Biwi 0 Biwi

Happy Birthday Randhir Kapoor..

Definately not happy because it comes after Back to Back passing away of his younger Brothers..Rishi Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor and before that his sister Ritu Nanda (In January 20).

It was very turbulent last 12 months for the first Family 

Hopefully days ahead will be better.

To lighten things I would like to revisit one of the few comedies R.K.Films made.

BIWI O BIWI (The Fun Film)

Raj Kapoor used to Love Archie's comics and roped in Prabhakar Tamhane (A Marathi Script Writer with a flair for Comedy ) for a script.

Chander Mohan (Randhir Kapoor) desperately wants to get married. But his father (Om Prakash) simply cannot find a suitable bride for him because he is  Manglik having a strong influence in Chander's horoscope. Buddy Gafoor (Deven Verma) has the brilliant idea: Chander should accompany him to Bombay, there are women a dime a dozen who won't bother about the horoscope. Said and done. In the big city, Chander starts a career as a singer, becomes the protégé of the rich Nisha (Simi Garewal) and also meets the enchanting Asha (Poonam Dhillon), with whom he falls in love.

Asha is the daughter of Colonel Mangal Singh (Sanjeev Kumar) who has a fetish and rage on Civilian s. He would never let a civilian by his daughter's side. Chander is just that. While Chander is struggling to please his future father-in-law, enters a crook Shankar ( Sanjeev Kumar again) who wants to swindle Simi and helping him is his Girlfriend Nisha (Yogita Bali ).

Col.Mangal Singh arranges Asha's match with a Fauji Captain Manik( Gautam Sareen ) , Asha however tells him the truth and he agrees to play along with her and refuse marriage.

The sequences of Chander trying to prove he is Captain Chander are hilarious. The banter between Hari ( Hari Shivdasani) and Mangal Singh adds to the fun.

Meanwhile Nisha Suggests to Shankar that he impersonate Mangal Singh.

The Comedy of errors which starts is a true laugh riot which culminates in to a  car chase at the end. It's so great because before that everything is relatively moderate. But as soon as the protagonists get into their companions, everything falls apart. Randhir Kapoor's increasingly absurd crashes, the pace and even a guest appearance by Shammi Kapoor make this sequence a real joy for every slapstick fan. Then you can also speak of a high point, because "Biwi-O-Biwi" intensifies until all the tension is looking for an outlet to discharge even if it is laughter.

The automobile used is the one seen in Archie's comics.

Rahul Rawail who had Directed Gunehgar with Rishi Kapoor before this and was removed from the Credits of Love story shows his variety and fluency in comedy.

At the age of 20 he made contact with the Kapoor clan and assisted Raj Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor in their films Bobby and Dharam Karam before being handed over the direction of "Biwi-O-Biwi" which he made into a fast-paced comedy entertainingly told. However, the cast assembled does its part to make the comedy work.

Randhir Kapoor is marvelous in this role, comedy came naturally to him.

Poonam Dhillon and Yogeetan Bali are apt the  as the leading actresses, but pleasantly Simi Garewal masters her part with dignity as also Dina Pathak as Mummy to Mangal Singh and Shashikala who runs a marriage bureau is a laugh riot with her Oi Maa.

Rajendra Nath is  as the Colonel's sidekick , Hari Shivdasani, Gautam Sareen and a host of guest appearance from Shammi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and others make the film hilarious band truly slapstick.

But the biggest contribution comes from two other men: Sanjeev Kumar and RD Burman. The latter delivers one of his hippest 80s soundtracks, while Sanjeev Kumar shows complete comedic power in a dual role. He has the whole range from subliminal comedy to freaking attacks and is  convincing in every scene. Despite everything, one would not include "Biwi-O-Biwi" in the list of RK classics, but it qualifies as one of the funnier comedies of the 80s. The English subtitle "The Fun-Film" is definitely deserved thanks to the great cast and exemplary staging.

Sadly it wasn't a runaway success but did marginally well.

Blast from the Golden Past CHARAS

28th May..

Today sees 

18 years of Hum Tum ( Saif&Rani)

23 years of Biwi No.1

29 years of Aashik Aawara ( Saif Debut)

40 years of Teri Kasam

( Already covered by S B )

40 years of Gazab ( Dharmendra)

And the film I am writing about

Blast from the Golden Past

46 Years of CHARAS 

Made by Ramanand Sagar much before he came in to limelight with "Ramayana" Ramanand Sagar had displayed a penchant of making films which satiated the appetite of the all important box office to the hilt. Made within frames of the commercial matrix, these films were in the genre of action-thriller, inspired, as many will vouch, by the Bond format; and Sagar kept the budget large and the span overreaching. Aankhen was one of them.

