Today, lets talk about I. S. Johar whose birth anniversary falls on 16 February (born: 1920). I was familiar with his roles as a character actor in films like Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Shagird, Safar, Johnny Mera Naam and Pavitra Paapi to name a few. He used to have a scowl on his face and normally played comedy/ villainous characters with sarcasm filled dialogues. But that is a limited introduction. He was an educated man (M.A., LLB) who was an actor, writer, producer and a director. He was also one of the first Hindi actors to work in international productions, notable being Lawrence of Arabia (1962). The movies he produced and directed carried his distinctive stamp. Apparently he had an eccentric personality in his personal life which reflected in the movies he made. One of his famous movies as an actor/producer/director was Johar Mehmood in Goa (JMIG), where he teams up with ace comedian Mehmood.

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The Plot

The plot of JMIG as the name implies happens in Goa. It occurs during the time when the Portuguese ruled Goa even after India gained its independence in 1947. The movie opens with a church scene. Mary (Sulochana) is crying and sharing her thoughts with Father (Chaman Puri). Mary, a Catholic was staying in Burma during the 2^nd World War. She had secretly married an army contractor (who was a Protestant). Her father opposed the relationship.

One day, she is informed that her husband has been killed in the enemy bombing. A pregnant and desperate Mary walks all the way from Burma to Goa (really?). She has given birth to 2 boys but decides to abandon them considering her hopeless situation. She leaves the babies on the steps of 2 different houses so as not to burden one family with 2 babies (how considerate!) and walks away. She lives in Daman for 12 years before returning to Goa.

The boys are readily accepted by two couples, one a Hindu (played by Ulhas and Leela Chitnis) and other a Muslim (played by Murad and Mumtaz Begum). Conveniently, both couples are childless and are happy to bring up the boys as if they were their own offsprings. The boys are named Ram and Rahim, their fathers being respectively a Pandit and a Maulvi. The boys are fast friends. They hate the Portuguese and openly shout slogans like “Portuguese murdabad” in school mildly angering their teacher Mr. Pinto (Mukri). Mr Pinto serves the Portuguese Government but is their critic in private.

One day the boys are shouting slogans on the road when the police start chasing them. Mary (now the Mother Superior in the Goan church) sees the police and shields the boys. She reminds them of her own children who would be of the same age today. This scene reminds us of Amar Akbar Anthony. Did Manmohan Desai seek inspiration from this movie? I wonder…

The police manage to catch the boys and bring them to the police station. And guess what, we are introduced to their father! Yes, Mary’s husband Peter (Surendra) who had supposedly died in Burma is actually alive. He was caught by the enemy and later released. He is now in the Goan police, serving the Portuguese. So we know the parents and children are in Goa but their connection will not be revealed till, well the movie’s climax.

12 years pass and the Portuguese oppressive rule continues. The Superintendent of Police (SP) Albuquerque (played by Kamal Kapoor) ensures that freedom fighters are punished by putting them in jail. He is on the trail of Ram (I.S. Johar) and Rahim (Mehmood), who are now young men. Ram and Rahim have started an underground movement for opposing the the Portuguese and their (often hilarious) schemes seem to be successful. These include robbing the bank, setting the house of the SP on fire (posing as firefighters) and so on. These comedy scenes turns out really good. Helping them to gain inside knowledge of the Portuguese authorities’ plans is Mr Pinto, who is now the school principal.

The city’s new chief i.e. Hakim (Sapru) is arriving with his daughter Rita (Soniya Sahani) in Goa. A big welcome procession is being planned. The DSP Peter informs the SP that Ram and Rahim are sure to target the procession. Just then news arrive that Ram and Rahim have been arrested and are being taken to the jail. The duo sing the delightful song “Ye do deewane dil ke, chale hai dekho milke” in the police van. Both manage to escape making the SP furious. He tells DSP Peter that the procession will go ahead as planned. But there will be a fake Hakim in it. The real Hakim and his daughter will be transferred by motorboat to their residence. Pinto shares these details with Ram and Rahim.

