JOHNY MERA NAAM

Today is the 96th Birth Anniversary of Prem Nath ji.

Ideally I should be reviewing Teesri Manzil ..but that was done last month on Shammi Kapoor's Birth anniversary.

More so as today is also Helens Birthday.

So I will review a comeback film of Prem Nath ji

JOHNY MERA NAAM

Today I am remembering a movie which has completed 52 Years on 20th November yesterday 

The story is simple. Dev Anand and Pran, as Sohan and Mohan, are brothers. They are good at boxing; it is while boxing with each other that they reunite. A criminal Ranjit (Premnath) gets their father, a cop, murdered. Mohan kills the contract killer. Fearing consequences, he escapes in the boot of Ranjit’s car, not knowing that Ranjit got him orphaned. Mohan grows up as a criminal, now known as Moti.

Sohan, on the other hand, proves to be a chip off the old block, becoming a CID officer, hunting for an international gang whose important member Moti is. It is headed by one Rai Sahab Bhupinder Singh ( Again Premnath )

Soham is a charismatic character. He assumes the identity of Johny, a petty thief, and wins his way to Rekha (Hema Malini) through Heera (Jeevan), a gangster. The pursuit takes Mohan and Rekha to some exotic locales in Nepal. 

After many adventures, it is revealed that Rekha’s father Bhupinder Singh was actually in the custody of Ranjit who was impersonating as Bhupinder Singh. Ranjit turns out to be the foster-brother of Bhupinder Singh’s. In the end, of course, the villain gets his just deserts and the hero and the heroine get married.

Meanwhile there is a sub plot of Babu and Tara ( Randhawa and Padma Khanna ). Who tries to quit the gang but is caught by Moti at the behest of Johnny. Tara subsequently becomes Bhupinder Singh's keep after a ultra seductive strip tease ( Husn Ke Laakhon Rang)

( Reminds me Some how of this situational  sequence adapted in Don too to a shorter extent where Helen does Yeh Mera Dil ).

Dev Anand and Hema Malini are well balanced and paired ( their first).

Pran and Premnath excel in their roles.

More so Prem Nath who was truly evil and played a role or a lifetime.

How can one forget the triple role trio of I.S. Johar's famous Pehle Ram, Dooje Ram, and Teeje Ram.

Another highlight of the movie are the songs and Song Picturizations.

Kalyanji-Anandji’s compositions are spot on and capture the varying moods and tone of the film to perfection, including the background score.Pal bhar ke liye koi hamein pyaar karle is remembered for not just the way its lyrics and singing but also picturization. We also have Oh Mere Raja ..shot in Nalanda and Shanti Stupa and Lata Mangeshkar's pathos in Baabul Pyaare.It needs to be mentioned here that Vijay Anand excelled in song picturizations.

It is through such wonderful songs and lovely picturizations that the magic of Johny Mera Naam continues to charm us through generations and we continue to hum its tune and conjure up the images which have become almost iconic.

Coming three years after Jewel Thief (1967), this film reaffirms the mastery of Vijay Anand as an accomplished craftsman in the annals of popular Hindi cinema and continues many of the elements of the previous film in terms of intricate plotting, themes and style.

Johny Mera Naam regularly appears on cinema channels also streaming on Zee 5. 

An evergreen Classic which brought Prem nath ji to the fore again and how he did varied roles till the mid 80s.( I remember Desh Premee and Hum Dono as his last ).