CHARAS is a sort of Sequel to that series of the crime thriller genre.

A simplistic story of Suraj (Dharmendra) who journeys through India, Rome and Malta to take revenge against his father’s killers Robert (Amjad Khan) and Kalicharan (Ajit).

After Suraj’s family is ambushed in Africa by Kalicharan’s men, Suraj and his sister Nimmu (Aruna Irani) are separated. Suraj comes to India in search of Kalicharan but makes a hasty escape when things go wrong. Suraj is then recruited by the police to stop Kalicharan’s smuggling activities which leads him to Europe. He meets Sudha (Hema Malini) a beautiful dancer, who has been blackmailed by Kalicharan, into helping smuggle the drugs. Suraj must try to find his sister, end the drug smuggling and take his revenge on Kalicharan ends up in Malta, where Robert handles most of the drug business. The question is will he able to accomplish this or will he himself fall prey to Charas.

Almost all the songs (lyrics by Anand Bakshi and music composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal) are chartbusters and retain their lure to this day, including “Kal ki haseen mulaqat ke liye” by Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar.

CHARAS when released was banned as Emergency was in vouge. After many cuts and censor manipulation it was released.

It was the opening release at Raj Mandir Jaipur which was then considered the Royal Theatre built in a Palace.

After it was banned they re-released Sholay for a week and when the ban was lifted a fortnight later CHARAS was reinstated. It ram for 100 days in regular shows and completed silver Jubilee in Matinee.

I recently visited Raj Mandir and they have this gallery depicting the  history of the theatre.

(Images are below)

ANEK (NE is North East)

A No Spoilers Review

ANEK

Anubhav Sinha moves ahead in his series of films handling relevant prevailent social issues

Mulk , Article 15 ,Thappad and now Anek.

Anek is a film about political conflict and cultural identity that puts the spotlight on Northeast India.

Anek Set in an unnamed North-Eastern state, Anubhav Sinha’s story introduces us to the two sides of the tale – one led by a militant leader of the state’s largest rebel group Tiger Sanga (Loitongbam Dorendra Singh), and the other headlined by an undercover cop Joshua (Ayushmann Khurrana) who plays the tunes of high ranked Indian politicians wanting to sign the peace accord for their own benefits.

Joshua is on a mission to restore peace in the Northeastern region of India and the political situation that has for long plagued this belt of the country. During his task, he meets Aido, a Northeastern Indian boxer (newcomer Andrea Kevichüsa) who is struggling with biases while chasing her dream to secure a position on the Indian national team. Khurrana also has an interesting tryst with Aido's father, Wangnao (Mipham Otsal), a school teacher who has a secret.

Somewhere in the middle of these two, there is another active rebel group named ‘Johnson’, members of which start to mess up the mission.

While Sinha has picked up the right nuances when it comes to casting actors from the North East, authentic locations, dialogues, the severity of the conflict that he wants to highlight keeps you hooked. 

That being said, Anek is high on patriotism and thankfully that never takes the form of jingoism that's quite common in Hindi films. The way Sinha has tried to show racial abuse that people from the North East deal with on a daily basis, their ordeal to prove that they're as much a part of India, are great elements and do work in places. Also, you can't disregard that this is one of the very few commercial films that has attempted to put focus on the worrisome situation in the North East, which many talk about but nobody really shows the courage to delve deep into. After films like The Kashmir Files, you can say that Anek is definitely a very important film and quite relevant in today's times. 

Among other supporting cast members, Kumud Mishra and Manoj Pahwa bring their experience to good use and deliver some great scenes. Pahwa's Abrar, a Kashmiri Muslim often likening the NE situation to the Kashmir situation, oscillates between hostile and hardened.

To sum up, Anek has its heart at the right place and is made with all the right intentions, 

Peace is a subjective hypothesis  Anek deals with the way the idea of peace can often be Utopian and be subjective. Peace for one doesn’t always translate to peace for all.

Do you want Peace or a Peace Treaty is the question asked..

Chakravarthy (Satya) is also a senior IPS shown and the discussion between him and Ayushyaman about North/ South India and regionalism is terrific.

We see Khurrana undertake his mission with all sincerity and diligence even when his loyalty is questioned. He is gritty as a cop, carries his role with confidence and is softer in scenes of helpless situations. It won't be wrong to say that he skillfully shoulders the film.