Ram is entrusted to “take care” of the Hakim and Rita while Rahim will look after the procession. Ram impersonates Peter and meets the Hakim. Hakim asks him to to take Rita to the official bungalow safely. Ram fools Rita easily and takes her to the forest. He makes her sing an “inquilabi” freedom song with him (Na koi raha hai na koi rahega, mera desh azaad hoke rahega) which is directed against the Portuguese. The real police reach their hiding place and Ram is forced to flee. Rita is furious that she has been fooled by Ram and seeks revenge. The SP Albuquerque cajoles her; he is also her fiancee.

Ram reaches the underground hideout to meet Rahim and their freedom party members. Pinto brings with a new recruit, a young lady Simmi (Simi Garewal). Being a woman, her inclusion is opposed. She has a fiery temperament and is an excellent knife thrower. She gives a demonstration to showcase her skill and is accepted as a party member.

There are celebrations for the Hakim’s arrival and the freedom party plans to kill him by participating in a dance performance. Ram and Rahim pose as female dancers singing “Mar gayi allah, chhod de palla” while Simmi attacks the Hakim. But the SP is alert and foils their plans.

Ram and Rahim are chased by DSP Peter and they enter the church. Mary and Peter come face to face and are shocked to see each other. But Mary behaves in an aloof manner and asks him to leave as this is a place of worship. Ram and Rahim are thankful to her for saving them. Meanwhile the SP chases Simmi, and Rahim arrives in time to save her.

Rita plots with the SP to capture Ram by calling him to meet her in a secluded area away from the city. But the plan fails. Ram outwits the police and holds Rita captive in the forest. She is forced to spend time with him waiting to be rescued.

Rahim’s father is staying in the mosque, he is seriously ill. The police lay siege to the mosque to capture Rahim. Rahim hatches a weird plan (again!). There is a famous plastic surgeon in the mosque. He performs plastic surgery on 4 men and makes them look identical to Rahim. So we have 5 Rahims coming out of the mosque and the police are forced to arrest all of them. They sing a merry song in the jail “Aji aisi nazar ko kya kahiye.”

The madness continues! Rita is stuck with Ram in the forest. It is the perfect time to get impressed by him and fall in love. Ram sings “Dheere re chalo mori baanki hiraniya” and she sings a dream song “Ankhiyon ka noor hai tu.”

Rahim is freed from jail by Simmi and there is another song in disguise “Kuch bhi kahe duniyawale hum hai abhi jawaan” as they are on the run from the police and enter a club.

We have more plotting and entertaining twists before the Portuguese are vanquished, and there is a happy ending.

The Music

Kalyanji Anandji are the music directors. There are multiple singers including Mohammed Rafi, Manna Dey, Kishore Kumar, Mukesh, Shamshad Begum, Kamal Barot, Suman Kalyanpur and Usha Khanna. Ye do deewane dilke, chale hai dekho milke (Mohammed Rafi and Manna Dey), Dheere re chalo mori baanki hiraniya (Mukesh) and Ankhiyon ka noor hai tu (Suman K and Mukesh) stand out.

My Thoughts

Overall, I.S. Johar succeeds in making an entertaining film. While meant to be a comedy, it has a serious undertone which increases its impact. He manages to balance the fast moving story line and multiple characters, churning out a successful narrative. Mehmood appears subdued compared to his other comedy roles. The female characters are shown to be fiesty and decisive which is a welcome change. There is a scene where Ram’s and Rahim’s mothers run away by operating a train engine! This is Soniya Sahani’s debut movie. She appeared in multiple movies with I.S. Johar and also married him later.

So, it was a revelation to watch a movie where I.S. Johar is the hero who acts and entertains in a fun way. A final bit of trivia – I.S. Johar is the uncle of Karan Johar.