I would prefer to call this a softcore art film.
No, please don?t be offended. All I am trying to convey is that Basu Bhattacharya, the director of this absorbing film, was no Shyam Benegal or Govind Nihalani, but he was no Raj Kapoor either. His films were realistic, dark, but stopped short of becoming a documentary. His introspective triology on marital discord in the three films ? Anubhav, Aavishkaar and Grihapravesh ? delves deeply into his study of the subject and probably his own personal experiences of which we know that he had a broken marriage himself.
PLOT:
Amar (Sanjeev Kumar) and Meeta (Tanuja) are a high society couple intertwining parties with his stressful career. They live in a spacious skyscraper apartment (I?m told the flat belonged to Tanuja, who agreed to let the unit shoot in there, given the budget constraints) and are basically a SINK couple (i.e. Single Income No kids)
At work, Amar has a hectic schedule as a newspaper editor and at home, he has to contend with the loneliness of his wife who has all the trappings of the modern world, but only their old servant, Hari (A.K.Hangal) and some other staff for company.
The background sounds are filled with radio jingles and Akashwani announcements (People actually listened to radio those days) symbolizing the routine rigmarole of their lives. There is also a giant clock ticking away incessantly?.building the tension, in one way it captures the wife?s loneliness and in another way, it also symbolizes her biological clock ticking, as she longs for an offspring. But the husband is afraid that this may intrude into the orderliness of their present life and goes on procrastinating.
Trying to proactively rejig her own schedule, Meeta impulsively cuts down on her domestic staff and enters the kitchen. Hari is at first a bit disturbed, but very soon is delighted to see a happy Meeta, cooking and pampering her husband, trying to make a difference in his life. A new-found twist in their marriage is depicted by a rather bold (for its day) lovemaking scene which ends in a expression of contentment on Meeta?s face.
At this point, a sudden entry of Meeta?s college flame Shashi (Dinesh Thakur) who happens to be her husband?s subordinate shatters her smug confines. Insecure about her own feelings, she is rude to Shashi and treats him with contempt. After some time. Amar learns about their past and they eventually work towards a reconciliation, which brings the much needed relief to Meeta?s otherwise claustrophobic existence.
DIRECTION:
Highly stylized, Basu Bhattacharya tries to be consciously different by creatively using background sounds to create the desired atmosphere. This has to be viewed in the context of prevailing cinematic styles of early 1970s. The long spells of silence are shattered with interim periods of high drama which effectively bring out the routines in the lives of the protagonists.
The use of black and white in an era when colour had already become the norm is an attempt to further this differentiation. The shadows thrown by the lights speak a language of their own. There is romanticism but this is shielded with hard realism as well, symbolized by the manner in which the hero catches a cold the next day after the lead pair sing a romantic song in the rains (now which other film can you get to see such a thing?) And most importantly, he succeeds in avoiding predictable turning points.
MUSIC:
Kanu Roy?s music blends unnoticed into the proceedings. And the best part of this score is the excellent use of Geeta Dutt, in what are probably her life?s final songs. The singer who, due to her troubled personal life had gone into oblivion, was resuscitated by Roy to give us some delightful numbers. Most of the songs are played in the background and therefore do not intrude into the feel of the pitch.
Geeta Dutt excels in ?Koi chupke se aake? as well as ?Mujhe jaa na kaho meri jaan? to which she lends her inimitable impish charm, while Manna Dey enthralls with ?Phir kahin koi phool khila, chahat na kaho usko?.
PERFORMANCES:
Dinesh Thakur, a trained stage actor, makes a rare appearance on cinema and gives the character of Shashi a restrained yet effective twist.
Sanjeev Kumar is an undisputed genius of acting. Looking quite young (as opposed to the rotund image which we have of him), he essays the busy executive with characteristic perfection.
Tanuja is the surprise package of the film. (Now we know where Kajol has got her genes from!) Shorn of make-up, she makes the audience empathise with Meeta with her expressive eyes and even more expressive body language. In the dramatic scenes, she outperforms everyone else in the cast. Truly, this is one actress who hasn?t had her due!
MY VIEWS:
Being an introspective film, there is a lot left unsaid and upto the viewer?s interpretation. The base point of the film is that what seems may not be the real thing. This aspect is repeatedly expressed through the movie. Even the appearance of Shashi, which at first seems to be a recipe for disaster for a marriage hanging on its fringes, turns out to be an eventual blessing in disguise. Although the dramatic moments may appear self-conscious, Anubhav is a study in cinema for any lover of this form.