1970s Bollywood Must See Movies

21.  With Friends Like That Who Needs Enemies? TITLE- BLACKMAIL (1973) STARRING – Dharmendra, Raakhee, Shatrughan Sinha DIRECTOR – Vijay Anand MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS – Rajendra Kishan PLOT - Kailash Gupta (Dharmendra) is secretly in love with Asha (Raakhee.) He confesses this to his best friend Jeevan (Shatrughan Sinha). This leads to a complicated chain of events. It turns out that Asha is Jeevan’s girlfriend. Kailash’s scientist uncle has come up with way to create cheap solar power. Jeevan connects both these facts and comes up with an idea. His partner in crime is Asha’s father who also is in the power provider business. He is worried that Kailash will bankrupt him, so together they hatch an elaborate plan to get the solar power formula. Jeevan breaks up with Asha and paves the way for her to marry Kailash, hoping to get the solar power formula from Asha, whom he knows loves him. Asha and Kailash marry. On her wedding night Jeevan sneaks into her room and professes his love for her. Kailash overhears the conversation which leads to him doubting Asha. A number of inexplicable situations occur during their marriage, including Asha leaving to meet someone secretly. This causes a building anger to turn to rage in Kailash. He follows Asha as she goes out one day. He is carrying a gun. What happens next changes everything. What is Asha’s agenda? Does Jeevan’s plan work? What happens with Asha and Kailash? Asha and Jeevan? COMMENTARY - Can’t figure out why Blackmail didn’t click with audiences when it was released. Did the title fail to intrigue the masses? Maybe it should’ve been named - Love’s Betrayal in English or Hindi as this title is more specific to the storyline. Were

movie goers turned off by He-Man Dharmendra playing lovesick Kailash whose wife might be messing around on him? Whatever the reason, fans missed out on a major, emotionally satisfying movie experience. Dharmendra got a rare chance here to display his range as an actor - romantic, jealous, depressed and his old standby, vengeful. He scored on every level. Shatrughan Sinha was right on as the conniving friend/boyfriend. He later moved on playing hero roles but like Vinod Khanna and Anil Kapoor I felt they all looked more believable as bad boys. Raakhee as the misunderstood love interest of two men skillfully keeps you on her side even when you’re not sure about her. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER - Mile Mile Do Badan - Dharmendra and Raakhee. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. It’s eye candy more because of what was implied rather than what was shown. Kailash and Asha get it on in the foxhole/tunnel. ‘Nuff said. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas - Dharmendra. Playback – Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK -3 STARS

22.  Two Wives, One Husband TITLE- DAAG (1973) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna, Sharmila Tagore and Raakhee DIRECTOR –Yash Chopra MUSIC – Laxmikant Pyarelal LYRICS- Sahir PLOT - Sunil (Rajesh Khanna) and Sonia (Sharmila Tagore) fall in love and get married. Fate deals them a heavy blow when Sunil gets convicted for killing a rich man he caught trying to rape Sonia. En route to jail the prison van he’s in meets with an accident and Sunil is presumed dead. Sonia is left widowed and pregnant. She later relocates to a different town with her child and befriends a woman named Chandni (Raakhee) who lets Sonia live in her house. It is there Sonia discovers that Sunil is alive and well and living as Sudhir with his wife Chandni. COMMENTARY - It’s an intriguing narrative with a surprise and a twist. This was the second best of the Rajesh/Sharmila starrers. They worked together in a number of ‘depressed-fest’ flicks in the seventies, some even successful but none ever matched 1969’s Aradhana (a remake of To Each His Own from 1946 starring Olivia de Havilland who won the Best Actress Oscar for her role in it.) Daag also boasts the added bonus of Raakhee. As an actress, she never ‘phones it in’ and here she effortlessly steals every scene she’s in. Her electrifying confrontation scene with Rajesh Khanna over her suspicion regarding Sharmila Tagore is one for the records. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Hum Aur Tum -Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. Filmed in scenic Kashmir, a favorite Rajesh Khanna location. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Mere Dil Mein Aaj Kya Hai -Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar.

SOUNDTRACK -3 STARS

23.  When a College Prank Goes Wrong TITLE- KHEL KHEL MEIN (1975) STARRING - Rishi Kapoor, Neetu Singh, Rakesh Roshan DIRECTOR – Ravi Tandon MUSIC – R.D. Burman LYRICS- Gulshan Bawra PLOT - Ajay (Rishi Kapoor) plays a straitlaced college student. Vikram (Rakesh Roshan) whose friends include Nisha (Neetu Singh) is Ajay’s prank playing classmate. He taunts Ajay who surprisingly stands up to him. Vikram is impressed and soon he, Nisha and Ajay become good friends. Ajay begins to have feelings for Nisha but she doesn’t know. One day Vikram comes up with a prank to type an extortion note to a stingy jeweler asking for thousands of rupees with instructions where to leave the money. Ajay rejects the plan initially but ends up agreeing when Nisha asks him to play along. They sign the name “Black Cobra” on the note and are shocked when the jeweler complies. Ajay demands they return the money but before they could, the jeweler is killed and their note is discovered. Worse, they realize they’re being followed by a shady, threatening looking character everywhere they go and then the typewriter disappears. Desperate, they realize they have to go to the police but things take a turn for worse when Vikram is killed. Frightened out their wits they make contact with Vikram’s girlfriend and find out that Vikram has been using the name Black Cobra in other scams and that the real Black Cobra committed the murders. Armed with the evidence they discovered, Ajay and Nisha arrange a secret meeting with the Inspector but it does not go as planned. Do Ajay and Nisha get convicted for murder or killed? Who is the real Black Cobra? COMMENTARY - In this entire list there is no movie that remotely resembles Khel Khel Mein. It starts off as a jaunty college kids’ film

and with two male leads, you can be forgiven for thinking a love triangle is forthcoming. Wouldn’t have been a bad thing either. All of sudden, gotcha! You are jolted out of your seats. The movie has morphed into a whodunit murder thriller. Look out for the surprise scene at the very end. Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh go together like music and dancing. A perfect screen pair. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Ek Main Aur Ek Too - Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh. Playback – Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar. Rishi and Neetu are poetry in motion when they dance together. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Khullam Khulla Pyar – Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh. Playback – Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK – 5 STARS. Swear I’ve heard Hum Ne Tum Ko Dekha (sung by Shailendra Singh) being played in the background during the zombie film Shaun of the Dead.

