1970s Bollywood Must See Movies

46.  The Mystery of the Missing Heroine TITLE- NOORIE (1979) STARRING – Farooq Shaikh, Poonam Dhillon DIRECTOR – Manmohan Krishna MUSIC – Khaiyyaam LYRICS – Jan Nisar Akhtar, Majrooh, Naqsh Lyal Puri PLOT - The movie begins with a missing person mystery. It’s the heroine Noorie (Poonam Dhillon.) The story then heads straight into flashback. Noorie is young beautiful girl who lives with her poor father in the rural region of Bhadawah. With her father’s blessing Noorie gets engaged to Yusuf (Farooq Shaikh), her true love and they both eagerly await their wedding day. One fateful day Bashir Khan, the local zamindar (landowner farmer) lays eyes on the lovely Noorie and decides he must have her. He asks her father for her hand in marriage but his request is met with scorn and a refusal as the zamindar is a known scoundrel. Angered and insulted Bashir arranges an “accident” and Noorie’s father gets killed by falling trees. Later, Bashir who is Yusuf’s boss sends him out of town on a matter. With Yusuf gone Noorie is alone and Bashir Khan makes his move the same night. He rapes her. What does Noorie do after her violent assault? Does Bashir Khan get exposed or punished for his treacherous act? There was one witness to Noorie’s attack. Her dog. COMMENTARY - This was the little movie that could. It went outside the box with no formulaic plot line, no big name stars, no exciting setting and became a major hit. Hats off to producer Yash Chopra for greenlighting this project. Poonam Dhillon starred in a lot of films after this but Noorie was by far and away her biggest solo heroine hit and her best one too.

EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Chori Chori Koi Aaye - Poonam Dhillon. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Aaja Re – Farooq Shaikh and Poonam Dhillon. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar and Nitin Mukesh. There were two versions of this track. They are both pretty much the same. SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

47.  Husbands & Wives & Ex- Boyfriends & Ex-Girlfriends TITLE- HONEYMOON (1973) STARRING – Anil Dhawan, Leena Chandavarkar, Nazima, Suresh Chatwal DIRECTOR – Hiren Nag MUSIC – Usha Khanna LYRICS – Yogesh PLOT - Madhu (Leena Chandavarkar) gets disillusioned over men when she attends the divorce court proceedings of a friend. She breaks up with her boyfriend, Deepak (Suresh Chatwal) in a haste and convinces her friend Neelu (Nazima) to do the same. Before long Madhu’s parents introduce her to a suitor, Chandrakant (Anil Dhawan) who they have chosen to be her husband. They have an awkward first meeting but Madhu likes him. They get married and go off on their honeymoon. There Madhu bumps into her old friend Neelu who discloses that she got married too and is also on her honeymoon in the same general area. Madhu wants to introduce her husband to her friend but Chandrakant sees Neelu before she sees him and he realizes that it’s his old girlfriend who broke up with him recently. Unbelievably Neelu’s husband turns out to be Deepak who finds out that that Madhu (his ex-girlfriend) is his wife’s friend and that she’s also there on her honeymoon. This comedy farce plays out in unexpected ways until the tables are turned at the end. COMMENTARY - A rom com that has a too cute for words story. Anil Dhawan and Leena Chandavarkar were exactly like a newlywed couple with the fresh as a dew drop romance and insecurities thrown in. EYE CANDY SONG NUMBER - Mere Pyase Man Ki Bahar - Anil Dhawan and Leena Chandavarkar. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle.

BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Oh Saathi O Saathi Oh- picturised on Anil Dhawan. Playback – Mohammed Rafi. SOUNDTRACK - 2 STARS

48.  The Ultimate Whodunit TITLE- DHUND (1973) STARRING - Sanjay Khan, Zeenat Aman, Navin Nischol, Danny Denzongpa DIRECTOR – B. R. Chopra MUSIC – Ravi LYRICS - Sahir PLOT - Chandrashekhar (Navin Nischol) crashes his car and goes for help at the nearest place which is a mansion. There he finds a woman, Rani (Zeenat Aman) holding a gun and a slumped over man who has been shot. Rani confesses to the murder of her husband telling Chandrashekhar her tale of woe regarding her abusive marriage. It seems Rani shot her husband in self-defense and Chandrashekhar decides to help her. They concoct a story about an intruder but the police aren’t buying it. They find fingerprints belonging to a lawyer, Suresh (Sanjay Khan) and discover that he and Rani are having an affair. Suresh becomes a suspect and he is arrested and charged. In court, the case is not going in Suresh’s favor. Rani loses it and confesses to the murder. It is not the end of the mystery. Something strange happens. Is Rani telling the truth or is she covering for Suresh? What really happened on that fog filled night? COMMENTARY - Are you ready for the Whodunit Thriller of the Decade? You’ve got it with Dhund. It was a compelling adaptation from an Agatha Christie play called The Unexpected Guest. A lot of the story is told in flashback and you get to know the players. Zeenat Aman looks particularly beautiful and plays her part as the abused wife very well. This is yet another one of her cutting edge roles as she plays an unfaithful wife to a handicapped husband. The tall and handsome Sanjay is convincing in his “Is he guilty or is he innocent” character. Danny Denzongpa was so good at being bad,

