Sadhana – The Unique Hair Style

Dubbed the Audrey Hepburn of Indian cinema, Sadhana ruled Bollywood box office like a colossus in the 1960s like no other heroine. She starred in 33 movies of which 28 were box office hits which is an astonishing 84% success rate. Officially debuting in Love In Shimla in 1960 along with another debutant Joy Mukherjee under the direction of her future husband R K Nayyar, she was an instant hit. There was no looking back after that. Whether, it was multi-starrer like Waqt, Mere Mehoboob or Dil Daulat Duniya or haunted suspense thrillers like Woh Kaun Thi, Anita, Mera Saaya, musical Romantic dramas like Arzoo, Hum Dono, Rajkumar or offbeat movies like Bimal Roy’s Parakh and Gaban, she gave hits across different genres.

She was one of the few heroines who got a chance to act opposite all three Kapoor brothers – Raj Kapoor (Dulha Dulhan), Shammi Kapoor (Rajkumar, Budtameez, Chhote Sarkar, Sachchai) and Shashi Kapoor (Prem Patra). She gave hits with Joy Mukherjee (Love In Shimla, Ek Musafir Ek Hasina), Jubilee star Rajendra Kumar (Arzoo, Mere Mehboob, Aap Aaye Bahar Aayi), Manoj Kumar (Woh Kaun Thi, Anita), Dev Anand (Hum Dono, Asli Naqli), Sunil Dutt (Mera Saaya, Waqt, Gaban), the Khan brothers Feroz Khan (Arzoo, Geeta Mera Naam) and Sanjay Khan (Intequam, Ek Phool Do Mali). She also gave solo movie hits with heroes like Kishore Kumar (Manmauji), Rajesh Khanna (Dil Daulat Duniya), Dharmendra & Biswajeet (Ishq Par Zor Nahin). She also starred opposite Guru Dutt in Picnic which unfortunately could not be released due to Guru Dutt’s untimely death in 1964.

Interesting Trivias about Sadhana

1. She was named after her father’s favorite actress Sadhona Bose.
2. Her father and actor Hari Shivdasani were brothers.
3. Actress Babita Kapoor was her first cousin.
4. Her hairstyle – with the short Audrey Hepburn-inspired fringe/bangs was a trend-setter and is known as the “Sadhana cut” in India.
5. She was the initial choice for Sunghursh opposite Dilip Kumar but had to opt out due to Thyroid problem and subsequent treatment. She never acted opposite Dilip Kumar in her career.
6. She was nominated twice for Best Actress Filmfare Award for Woh Kaun Thi(1964) and Waqt(1965) but never won the award.
7. She was also dropped from Around the World and replaced by Rajshree due to her Thyroid problem.
8. She did four movies with director Raj Khosla (Who Kaun Thi, Mera Saaya, Ek Musafir Ek Hasina, Anita).
9. She directed the movie Geeta Mera Naam which had Sunil Dutt and Feroz Khan besides her in double role.
10. Sadhana was highest paid actress along-with Vyjanthimala from 1963-67 and with Nanda was 2nd highest paid Hindi actress from 1961-1962 and 3rd highest paid Hindi actress in 1969-1973 along-with Nanda.
11. She did one Oriya film titled “Stree” that was released in 1968 and became a commercial success.
12. She was one of the background dancers in the song picturized on Nadira – Mud Mud Ke Na Dekh from Raj Kapoor Hit movie Shree 420.

Famous Songs Picturized on Sadhana

Sl. No.	Song	Movie	Singer	Hero
1	Tera Mera Pyar Amar	Asli Naqli	Lata Mangeshkar	Dev Anand
2	Jhumka Gira Re	Mera Saaya	Asha Bhonsle	Sunil Dutt
3	Lag Ja Gale	Woh Kaun Thi	Lata Mangeshkar	Manoj Kumar
4	Naina Barse Rimjhim	Woh Kaun Thi	Lata Mangeshkar	Manoj Kumar
5	Abhi Na Jao Chorkar	Hum Dono	Mohd. Rafi, Asha Bhonsle	Dev Anand
6	Aaja Aayi Bahar	Raajkumar	Lata Mangeshkar	Shammi Kapoor
7	Yeh Parda Hata Do	Ek Phool Do Mali	Mohd. Rafi, Asha Bhonsle	Sanjay Khan
8	Kaun Aaya Ki Nigahon Pe	Waqt	Asha Bhonsle	Raaj Kumar
9	Tumne Pukara Aur Hum	Raajkumar	Suman Kalyanpur, Rafi	Shammi Kapoor
10	Yeh Dil Deewana Hai	Ishq Par Zor Nahin	Lata, Mohd. Rafi	Dharmendra
11	Kaise Rahoon Chup Ki Maine	Intaquam	Lata Mangeshkar	Sanjay Khan
12	Jo Humne Dastaan Apni	Woh Kaun Thi	Lata Mangeshkar	Manoj Kumar
13	Tujhe Jeevan Ki Dor Se	Asli Naqli	Lata, Mohd. Rafi	Dev Anand
14	Ae Phoolon Ki Rani	Arzoo	Mohd. Rafi	Rajendra Kumar
15	Nainon Mein Badra Chaye	Mera Saaya	Lata Mangeshkar	Sunil Dutt
16	Aap Yun Hi Agar Humse	Ek Musafir Ek Hasina	Mohd. Rafi, Asha Bhonsle	Joy Mukherjee
17	Mere Mehboob Tujhe	Mere Mehboob	Lata Mangeshkar	Rajendra Kumar
18	Aji Roothkar Ab Kahan	Arzoo	Lata Mangeshkar	Rajendra Kumar
19	Tum Bin Jeevan Kaise	Anita	Mukesh	Manoj Kumar
20	Yaad Mein Teri Jaag	Mere Mehboob	Lata, Mohd. Rafi	Rajendra Kumar
21	Bedardi Balma Tujhke	Arzoo	Lata Mangeshkar	Rajendra Kumar
22	Saiyan Le Gayi Jiya	Ek Phool Do Mali	Lata Mangeshkar	Sanjay Khan

