Dev Anand turned 80 on September 26 last. While the media and his fans were falling over one another in wishing him many happy returns of the day, the energetic "young" man was out of the country working on his next film. And therein lies the secret elixir that keeps him so youthful even at 80. He loves his work. He loves making films. He draws his energy from his work. People try to rein him in — "Ab chhod do, bahut kar liya kaam. Kyon paisa barbaad kar rahe ho." He says if he were to listen to them he would be finished. So he reads, travels, meets new people: that could give him inspiration for creativity. "The trick is to look forward with excitement and then you’re alive all the time. That is the way to be perennially young," he reveals every time he is asked what keeps him so youthful.

Another secret could be that Dev Anand has a penchant for challenges. Despite flops over the past several years, he moves on to his next film. And he takes pride in saying that he has attempted subjects that no one has. In Hare Rama Hare Krishna he probed the influence of drugs. It was a block-buster with Asha Bhosle’s song Dum maro dum still going strong in the remixes. In Des Pardes he tackled the problem of illegal immigrants in the UK. In Swami Dada he dwelt on an illegitimate child of a holy man. In Awwal Number he combined the idea of sports and the threat of bombs. And the recent Censor was about the freedom of expression.

Dev Anand, the eternal optimist, has been at it since 1946 when his first film Hum Ek Hain was made. In 1950, he came out with his own banner Navketan and produced Afsar. Then there were the golden oldies like Baazi, Taxi Driver, Funtoosh, Nau Do Gyarah, Hum Dono, Kala Paani, Kala Bazar, Tere Ghar Ke Samne, Asli Naqli and Guide. After that, he switched over to direction also. He made Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Jaaneman, Des Pardes, Ishq, Ishq, Ishq, Heera Panna, Swami Dada, Anand Aur Anand, Sache Ka Bol Bala, Hum Naujawan, Awwal Number, Sau Crore, Pyar Ka Tarana, Censor, Love at Time Square and Main Solah Baras Ki. In the process, he has introduced several faces — some became famous, some didn’t — Kalpana Kartik, Zeenat Aman, Tina Munim, Zarina Wahab, Natasha Sinha, Tabu, Richa Sharma, Ektaa, Anita Ayub and Fatima Sheikh.

Indeed, Dev Anand has always been a ladies man. He was madly in love with the famous singing-star Suraiya. When he couldn’t marry her, he cried for the first time. But with his ready-to-bounce-back attitude towards life, he married the next girl who captured his heart. He met Mona, alias Kalpana Kartik, while making Baazi and married her during a half-an-hour break between shots on the sets of Taxi Driver. There is no photograph of the occasion. Down the years, he may have been romantically linked with heroines like Zeenat Aman, but his marriage has lasted. He and Kalpana Kartik still live under the same roof. Their son Suneil is still trying to find his feet in films, while daughter Devina is happily married.

A contemporary of Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand was the most colourful and flamboyant of the trio. Though he lacked the acting talent of Dilip Kumar and the showmanship of Raj Kapoor, he had a greater virtue to offset this, that is, his charm and screen presence. His boyish face and slight built were a novelty. His breezy mannerisms, his style of wearing clothes, his fast-paced dialogue delivery had a pecularity of their own. His scarf, worn loosely around his shoulders, his buttoned-up collars, his hair brushed back in a puff and later falling over his forehead were all recognised as the "Dev Anand style".

Dev Anand has come a long way from his Hum Duno, CID and Jewel Thief days, and has not seen a hit in a long time. But he does not allow the disappointment of failure to bog him down. Robotlike he moves from one project to another, never allowing himself the time to feel the pain and disappointment of failure. Perhaps, by suppressing his emotions constantly, fleeing from the past (Har fiqr ko dhuien mein udata chala gaya...), he is losing touch with reality. Yes, his films are topical — but somewhere, something is missing. He should give the heart a chance. However, now with brother, Vijay ‘Goldie’ Anand, he is in the process of making Jaana Nahin Dil Se Door. The two made a great team and may weave the same magic that they wove so many years ago. And who knows, the Navketan banner may fly high once more.