24.  The One with the Jumbo Four Legged Buddies TITLE- HAATHI MERE SAATHI (1971) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna and Tanuja DIRECTOR – M. A. Thirumugham MUSIC –Laxmikant Pyarelal LYRICS – Anand Bakshi PLOT – When he was a young boy Raju (Rajesh Khanna) was saved by four elephants in the jungle. When he returns home his dying father advises him to keep the elephants close to him as friends. Raju grows up always with his elephant friends near to him as he has no family. He meets and falls in love with Tanu (Tanuja) and at first her father agrees to their marriage. Then Raju loses his home and money because of a crooked lawsuit that didn’t go in his favor. Tanu’s father has a change of heart and lies to Tanu about Raju deserting her and lies to Raju about Tanu. Time passes and one day Tanu unexpectedly comes upon Raju in a beggarly state and realizes her father had lied to her about his betrayal. She reunites with Raju and they get married. They soon grow rich as Raju gets his elephants and other animals involved in a circus like entertainment business. Raju and Tanu’s life become trying when Tanu has a baby and discovers she cannot bear any more children. She becomes exceedingly anxious that the elephants will hurt their child. When their kid nearly drowns, Ramoo the elephant is blamed even though, unknown to her, the elephant actually saved the child. Tanu leaves a saddened Raju. A wicked competitor who has been trying to put Raju out of business makes his move and changes Raju’s life. Do Tanu and Raju reunite? What happens when the competitor takes action? COMMENTARY – This crowd pleaser is pretty unusual because of its theme. It’s a film that kept coming up with a new issue every time

one was solved, so it continuously hooked you. The first Rajesh/Tanuja outing and by far away their most successful together. Kids will love this one. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER –Chal Chal Chal Mere Saathi - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY TRACK – Dilbar Jani Chali Hawa - Rajesh Khanna and Tanuja. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. SOUNDTRACK - 4 STARS

25.  Starring the Bengal Tiger of Cinema TITLE- AMANUSH (1975) STARRING – Uttam Kumar and Sharmila Tagore DIRECTOR – Shakti Samanta MUSIC – Shyamal Mitra LYRICS – Indeevar PLOT- Madhusan Roy Chaudhary (Uttam Kumar) is the village drunk, reviled by many but especially by Lekha (Sharmila Tagore), the woman who once loved him and whom he intended to marry. Once upon a time his life was 180 degrees from what it has become. It all started when Lekha accused him of raping a girl, Champa. When Madhu goes to question Champa about the accusation he is arrested for stealing money from his uncle’s estate, found guilty and sent to jail for years. When he gets out, his uncle is dead and the estate, which should have been his, has been taken over by someone else. Also, Champa is nowhere to be found. Will Madhu’s life ever return to what it was before the rollercoaster of tragedy hit him? Will he ever be able to get to the bottom of the injustice that was doled out to him? Does Lekha have a change of heart? COMMENTARY - A drama without all the bells and whistles. What it does have is legendary Bengal superstar Uttam Kumar, an actor so good, you have to pinch yourself. His mannerisms and emotions are so genuine, it all looks like real life. Sharmila shows off her acting chops by displaying every nuance of her conflicted character’s feelings with great skill. The story keeps you committed. You need answers because you care about Madhu and Lekha. I thought Rajesh Khanna would have made a credible Madhu too but besides him I can’t think of anyone else who could have possibly matched the masterful Uttam Kumar.

EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – None BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG - Dil Aisa Kise Ke Mera Toda - Uttam Kumar. Playback – Kishore Kumar. One of Kishore Kumar’s best vocal performances.

26.  Robin Hood on a Motor Bike TITLE- FAKIRA (1976) STARRING – Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi DIRECTOR- C.P. Dixit MUSIC – Ravindra Jain LYRICS- Ravindra Jain and Inderjeet Singh Tulsi PLOT – Vijay (Shashi Kapoor) AKA Fakira is a Robin Hood type of character. With the help of his two accomplices, Popat (Asrani) and Neelam (Aruna Irani) he robs a particular smuggler a number of times and uses the money to help the poor. The smuggler had destroyed Vijay’s poor home when he little and he got separated from his brother in the process. In retaliation the smuggler hires Toofan (Danny Denzongpa) to finish off Vijay. Added to that, the police are on the hunt for Vijay too. Enter Neeta (Shabana Azmi.) Vijay saves her from a problem and brings her to his hideout for safety as he’s very taken with her. Neelam is beside herself with jealousy as Neeta and Vijay romance each other but then she finds out that Neeta is not who she appears to be. She informs Vijay who, despite knowing the truth, can’t deny his feelings for Neeta. Who is Neeta? Does Toofan find out the truth about Vijay and himself before he kills him? Or is it too late for Vijay? COMMENTARY - The welcome surprise in Fakira is Shabana Azmi’s character. She starts off as the obligatory female romantic lead but she has a secret. I thought her acting was more laid back and natural in Fakira than in her other features. There was a rare underwater scene that most assuredly was instrumental with regards to the movie winning the Filmfare Award for Best Cinematography. Shabana Azmi supposedly had a thing for Shashi Kapoor growing up and made a good star pair with her crush in Fakira. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG –Tota Maina Ki Kahani -Shashi Kapoor and

Shabana Azmi. Playback - Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. SOUNDTRACK – 2 STARS

27.  No Man of her Own Clone TITLE- KATI PATANG (1970) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna and Asha Parekh DIRECTOR – Shakti Samanta MUSIC – R. D. Burman LYRICS –Anand Bakshi PLOT – Madhu (Asha Parekh) runs away on her wedding day to be with her the man she loves, Kailash (Prem Chopra) but is distraught upon catching him with another woman. She winds up at the train station where she meets an old friend. The woman is widowed with a small child and on her way to Naini Tal to meet her in laws for the first time. They get on a train but it crashes. Before she dies, her friends makes Madhu promise to care for her son and take her place at her in laws. At Naini Tal, Madhu honors the promise. Her fake widowed state causes her conflict when an attractive young man, Kamal (Rajesh Khanna) is obviously interested in her. He has his own sorrows though and she’s stunned upon finding out that he’s actually her jilted bridegroom. Madhu’s masquerade begins unravelling when she is recognized at a restaurant by the woman she caught with her ex-boyfriend who comes back into her life with evil intentions, wanting money from her and with blackmail threats regarding a murder. What happens when Madhu’s house of cards come tumbling down? Does she get a chance to redeem herself with her adopted in laws? With Kamal? COMMENTARY- An engrossing story that is significantly similar to the 1950 Hollywood movie, No Man of Her Own starring Barbara Stanwyck (which was based on a novel.) A major asset of this movie is its cache of evergreen songs that are forever associated with the Rajesh Khanna/Kishore Kumar magic. Asha Parekh won the Best Actress Filmfare Award for her role in Kati Patang.

EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Yeh Sham Mastani - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Pyar Diwana Hota Hai – Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

28.  The Spoilt Rich Boy and the Flower Girl TITLE- DULHAN WAHI JO PIYA MAN BHAAYE (1977) STARRING – Prem Kishen, Rameshwari, Shyamlee DIRECTOR – Lekh Tandon MUSIC – Ravindra Jain LYRICS – Ravindra Jain PLOT – Harikshan (Madan Puri), a wealthy business man suffers a heart attack. He summons Prem (Prem Kishan), his spoilt, womanizing grandson and tells him that he wants to see Prem’s intended bride as he feels he doesn’t have long to live. Prem’s girlfriend, Rita (Shyamlee) is stuck in another city and cannot fly back as all the flights are grounded thanks to bad weather. A desperate Prem, in an effort to please his seriously ill grandfather hires a simple, flower seller, Kammo (Rameshwari) whom he sees every day to impersonate his girlfriend. Harikshan takes an instant liking to Kammo and miraculously his health seems to be improving. What happens when Rita turns up? When the cat is let out the bag regarding Kammo’s deception, what does she do? COMMENTARY - The story is in no hurry to take the predictable turn that everyone is expecting. I was waiting impatiently for it to happen though because of the winsome Rameshwari. Strange that the handsome Prem Kishen’s career didn’t soar after this hit film. Maybe his character spent too long being something of a cad. Rishi Kapoor would have been well suited in Prem’s role as he seems quite good at redeeming himself in the eyes of the audience (as in Hum Kisise Kum Naheen.) EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Khushiyan Hi Khushiyan – Prem Kishen,

Shyamlee and Rameshwari. Playback – Yesudas, Hemlata and Bansree Sengupta. SOUNDTRACK – 2 STARS 29.  Why Don’t We Steal Away? TITLE- DO CHOR (1972) STARRING – Dharmendra and Tanuja DIRECTOR – Padmanabh MUSIC – R. D. Burman LYRICS – Majrooh PLOT - Tony (Dharmendra) is a small time thief who becomes the main suspect when a series of mysterious robberies take place. The burglar steals only one piece of jewelry and leaves everything else intact. One night Tony catches the elusive thief (Bob) in action and reluctantly Bob agrees to become partners with him. Soon Tony meets Bob’s pretty sister, Sandhya (Tanuja) and pursues her but Sandhya is not very responsive. Then Tony makes a startling discovery. Bob is really Sandhya is disguise! Where does this leave or take their relationship? How do they continue to evade the police? What the real reason behind Sandhya’s burglarizing activities? COMMENTARY - An entertaining and well-paced crime caper. Even the songs are perfectly spread out to depict the changing relationship between Dharmendra’s and Tanuja’s characters. Dharmendra plays the cool dude to a T. Tanuja is Dharmendra’s equal partner in crime as well as other things (as you will discover) and her realistic looking characterization of Bob had its fun moments. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Yari Ho Gayi Yar Se – Tanuja. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar. Another song embracing the

hippie culture. Look out for Tanuja unabashedly having a toke. Oh the seventies ….the grass was always greener….Just kidding! BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Kali Palak Teri Gori – Dharmendra and Tanuja. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. Dharmendra and Tanuja are holed up in a hut and Tanuja is wearing just a towel so yes, it’s a romantic eye candy picturisation by itself too. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

30.  The Ultimate Bromance TITLE-ANAND (1970)                                                                                         STARRING – Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Sumita Sanyal DIRECTOR – Hrishikesh Mukherjee MUSIC – Salil Chowdhury LYRICS – Gulzar PLOT - The movie opens with Dr. Bhasker (Amitabh Bachchan) receiving an award for a book he has written about his terminally ill patient, Anand (Rajesh Khanna.) No prizes for guessing the fate of Anand before the movie goes into flashback. Anand is shown as a vivacious, happy soul who sees the beauty and joie de vivre in everything around him. He is a dying man who loves life, who is not afraid to enjoy it and in doing so brings joy to everyone around him. The presumably healthy Dr. Bhaskar is the complete opposite. He goes around like the living dead, the epitome of gloom and doom. Despite this, a friendship grows between them and Anand even fixes the going nowhere romance between Dr. Bhaskar and Renu (Sumita Sanyal.) As Dr. Bhaskar emerges out of his self-imposed cocoon, determined more than ever, by any means necessary to save his friend’s life, Anand loses his battle with cancer. Although Dr. Bhaskar was not able to save Anand’s life, Anand was able to save Dr. Bhaskar’s life by showing him how to live it. COMMENTARY - This is perhaps the most praised role of Rajesh Khanna’s esteemed career. Unimaginable to think of anyone else doing his part. Rajesh Khanna was so completely loveable as Anand you just wanted to take him home and make everything all right. I must say though that the bromance between Rajesh and Amitabh which superseded everything wasn’t really my cup of Starbucks. There were no sparks and they would have been flying

if….? Yes, the film would have been more effervescent for me if Dr. Bhaskar had been played by a woman. Sharmila Tagore? So bite me. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER - Zindagi Kaisi Hai Paheli - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Mukesh. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Kahin Door Jab Din Dhal Jaye – Rajesh Khanna. Playback- Mukesh, SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

31.  The One with the Ultimate Striptease TITLE- KAHANI KISMAT KI (1973)   STARRING- Dharmendra and Rekha DIRECTOR – Arjun Hingorani MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS –Anand Bakshi PLOT – Ajit (Dharmendra) is a professional thief just out of prison. He decides to go straight but the only job he could get was fighting in a wrestling match. He uses his winnings to buy some necessities for his family. Somehow he accidentally gets handed a bag full of money but he doesn’t keep it. He seeks out the owner who turns out to be Premchand (Ajit), a wealthy man. Premchand rewards Ajit with money and a job offer. There he meets Rekha (Rekha), Premchand’s daughter. They fall in love and want to marry. Premchand approves. Then Ajit finds out he has blood cancer. Thereafter a woman turns up at Ajit’s and Rekha’s engagement party and states that she is Ajit’s wife. To add fuel to the fire, Premchand has Ajit steal some papers from someone named Karan Singh who is blackmailing Premchand. Karan Singh is murdered that same night and Ajit is arrested for the murder. What is fiction and what is fact? Is Ajit not who he seems to be? What becomes of Rekha? What was the importance of the papers that Ajit stole? COMMENTARY - A suspenseful thriller that keeps you hooked with its many subplots. If you like Rekha and Dharmendra in Kahani Kismat Ki be sure to check them out in Keemat. Dharmendra has always reminded me of a more handsome Steve McQueen. I can almost imagine them in each other’s roles except for one thing. McQueen looked more at home playing the anti-hero than the hero whereas Dharmendra balanced the negative aspects of his character with the positive and was always the hero in the end.

EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Tu Yaar Mera - Leena Das. Playback – Asha Bhosle. Oh boy, Leena Das’ striptease dance to this track is up there with Jennifer Anniston’s stripper moves in 2013’s We’re The Millers. This was the highlight of Kahani Kismat Ki. You’ll be watching this a few times! SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

32.  Some Like it Hot Bollywood Style TITLE- RAFOO CHAKKAR (1975) STARRING – Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh DIRECTOR – Narinder Bedi MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS – Gulshan Bawra PLOT – Dev and Salim are wedding musicians/singers. One day they witness a mob hit and are seen. Not knowing what else to do they run away from their home. At the airport they seize an opportunity to join a band that’s headed to another city to perform some shows. The hitch is, it’s an all-girls band. Undeterred Dev and Salim steal some clothes and wigs and transform themselves into Devi and Salma. Dev meets and falls for Reetu (Neetu Singh) who has run away from her home too. Her aunt was getting her married to an old man in exchange for a lot of money. Devi becomes Reetu’s confidante and she confides to “her” that she wants to meet a rich man. In an attempt to be the man Reetu wants, Dev meets with Reetu without his female disguise and pretends to be an oil millionaire (instead of the poor guy he really is) and Reetu falls in love with him. Meanwhile Salim as Salma has found an unwanted male admirer he can’t seem to shake off. To add to their woes the bad guys have tracked them down and now their lives are in danger. Do Dev and Salim escape their would be killers? What happens when Reetu discovers the truth about Dev/Devi? Does Salim find a way to deal with his male admirer? COMMENTARY - Out of all the movies on this list, Rafoo Chakkar is the one that made me laugh the most. The comedic chemistry between Rishi Kapoor and Paintal together with the Dev/Reetu romance plus the Devi/Reetu improbable friendship made this a worthy remake of the 1959 Marilyn Monroe hit, Some Like it Hot.

Paintal’s confusion regarding his identity as Salma and relationship with Rajendra Nath’s character bring a light hearted attention to gay relationships. As this was 1975, it was pretty innovative and brave. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER - Ae Zamane -Neetu Singh. Playback – Kanchan. Neetu’s best dance number ever and at least in the top ten of the best dances in 1970’s Bollywood. This could have been a magical Rishi/Neetu dance if the director had chosen to substitute Rishi Kapoor for Neetu’s dance partner. It could have been done simply by Rishi imagining himself with Neetu as his character was hiding under a table watching her. On the upside, he wasn’t there to steal any of Neetu’s thunder and this moment in dance was all hers. She was totally mind blowing, BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Kise Pe Dil – Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh. Playback- Shailendra Singh and Asha Bhosle. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

33.  The One with the Heart that is Beating, Keeps on Repeating TITLE- JULIE (1975) STARRING - Laxmi and Vikram DIRECTOR – K.S. Sethumadhavan MUSIC – Rajesh Roshan LYRICS - Anand Bakshi and Harindranath Chattopadhyay PLOT - Julie (Laxmi) is an Anglo- Indian Christian girl. She falls in love with her best friend’s brother, Shashi (Vikram), a Hindu boy. After he leaves for college she discovers that she is pregnant. She tells her strict, overbearing mother, Maggie (Nadira) who decides against telling rest of the family. Maggie makes the decision to send Julie off to a distant place to spend the duration of her pregnancy and lies to the family about Julie getting a job. Julie is not even able to return for her father’s funeral. Maggie makes arrangements for an orphanage to take in the baby when he is born. When she returns home without her baby, Julie is responsible for caring for her family and is instructed by her mother that it is best she forgets about her child. Julie grieves nevertheless. When she comes upon Shashi later on she tells him the whole story. He wants to marry her but his mother objects as does Maggie who wants her family to relocate to the UK. Where does this leave Julie, Shashi and their baby? COMMENTARY - Julie at first looks like it’s a Bobby replica with the young love/ family conflict storyline. No so. Julie’s character is a deeper developed one as she goes through a myriad of emotions and circumstances in life. Notably, there was daring bedroom scene which left you in no doubt unlike Bobby where the bedroom scene was a fun tease leaving the specifics to your imagination and did not have the plot repercussions of Julie. In a nutshell, Julie pushed the envelope of the young romance genre to provocative levels previously unchallenged. Young actress, Laxmi, played the title

character with the expertise of a far more experienced actress. Laxmi took Julie from innocence to the pain of heartbreak, loss, rejection and everything in between and rightfully won the Filmfare award for Best Actress for her portrayal. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER - Bhool Gaya Sub Kuch - Vikram and Laxmi. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – My Heart Is Beating – Laxmi. Playback -Preeti Sagar. A sweet all English track, quite a rarity in this decade. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

34.  The Angry Young Man Has Arrived TITLE- ZANJEER (1973) STARRING – Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri DIRECTOR – Prakash Mehra MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS – Gulshan Bawra PLOT- As a child, Vijay (Amitabh Bachchan) witnessed the murder of his entire family. Two decades later he still experiences nightmares from that horrendous night. He has become a dedicated police office with little patience for criminals which sometimes causes confrontations with his superiors. He meets Mala (Jaya Bhaduri) during one of his investigations of a fatal crash. She is a witness to an accident who has accepted a bribe to look the other way. Vijay realizes this and persuades her to change her mind. She does but ends up getting pursued by the guilty party. Vijay offers her refuge and finds out she is an orphan just like him which starts their relationship. Right around the corner, a vicious turn of events awaits Vijay. His rabid pursuit of the lawless gets on the wrong side of mob boss, Teja (Ajit) who manages to get Vijay framed for a crime, stripped of his Inspector badge and sent to jail. Does Vijay deal with the injustice doled out to him? How is his relationship with Mala affected since she wants him to stay away from those who can harm him? Does he find the culpable party of his family’s murder? COMMENTARY – Zanjeer pretty much spearheaded the Angry Young Man genre into Hindi cinema effectively ending the three year reign of superstar Rajesh Khanna. Vijay was played with a punch by the indomitable Amitabh Bachchan. His going nowhere career literally rose from the ashes with his towering performance in this smash hit. Jaya Bhaduri’s (Mala) was a perfect foil for his brooding Vijay. The role seemed tailor made for Mumtaz who it reportedly

was offered to but she turned it down. Incidentally, Amitabh and Mumtaz starred together in Bandhe Haath. Not a hit but I enjoyed it and I also recommend the soundtrack. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG - Yaari Hai Iman Mera- Pran. Playback – Manna Dey. SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

