Although “Maryada” was released in 1971, when Rajesh Khanna was heading towards his superstardom, the film is hinged on the performances of Raaj Kumar and Mala Sinha in the key roles, with Khanna making his first appearance close to one hour after the film starts. It can be conjectured easily that he played second fiddle to Raaj Kumar, who, with his trademark style, customised dialogues (penned by Satish Bhatnagar), and powerful mannerisms was more than a match for Khanna. It is not to undermine Khanna’s effort, as he displays his ease of acting with aplomb, but the part written for him certainly belies his status at that time. What made him sign the film shall remain a mystery unless he had signed on the dotted line at an earlier point of time.
As for Mala Sinha, who had already notched an appreciable repertoire of success, “Maryada” was an optimum platform to display her abilities, although it was to be one of her last outings as a leading lady. Moreover, at a time when Khanna’s on-screen chemistry with the likes of Mumtaz and Sharmila Tagore was setting the silver screen on fire, the Khanna-Sinha pairing seemed a bit bland as compared to Raaj Kumar and Mala Sinha.
Although Arabind Sen, who donned the director’s cap for “Maryada”, had a fairly chequered career in Bollywood, with less than ten films to his credit in a career spanning more than three decades, he managed to do a fairly competent job, primarily due to the acting calibre of his illustrious star cast and the commendable music score composed by Kalyanji-Anandji to lyrics written by Anand Bakshi. Some of the songs, including “Zuban Pe Dard Bhari Dastaan Chali Aayi” (Mukesh), “Chupke Se Dil De De” (Lata Mangeshkar-Kishore Kumar), “Tu Bhi Aajaa Ke Aa Gai Rut (Lata Mangeshkar-Rafi) were chartbusters and retain their pull to this day.
It is not that the film is without blemishes. One particularly jarring aspect is its length, which, at more than two and half hours is a tad too long, maybe in keeping with the trend of the day. The blame cannot be put squarely on the editor Shankar Hurde, as there are glaring loopholes in the story and screenplay credited to Surhid Kar. The mandatory action sequences inducted at the end of the film could have been easily pruned, as was the comic angle of Rajendra Nath, which has no bearing with the story of the film. Moreover, this requisite aspect was already covered by veteran comedian Asit Sen (Dhondumal). Even the art direction by Ganesh Basak looks a bit tacky at times.
The story of the film revolves around twin girls born in a poor household in a remote village hamlet. Scared with the prospect of raising two girls, the beleaguered parents hand over one girl to their close confidante and friend with a promise that he would rear her as her own. One of the girls, Laxmi, who grows up with her foster father falls in love with Raja Babu (Raaj Kumar), a wealthy estate owner with properties in Bombay and Coorg. However, the match is not approved by Raja Babu’s father, Bade Thakur, leading to a prolonged estrangement between the two. Meanwhile, Raja Babu and Laxmi tie the knot in the village temple and are living a happy life when Bade Thakur solicits the service of his nephew, Pran Bahadur (Pran –– mean and perfect as ever). Pran successfully uses his devious machinations to wean away Raja Bahadur and Laxmi, making them believe that the other is dead.
Meanwhile, Lalitha (Mala Sinha) is spurned by her would be husband and his family as they are unable to meet their dowry demand due to the ruthless attitude of Bade Bahadur who refuses to lend a measly amount to his faithful employee. Matters are made worse when a conman and convict, Diwan (Abhi Bhattacharya, in a rare negative appearance) dupes Lalitha. Her father is not able to bear the trauma and succumbs. An enraged Lalitha decides to overcome her poverty by becoming a dancer. Lalitha meets Rajan (Rajesh Khanna), an unemployed youth who has found favour with Raja Bahadur. Raja Bahadur makes Rajan take his place embarking in a search for Laxmi.
From here on the mistaken identities lead to the usual misunderstanding resulting in kidnappings and action. However, the denouement is quite predictable for a film with a happy ending.
The film is a must watch for Raaj Kumar fans for his bravado and style, which, to this day remains un-paralleled in Hindi film industry.
Genre: Social drama
Director: Aravind Sen
Cast: Rajesh Khanna, Raaj Kumar, Mala Sinha, Pran, Helen, Rajendra Nath, Bipin Gupta, Asit Sen, Jankidas, Abhi Bhattacharya, Dulari
Story and screenplay: Suhrid Kar
Dialogue: Satish Bhatnagar
Lyrics: Anand Bakshi
Music: Kalyanji-Anandji
Box office status: Hit
