Prakash Mehra (13 July 1939 – 17 May 2009) was a legendary Indian film director and producer known for his work in

Hindi films Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

. He was one of the pioneers of

masala film Masala films of Indian cinema mix multiple genres into one work. Masala films emerged in the 1970s and are still created as of the 2020s. Typically these films freely mix action, comedy, romance, and drama or melodrama. They also tend to be ...

s, along with

Nasir Hussain Mohammad Nasir Hussain Khan (16 November 1926 — 13 March 2002), better known as Nasir Hussain, was an Indian film producer, director, and screenwriter. With a career spanning decades, Hussain has been credited as a major trendsetter in the ...

, and

Manmohan Desai Manmohan Desai (26 February 1937 – 1 March 1994) was an Indian film producer and director. He was one of the most successful filmmaker of the 70s and 80s. Desai is now considered one of most influential film director of Bollywood and a pionee ...

. His collaborations with the actor

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...

resulted in several box office blockbusters and classics.

Career

Born on 13 July 1939 in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh, Mehra started in the late 1950s as a

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

controller. In 1968, he directed

Shashi Kapoor Shashi Kapoor (pronounced �əʃi kəpuːɾ (born Balbir Raj Kapoor; 18 March 1938 – 4 December 2017) was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his work in Hindi films. A recipient of several accolades, including four Nation ...

who played a double role in ''

Haseena Maan Jayegi ''Hasina Maan Jayegi'' () is a 1968 Hindi film directed by Prakash Mehra. The film stars Shashi Kapoor, Babita, Ameeta, Yunus Parvez and Johnny Walker. The film's music, composed by Kalyanji Anandji, has songs which are quite memorable, with t ...

''. . In 1973, he produced and directed '' Zanjeer''. This hit with

started a long term and successful collaboration that spanned 7 more films, 6 being blockbuster hits: '' Hera Pheri'', ''

Khoon Pasina ''Khoon Pasina'' ( hi, खून पसीना, ''Blood and Sweat'') is a 1977 Hindi action crime film. The movie is produced by Baboo Mehra and directed by Rakesh Kumar. The movie stars Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Rekha, Nirupa Roy, Asran ...

'', ''

Muqaddar Ka Sikandar ''Muqaddar Ka Sikandar'' () is a 1978 Indian drama film produced and directed by Prakash Mehra, and written by Kader Khan, Vijay Kaul and Laxmikant Sharma. It stars Amitabh Bachchan, in his fifth of nine films with Prakash Mehra to date, along w ...

'', '' Lawaaris'', ''

Namak Halaal ''Namak Halaal'' () is a 30 April 1982 Indian masala film, directed by Prakash Mehra and written by Kader Khan. The film stars Shashi Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Smita Patil, Parveen Babi, Waheeda Rehman, Om Prakash, Ranjeet, Satyen Kappu in pivo ...

'' and ''

Sharaabi ''Sharaabi'' ( en, Drunkard, italic=yes) is a 1984 in film, 1984 Indian Hindi language, Hindi comedy drama film produced and directed by Prakash Mehra. This was Mehra's sixth film with Amitabh Bachchan. Sharaabi stars Amitabh Bachchan and Jay ...

''. Their final collaboration was '' Jaadugar'' which was a flop and ended their successful streak. ''Zanjeer'' was the film credited with launching the career of Bachchan as a lead actor and their final film together ''Jaadugar'' was released towards the declining period of Bachchan's career. Prakash Mehra also directed & produced ''

Zindagi Ek Jua ''Zindagi Ek Juaa'' () is a 1992 Hindi tragedy drama film directed and produced by Prakash Mehra. It stars Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Shakti Kapoor, Suresh Oberoi, Anupam Kher, Amrish Puri in pivotal roles. The music was composed by Bappi Lahi ...

'' with actor

Anil Kapoor Anil Kapoor (born 24 December 1956) is an Indian actor and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, besides television and international films and television. In a career spanning over 40 years as an actor and since 2005 as a producer, Kapo ...

in 1991, which was not a commercial success. In 1996, he introduced veteran actor

Raaj Kumar Raaj Kumar (born Kulbhushan Pandit; 8 October 1926 3 July 1996) was an Indian actor who worked in Hindi films. He appeared in the Oscar-nominated 1957 film ''Mother India'' and starred in over 70 Hindi films in a career that spanned over four ...

's son

Puru Raaj Kumar Puru Raaj Kumar (born 30 March 1970) is an Indian actor who works in Bollywood films. He is the son of actor Raaj Kumar and is married to Croatian model Koraljika Grdak. Early life and education He was a student of Gettysburg College where h ...

in '' Bal Bramhachari'' which was also unsuccessful. This was the last film he directed. He also produced the movie ''

Dalaal ''Dalaal'' is a 1993 Indian action drama film produced by Prakash Mehra and directed by Partho Ghosh, starring Mithun Chakraborty, Ayesha Jhulka in lead roles; Raj Babbar as the main antagonist. The film fetched good initial box-office collectio ...

'' with

Mithun Chakraborty Mithun Chakraborty (born Gouranga Chakraborty; 16 June 1950) is an Indian actor, producer and politician who predominantly worked in Hindi and Bengali language films. He is a former Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament. He is the recipient of three ...

, in the mid-90s, which was a box-office moneymaker. Mehra received a lifetime achievement award from the India Motion Picture Directors Association (IMPDA) in 2006. He also received Lifetime Achievement as Producer from IMPPA (Indian Motion Picture Producers Association) on 19 September 2008. Prakash Mehra was one of the first Bombay directors to try venture into

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

. In the late eighties he tried a joint venture to make the movie ''The God Connection'' with Frank Yandolino. The movie was to include Hollywood actors such as

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and war ...

among others, but the project though funded heavily initially, never came to fruition. Mehra died on 17 May 2009 in Mumbai of pneumonia and multiple organ failure.

Filmography

As Director

As Producer

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mehra, Prakash 1939 births 2009 deaths Deaths from multiple organ failure Deaths from pneumonia in India Hindi-language film directors Film producers from Uttar Pradesh People from Bijnor 20th-century Indian film directors Film directors from Uttar Pradesh People from Bijnor district