Amid darkish instances, we search for a reprieve in cinema or books. The final two years, nevertheless, have produced few temper lifters as each the movie trade and OTT platforms appear partial in direction of darkish thrillers, homicide mysteries, social dramas or biopics. Where has the time gone when Bollywood movies can perk you up with its content material? I assume it’s all prior to now. Hence, I selected to observe Angoor, a 1982 comedy that has been tagged as a cult traditional and arguably one of many best and cleanest Bollywood comedies.
Inspired by William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, Angoor was directed by Gulzar, who shone so vibrant as a poet and a lyricist, that many forgot that he was the driving drive behind among the best Bollywood movies (Ijaazat, Maachis, Aandhi, Mausam ). If you have not watched Angoor, the movie’s logline is fairly easy, and a well-liked trope in Hindi cinema now: twins are separated at start which results in hilarious penalties later. Only, in Angoor’s case, there are two units of twins who’re separated throughout a sea voyage. They develop up with completely different dad and mom, and one fantastic day, find yourself collectively in the identical metropolis, resulting in confusion about their identities not only for the onlookers but additionally for his or her spouses.
A poster of Gulzar’s Angoor.
Watching it in 2022, you would possibly count on the movie to have hysterical one-liners and punchlines that may be become memes. But, Angoor, that launched 4 many years in the past, finds most of its laughter within the unsaid phrases of its lead character, Ashok, performed by a gifted Sanjeev Kumar. He cracks you up with a straight face, and also you marvel, ‘how may somebody say that with out flexing a muscle?’ Complementing him is actor Deven Verma, who performs his servant Bahadur. The second he’s on the display, you smile at his innocence. In the scenes the place Kumar and Verma come collectively, the display sparkle with their camaraderie. The movie is additional bolstered with a supporting solid that features bonafide scene-stealers like Deepti Naval, Aruna Irani, and Moushumi Chatterjee.
In the ebook, ‘Three Classic Films by Gulzar’, writer Sathya Saran had talked about how Gulzar was very explicit in regards to the movie’s solid. He wrote the movie with Sanjeev Kumar in his thoughts. According to the filmmaker, “He was a natural; perfect for a comic role.” About Deven Verma, Gulzar had noted, “He was a humorist who excelled at comedy.” Explaining why he was confident about casting Moushami as Ashok’s whining wife Sudha, the filmmaker told Saran, “She is so bubbly even in real life. I liked her spontaneity and thought it would work wonderfully for the role of Sudha in Angoor.”
For millennials, like me, who would possibly solely know Moushami Chatterjee as Deepika Padukone’s ‘mashi’ in Piku, the actor does come throughout as a revelation along with her excellent comedian timing. In the world of Angoor, which is primarily targeted on the 2 lead double roles, she holds her personal. She performs the nagging, but, harmless spouse of Ashok with such conviction that you just want she will get what she desires and issues change into proper for her.
Deepti Naval and Moushumi Chatterjee in Angoor. (Express archive picture)
With Angoor, Gulzar had reworked one among his personal scripts, which was become a movie, Do Dooni Char, by director Debu Sen in 1968. The movie failed to depart a mark and it left Gulzar decided to make it once more, although his conviction was questioned by many movie producers who puzzled ‘who remakes a flop’. But, we’re glad that Gulzar glided by his intestine feeling, else we’d have missed the peals of laughter that Angoor ensued.
I nonetheless cannot recover from the scene the place Sudha (Chatterjee) is in her bed room along with her husband’s doppelganger, however with out realising that he’s not her partner however another man, tries to make up for a battle she had with him earlier, by being flirtatious. Also, the scene the place Bahadur is haggling over the worth of a rope for suicide or when Ashok 1 asks Ashok 2 a few birthmark, “Tumhare daaye kandhe pe til hai? Nahin toh… Mere bhi nahin hai! Phir toh hum dono bhai huye..” leaves you in splits.
Today, when Bollywood’s thought of comedies contain a good diploma of sexism, Angoor comes throughout as easy, clear, and a crisp comedy-drama. It gives much-needed aid from actuality, and I assume that is the facility of a very good Bollywood comedy – it lightens and uplifts moods.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