he’ll scare you for real and Navin Nischol is solid in his part as the ultimate mystery man who connects the dots of this movie. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG - Uljhan Suljhe Na Rasta Suljhe Na -Zeenat Aman. Playback – Asha Bhosle SOUNDTRACK – 2 STARS

49.  The Country Girl Vs the Murderous Villain TITLE- PARAYA DHAN (1971) STARRING – Balraj Sahni, Rakesh Roshan, Hema Malini DIRECTOR – Rajendra Bhatia MUSIC – R.D. Burman LYRICS – Anand Bakshi PLOT - Govindram (Balraj Sahni) is respected man in a small rural village. He has one daughter, Rajni (Hema Malini) and he has found a suitor for her. The gentleman, Shekhar (Rakesh Roshan) comes riding up on a horse (no less) for his first meeting with her. Rajni plays a joke on him on their first encounter as she is not too keen on the marriage idea but they soon fall in love. A strange man named Hiralal (Ajit) comes to stay with Rajni claiming to be her uncle. He is a dacoit who has escaped from prison. He certainly isn’t her uncle but Govindram isn’t Rajni’s father either. In fact a long time ago Govindram was a dacoit too and his gang was responsible for the murder of Rajni’s family… What happens when Rajni finds out? Does she escape Hiralal’s clutches? COMMENTARY - I wouldn’t be surprised if Ramesh Sippy had seen this movie as it would have given him a second reason to cast Hema Malini in Seeta Aur Geeta. The first one of course was she gave him a hit in Andaz. His second reason could have materialized from watching Hema do her thing as an action heroine in Paraya Dhan which essentially what she was as “Geeta” in Seeta Aur Geeta. It’s always the heroine’s main job but this time it was the hero, Rakesh Roshan who was there to fulfill the routine romance function. Paraya Dhan is one of Hema Malini’s lesser known gems but it is more than worth seeing for the unanticipated

action drama it turned out to be with a thrilling climax to boot. The soundtrack is another surprise with four outstanding tracks. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER - Tera Mera Juda Hona - Rakesh Roshan and Hema Malini. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Aaj Unse Pehli Mulaqat Hogi – Rakesh Roshan. Playback – Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

50.  A Friend’s Betrayal? TITLE- NAMAK HARAM (1973) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Rekha, Simi Garewal DIRECTOR – Hrishikesh Mukherjee MUSIC – R.D. Burman LYRICS – Anand Bakshi PLOT - Somu (Rajesh Khanna) is the poor friend of Vicky (Amitabh Bachchan) who is the son of a rich textile mill owner. When Vicky’s father is laid up over a heart attack Vicky is put in charge of the textile mill. He runs into trouble with the union leader which causes him embarrassment as he is made to apologize publicly to the man by his father. An angered Vicky confides to Somu about the incident and Somu figures out a way to get back at the union leader, a plan Vicky is grateful to along with. Somu goes to work as a factory worker at the mill, worms his way into the good side of the other laborers and before long manages to usurp the position of the union leader. Somewhere along the line though, Somu begins to see things through the eyes of the laborers. In becoming a man who wants to do right by the workers who are being taken advantage of he has become the “namak haram” (traitor) to Vicky. What serious repercussions occur once Vicky realizes his friend has switched sides? COMMENTARY - The second outing with the Anand trio (Hrishikish/Rajesh/Amitabh.) This time it’s a socially relevant drama with a subject matter that resonates even today in society between the “haves” and “have-nots.” Amitabh Bachchan has the more dynamic role as the “will he” or “won’t he” kind of character. Rajesh Khanna is the conscience of the film and has a more passive role. The female leads are economically from the opposite sides of the fence as well. Simi looks the part as the educated and affluent Manisha. She is the token “have” character who is not motivated by

greed and is a necessary one to show that not all privileged people are bad. Rekha is adequate in her small role Somu’s love interest. The main relationship in this movie was between Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan but this time the vibe was poles apart from the one they shared in Anand. It was their last film together where they were both the leading actors. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Nadiya Se Dariya - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Diya Jalte Hain Phool Khilte Hai - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