Hit Movies of Sadhana

Sl. No.	Movie	Year	Director	Hero
1	Love In Shimla	1960	R K Nayyar	Joy Mukherjee
2	Parakh	1960	Bimal Roy	Vasant Choudhury
3	Hum Dono	1961	Amarjeet	Dev Anand
4	Ek Musafir Ek Haseena	1962	Raj Khosla	Joy Mukherjee
5	Asli Naqli	1962	Hrishikesh Mukherjee	Dev Anand
6	Manmauji	1962	Krishnan-Panju	Kishore Kumar
7	Mere Mehboob	1963	H S Rawail	Rajendra Kumar
8	Dulha Dulhan	1964	Ravindra Dave	Raj Kapoor
9	Rajkumar	1964	K Shankar	Shammi Kapoor
10	Woh Kaun Thi	1964	Raj Khosla	Manoj Kumar
11	Arzoo	1965	Ramanand Sagar	Rajendra Kumar, Feroz Khan
12	Waqt	1965	Yash Chopra	Sunil Dutt, Raaj Kumar
13	Mera Saaya	1966	Raj Khosla	Sunil Dutt
14	Budtameez	1966	Manmohan Desai	Shammi Kapoor
15	Gaban	1966	Krishan Chopra, Hrishikesh M	Sunil Dutt
16	Anita	1967	Raj Khosla	Manoj Kumar
17	Ek Phool Do Mali	1969	Devendra Goel	Balraj Sahni, Sanjay Khan
18	Sachaai	1969	K Shankar	Shammi Kapoor
19	Intaquam	1969	R K Nayyar	Sanjay Khan
20	Ishq Par Zor Nahin	1970	Ramesh Saigal	Dharmendra, Biswajeet
21	Aap Aaye Bahar Aayee	1971	Mohan Kumar	Rajinder Kumar
22	Dil Daulat Duniya	1972	Prem Narayan Arora	Rajesh Khanna
23	Geeta Mera Naam	1974	Sadhana	Feroz Khan

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Sadhana at her best

Asha Parekh – The Hit Girl

If there was one constant feature in most of Nasir Hussain’s movies in from 1959 till 1971, either as a Producer or as Director, it was his heroine who was none other than Asha Parekh who was coined as the Hit Girl of 1960s. She did 7 movies with Nasir saheb as Director and 2 ore with him as the Producer. She made her debut as 10 year old child artiste in the Bharat Bhushan – Leela Chitnis starrer Maa and Sar Aankhon Par released in 1999 was her last movie. She did 91 Hindi movies and 8 movies in other regional languages. Her adult debut was ironically in the movie titled Asha starring Kishore Kumar and Vyjanthimala and her first movie as lead heroine was opposite Shammi Kapoor in Dil Deke Dekho (1959) and there was no looking back after that.

She was lovingly adopted by the newly married couple (Shammi Kapoor and Geeta Bali) during the outdoor shooting schedule of Dil Deke Dekho and she used to fondly address Shammi Kapoor as Chacha and Geeta as Chachi. Even after the passing away of Geeta Bali, she continues to call Shammi Kapoor’s second wife Maharani Neela Devi as Chachi. Though she never married, she did confess her love for her favorite director Nasir Hussain very late in her life and did not want to be labelled as a home-breaker as Nasir was already married. She was a versatile actress as was evident in thrillers like Teesri Manzil, Mahal, Sajan, Shikar; South Indian Family dramas like Gharana, Ghunghat, Bharosa; Romantic Comedies like Dil Deke Dekho, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Ziddi, Love In Tokyo; off beat movies like Chhaya, Meri Surat Teri Aankhen;

She formed a hit pair with Shammi Kapoor (Dil Deke Dekho, Teesri Manzil, Pagla Kahin Ka, Jawan Muhabbat), Joy Mukherjee(Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Ziddi, Love In Tokyo) andSunil Dutt (Chhaya, Hum Hindustani, Chirag and Bhai Bhai). She also gave hits with Manoj Kumar (Do Badan, Upkar, Sajan) with Shashi Kapoor (Kanyadaan, Pyar Ka Mausam) with Dharmendra(Samadhi, Mera Gaon Mera Desh, Aaya Sawan Jhoom Ke) with Jeetendra(Caravan, Udhar Ka Sindoor). Towards the latter half of her career, she also gave a string of hits with Rajesh Khanna(Kati Patang, Aan Milo Sajana, Baharon Ke Sapne)

Interesting Trivias about Asha Parekh

1. The ending of her movie Baharon Ke Sapne was considered to be too depressing as both the hero and heroine die at the end and after seeing the rushes the script was changed to show both of them survive.
2. Her song Kya Janoon Sajan hoti hai kya in the movie Baharon Ke Sapne was shot in color where as the complete movie is in Black and White.
3. Dev Anand was the initial choice for Teesri Manzil directed by his brother Vijay Anand but after having a spat with the producer Nasir Hussain he walked out of the movie.
4. She shares her birthday with Mahatma Gandhi, Oct 2^nd.
5. She was nominated twice for Best Actress Filmfare Award for Chirag(1969) and Kati Patang(1971)  and won it for Kati Patang
6. She was also nominated twice for Best Supporting Actress Filmfare Award for Udhar Ka Sindoor in 1976 and Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki in 1978.
7. She won the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award with Gulzar in 2001.
8. She was the first woman chairperson of Central Board of Film Certification from 1998 to 2001.
9. She directed the hit TV Serial Kora Kagaz in 1990s and also founded the Asha Parekh Charitable Hospital.
10. She never got a chance to act opposite either Raj Kapoor or Dilip Kumar in her career.