Cinematography is top class as the camera and drones catch the beauty of North East.

Background music is apt.

Recommended to be seen on big screen or wait till it comes on OTT.

DON

If Zanjeer completed 49 Years .

Don completes 44 Years Today.(12th)

Don was launched in December 1974 but was for over 3 years in the making.

Launched my Nariman Irani under the Salim Javed Umbrella to recover the losses of his earlier film and the team formed was from the RKM team with Pran added ( Again the highest paid actor but less than the Salim Javed Duo)

The germ of Don was laid in the final schedule of Roti Kapda aur Makaan and was released on 12 th May 1978 a week after Trishul.

This crime-thriller begins with an explosive scene of introduction of Don followed by the beginning titles, a montage on picture negative accompanied by some awesome background score…from then on it’s a roller coaster ride lasting the whole of 175 minutes.

Don's arrogance is made clear, as he utters the film's famous line, Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahin - namumkin hai..( an iconic dialogue even 43 Years later )

Police Officer DSP D’Silva (Iftekhar) tracks him down and in an attempt to catch him, ends up killing him. But Don’s death is only known to D’Silva. So, he tracks down a lookalike of Don named Vijay. Vijay impersonates Don to take down the rest of Don’s gang while D’Silva promises him that he will provide for a proper education to Vijay’s wards by sending them to a public school. The kids, Deepu and Munni are actually the lost children of Jasjit (Pran), an ex-trapeze artiste who has lost his family and career and gets imprisoned for a robbery. He held D’Silva responsible for it and seeks vengeance. Roma (Zeenat Aman) joins the gang in order to take revenge from Don as Don is the killer of Ramesh, Roma’s brother.

Jasjit comes out of prison after serving his jail term, only to find D’Silva having a red diary that would show Vijay’s true identity. D’Silva is killed by Malik  the real king of the underworld. It’s now a race to retrieve the diary in which the D’Silva has documented the substitution of the real Don with the innocent Vijay and all the information regarding other gangsters.

Don is a thoroughly fun ride the kind of escapist fantasy that Bollywood excels at, especially in that era, and Amitabh has plenty of irresistable charm to make up where required.  And it's all in good fun - with its tightrope escapes from tall buildings, improbable urban car-chases, and exploding suitcases, Don never takes itself too seriously.   

Don's soundtrack by Kalyanji Anandji is packed with great tunes and classic pictureisation, like "Khaike paan banaraswala," in which Vijay, exhausted from playing Don and then trying to clear his name, finally gets to cut loose in his own element.  Zeenat struts in "Jiska mujhe tha intezaar," Roma's declaration of vengeful intent.  I love Kishore Kumar's triumphant vocals on the energetic "Main hoon Don," the melody of which provides the film's pulsating theme.  And, like all great films of the era, there is even a Helens Yeh Mera Dil ( which was the first sequence and song to be shot for the film ).

Amitabh has a challenge here, playing not just two roles but three:  suave and menacing as Don, goofy and energetic as Vijay, and something more complex as Vijay-playing-Don.  

He is ably supported by Zeenat Aman , Pran , Shetty, Om Shivpuri, Kamal Kapoor and Iftekhar.

A low key affair Don ended a blockbuster winning 3 Filmfare awards after being nominated for three.. Amitabh Bachchan winning his second on the trot after Amar Akbar Anthony ( He was nominated for 3 films , Trishul and Muqaddar Ka Sikandar being the other two).

Over four decades have passed since Don hit the theatres and the mystique around the film is still present. It has been ranked among Amitabh’s finest performances and is a big draw on the home video circuit. Fans have confessed to watching it each time it is shown on satellite television and are often mouthing Salim–Javed’s immortal one-liners with the hero.

Lots of Trivia remains but some other time.

#Repost

Namak Halaal

If I have written about Naseeb..it will be injustice if I don't do a piece on Namak Halaal.

Yesterday Namak Halaal completed 40 years.

Lot is written and said of the story..

The movie is memorable for Arjun Singh, Maalik Raja Babu, Poonam, Nisha , Mataji( Savitri Devi) and Daddoo ( Dashrath Singh)

Prakash Mehra and Amitabh created ripples with this blockbuster.

It was the first movie where Prakash Mehra shifted from Kalyanji Anandji to Bappi Lahiri.

By the early 1980’s, it must have been apparent that Kishore Kumar was THE voice for Amitabh Bachchan. Whenever the two remarkable performers came together, there was always a thunderous spark that delighted and entertained audiences.