35.  Before Romeo and Juliet There Were… TITLE- LAILA MAJNU (1976) STARRING – Rishi Kapoor, Ranjeeta Kaur DIRECTOR – H.S. Rawail MUSIC – Madan Mohan, Jaidev LYRICS – Sahir PLOT - The movie is based on the epic poem Layla and Majnun by Persian poet, Nizami immortalizing the legendary lovers. Like in Romeo and Juliet (which came after) the families of Qais/Majnu (Rishi Kapoor) and Laila (Ranjeeta Kaur) are enemies. But Qais and Laila have loved each since they were children. When the teacher strikes Qais on his hands with a stick for absentmindedly writing Laila’s name instead of the name Allah, Laila’s hands show the marks of the bruising. It becomes the talk among the people. When Laila’s father comes to know the closeness his daughter has with his enemy’s son he moves the family away. Laila and her Majnu grow up separately. As destiny would have it, they meet as grownups in a bazaar when a dust storm blows Laila’s scarf upon her Majnu. As they come face to face, they are both mesmerized upon seeing each other. It is love at first sight. They have clandestine meetings at nights just so that they can see each other. The serpent in the Garden of Eden is the troublemaker Tabrez (Ranjeet) who is Laila’s brother. He initiates violent circumstances and kills Qais’ father. In retaliation Qais kills Tabrez and is banished to the desert where he wanders for years in near delirium. Without his Laila he has become her insanely depraved lover, her Majnu. In the meantime Laila has been forced to marry Bakhsh, a prince (Danny Denzonpa). When Bakhsh learns of Laila’s love for Qais, he promises to wait until she is ready to love him instead. Does she? Does Laila forget about the exiled Qais? Does Majnu ever get to reunite with his Laila?

COMMENTARY - Laila Majnu from 1976 is the definitive cinematic vision of the legendary star crossed lovers. Rishi Kapoor is Qais from the beginning and Majnu to the end. Ranjeeta Kaur is his Laila. Rishi and Ranjeeta make you a believer in the divine love of Qais and Laila, of two lovers with one soul. AND there is belief that Qais did exist in real life and suffered for his Layla. He lived in Northern Arabia in the eighth century and the poem by Nizami was written some five centuries later. He managed to incorporate all the different legends about Laila and Qais in his classic poem. It’s a little curious about the number of similarities when comparing Nizami’s poem and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (which was adapted from an Italian story.) Apart from the common plot points, the villain in Laila and Majnun is Laila’s brother, Tabrez while in Romeo and Juliet the villain is Juliet’s cousin and he is called Tybalt. Coincidence? Eric Clapton’s hit Layla from 1971 was supposedly inspired by this poem. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Is Reshmi Paazeb Ki Jhankar –Rishi Kapoor and Ranjeeta Kaur. Playback- Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Rafi. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Husn Hazir Hai - Ranjeeta Kaur. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

36.  The Hero Holds Out for the Happy Hooker TITLE - MANORANJAN (1974) STARRING – Sanjeev Kumar, Zeenat Aman DIRECTOR – Shammi Kapoor MUSIC – R. D. Burman LYRICS – Anand Bakshi PLOT - Constable Ratan/Sheru (Sanjeev Kumar) patrols the Red Light district of his town. He meets and chats up Nisha (Zeenat Aman) about the prostitution problem in the area only to find out that she is one too. He catches his superior officer in a compromising position and gets fired on some trumped up charges. Nisha who shared a nice rapport with Sheru takes him in. He starts having a thing for her and concocts a complex plan to get her for himself alone. He works hard at a night job and in the day he disguises himself as a rich Nawab and spends time with her. Nisha becomes jealous as she is suspicious over his night job. She thinks Sheru is stepping out on her with another woman and ends up in a helluva catfight with her (a must see scene!) Sheru grows tired of the Nawab cover and decides to come clean. A further problem arises when the police decide to arrest him over the disappearance of the ‘Nawab.’ And what happens with Nisha and Sheru when she realizes he’s the Nawab? COMMENTARY – Manoranjan was a remake of Irma La Douce which was a stage production and also a 1963 movie which starred Jack Lemmon and Shirley Maclaine. Shammi Kapoor freely acknowledged that it was. While Bollywood remakes of foreign films are common it’s very rare to have someone from the Hindi film industry admit that. It was a fearless move on the part of all involved to put out this movie in 1974’s India and most of the credit for that must go to Zeenat Aman who boldly (as usual) went where no

woman had gone before. There she was defiantly and confidently playing the happy hooker or at the very least, an unapologetic prostitute – the only such role of the decade. Zeenat Aman, the trailblazer, many imitators, only one originator. Sanjeev Kumar, hilarious, first as the naïve cop then as the “Nawab” unexpectedly made an attractive pair with Zeenat Aman. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Aaya Hoon Main Tujhko Le Jaoonga -Sanjeev Kumar and Zeenat Aman. Playback- Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

37.  Love Wears a Disguise TITLE- JEEVAN MRITYU (1970) STARRING – Dharmendra, Raakhee DIRECTOR – Satyen Bose MUSIC – Laxmikant Pyarelal LYRICS- Anand Bakshi PLOT - Ashok (Dharmendra) and Deepa (Raakhee) are in love and hope to soon get married. The unforeseen happens when Ashok is arrested and found guilty of bank theft. He is sentenced to jail. Deepa promises to wait for him and to care for his mother. Years later when he gets out Ashok is anguished upon discovering that his mother has died and that Deepa has moved away. Added to that, he finds out that his co-workers at the bank colluded to frame him for the bank theft crime. Ashok is now on a mission to get justice for himself. After seeking out Deepa he discovers that she had gotten married, is now widowed and had unforgivably betrayed him. How does Ashok go about payback? What is Deepa’s story? What happens when she comes face to face with Ashok? COMMENTARY -A satisfying thriller with unanticipated curveballs. The tension is as taut as piano wire when Ashok meets with Deepa for the first time after he gets out of jail. However, the scene where Ashok comes upon Deepa and finds out the truth about her, is reason alone to watch this movie. Dharmendra is versatile as Ashok who goes through a multitude of changes in the film –he is shown as a happy, honest, hardworking, romantic hero who transforms into the despairing, avenging protagonist. Raakhee is convincing in her unpredictable role as Deepa. There are some core plot elements of the ABC TV series Revenge that I find similar to those in Jeevan Mrityu. You be the judge. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Jhilmil Sitaron Ka Angaan Hoga -Dharmendra

and Raakhee. Playback – Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. Raakhee looks drop dead gorgeous. There is also a solo version of this track by Lata Mangeshkar SOUNDTRACK – 2 STARS (basically just for the two versions of this song.)

