Hindi cinemas before the millenium that broke the mould

“Cinema is a mirror that can change the world.” Diego Luna

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Boot Polish', Unknown, From the collection of: Museum of Art & Photography
Show lessRead more

Hindi cinema has for ages maintained a mirroring semblance with the ebbs and tides of the society it thrived in. It has explored the conventional narrative devices and the maudlin melodramas depicting the middle-class crisis.

Photographic lobby still for for the film 'Boot Polish', Unknown, From the collection of: Museum of Art & Photography
Show lessRead more

Yet there were stories, characters, and artists who believed in the ‘coming-of-age’ virtues despite the regression and the conventions of the mundane realities.Thus, emerged a host of cinema that were clearly placed ahead of their temporality and was considered to be breaking the mould. Through its objective stance, these kind of cinemas had eventually made us realize of a world that we had forgotten existed.

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Boot Polish' featuring Rattan Kumar by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Boot Polish (1954)

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Boot Polish' by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

The 1954 humane film, Boot Polish is perhaps one of the most highly recommended feature length cinema of that decade. India had just won its independence from its tyrannical oppressors and was now heading towards the newer ideas of the Indian government. Though India had got its independence, there were still doubts and suspicion about its efficacy in the minds of its people. Some people of the society were still going through all the hardships and sufferings that they had faced in the pre-independence era.

Boot Polish is phenomenally refreshing a cinema at its age. The focus of the story rests in the strong performance of the two kids, Bhola and Belu. The raw talent and energy were the tour de force.

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Boot Polish' by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Boot Polish was shot with children and on actual locations. But, despite coming out of the set format of a studio system, it mastered the melodramatic nuances of popular film language of the time. A very interesting recall of the neo-realist approach of Italian cinema as seen in features like The Bicycle Thieves (1948). While many of our cinemas were made with a satirical taste ridiculing the post independence era and largely hinting at the disillusionment that it had caused in some sections of the society. It was Boot Polish which stood out from the rest because of its radical approach. 

It had very subtly planted the idea into the minds of the people of the time, that no matter how small in dignity a particular job is, it still makes you independent. While the two siblings, Bhola and Belu face numerous lures of begging or getting easy money, they keep working harder.

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Boot Polish' by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

New India had replaced the lethargies associated with presumptions and apprehensions towards different job-sets. And as they say, fortune favors the brave, the siblings thrive in the streets sermonized by John Chacha who teaches them the value of work, so much so the day they had enough money for a shoe shiner and brush, they exult: “Aaj se hamaara Hindustan azaad hota hai!” ("Our India is independent from today!")

It is also notable that Raj Kapoor had actually chosen to produce this film at the height of his stardom, a kind of cinema which does not even fall in line with the love-themed trademark images of the studio, featuring a romantic pose by Raj Kapoor and Nargis.

Film still for possibly 'Do Aankhen Barah Haath' by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Do Aankhen Barah Haath (1957)

In the year 1957, came a masterpiece called Do Aankhen Barah Haath, a classic that stood the test of time for its brilliant theme and avant-garde take on the cliched norms of a civilized habitat. The prisoners at the time, were mostly portrayed as the suffering lot who were killing their youthful vigor for their history of crimes. However, this 1957 feature changes that. It comes out with a central theme of using non-violence as a reform for treating the hardened criminals. The story is woven around a jail warden who converts six prisoners into exemplary virtuous men for the society.

If not handled right, this kind of cinema would have raised a lot of eyebrows, but the eloquent craftsmanship of V. Shantaram, does full justice to the narrative. Not only did this win the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, but it was also received with a special award. It won the The Best Film of the Year in 1958, which was also known as the Catholic Award. Charlie Chaplin was the head of its jury. It had a successful run in the theatres too, and many cities were apparently reported to have had a golden jubilee. It also ran for a whopping 65 weeks in Mumbai. This film was not only widely acclaimed but also commercially successful.

Film poster for 'Pakeezah' by Perfect Printers, BombayMuseum of Art & Photography

Pakeezah (1972)

The cult classic of 1972, Pakeezah was a hard-hitting commentary on the life of tawai’if, or the courtesans of the Mughal era. This cinema today is known for its crisp and piercing dialogues which unabashedly pointed out to the people of the times, the tragedies and the pathos around those women, who were never granted an equal footing in the world that we live in.

The central theme poses the problem of acceptance of the tawai’if, who were extremely skilled courtesans of the Indo Islamic times and excelled in poetry, music, dance and were popular only for keeping companionship with men but were never considered to be worthy of marriage. The yesteryear courtesan culture is exuberantly depicted in a period piece set in Lucknow and it vehemently questions the bourgeoisie ease of co-existence in the lies and hypocrisies. Furthermore, the beauty of Meena Kumari’s acting coupled with the brilliance of Kamal Amrohi’s direction gave the story its immaculate realism. No wonder it took more than a decade to make.

