam. So was Prithviraj Kapoor. Madhubala was the best in the film. I preferred Dilip Kumar in Devdas.
And among directors?
Every one of them stands pale in front of Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak.
And if you have to name a film…
I consider Ray’s Pather Panchali among the top ten films in the world.
You liked Madhubala as well as Madhuri. What parallels did you find?
I loved Madhubala’s smile. But Madhuri’s talent and beauty have no parallels. She can't be compared with anybody. No director used her talent well. Her career passed like that.
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