The director-actor combination of Gulzar-Sanjeev Kumar has given gems like Koshish, Aandhi, Mausam, Angoor & Namkeen. Angoor(1981) is based on William Shakespeare’s ’A Comedy of Errors’ and is amongst the best comedies of all time.
The Cast
Sanjeev Kumar in a double role both as Ashok.
Deven Verma in a double role both as Bahadur.
Moushmi Chatterjee as Sudha.
Aruna Irani as Prema.
Dipti Naval as Tanu.
The Plot
Angoor is a comedy of errors about two sets of twins. Ashok1 is married to Sudha & Bahadur1 is married to Prema. Tanu is Ashok1’s sister in law. The trouble begins when Ashok2 & Bahadur2 arrive in the same town to purchase a vineyard of ’angoor’. A case of mistaken identity starts from the station itself, when the TC mistakes them as Ashok1 & Bahadur1. Ashok2 is into detective novels and believes that there is a gang out to rob them. So he instructs Bahadur2 not to leave the hotel.
Sudha has an argument with Ashok1, as she desires a necklace. Ashok1 vows not to enter the house till he gets it. Ashok2 visits the vineyard and on his return finds Bahadur1 shopping in the market. He slaps & scolds him for leaving the hotel. The jeweller assures Ashok1 that the necklace would be completed by night. Bahadur1 & Ashok1 go to the jeweller’s at night, but the necklace is still not ready. The jeweller ensures that it would be delivered at dawn to his house.
Meanwhile, Ashok2 & Bahadur2 visit a musical nite in a theatre where Tanu is performing. Tanu mistakes them as her brother-in-law Ashok1 & his servant Bahadur1. So during the interval, she drags Ashok2 home with the help of a cop & Bahadur2 follows them. Sudha & Tanu think that he is acting strange because of the fight over the necklace, so they try to appease him. Bahadur2 mixes some ’bhaang’ in the pakoras & asks Ashok2 to feed the ladies to make them intoxicated & thus, make good their escape.
Ashok1 & Bahadur1 return home late at night, but nobody answers the door. Inside, Bahadur2 thinks that it is some of the gang members, so he barks like a dog to scare them. Ashok1 spends the night at a friend’s place. Early morning, Ashok2 & Bahadur2 make good their escape. Ashok2 is given the necklace by the jeweller’s servant which was meant for Ashok1. Meanwhile, Ashok1 tells Bahadur1 to give Sudha some rope & ask her to commit suicide.
Ashok1 visits the jeweller, and is told that the necklace has been delivered to him. He denies the same & a cop is called. Bahadur2 gets the tickets to go home. On the way back the cabbie tells him that his master is in the police station. Bahadur2 goes there and meets Ashok1. Ashok1 asks him to go home & get Rs.5000 & gives him a letter. Bahadur2 goes home & gets the money. On the way back, he meets Ashok2 & they decide to leave the maddening town before more confusion prevails.
Meanwhile, Bahadur1 come home with the rope & gives it to Sudha. Ashok1 decides to take the matter in his own hands & takes permission to go home. After a while, the cop & the jeweller follow. On the way, they see Ashok2 & Bahadur2 who are going towards the railway station. Th1ey arrest them & take them home where the two set of twins meet & the chaos is resolved.
The performance
Sanjeev Kumar is as always, fabulous. His voice modulation raises the level of his performance. He steals the show.
Deven Verma is outstanding, providing a stark contrast between the two Bahadurs. Bahadur1 is a simpleton whereas Bahadur2 is clever. He won the Filmfare best supporting actor award.