Indeed, a love triangle with two friends falling for one beautiful lady is one of the most tedious plotlines and not just in India, but this one is different thanks mainly to the script and Kapoor's excellent direction. In Kapoor's able hands, what could have been a bland love story becomes a poignant story of love and sacrifice, a true portrait of friendship and marital conflict, and altogether pure classic entertainment. It's not perfect - some of the parts, particularly in the first half, including the entire track of Kapoor's character disappearing, being mistaken for dead and then reappearing in the most predictably convoluted of film twists - just don't ring true. Then the usual naiveté of his character and him not ever realising that she doesn't love him got on the nerves. One also wishes the film was just a little bit shorter, although it's a petty complaint, particularly for a Hindi film. The film's runtime is more or less decent for the story it tells but then the show is so engaging and entertaining that not much patience is required for the most part even if some parts drag a bit.
The reason that some of the flaws are easily forgiven is that Sangam is greater than the sum of its parts. It might be great in the eyes of many viewers for reasons related to its nostalgic value, but I dare any uninvolved party to dismiss its technical brilliance. Some of the shots are just breathtaking and too good to be true (for the time when it was filmed). The sound is as great and the high production values, coupled with the beautiful sets, costumes, and the overall quality feel of the film, make for a true visual treat. But it's not just all gloss, the film is meaningful and substantial in its emotional effect, some of the dialogues are phenomenal, particularly when the drama grows. And it indeed grows in the second half, much to the point of looking like a different film in each of its virtual episodes. Even the songs, pure classics of Indian cinema including "Har Dil Jo Pyaar Karega", "Bol Radha Bol", "Ye Mera Prem Patra", "O Mehbooba", "Buddha Mil Gaya", and "Dost Dost Na Raha" - all fantastic and beautifully shot, but they contribute to the narrative and are always situationally relevant.
As a mainstream Hindi film made at a time when films started gradually losing their sense of realism, often relying more on the melo- than the -drama, the film still manages to tread that fine line to create a film that is as credible as it is sentimental. The actors, as part of this deliberate choice of style, work well opposite one another. Raj Kapoor is better as a director here but acts well although something in his lack of awareness of the girl's feelings towards him (or lack thereof) was annoying. His initial demeanor explained in a way why she didn't want him, but similarly his change explained her change of heart. Rajendra Kumar is the more interesting, reserved character, and he is excellent in a heartbreaking performance. Obviously though, it is Vyjayanthimala who steals the show as the centre of attention - the love interest, the lover, the conflicted wife. Her transformation throughout the story is the most interesting, and she shines all through. By the end, despite all the melodrama, I was surprised by how moved I was and how deep and affecting the story turned out to be. A Raj Kapoor classic.
