Shammi Kapoor has passed away. The famous YAHOO hero is no more. Out of the three sons of the legendary artist - Prithvi Raj Kapoor, everyone carved a niche for himself and developed an identity of his own, quite distinctive from his father and the two brothers. The middle son Shammi Kapoor (born on 21.10.1931) started his career as a romantic hero (from Jeevan Jyoti - 1953) with the traditional moustache on his face. However in the late fifties, he clean-shaved himself and adopted a new style suiting a fun-loving hero. Tumsa Nahi Dekha (1957) was the first noticeable movie in this context and Junglee (1961) set him on top of the world.
While paying my tribute to the legendary hero, I am reviewing his last movie as a romantic hero which is Andaaz (1971) in which he starred opposite the Swapna Sundari (the dream-girl) - Hema Malini with the then superstar of Hindi cinema - Rajesh Khanna starring in a guest appearance.
Andaaz (way of doing a thing) is a family drama. It tells the story of a widow and mother of a son, Sheetal (Hema Malini) and a widower and father of a daughter, Ravi (Shammi Kapoor) who come across each other through their children and start liking each other. Ravi is the step-son of the (female) head of a business family and his unscrupulous and licentious younger brother, Baadal (Roopesh Kumar) is always conspiring against him. Sheetal is, in fact, the daughter-in-law of a rich man (Ajit) who had discarded his son, Raj (Rajesh Khanna) and herself for marrying against his wish. She, while preserving the memories of Raj who had passed away in an accident, is fostering her little son by making a living through working as a teacher in the school where Ravi's son is also her student. Ravi, on the other hand, has been licking his wounds and tackling his loneliness since the demise of his wife - Mona (Simmi Grewal). Feeling that himself and Sheetal can fill the vacuum in each other's life (because their griefs and loneliness are similar), Ravi proposes to Sheetal and she too, accepts his proposal. However their marriage is not acceptable to his step-mother (Achla Sachdev). When his step-brother Baadal rapes a working woman - Mahua (Aruna Irani) and after her committing suicide, throws the blame on his head, life seems to be becoming hell for him. However everything falls in place in the end and the union of Ravi and Sheetal eventually takes place.
Ramesh Sippy (the director of the legendary movie - Sholay) has directed this emotional family drama pretty well. The movie is not only interesting but also through the characters of the little children, touches the heart of the audience at many places. The song - Hai Na Bolo Bolo, Papa Ko Mummy Se, Mummy Ko Papa Se Pyar Hai, can be viewed in this light. The story is a formula-based one but the skilfully written screenplay is able to entertain the viewers throughout.
Shankar-Jaikishan has composed praiseworthy music for this movie. It contains the immortal song of Kishore Kumar - Zindagi Ek Safar Hai Suhaana, Yahaan Kal Kya Ho Kisne Jaana (penned by Hasrat Jaipuri). Its shorter version is in Rafi's voice too in the movie. In addition to the song mentioned in the previous para, other songs are also quite good. Dil Usse Do Jo Jaan De De and Re Mama Re Mama Re are specifically notable.
The technical and production value aspects of the movie are quite in line with the trend of the late sixties and the seventies as well as the repute of the Sippy banner.
It's the last movie of Shammi Kapoor as a romantic hero and his role demanded maturity not only on face but also in performance. And Shammi Kapoor has done it perfectly. Nowhere is he over the top and portrayed the widower and an affectionate father on the screen with finesse, bringing all his experience as a hero over the previous 18 years into his performance. Hema Malini is miscast in the role of a widow having a school-going son because of her tender age (barely 23 years), yet the dream-girl has made it up through maturity in gestures and performance. Then superstar Rajesh Khanna has delivered a heart-winning performance in the guest role. Others are routine. However the child-artists are the heart and soul of this movie and they were instrumental in making this movie a box-office hit.
I unconditionally recommend this entertaining family drama to the movie buffs and bow my head in the memory of the legendary actor - Shammi Kapoor. May his soul rest in peace.
