David Abraham 40 Views
I have always wondered what John Chacha must have felt when he left Mumbai to relocate himself in Canada. After almost 100 + films, compere, promoting sports in India, it was a long journey.
David Abraham was one of the rare actors who belonged to the Jewish faith and yet was a full bodied Marathi.
He started his long journey after graduating in 1930 and then for six years he actually struggled to find employment. Failing to find a job, he finally approached his friend Mr Nayampalli who was a veteran actor and David was cast in a film called Zambo. In the late 30’s, David actually earned a living by doing all kinds of jobs in the film industry from being a clapper boy to an actor but subsequently lost the job.
His next phase was with IPTA and K A Abbas’s films, he was present in all Bollywood films playing the good uncle. Remember Tom Uncle in Baton Baton mein? There were also the odd non uncle roles like the drunkard in Satyakam, Munshi Nandlal in Shatranj Ke Khiladi. His performance in Raj Kapoor’s Boot Polish was iconic and won him the Filmfare Award Award for Best Supporting Actor.
David was also a very popular compere and in fact Pt Nehru had once commented that no event is complete with the closing speech by David!
His active involvement in promoting sports elevated him to become India’s representative at the Olympic Games.
In an interview recorded in 1956, he had said: I have always had a detached attitude towards the film industry, trying conscientiously to do only one thing and that is not to disappoint those who go to see me on the screen.
