One of my close friends often says that Rajesh Khanna died in most of his movies and he did not liked it.I had known about Safar through its immortal title track ’Zindagi Ka safar’ and I liked the song but used to get depressed after listening to it.I was never an ardent fan of Rajesh Khanna and except Aradhana had not watched any of his earlier films.After growing up a little I finally watched the classic Anand and cried a lot.At that time I came to know that he played a man affected by cancer in Safar and it was also a big hit.I tried watching Safar once way back in 1994 on Tv but found it too slow.It was only recently that I watched Safar on Zee Cinema.I must say that although it is not as great as Anand yet Safar is an amazing film. The movie starts with Neela(Sharmila Tagore) as a middle-aged doctor.the story is revealed to us through a flashback(something on the lines of Aradhana).Neela and Avinash(Rajesh Khanna) are students studying in a medical college.Their professor Dr. Chandra(Ashok Kumar) is quite close to Avinash and Neela.Neela lives with her brother Kalidas(I.S.Johar) and her sister-in law(Aruna Irani).They are not financially secure and to earn some money Neela gives tution to Montu(Mahesh Kothari).Montu is the younger brother of Shekhar(Feroz Khan) who is a famous businessman. Avinash although is studying medicine but he is more interested in paintings and his home is full of paintings.After sometime we come to know that he is suffering from cancer and Dr. Chandra reluctantly tells him that he wont survive for long.Avinash and Neela have grown very close.Neela starts taking care of Avinash herself.Meanwhile Shekhar is drawn towards the simple yet complex Neela.Avinash requests Neela to marry Shekhar so that she can lead a happy life.After much persuasion Neela agrees but the problems increase after her marriage. Shekhar although loves Neela very much but is also busy with his business.Neela even after marriage goes quite often to Avinash’s place to take care of him.Initially Shekhar does not mind this but later when his fortunes are sinking and still Neela is unaware of all this as she is busy in visiting Avinash’splace, Shekhar starts suspecting her.All this lead to a lot of confusion.Eventually when he is almost bankrupt, Shekhar thinks that it was his fault that he came in between Avinash and Neela and so commits suicide by drinking potassium cynaide.On the other hand unaware of all this, Avinash senses that Shekhar has stared disliking Neela’s visit to his place and Avinash leaves the town.Now all this add to confusion and Neela is framed for the murder of Shekhar where it is also suspected that Avinash had a hand in Shekhar’s death.Finally Neela is freed as Shekhar’s mother(Nadira) gives a statement in her favour. Neela thinks that Avinash ran away from the town as he did not want to help her.Meanwhile Dr. Chandra asks Neela to devote her life in treating the patients of the hospital just as he dedicated his life after the death of of his daughter.On his last stage, Avinash is brought to the hospital but he dies and Neela is unable to meet her in his last breath.The flashback ends and a grey haired Neela is shown working in the hospital.Asit Sen’s Safar, released in 1970, has a plot which is both tragic and complex.The 3 main characters are complex at times react even unexpectedly and have tragedies attached to them.Safar was a remake of Sen’s own Bengali movie.This was Sen’s second most impacting Hindi film after the acclaimed Khamoshi.Like, Khamoshi Safar also has the main female character a person in the medical profession.Even some of the shots and song picturisation is similar to that of Khamoshi.Sen’s direction is brilliant.However with Safar ended Sen’s dreams of making more successful movies.The flopping of Bairaag(read my review for more details) left him unnoticed.The way in which Sen has shot Khanna’s dying scene is simply brilliant.Mushir-Riyaz whose maiden film as producers was Safar are still proud of the movie.The first famous Hindi movie where the hero is suffering from a terminal disease was probably Raj Kapoor-Nargis starrer Aah, where Raj had tuberculosis.But the first famous movie showing the hero dying of cancer was probably Hrishikesh Mukerjhee’s maiden venture Musafir, where Dilip Kumar suffers and dies of cancer.However Musafir did not do that well so I suppose the first super hit where the hero dies of cancer was Rajendra Kymar dying of cancer in the huge hit-Dil Ek Mandir.Still I guess the concept of the hero dying of cancer was immortalised by Rajesh Khanna dying of cancer in Safar(Anand was released in 1971 and he sufefred from ’limco circoma of the intestine’). Like both Aradhana and Amar Prem, Safar also had Sharmila Tagore in the main role which is bigger than Rajesh Khanna’s role.However her character gets too complex specially in the climax when she does not even come to see a dying Rajesh Khanna.So I can say that the complexity of Safar is both its strength and weakness.Somehow, Sharmila’s performance does not have the same effect it had in Aradhana.Rajesh Khanna looks his charming best and essays a role which is more believable than his other dying role of Anand.He gives a good performance as the painter who is battling with cancer.Unlike anand where he has accepted things as they are and still smiling, Avinash is a man who though sacrifices Neela but is depressed at times, is filled with self-pity at times and at times makes statements which cause Neela to say’’Aisa Lagta hai Avinash ki tumko doosron ke gam mein khushi hoti hai’.Khanna was at the peak of his carrier and needless to say portrays Avinash in a very convincing way.Ashok Kumar shines in his small role. However my favourite performance of the movie is from Feroz Khan.Though Feroz was never a great actor yet he puts life in the complex, arrogant, rich, possesive and at times emotional businessman.It his definitely one of his best performance and he looks his best opposite the reigning superstar Khanna. Safar won the filmfare award for the best movie in th year 1970. P.S.-read my comments on the music of Safar.