38.  The Moral Criminal TITLE- ROTI (1974) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna, Mumtaz, Vijay Arora DIRECTOR – Manmohan Desai MUSIC – Laxmikant Pyarelal LYRICS –Anand Bakshi PLOT - Roti is a story of man on the run from his past to the path of redemption. Mangal Singh (Rajesh Khanna) is a wanted criminal, a victim of his circumstances. From the time he was a child he was forced to steal for food and his life escalated from one ill-fated incident to another. During a struggle for a roti (bread) he accidentally killed someone. He went on the run but still ended up in jail. He escapes the hangman and winds up in a rural village. As is his habit, he tries to steal a roti from a local restauranteur, Bijli (Mumtaz) who catches him in the act and gives him a good tongue lashing. He finds shelter from a kind blind couple and protects them from the village scoundrel and his heavies who try to swindle the couple out of their home. This gets him approval from Bijli. Mangal displays the goodness in him more and more including saving a woman from being assaulted, exposing the fake food shortage in the village thereby providing the village with food and with the help of Bijli becomes a teacher at the local elementary school. As Mangal’s station in life changes and shows his good heart the police have mounted an aggressive manhunt for him. What happens when they close in on him? How does this affect Bijli’s feelings for him when she finds out who he really is? Then the blind couple finds out about an incident from Mangal’s past that involved their son. COMMENTARY - This is a moral tale that shows that while you cannot hide from your past you can still find redemption with love and forgiveness. Mangal is an anti-hero but Rajesh Khanna’s depiction of him makes him more of a hero which in itself is a demonstration of his proficiency as an actor par excellence. Khanna

skillfully shows the er…forty or fifty shades of gray regarding his character. Mumtaz commendably interprets her Bijli character in layers. We first see her as spirited and rowdy but soon after her caring nature is shown with the blind couple and later Bijli shows just what she’s made of when faced with the devil or the deep blue sea situation. In a perfect movie world every star pair would be like Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz. It was hard to select the must see ones from their films together as they’re all outstanding in different ways. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Gore Rang Pe Itna Gumaan Na Kar -Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. WET SALWA KAMEEZ ALERT! Mumtaz gets soaked in the pouring rain and then slowly strips off her top to reveal another top below all the while swaying what her mama gave her. It was a moment for sure. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS. The seventies soundtracks of Rajesh Khanna films were usually all top of the line.

39.  The Gypsy and the Runaway Heiress TITLE- CARAVAN (1971) STARRING – Jeetendra and Asha Parekh DIRECTOR – Nasir Hussain MUSIC- R.D. Burman LYRICS – Majrooh PLOT – Sunita (Asha Parekh) is a rich man’s daughter and goes to pieces when her father dies. She falls under the spell so to speak of Rajan (Ravindra Kapoor) and is tricked into marrying him. Before long she comes to know that Rajan murdered her father and that he and his girlfriend intend to do the same to her in order to get control of her money. She takes off in a hurry without any money on her and joins a travelling caravan which she hopes can get her to her father’s friend in another city. There she meets Mohan (Jeetendra) whom she falls for. This does not bode well with Nisha (Aruna Irani) who wants Mohan for herself. Nisha also happens to be a knife thrower. Does Nisha get her dagger into Sunita? What happens when Mohan finds out about Sunita’s husband? Rajan is also on Sunita’s trail. Does he catch up with her? COMMENTARY - As with all Nasir Hussain films, the music played a key part. Asha Parekh (like in Kati Patang) was again on the run from a traitorous lover. Must say she does wronged woman thrown into the fish out of water situation quite well. We get to see why Jeetendra is justifiably called “Jumping Jack”. He and Asha Parekh were well- matched in this piece of musical merriment. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER and BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG- Piya Tu Ab To Aaja -Helen. Playback – Asha Bhosle and R.D. Burman. Helen at her cabaret best. This song is

as famous for Helen’s sultry moves as it is for the spoken opening, “Monica, Oh my darling” (followed by some heavy gasping.) SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

40.  The Nerd Strikes Back TITLE- CHOTI SI BAAT (1976) STARRING – Amol Palekar and Vidya Sinha DIRECTOR – Basu Chatterjee MUSIC – Salil Chowdhury LYRICS - Yogesh PLOT – Arun (Amol Palekar) is a painfully shy office geek who can’t even get his office juniors to do their job. The object of his affection, Prabha (Vidya Sinha) is a pretty young lady who works in a neighboring office. They meet at nondescript places like the bus stop but mostly he just follows her home. She catches him more than once and he worries that she’ll think he’s some kind of creep and report him to his boss. He’s always daydreaming about asking her out but in the end he got dumbstruck when she only asked him the time. She jokes about him to her friend and it’s up in air whether she just finds him amusing or if she likes him. Enter Nagesh (Asrani) who takes a shine to Prabha and is like a fly in Arun’s soup. Nagesh is the kind of fellow who knows how to chat up the ladies; a savoir faire kind of guy. Arun’s daydreams are not just of Prabha now. They also involve (comedic) ways of offing that oaf, Nagesh. Arun feels as if he just got kicked to the back of the class. Desperate times call for desperate measures and Arun enlists a renowned guru to help him win Prabha’s heart. He perseveres through his guru’s military style training and returns a new man ready to take on Prabha and Nagesh. His guru has a personal interest in this and comes with him. Does Arun with his newfound confidence overcome the overbearing Nagesh and win Prabha? Are his intentions honorable? COMMENTARY - A totally charming story that declined to follow the successful formula of the decade and went completely off the grid. Amol Palekar is not your typical Bollywood leading man, not by a long shot. I mean Asrani (the comedian) was cast to be his rival

for the leading lady’s affection. In other words, anybody else would have surpassed Amol Palekar in the hero department. Nevertheless, the pathetically hilarious Palekar had us with him right from the start. Vidya Sinha was no female Amol Palekar. There’s a famous saying of Dolly Parton’s that goes, “There’s no such thing as natural beauty.” I think Dolly will change her mind if she sees Vidya Sinha in Chhoti Si Baat. She sported a minimalist look. With no glam make-up, bling or costumes she still came off like the fair maiden two knights in shining armor would fight for. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Jaaneman Jaaneman - Dharmendra and Hema Malini; Amol Palekar and Vidya Sinha. Playback – Asha Bhosle and Yesudas. Arun was viewing a movie which featured Dharmendra and Hema picturising this song and then he started to imagine himself and Prabha doing the song instead. Nice Hema/Dharam surprise cameo. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Na Jaane kyon - picturised on Vidya Sinha – Lata Mangeshkar. SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

