MY TEN - Ranking Dharmendra Movies (Part II)

I was going to do my 'Deewaar' review next… but I've decided to finish my Dharmendra countdown first… I am going to see 'Apne' any day from now, and for some reason it's important to me to finish this before seeing my 11th Dharam movie (I'm a little funny about details like that)…

Okay, so looking at the 5 films I have left to rank, I am thinking to myself: what a varied bunch – in one film he plays an 'ordinary hero', in another he plays himself (the movie-star Dharmendra), in a third he plays a prank-playing husband, in a fourth he plays a criminal whose services are enlisted to bring down the ultimate baddie; and in the fifth he plays an NRI returning to India and to his first love.

Dharmendra's range as an actor is something that is not often remarked upon, but after seeing only 10 of his movies, I can testify to his aplomb at handling different types of characters – romantic leading men (an obvious choice for anyone so handsome and charming), action heroes (again, not too surprising, he's got quite a good build), 'everyman' type of characters… rich and well-educated men, undecuated rural-dwellers… good guys, bad guys, good-but-bad guys… comic roles, physical roles, dramatic roles… I may have only seen a few of his many films, but I think Dharam is a very versatile actor; and I am looking forward to discovering more of his ability to interpret various types of roles, as I continue my foray into his body of work.

And now to the top five… exciting… even as I type this, I have no idea… I love all these movies so much, for so many different reasons… how do I begin to rank them? This is SO unbelievably tough!! (I know, like I didn’t give myself the task.) But here goes…

5.

"Life in a... Metro" was my most recent Dharmendra film, my tenth, and also the first I've seen on the big screen… so lots of milestones there! I really enjoyed "Metro", and although my favourite performances were by Konkona Sen Sharma (as Shruti) and Irrfan Khan (playing Monty); I thought Dharam did a really good job with his character. I relished every moment I had with him in this movie, from seeing his name in the opening credits, to seeing him back on his bench at the train station in the closing credits. I think he did a wonderful job with his character, an elderly man who returns to India to find the young girl he fell in love with many years before (beautifully played by Nafisa Ali).

Dharam had a lot of great scenes in this film – gleefully fleeing with his ladylove under the cover of darkness (on a motorbike!); panicking in the middle of gridlocked Mumbai traffic at the heartbreaking climax of his character's story; sharing intimate moments with the woman he loved, lost and had the opportunity to love again. In "Metro", he is in his romantic, dramatic element. He's elegantly, but also humanly, drawing you in with those dark eyes and making you fall in love with him all over again (well, at least, that's what he did for me)…

4.

"Guddi" is such a fantastic film… I have raved about Hrishikesh Mukherjee's wonderful films many times on this blog, and I have also raved about Jaya Badhuri's beautiful acting… the music of "Guddi" is lovely too, I can't get enough of "Bole Re Papihara". When I reviewed "Guddi", Sanket commented that this film should be seen for Jaya B's performance as Kusum (Guddi). At the time, I protested, saying that it should be seen for Jaya and Dharam-ji… but deep down I knew Sanket was right, and I had to admit it, even in all my fangirliness… this is 100% Jaya's movie. She dominates it, she holds your attention from start to finish… you are caught up in the journey of her character and you fall in love with her right from the start.

But, having said that, the movie-star called Dharmendra is pivotal to the story of "Guddi" – he is the catalyst for much of what happens to Kusum, the reason for the choices she makes… in this movie, Dharam has the unenviable (though flattering) task of playing himself… and he's playing himself at the height of his powers… as a highly successful leading man, adored by millions (especially females) young and old. And I think he does a fantastic job… he is utterly natural. The ploy succeeds – you actually believe that Dharmendra is not just stunningly handsome, but that he truly is gracious, likeable, and in fact, adorable. I have sometimes imagined how badly this role could have been executed had it been given to someone else, Rajesh Khanna for example… ouch, painful thought…

3.

Number 3, and it's another Hrishikesh Mukherjee film, the absolutely delightful "Chupke Chupke". This film is definitely a treat for any Dharmendra fan – in it, he is at the height of his powers… handsome, charming, mischievous, funny, sweet, smart… he pulls off the role of prankster professor extremely well, and he is ably supported by a wickedly fab and irresistible Sharmila Tagore, an absolutely adorable Amitabh Bachchan (I love his "Sa Re Ga Ma" song with Dharmendra), and a guileless, lovely Jaya Badhuri.

