Ramzan Khan of Bollywood

(A forward on WhatsApp)

Ramzan Khan, a fifteen-year-old illiterate boy from a small town in Gujrat, always wanted to come to Bombay because of his fascination with the movies. He was brought to Bombay by Noor Muhammad Shipra who owned a stable and supplied the horses for the movies. Ramzan Khan started working as a horseshoe repairman in his stable. This was the era of silent movies. Horses were always needed in the movies because, in those days, most of the movies were based on old historical epics where horses were needed for battle scenes. Also, horse-driven tanga was the most common mode of transportation then. Ramzan Khan developed a good rapport with the horses. 

Once during the outdoor shooting, a horse got out of control. Ramzan Khan was there and was able to control the horse. Ardeshir Irani, the famous Indian movie producer, and director were very impressed by this young, handsome, and muscular man. He started giving him roles as an extra in the silent movies made by his Imperial Film Company. By 1931 ‘talkies’ were introduced. Ramzan Khan worked hard and got several lucky breaks. 

He ended up producing and directing several blockbuster movies. He, later, established his own film studio. By the way, he had changed his name to Mehboob Khan. He was totally illiterate. It is rumored that he couldn’t even sign his own name – not confirmed. He died in 1964 at the age of 56. Nehru was his ideal. It is rumored that when he heard the news of Nehru’s death, he had a heart attack (again not confirmed if he indeed had the heart attack for that reason). But, for sure, he died the next day.