41.  Sexy Cougar and Young Hunk Get Acquainted TITLE- DOOSRA AADMI (1977) STARRING – Rishi Kapoor, Neetu Singh and Raakhee. DIRECTOR – Ramesh Talwar MUSIC – Rajesh Roshan LYRICS – Majrooh PLOT - Karan (Rishi Kapoor) and Timsi (Neetu Singh) meet and fall in love while still in college. Despite their quickie courtship and marriage they are happy together. Karan ambitiously gets a loan and opens an advertising agency. He tracks down the reclusive Nisha (Raakhee) who is renowned and experienced in her field and wants to hire her undeterred by the knowledge that she has refused work with other agencies. He needs her as she would be a boon to his upstart agency. To his surprised delight she not only accepts his job offer but takes it at lower salary than what he offered her. We soon find out why. She is older than Karan but is deeply attracted to him. He bears a strong resemblance to her dead fiancé Shashi, (Shashi Kapoor) who we see in flashback. Her life has been in the doldrums ever since Shashi died and Karan makes her feel alive again. Karan responds to Nisha’s sexy older woman vibe and subtle infatuation with him and soon his wife suspects his unfaithfulness. Timsi gets on Karan’s trail one day and her worst fears are realized. She plays a cat and mouse game with Karan initially, like commenting about the movie 40 Carats (about a younger man and an older woman) but eventually confronts him. She faces down Nisha too. What happens to Karan and Nisha? Karan and Timsi? Could there be a happy ending here? If so, for whom? COMMENTARY - Doosra Aadmi courageously crossed into no man’s land (or rather into the other woman’s land) but it didn’t do so confidently. The taboo subject and scenes were touched on but not

wholeheartedly, body and soul, delved into. Alas, this was Bollywood in 1977, an eternity before the term ‘cougar’ was even coined. The fact that this Yash Chopra produced feature even introduced this subject is something in itself and that’s why Doosra Aadmi is a must see. Raakhee’s rendering of this universally disliked character (Fatal Attraction/ Glenn Close anyone?) didn’t evoke the expected emotion of loathing. She had our sympathy and understanding (not to mention she looked really hot.) Neetu Singh’s part as Timsi had a dismissive feel to it. As the cheated on wife she should have been given a better outlet for her wrath than that inadequate confrontation in Karan’s office which left her worse off than before. A Carrie Underwood/Before He Cheats type scene would have been visually dramatic (watch Carrie’s music video) but probably out of the question. Perhaps a song picturisation in her imagination with a jealous Karan looking on as she romances someone would have been fitting. Even a song symbolizing her pain would have been something. Rishi who is Shashi’s real life nephew and bears some resemblance to him was realistic as the object of Raakhee’s infatuation. Karan, as expected, was not a sympathetic character and a number of his callous actions made him even more unappealing. His lacking response to a certain character at the end may leave you feeling the need for better closure. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Nazron Se Kah Do -Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG- Chal Kahin Door Nikal Jayen – Rishi Kapoor, Raakhee and Shashi Kapoor. Playback - Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar and Mohammed Rafi SOUNDTRACK - 4 STARS. All the songs are heavy hitters except for the one folk song which seemed a little out of place, more like a filler.

42.  The One with the Ultimate Flashback TITLE- DO ANJAANE (1976) STARRING - Amitabh Bachchan, Rekha DIRECTOR – Dulal Guha MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS – Verma Mallick, Anjaan PLOT - A man (Amitabh Bachchan) wakes up after an accident in a confused state. He knows the wealthy people who claim to be his parents aren’t. He recalls another life and when he sees an actress in a movie on TV he comes to recognize her as his wife. He remembers other things too. His name is Amit and his ‘best friend’ Ranjit (Prem Chopra) pushed him out of a moving train, no doubt with the intention of killing him. That was six years ago. He does some present day investigating and finds out that his wife, Rekha (Rekha) is now hooked up with Ranjit. Amit also discovers that his son with Rekha is neglected by his mother and holed up at a boarding school. Amit intends to get his son back and comes up with an intricate plan to deal with his traitorous wife and ‘best friend’. See how it all plays out in Do Anjaane. COMMENTARY - You know how some Nicholas Sparks novels take you into lengthy flashbacks and sometimes you forget the present day situation? Well this movie is like that. It takes some hairpin turns back in time before you realize where it might be headed. Hard to swallow that Amitabh could be believable as a hen pecked husband but he is. Luckily that’s not all he is. Got to give him some props too for wearing a straight face while wearing those garish seventies style suits! For Rekha, this movie was something of a debutante ball for her. She’d had hits before (and always looked pretty to me) but this time she came out looking like a million bucks. The director didn’t make excuses for her anti-heroine character but I

think he should have. Rekha should have gotten a flashback to show what must have been a dire situation for her immediately following Amit’s ‘death.’ Her character was complex rather than a purely negative one but her allotted onscreen time cheated her out of showing that more. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Mere Saath Chale Na Chale -Rekha. Playback – Lata Mangeshkar. Amit was smitten with Rekha while watching her dance this song on stage. She looked ravishing. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Luk Chhip Luk Chhip- Amitabh Bachchan. Playback – Kishore Kumar SOUNDTRACK – 3 STARS

43.  The Heroine is the Villain TITLE- LAL PATHAR (1971) STARRING – Raaj Kumar, Hema Malini, Raakhee, Vinod Mehra DIRECTOR – Sushil Majumdar MUSIC – Shankar Jaikishan LYRICS – Hasrat Jaipuri, Neeraj, Dev Kohli PLOT - Raja Kumar Bahadur (Raaj Kumar) is a privileged man of immense wealth who lives in his palatial, ancestral country estate. He lives a disciplined life shirking womanizing and imbibing over a superstition regarding the past of his immoral father. He comes upon a beautiful kidnapped woman, Saudamini (Hema Malini) while out hunting one day, buys her freedom and takes her to live with him. He treats her like the lady of the house but does not marry her. He renames her Madhuri, tries to educate her, teach her the finer things in life like music in an effort to turn her into a cultured lady but to no avail. Madhuri simply does not have it in her. Years later he meets and is fascinated by another beautiful woman, Sumita (Raakhee) who enthralls him with her enchanting singing voice and her beauty and who seems to have all traits of a refined lady. Sumita is many years his junior and is not interested in him as she has a boyfriend, Shekhar (Vinod Mehra) who is studying abroad. Her parents are poor however and welcome the generous Raja Kumar who offers to pay off all their debts in exchange for their daughter’s hand in marriage. Raja Kumar and Sumita marry and he takes her to his home. Although it’s made clear that Madhuri is still the boss lady of the house, Madhuri’s displeasure and jealousy grows over Sumita’s presence. She poison’s Raja Kumar’s mind with insinuations about Sumita and Shekhar and makes him doubt his wife. He concocts a treacherous plot against Sumita and Shekhar. Does Raja Kumar’s plan work as planned or backfire in unimaginable ways?