Famous Songs Picturized on Asha Parekh

No.	Song	Movie	Singer	Hero
1	Achcha To Hum Chalte Hain	Aan Milo Sajna	Lata, Kishore Kumar	Rajesh Khanna
2	Jiya Ho Jiya Kuch Bol do	Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai	Mohd. Rafi, Lata	Dev Anand
3	Itna Na Mujhse tu Pyar Badha	Chhaya	Lata, Talat Mehmood	Sunil Dutt
4	Tum Bin Jaoon Kahan	Pyar Ka Mausam	Mohd. Rafi	Shashi Kapoor
5	Na Koi Umang Hai	Kati Patang	Lata Mangeshkar	Rajesh Khanna
6	Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki	Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki	Lata Mangeshkar	Vijay Anand
7	Bin Phere Hum Tere	Bin Phere Hum Tere	Kishore Kumar	Rajendra Kumar
8	Kaanta Lagaa….	Samadhi	Lata Mangeshkar	Dharmendra
9	Kitna Pyaara Vaada Hai	Caravan	Lata, Mohd. Rafi	Jeetendra
10	Kya Kehta Hai Saawan	Mera Gaon Mera Desh	Lata, Mohd. Rafi	Dharmendra
11	Teri Aankhon Ke Siva	Chiraag	Lata, Mohd, Rafi	Sunil Dutt
12	Parde Mein Rahne Do	Shikar	Asha Bhosle	Dharmendra
13	Likhe Jo Khat Tujhe	Kanyadaan	Mohd. Rafi	Shashi Kapoor
14	Aaja Piya Tohe Pyar Doon	Baharon Ke Sapne	Lata Mangeshkar	Rajesh Khanna
15	Sayonara	Love In Tokyo	Lata Mangeshkar	Joy Mukherjee
16	O Mere Sona Re Sona	Teesri Manzil	Asha Bhosle, Rafi	Shammi Kapoor
17	Jab Chali Thandi Hawa	Do Badan	Asha Bhosle	Manoj Kumar
18	Lo Aa Gayi Unki Yaad	Do Badan	Lata Mangeshkar	Manoj Kumar
19	Jaiye Aap Kahan Jaayenge	Mere Sanam	Asha Bhosle	Biswajeet
20	Aaj Ki Mulaqaat Bas Itni	Bharosa	Lata, Mahendra K	Guru Dutt

Hit Movies of Asha Parekh

No	Movie Name	Year	Director	Hero
1	Dil Deke Dekho	1959	Nasir Hussain	Shammi Kapoor
2	Hum Hindustani	1960	Ram Mukherjee	Sunil Dutt
3	Ghunghat	1960	Ramanand Sagar	Pradeep Kumar
4	Chhaya	1961	Hrishikesh Mukherjee	Sunil Dutt
5	Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai	1961	Nasir Hussain	Dev Anand
6	Gharana	1961	S S Vasan	Rajendra Kumar
7	Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon	1963	Nasir Hussain	Joy Mukherjee
8	Bharosa	1963	K Shankar	Guru Dutt
9	Meri Surat Teri Aankhen	1963	R K Rakhan	Ashok Kumar, Pradeep Kumar
10	Ziddi	1964	Pramod Chakraborthy	Joy Mukherjee
11	Mere Sanam	1965	Amar Kumar	Biswajeet
12	Do Badan	1966	Raj Khosla	Manoj Kumar
13	Teesri Manzil	1966	Vijay Anand	Shammi Kapoor
14	Love In Tokyo	1966	Pramod Chakraborthy	Joy Mukherjee
15	Baharon Ke Sapne	1967	Nasir Hussain	Rajesh Khanna
16	Upkar	1967	Manoj Kumar	Manoj Kumar
17	Kanyadaan	1968	Mohan Segal	Shashi Kapoor
18	Chiraag	1969	Raj Khosla	Sunil Dutt
19	Pyar Ka Mausam	1969	Nasir Hussain	Shashi Kapoor
20	Aan Milo Sajna	1970	Mukul Dutt	Rajesh Khanna
21	Kati Patang	1970	Shakti Samanta	Rajesh Khanna
22	Mera Gaon Mera Desh	1971	Raj Khosla	Dharmendra
23	Caravan	1971	Nasir Hussain	Jeetendra
24	Samadhi	1972	Prakash Mehra	Dharmendra
25	Udhar Ka Sindoor	1976	Chander Vohra	Jeetendra
26	Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki	1978	Raj Khosla	Vijay Anand
27	Bin Phere Hum Tere	1979	Rajat Rakshit	Rajendra Kumar, Vinod Mehra

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The Best of Asha Parekh

Rishi Kapoor – The Evergreen Romantic Hero

Two days back, I happened to watch the movie Badalte Rishte in Tata Sky Classic Cinema starring Jeetendra, Reena Roy, Rishi Kapoor and Asrani in key roles, the movie had the hit song which was sung by both Kishore and Rafi along with Lata. Kishore gave playback for Rishi whereas Rafi did it for Jeetendra – Na jaane kaise pal mein badal jaate hain. Shot in Shimla, the movie released in 1978 and did average business. He was my favorite actor and I grew up watching his movies. Coincidentally my current windows password happens to be his name. When I was in Class XI and attended a Science exhibition in KV No. 1 Bhubhaneshwar and my exhibit required a sound propagation and a song to be played, it was the song from his movie Chandni — Rang bhare baadal sung by Jolly Mukherjee.

He made his debut with dad’s magnum opus, Mera Naam Joker opposite a much older Simi Garewal and the two returned 12 years later to star again in Subhash Ghai’s blockbuster Karz. Bobby was unique in many ways, Raj Kapoor was reeling under the huge financial losses after the commercial failure of Mera Naam Joker and he had to mortgage his house and wife’s jewelleries. He could not afford a decent hero for Bobby. His old-time regulars – Lyricist Shailendra and Music Director Jaikishan had passed away. He went for new team of Anand Bakshi and Laxmikant Pyarelal. Bobby also introduced playback singer Shailendra Singh and fetched a Filmfare award on debut Best Playback singer for Narendra Singh Chanchal for the song – Beshaq Mandir Masjid todo. Bobby had RK regulars like his borther-in-law Prem Nath and old friend Pran. It is another story that Pran and Raj Kapoor developed differences later on the remuneration for Bobby. Bobby also made Prem Chopra famous for his dialogue – Mera Naam Hai Prem, Prem Chopra. Not many know, that Prem Chopra is married to Raj Kapoor’s sister-in-law Uma.

