A most iconic Bollywood movie starring the big names of the day, i.e., Rajesh Khanna, Rakhee, and Sharmila Tagore, this is one for the files. If it can be said that a movie or a song can define an entire decade of popular culture, it would have had to have been this movie that set the tone for the Seventies in all of India. Floor-length dresses, also known as maxis, beehive hairstyles for the women, long sideburns and handlebar mustaches for the men, and bell-bottomed styled suits–many of them plaid or with conspicuous double-stitching–was the high fashion of the day. And the pale pink lipstick and most exaggerated cat-eye style makeup is how the heroines exuded charm.
The movie is exquisite for all of these iconic styles that defined the pop culture of the day, but even more so because it showcased a certain genre of classic Bollywood romance stories– with just enough suspense to keep us going past the many songs sprinkled liberally throughout the three hours of high drama. This is the stuff that enthralled millions of moviegoers in a day and age when motion pictures were almost sacred to the lives of the common man on the street, and movie-going was almost a religious experience.
How else to explain the thrill of watching Sharmila Tagore prance around the trees, or the outrage of viewing Prem Chopra trying to get fresh with Sharmila, and later Rakhee. Or even Rakhee’s soulful eyes within her exquisite doll-like face when she demands why Rajesh Khanna cannot love her. And then of course, there’s the court room monologue delivered by Mr. Khanna in his own defense which is worthy of being transcribed as a love poem. This is classic Bollywood, no doubt about it.
It is also the debut of the very popular Yash Raj films enterprise, which since this movie, has brought us several other blockbusters over the decades. And, I am told, it is also Rakhee’s first Filmfare award, Bolloywood’s Oscar, if you will. The story, by the way, is an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge,’ but in our Bollywood story– spoiler alert: all ends well and they live happily ever after.
For this, and a hundred other reasons– the musical score of the great Laxmikant-Pyarelal duo being another significant one– this is, as I’ve said once already, one for the files.
Oh, and the song of the decade from this “super hit” movie is this one, by the way. Unfortunately, no English translation can truly convey the exquisite pain and pleasure of the lyrics of this song by the great Kishore Kumar, whose playback singing voice seemed to match Rajesh Khanna’s so well.
Louis L’Amour 3/22/1908 – 6/10/1988 American best-selling author of more than100 books.
