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Monday 5 April 2010

Love thy neighbour (Tere Ghar Ke Saamne)


Didn't know Vijay Anand had this in him!!! A breezy, fun romance that is! Without his trademark suspense, sudden twists and nailbiting action... In 1963's Tere Ghar Ke Samne, he sheds his sleuth like qualities to give film lovers a joyful musical. And, he puts in the backdrop, a baseless rivalry between two good-natured neighbours...Though the film begins on a very Romeo-Juliet note, its end is predictable, and hence, immensely satisfying...

I remember seeing the song Tu Kahaan Mein Yahaan as a 11-year-old. It was a Sunday morning and those days Sunday used to commence with Rangoli, a collection of about six songs from Hindi classics that we gazed at with groggy eyes!! That was my first brush with the film. I could only see the film at 23. And, found it, I must say, as smooth as the song... Embellished with a unique lead cast (Dev Anand and Nutan), this film will make a niche in your heart everytime you watch it...
Set in Delhi, Lala Jagannath's (Om Prakash is warm, obstinate and funny) arch rival is Seth Karam Chand (Harindranath Banerjee plays his soft yet stern part to perfection). They quarrel like two cats but have wax hearts. Striving to belittle each other at the drop of a hat, these two rich and known men of the society want to build their own houses. The catch is that each one's house should be more grand than his enemy's abode. And, both the Lala and the Seth walk about openly, with daggers drawn at each other...inducing laughter at every gimmick, of course!!
As luck would have it, the Lala's son, Rakesh (charismatic Dev Anand) and the Seth's daughter, Sulekha (charming Nutan), fall in love... and try everything under the sun to convince their parents to bless them...After a heady mix of both unpleasant and hilarious incidents, all is well in the end...
Dev Anand is a complete winner as Rakesh. He is a talented architect who knows how to tackle every situation. Be it wooing the exuberant Nutan or handling the unreasonable demands of his father, Rakesh is never ill-at-ease.
As for Nutan, she is a delight! If she played the melancholic prisoner in Bandini, here she is chirpy and spontateous. She looks demure and classy in her well tailored clothes and very stylish with her hair tied in a chic French roll. Her eyes light up with every smile. She is very romantic as Rakesh's girlfriend and very obedient yet adamant as the Seth's daughter.
The film scores brownie points in the music department (S.D. Burman does it again)! Though the title track (picturised on a near-drunk Rakesh) is not very memorable, the other tracks are pure bliss. Tu kahaan mein yahaan shows Rakesh on the steets of sleepy Simla, yearning for a glimpse of Sulekha. The lyrics evoke the very essence of sweet separation...
Yeh Tanhai sounds very much like a Bengali ditty. The song is special because of Nutan's sparkling yet naughty expressions. Through the song she tells Rakesh that she, too, loves him. The song forges their tender relationship...
Rakesh's teasing looks in the song Dekho rutha na karo, makes one weak in the knees. When Sulekha says, Hum na bolengey kabhi, yu sataya na karo, she is angry, but is waiting for a mellow moment to melt!!!
The most hummable is of course Dil ka bhanwar. The use of the staircase of the Qutb Minar couldn't have been more effective. Rakesh's heart proposes love to a coy Sulekha and it's as if the birds and the bees sing with him. What a moment...
Tere Ghar Ke Samne is light, it requires no toil, no brainwork. But, in a very tactful manner, this small frothy film, reinstates your belief in love and patience... Short and sweet, we say...

10 comments:

  1. The post reflects the mirth and froth of the film.
    The cinematography, especially during Dil ka bhanwar, is amazing.
    And you are right, a strange Vijay Anand film this is. Has he made other films such as this?

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  2. I won't read this post yet, as this movie is in my to-see box on the shelf, and I'm saving it for "calculated enjoyment" one day!!
    But as soon as I've seen it, you'll hear me again!
    yves

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  3. @Yves: Go ahead, watch it!! It's sweet, simple and infectious!!! A lovely, lovely, romantic comedy, replete with a dashing Dev, ravishingly stylish Nutan and a hilarious supporting cast!!

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  4. @Dwaipayan: You forgot Tu kahaan. It is breathtaking with its echo effect. I'm not very sure whether he has made other films like this one. If he has I'm sure they will be lovely, too. Let's get hold of them :)

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  5. And finally.. I watched it! What. An. Experience!

    I had a constant grin on my face througout this movie, so much so that my sis asked me what's up with the demented look? (which turned into a grimace 20 mins before the end)

    Barring the boring end, everything about this movie is FAB! I love the songs, the actors, the characters, the dialogues and the opening credits too (that was novel)! Spl. mention should be made of the scene just before 'Dil ka bhanwar kare pukar...' the song lyrics are woven so smoothly in the dialogues. and I loved the way Nutan teases Dev Anand before breaking into that beautiful 'Ye tanhayi...'

    And now coming to the end, though it was predictable, it needn't be so boring. I found it surprising that the whole climax was hogged by Dev Anand. He was there in every frame while Nutan was a silent spectator!! that was not fair at all. :( But I guess, in almost all the Navketan productions, the climax is hogged by the star of the family.

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  6. @Punya: I just love this film. Everuthing about it is so exciting. Dev Anand is dashing, Nutan is charming and stylish. Om Prakash is funny and for once Rajindernath is not outright stupid. Though the end is predictable, I'm quite okay with it because it has the beautiful song, Sunley tu dil ki sada :)

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  7. Hello Sharmi,
    There, seen it! Thanks for directing my attention to it! I have now read your comments carefully (it's so much more interesting when one has seen the film of course) and although I find myself practically totally in agreement with what you say, there's one little statement concerning the two fathers which I will correct a little: "They quarrel like two cats but have wax hearts".
    They do change indeed, but they never change by themselves. They're forced to change. And I would even say that the end has been "engineered" to become a happy end. It isn't at all satisfying. Not only doesn't Sulekha (Nutan) have a role in changing the fathers' mind concerning the possibility of the marriage, but there is no psychological realism in their simultaneous change. It's a pity, because a slightly more realistic ending would have made the movie perfect. Imagine for example a "one month later" sequence, with Sethji finally relenting after having had a month's taunts at work over the missed wedding, or something like that...
    Well, anyway, never mind, Nutan is worth a dozen botched endings!
    cheers

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  8. @Yves: Hello there. YOU know, so much as I agree somewhat with you statements, I really didn't deliberate much on it. The film was super fun and I loved every bit of it!! :)

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  9. Vijay Anand is in a cameo in the song dil ka bhanwar kare pukar

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  10. @Anonymous: Yaaa I know, a stern-looking man walking up the stairs and giving a glare to the romancing couple!!! Such a cute inclusion :)

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