Veeru Devgan: A True King of Stunts & Action in Bollywood

A runaway lured by love for the world of glamour, Veeru Devgan fled from his home to Mumbai to become a hero but he became an acclaimed action choreographer with over hundred films from ‘Roti Kapda Aur Makaan’ to ‘Khoon Bhari Maang’ under his belt. Devgan's schlep and talent in action stunts was superb against the backdrop of a technologically-challenged environment. He was a genius in choreographing fights/stunts on the silver screen when there were no facilities available. His contribution to the cinema in a pre-VFX era is unparallel and he was always ahead of his times. Veeru Devgan, a legend of Hindi cinema, left his mark at a time when ‘pure action’ was the order of the day. He was heavily influenced by the Sikh Martial spirit and he learnt martial arts to pursue a career as a stuntman. He had the knack of bringing new techniques in action scenes and kept abreast with ever-changing technological advances in the world of action films.

Action/stunt films have been adding spice to Bollywood Cinema for ages. In Arabian Nights, historical and fantasy genre movies, the death defying stunts like sword fight and fist stuff on the roof edge of a fort or on the top of a hill, jumping from the top of a palace/fort straight on the back of a horse, blasting the sets etc. were performed by the bold stuntmen, who also use to work as double of the prominent artists of the film. In the early talkie era, the illustrious Wadia Brothers produced many stunt movies with Nadia the blue-eyed, ballet-trained, big-hipped, blonde Scot as the heroine. She became the stunt queen as the huge audience used to line up to watch her whip-wielding the evil doers, the puff-puff of train engines, horse races and a stuntwoman nuzzling lions. 

The bollywood fightmasters/stunt composers like M.H. Douglas, Azim Bhai, M.B. Shetty, Ravi Khanna, Mansoor, Gani Bhai, Burhannudin, Master Robert etc. use to stage daring actions/stunts in the movies during 50s to 70s. In the later years, viewers watched with awe, the undaunted stuntmen running on the roof of moving train, jumping from heights, breaking through glass, taking a big leap from one sky scrapper to the other, driving motorcycle or any four wheel vehicle at breakneck speed etc. executed by action directors like Veeru Devgan and his contemporaries.

Veeru Devgan was born in a Ramgarhia carpenter family of Sharifpura, Amritsar (Punjab) in 1942. Since childhood, he had passion for movies and dreamt to be an actor. With this ambition, he boarded the Mumbai bound Frontier Mail when he was hardly 14 years of age. The adolescent Veeru was caught without ticket at Virar Railway Station. Being penniless, he had to cool his heels behind bars for a week. After release from the jail, he decided to stay in Mumbai till he made his name in the film industry. In the interim, he started cleaning taxis and working part-time as a carpenter. He simultaneously began circling the film studios, hoping he'd get a chance as an actor. Soon realization came to him that among the breed of chocolate Heros, his more conventional mug had no chance. So he gave up the struggle and returned to chipping wood. However, he vowed to make his first son a ‘hero’.

His grand-uncle took him back to Amritsar, where he started working as a tempo driver. But his love for the films brought him back to Bombay. He resumed his aborted career and also took up free-style wrestling. He learnt the art of choreographing the fight/action scenes from well-known Action Director Ravi Khanna. He got his first break as a stunt man in the film ‘Anita’, however, the film didn't see the light of day. After a long and arduous time as a stunt man, Devgan got his first break as a fight director in Manoj Kumar's Roti Kapda Aur Makaan. Thereafter, his career picked up and he never looked back.

There was much more to Veeru Devgan than being Ajay Devgn’s father and Kajol’s father-in-law. He did to action direction in Bollywood what Saroj Khan did to choreography and stunts/action direction came to be known as an art form. He ruled the action films scenario from mid-seventies to nineties. During this period, he composed some of the most audacious and daring action sequences for Bollywood leading men be it Dilip Kumar, Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Rajesh Khanna, Rakesh Roshan, Shatrughan Sinha or Jeetendra. He made all of them look larger than life. The fight/action sequences looked real when Veeru composed them, every hero of that era wanted Veeru’s fight actions to look heroic.

