Category Archives: My Reviews

Sadhi Manasa (1965)

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Bhalji Pendharkar is regarded as one of the pioneers and most respected filmmakers in Marathi cinema. He was an influencer and mentor to many artistes. Though more famous for historical films centered around the Marathi empire, he also made films on other subjects occasionally. His creation Sadhi Manasa (Simple People) is a gem of a movie. Like its name, it tells the story of simple people and the hardships faced by them. Perhaps the most special thing about the film is its music, which was composed by none other than Lata Mangeshkar (credited as “Anandghan”)!

At the 13th National Film Awards, it won the President’s silver medal for the Best Feature Film in Marathi. At the Maharashtra State Film Awards, the film won 9 awards including Best Film, Best Director, Screenplay and Dialogue (for Bhalji Pendharkar), Best Actress (Jayshree Gadkar), Best Music Director and Best Female Playback Singer for Anandghan / Lata Mangeshkar as well as Best Cinematography: Arvind Lad and Best Art Direction: Sadashiv Gaikwad.

The Plot

The film is set in Hanbarwadi village and tells the story of Shankar (Suryakant) and Parvati alias Paru (Jayshree Gadkar). Shankar is an ace blacksmith. His skill is demonstrated in the first few scenes.

Chakkadrao (Rajshekhar), a truck driver arrives in the village. His truck has developed a snag and a certain part needs to be fixed. He is directed to Shankar’s house. Shankar, helped by Paru gets on the job. It is also the perfect setting for one of the most well known songs – Airanichya deva tula thinagi thinagi waahu de.

Shankar repairs the part and Chakkadrao is impressed. He offers to take them to Kolhapur, a big city where Shankar can make better use of his skill. He asks the couple to think about it for a few days. If agreeable, they can join him on his return journey.

Shankar starts thinking of the proposal. A big city means more money and that will improve their lives. Paru is not very agreeable, she is happy as they are. It is decided they will consult Paru’s brother Mhatoba (Master Vitthal) and sister in law (Sulochana), whom they hold in high regard and seem to be their only close relatives.

Paru goes ahead to her maternal home. Shankar will join her after completing the tasks at hand. Mhatoba and his wife are glad to have her with them. Their kids Shirpa and Hansa are fond of their aunt. The two ladies share a close bond and are constantly engaged in an entertaining banter.

Shankar’s arrival is delayed and it is time for Paru to sing another song Waat pahuni jeev shinala. He finally comes and the decision is made to go to Kolhapur. As promised, Chakkadrao takes them to Kolhapur in his truck. He also arranges their accommodation in the same locality where he stays. The couple settle down in their new surroundings. Shankar is lucky and gets a job in an engineering unit.

Life is different in Kolhapur compared to their village. They have an elderly and helpful neighbour called Tuka Jadhav. But the rest are of the troublesome category. There is a drunkard who beats his wife Sanguna (Asha Patil) daily and extracts money from her. He also tries to borrows money from his neighbours and keeps irritating them.

One day, the neighbour Sanguna comes hurriedly to Paru. She request her to keep her putali necklace safely as she does not want her husband to get hold of it. This is her last piece of jewellery and she cannot think of parting with it to support her husband’s drunken ways. Paru is reluctant but Sanguna presses her. Paru agrees and keeps the necklace in a jar of pulses in the kitchen.

This incident is witnessed by Chakkadrao. He is not the good samaritan he pretends to be. He has his sights on the beautiful Paru since their first meeting. He is waiting for an opportunity to get closer to her. Paru has sensed this and voiced her concern about Chakkadrao’s intentions to Shankar.

The same day, Shankar comes home with his first salary. He has purchased a watch for himself and a saree for Paru. Paru is overjoyed and sings a song Malayachya malyamandi patacha paani jaata remembering her maternal house and describing her brother, sister in law and the kids.

Chakkadrao meets Shankar and suggests visiting the renowned Jyotiba temple. Shankar agrees. But this request is part of a well thought plan. Chakkadrao has instructed his helper to steal the necklace when Paru and Shankar are out visiting the temple. The plan is successful and the helper hands over the necklace to Chakkadrao. The couple is unaware of this.

Paru’s brother and sister in law arrive in Kolhapur for a very short visit. There is another sweet song between the ladies – Rajachya rangmhali sonyacha bai palang.

All is hunky dory and it is time for Chakkadrao to make his move. Chakkadrao asks the drunkard to ask his wife for the necklace. He makes a huge fuss and forces Sanguna to goes to Paru and demand the necklace. Paru searches frantically but cannot find it in the kitchen. She realises the necklace as well as the salary amount (cash) are missing. Shankar and Paru accept the reality. News about the “stolen” necklace reach Shankar’s boss. He asks Shankar to arrange for a guarantor if he wants to continue in his job.

