Great Story, Great Dialogues, Great Performances, Great Music...
I can easily sum up this film ’’Baseraa’’ in one line.
Baseraa is directed by Ramesh Talwar, who started as Yash Chopra’s assistant and has also given us films like Doosra Aadmi, Sawaal and Duniya. Screenplay-Dialogues are credited to Gulzar and G.R. Kamat and Story is by Leela Phansalkar.
The film is about Sharda(Rakhi) who loses her mental balance and goes into coma when she sees her younger sister Poornima(Rekha) as a widow on her wedding night. Sharda is admitted to a mental hospital and her son is looked after Poornima. Time passes by and the son now grown up as the handsome Sagar(Raj Kiran) considers Poornima as his mother. In fact, Sharda’s husband Balraj(Shashi Kapoor) has married Poornima and they have a son together. Suddenly one day, Sharda wakes up from coma and escapes from the hospital. Doctor (Iftekhar) reaches home first and tells everyone that Sharda should get the house exactly like she had left 20 years back. Poornima not only changes the curtains and decor of the house but also dresses herself as widow. Everyone including Sagar’s fiance Sarita(Poonam Dhillon) understands the pain Poornima is going through. When Sharda comes to know of changes that have happened in the house while she was away, she fakes madness and returns back to the hospital.
It’s not just the story but the way it has been narrated on screen that makes the difference. The film plays beautifully between past and present. The film starts with Raj Kiran and Poonam Dhillon singing the Gulzar-R.D. Burman masterpiece ’’Tumhe Chhod Ke Ab Jeene Ko Jee to Nahi’’. Raj Kiran’s relationship with his step-mother/mausi Rekha and Poonam Dhillon’s first interaction with her future father-in-law Shashi Kapoor are some of the finest scenes as far as creating natural day-to-day scenes are concerned.
Rekha’s song ’’Aaoongi Ek Din, Aaj Jaaoon?’’ is a beautiful song that portrays the Jeeja-Saali interaction brilliantly. When Rekha poses as widow again after Rakhi has come back, there’s a song in the background - ’’Jane kaise beetengi ye barsaatein, Maange huye din hain, maangi hui raatein...’’. How aptly can a lyricist portray the situation!
One of my most favourite scene is the one where Rakhi fakes madness in the climax but Poonam Dhillon being a medical student finds this fishy. She goes to the room, where Rakhi is kept. The whole interaction that happens inside is a great scene in itself and will be included in 10 best scenes of Indian Cinema, I am sure.
I recommend this film. I am sure, you’ll enjoy this film as much as I did.