Kunwara Baap

Kunwara Baap review :

Today, we have many filmmakers attempting movies with underlying messages which either end up being too preachy or way too boring. Legendary comedian Mehmood produced and directed Kunwara Baap - way back in mid '70s - which not only entertained the audience but also delivered the then pertinent issue of Polio awareness.

Mehmood's own son Macky Ali was polio struck as a child which inspired the comedian to make a film on the subject. It was the sheer genius of Mehmood Saahab that he could blend his brand of comedy so seamlessly in to the serious message of polio awareness that made the audience laugh as well as cry as they saw the movie.

A poor rickshaw driver (Mehmood) finds an abondoned child and raises him as his own. Unfortunately, the child (Macky Ali) gets impacted by polio which doesn't deter the 'Kunwara Baap' from putting him in the best of school or providing finest medical treatment possible. For this, he toils hard days and nights selflessly until the boy's real life parents turn up to claim him...

The tremendous goodwill Mehmood had in the industry meant nearly half of the film industry appeared in guest appearances. Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Vinod Mehra, Sanjeev Kumar and Hema Malini to name just a few. Rajesh Roshan's music became a chartbuster on Binaca Geetmala and the 'hijra' song is still memorable.

Kunwara Baap became a super hit in its first release and enjoyed multiple re-runs throughout '80s and '90s. I caught the movie at Matunga's Citylight Cinema during one such re-run in late '80s and was amazed by the way Mehmood could give such a comic twist to a serious issue. Hats off to him!!

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.