Man, woman and doctor (Dil Ek Mandir)

It's not for nothing that Raj Kumar received a Best Supporting Actor Filmfare award for his portrayal of Ram in C V Sridhar's emotional drama Dil Ek Mandir. For, here is a man who despite being diagnosed with lung cancer and waiting on the brink of desolation and doom, is buoyant, pragmatic and jocund all the time. He is not afraid of death and he has no qualms in securing a stable and safe future for his wife after his death. He relaxes the tension in the plot with his amiable repartee and is a foil to the otherwise morose and dejected doctor who is suffering from the pangs of unrequited love. If you ask me, Ram is one of the main reasons why I was able to complete the film.

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For some time pass (Man ki Aankhen)

I wouldn't recommend this film highly. But yes, if you are in a serious mood for some family drama, especially some induced by the caustic mother-in-law, then this is THE film for you. For, all sparkling fireworks, both good and bad, is reserved for Lalita Pawar. And like always, she never fails to deliver here. When she is the doting mother, she is every bit as loving to her sons. But when she bears her fangs towards the daughter-in-law she is not particularly fond of, then God save the young bride. Lailita Pawar is splendidly sarcastic, ejects poison at the drop of a hat and never minces words to declare that she truly hates this girl. And in her histrionics there is that level of perfection that makes her such a revelation to watch. Lalita Pawar is the attraction in this otherwise tepid film. And this, despite the film starring the handsome Dharmendra and the talented Waheeda Rehman.

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The correct dose of drama (Khandan)

Too much fun, I tell you. No wonder I'm never absolutely disappointed by A Bhimsingh's films. Revolving around family relationships in a big joint set-up, mostly set in villages where traditions and customs are heeded, a simplistic plot containing melodrama and awesome performances by a superlative cast. That's the crux yet again of Khandan, one of the biggest grossers of 1965, I'm told. What's not to like here? Sunil Dutt paired with the lovely and rustic Nutan, Om Prakash is sarcastically funny against Lalita Pawar's caustic stupidity, Manmohan Krishna and Sulochana are the quintessential good people, Sudesh Kumar the eternal goat, Mumtaz, the pretty damsel and best of all, Pran, the forever evil villain. And here, with a comic twist! On a roll!!

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Guru Dutt's last (Sanjh aur Savera)

Considering that this 1964 drama was Guru Dutt's last film outing before he succumbed to the dangerous cocktail of sleeping pills and alcohol, I'm ready to overlook any minor glitch that happens in the film. True, Sanjh aur Savera does have some unnecessary plot twists and some of the sadness could be done away with, but on the whole this Hrishikesh Mukherjee classic is quite an engaging tale on the games that God plays with us. The sequences are masterminded by the Almighty and it only is true that we are mere dices in His hands. And what better way to show that than the events that happen in Gauri's life. After all, she does not want to be unhappy, but can she force suffering away from her life. No, she does not have the choice to do so.

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Drama that drowned (Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi)

This has often been the case with me. While browsing for a certain film in free movie watching sites, when I chance upon an obscure film that looks pretty interesting I cannot control the temptation. These maybe films that have not been spoken about much. They necessarily may not have the best lead actors or the most memorable songs. But something about the story is so tantalising that it makes me forget my initial search and I sit down to watch this new discovery at that very instant. And, like it always happens I'm quite amused at how predictable the story line is, how most of these films are family sagas and how almost every one of them stand due to the merit of a superb supporting cast.

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For want of a good wife (Naukar)

Now that's what I call a funny family film. The story is good, the performances able, the execution is easy and the characters are well-etched out. The comedy is entirely situational and most importantly, done by none other than the gargantuanly talented Mehmood. Even though he is past his prime in Hindi films, is awkwardly bloated and wears a hideous wig, his comic timing is just too perfect. In Ismail Memon's Naukar, this comedian gets to wear the most ludicrous shirts and trousers but there is no moment when he is not in his elements. And he is just one of the good things about this 1979 film.

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Courageous courtesan (Sadhna)

The blatant divide between pure and impure is smudged immaculately as Geeta Dutt croons Tora manwa kyun ghabraye rey in the lips of Leela Chitnis. Through the song we are actually made to ponder on whether Champabai is seriously an impure woman who needs to be judged by society and its norms? Or is she just like any one of them who has a right to offer her prayers to the Almighty, touch the idol and seek her heart's prayers? Is the world made by mortals equipped enough to decide on whether she deserves a second chance?

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Mysteriously forgettable (Baat Ek Raat Ki)

Sometimes the last 30 minutes of a film turns out so good that I'm ready to forgive the otherwise tedious rest. Especially when the twists are pretty sudden and one clever ploy by the director bolsters the climax up. The mundane script makes a somersault into the fast lane and you sit tight for the proceedings. Shankar Mukherjee's nondescript thriller Baat Ek Raat Ki is a film that falls in this group. It starts off with the promise of a tantalising mystery, slows down with some redundancy, is tedious because of the time invested in developing the love angle and then suddenly, like a bolt from the blue becomes fast and action packed again towards the end...

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Forced tragedy (Do Badan)

I have a question. Does Vikas perish beside the deathbed of Asha in the last scene of Raj Khosla's Do Badan? If so, what's the rationale behind it? For, he is suffering from no ailment as Asha is, has just got back his vision after a successful eye-operation and looks absolutely fit and fine? Given those, is the sight of seeing his ex-lover breathing her last, enough to take his life away? Ambiguous as it is, the climax of the otherwise engaging Do Badan is hurried and too sudden...

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A musical revenge (Baiju Bawra)

A Baiju Bawra search on Wikipedia reveals that the classical maestro perished of typhoid at the ripe age of 71. Given this (though there's no historical proof to ascertain this claim) information, the climax of Vijay Bhatt's 1952 film is far from satisfactory. The rationale behind bumping off both Baiju and his sweetheart Gauri, is something that I'm yet to decipher. Even after he is victorious in his vocal duel with Tansen and reaching his village at the nick of time to marry Gauri, the film shows both the lovers drowning in the Yamuna. Sad, but very surprising!

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Hail Khairoo (Noorie)

Even as the camera pans across the verdant valleys of Kashmir with the beautiful Noorie and attractive Yusuf serenading to Aaja rey o mere dilbur aaja, there is a sense of foreboding that all shall not be well. Blame it on the opening scene of the old storyteller giving out that the innocent Noorie is missing for a long time or the dejected face of Yusuf pining for his lost love, the entire mood of Manmohan Krishna's Noorie is one of sorrow and dejection. The halcyon setting, generally associated with a Yash Chopra production, is conspicuous by its absence.

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