Rishi Kapoor was paired opposite a record 45 different heroines in his life time right from Dimple Kapadia till Urmila Matondkar in Shreeman Aashiq. As he made his debut quite early at the age of 21, and with boyish looks, it became very difficult for producers and directors to cast him opposite the top actresses of the 1970s and 80s like Hema Malini, Rekha, Rakhee, Parveen Babi, Shabana Azmi, Zeenat Aman. He did gave a super hit with Zeenat Aman (Hum Kisi Se Kam Nahin) and also did 3-4 movies with Moushumi Chatterjee like Zahreela Insaan, Do Premee and Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan. He also did movies like the flop Azaad Desh Ke Ghulam with Rekha and the critically acclaimed Ek Chadar Maili Si with Hema which was more of a script demand. Most of these actresses were more preferred to be cast opposite his uncle Shashi Kapoor who was 14 years his senior. They give many hit movies together — Kabhi Kabhie, Sindoor, Duniya Meri Jeb Mein and Doosra Aadmi.

He did 3 more movies under the RK banner after Bobby all directed by different persons — 1 by his dad (Prem Rog), the other two by his brothers — Randhir Kapoor (Heena) and Rajiv Kapoor (Prem Granth). he also directed Aa Ab Laut Chalen in 1998 starring Alshay Khanna, Aishwarya and Rajesh Khanna. Sadly, the RK legacy and the iconic RK studios could not be carried forward to greater glories by the three brothers or their children.He formed hit pairing with Neetu Singh (Kabhi, Kabhie, Khel Khel Mein, Rafoo Chakkar, Do Dooni Chaar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Zinda Dil, Love Aaj Kal, Dhan Daulat), Tina Munim (Aap Ke Deewane, Bade Dil Wala, Karz, Yeh Vaada Raha), Sridevi (Chandni, Nagina, Gurudev, Banjaran and the thriller Kaun Sacha Kaun Jhootha), Meenakshi Seshadari (Damini, Bade Ghar Ki Beti, Ghar Parivar), Juhi Chawla (Daraar, Bol Radha Bol, Luck By Chance, Eena Meena Deeka, Ghar Ki Izzat, Saajan Ka Ghar, Karobaar), Madhuri Dixit (Yaarana, Sahibaan, Prem Granth) and Dimple Kapadia (Patiala House, Pyaar Mein Twist, Bobby and Saagar)

He had great friendship with both Jeetendra and Rakesh Roshan who were older than him but they shared a great rapport. He also formed a hit pair with Amitabh Bachchan (Kabhi Kabhie, Amar Akbar Anthony, Coolie, Ajooba, Naseeb and the more recent 102 Not Out). If we ignore the Special appearances criteria, he did one movie each with all the Khans — Deewana with Shahrukh, Yeh Hai Jalwa with Salman, Fanaa with Aamir and D-Day with Irrfan. With Saif he did two great movies – Hum Tum and Love Aaj Kal. It was to his credibility that even 37 years after Bobby he did movies as hero in Do Dooni Char and Chintu ji. Though he did play actor with grey shades in Khoj and Kuch To Hai, it was with the Rauf Lala character in the new Agneepath with which he stole the show over two other heavy duty actors — Hrithik Roshan and Sanjay Dutt. After that came Nikhil Advani’s D-Day and Aurangzeb which truly show-cased his powerful performances. His last released movie was The Body with Emran Hashmi. Whether it was a 5 minute role in Nandita Das’s directed biopic on Saadat Hussain Manto — Manto or the 2 minute role in Om Shanti Om or the 30 minute Quizmaster role in Chalk and Duster or the 15 minute role in Khalid Mohammad’s Tehzeeb, he shined everywhere. His greatness lies in the fact that he was superb even in average movies which did not click due to lack of promotion or poor performances by other lead actors — Yeh Hai Jalwa, Kuch Khatti Kuch Meethi, Raju Chacha, Aurangzeb, Chintuji, Jhootha Kahin Ka to name a few.

Below are my recommendations for hardcore Rishi Kapoor fans for his movies by genre.

Romantic — Bobby, Rafoo Chakkar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Saagar, Chandni, Henna

Periodic/Fantasy – Laila Majnu, Ajooba,

Social/Drama — Mulk, Doosara Aadmi, Badaltey Rishte, Sargam, Tawaif, Prem Rog, Patiala House, Delhi-6, Hum Dono, Damini, Sindoor, Naseeb Apna Apna

Thriller/Suspense — Khel Khel Mein,  Kaun Sachcha Kaun Jhootha, Khoj, D-Day, Aurangzeb, Kuchh To Hai, Fanaa, Daraar, Yaarana,

Musical — Hum Kisi Se Kam Nahin, Karz, Zamane Ko Deekhana Hai

Comedy — Luck By Chance, Do Dooni Chaar, Bol Radha Bol, Chintuji, Student of the Year, Rajma Chawal, 102 Not Out, Kapoor & Sons, Housefull 2.

Sahib Biwi Aur Gangster (2011)

Sahib Biwi Aur Gangster (2011)

Producer: Tigmanshu Dhulia, Rahul Mitra                                                                        Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia                                                                                                              Writer: Tigmanshu Dhulia, Sanjay Chauhan                                                                        Lyrics : Sandeep Nath, Babbu Mann                                                                                      Music : Amit Sial, Mukhtar Sahota, Jaidev Kumar, Anuj Garg, Ankit Tiwari

Starring: Jimmy Shergill, Mahie Gill, Randeep Hooda, Shreya Narayan, Deep Raj Rana, Vipin Sharma, Deepal Shaw,  Rajeev Gupta.

