Director: Bimal Roy Producer: Bimal Roy Story: Jarasandha Script: M Ghosh Lyrics: Shailendra Music: S D Burman Cast: Nutan Ashok Kumar Dharmendra Raja Paranjpe Tarun Bose Asit Sen Chandrima Bhaduri Bela Bose Iftekar Hiralal Moni Chatterjee.
One of Bimal Roy’s best known films, this 1963 classic remains on the all time favourite lists of many Hindi film enthusiasts, as much for its haunting music and storyline and a powerhouse performance by Nutan. Set in 1930s undivided Bengal, Nutan plays Kalyani, a village girl who stays with her father. She comes in contact with a revolutionary, Bikash, actively involved in the ongoing freedom struggle, and is soon in love with him. Circumstances lead Bikash to declare that Kalyani is his wife, and he promises to marry her as soon as he can. But he disappears, putting Kalyani in an awkward situation. Forced to emigrate to the town, she works in a hospital. Asked to look after for a mentally unstable woman, she is shocked to discover that the woman is Bikash’s wife. Upset as it is, she recieves the news of her father’s death. Unable to bear this double shock, and the tantrums of Vikas’s wife, Kalyani kills her and is imprisoned for life. All this is told in flashback to the jailor, Deven, a doctor who is taken in by Kalyani’s nature and dedication to duty. Deciding to marry her, Deven gets Kalyani’s sentence commuted. On the way to Deven’s house, Kalyani runs into a terminally ill Bikash... A brilliantly shot film, there are many passages in the film that leave a deep imprint on the watcher - a classic example being with the final conflict between love and security as Kalyani is deciding between Bikash and Deven.
S D Burman’s music for the film recieved widespread acclaim. As for the songs - mere saajan hain us paar, o panchhi pyare, ab ke baras bhej, mora gora rang, jogi jab se tu aayaa mere dware - there has rarely been a film with a greater number of memorable songs.
The cinematography is especially brilliant, and combined with Roy’s genius makes the film a masterpiece, the film seems to be straight from the heart.