Veeru Devgan, the architect of fight/action scenes in many iconic films and coordinator extraordinaire, brought in innovative action sequences and executed them to perfection. His body of work included films like Roti Kapda Aur Makaan,  Inkaar, Mr Natwarlal, Kranti, Himmatwala, Mr. India, Prem Rog, Biwi-O-Biwi, Kranti, Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Shahenshah, Tridev, Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri, Khel Khel Mein, Sattay Pe Satta, Singhasan, Khud Gharz, Desh Premee, Vijay Path, Aaj Ka Arjun, Mr. India, Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja, Khoon Bhari Maang, Ram Teri Ganga Maili, Prem Granth, Haqeeqat, Dilwale, Jigar, Phool Aur Kaante, Dilwale and Laal Badshah etc.

He had appeared in cameo roles in few films like Sar Utha Ke Jiyo, Kranti, Mr. Natwarlal, Sourabh, Singhasan, Muqabla and Ek Khiladi Bawan Pattey. He wrote the story of the film Jigar. Famous stunt and action choreographer Veeru Devgan ventured into direction with Hindustan Ki Kasam (1999), starring Ajay Devgn, Amitabh Bachchan, Manisha Koirala and Sushmita Sen. Wonder how many jailbirds went on to direct Amitabh Bachchan. It was Veeru Devgan, Director-producer of Hindustan Ki Kasam who honed this karishma. He spotted and groomed many stunt-man, action chorepgraphers, including Sham kaushal. He was a fabulous human being and for him the safety of actors and his fighter team was of utmost importance.

Almost all the fight masters, initially entered in the industry as stuntman and use to perform dare devil acts. After slogging for years and observing their masters, the lucky ones graduated to fight-masters or action director/co-ordinators. The case of famed fight composer Veeru Devgan was also similar to other unsung stunt men, but with his skill in performing high intensity stunts and fearless spirit, he became fight co-ordinator in comparatively younger age. He could make the most impossible and hair-raising action scenes appear simple. One of his memorable action scenes was filmed in ‘Phool Aur Kaante’ (1991), where his son Ajay blazes on the screen balancing perfectly on two parallel running bikes.

Veeru worked very hard to establish his son Ajay as hero in the Bollywood. He got him enrolled in dance classes and made a gym, Horse riding followed. Veeru taught him the skills of filmmaking, action direction and added him to his action team. Veeru Devgan’s single-minded devotion got Ajay a lead role in ‘Phool Aur Kaante’. Ajay Devgn had called Veeru the "true Singham". Veeru came to Bombay with only four rupees in his pocket, wanting to become something. He struggled, washed and lived in taxis. His growth from nowhere to become India’s topmost action director is remarkable. “As a kid and being an action director’s son, I still had the same lifestyle I have today, including owning a Mercedes. He had 50 stitches in his head and had broken every bone in his body. Death hovers over a stuntman he escaped narrowly many a times. Almost every bone in his body got broken. So no one else can be my Singham."

Amitabh revealed how from his humble beginnings of a stand-in, Devgan went on to become one of the leading stunt directors in Bollywood. Sharing a story from the sets of Reshma Aur Shera (1971), Amitabh wrote, “The legendary Action Master/Director, Ravi Khanna was conducting a dummy rehearsal on a stand-in, for the scenario where Sunil Dutt was being beaten up by the village rouge. Khanna was renowned for his authenticity when conducting stunts. He was lashing the stand-in and with each lash I could see the pain and agony on the stand-in’s face, but he continued to complete the scene dummy rehearsal, to perfection. The stand-in getting the lashing was none other than Veeru Devgan.

A fabulous human-being and legendary stunt-man, action director Veeru Devgan died on 27 May, 2019 in Mumbai after a prolonged illness.  He is survived by wife Veena Devgn, two sons Ajay and Anil Devgn and two daughters Kavita and Neelam Devgn.