Genre: Social
Recommended Audience: A

Ratings: 8.5

The biggest hindrance in a film like SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER is its title itself which reveals too much about the story of the film by its notion and the audience very well knows what they are precisely going to show as far as story-plot is concerned. So, it all comes down to the treatment, presentation and performances in such a venture, which fortunately is also the strong point of its director Tigmanshu Dhulia, who has earlier given us films such as HAASIL and CHARAS.

“Iss haveli mein sirf wafadar reh sakte hain (Only the truly trusted can stay in this palace),” says the queen to her chauffeur. “Aap wafadar hain? (You’re the faithful one?),” casually snaps the driver. This is when the chauffeur and the queen, far away from the king, are locked in passionate love. It’s a cracker line. This film is full of such; the skill and wit in its writing shows.

The owner of the said palace, Thakur Aditya Pratap Singh popularly known as the Sahib (Jimmy Shergill) of this story, is sovereign of a small town called Deogarh. He is of course a king in name only: “Rutba hai, rupai nahin (He has class, no money)”.  He has to be dependent for his monthly expenses on his step mother, Badi Rani Sahiba (mistress of his late father) but hates her too. He also spends his nights with his own mistress Mahua but despises her when she tries to be sympathetic. His first wife had apparently committed suicide, the second one, popularly known as Choti Bahu appears insane at times but longs for her husband’s time. From a family that once deemed itself royal, the young dapperly dressed Sahib’s now reduced to being the top local fixer, a glorified hit man. He appears to be going through a rough patch lately. His closest rival (Vipin Sharma) seems to have an upper hand in this political game of deceit and profit.

We’re in the heartless badlands of Uttar Pradesh. These are deeply politicised parts of India that run on patronage of criminals, who are brokers of both power and state money (government tenders, contracts, etc). It’s a mysteriously scary place that outsiders can rarely make sense of. Which is probably why there are such few outsiders in the first place.

Right from his first film (and before that in the T.V. Serials too), the characterizations in Tigmanshu’s script have always been well written, brilliantly executed and superbly performed by the cast without any exceptions. And same is the case with his latest SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER too, which also has fabulous performances from almost everyone featuring in the film, which remains the biggest reason why it deserves to be seen at least once by everyone appreciating such innovative kind of cinema. No doubt the story and its key characters have been taken from the cult Guru Dutt classic SAHIB BIWI AUR GHULAM. But Tigmanshu molds this basic theme into a more bitter, mean and bloody format, full of love, greed and betrayals. As the story moves further revealing the dark side of it’s every key person in the script, the actors start growing on you with their impressive acts and keep you engaged. Here apart from its lead performers, a special mention needs to be made for the attention given by the director to his supporting cast such as Vipin Sharma who is superb in his portrayal of the rival don and I seriously wished he had a longer role written in the script with more of his entertaining one liners. Also Deepraj Rana as Jimmy’s trustworthy, Deepal Shaw (as Deepraj’s daughter), Rajeev Gupta (as minister) and Shreya Narayan (as the mistress) leave their own mark in the overall impact of the film. In the lead acts, Mahie Gill scores the maximum in the complex role of a unsatisfied, neglected married woman, who is also a psychic patient. She is simply excellent as the BIWI and once again shows the powerhouse of talent hidden in her as an actress. Randeep Hooda as the GANGSTER surprises you with a very cool and underplayed kind of performance as required by its script. But I found Jimmy Gill, though effective but also repeating himself in that tough mood, playing the SAHEB.

Tanu Weds Manu (2011)

Tanu Weds Manu (2011)

Producer: Sanjay Singh Films
Director: Anand Rai
Writer: Himanshu Sharma
Lyrics : Raj Shekhar
Music: Krsna

Starring: R Madhavan, Kangana Ranaut, Jimmy Shergill, Deepak Dobriyal, Swara Bhasker, Ejaaz Khan, Navni Parihar, K K Raina, Rajendra Gupta and Ravi Kishan
Genre: Social
Recommended Audience: PG-14

Ratings: 7.5

If you are fan of Lucknawi and Kanpuri style language, and are used to those cycle rickshaws and narrow lanes of smaller cities, then you will love this movie. Madhavan is Manu Sharma, a London-based doctor who has come to India to look for a bride and get married as per his parents’ wishes. Their first stop is Kanpur where they go to see Tannuja Trivedi (Kangna Ranaut), an extrovert, bend the rules, be a rebel girl. Tannu is the exact opposite of Manu, changes boyfriends frequently, always wants to run away and get married, smokes and drinks frequently and uses foul language. Still Manu goes ahead and says “Yes” to the proposal, smitten by the beauty of Tannu.

Off go both the families to Vaishno Devi to seek blessings for the marriage. On the way, Tannu threatens Manu of dire consequences if he does not say “No” to the marriage. On the return journey Manu conveys that to the elders and all hell breaks loose. Manu and family go for more window shopping for brides. In between, they also go to Kapurthala to attend Jassi’s (Ejaaz Khan) marriage. There Manu again comes across Tannu who arrives as the friend of the bride (Swara Bhaskar). Eyes cross and there are frequent instances of the boy meets girl kind of romance, only here, it is only love from one end. Audience will find a lot of similarity with “Jab We Met”  in terms of the introvert lead hero and the extrovert heroine. Script and supporting cast wise, this movie appears to be better than Jab We Met, the only comparison where it falls flat is the comparison with the lead actors. Madhavan and Kangana are in no comparison with Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor.

In terms of performances, the lead pair of Madhavan and Kangana are just average but Deepak Dobriyal as Manu Sharma’s sidekick “Puppy” steals the show. He has put life in all the scenes he is in. Watch out for the scene where he and Manu are going for the Vaishno Devi yatra and he interspaces the Jai Maata Di slogans with his expressions or the scene where he refuses to pay for the toilet use. His dances are funny and even where he confesses to Manu that he left his setting to come back with Manu. This movie has to be watched for Deepak only. Another person, who is good is Jimmy Shergill as the Raja Bhaiyya, the way he carries himself in all the scenes, the dialogue delivery, the pathani suit, all suit his character. This is one negative character, the audience would love. KK Raina and Rajendra Gupta are good in their roles.  Watch out for the scene where KK Raina confesses to Manu that he always wanted to do something different in life and is proud of his son. Another character worth mentioning is that of Payal played by Swara Bhasker who is very good in all her confrontational scenes with Kangana. Ravi Kishen is wasted.  The opening song “Manu Bhaiya ka Karen ab Manu Bhaiya” looks good on screen having been shot inside the train in the sleeper class.