Dharam is absolutely gorgeous to look at here, and when he smiles... well, he just charms your socks off. In this film, there is a lot of scope for him to do the romantic leading man stuff he does so very well… but what I love most about his performance here is the way he shows off his formidable comedic chops… he is absolutely hilarious and just great to watch in every comic scene. His comic timing and delivery is impeccable. Yup. This one is definitely a monster-sized, thousand (no, million) calorie Dharmendra-flavoured treat… and look...! They just supersized you too.

2.

From greatganesha.com

So at number two, it's that much-beloved classic of Hindi cinema. Who doesn’t know all there is to know about "Sholay"? Fantastic performances all around – from Amitabh Bachchan as the still-waters-run-deep Jai (one of my favourite Big B performances, right up there with "Deewaar" and "Zanjeer"), from Sanjeev Kumar as the haunted Thakur, from Amjad Khan as the truly frightening Gabbar Singh (tremendous), from Hema Malini as the talkative Basanti, from Jaya Badhuri as the haunting Radha…and of course, from my dear Dharam-ji as the umm… colourful Veeru… And even the bit parts by Asrani and Helen are notable. Definitely one of my top 10 Hindi films of all time... maybe even in my top 5.

Dharmendra is fantastic in this film – it's been called his best performance ever (although some feel that honour belongs to "Satyakam", which I haven't seen). I haven’t seen enough of his movies to agree or disagree with this assessment – but it IS a great performance with a great deal of depth. He does it all – comedy, tragedy, action, drama and everything in between. Who could forget his drunken scene at the top of the tower, threatening to throw himself off for the love of Basanti (and of course, Jai's response to the threat). Simply classic comedy. Veeru's heartbreaking reaction to the loss of his friend… the scenes with Basanti when he plays a deity (so funny)… the wonderful camaraderie between Jai and Veeru right from the start of the film (I love how in the middle of the fight scenes, they look over to each other and ask "tum thik hoon?", so seemingly effortless and natural. The scary confrontations with Gabbar Signh. "Sholay" has everything – enough action to satisfy the die-hard action fan, very funny comedy, fantastic music (I love "Mehbooba Mehbooba" and "Yeh Dosti" best), intense human drama, thriller elements, and oodles of tragedy… just a great, great film.

1.

In the top spot (where else could it be? I have to be honest, I tried to put it at number three where I think it 'technically' belongs, but my dil said – nahin, DG, this is your number one!) is the movie that made me fall head over heels in love with Dharmendra… it's "The Burning Train". Objectively speaking, I have to ackowledge that my number two film "(and prolly my number three as well) trumps it completely, both as a film and as a vehicle for Dharam's sheer acting ability and versatility… and if this were not a Dharmendra-film ranking but just a film-ranking, "Sholay" would definitely be in the top spot... But for reasons beyond my understanding or control, I just am not as attached to it as I am to "The Burning Train". You see, I love every minute of "Sholay" – it has made me laugh, cry and be very, very afraid, but it has never made me swoon, it has never made my heart skip a beat. "The Burning Train", on the other hand… it makes me smile, it makes me blush (I'm doing both now), it makes me emotional, it makes me clutch at my heart, it simply makes me love Dharmendra…

I just found this here and I want it!

"The Burning Train"… I love this film. It's an action-thriller type of film, but it has really strong relational aspects to it – in a way, it's really all about human relationships. The train of the title becomes a deathtrap when a spiteful engineer rigs it, causing it to malfunction. Aboard the train are ex-lovers, played by Dharmendra and Hema Malini, and a colourful cast of characters led by a rich heiress (played by the fabulous Neetu Singh) and a conman (played by Mr. Jumpin' Jack Jeetendra)… Dharmendra finds himself bravely leading the terrified passengers as they struggle to save their own lives. Not aboard the burning train, but watching the progress of the deadly journey and doing his best to halt it is the engineer who built the train, played by the ultracool Vinod Khanna (he totally ROCKS an outfit in the beginning of the film that is just so… hmm… – some cowboy boots, very tight white pants, a scarf, a vest, accessorised by a comb hastily pulled through those sexy locks… only Vinod Khanna could've pulled off that get-up, but I digress…).

