Veteran and well-known film agent R.K. Sethi passed away this morning (12th July) in Nagpur due to age-related probems. He was 92. He had been keeping unwell since the last few months and had recently moved in with his son in Nagpur for treatment. He is survived by two sons.
Raj Kumar Sethi was an extremely popular film agent. He was as close to film producers and distributors of yore as he was with trade people of today. He had struck thousands of deals in a career spanning 70 years. Despite his old age, Sethi was in the thick of his profession till November last year. Every producer and distributor would have had the occasion of interacting with him, if not doing business with him. Like the current lot of trade people, even old-timers from Manmohan Desai’s era fondly remember him as a smart film broker. Despite doing so well as a film agent, Sethi loved to move on his two-wheeler, the modest scooter, from one office or meeting place to another. He was very close to the Hirawats — Narendra and son Shreyans — as he brokered a number of deals for world rights for them.
According to his son, Manish Sethi, the last rites will be performed today in Nagpur. Manish will not be able to travel to Nagpur to pay his last respects due to lockdown restrictions. R.K. Sethi was respectfully called Sethi sahab in trade circles. Manish recalled how a leading trade person recently could not place him (Manish) when he introduced himself as Mr. Raj Kumar Sethi’s son, but telephoned him the next day to say that he realised that he was film agent Sethi sahab’s son much after he had left. “He told me, ‘Aap ne Raj Kumar Sethi kahaa toh samajh mein nahi aaya, Sethi sahab bolte toh ekdum samajh mein aa jaata’.” Manish is looking after his father’s agency work since the last four years.