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 immensely fond of the young Kapoor, his roguish charm and of late, my man has realised that Dilip Kumar is The Dilip Kumar not for nothing. On his birthday he almost implored his friends to gift him the DVD of the film and he came home with a beaming smile saying, "This Sunday, then!" I was ecstatic, too. Why not? Raj Kapoor, I love. Dilip Kumar, I adore. And Nargis, though I don't think much of her looks, she is definitely one of the best actresses we've had in ages.

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United they stand (Naya Daur)

Man vs Machine tipped Horses vs Wheels. Thereafter, Love vs Friendship took center stage, before I realised that Naya Daur, B R Chopra's magnum opus, is a film that cannot be buttonholed into any two categories. It is a film that celebrates the beauty of classical Indian cinema, while harping on the issues of industrialisation in post-independant India and overall, salutes dignity of labour. It brings together some of the best in filmdom. This 1957 drama has the ingredients for becoming a blockbuster in any day and age.

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Guard of honour (Aan)

Or should I say taming of the shrew? For, more than half of Mehboob Khan's Aan shows Jai Tilak trying to win over the admiration and love of the hugely vain Rajkumari Rajshree. But, no one's complaining here. In the thorn-filled path of Jai and Rajshree's union, there are a gamut of songs, fencing duels, daunting escapades and plenty of delightful action. Not to mention the antics of the swashbuckling hero, his easy charm and the attraction of sexy Nadira in her introducing lead role.

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Dull dupe (Bluff Master)

1963 seemed to be a lull year for the flamboyant Shammi Kapoor. Why else would we have films like Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya, Jabse Tumhe Dekha Hain, Shahid Bhagat Singh and Bluff Master? The first three I'm yet to watch. But, if they are as entertaining as Bluff Master, I'm better off without seeing them!!!
Manmohan Desai's tale about a clever (but not hardworking enough) young man loses steam somewhere in the middle of the script. True, Shammi Kapoor looks good, has a way with words and carries a confident personality on his broad shoulders, but after some time his actions look forced and lack conviction. Just like the way his character is devoid of development in B R Panthulu's Dil Tera Diwana. This upsets me.

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Couple no. 55 (Mr & Mrs 55)

I have problems with Guru Dutt as a romantic lead. Though thoroughly taken by his brooding avatar (read: his angst-ridden persona in Pyaasa and as a simpleton in Sahib Bibi aur Ghulam), his lighter roles, I feel, paled in comparison. A month back, I watched Suhagan, a film where Dutt plays a middle-class professor marrying his student. Attracted to it by the song, Tu mere saamne hain, I sat through the film with much pain. Dutt's awkward expressions as the loverboy wooing his sweetheart spoiled the fun. Bharosa, another social drama featuring Dutt, was enjoyable only for Asha Parekh’s effortless portrayal of an ebullient village belle.
But, Mr & Mrs 55, my friend kept saying, was different.

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Due credit (C.I.D)

Dharam Dev Pishorimal Anand writes his heart out in Romancing with Life, his autobiography. He traces his roots to Gurdaspur and recalls his struggles as a strapping but thin 25-year-old jobhunting in busy Bombay. He dots the narrative with multihued incidents from his film career and personal life that made him DEV ANAND, the star. While doing so, he credits Vijay Anand's Baazi for making him a household name.

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