Where do I begin to describe what I love so much about this film? First, let me start with RD Burman's fabulous music… this film is often rated as having one of the best soundtracks ever in Hindi cinema… and I have to say that the songs are marvellous – they are each memorable, each different, each so right for the film… and every time I listen to them (and sing along) I love them more… I could never tire of them.

"Pal Do Pal Ka Saath Hamara" – I once described this song as an orgy and I can think of no better description for it… it's long, it's delicious, it's rich, it's indulgent, and it just keeps going on and on… just genius from start to finish… almost 10 minutes long, and just… delicious…. Then there's the touching "Teri Hai Zameen, Tera Asmaan", guaranteed to bring a tear to your eye, especially when the child falters emotionally in the middle of the song and the teacher goes "gaana bachcha, haan…" This one is completely calculated in its desire to wring emotion from you, but on this occasion, I really don't mind being manipulated. There's also "Meri Nazar Hai Tujhpe", beautifully picturised on a graceful Hema Malini and a fiery Parveen Babi, with Dharam and Vinod Khanna paying delightful homage to the ladies; as well as Dharam and Hema's cute number, "Vaada Haan Ji Vaada"... lovely song.

But the track that made me fall in love with this film and with Dharmendra is "Pehli Nazar Mein Humne"… oh my, this song (and the picturisation)… I could talk about it for hours… I could listen to it for ages (and believe me, I have) – I love how all the singers perform it in unison, then the male voices, then the female, then all in unison again etc, and there are no solo parts… I could watch it for ages (done that too) – I love the "natural" playful tone of the picturisation, with minimal choreography (and bicycles AND a train!! I can't believe how excited I am over bicycles and a train!)… I just can't explain the depth of my love for this song… technically it's not even the best song on the soundtrack of "The Burning Train". But boy, does it do something to me…

“Pehli Nazar Mein Humne” is as good a place as any to start to talk about the things Dharmendra just does throughout this film. Things that just devastated me the first time I saw it… there's just something about him… in "Pehli Nazar Mein Humne", the ladies (Parveen and Hema), are dancing gracefully, Vinod Khanna is cool as ever, strutting his stuff with those superfine brown eyes… but Dharam… Dharam is not dancing (he can't dance), he's not strutting (he's just not the strutting type, you see), he is just laid-back and relaxed, just kicking it with his crew, but he has such presence, and I just cannot take my eyes of him… and he's like that throughout the movie…

That look in his eyes at the start of the journey, a look of nostalgia mixed with frustration; then way the hurt on first seeing Seema later changes to a fiery, resolute desire to help the people on the train; the way he crushes that glass; the way he flicks off that guy's feet from his seat; the way he brushes the confetti off his hair and eats the sweet at the engagement ceremony; that throaty voice, the way he says "Sunno Seema, I love you", "Tell him thanks", "Seema, kya hua?"… from the first moment I watched this film, I just wanted to be Seema… yes, I'll admit it, I was jealous of a fictional character played by Hema Malini… ridiculous…but powerful, because this impact hasn't waned even a tiny bit since I first saw this film months ago. If anything, it's waxing even stronger…

Next up is "Deewaar"…

'JUGNU'... Hope it gets better

After a long period of inaction in terms of Dharmendra movies, it finally seems like things just might be looking up for me. After a long wait, I finally got my ‘Chupke Chupke’ DVD, although I haven’t had time to watch it yet, and might not get round to it for a while. It’s great to know I have it, though.

By sheer happenstance, I recently also found (during one of my random DVD/VCD raids near my office) a copy of ‘Jugnu’, another Dharmendra film from way back. I watched a few minutes of it last night. ‘Jugnu’ stars Dharam, Hema Malini, Prem Chopra and the Pran-tastic one. I quite like Pran, his roles are always fun to watch. Anyway, from what I saw of ‘Jugnu’ last night, hmm… this just might be a bad movie. I posted a quote on this blog a while back from a Hema Malini interview, in which she said she regretted not making more movies with Dharmendra (and establishing themselves as a romantic couple). Maybe she was wishing they could have done more with films like ‘Jugnu’.

