Yahudi

Excellent movie....first Indian period movie that I have seen that depicts a foreign country's history, and that to so well!

Yahudi (1958) : Movie Review -

Yahudi marked a hat-trick of hits for the Bimal Roy-Dilip Kumar duo. Roy's earlier two films with Kumar, Devdas (1955) and Madhumati (1958), were box office successes, and Yahudi completed the hat-trick!

This one was quite an alien concept for the Indian audience and, frankly speaking, watching Hindi actors play Roman and Jewish characters didn't make much sense to me. Yet, it's an entertaining movie. It has all the ingredients needed for a commercial Bollywood hit - romance, drama, emotions, relationship conflicts and revenge. Moreover, it's presented as a grand epic to add cinematic appeal. Dilip Kumar had earlier delivered Aan (1951), a huge magnum opus, and while this isn't quite on the same scale, the entertainment value is definitely comparable.

Yahudi is based on Yahudi Ki Ladki by Agha Kashmiri and follows an interesting revenge plot mixed with romantic drama. A Yahudi's son is killed by the Roman governor, Brutus, and he takes the governor's daughter away, adopting her as his own. Years later, the same girl falls in love with the Prince, who disguises himself as a Yahudi. After learning the truth, she breaks up with him and complains about his deceit to the Roman Emperor. When the Prince is about to be punished, she returns and takes the blame upon herself. What will the Prince do now?

It's an engaging story with a busy narrative. The runtime is nearly 3 hours, yet there are no boredom breaks, unless you dislike any of the songs. The lyrics are beautiful and Ezra's rhymes are delightful.

Dilip Kumar delivers a charming performance and Meena Kumari is quite good in her role. Sohrab Modi, Nazir Hussain and Nigar Sultana add weight, while Anwar Hussain provides humour. The cinematography is good, production design is lavish, the costumes work well at places and the editing is just okay.

After back-to-back romantic dramas with Dilip Kumar, Bimal Roy shifted zones and delivered a grand entertainer. People thought Roy was limited to dramas and emotional cinema, but with Yahudi, he showcased that Cecil B. DeMille-like element in his filmmaking. Overall, this is a fantastic entertainer for fans of the leading duo and the director.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

It is a very interesting film and all the actors have acted very well. The Costumes are very good and it looks as if we have gone into that period. Sohrab Modi's dialog's are very effective and his voice is very good. Dilip Kumar and Meena Kumari makes a very romantic pair. The Music by Shanker Jaikishen is very melodious. The locations are very nice. The dances are well done. The romantic scenes between Dilip Kumar and Meena Kumari are very well executed. The direction of Bimal Roy is very good. I have seen this film about 5 times earlier and yesterday I watched it again after a gap of 2 years and still did not get bored. The present day directors should learn from these type of films.

I've seen plenty of films depicting the Roman era which include Hebrew characters, but this is the first Indian production, and directed by one of my favorite directors, Bimal Roy, who has never disappointed me. This film has the usual elements I prize in his films: beautifully composed images and wonderful music that isn't too Westernized. It doesn't look like it had an extravagant budget, but neither does it look cheap; the sets and costumes, while different that what I'm used to seeing in a sword & sandal movie (particularly the costumes), are perfectly adequate. Some of the wigs and beards look kind of fake, though. Other than dance sequences and the occasional comic relief (the latter not much in evidence here), Roy's films don't strike me as relying on flashy acting, and here (as in his 1955 version of Devdas), Dilip Kumar's somewhat restrained affect could pass for subtlety. I guess the acting style is more naturalistic. Dilip's wig, though seems unnatural, kind of shiny or metallic looking. Perhaps the intention was to suggest bronze or lighter colored hair. The only plot point that seemed really questionable was the late reveal of Meena Kumari's character's parentage -- I think the character would have been old enough to know where she came from.

In the Roman Empire, a Jewish boy inadvertently triggers the Governor of Rome, leading the Governor to punish the boy by feeding him to lions. Seeking revenge, the boy's servant kidnaps the Governor's daughter and asks the boy's father, Ezra, to kill her, which he refuses. Instead, Ezra runs away with her to another city and adopts the Governor's daughter, Lydia, as his own. When she grows up, she falls in love with Prince Marcus, the son of the Emperor of Rome, forcing them to choose between their races and social status.

I loved the chemistry between Meena Kumari and Dilip Kumar; it effectively cast away the dullness of the film's first half. However, despite being proficient actors, their performances were not very memorable. Sohrab Modi, in his most comfortable epic genre, truly shines, and his dialogue delivery is fantastic. Nigar Sultana looks ethereal; I wonder if this is the film where she looked most gorgeous, and her skills were equally impressive. For a change, she shifts away from her usual villainous roles and portrays a soft-hearted, royal princess. Nazir Hussain and Murad were exceptional.

The story itself is too exaggerated and long, which made me sleepy. There were too many dramatic moments. However, I appreciate Bimal Roy for his vision in making this epic film. The cinematography and editing were delightful and probably the best aspects of the film, along with the finely crafted architectural settings and accurate costume design of the Roman period, which were far ahead of the 1950s. The choreography looked grand, though it deserved a better soundtrack; the music by Shankar Jaikishan is a huge disappointment with its monotonous compositions. Only "Meri Jaan Meri Jaan" by Lata Mangeshkar is truly worth listening to.

Additionally, I love how the film calls out the themes of love, hatred, and racism. Hannah accepting her foster father over her real father is the very definition of humanity triumphing over racism. In conclusion, 'Yahudi' is an epic film with an exaggerated storyline, yet it's worth watching due to its technical aspects.