COMMENTARY - An intense, dark, brooding, atmospheric drama featuring Dream Girl Hema Malini in a role unseen before or after. She is spellbinding as the anti-heroine, totally captivating in her silent rage as she stands like a living tigress next to the fully mounted tiger on display that Raja Kumar had captured. Raaj Kumar looks like he was born to play the doomed prince and Raakhee as the innocent prey has our compassion and hope that nothing untoward will befall her. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER – Suni Sa Ki Sitar Par - Raakhee. Playback – Asha Bhosle who sings a very Un-Asha Bhosle song. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Geet Gaata Hoon Main – Vinod Mehra. Playback – Kishore Kumar. SOUNDTRACK -3 STARS

44.  The One with the Song Sampled by the Black Eye Peas TITLE- APRADH (1972) STARRING – Feroz Khan, Mumtaz DIRECTOR – Feroz Khan MUSIC – Kalyanji Anandji LYRICS- Indeevar, Hasrat Jaipuri PLOT - Ram (Feroz Khan) is a Formula One race car driver from India who is in Germany to compete in a big race. He meets a gorgeous looking girl, Meena (Mumtaz), who is in trouble and rescues her from a professional gang of thieves. He wins his race and together they are both headed back to India. At the airport he accepts a package for his brother from a stranger who tells him its medicine. It’s really diamonds and an enemy of the stranger reports on Ram who is searched by the authorities and arrested for smuggling. Ram is sent to jail for a crime he did not commit. When he gets out a loyal Meena is waiting to start a life with him. They get married. Everything is fine until Ram’s brother Harnam (Prem Chopra) pays them a visit. He is involved is something illegal and wants Ram to join him. Then Meena gets kidnapped. Does Ram save Meena? Will they ever get to have their happily ever after? COMMENTARY - The movie has the feel of a cool Hollywood B movie crime thriller from the early seventies. Mumtaz’s hip wardrobe by itself is a time capsule of that early 1970’s look and she wears it with her own personal panache. No wet sari scene but Mumtaz does heat things up with a sexy black bikini. We first see her lying on the beach wearing it and then she gets herself wet in the water. No to be outdone Feroz Khan is wearing a white skimpy Speedo like number himself while they frolic on the beach and in the water. Worth mentioning is a rare for Bollywood bed scene with Mumtaz and Feroz snuggled under the blankets. Apradh was the first Indian

feature to be filmed on the race tracks in Germany and it was Feroz Khan’s maiden venture into movie making. He has an eye for style, for what looks good on the silver screen. There’s an extra helping of eye candy in Apradh and its not just Mumtaz. A very likeable movie that promises entertainment and delivers. EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER- Aye Naujawan Hai Sab Kuchh Yahan - Helen and Mumtaz. Playback – Asha Bhosle. Director Feroz Khan had the good sense to sneak Mumtaz into this showstopper of a track by having his inebriated character Ram visualize her in place of Helen. Both were wearing identical black satin dresses and Medusa meets Bo Derek hairdos! This song was legally sampled by The Black Eyes Peas on their 2005 hit Don’t Phunk with my Heart. I remember reading the credits for the song from my BEP CD with that hit and being stunned to see Apradh and other relevant information mentioned in the booklet. BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG - Hamare Siva Tumhare – Feroz Khan and Mumtaz. Playback – Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS

45.  Boy Gets Girl, Boy Loses Girl, Boy Gets…Arrested? TITLE- AJANABEE (1974) STARRING – Rajesh Khanna, Zeenat Aman DIRECTOR – Shakti Samanta MUSIC – R.D. Burman LYRICS –Anand Bakshi PLOT - Rohit (Rajesh Khanna) is a railway station master. One night he comes to the assistance of a young woman, Sonia (Yogeeta Bali) who is stranded at the station and gives her his quarters to spend the night. She’s carrying a briefcase and appears to be on the run. Sonia opens the briefcase and shows Rohit the valuable jewelry in it. He puts it in the safe. They chat a bit and the subject of Rohit’s marital status comes up. When he returns to his office all the memories of Rashmi (Zeenat Aman) his estranged wife come flooding back, all the way to the first time they met. After a teasing encounter, love began to bloom. Rashmi got her wealthy father, Mr. Sardarilal to hire Rohit who found a large sum of money missing when he did the accounting. This did not look good for Mr. Sardarilal’s assistant, Moti Babu (Prem Chopra.) To discredit Rohit, Moti Babu gets Rohit framed for the rape of a young woman and punishes him with a whipping. Rohit is then ordered to leave. Rashmi who initially believed Rohit’s guilt finds out the truth and leaves with Rohit. They elope and move to a different city. Rashmi, coming from a wealthy lifestyle didn’t take to being an ordinary housewife too smoothly and is bored. A friendly neighbor of theirs is a professional photographer and he gets her to model for him. The modeling leads to her entering and winning a beauty contest. However, immediately after she finds out that she’s pregnant and is none too thrilled about it as this has just waylaid her flourishing career. Rohit is ecstatic about the baby though. Rashmi accidentally falls and has a miscarriage but Rohit doesn’t believe her despite her

pleadings that she didn’t purposely get rid of their child. They have a big fight. Rashmi leaves and goes back to her father. Then Rohit discovers that Rashmi didn’t lie about the baby. Mr. Sardarilal has divorce papers sent to Rohit who goes after Rashmi, finds her and implores her to reconcile. She is not forthcoming but is listening until her father butts in and sends her out of the room. Rohit ends up in a fight with Moti Babu and then he goes away without Rashmi. That’s not his only problem however. Sonia is found dead and Rohit gets arrested for her murder. Who killed Sonia? Is Rohit guilty? What chance of reconciliation does Rohit have with Rashmi now that he has been arrested? COMMENTARY – Ajanabee could be described as a boy gets girl, boy loses girl kind of film. So can 2014’s Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike but those you who saw this movie know that there was so-o much more to it. Different story of course but that’s kind of the case with Ajanabee. While it’s not going to blow you away, you’ll certainly want to see it through. It’s got heart and danged good chemistry between its two co-stars. Are you keeping of count of those Zeenat Aman un-Bollywood heroine roles? This is another one, as she plays a career woman unhappy about her pregnancy. I like to think of this movie as a way Aap Ki Kasam could have gone. In Ajanabee Rohit actually approached Rashmi for a reconciliation and owned up to his mistake but in Aap Ki Kasam Rajesh’s character, Kamal never did so with Mumtaz’s character. Perhaps it was because he was told that she had remarried but that’s not an acceptable reason. I still feel it made more sense for him to have sought her out to explain his error but then we would have had an entirely different movie! EYE CANDY MUSICAL NUMBER- Bheegi Bheegi Raaton Mein - Rajesh Khanna and Zeenat Aman. Playback -Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar. Not a wet sari alert but a WET NEGLIGEE ALERT! Watch for the Rajesh Khanna knee slide scene over to Zeenat Aman as she lifts the soaked hem of the negligee to squeeze it out revealing her bare legs.

BEST DOWNLOAD WORTHY SONG – Ek Ajanabee Haseena Se - Rajesh Khanna. Playback – Kishore Kumar. An all-time classic. Kishore’s voice suited Rajesh Khanna more than any other actor and the Rajesh/Kishore team have many of the best tracks of the decade. SOUNDTRACK – 4 STARS. There are only four songs in the movie but three are classics. The third one being Hum Dono Do Premee, a very catchy number.