I loved Dharam and Hema as a couple in ‘Sholay’ and ‘The Burning Train’ (the film which made me fall in love with Dharmendra)… but I gotta say it’s not looking too promising for ‘Jugnu’. I’m only like 20 minutes in, but the film just seems to fall flat. Dharam is playing the clever conman and master of disguise that we’ve seen done in really good old movies like ‘Do Aur Do Paanch’ and newer ones like ‘Bluffmaster’ and ‘Bunty aur Babli’, but… he doesn’t seem to be doing it that well. He just seems really naff and a bit annoying.

Hema, looking very beautiful as always, is playing the independent, headstrong tomboy stereotype, and she seems to be doing ok… but it’s not really working for me. So far, the parts that are supposed to be clever and funny are just… not. They’re just silly, and not even in an interesting or amusing way. The film appears to be really badly scripted – the story is making absolutely no sense and the scenes are just plodding along. I really hope things pick up in ‘Jugnu’, otherwise I might just have to write this one off as a bad Dharam movie, which would be sad... although, hey, at least I'd have one more movie to add to my list of the Dharam movies I've seen.

On the plus side, ‘Jugnu’ features music by S. D. Burman… which I’m looking forward to because I recently heard about him from Carla. So far, the background music has been mildly interesting, and I’ve listened to only one full song, which Dharam’s character does with a group of schoolchildren on Independence Day. I didn’t really notice whether the song was good or not, because the picturization was so cheesy and… not very likeable. Hopefully, I’ll enjoy the music more when I watch the rest of the film over the next few days.

TIME TO FINALLY FINISH THIS!

(or Part 3, and the Concluding Part, of how I fell in love love love with Dharmendra)

Warning: This post may get very very silly indeed, but please indulge me.

Okay, it's time to get back to this story and finish it off. So I started watching Bollywood movies after those 4 movies got me hooked. I discovered that I liked the oldies just as much as (and often, more than) the new stuff, so now I have loads of Bollywood DVDs, and am always looking out for something new and interesting to watch.

I first saw Garam Dharam in 'Anpadh', an old black-and-white picture. It's not a bad movie, but it's a real downer. I mean, if you aren't struggling with depression, you will be after watching this one... and if you are, you might just end up suicidal. So a bit too sad for me, plus I wasn't really feeling the black and white. I like old movies but... it gets a bit much.

Anyways, in 'Anpadh', Dharmendra plays a young, handsome (very handsome), well-educated man who (unbeknownst to him) gets married to an illiterate woman who can't cook. When he discovers this, he treats her horribly (brute!), until he discovers that she has got quite a good heart. Naturally, he repents and falls in love with her and starts teaching her to read and write. Then the scriptwriters decided it was all too cheery and something nasty happened... which I won't disclose just in case someone reading this decides to watch 'Anpadh' someday.

My next incursion into the world of Dharmendra was 'Sholay', which I absolutely loved. It's a great movie, even if I hated Hema Malini's wig. I think they made her wear it so they could put it on her stunt double (for the exciting caravan chase sequence in the film) without it being too obvious that the stunt double is... a man. Err... it sooo did NOT work. Hairy muscular arms and broad shoulders don't work very well with a wig. Anyway, I think 'Sholay' is a brilliant film and everyone in it was superb. I didn't single Dharmendra out for special praise after watching this, cos I liked Amit-ji (always love him), Jaya B (always love her), Hema Malini and the rest of the cast just as much.

Hema Malini (as Basanti) (plus wig) and Dharmendra (as Veeru) in the Bollywood classic film 'Sholay' (1975). They got married in 1980, but apparently Dhramendra was already in love with Hema by the time 'Sholay' was made (which was why he agreed to play 'Veeru' rather than 'the Thakur' which was his first pick. Thank goodness he went with 'Veeru') . The fact that Dharam had been married for a long time was probably a factor which impeded their romance. Happily for them, their eventual marriage did not create a scandal (which in this chauvinistic world would have spelled doom for Hema's career but probably not affected Dharam's). Anyway, People liked them enough to overlook it.

