Flawed at heart (Andaz)

For the last few weeks both my husband and I have been talking about Mehboob Khan's Andaz. Watching the 1949 film was top priority for us and we just wanted some peace so that we both could relax and enjoy it. We've heard a lot about it, only praises, and were sure that we love the Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar chemistry. Nargis would be the perfect spice in there. My better-half and I are

Deepak who? (Aabroo)

Seriously, was CL Rawal joking or something? He tags Deepak Kumar, the hero of his Aabroo, as the star discovery of that year. Deepak Kumar who? Never heard of him, never seen him in any film. And after watching this 1968 drama, I know why filmmakers never took a chance by casting him. He is excruciatingly bad as a performer. He has a wispy voice, a comical look on his face, his voice

Two misleading letters (Devar)

The cast is as perfect as Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Anupama. The story is believable, the songs are in place, the performances commendable. Then why is it that Mohan Sehgal's Devar left me with a niggling feeling in my heart. The movie starts off so well and as the script is penned, it should have thrown up plenty of firecrackling histrionics. But somewhere down the line, even the talented actors

Rollicking discovery (Do Ustad)

I've been telling this to people and they are cracking up. My friends are brushing my statements away. My husband wanted me to repeat what I said thrice pretending that I wasn't clear enough. Well, all the reactions are understandable. I do not grudge them even a bit. For, when you tell anybody, yes, anybody, that Mohd Rafi did sing for Raj Kapoor, there might be times when people would

Before Bharat beckoned (Banarasi thug)

When Manoj Kumar started toying with the idea of portraying severely patriotic roles, someone should have held him by the ears, sat him down and given him a thorough brainwash. For, he not only skewed his own career prospects and popularity doing those utterly inane portrayals, but also fobbed us off with those nonsense characters uselessly steeped in excess doses of nationality. Before the

Fun departure (Dil Hi To Hai)

Those of you who are accustomed to being bogged down by the conventional role play of Raj Kapoor should watch this romantic comedy. Yes, Raj Kapoor is the hero in Dil Hi To Hai and he does some delightful comedy with panache. Strange isn't it? Even I was a bit skeptical about seeing Raj Kapoor get into the shoes of what would otherwise be the perfect part for maybe his brother, Shammi Kapoor, but

His or his (Rajnigandha)

Never was a girl's dilemma in love depicted so subtly. In Basu Chatterjee's Rajnigandha, Deepa is torn between her two loves time and again and has to make up her mind on who to settle down with. She keeps comparing the two men in her life, their personalities and character and ultimately uses the nth minute to decide that first love does not necessarily have to be true love.

Sometimes Deepa's

What's stopping the two? (Saraswatichandra)

It's very difficult for me to accept an ending that looks absolutely redundant. I end up feeling why couldn't the director be more brave and experimentative. Why couldn't he marry off a widow to her true sweetheart? Why does he have to depict her accepting her sad fate and the decisions of a taboo-ridden society? And, why on earth does he have to make the lead character procrastinate so much???