Lobby card produced for Hindi film, 'Julie' (1975) by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Julie (1975)

In 1975, Julie, stormed the nation with its strikingly honest portrayal of the new age vulnerable girl dealing with the issues of teenage pregnancy without marriage. This is a classic concoction of a drama hinging out on the forays of the age-old barriers between religion and marriage, taking off from the conflict of the mother who is yet to be married.

Lobby card produced for Hindi film, 'Julie' (1975) by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Julie was perhaps also one of the closest to life depiction of an Anglo Indian family with a strong set of Christian values. When Julie confesses that she is pregnant with a lovechild, her mother is scandalized, but her Christian values do not allow her to abort the child. So she hatches the plan; to put away Julie at a faraway place throughout the pregnancy and finally to put the baby in the orphanage.

Lobby card produced for Hindi film, 'Julie' (1975) by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Julie’s boyfriend, Shashi gets to know about the entire episode and wants to marry her, but Julie’s mother would not comply to a marriage with a Hindu man until Shashi's father reinstated the values of a grandchild and a happy family. Thus, Julie stood out by teaching the humanitarian values over the age-old rotten steadfastness.

Film poster for 'Prem Rog' by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Prem Rog (1982)

The Prem Rog of 1982 provides a striking view of the drudgeries that the widows of rural India had to face. For Raj Kapoor, the theme of forbidden love was nothing new to delve into, but with Prem Rog we were actually introduced to very serious social issues and prejudices like the duality of honour and the fragility of egos.

At a time when honor killing as a subject in popular media was not in vogue, Kapoor was warning against the willingness of the lovers’ parents to sacrifice their daughters and sons at the cost of the pride of the ‘dignity’ of a family.

Deodhar (Rishi Kapoor), a poor man, comes back from the city to his village and falls in love with his childhood girlfriend, Manorama (Padmini Kolhapuri), but she is from an affluent and high-class society and she is married off to someone of an equal social footing. The marriage is followed by the death of Manorama’s husband, and now the widowed Manorama is mistreated and even raped at her in-laws. Deodhar comes back to rescue but is beaten and thrashed by her own family, on the pretext that widow remarriage is impossible. On the surface, Prem Rog is largely a story with subtexts running throughout like undercurrents, and with the direction of Raj Kapoor, it shoots up to being one with a classic reformist drama.

Photographic lobby still for the film 'Bandini' featuring actress Nutan by UnknownMuseum of Art & Photography

Honourable Mentions

Because, some are timeless classics, the rest are masterpieces.  

Franz Osten’s Achyut Kanya (1936) is a remarkable example of how the idea of reforms can be such an engrossing commentary on the kind of stories that needed the attention of the time. Especially at a time when societal politics dictated the choice of themes. The debate of existence in a classless society, is brought out through the love story of a Brahmin boy with an untouchable girl.

Bimal Roy’s 1963 Bandini, was one which came out of its mould of the stereotypical depiction of protagonists. Roy, spread wide the multitudes of shades in Kalyani, the protagonist. Entrapped between the passion for her lover and the jealousies stemming from an unconsummated affair, Kalyani commits a murder and gets imprisoned. After her term, she comes back to the same man and submits herself. Such layered and vehemently well written plots were quite far and between the commercial extravaganzas.

Film poster for 'Sharda' by Poster Center, BombayMuseum of Art & Photography

LV Prasad’s 1957 film, Sharda dwells in the bizarre sidelines of a Friday matinee with an astonishingly complicated scheme of events. Strange things can happen when lovers walk away from each other, Chiranjeev falls in love with a woman but can’t woo her. In a string of bizarre events, the love of his life ends up marrying his father! What follows is an unseen chemistry between a stepmother and her step son with deeply underlying sub-texts.

Credits: Story

CREDITS

1. 20 Hindi Movies That Dared To Break The Mould And Take On Social Issues
https://www.thebetterindia.com/10816/indian-hindi-movies-social-message-impact/

2. 10 Yesteryear Classics That’ll Remind You Of A Time When Hindi Films Were Truly Progressive
https://www.scoopwhoop.com/yesteryear-progressive-hindi-films/

3. Unforgettable Bimal Roy immortalised through his cinema

http://www.uniindia.com/unforgettable-bimal-roy-immortalised-through-his-cinema/bollywood/news/1099589.html

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
Explore more
Related theme
Hindi Cinema
Your ticket into the magical world of Indian cinema
View theme
Google apps