Aatmavishwas (1989)

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Aatmavishwas (meaning Self Confidence) is a Marathi language movie written, produced and directed by Sachin. Sachin is known for his comedy movies like Navri Mile Navryala, Gammat Jammat and Ashi Hi Banwabanwi. So it comes as a surprise when he attempts a different serious movie.

The Plot

The movie is a multi starrer that revolves around Mrs Aarti Mangalkar (Neelkantee Patekar) and her family. Aarti is presented as a non glamorous next door middle aged neighbour. She has no say in her family’s matters. Everyone takes her for granted. Her whole day is spent “serving” her family.

The movie begins with Aarti arriving home. On the way she meets her disturbed neighbour Raju Ratnaparkhi (Sachin) living in the downstairs flat with his uncle and aunt. Raju’s parents have died in an accident when he was a child leaving him vulnerable with a long lasting impact. Aarti is one of the few people kind to Raju.

She continues with her daily routine at home. Everyone is engrossed in their matters and living on their terms. Her husband (Madhukar Toradmal) had his own press which unfortunately burnt down. He is forced to work under his erstwhile employee by swallowing his pride. Elder son Abhay (Prashant Damle) and daughter in law (Archana Patkar) want to move to their own flat. Her daughter Ashwini (Kishori Shahane) is in the last year of college and romantically involved with Vijay Zende (Ashok Saraf). The youngest son Ajinkya (Sunil Barve) does everything except studying for his 12th board exams. 

Things are moving at their own pace when Aarti meets her childhood friend Vasanti (Daya Dongre) at the bus stop one day. Vasanti has recently returned from South Africa with her doctor husband and now settled blissfully in India. She regales Aarti about her happy married life which is a total contrast to Aarti’s situation. Aarti is forced to admit her wretched life where she has no value in her own house. Vasanti is shocked to hear this as her friend had helped her gain self confidence during their childhood especially when she was thinking of taking a drop during the all important board exams.

Things reach a point when Aarti’s family decide to sell their flat in Dadar and move to Kandivali. Aarti is aghast as she is the rightful owner of the flat (her mother in-law had willed her the flat). She is not ready to sell off the legacy of her in-laws for the selfish motives of her family. But she does not have the strength to oppose her family’s decision.

A desperate Aarti contacts Vasanti and voices her concern leading to the twist in the tale. Vasanti tells her she knows a “mantra” she had learnt in South Africa which enables 2 people to exchange personalities. Vasanti’s outgoing personality will help to instill some self confidence in Aarti. A reluctant Aarti believes this and agrees to go ahead with the exchange. After an intense “exchange” session, we see a confident Aarti emerging ready to take on her family and anyone who stands in her way.

She tells her family she is not willing to sell the flat and tears the agreement papers. She soon takes charge of the house making everyone toe her line.

How long does this continue? Will her family accept the sudden change? And what about her exchanged personality, is this a permanent change?

The Music

The music by Arun Paudwal is catchy with 3 tracks. A stage duet “Re mann me tula” picturised on Ashok Saraf and Kishori Shahane. Another duet between Sachin & Varsha Usgaonkar (Aali jaag soniyachya). And finally an offbeat track “Sanga majhya lekila” picturised on Ashalata Wabgaonkar in a cameo.

My Thoughts

Sachin has taken a big gamble by making a different movie focusing on a female protagonist. Neelkantee Patekar performs brilliantly and bounds the multiple threads in the movie. She stands out among the other better-known stars. Her transition from a meek lady to the stronger “exchanged personality” seems believable. Again, credit to Sachin for making this so believable without any over the top scenes and melodrama. The supporting cast offer good support and their characters are well etched out. Ashok Saraf once again proves his versatility and is a delight to watch.

The only sore point might be the Sachin – Varsha Usgaonkar track. It doesn’t add much to the story except highlighting a social issue and Sachin gets to show his dancing and singing prowess in a romantic dream song. Some filmy touches could have been avoided.

But these are minor quibbles in an otherwise intense and highly watchable movie.

Aansoo Ban Gaye Phool (1969)

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Aansoo Ban Gaye Phool (ABGP) is based on a Marathi play by writer Vasant Kanetkar and is presented by Ashok Kumar. His brother Anoop Kumar is the producer and direction by Satyen Bose. ABGP is a tale of principles, the right way and the wrong way. What happens if your life long principles crash in an instant? Where does this lead you?

