When crows starred in a Bollywood song, took 'three-month training' from directors: Story of the most unusual film stars

Hindustan Times

10 hours ago

He may be a choreographer and master dance instructor today, but Shiamak Davar had a brief career in front of the camera as well in the 90s. Shiamak sang and performed pop songs like Mohabbat Karle and Shabop. In 1998, he lent his voice to a film soundtrack for the first and only time, and even appeared in the music video. Given that the film was releasing a few months after Dil To Pagal Hai and Taal, one would assume Shiamak must have stolen the show. But he was upstaged by his co-actors of the avian variety - crows. Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate featured Shiamak Davar with a crow. The music video was directed by Vinay Sapru and Radhika Rao.
The song, Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate, featured four crows doing a variety of things with Shiamak. And fans went gaga over them, some even wondering if the crows were real or CGI. We tell you the story behind the audacious music video.
Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate starred Anil Kapoor, Juhi Chawla, Amrish Puri, Anupam Kher, Reema Lagoo, and Sajid Khan. The film, directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee (in his final outing as a director), was about a man habitual of lying. The veteran filmmaker roped in newbies Vinay Sapru and Radhika Rao to direct a music video for the title track composed by Anand Milind and sung by Shiamak.
The genesis of Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate
In an exclusive conversation with HT, Vinay and Radhika recall, 'It was the beginning of our career. We had started making movies when we got a call that Hrishikesh Mukherjee ji wanted to meet us. At that point in our career, it was unbelievable, getting a call from the guru himself. He told us he was doing a film titled Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate, and he wanted a song that depicts the story of the film. We felt that if the narrative has to be told as an OST track, then the crow has to be an integral part of it.'
Vinay Sapru and Radhika Rao directed the music video.
The director-duo, who were fresh out of filmmaking school at the time, say they initially mulled over opting for a puppet or CGI crow, but then decided to go for the real deal, 'knowing Hrishida's style of filmmaking'. Normally, when filmmakers want to use animals, they reach out to animal trainers. Vinay and Radhika did the same, but the trainers were stunned by their request, as nobody trains crows. "They were enthusiastic about the concept," the filmmakers recall, "Still, it was a risk because even they didn't know the behavioural pattern of a crow. They are not kept as pets."
Training the crows
Eventually, the animal trainers sourced four crows, and a three-month training program began. Vinay and Radhika tell us, "What we learnt every crow had a different nature, one was angry, one lazy, one overactive. The song required the crow to do a lot of stuff - have a soft drink, eat some food, sit on Shiamak's shoulder, and even wear a cap. So, we divided those tasks between four crows. And since they looked similar, we knew nobody would be able to tell the difference." The filmmakers named the crows Happy, Sleepy, Grumpy, and Dopey, after four of the seven dwarfs from Snow White's tale.
The end result of the training was a one-of-a-kind music video starring a crow. "I don't know if they used real crows even in Brandon Lee's Crow. But in India, we knew this had not been done. So, we felt honoured to be able to try this," say Vinay and Radhika.
Practical over CGI
It has been 27 years since the music video came out. There have been lots of advancements in CGI and VFX since then. But the directors say they would still want to go the 'traditional' way if they were to recreate the music video. "You can recreate those movements in CGI, too. But every crow has a distinct character that lends realism to the scene. And nothing beats real," they say.
Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate was released in theatres in December 1998 and was a moderate box office success. The song and the music video were particularly popular, topping the charts for weeks.