Aaradhana


What's new?

Probably a misnomer for a field, when we are talking about a movie this old! But this movie has shown the love between man and woman, in a way that most others do not. It is subtle, yet very very powerful.

The Sharmila quotient

Sharmila Tagore has done a masterly job in this movie and it is really her role that was pivotal to the success or failure of this movie. The fact that it was officially the first superhit movie, shows you what she has achieved. Her performance captivates you right from the start when she acts like an affectionate perfectionist, who demands the best out of her housekeeper.

In the second stage, she has performed brilliantly as Rajesh Khanna's love interest. Roop Tera Masthana will be an evergreen melody and after you see the movie, you tend to remember Sharmila's moves during the song. "Gunguna Rahe hain bhawarey" is another notable song. Then of course through the tragic events in her life, she does not overact or underperform and gives you the right feeling that her character goes through.

As a mother, comes her best performance, especially in the scene where she is dying to be with her child, but has to put up with the tag of a caretaker (a la Mahabharatha). "Chanda Hai tu" is arguably the best song of this movie, although the casting for the kid could have been better.


If you ever wanted to see the versatality of her acting, this is the movie. She shows you that she can play a character that is 20 years older than she really was during that time as the old woman, trying to spend her remaining days peacefully, but meets with an unexpected pleasant surprise.

Noticeable

Rajesh Khanna's performance in both his roles is outstanding. Needless to say, he executes the romantic sequences, his forte' in an awesome fashion. I somehow always like his spontaneous expressions, which makes me prefer his first role to the second. As a son, he was okay, but it was not fun to watch that one. The song sequence, "Mere Sapno Ki Rani" was really well played and must have been an inspiration to several present day songs like "Chaiyya Chaiyya".

The pace of the movie was uneven in parts. At times it seemed to go slow and at other times it was gallopping fast. But the great start gave this movie, the much required fillip for any movie.

Farida Jalal never seemed to be young in her life ;-) Even in a movie that is so old, she looks elderly.. or is it just me? Her role was mostly a filler.

Verdict

A timeless classic! Wonderful movie from V.Shantaram, who has produced so many good movies. This movie is worth watching, not just because it is a wholesome entertainer with good performances, but to see the subtlety of the directors in those times dealing with some really daring subjects and the gentle melodies from Burman rendered superbly by the playback singers who are all present day legends. Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 6:40 PM

RAJESH KHANNA - THE GREATEST LEGEND & REAL SUPER STAR OF INDIAN CINEMA There are romantic leading men and there are romantic leading men, but very few have taken cinematic love to legendary heights. While there might be other icons but Super-Star- Actor Rajesh Khanna after four decades, he is the ultimate true romantic legend 7:56 PM