Ok.....so I am a huge bollywood fan. It is something that has grown over the years. When I was a kid I hardly watched movies since my parents never had any interest in films. But as I entered the secondary school and started getting my wings of independence, my love affair with bollywood began. And it has only grown stronger since then. Lot of people ridicule bollywood as masala films without any substance. But I love the melodrama, the grand sets, the colors, the song-and-dance sequences, the signature dialogs, the scarcely believable plot. It provides an escape that nothing else can come even close to.
A post on Bollywood, therefore, was always round the corner. Below, in a chronological order, is a list of Ten Bollywood movies I love:
- GUIDE (1965) -- Vijay Anand's Guide is based of R.K. Narayan's novel (of the same name). The movie depicts flawed characters, which is quite a rarity in Bollywood. It is a film with several layers, something that I have rarely seen in movies of that era. Dev Anand, in probably his most famous role, performs as "Raju Guide"; a charcter that has his fair share of failings -- ambition, insecurity and jealousy. Waheeda plays "Rosie" and is shown to be bold in defying societal norms by leaving her husband and moving into Raju's abode. The film, however, does not end at the happily ever after. Instead it goes beyond that, one of the reasons why I find the movie special. Vijay Anand handles the complex subject with great maturity and flair and SD Burman's music is simply outstanding.
- ANAND (1971) -- A masterpiece by Hrishikesh Mukherjee; aided by Rajesh Khanna's career best performance. Rajesh Khanna's personification of a lively, death defying cancer stricken patient was stupendous. The way he takes the audience with him is amazing. In the beginning it is his vivacity and his happy-go-lucky ways that demand ur attention but slowly he takes over ur heart and in the end, you don't want him to die inspite of being aware all the time that his death is inevitable. And ofcourse, who can forget the epic last scene ? The part where a tape with Rajesh Khanna's voice starts playing; the eerie laughter at the end leaves a haunting effect and as the EXIT light turns on; the audience has a lump in the throat and a tear on the cheek.
- SHOLAY (1975)-- The perfect potboiler, if there ever was. It has the right amount of all the key ingredients: action, comedy, drama and romance. The script writer [Salim-Javed] and the director [Ramesh Sippy] deserve a lot of credit for etching out the various characters so nicely such that people remember them even today. The fact that it was a multistarrer made this task even more difficult; and yet how admirably have they done that. When RGV started working on his Sholay remake [which ended up being a dud, by the way]; Hema Malini had made a telling comment "Aap Sholay baar baar dekh sakte hain, bana nahi sakte". That says it all, doesn't it ?
- DEEWAR (1975) -- The plot was not special. After all what can be special about a story of two brothers; one a cop and the other a thief. We all know where that is headed. The Salim-Javed duo came up with a tight screenplay and stellar dialogs. But even then, this could easily have been an over-the-top emotional melodrama. Amitabh ensured that it became a once-in-a-lifetime movie. The swagger, The unassuming demeanor, The anger, The intense look.........Awesome would be an understatement. The movie firmly established Amitabh as an Angry Young Man. If u ever wonder what the fuss regarding AB is all about, do yourself a favor. Go rent Deewar !
- ARTH (1982) -- A movie on infidelity in marriage and insecurity in relationships. Both the leading ladies (Shabana and Smita) deliver powerhouse performances. Jagjit and Chitra Singh's music is melodious and meaningful [Sample this: "Tum itna jo muskura rahe ho, kya gum hai jo tum chupa rahe ho", How True !]. The movie has a very unconventional ending. Not only does Shabana refuse to accept her husband back; she also declines the overtures from the new man in her life (Raj Kiran). Instead, she decides to remain single and independent. That's quite a departure from the norm and it needed guts to fashion such an end (given the time the movie was released). And oh, by the way, the opening lovemaking scene between Smita and Kulbhushan Kharbanda is truly erotic.
- JAANE BHI DO YAARO (1983) -- It is hard to find a better satire than this in Indian cinema. The film depicts the rampant corruption in Indian bureaucracy, news media and politics and the unholy nexus that exists between them. Doing social commentary through comedy is no joke; but JBDY does that with amazing ease. It is only after the movie ends that u realize that it was a black comedy; a film cynical about the corruption in India. Until then u keep laughing and smiling on all the gags. Lot of people hold this movie in great reverence, a collectors edition of sorts [try opening up a conversation on this movie anywhere; and u will see what I mean.....]. A real gem from Kundan Shah.
- LAMHE (1991) -- A movie that was just way ahead of its time. LAMHE broke ground for suggesting a relationship between a woman and a much older man. It is only Yash Chopra who could have handled such a delicate subject with such class and elan. Sridevi stars in a double role and does complete justice to both the characters. It is Anil Kapoor, though, who really delivers. His performance is so subtle; especially as the older, withdrawn "Viren" [It is a tragedy that Bollywood wasted all his talent in potboilers like "Tezaab" and "Ram Lakhan"]. The subject was taboo for the Indian audience (of that time), resulting in poor box office returns. But the film did get a lot of critical acclaim and is hailed as a cult classic.
- DDLJ (1995) -- The movie that made Shahrukh synonymous with charming. He is super sweet in the film and captures the hearts and minds of everybody. Before DDLJ he was a rising star with some blockbusters to his credit; DDLJ made him a superstar. Just as the name "Vijay" is associated with Amitabh, post-DDLJ Raj and Simran became inseparable with Shahrukh and Kajol. One other aspect that gets overlooked is the fact that the movie was also the first of its kind in merging the NRI life and the life in India. It did that splendidly. In the process, NRIs fell in love with the movie and the Bollywood industry opened its eyes to the huge overseas market which had remain untapped until then.
- DIL CHAHTA HAI (2001) - A "coming of age" movie which portrayed the life of Indian upper-class youth through the story of three close friends and their experiences. A film which the entire young generation identified with. Aamir's goatee became a huge rage, Saif's career got a new lease of life and all "Siddharths" are being called "Sid" ever since. A cult movie. And all this from a director making his debut. WOW !
- SWADES (2004)-- Movies which deal with subject of returning back to the motherland tend to go over the top. This one is special -- bcoz it does not. Ashutosh Gowariker presented Shahrukh in a different light altogether: No designer brand at any point, No GAP pullovers, No RAYBAN Sunglasses; just a check shirt and denim jeans. It has to be one of most understated performances from Shahrukh; and Ashutosh deserves a huge Kudos for that.
- Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (2005) -- A movie on politics, love and ambition. Set in the backdrop of Emergency and the Naxalite uprising in Bihar, the film boasts of super direction (from Sudhir Mishra) and equally wonderful performances from the three leads. It is a pity that the novel theme led to poor box office returns. Kay Kay is intense and Chitrangda Singh resembles Smita Patil (especially in a saree), oozing sensuousness in every shot. Shiney Ahuja is best of the lot though, his brilliant portrayal of the ambitious "Vikram" is truly an award worthy performance [In that moment of madness with the maid, the industry has lost an extremely good artist]. And yes, the last scene of the movie is so poignant; it is bound to make ur eyes moist.
- Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) -- When was the last time you saw a sequel that was better than original ? Probably Never. Well Lage Raho Munnabhai does that and even manages to pass on a message to the society. Not in a boring documentary way; but in a good humoured funny way. Now, that is something. Thank you Raju Hirani, for making us realize how special MK Gandhi was and how he is relevant even today.
This post has turned out to be much longer than what I thought it would be. I guess Bollywood does that to me :)
