Ramsay Brothers
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Ramsay Brothers is a pseudonym or brand name used for a family of
Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...
filmmakers, the sons and grandsons of F.U. Ramsay. They are best known for making
horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...
s synonymous with the name "Ramsay Brothers" in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
.


Biography

The actual surname of the Ramsay family is Ramsinghani, and they are a
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
family hailing from
Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...
province in present-day
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. They belong to a trading caste, and in the early decades of the 20th century, the Ramsinghani family used to run electronics shops (mainly radio sets) in
Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
and
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
. In 1947, due to the
Partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...
, they were forced to flee their native land. Penniless and destitute, Fatehchand U. Ramsay (F.U. Ramsay) came with his extended family, including his wife, seven sons and two daughters, to India. They were resettled in Mumbai, and Fatehchand, along with his elder sons, set up a tiny electronics shop in Lamington Road, thanks to a dealership agreement with the same manufacturer of radio sets and other electronics goods who had been their principal in Karachi. The shop did reasonably well, but the family was large, and income was not sufficient. Then, as is now, Mumbai was the center of showbiz in India. For reasons that are not clearly understood, but perhaps lured by the lottery-like wealth which the film industry brandished, Fatehchand joined a group of other Sindhi refugee businessmen to produce the film ''Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh'' (1954). It was a dismal flop, despite featuring a rendition of ''Sarfaroshi ki tamanna'' in
Mohammad Rafi Mohammed Rafi (24 December 1924 – 31 July 1980) was an Indian playback singer. He is considered to have been one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. Rafi was notable for his versatility and range of voice ...
's voice. A long hiatus followed, but the lure of the movies was great, and Fatehchand later produced the films ''Rustam Sohrab (1963)'' and ''
Ek Nanhi Munni Ladki Thi ''Ek Nanhi Munni Ladki Thi'' is a 1970 Bollywood drama film directed by Vishram Bedekar. The film stars Prithviraj Kapoor, Mumtaz and Helen. This movie is supposed to be the first or one of the first attempts of the Ramsay Brothers in the hor ...
'' (1970). These films flopped, and the Ramsays were reeling under huge debts when inspiration struck. In a scene in ''Ek Nanhi Munni Ladki Thi'', Prithviraj Kapoor wears a devil's mask to carry out a robbery and terrifies Mumtaz. The film didn't work, but it was noticed that the “monster” sequence was popular with the audience. This encouraged the Ramsays to experiment with ''
Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche ''Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche'' () is a 1972 Hindi horror film directed by Tulsi Ramsay and Shyam Ramsay. This film was released on 30 December 1972 under the banner of Ramsay Films. Plot Rajvansh, a rich widower and young scientist rescues a wom ...
'' (1972), based on a story narrated by Fatehchand's daughter Asha to her father. The film was advertised in a half-hour, late-night show on radio, which helped it get the “Houseful” board up when it was released. Its success sparked a trend of shoe-string budget movies that were wrapped up in a month with a crew of 15. The Ramsay Brothers have made more than 30 horror films in India, which epitomse the lower depths of 1980s Bollywood sleaze and gore, but which have secured their place in Hindi cinema's hall of fame as the pioneers of horror. / They are producers, directors and editors for many famous Hindi horror movies such as
Guest House A guest house (or guesthouse, also rest house) is a kind of lodging. In some parts of the world (such as the Caribbean), a guest house is a type of inexpensive hotel-like lodging. In others, it is a private home that has been converted for the e ...
, ''
Veerana ''Veerana'' () is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language erotic supernatural horror film directed by Shyam and Tulsi Ramsay, credited as the Ramsay Brothers. It stars Jasmin as a woman who becomes possessed by the spirit of a dead witch, turning her i ...
'', ''
Purana Mandir ''Purana Mandir'' () is a 1984 Indian Hindi-language horror film directed by the Ramsay brothers and produced by Kanta Ramsay. The soundtrack was composed by Ajit Singh. Typical of Ramsay's other works, the film chronicles the story of a demon ...
'', ''
Purani Haveli Purani Haveli, also known as Masarrat Mahal palace, is a Haveli located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seve ...
'', ''
Darwaza ''Darwaza'' () is a 1978 Bollywood horror film directed by Shyam Ramsay and Tulsi Ramsay. Plot Thakur Pratap Singh has lost his loved ones due to a curse put on him and his family by a widow, whose son Dharma was unintentionally killed by ...
'' and ''
Bandh Darwaza ''Bandh Darwaza'' () is a 1990 Indian Hindi-language horror film starring Kunika, Manjeet Kullar, Aruna Irani, Anirudh Agarwal and the Afghan actor Hashmat Khan. The film's soundtrack was composed by brothers Anand–Milind. This film has serve ...
'', '' Saboot'' and the TV series,
Zee Horror Show ''The Zee Horror Show'' is a weekly Indian horror-television-series, presented by Ramsay Brothers and aired on Zee TV from 1993 to 2001. The first episode was titled "Dastak", featuring Pankaj Dheer, Shagufta Ali and Archana Puran Singh, and t ...
. Their first film, ''Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche'', proved to be a milestone for them and for Indian horror film industry. At a time when the average Hindi film took about a year and INR 50 lakhs to complete, ''Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche'' was shot in 40 days on a budget of Rs 3.5 lakhs. All the seven Ramsay brothers boarded buses with small-time actors, a sparse film crew, their wives and parents and drove to a government guesthouse in
Mahabaleshwar Mahabaleshwar () is a small town and a municipal council in Satara district, Maharashtra, India. It is a place of pilgrimage for Hindus because the Krishna River has its origin here. The British colonial rulers developed the town as a hill sta ...
that cost Rs 12 a room – they took eight rooms. They didn't spend on sets because they shot on location. They didn't spend on costumes because these were picked out of actors’ wardrobes. The cameras were all borrowed. All the departments for making the film were taken care of by the seven brothers. The film ran to full houses in the first week after its release. It made Rs. 45 lakhs at the Indian box office. Their 1980s horror films are generally a combination of sex and supernatural entities. Their production '' Mahakaal'' in 1993 was also successful and it was a mixture of horror, romance and comedy. Actor-producer
Ajay Devgn Vishal Veeru Devgan (born 2 April 1969), known professionally as Ajay Devgn, is an Indian actor, film director, and producer. One of the most prolific actors of Hindi cinema, Devgn has appeared in over Ajay Devgn filmography, 100 films and ha ...
and Priti Sinha have acquired the rights to produce a biopic on Ramsay Brothers. The film is tentatively titled The Ramsay Biopic. The script will be written by Ritesh Shah.


