Himalay

QAMYAB – THE FORGOTTEN GEMS OF BOLLYWOOD

Qamyab is our humble tribute to all those lesser-known actors, one hit wonders and junior artists who we see umpteen times but don’t know about; beyond their faces. These actors have been an integral part of Bollywood but didn’t get their due. This series is our sincere attempt to put a name to these faces, familiarize them to our readers and celebrate their achievements in life – however big or small. We believe that every artist contributes in his/her own way to the cinema’s success. Qamyab will explore the unknown lives of such actors and artists as we believe even these forgotten gems of Bollywood deserve their due recognition today.

There have been quite a few cases in Bollywood where actors have not been accepted right from their debut film itself. Particularly, the ‘90s era has seen actors who were rejected right from the beginning of their career. Names like Krishan Kumar, Prithvi, Faissal Khan and Himalay Dassani come to mind. These actors tried their luck in the film industry but vanished just as quick.

The recent Salman Khan movie Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan had a surprise cameo for the audience. Along with Bhagyashree, there appeared Himalay in one scene which brought back memories of not only Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) but also Himalay’s famed romance with Bhagyashree. In the film, a fifty plus Himalay looked barely recognizable from what he was in in the early ‘90s, when he debuted as a hero. Then in his early 20s, Himalay had a slim physique and long hair but now, he had gained significant weight with a receding hairline.

Today, we will focus on Himalay or Himalay Dassani as he is better known in business circles and reflect on his short stint in Bollywood. When he entered films, people were quite surprised by his name and wondered whether it actually meant the Himalayan mountains.

Born on 27th November, 1968 in an affluent Sindhi family, Himalay’s parents were Pannalal and Shakuntala. He has a brother and sister named Pankaj and Archana, respectively. Being from a rich business family, Himalay had a comfortable childhood and was known to be quite mischievous in school.

His meeting and subsequent marriage to childhood sweetheart Bhagyashree Patwardhan can make a blockbuster Bollywood script in itself. Both of them went to the same school – Jamnabai Narsee School in Mumbai. Bhagyashree was the class monitor and would often punish Himalay for his mischief. They used to get in to lot of fights as kids. Later, the fight turned to acquaintance and then to mutual admiration. Bhagyashree was said to be weak in Maths and Himalay started teaching her the subject and gradually, love blossomed between the two.

After school, both- Himalay and Bhagyashree- took the mature decision of taking a break for few years and Himalay went to America for his further studies. It was at this time that Bhagyashree got the offer for Sooraj Barjatya’s Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) which she took up. The film became an all-time blockbuster and Bhagyashree became an overnight sensation. Around that time, Himalay was back in town and both rekindled their old romance.

Their marriage was almost a filmy affair as they faced opposition from Bhagyashree’s royal family. The wedding took place in a temple with Himalay’s parents, director Sooraj Barjatya and Salman Khan in attendance. The news of this marriage spread like wild fire the next day and the film industry presumed that Bhagyashree had quit Bollywood forever. However, that wasn’t the case.

Himalay wanted to try out his luck as an actor and so, Bhagyashree expressed her interest to continue in Bollywood but on the condition that her husband Himalay would be her reel hero as well. The couple signed a few films together and their first release in early 1992, was Qaid Mein Hai Bulbul which introduced Himalay in Hindi Cinema. As the opening titles read “Introducing Star Himalay”, the audience was curious to know who was Bhagyashree’s husband and whether he could act…

Qaid Mein Hai Bulbul was a routine love story with oodles of action. It was an ideal launchpad for Himalay who got to romance his real-life wife as well as do plenty of action scenes. Unfortunately, the film received negative reviews from critics who slammed the couple’s performance particularly Himalay’s. The audience also gave a thumbs down to the film and it flopped at the box office.

Two more films – Tyagi and Paayal- featuring the couple followed in 1992. Himalay- Bhagyashree had small roles in Tyagi and the film couldn’t exactly set the box office on fire despite the presence of superstar Rajnikanth as the main lead. Paayal, which had them in lead roles, was again a total disaster at the box office. In fact, it was pulled out of theatres within a week.

With these multiple flops, Himalay bid farewell to acting and decided to concentrate on his business. He did well on the business front and was successful as a consultant for many multinational companies. He became the CEO of Quantum Digital Vision Ltd. in a short time and made it grow multi-fold.

In the new millennium, Himalay decided to invest in films and television and started his company called Shrishti Entertainment Private Limited. In November 2002, he began producing teleserials, including Kagaz Ki Kashti, which aired on Sahara One. This serial had a huge budget of Rs 5 crores and it starred Bhagyashree in the popular character of Arti. Tanha Dil Tanha Safar, a commercial partnership with UTV, was also produced by his company.

In 2018, Himalay’s son Abhimanyu Dassani made his Bollywood debut with the critically acclaimed film Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota. He has also appeared in Meenakshi Sundareshwar (2021) and the more recent Nikamma (2022). His daughter Avantika recently debuted in the web series Mithya (2022).

In a shocking incident in 2019, Himalay was shortly arrested for his alleged involvement in a gambling racket. Bhagyashree tweeted about it extending support to her husband. Fortunately, he was granted bail immediately. The next year, she tweeted again about his successful surgery of right shoulder which incidentally, was performed within a few hours for which she thanked our modern medical system and the dedicated Doctors.

Himalay was not seen on the big screen since 1992 though he made an appearance on TV along with wife Bhagyashree for the series Smart Jodi (2022). It finally took his wife’s co-star Salman Khan to bring him back on celluloid, albeit in a cameo. That scene where he appears alongside Bhagyashree and his son Abhimanyu in Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan got maximum ‘ceetis’ in theatres. That is called nostalgia!!