Balraj Sahni, the man and the actor, through the eyes of his son Parikshat

Actor Balraj Sahni's work in theatre and films was often informed by his political and personal struggles, his son and biographer Parikshat Sahni tells Ranjita Ganesan

Alone in a makeup room of Filmalaya Studios, Balraj Sahni’s hands were shaking over the Remington typewriter he liked to carry everywhere. To his son, then a college student who had just walked in to get a cheque signed by his father, he appeared to be in an uncharacteristically foul mood: “I wondered if somebody had hurt him. He had not been drinking the night before.” As the actor got up — still trembling — and the son offered to steady him, he barked: “Haath kya laga raha hai? (Keep your hands off me).” It became clear later, when he