Shankar mortgages their house in Hanbarwadi and arranges the money. He doesn’t know any jeweller and Chakkadrao offers to help him in this task. Chakkadrao keeps the money and hands over a fake necklace in return. Shankar is a simple man and doesn’t understand he has been taken for a ride.

The truth is soon found out by Sanguna and her husband and the blame falls on Shankar. He is arrested, convicted and sent to jail. Paru is unexpectedly left to fend for herself. Her condition is portrayed through the devotional song Nako devaraya anta aata pahu. Chakkadrao offers to help her but she knows his intentions and throws him out. She is forced to vacate their house and starts working as a farm labourer.

She meets Shankar in the prison. He tells her to go her brother’s house but she disagrees. She doesn’t let her brother and sister in law know what has happened.

So, the couple continue their struggle. Shankar works as a blacksmith in the prison and spends his time in the company of a fellow prisoner cum teacher (played by Chandrakant Gokhale) who teaches him to read and write. Shankar is also desperate to flee the prison one way or the other. He cannot bear to live without Paru.

But more testing times are in store for the couple. Chakkadrao tracks Paru and attempts to make unwanted advances. She beats him with a wooden stick in self defense until he dies.

Where will this end? Will Paru be convicted of her crime? Will the couple be able to live happily again?

The Music

The film has evergreen music. Lata Mangeshkar composed the music under the pseudonym Anandghan. The story goes that the identity of “Anandghan” was revealed when Lata Mangeshkar got up to collect the award during the State Awards ceremony. The songs are in the voices of the Mangeshkar siblings – Lata, Usha and Hridaynath.

Airanichya deva is a well written song by Jagadish Khebudkar referring to the hard work of the blacksmith. Malachya malyamandhi, Waat pahuni jeev shinala and Rajachya rangmhali are written by Bhalji Pendharkar under the pseudonym “Yogesh.” Nako Devraya is a composition by Sant Kanhopatra based on raag Malkans.

My Thoughts

Sadhi Manasa maintains its simple tone throughout. It is said that none of the actors applied makeup while shooting for the film. The characters are shown to be quite practical. They accept what is in front of them and decide how to deal with the circumstances. Surprisingly, the melodrama is kept to the minimum and there are no over the top weepy ham scenes. Kudos to Bhalji Pendharkar! In a way, the film also reflects the impact when a simple villager moves to a big city. The transition can be life changing.

Suryakant, Chandrakant Gokhale, Sulochana, Rajshekhar and Master Vitthal are all adequate in their roles. The show stealer is Jayshree Gadkar who performs brilliantly. Her equation with different characters like her husband, brother and his wife, with the villain are presented convincingly. She is not merely the helpless heroine but handles the matters in her feisty manner. Sometimes, things don’t need to be flashy and glamorous to make a point and Sadhi Manasa underlines this effectively.

Fantastic Voyage (1966)

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Films based on science fiction have been popular in English cinema. Special effects are an important feature of such movies. If done properly, they impress the audience and leave an impact. Fantastic Voyage (FV) is one such film. It is a fantasy plot where a group of people undertake a dangerous mission and travel inside the human body. They have one hour to complete the mission or the consequence will be disastrous. The plot majorly focuses on the challenges and experiences faced in their mission. Not to forget the visual extravaganza they have for company in the complex uncharted territory.

The film is based on a story by Otto Klement and Jerome Bixby. It was adapted as a novel by Isaac Asimov (interestingly, the book got published prior to the films release due to delays in the film’s completion). Richard Fleischer directed the movie. The film received 5 Oscar (Academy Award) nominations and won 2 awards for Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction in Color.

The Plot

The film begins with the landing of a plane in the United States. Grant (Stephen Boyd) has arrived with a scientist named Jan Benes (Jean Del Val) who has defected to the USA. The scientist’s specialization is miniaturization (the process of shrinking people or objects). Currently, scientists in the USA are able to achieve miniaturization for only an hour. Apparently, Benes is able to do it indefinitely. This path breaking discovery will enable the USA to have an edge over its enemy (the country name is not revealed but it is obvious!).

Benes leaves the airport with full security. But the convoy is attacked with the intention of killing him. He is quickly rescued but he develops a blood clot in his brain and goes into a coma. He is currently lying in a medical facility at the Combined Miniature Deterrent Forces (CMDF) waiting to be operated upon to remove the clot. Unfortunately, the clot cannot be removed through a normal surgical procedure.

In a planned fantastic procedure, a team of specialists will travel “inside” the human body and operate on the clot.

Grant is a secret agent and asked to join this surgical mission. Apparently, it is suspected that someone from the mission will aim to kill Benes. Grant’s job is to ensure this doesn’t happen and Benes is saved.

