Nau Do Gyarah (1957) – Breezy Classic Road Movie

Genre: Road Movie / Road comedy

Platform: You Tube Free

Time: 2 hours 35 minutes  

Story, Screenplay, Director: Vijay Anand

Cast:   Dev Anand (Madan). Raksha (Kalpana Karthik). Jeevan (Surjit). Madan Puri (Radheshyam “Radhey”). Shashikala (Neeta). Krishan Dhawan (Kuldeep). Lalita Pawar (Kuldeep’s mother).

Plot: Totally broke and thrown out of his rented home, Madan learns that he is heir to a fortune of 11 lakhs left by his late uncle in Mahabaleshwar. En route, he encounters a runaway woman Raksha, who initially dresses up as a male Sardar Nihal Singh. Soon the cat is out of the bag and a romance develops. Madan reaches Bombay and informs his friend Radhey about both the fortune and his new found woman in his life. Radhey promises to help. Madan and Raksha pretend to be a married couple to stay at Mahabaleshwar and to find out about the uncle’s mysterious death…

Twenty-three-year-old Vijay Anand wrote the story, screenplay and directed the film. Modern viewers may scream about ‘nepo brothers’ and similar stuff but in this case Vijay Anand’s deft and firm touch in all departments was clearly visible. Goldie as Vijay Anand was popularly known, really had a golden touch when it came to the box office and this was his first collaboration with big brother and producer, Dev Anand. The pair reached its peak with the stylish 1967 thriller Jewel Thief but that’s for another day and time.

Nau Do Gyarah can be easily said to be Hindi / Indian cinema’s first ever ‘road movie’ and a very loose adaptation of It happened one night (1934), the only commonality being that the lead female character is a runaway heiress. It happened one night was remade at least three times in Hindi Cinema as Solva Saal, Chori Chori and Dil hai ke maanta nahi, the last being the most ‘true’ to the original, right down to scenes being almost copy-pasted.

As we all know, a road movie is where two characters, usually men of opposite temperaments, go or are forced to share a car / bus on a journey. If it’s a man and a woman, typically romance follows. Usually, the lead male and female actor essay the lead characters, making it easy for the audience to identify with the lead pair as they embark on a journey. If it is two men on a journey, either they will bond as friends or in some extreme cases, end up as antagonists, leading to violent climactic scenes.

A cursory look at the outdoor makes it clear that some scenes were definitely shot outdoors in Delhi, Bombay and Mahabaleshwar. This is one of the few films where Dev Anand, in keeping with the character, doesn’t keep changing his clothes from scene to scene. His acting has also a light comic, almost self-deprecatory touch as befitting a character who is broke and penniless, yet defiant to ask for help as in the scene where ‘Sardar Nihal Singh” offers to pay for the petrol for his onward journey to Bombay.

The romantic development naturally follows after the initial fights and the usual haughty acts of a rich haughty woman who has escaped her home from a marriage against her will since the groom Surjit was demanding more money, moments before the marriage. By the long arm of coincidence, Jasjit turns up at Mahabaleshwar with a girlfriend Neeta, who is also enticing Kuldeep with her feminine charm.

A Navketan film without music would be an anomaly. Navketan’s “House Composer” S.D.Burman gives an overall lightweight touch to the proceedings as befitting a romantic comedy cum road movie. Most of the songs have become classics barring the ‘club’ numbers and the unique climatic song with an integrated fight sequence. Since its one of my favorite Dev Anand films and favorite SD Burman albums, lets look at the songs and the order in which they appear in the film, for which SD Burman’s favorite lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri does immense justice as per the song situation. (Both Burman and Majrooh shared the same date of birth, October 1)

1. Hum hai raahi pyar ke humse kuch na boliye – a broke Madan leaves Delhi on his onward journey to Bombay. Kishore Kumar gives the song a lightweight touch and the whistle interludes remain unique. Immediately after this song, Madan spies the stowaway Raksha in his truck. The song was reused in Dil hai ke maanta nahi when the lead couple dance slowly to the song in a remote stop, while the song plays on a radio.
2. Kali ke roop me chali ho dhoop me – the haughty Raksha , now in a female dress, is on foot , talking about how she can walk alone on the hot road while Madan sitting comfortable in the driver’s shaded cabin, teases her. Mohammed Rafi’s special velvet ‘Dev Anand’ voice complements Asha Bhosle singing for the heroine Kalpana Karthik.
3. Aankhon me kya jee rupahla baadal – This Kishore- Asha duet was almost banned as it was felt by the censors that it was full of sexual innuendo! Especially the line “Aachal me kya jee, ajab see hulchul”. So much for censors! The light romantic duet shows Madan and Raksha’s growing affection for each other
4. Kya ho jo din rangeela ho – This Geeta Dutt – Asha duet fulfils one standard trope of those years, for a ‘club dance. Geeta Dutt sings for Shashikala while Asha sings for Helen who appears only in this song.
5. Oh aaja panchi akela hai – Madan and Raksha are supposedly husband and wife but they live in separate rooms, he in the bathroom and she in the bedroom. Hence his playful suggestion and her retort to go to sleep, yet another breezy, playful Rafi-Asha romantic duets.
6. Dhalti jaaye chundariya – Asha sings for Raksha who is expressing her new found love.
7. Jaane jigar haay haaye – Asha sings for Neeta who is trying to seduce Madan. At the song’s end , a jealous Raksha throws a stone at Madan who in the next scene explains to an amused Raksha that a crow bit him on the head.
8. See le zubaan – this is probably one of the most unique song picturisation ever in the history of Indian films. While Kuldeep and Surjit are fighting , Neeta is warning Kudeep’s mother not to say anything in front of Madan. The fight goes on and so does the song ! Unique and in no way distracting. Goldie had mastered the art of integrating the song and the scene.

4, 6,7,8 were not numbers that had lots of airplay while the other songs four songs were super hits and could be heard in almost all ‘retro’ radio programs on AIR and Radio Ceylon.

Its also worth mentioning that the choreography was by Zohra Sehgal. The same Zohra Sehgal whom most late 20th and 21st century audiences know as the loveable and or cranky granny.

Overall, the songs, the story and the screenplay are so deftly woven that we fail to appreciate the superb craftsman that was Goldie who integrated everything into a film that can be classified as India’s first ever road movie. Dev Anand and his wife Kalpana Kartik, in her last onscreen appearance, also show some lovely onscreen chemistry, befitting the film’s overall lightweight breezy structure. For its time, it may have been a risk for such a unique theme, but it proved to be a box office hit

The film is free on You Tube

https://youtu.be/sHqlMGEkU40?t=1

Script – 5 out of 5

Story – 5 out of 5

Music – 4 out of 5

Direction – 5 out of 5

Photography – 4 out of 5

Total – 4.6 out of 5