Watch: On Day 6 of Delhi Literature Festival 2021, Yasser Usman talks about Guru Dutt and his enduring enigma

The sixth and the final day of the Delhi Literature Festival 2021 concluded with a session on actor Guru Dutt, with journalist-writer Yasser Usman talking about his new book Guru Dutt: An Unfinished Story. The conversation took a closer look at why, even after 57 years since his passing, Guru Dutt continues to dominate conversations on Hindi cinema and captures the imaginations of cinephiles world over. Usman answered questions on why, after having profiled Rekha, Rajesh Khanna and Sanjay Dutt, he chose to travel all the way back to the 1940s and 50s to document the life and times of Guru Dutt — a man on whom a significant body of literature already exists. The writer spoke extensively on his interactions with the actor’s sister, artist Lalitha Lajmi, whose memories and recollections form the basis of the book. He spoke on Guru Dutt’s pursuit for artistic perfection and his temperamental ways that often left people disappointed and upset with him; his hypocrisy of showing independent women in his films while disallowing his wife Geeta Dutt from pursuing a career after marriage, and his struggles with his mind at a time when mental health awareness did not exist. Watch the session here —