Anupama (1966)

Anupama (1966)

Producer: L.B. Lachman
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee
Starring: Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Shashikala, Deven Verma, Tarun Bose, Surekha, Durga Khote, Dulari and David
Music: Hemant Kumar
Lyrics: Kaifi Azmi

Dialogues: Rajinder Singh Bedi
Genre: Social Drama
Recommended Audience: General

Considered to be one of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s finest movies, Anupama explores the complex relationship between a father and daughter and also depicts the two contrasting love stories of the lead couples.

Mohan Sharma (Tarun Bose) marries very late but dearly loves his wife (Surekha). He loses his wife during child birth and tries to engulf himself deep into his work and alcohol. The child Uma grows up in the care of her aaya Sarala (Dulari). Whenever, Mohan is inebriated, his fatherly love for Uma is for everyone to see, but when he comes back to his senses every morning, he holds Uma responsible for the death of his wife. Uma (Sharmila Tagore) grows up to be a very shy and introvert girl who hardly speaks. Her marriage has been fixed with Arun (Deven Verma) by their parents when they were kids, but the UK-returned Arun gets attracted towards Anita (Shashikala) who is more extrovert happy-go-lucky kind of girl who never stops speaking.

Ashok (Dharmendra) is Arun’s childhood friend who lives with his mother (Durga Khote) and sister and is a upright school teacher who never compromises on his principles. He also writes poems and short stories in Hindi magazines. He and Uma are attracted towards each other and this gives the concept of his new novel, Anupama which is the story of a shy and introvert girl. Moses (David) is Arun’s tenant and a lawyer by profession and is also a friend of Mohan who provides the light moments in the movie. Talking about songs, the movie has two chirpy solo numbers by Asha Bhosale – Bheegi Bheegi fiza and Kyon mujhe itni Khushi de di both picturized on gorgeous looking Shashikala and two soulful melodies by Lata Mangeshkar – Dheere Dheere Machal picturized on Uma’s mother and Kuch dil ne kaha which is sung by Uma in the movie. It also has the melancholy hit song by Hemant Kumar – Ya dil ki suno duniyawalon which is picturized on Dharmendra in a Birthday party. Both Hemnat da and Kaifi Azmi are at their peaks in this movie and the movie itself is a tribute to Bimal Roy from Hrishikesh Mukherjee.

Performance wise, Dharmendra as a silent poet, writer and lover shows his acting powers. Sharmila hardly has any dialogues but her beautiful eyes do all the talking. Shashikala delivers a career best performance in an author-backed role and a young handsome looking Deven Verma delivers as well. David who is a regular in all Hrishida’s movies creates magic with his comedy. Tarun Bose as a complex father has the most difficult role in the movie and he performs his best as well.

         This is a movie which all daughters who love their fathers should watch and all fathers who have daughters should watch.

Thappad (2020)

Thappad

Producer: Anubhav Sinha, Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar
Director: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Tapsee Pannu, Pavail Gulati, Dia Mirza, Maya Sarao, Ratna Pathak Shah, Tanvi Azmi, Kumud Mishra, Naina Grewal, Geetika Vaidya, Ram Kapoor, Ankur Rathee, Siddharth Karnik, Purnendu Bhattacharya, Sushil Dahiya and Manav Kaul.

Music: Anurag Saikia, Mangesh Dhakde
Story : Anubhav Sinha
Genre: Drama
Recommended Audience: General
Film Released on: 28 February 2020

Reviewed by: Pranay Bhagat – Rating 9.5/10

It cannot get any better than this as Anubhav Sinha combines with his Mulk actress Tapsee to deliver another riveting social drama. A perfect movie which comes a week before the International Women’s day on March 8th.

The beginning of the movie is unique where the Orange Stick Ice-cream is shown as the common factor between different characters in the story and is uniquely demonstrated. The actual story starts with Amruta (Tapsee) shown as a typical well controlled and responsible Housewife who goes about her daily chores like making tea, struggling to get her husband Vikram (Pavail Gulati) a decent breakfast. She is also shown to have an excellent camaraderie with her house maid Sunita (Geetika Vaidya) and Mother-in-law (Tanvi Azmi). She also teaches Kathak to her neighbour, Shivani (Dia Mirza)’s daughter. Vikram’s mother seems to be estranged with her husband and elder son and lives separately with Vikram and Amruta.

Amruta’s parents played by Kumud Mishra (a regular in Anubhav’s movies now) and a melodramatic Ratna Pathak Shah love their daughter and Amruta also shares a good rapport with her brother Karan (Ankur Rathee) and would be sister-in-law Swati (Naina Grewal) and both the extended families share an excellent relationship. Amruta and Vikram harbours dream of moving to London and Vikram seems to be dead buried and heavily invested in his presentation. His presentation is liked by all board members and he is given the initial go ahead to head the London office. He throws a party for all family members and friends to celebrate the occasion and during this party, he receives a phone call from the MD that he has to work under a Britisher. He argues with the CFO who was one of the invitees and when Amruta and others try to intervene to calm down, things go out of control. What follows forms the crux of the story and how individual characters like the lawyer, Indira Jaisingh (Maya Sarao), the maid, Swati, both the mothers and Shivani come to terms with Amruta failing to forget the incident.