The Plot

Principal Vidyanand (Ashok Kumar) is the “adarshwadi” college principal. He was appointed by the current trustee Seth Dharamdas’s father on account of his honest and non-corrupt nature. He has dedicated his life to the well being of the college. The vice principal Shyam Rao (Anoop Kumar) has been Vidyanand’s protégé and is like a family member. Vidyanand’s wife Sumitra (Nirupa Roy) is a doctor. And he has a not so shareef friend Shambhu (Pran) with a third wife Neelam (Helen).

Things are happy going. Vidyanand and Sumitra have lost their own son and treat the college children as their own. 

There is an extra smart student Chandrashekhar/Chandu (Deb Mukherjee) who keeps playing new pranks like coming to college on a donkey. He is a poor boy who aims to be educated as well as rich one day. His love interest is played by Krishna (Alka). The other professors are fed up of Chandu’s antics and complain to Vidyanand.

Vidyanand has a strong conversation with Chandu regarding his ongoing education and future plans. He admonishes him of his casual approach towards education and money. He has to be clear of his life’s ambition and how to pursue it. The dialogue between Vidyanand and Chandu is one of the more impactful scenes of the movie.

Later, Chandu is selected for police training and leaves the city. He is happy he has found new parents in the form of the kindly principal and his wife. And has assurance from Krishna she will wait for his return and they can get married. Which they do!

But things cant be calm for long. Seth Dharamdas (Raj Mehra) is the college trustee and main antagonist. He wants a free hand in the running of the college and invest in new buildings meaning more profit. But Vidyanand is not agreeable as the building contractor is Dharamdas’s close relative with a dubious reputation who was recently involved in a newly constructed building’s collapse.

One thing leads to the other. Dharamdas manages to corrupt the other professors including Shyam to do his bidding. Shyam gets Vidyanand to sign a blank cheque. The police arrest Vidyanand for the embezzlement of college funds worth Rs 1,35,000. Vidyanand assures Sumitra and Shambhu that Shyam will tell the truth in court and all will be sorted. But Shyam points to Vidyanand as the source of the crime leaving Vidyanand shattered. In a fit of rage and disbelief, he admits to the crime.

Vidyanand is jailed and after release has only one ambition – to destroy Seth Dharamdas. He joins hands with Shambhu and Neelam, open up a luxury hotel and engage in shady activities including gold smuggling. His various tips about Dharamdas’s smuggling operations help the police come closer to the villain. Things reach a point when he kidnap’s Dharamdas’s son Naveen and is ready to kill him in order to save himself. Shambhu is not agreeable to the scheme as murder was never supposed to be part of the revenge saga. He tells Vidyanand he should consider leaving the country.

This leads to an interesting climax at the airport involving Vidyanand and the newly appointed DSP Chandrashekhar, who happens to be his old student and has looked up to him for his infallible ideals and principles all these years.

The Music

Songs composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal. There are 5 songs which slow the progress of the story. The duet “Jaane kaisa hai mera diwana” is well known.

There are 2 songs picturized on Helen. One of them Meherbaan Mehboob dilbar janeman is the last song of the movie and is performed wonderfully by Ashok Kumar and Helen. It is placed at an important plot point in the story.

My Thoughts

The movie showcases the tale of morals and principles nicely. Ashok Kumar brings out the shock of betrayal with his exaggerated mannerisms. From the non-corruptible principal to seasoned smuggler, Ashok Kumar plays both roles impactfully. Vidyanand goes on his revenge spree and doesn’t know where to stop. Here he displays a different kind of anguish as he seems to have lost control and is even ready to justify murder. Thankfully he receives redemption at the end bringing him peace. He shines in the climax scene.

Deb Mukherjee, with his unconventional looks actually acts well in the movie. His initial irritating character to his transformation as a police officer is remarkable. Alka doesn’t have much to do.

Pran, Nirupa Roy, Helen are excellent. The villains are the weak link and appear as caricatures. There should have been a stronger character to take on Vidyanand which would have made it a more convincing watch.

Buddha Mil Gaya (1971)

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The most surprising fact about Buddha Mil Gaya (BMG) is it’s a murder mystery directed by none other than Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Having said that its not a hardcore suspense or thriller movie. The subtle directorial touches and comedy are noticeable but engulfed in a layer of mystery. It may not be among his classic movies, but BMG with its combination of good acting, story and music make it a highly watchable movie. The fun starts from the titles itself!

The Plot

There are many subplots in the movie which is another uncommon feature for a Hrishikesh Mukherjee movie.

