I will always love you... RIP Shammi Kapoor

Why should we mourn the demise of Shamsher Raj Kapoor, or very lovingly our Shammi Kapoor? Is he really dead? Gone? Never to be seen, heard or felt again? Is it true that his thundering 'yahoo' will cease to reverberate? NO.

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Three in one (Pyar ka Mausam)

Club Nasir Husain's Tumsa Nahin Dekha, Dil Deke Dekho and Jab Pyar Kisise Hota Hain, and you get Pyar ka Mausam. But the astute Husain doesn't cheat you in any way by simply rehashing from his 1957, 1959 and 1961 hits. He throws in more drama, twists, colour and characters to make his 1969 romance thoroughly enjoyable. The segments from the earlier films are stitched so deftly that unless you watch closely, chances are you will miss them. For, the plot flows like a brook, peppered with plenty of action, romance, song and dance. With Nasir Husain at the helm, one thing is certain...thorough cinematic entertainment.

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Three-tiered thriller (Teesri Manzil)

If entertainment could be measured in degrees, I'd call Teesri Manzil, the source of third degree enjoyment!! Considering that this Vijay Anand trendsetter is my favourite (incidentally it was also my father's favourite, and, father and daughter spent numerous hours bonding over this thriller), I should have penned my thoughts on it much earlier. But, truely, I have been mustering up the courage to sum my feelings on this 1966 superhit. For, I really want to reign in the gush and sound objective. But, since I've already seen the film 27 times, that might be a tad difficult. I'll try nonetheless...

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A hearty tale of love (Dil Deke Dekho)

Shammi Kapoor's called Roop in Nasir Husain's Dil Deke Dekho. An apt name. With that kind of a face, nothing else would do justice. He is a charmer, who slips into multiple roles with utmost dexterity. He is tall, strapping and cool, a loverboy who is hard to stay away from. He is a dutiful son, an passionate lover and a quickwitted comedian. So, Roop, the one with a beautiful face, effortlessly makes your heart skip a beat. He makes you laugh with his Professor Saamri gags, tickles your funny bone as Mirza Changezi and makes mush out of you as the smooth Roop or Raja. In the very words of Prof. Saamri, "Oh, tera kya kehna" or maybe, "Yeh aankhen nahin do teer hain"...

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Music, the food of love (Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon)

What made Nassir Hussain's pictures a box-office sellout? I say, fetching women, fabulous music, picturesque locales, smart heroes and a roughly tolerable plot. You get ample of that in the 1963 romance Phir Wohi dil Laya Hoon. The director etches a credible love story with plenty of song and dance, a menacing villian and fun situations in lovely Kashmir. Yes, you get to see the heavenly place before it got ripped apart!!!

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