THE ERA GONE BY- BEST OF 1970

We are living in times when the business of first weekend is the lifeline of film industry and next generation will wonder how a movie used to run more than 100 weeks.There was a time when Silver,Golden and Platinum Jubilee was the norm and to book first ticket of a movie on the first day first show was not less than an award itself. Audience was passionate and so were the filmmakers,technicians and artists(it is never vice versa!).People slept outside the theaters a day before opening of advance booking. And watching a blockbuster 15-20 times in movie hall was nothing extraordinary. Lets rewind to those years starting from 1970 and appreciate sheer magic of those classics(my favorite top 5 films plus an overlooked film and top 3 box office earner of every year).

MERA NAAM JOKER

Director                Raj Kapoor       

Cast                     Raj Kapoor,Padmini,Simi Grewal,Kseniya Ryabinkina,Rishi Kapoor,Manoj Kumar,Dharmendra,Dara Singh

X FACTOR         Deeply touching and emotional writing from best writer of those times Khwaza Ahmed Abbas,mind blowing direction,picturisation of title song is timeless,heart wrenching climax,undoubtedly one of the best of showman

Trivia                    Film was a huge disappointment at box office mainly because of its tragic theme,slow pace and mammoth length of more than 250 minutes,it is still a controversial point as varied sources have different take about the length of movie- as per censor certificate it is 255 minutes,as per few who watched it back then, it was 5 hours long (Chicago reader confirms this claim),as per DVD release by Shemaroo 184 minutes and as per international DVD release by Yash Raj it was 233 minutes,it was first ever hindi movie which had two intervals,It was under production for 6 years

             

PREM PUJARI

Director                Dev Anand       

Cast                     Dev Anand,Waheeda Rahman,Shatrughan Sinha,Prem Chopra

X FACTOR         Memorable songs i.e. Shokhiyon Mein Ghola,Phoolon Ke Rang Se,Rangeela Re,unforgettable chemistry between lead pair,interesting plot,beautifully shot in Europe,layered and philosophical script

Trivia                    It was a big failure at box office and same year the biggest hit was Dev Ananad's 'Johnny Mera Naam' but Dev Anand always considered 'Prem Pujari' a better film and so the critics

KHILONA

Director                Chander Vohra       

Cast                     Sanjeev Kumar,Jeetendra,Shatrughan Sinha,Mumtaz,Durga Khote

X FACTOR         One of the best acclaimed performances of Sanjeev Kumar,even Mumtaz rocks,title songs and two 'mujra' songs are unforgettable

Trivia                    It was a super hit,Sanjeev Kumar was nominated for Filmfare Best Actor award but lost to Rajesh Khanna but surprisingly Mumtaz won it in Best Actress and producer L.V.Prasad in Best Film category

SAFAR

Director              Asit Sen        

Cast                   Rajesh Khanna,Sharmila Tagore,Feroz Khan  

X FACTOR       Rajesh Khanna is simply outstanding in a very depressed role,climax is bound to amke you cry,songs i.e. 'Zindagi Ka Safar','Jo Tumko Ho Pasand','Jeevan Se Bhari' and 'Hum The Jinke Sahare'

Trivia                  Contrary to popular belief it was a bigger Hit than 'Anand' (as both were on the same theme with opposite treatments and released with few months of gap),Asit Sen won Best Director Filmfare Award for this

JEEVAN MRITYU

Director              Satyen Bose       

Cast                   Dharmendra,Rakhee,Ajit

X FACTOR       A rare film where you can see Dharmendra acting at his best,those people should watch it who doubt Dharmendra's acting capabilities,super hit song 'Jhilmil Sitaron Ka Aangan',very natural storytelling with unusual twits

Trivia                  A very under rated film which was a huge hit,Rakhee made debut with this film,Dharmendra was hesitant to sign this film as it was too emotional and quite contrary to his image

RARE GEM (Overlooked Film Of The Year)

KAB KYUN AUR KAHAN

Director            Arjun Hingorani

Cast                 Dharmendra,Babita,Helen,Pran  

X FACTOR     A rare racy and edge of the seat thriller of those years,Pran is mesmerizing and Dharmendra steals the show with his persona,songs i.e. 'Ho Gaye Tere Ho Gaye Hum' and 'Pyaar Se Dil bhar Le' are evergreen, unexpected twist at the end  

Trivia                Director Hingorani started his obsession of keeping his movie title with '3Ks' from this flick(other films starting from '3ks' are 'Kahani Kismat Ki','Khel Khilari Ka,','Kaatilon Ke Kaatil','Kaun Kare Kurbaani') which is now days followed by Karan Johar and Ekta Kapoor,

Top 3 Hits of 1970 
1. JOHNNY MERA NAAM  2. SACHHA JHOOTHA  3. AAN MILO SAJNA