Bappi Lahiri capitalized on the potential of the two artists in his album, “Namak Halaal”. He weaved a few songs that have the unmistakable stamp of the collaboration of Kishore Kumar - Amitabh Bachchan on them.

“Ke Pag Ghungroo Baandh Meera Naachi Thi, Aur Hum Naache Bin Ghungroo Ke” is a track that is interlaced with classical music and is a creative and unique song. Prakash Mehra and Anjaan have worked together to come up with the unusual lyrics. The singing is a challenge that Kishore Kumar took up and he is just terrific. His constant switching to and from various tones of singing is marvelous to say the least. Imagine listening to him switch from a sombre golden tone with, “Aap andar se kuch aur, Bahar se kuch aur nazar aate hain” to a cheerful and intentionally nasal tone with, “Aapka to lagta hai bas yehi sapna, Ram naam japna paraya maal apna”. The mind boggles with delight!

Onto something less complex yet something that Kishore must have equally enjoyed singing. Asha Bhosle joins him in, “Aaj Rapat Jaaye To Humein Na Uthaiyo”. With a catchy tune and the singers in a playful mood, this one is an entertaining tribute to the genre of rain songs. The picturisation is a lot of fun to watch with Amitabh and Smita Patil raising hell in the rain. ( Smita Patil was very embarrassed about it ).

“Raat Baaqi Baat Baaqi, Hona Hai Jo Hojaane Do” sounds like something that R.D. Burman himself would have composed for Asha Bhosle. A compliment, of course, for Bappi Lahiri (who sings the last verse) as Burmanda often chose the best for Ashaji. A seductive song with a mesmerizing disco pop score, only the Queen Bee could have done justice to it. Her rendition is an intoxicating blend of contradictions; angelic but seductive, haunting but sweet and revealing yet mysterious. It is sheer fun to hear Shashi Kapoor speaking and his voice almost being buried by the track beats. Bappi brings an atmospheric ending to it with his rendition of the last few lines. Anjaan’s words evoke an aura of enigma and romantic suspense.

You will find Kishore saab in nasha mode in “Thodisi Jo Pee Lee Hai, Chori To Nahin Ki Hai”. A classic drunk song complete with Kishore making hiccup sounds. It is remarkable how Kishore’s always perfectly mimicked the vocal situations of his star/characters in the songs. Here, he gives an entertaining and effective portrayal of a drunken man trying to deny the fact that he has drunk a lot.

(The song has a strong similarity with Haan Pehli Baar Ek Ladki Mera Haath Pakad ke from Aur Kaun also by Bhappi Lahiri)

The last number in the soundtrack is another pop song by Asha, “Jawani Jaaneman, Haseen Dilruba”. This one pales in comparison to “Raat Baaqi” and is a routine and run-of-the-mill dance track. Nevertheless, Asha applies her usual sassy and infectious approach to songs of this genre.

A lot of music listeners tend to assume that a great album can only be judged by how many songs it has therefore judging by quantity as opposed to quality. With only five songs, “Namak Halaal” demonstrates that quality (and not quantity) is what lingers in the minds of music lovers.

All the songs are well choreographed and have finesse in them.

The film is about a rich businessman, Raja (Shashi Kapoor) who is under the false impression that his foster mother Savitridevi (Waheeda Rehman) is plotting to kill him for his wealth. Arjun Singh (Amitabh Bachchan) Raja's loyal servant wants to prove his faithfulness by saving his master from every attack attempt made to his life. Meanwhile, Girdhar (Satyen Kappu)and his son Ranjit Singh (Ranjeet) try every possible method to eliminate Raja and seize his wealth. What binds them together is an incident that occurred 15 years ago, that led to the deaths of Raja's and Arjun's fathers. What follows is a series of revelations, murder attempts, kidnappings and emotional reunions that make the film Namak Halaal a cult film..

Naseeb 1981

Two Days..

Two Blockbusters..a Year apart

1st May 1981 : Naseeb

30th April 1982 : Namak Halaal 

Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra.

Those were the days when Amitabh was right there on top and these movies added to his popularity.

Between these two there was

Laawaris, Silsila, Kaalia, Satte Pe Satta , Desh Premee in between.

(Naseeb - Laawaris (1981), Desh Premee - Namak Halaal 1982 ) were the MKD and PM combos for the years.

NASEEB Completes 41 years today.

A look at this Blockbuster.

Can't beleive it..