So, Grant is brought to CMDF whose location seems to be a heavily guarded secret. He is met by General Carter (Edmond O’Brien) who is overseeing the mission with Colonel Reid (Arthur O’Connell). Carter explains the role of CMDF etc to Grant and shares details of the mission.

Carter explains the plan to shrink a submarine with 5 people on board. The submarine will be injected into Benes’s body. It will travel to the location of the blood clot, allowing the surgeons to perform the operation (by shooting the clot with a laser). All this is too fantastic for Grant to digest. He does not how to react but there is no time to lose.

There is a quick briefing session and we are introduced to the other members of the team. Captain Bill Owens (Willliam Redfield), a Navy officer will be responsible for operating the submarine. Dr. Michaels (Donald Pleasence) is the head of the medical team and circulatory specialist who will pinpoint the submarine’s exact location. And finally surgeon Dr. Peter Duval (Arthur Kennedy), and his assistant Cora Peterson (Raquel Welch) who would perform the actual operation with the laser.

So, the team is all set. They enter the submarine called Proteus and are miniaturized. They are able to communicate with the control room through wireless messages. Proteus is powered by a microscopic nuclear particle, enabling its location in the bloodstream to be tracked from outside by using a radioactive tracer.

But it is not smooth sailing all the way. At the very beginning, Dr Michaels feels claustrophobic and tries to leave the Proteus. He has to be caught and calmed down.

More problems are on the way. The team has to pass through the heart which is not a part of the original plan. For this, the heart has to be stopped by inducing cardiac arrest. Otherwise the sheer vibrations from the beating action of the heart will impact and possibly destroy Proteus.

They also face a sudden loss of oxygen. Grant volunteers to arrange the oxygen by pumping into the lungs! An innovative idea given the ready supply of oxygen available. He almost gets blown away but is rescued by the others.

Then the laser is found to be damaged and Dr Duval and Cora have to think of repairing the laser with the available resources. Grant realizes there is a sabouteur on board who will ensure the mission fails at all costs.

And the clock is ticking! They have only an hour to complete the mission. If not, the submarine will expand, killing Benes one way or the other. They are also up against the body’s natural defense mechanism which releases anti bodies if it detects an intruder. They have to navigate wisely without attracting attention.

The suspense is maintained till the end as the team deals with one obstacle after the other. In the midst of all this, they are treated to the inside view of the human body that no one else has encountered before.

The Music

The score was composed and conducted by Leonard Rosenman. It complements the events on the screen as the Proteus traverses through the human body. There are moments of wonder, anxiety in equal measure supported by the background music.

My Thoughts

I had watched FV a long time back and was impressed by the special effects. Today, they may not look very impressive with CGI and green screens but it is still a visual delight. Specially impressive are the lung sequence and the attack by the anti bodies/ white cells.

The plot is too fantastic but the film maintains its seriousness throughout to make it believable. All the actors are good including the villain who is eventually revealed and meets a horrifying end. Looking back, it is a 60 year old movie but definitely worth a watch.

Khudgarz (1987)

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Khudgarz was the directorial debut of Rakesh Roshan. Khudgarz means “selfish” or “self interested” and is the story of 2 friends played by Jeetendra and Shatrughan Sinha. Typically, one is rich while the other is of the illiterate and poor villager type. In spite of the differences in their background, they are thick friends. A series of misunderstandings leads to cracks in their friendship and has a long term impact on their relationship.

The plot may seem predictable but it has its moments. It was a success at the box office and established Rakesh Roshan as a successful producer and director. Apparently, he thought the letter K was lucky and named his subsequent films beginning with “K.” To name a few, there were Khoon Bhari Maang (1988), Kishen Kanhaiya (1990), Khel (1992), King Uncle (1993), Karan Arjun (1995) and Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai (2000).

The Plot

Amar Saxena (Master Rinku) is the only son of a rich hotelier Brij Bhushan Saxena (Saeed Jaffrey). Amar’s mother has passed away. He longs for his father’s company who is always busy in his work. Brij Bhushan is a calculative man looking for some gain in his every action.

One day, Amar is going in his car when the driver accidentally splashes mud on a boy called Bihari – Bhuvaneshwar Prasad Sinha (Master Javed). An angry Bihari throws a stone and shatters the car’s rear glass. Amar steps out and the boys get into a fight rolling in the mud. Bihari’s sister Lalita calls her mother (Sushma Seth), who stops the boys.

Things are sorted out. Bihari’s mother tells Amar that he is also like a son to her. Amar starts visiting the family regularly. He develops a close friendship with Bihari and treats Lalita as his sister. Every year, Lalita ties a rakhi on the wrists of both her brothers. The 2 boys are inseparable and this is underlined with the song Zindagi ka naam dosti (featuring Rishi Kapoor in a cameo).

