Alas! The days, when the likes of Basu Chatterjee enthralled audiences with their unpretentious and simple films, suffered an eclipse close to three decades. It is only now that filmmakers inspired by yesteryear iconic directors have started making this kind of movies. Indeed life would have been less fulfilling without cinematic wonders like “Rajnigandha”, “Baaton Baaton Mein” and the 1977 release, “Priyatama”.
Chatterjee, a genius showcased his mastery over man-woman relationships in a way which was subtle and sensitive, comic and gentle. The characters looked real and down to earth. There was neither over the top display of emotions nor unnecessary melancholy. The superb storyteller kept the proceedings fast paced and the screenplay taut ensuring no dull moment in his films. His command over all aspects including music was complete.
“Priyatama” (written by Tanvir Farooqui, with a masterful screenplay by Ranjan Bose), is a breezy romance between Ravi (Jeetandra) and Dolly (Neetu Singh) who live in Bombay with their respective best friends, Vicky (Rakesh Roshan) and Renu (Asha Sachdev). The two get married after concurrence of Dolly’s father, Justice Sinha (superb portrayal by Utpal Dutt). However, their pre-marriage romance is unable to withstand the pressures of matrimony with bliss and harmony giving way to bouts of doubt and misunderstanding leading to filing of divorce proceedings through their respective lawyers, Kaantewal (IS Johar) and Rustomjee (Asrani).
Desperate efforts by Vicky and Renu to prevent the estranged couple from splitting are of no avail. Events take a turn when Justice Sinha visits them ostensibly for treatment of his heart ailment forcing the two to act like normal married couples to avoid causing any distress to him. The retired judge who had landed in Bombay to ensure that the relationship is not broken forever sees through the charade. Does he succeed in his endeavour or do Ravi and Dolly retrieve their marriage is something worth watching in the film which spans over two hours – an exception considering that other movies during that period were of three hour duration.
Ace director, Chatterjee is able to extract commendable performances from his actors. Neetu Singh exudes spontaneity and freshness. Her acting is both natural and deeply ingrained. Her screen presence makes her a perfect choice for Dolly’s role.Rakesh Roshan shows chutzpah and verve as the guitar strumming buddy of Ravi. As the beleaguered bachelor, who is pestered by Renu for marriage, he is suitably convincing and restrained. It is Asha Sachdev enactment of bespectacled Renu’s role which stands out for which she won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress trophy. Jeetendra, often criticised for his limited acting skill, shows his flair and performs creditably opposite a veteran like Utpal Dutt making an honest attempt to get under the skin of the role. As a young man working as a television producer and drawing a salary of Rs.1200 he looks surprisingly genuine and affable, first in the romantic scenes and later caught in marital turbulence.
Music by Rajesh Roshan set to lyrics by Yogesh and Anjaan is the highlight of the film with songs like Kishore Kumar’s “Koi Roko Na, Deewane Ko” and “Tu Jo Bole Haan To Haan” (Kishore Kumar and Usha Mangeshkar) popular even today.