ABOUT THE STARS- A LAGNIAPPE In Trinidad (and in New Orleans) lagniappe means a little extra. AMITABH BACHCHAN - The man responsible for the changing of the guard. Movie goers didn’t know they wanted the Angry Young Man on the screen until they saw Amitabh Bachchan rip it up in Zanjeer. Daring and dashing, Bachchan was a hero for men to admire and for women to want. A true tastemaker. A star for all time. What else is there to say? BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Parveen Babi. Also, Raakhee, Rekha and Zeenat Aman. HEMA MALINI - Although known as the Dream Girl of Hindi cinema she never was just window dressing in her movies. Always a heroine of substance where she mattered in the plot. Her popularity in Trinidad so surpassed all in the early seventies that it created a Taylor Swift kind of demand for her. She came to our tiny island in Trinidad to perform dance shows at the prestigious Queen’s Hall auditorium in Port-of-Spain, the capital of Trinidad. Of course she sold out. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Dharmendra. Also, Rajesh Khanna and Dev Anand. RAJESH KHANNA (died 2012) – He had a smile created to melt hearts. India’s foremost heartthrob. Not just in India though. If I had a dime for every Indian boy in Trinidad born in the seventies with the name Rajesh….The release of his movies were heralded with great fanfare. I distinctly recall a rare full page color shot in the newspapers of Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz for the Christmas vacation release of Aap Ki Kasam.   A romantic hero like no other.

BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Mumtaz. Also, Sharmila Tagore and Zeenat Aman ZEENAT AMAN - An actress with raw sex-appeal who broke down the barriers of what was expected of the Bollywood heroine and ushered in a new wave with the actresses that came after her. She was very popular in Trinidad because of her Western look and outlook. I was surprised to see her in a sari and how good she looked in it as I was so used to seeing her in Western clothing. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Amitabh Bachchan. Also, Shashi Kapoor, Rajesh Khanna and Dev Anand. MUMTAZ – A real looker with a Marilyn Monroe-esque kind of bod. She had a solid fan base with the small but influential Syrian community in Trinidad who was ga ga over this lady. Back in the day, many of the Syrian retail business owners in Port-of-Spain would invite my mother to have coffee with them all because she resembled Mumtaz! In the mid-seventies, at the height of her fame, Mumtaz exited films after she got married which left a void in the industry that is still unoccupied. She could do it all – naughty, nice, put-upon, feisty, self-sacrificing and most of all be Rajesh Khanna’s perfect heroine. She was also a killer dancer. In Aadmi aur Insaan she famously stole the limelight from lead actress Saira Banu with her buzzworthy dancing. Amazingly her look complemented just about all of her co- stars including Amitabh Bachchan (Bandhe Haath) and Randhir Kapoor (Lafange.) BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Rajesh Khanna. Also Feroz Khan and Dharmendra. PARVEEN BABI (died 2005) - A glamor queen of Bollywood who also shunned the traditional Indian heroine look and roles. She looked like cross between Angelina Jolie and Charlie’s Angels era Jaclyn Smith. Her glam appearance made the cover of Time magazine in 1976. Having said that, Parveen was careful about not

doing the scantily clad look. She never once looked like she was headed for late night street walking on Van Nuys Boulevard. At times I felt she also looked too hot or too classy to be the girlfriend of many of her heroes. While she was never given any fully serious acting roles, Parveen always amped up her movies sometimes with her song picturisations, dramatizations (like in Deewaar) and other times by simply looking gorgeous. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Amitabh Bachchan. RISHI KAPOOR - In an era where the Angry Young Man character dominated Hindi cinema, Rishi Kapoor’s romantic persona should have been thrown by the wayside. Not so. With his teen heart-throb looks, he took the romantic hero to a higher level in features such as Laila Majnu and waltzed his heroines away with his dancing shoes. There still isn’t another NATURAL dancer like him in Bollywood. He was like an earlier Bollywood version of Justin Timberlake (but you know, with nicer hair.) The entire crop of heroes that came after Rishi Kapoor all copped their moves from the likes of John Travolta to Michael Jackson to Beyoncé (so many of them do feminine moves.) BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Neetu Singh. Also Dimple Kapadia DHARMENDRA- While Dharmendra had the superhero look – handsome and rugged he never looked like he was prepping for the Mr. Steroid User of the Year competition. His tough guy and Too- Cool- For -School appearance looked like he just was born with it. He slid into the romantic hero character with ease too. On top of all of that Dharmendra could tickle your funny bone as well. In a word this hunk was HOT! BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Hema Malini. Also Raakhee and Mumtaz. SHASHI KAPOOR - Something of a Jack of all Trades when it came to acting roles. With his charming looks, he was comfortable in all the different hero personalities - the tough / ne’er- do- well/