The boys grow up, played by Jeetendra (Amar) and Shatrughan Sinha (Bihari). Their friendship continues. Amar handles his father’s hotel business. Bihari owns a small restaurant/hotel next to his house. He also owns a tract of prime land in front of his house. He has got many offers but he has no interest in selling the land and happy to live a simple life with his family.

Some time is spent on the romantic tracks of the friends. Amar is in love with a girl Jaya (Bhanupriya), who works as a florist. After some initial hiccups, they get married. Brij Bhushan is not amused as Jaya is not from a rich family but respects his son’s wishes.

Bihari is attracted to Lata (Amrita Singh) who works as a construction worker. After an irritating track and with Amar’s helping hand, they admit their love for each other.

Brij Bhushan plans to gift a 5 star hotel to Amar as a marriage gift. The problem is the land on the proposed site is owned by Bihari. Amar goes to meet Bihari with the proposal – he will continue to own the land and the profits of the hotel will be shared 50:50 by both the parties.

Bihari is more than willing to help Amar. But Brij Bhushan is a shrewd businessman. He makes Bihari “sign” documents to give up his ownership of the land. Bihari is an illiterate man and readily gives his thumb impression on the documents. Amar is unaware of this move.

The hotel is ready. On the inauguration day, the chief guest (played by Abhi Bhattacharya) points out to Bihari’s house and hotel on the premises which is an eyesore. Brij Bhushan tells him that it will be taken care of soon. Amar is busy attending Bihari’s wedding (on the same day).

Sudhir (Kiran Kumar) is a close confidante of Brij Bhushan and a corrupt man. He raises the issue of demolishing Bihari’s house and hotel. Brij Bhushan knows this is difficult and seeks Amar’s help.

Amar goes to meet Bihari and promises a huge house and hotel in return of demolishing his property. Bihari is totally against the demolition. The house is the result of his father’s blood and sweat and he will continue to live in it. Amar tries to convince him that he should change for the better but Bihari is in no mood to listen and slaps Amar. This is the first sign of a strain in their friendship. Later, Amar gets drunk and can barely remember what happened after his meeting with Bihari.

Brij Bhushan and Sudhir are waiting for this opportunity. They proceed with the demolition on the same night. Bihari is shattered and goes to confront Amar. Amar claims that he doesn’t know anything about the demolition. Sudhir intervenes and tells him that this action was taken on his advice. Amar is unable to recall the conversation as he was drunk.

Bihari blames Amar for his plight and lectures him. This is one of the most important scenes of the film. He challenges Amar that he will compete with him and build his own hotel business.

Circumstances lead to Bihari and Sudhir joining hands. Unfortunately, Bihari does not know Sudhir’s real character and starts trusting him. Bihari manages to obtain a loan from the bank and begin his journey of being a successful businessman. He doesn’t miss any opportunity to compete with Amar, be it an auction or the hotelier association’s presidential election.

Meanwhile, Lalita’s marriage is arranged with Sudhir. Amar and Jaya (who is pregnant) are attacked as they try to reach the marriage venue. Jaya gets seriously injured. She delivers a boy and passes away in the hospital. Bihari’s mother goes to offer her condolences hoping that things will improve between Amar and Bihari.

But that is not to be. The rivalry between Amar and Bihari continues. Years pass and Bihari and Lata have a daughter. Amar and Bihari’s children (played by Govinda and Neelam in a special appearance) fall in love. But they have to overcome the hurdle of their respective fathers.

Will the children help their fathers to reconcile? Will things be normal between the ex-friends? Will Sudhir be exposed?

The Music

The songs were written by Indivar and composed by Rajesh Roshan. The Zindagi ka naam dosti track appears thrice. The most popular song is Aap Ke Aa Jaane Se picturized on Govinda and Neelam.

My Thoughts

Khudgarz is a well made film of its time but may appear boring today. It talks about friendship being over and above everything else. It has a typical family drama feel of the 80s. Nevertheless it was instrumental in establishing Rakesh Roshan as a successful director, who went to make some interesting films on different subjects. He is also credited with the story idea of Khudgarz.

Jeetendra and Shatrughan Sinha are good in their roles but don’t appear convincing as young men. They are more suitable in their older avatars. You are reminded of similarities with Jeffrey Archer’s Kane and Abel novel when the two bitter rivals take on each other and their children get romantically involved in spite of knowing their fathers will not approve.

Bhanupriya looks and behaves like Sridevi! It is strange that Amrita Singh agreed to play Neelam’s mother’s role so early in her career. The rest of the cast perform as required. Kadar Khan appears in an unwanted comedy side plot. Music wise, the song Aap ke aa jaane se has retained its popularity.