My next Dharmendra film was the one which made me fall hopelessly in love with him: 'The Burning Train'. 'The Burning Train' is known by most Nigerians because it was very popular here in the '80s. During one of my usual Hindi movie searches here in Lagos, this guy who sells them showed me 'The Burning Train', and was like 'it's very very interesting'. so I bought it and took it home.. but alas, no subtitles. It looked interesting enough for me to try again when another movie-seller offered me the same film and said he was sure it had English subtitles. I wasn't too keen on a movie about a burning train, but I loved it. It's a really exciting thriller, with some nice drama elements to it and a good storyline. The film stars Dharmendra, Vinod Khanna, Hema Malini (as Dharam's love interest), and Parveen Babi (as Vinod's love interest).

Many (sooo many) things made me love Dharam in this film, but I'm going to mention only a few of them. The first is the song and dance number 'Pehli Nazar Mein Humne' featuring the 4 leads. I've watched that number a gazillion times and could watch it forever. I don't even know why I like it so much. It's just a combo of a great song, great chereography, and the way the actors interpret it. They do exactly what you think their characters would do. It's just so cool. It's a pretty standard love song featuring tandem bikes (is that what those 2-on-1 bikes are called?), boats, trees and stolen kisses, but I just think it's awesome. I honestly can't explain why I love it so much. I just do.

The second thing is Dharam's voice in this film. It's so sexy, when he says (sorry, can't write hindi but) 'Sunnu Seema, I love you', and 'Seema! Kya Hoa? Eh Bhagwan! Kyun Seema?', I just want to melt. There is that husky, throaty, heartfelt element to his voice and men, I just want to be Seema when he talks to her like that! His voice is just so awesome in this film, and the expressions on his face, gosh I can't even write about it anymore!

Third thing is, Dharam was looking pretty Garam for someone who was 45 years old at the time TBT was made. 45!! And still looking major-ly fit, playing a physically demanding action hero role. His character was probably meant to be about 30 at the oldest. Dharam matches Vinod so well here, although Vinod is like 10 years younger (and you can kinda tell, but it's not too obvious). Dharmendra just looks so good, and he does the action hero thing so well and...(swoon)

There are so many things I love about Dharmendra in this movie, the way he smacks the guy's legs off the back of his seat, the way he shatters the glass in his hand (ok, I know it's a stunt, but he looked hella good all angry like that), the way he touches Seema's leg, the way he kisses the policeman's face when he discovers the 2 girls have fallen for him and Vinod, the way he pulls at Seema's arms and goes 'Haan haan haan ji wada', the way he brushes the flower petals off his head at the engagement, the way he tells Vinod that he and Seema will be married with a baby as soon as Daddy come back, the way he rides that bike, ... my goodness, I could go on and on. But I won't - cos I'm starting to feel a bit faint now (LOL). Instead, here are some screenshots from the movie that made me fall in love love love with Dharmendra...

Hema's thinking, "I'm so lucky, I got me a mighty fine man!"

Dharmendra's thinking, "When I get you alone..." Hema's quite pretty, hai naa? She still looks good today: check her out in starring roles with the Big B in 'Baghban' and 'Veer Zaara'.Wish a gorgeous guy would look at me like that! Checking Hema out...

This film was released in 1980, and these two got married in the same year. Isn't that just cute? Would be even cuter if that were me on the left...but not in yellow, I don't think!

After TBT, I watched 'Ghazab' (1982), which is quite a nice movie. A bit kitsch, even a bit annoying, but quite nice. Again, Dharmendra, at 47, looks much younger (he's quite buff in this movie... bulging biceps and all) and plays an action hero very nicely... and his voice is still so sexy. Ghazab proved to me that TBT wasn't a fluke. Rekha is also pretty cool in this movie... must add her to my sidebar, she's not only beautiful, she can act.

So now I love love love Dharmendra, even though I'm a pretty miserable Dharmendra fan, having watched only 4 of his over 200 movies. Beth has been a doll and has recommended 'Chupke Chupke', I would love more recommendations. I am on a mission now and I aim to watch many more films starring my dear Dharam Singh Deol.

And here ends my tale of 'how I fell in love love love with Dharmendra'. Don't know what I'll be writing about next time... a regular Bollywood post or a strictly Dharmendra one? Any advice?