Manmohan Desai's masala films are the richest, most symbolically laden and most delightfully creative of their time. His stories are packed with archetypes for good, Bad,Ugly, god and godlessness, creation, nurture, and destruction. They are masterful creations, with equal parts allegory and entertainment value bursting out of every frame. 

It all starts when four friends(Kader Khan,Amjad Khan,Pran and Jagdish Raj)receive a winning lottery ticket and Jagdish wins. Out of sheer greed Kader Khan and Amjad Khan kill Jagdish and frame Pran. They throw Pran into a river and he is persumed dead. Kader Khan and Amjad Khan start a hotel with their winnings. Years later we find out that Pran is actually very much alive and returns to avenge his friend's murder, which results in a superb finale that takes place in a hotel.

Now to this we have sub-stories of how Pran's sons ( Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor), Amjad Khan's son ( Shatrughan Sinha)

Jagdish Raj's daughters ( Hema Malini and Kim)and a well-wisher of Pran , Mrs Disa ( Lalita Pawar)her daughter Reena Roy get entangled in a love triangle, a love square and a college romance. ( Amitabh and Shatru both fall in love with Hema , Hema likes Amitabh, Reena Roy has a crush on Shatrughan Sinha).

It's complicated but entertaining.

One can't help comparing it with Amar Akbar Anthony.

If you took Amar Akbar Anthony, pureed it in a blender, and passed it through a sieve into a parallel universe, you might end up with something like Naseeb. The syncretic spirit of that older film, joining Hindu, Muslim, and Christian to muster the strength of the nation itself in triumph over evil, is captured here right from the very beginning in the three rings worn by Namdev (Pran) - a cross, an ॐ , and the name of Allah. Namdev is the victim of a grave injustice; like Pran's character in Amar Akbar Anthony, he is framed for a crime, wins a fortune, and has it stolen from him all within the first 20 minutes of the film. And like that character - like most anyone seeking justice in India - he must wait many years to see justice served.  

Where Amar Akbar Anthony distributed the three gods across three brothers, Naseeb jelly-rolls them into one John Jaani Janardhan (Amitabh Bachchan), who introduces himself to the world in song much the Anthony Gonsalves did.  

Rishi Kapoor does a great job in a comparitivly smaller role. Kim his girlfriend is a lip reader which helps going into the climax.

just like Amar Akbar Anthony, Naseeb's climax begins with a fantastically-costumed number in which all three principals and their romantic partners distract the bad guys. But Naseeb ups the ante. This climax doesn't just offer silly costumes and acrobatic fistfights; it sets them in a revolving skyscraper-top restaurant which it then sets on fire. 

Bottom line, Naseeb is as good and rich and satisfying as any masala movie you'll ever see, including Desai's other bests, Amar Akbar Anthony and Parvarish. Naseeb's cadre of villains includes Amjad Khan, Kader Khan, Shakti Kapoor, Prem Chopra, Yusuf Khan, and Amrish Puri – Pran, as noted above, is a good guy in this one, much as he is in Amar Akbar Anthony. With that crew, plus Amitabh, Rishi Kapoor, and Shatrugan Sinha on the side of light, Desai does skimp a little on the heroines. Hema Malini brings first-class star power, her gorgeous smile and guts.

But the other female leads are somewhat lesser lights – Rishi Kapoor and Shatrugan Sinha end up with Kim and Reena Roy, respectively. These two are certainly up to the tasks they are given, even if they aren't in the same league as Parveen Babi, Shabana Azmi, or Neetu Singh. But each gets a song – Kim's is a terrific boys-against-girls kabbadi sequence with Rishi Kapoor.

The music is apt .. instead of a drunken mirror scene we have a drunken song between Rishi and Amitabh .Shatrugan Sinha plays one of his trademark morally grey characters, like in Desai's Aa gale lag jaa, who seems like a creep but actually never does anything wrong and turns out to be a pretty good guy. If that's not all, there is sabre fencing – sabre fencing! - between Pran and a gloriously blond-wigged-and-bearded Amrish Puri. There is Lalita Pawar in perfect masala-maa form. And to punctuate Desai's syncretic message, Pran's rings get distributed among the three principals ( having Om, Allha,Holy cross on them)  

In short, if you like masala – and let me tell you, I like masala – there is really no reason not to watch this movie over and over again. I'll be right there with you. Mere naseeb mein hai ise baar baar dekhna.

Very excited writing this due to the memories associated with this film as a 16-17 year old taking his 9-10 Year old brother in the heat of Akola to see on the first day .. and seeing it too.