Each female character is shown to be struggling with her inner devils and repentance on how they were made to compromise on their desires, hobbies and passion for the sake of keeping the family intact. The lawyer is shown in a marriage of convenience with a famous journalist (Manav Kaul) and ditched her college boyfriend, Karan but still meets him and talks on phone to break news of her case wins. The maid gets beaten by her abusive husband daily but still carries on. Shivani misses her late husband but tries to find her happiness in her daughter’s life. Swati supports Amruta in her fight and even angers her boyfriend Karan in the process. Ram Kapoor is apt as the no-nonsense lawyer representing Vikram against Indira who represents Amruta.

Performance wise Tapsee Pannu is on a acting spree with strong author-backed roles like Mulk, Pink, Badla and now Thappad and seems to have taken the place left by Vidya Balan who does fewer movies these days. Pavail Gulati is good in his debut film. Dia Mirza appears in a movie after a considerable time and I wished she had more screen time with an additional 10 minutes flashback of her late husband, Tanvi Azmi and Ratna Pathak Shah are seasoned  artists and fulfill their roles to the tee. Manav Kaul is totally wasted in a 4 scene blink and miss role. The surprise package here are Maya Sarao as the lawyer, Kumud Mishra as Tapsee’s father and Geetika Vaidya as the maid. they bring life to all the scenes they were part of.  Music is average but the song Hayo Rabba by Suvarna Tiwari aptly shows the struggles and travails of all the women characters. Evereyone should watch it and especially the men and newly married husbands so that they will learn to respect their wives.

65th Annual Filmfare Awards — Nominees and Predictions

With the 65th Annual Filmfare awards just 3 days away, my predictions for the Gala event in Guwahati in 15th February are as follows.

1. Best Actor — Ranveer Singh for Gully Boy may give a close fight, but it will be Shahid Kapoor this time for Kabir Singh. Others nominated in this category are Vicky Kaushal for Uri, Akshay Kumar for Kesari, Hrithik Roshan for Super 30, and Ayushman Khurana for Bala.
2. Best Actress — This has all the seniors/veterans competing with Vidya Balan for Mission Mangal, Rani Mukherjee for Mardaani 2, Kareena Kapoor for Good Newwz, Kangana Ranaut for Manikarnika, Priyanka Chopra for The Sky is Pink and Alia Bhatt for Gully Boy. It will be a close fight between Alia Bhatt and Priyanka, but I think Priyanka Chopra will walk away with the trophy.
3. Best Director — The five nominees here are first timers Aditya Dhar (Uri), Jagan Shakti (Mission Mangal), along with Siddharth Anand for War, Zoya Akhtar for Gully Boy and Nitesh Tiwari for Chhichhore and my vote is for Nitesh Tiwari for Chhichhore.
4. Best Film — The same above five movies are competing in this category and I think it will be close fight between Mission Mangal and Gully Boy and Gully Boy may just sneak ahead.
5. Best Supporting Actor – We have newcomers Vijay Verma and Siddhant Chaturvedi for Gully Boy along with seasoned campaigners Manoj Pahwa for Article 15, Diljit Dosanjh for Good Newzz, Ranveer Shorey for Sonchiriya, and Gulshan Devaiah for Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota. It will be a close fight between Gulshan Devaiah and Siddhant Chaturvedi with Gulshan slightly ahead here.
6. Best Supporting Actress – This is the most interesting fight here, we have 55 years old Madhuri Dixit (Kalank) competing with 60 year old Amrita Singh (Badla), 58 years old Seema Pahwa (Bala), 40 years old Amruta Subhash (Gully Boy), 19 year old Zaira Wasim (The Sky is Pink) and behold ! 92 years old Kamini Kaushal (Kabir Singh). I am gunning for Kamini Kaushal who is still active at 92 years but Zaira Wasim also has a strong chance.
7. Best Lyricist – Kabir Singh (Irshad Kamil – Bekhayali, Mithoon – Tujhe Kitna chahne Lage) and Kesari (Manoj Muntashir – Teri Mitti, Tanishk Bagchi – Ve Mahi) each have two nominations here. We also have Divine and Ankur Tiwari for Apna Time Aayega (Gully Boy) and Amitabh Bhattacharya for Kalank Nahin Ishq (Kalank). My prediction will be Bekhayali for Kabir Singh.
8. Best Music Director – I am not a big fan of 3-4 Music Directors for 1 Movie and we have two entries here with that — Mithoon, Amaal Malik, Vishal Mishra, Sachet-Parampara, Akhil Sachdeva (Kabir Singh) and Tanishk Bagchi, Arko Pravo Mukherjee, Chirantan Bhatt, Jasbir Jassi, Gurmoh, Jasleen Royal (Kesari). We also have Pritam for Kalank, Vishal Sekhar for Bharat and Ankur Tewari and Zoya Akhtar (Gully Boy). I am going with Gully Boy here.
9. Best Story – We have Anubhav Sinha and Gaurav Solanki (Article 15) competing with Nitesh Tiwari, Piyush Gupta, Nikhil Mehrotra (Chhichhore), Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti (Gully Boy), Vasan Bala (Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota), Jagan Shakti (Mission Mangal), Abhishek Chaubey & Sudip Sharma (Sonchiriya). I will go with Article 15 here.
10. Best Actor Critics – We have Akshaye Khanna (Section 375) locking horns with Ayushman Khurana (Article 15), Nwazuddin Siddiqui (Photograph) and Rajkumar Rao (Judgemental Hai Kya). I am going with Akshaye Khanna but Rajkumar Rao also has a strong chance.
11. Best Actress Critics – Bhumi Pednekar lands two nominations here (Sonchiriya and Saand Ki Aankh). then we have Kangana Ranaut for Judgemental Hai Kya, Radhika Madan for Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota, Sanya Malhotra for Photograph with Tapsee Pannu rounding it off for Saand Ki Aankh. I am going for Bhumi Pednekar for Sonchiriya.
12. Best Playback (Male) – Sachet Tandon with Bekhayali from Kabir Singh will be able to beat the rest of the nominees here — Arijit Singh – Kalank Nahin (Kalank) and Ve Mahi (Kesari), Nakash Aziz – Slow Motion (Bharat) and B Praak – Teri Mitti (Kesari).
13. Best Playback (Female) – This will be a close contest, but Shreya Ghosal, Vaishali Mhade – Ghar More Pardesiya (Kalank) will win.
14. Best Debut Director – This is an interesting line-up — Aditya Dhar – Uri, Jagan Shakti – Mission Mangal, Raaj Shaandilyaa – Dream Girl, Raj Mehta (Good Newwz), Gopi Puthran (Mardaani 2) and Tushar Hiranandani (Saand Ki Aankh). I will give my vote for Tushar Hiranandani (Saand Ki Aankh).
15. Best Debut (Male) – This will be a tough competition between Abhimanyu Dasani (Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota) and Siddhant Chaturvedi (Gully Boy) with Mezaan Jaffrey (Malaal), Vishal Jethwa (Mardaani 2), Vardaan Puri (Yeh Saali Aashiqui) and Zaheer Iqbal (Notebook). I am hoping for Siddhant Chaturvedi.
16. Best Debut (Female) – No guesses here but I think Saiee Manjrekar will win for Dabangg 3