romantic/rich/poor you name it. That made him easy to cast I imagine but as he didn’t specialize in any particular genre, other actors who were noted for certain role types probably got first dibs in certain kinds of movies. In the end though, a versatile actor. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Raakhee. Also Zeenat Aman RAAKHEE - Like Mumtaz, she paired off attractively with just about all of her heroes. She had neither the dancing ability of some of her contemporaries nor the new wave Western look of Zeenat and Parveen but what she did have was her above board acting ability. A very romantic and intense actress with an ethereal beauty. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Shashi Kapoor. Also Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. REKHA - She had a number of hits before the mid-seventies playing nondescript heroines and finally had attention bestowed upon her when she played an anti-heroine in Do Anjaane (1976.) It helped that she looked smoking hot but her acting skills were finally showcased in full. She was an accomplished dancer too which added to the appeal of her movies. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Amitabh Bachchan. Also Jeetendra NEETU SINGH - She was sidelined as just a love interest or second heroine in so many of her movies that it’s hard to single her out without Rishi Kapoor. However, it’s hard to talk about Rishi Kapoor’s career without her too. Their best movies of the seventies have stood the test of time and she got her meatier roles with him that actually demonstrated her acting ability. Also, Neetu’s exceptional dancing talent put her out in front with the best. BEST CO-STAR MATCH – Rishi Kapoor. DEV ANAND (died 2011) - He successfully slid into the seventies with Johny Mera Naam in a large part aided by a young, beautiful actress named Hema Malini. Dev Anand for his part gave her the first of the many blockbusters of her storied career. A

very stylish actor who it seems spent equal time on screen trying to look good as much as he tried to act well. He was always so cool. During the 1970’s I don’t know if I ever saw him looking the way Rajesh Khanna did in Prem Nagar -personifying liquor deprived depression or with dirt on his face like Amitabh Bachchan in Kaala Pathar. That’s Debonair Dev for you though. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Worth mentioning that many of his movies had superior music even the ones that were box office duds. His autobiography Romancing with Life is the only such one to come out of Bollywood as of writing. BEST CO-STAR MATCH –Hema Malini. Also Zeenat Aman and Raakhee.

Table of Contents A Note from the Author Introduction 1. Awesome, Amazing, Astounding- The Three A’s 2. The One with the Maddest, Baddest and Most Dangerous To Know Villain 3. The Ultimate Teenage Dream Love Story 4. The One with the Girl on the Swing in the Pouring Rain 5. Endless Loving 6. The One with the Ultimate Funk Out Track 7. Have Another Toke? 8. Bullets and Brothers 9. The One with the Butt Kicking Heroine 10. Brothers Where Art Thou? 11. It is Not Difficult to catch him, it is Impossible! 12. Diamonds, Dames, Dudes and Dancing 13. The Courtesan and her True Love 14. Love on the Run 15. Doomed by Jealousy 16. Love’s Labor Lost – A Tragedy 17. Love is….Building a Palace for Her 18. The Sins of Thy Father 19. The Godfather Revisited 20. Second Chances 21. With Friends Like That Who Needs Enemies? 22. Two Wives, One Husband 23. When a College Prank Goes Wrong 24. The One with the Jumbo Four Legged Buddies 25. Starring the Bengal Tiger of Cinema

26. Robin Hood on a Motor Bike 27. No Man of her Own Clone 28. The Spoilt Rich Boy and the Flower Girl 29. Why Don’t We Steal Away? 30. The Ultimate Bromance 31. The One with the Ultimate Striptease 32. Some Like it Hot Bollywood Style 33. The One with the Heart that is Beating, Keeps on Repeating 34. The Angry Young Man Has Arrived 35. Before Romeo and Juliet There Were… 36. The Hero Holds Out for the Happy Hooker 37. Love Wears a Disguise 38. The Moral Criminal 39. The Gypsy and the Runaway Heiress 40. The Nerd Strikes Back 41. Sexy Cougar and Young Hunk Get Acquainted 42. The One with the Ultimate Flashback 43. The Heroine is the Villain 44. The One with the Song Sampled by the Black Eye Peas 45. Boy Gets Girl, Boy Loses Girl, Boy Gets…Arrested? 46. The Mystery of the Missing Heroine 47. Husbands & Wives & Ex-Boyfriends & Ex-Girlfriends 48. The Ultimate Whodunit 49. The Country Girl Vs the Murderous Villain 50. A Friend’s Betrayal? About the Stars- A Lagniappe