We have 2 jobless friends Ajay (Navin Nischol) and Bhola (Deven Verma) who are photographers. They wander around Mumbai photographing random people and expecting to get paid but life is not so kind. Ajay is MA pass, a good singer and writer. It is not explained why he is still jobless!

Both of them are tenants in an old lady (Dadima) Lalita Pawar’s house. Given their condition, they haven’t paid the rent for 3 months and the future looks bleak. Dadima has an adopted granddaughter Deepa (Archana). Deepa lost her parents as a child and Dadima has brought her up as her own grand daughter.

Deepa is aware of the Ajay and Bhola’s dire situation. She stays awake late to give them entry so that Dadima doesn’t meet them and demand the overdue rent and most likely throw them out. She offers them free food and possible money making prospects (like a music teacher’s job for Ajay and information about photography competitions). Deepa is specially fond of Ajay, who reciprocates by dedicating a song to her…“Raat kali ek khwab mein aayi.”

Deepa’s friend is Parvati, an advocate of women’s empowerment. She runs a judo training centre exclusively for women termed “Nari Sena.” She catches Bhola secretly photographing her and her trainees and threatens him with dire consequences. The misunderstanding is cleared when he mentions Deepa’s name. She agrees to support him wholeheartedly in his efforts to participate in the All India photo competition. Parvati soon falls for Bhola’s simple nature and he returns in kind.

Now we come to the movie’s central character Buddha (old man) i.e. Seth Girdharilal Sharma (Om Prakash). Girdharilal is a mysterious character. There is an ad in the newspaper with Girdharilal’s photograph. The ad mentions that Girdharilal is requested to show up by a specific date. Otherwise he will be legally declared as dead and lose his share of Rs 15 lakhs in the business partnership.

Ajay and Bhola are hanging around Hanging Gardens searching for clients. Coincidentally, Girdharilal is resting in the garden and hears Ajay and Bhola talking about the ad. For some unknown reason he attracts their attention. Both recognise him and follow him. They call him their Chachaji (uncle), requesting him to come and stay with them.

A reluctant Girdharilal agrees and goes to their house. Of course their real purpose is to get some money from him to pay their rental dues. Bhola is the mastermind in this scheme and cooks up a story that Chachaji is Ajay’s rich uncle (for Dadima’s benefit).

But Chachaji is not a fool and sees through their scheme. While he hoodwinks them initially and “escapes”, Chachaji soon returns and becomes an integral part of the house. He develops a special bond with Deepa.

In reality, Chachaji has his own plans. And this is related to the business of Rs. 15 lakhs. There are other partners who will benefit if Girdharilal does not return. Among them are Jhunjhunwala (Asit Sen) and Bhagat (Brahm Bharadwaj).

There is a secretary Mona (Sonia Sahni) who has a special interest in peeping through doors and eavesdropping conversations. And a tough character Shetty (played by Shetty) who seems to have his own agenda.

All this leads to a series of murders with the needle of suspicion pointing towards Seth Girdharilal. But who is Girdharilal exactly and does he have a motive for murder – the movie answers the question.

The Music

BMG was the first Hrishikesh Mukherjee movie which had R.D. Burman as the composer. It has two romantic numbers “Raat kali ek khwab mein aayi“and “Bhali bhali si ek soorat.” Both are hugely popular even today.

The show stealer is undoubtedly “Aayo kahan se ghanshyam”, classically rendered by Manna De. It is strategically placed and Girdharilal sings it after each murder has occurred leading to doubts in the minds of Ajay, Bhola and the audience!

Another lesser known gem is “Jiya na lage more jiya” picturised on Archana and sung by Lata Mangeshkar.

And finally a weird song featuring Om Prakash, Archana and Aruna Irani – “Oye buddho lambo lambo“

My Thoughts

BMG is an entertaining movie with identical amounts of romance, mystery, comedy and drama.

It is risky to base a movie on a character actor and Om Prakash delivers perfectly. His character moves through a variety of emotions and he carries them wonderfully. His presence is energetic and charming throughout the movie. Of special mention is his “enacting” of the song Aayo kaha se Ghanshyam which is a delight to watch.

Navin Nischol doesnt have much to do. Archana starred in very few movies but here she actually acts well. Deven Verma and Aruna Irani are delightful to watch and share great chemistry. Lalita Pawar excels in a small role with comedic touches.

Unfortunately the movie is not without its flaws. There are some glaring loopholes which are hard to digest. But still BMG retains its charm as a light heated murder mystery from the Hrishikesh Mukherjee movie universe.