Teen Bahuraniyan (1968)

Teen Bahuraniyan (1968)

Producer: S S Vasan and S S Balan
Director: S S Vasan and S S Balan

Starring: Prithvi Raj Kapoor, Saukar Janaki, Jayanti, Vaishali, Agha, Ramesh Deo, Rajinder Nath, Jagdeep, Dhumal, Kanhaiyalal, Niranjan Sharma, Kanchna, Lalitha Pawar, Farida and Shashikala
Genre: Family Drama
Story : K Balachander

Lyrics : Anand Bakshi

Music : Kalyanji Anandji

Reviewed By: Pranay Bhagat

Ratings: 8.5

If you are looking for a nice family drama, then you are in for a nice watch with Teen Bahuraniyan. A Film with no superstars or known faces of that era excels in good humorous situations and some excellent supporting cast.

Seth Deenanath (Prithvi Raj Kapoor) is the patriarch of a joint family and lives with his three sons Shankar(Agha), Ram(Ramesh Deo) and Kanhaiya(Rajinder Nath) and their respective wives Parvati(Janaki), Sita(Jayanti) and Radha(Vaishali). He is a retired school master and also teaches all his grandchildren at home. To avoid the quarrels among his daughter-in-laws he has divided his house into three separate sections and the kitchens are separate as well. All the three Bahus enjoy good rapport and always try to impress their father-in-law. A famous film actress Sheela Devi(Shashikala) moves into their neighborhood along  with his secretary(Jagdeep) and then trouble starts. The Bahus try to outdo each other to impress Sheela Devi. They invite her to their house and also force their innocent husbands to change the entire interior of their respective rooms and also get costly things like Air-conditioner, Telephones, Radio etc. They also try to impress Sheela Devi by borrowing costly necklaces and sarees from their friends.

As a result, the sons not only start spending lot of their middle class salaries in these things but they also start impressing Sheela Devi in their own way. If in the first half there is a competition among the Bahus to impress Sheela Devi, the second half sees them join forces as they try to stop their respective husbands from having an affair with Sheela Devi. Deenanath is not happy about these developments and tries to reign in his sons and bahus by giving subtle hints. Even the song Aamdani Athanni Kharcha Rupaiyah  is beautifully pictured on the grandfather and the kids. The Bahus receive an anonymous letter from a well-wisher that one of their husbands is having an affair with Sheela Devi and the trouble starts with lot of confusion all around. Performance wise Prithvi Raj Kapoor is suitably cast as the main protagonist even though the sons and bahus enjoy more screen space. The Director has done a smart thing by not falling into the trap of casting any big names. Agha, Ramesh Deo and Rajinder Nath are all good in their roles and so are the three bahus who are all from the south. Lalitha Pawar makes a small appearance towards the end of the movie and so are Kanhaiyalal and Dhumal. Shashi Kala shines in her role as a star actress and Jagdeep also performs well. The kids in the movie are good.

Chupke Chupke (1975)

Chupke Chupke (1975)

Producer: N C Sippy
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee
Starring: Dharmendra, Om Prakash, Sharmila Tagore, Usha Kiran, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri,  Asrani, Lily Chakraborthy, David, Lalita Kumari and Keshto Mukherjee
Music: S D Burman
Lyrics: Anand Bakshi

Dialogues: Gulzaar
Genre: Comedy
Recommended Audience: General

Reviewed By : Pranay Bhagat

Ratings – 9/10

Considered to be Dharmendra’s best performance after Satyakam , Chupke Chupke saw Hrishida at his best. The greatness about this movie is it is all about natural comedy and not what we see the usual bhagambhaag in Priyadarshan’s movies these days. There are two good songs by Lata, Chupke Chupke chal ri purvaiya and Ab ke Sajan Saawan mein and a fun duet by Rafi and Kishore Kumar. The music is by S D Burman. Amitabh has given one of his more subdued performances very much unlike his action movies in those days, but still this movie belongs to Om Prakash. Asrani, Lily Bannerjee and Jaya Bhaduri are very good in their supportive roles. The yesteryear’s heroine Usha Kiran as Om Prakash’s wife acts well in panicky situations.

 

Produced by N C Sippy and directed by the evergreen maestro Hrishikesh Mukherjee, this movie had Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Amitabh Bachchan, Usha Kiran, Jaya Bhaduri, Asrani, Lily Bannerjee, David, Keshto Mukherjee and the great Om Prakash as pyaare Jijjjaji. This film had all the fun about Hindi and English Languages and is all about Om Prakash and Dharmendra. The greatness about this movie is the names of the characters which look to be straightly lifted out of a typical Uttar Pradesh high society families, Parimal Tripathy, Sulekha Chaturvedi, Sukumar Sinha, Haripath Chaturvedi to name a few. I will consider it one of Dharmendra’s best films along with Satyakam and one of Om Prakash’s best performances.

People who are looking for some light-hearted joint family comedy should watch this movie.