Filmography

;Films ;TV Series


The family

The family includes seven brothers, who made cult horror films mainly in 70's and 80's decade. The brothers are Kumar Ramsay (eldest), Gangu Ramsay,
Tulsi Ramsay Tulsi Ramsay (29 July 1944 – 13 December 2018) was an Indian film director. He was the son of F. U. Ramsay and was one of the famous Seven Ramsay Brothers. The other six are Kumar Ramsay, Shyam Ramsay, Keshu Ramsay, Arjun Ramsay, Gangu Ramsay ...
, Arjun Ramsay,
Shyam Ramsay Shyam Ramsay (17 May 1952 – 18 September 2019) was a Bollywood film director. He was one of the seven Ramsay Brothers who were active in Indian cinema throughout the 1970s and the 1980s. Shyam Ramsay was considered the main artist and head o ...
,
Keshu Ramsay Keshu Ramsay (1955 – 2010) was an Indian producer and film director. He was one of the Ramsay Brothers, a group of siblings who worked as directors, producers and editors in the Hindi film industry. The brothers consist of Shyam Ramsay, Ku ...
and
Kiran Ramsay Karan Ramsay (alias Kiran Ramsay) is a producer, sound designer and director of Bollywood films. He was one of the Ramsey Brothers, a group of siblings who worked as directors, producers and editors in the Bollywood industry. His brothers were S ...
. The brothers worked together for most of their careers and divided the various departments of filmmaking among them to produce movies. Kumar Ramsay handled the scripting, Gangu took care of the cinematography, Kiran Ramsay managed sound department, Keshu handled production, Arjun Ramsay took care of editing and Shyam Ramsay with Tulsi Ramsay handled the direction department. They are a
team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to in ...
of seven brothers: * Kumar Ramsay *
Keshu Ramsay Keshu Ramsay (1955 – 2010) was an Indian producer and film director. He was one of the Ramsay Brothers, a group of siblings who worked as directors, producers and editors in the Hindi film industry. The brothers consist of Shyam Ramsay, Ku ...
*
Tulsi Ramsay Tulsi Ramsay (29 July 1944 – 13 December 2018) was an Indian film director. He was the son of F. U. Ramsay and was one of the famous Seven Ramsay Brothers. The other six are Kumar Ramsay, Shyam Ramsay, Keshu Ramsay, Arjun Ramsay, Gangu Ramsay ...
*
Kiran Ramsay Karan Ramsay (alias Kiran Ramsay) is a producer, sound designer and director of Bollywood films. He was one of the Ramsey Brothers, a group of siblings who worked as directors, producers and editors in the Bollywood industry. His brothers were S ...
*
Shyam Ramsay Shyam Ramsay (17 May 1952 – 18 September 2019) was a Bollywood film director. He was one of the seven Ramsay Brothers who were active in Indian cinema throughout the 1970s and the 1980s. Shyam Ramsay was considered the main artist and head o ...
* Gangu Ramsay * Arjun Ramsay *Asha and Kamla were the two daughters of Fatehchand Ramsey, they were the beloved sisters of the seven brothers.


See also

*
List of Hindi horror films Hindi-language horror films have been a subgenre of the Hindi film industry in India since the birth of Hindi films. These films tend to mimic the characteristics and themes of horror films around the world. The themes explored consist of haunt ...


External links


Blood Brothers: The Ramsay Film History
https://harpercollins.co.in/product/ghosts-in-our-backyard/


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsay Brothers Sibling filmmakers Living people Indian filmmaking duos Year of birth missing (living people) Indian horror film directors