Aadhar meaning support is a Marathi film made by veteran director Raja Paranjape. It has been adopted from Shakuntala Gogate’s novel “Chandane Shimpit Jaa. ” It has an unusual storyline involving an older hero and a much younger heroine. This reminds us of another movie Jagachya Paathivar by the same director which has achieved classic status. Unfortunately, Aadhar leaves a lesser impact.

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The Plot

The leading lady of Aadhar is Geeta (Anupama). She has married the man she loves Raju (Gajen Joshi) against their parents’ wishes. Raju hails from a rich family from Sangli. He is a college student and will be completing his graduation soon. Geeta works in an office. The house is run on her income, and she takes care of Raju’s education expenses. They stay in a small, rented house in Pune. The landlady is Geeta’s aunt and the only supportive relative after her marriage. In spite of their dire financial condition, Geeta supports Raju to the best extent, even gifting him some fabric on his birthday. They sing a romantic song in Saras Baug, Majhya re preeti phoola. Geeta loves him wholeheartedly and wishes he complete his studies and get a job.

But Raju is not as he seems. He is in contact with his parents unknown to Geeta. They send him a good allowance every month, which he spends on entertaining his friends, movies etc. They do not care about their daughter in law Geeta (who hails from a lower income family) but want their son to lead a comfortable life. One day, Geeta comes to know the reality when she sees a telegram from his father. She confronts him and they have an argument. Next day, on the pretext of visiting his parents, Raju leaves her forever. Through a letter, he admits everything. There had been other girls in his life before her. The only difference is Geeta made him marry her. He was never serious about their relationship. His parents have found a suitable match, and he is looking forward to settle down with the girl of their choice. There will be no obstacle in their divorce, and he is ready to pay alimony.

Geeta is devastated. Her aunt pacifies her. Geeta has some money from her father which she has not touched. She decides to utilize that, go to Mumbai and settle down there. She has many bitter memories in Pune and can’t stay there any longer. Accordingly, she manages to get a job in Mumbai and accommodation in a chawl.

Geeta is thought as snobbish by her office colleagues but thankfully that perception doesn’t stay for long. One of her colleagues and friend is Kishori (Lalita Desai).

Geeta leads a solitary life and doesn’t mingle with her neighbours in the chawl. There is a neighbour called Dinanath (Bal Kolhatkar), who is the chawl’s secretary. He attempts to befriend her but she rebutts him every time.

Dinanath conducts tuitions. One of the neighbour’s daughter Gooji (Neelam) is his student and flirts with him all the time. Her intention is to marry him. She even calls him “Naath” lovingly. Dinanath has no interest in her. There are some unnecessary “comedy” scenes between the teacher and his flirtatious student.

Dinanath longs to get close with Geeta. During the Ganesh festival celebrations, he invites Geeta to come and watch his performance (he sings a song Kaahi tari tu bol). But she deliberately avoids him and spends time with Kishori before returning late in the night. Dinanath feels insulted but Geeta doesn’t give a heed.

One day, Barrister Prabhakar (Raja Paranjape) visits Geeta’s office. As Kishori introduces Geeta, he is startled to see her. Later, Kishori informs Geeta that Prabhakar is a rich man. His wife has passed away 20 years ago. He loved her too much to think of settling down again. Geeta is impressed at hearing this given her own failed marriage and the character of her husband.

When Prabhakar returns home, we come to know the reason for his startled reaction. Geeta is a lookalike of his late wife Nirmala. It’s as if he saw Nirmala standing in front of him in the office.

Prabhakar and Geeta’s paths are going to cross soon. One day Geeta brings a stray pup to her house. She has rescued it from the clutches of the municipal authorities. The chawl residents oppose the entry of the new resident stating he will be a nuisance. The owner of the chawl hands over an official letter to this effect. Geeta and Kishori consult Barrister Prabhakar, who clearly states the law is not in favour of Geeta. Geeta accepts the reality and lets the dog go.

Later, Prabhakar sees Geeta drenched in the rain at the bus stop and offers her to drop her home. He realizes she has high fever and calls for the doctor. But her condition worsens. He requests Dinanath to call Dr Gupte (Vivek), who is his family doctor. Dr Gupte also notices Geeta’s striking resemblance to Nirmala. He treats her and confirms the case is moving towards typhoid. Prabhakar is shaken. Nirmala had passed away in similar conditions with the same disease. He doesn’t want the same fate to fall upon Geeta.

One day in the hospital, Prabhakar is lost in the thoughts of Nirmala and inadvertently tries to get intimate with Geeta. Geeta suspects his intentions and informs the doctor of her decision to get discharged. She is much better now and would prefer to go home. Additionally, she cannot afford to stay in the hospital due to her financial condition. Prabhakar visits her at home, and she attempts to pay back her treatment costs. Prabhakar apologises for his behaviour but she is no mood to listen.

The misunderstanding continues for some time. Prabhakar falls sick and Dr Gupte requests Geeta to visit him. She reluctantly does so. Upon entering his room, she sees Nirmala’s portrait and her doubts are soon cleared. Prabhakar is surprised to see her and requests her to leave. She apologizes for her behaviour.

He advises her to get married soon. He knows what it is to live alone without your partner as a support. She is young and has a long life ahead of her. He promises to do anything for her to see her happy. Her response is unexpected. Geeta proposes they get married and he is taken aback. After much drama, he agrees, and they are husband and wife.

Dinanath is one of the people who is not happy. He accuses Geeta of falling for Prabhakar’s wealth and making a selfish and hasty decision. She is the same person who had decided to stay away from any relationship after her prior experience. How could she change overnight?

Unfortunately, other people have the same thoughts and taunt the couple. They talk about their age difference and Geeta’s true motive. Things reach a point where Prabhakar suspects Geeta of having an affair with Dinanath (who is making all the moves to poison Prabhakar’s mind). All this leading to tragical circumstances for the couple.

The Music

The golden trio of G D Madgulkar,  Sudhir Phadke and Raja Paranjape once again collaborate for some memorable music. Majhya re preeti phoola is one of the most enduring duets by Sudhir Phadke and Asha Bhosle. 2 Asha Bhosle solos, Wara sute sukhacha and a sad song Khel kalena tujha are other gems. The fourth song is Kaahi tari tu bol by Vasantrao Deshpande.

My Thoughts

The music and direction are engaging. But the film has a depressing tone and moves at a slow pace. The scenes are long drawn and get boring. Anupama is effective but Raja Paranjape does not seem comfortable in the role of the hero. He wears a wig and his dialogue delivery is not clear. The chemistry seems forced between the 2 leads. It is difficult to comprehend Geeta’s sudden decision to marry Prabhakar. Later, Prabhakar (a barrister) is shown gullible enough to get suspicious about his wife. Can’t he confront his wife and clear the matter? The way he distances himself from the reality and relies on his own assumptions makes the character weaker.

The doctor character played by Vivek is wasted (maybe he could have played the hero more convincingly!). Dinanath’s transformation into a negative character is also not convincing.

The songs come as a relief but are few in number considering its a Raja Paranjape film. Maybe more songs could have helped to balance the dull proceedings.