Hum to Doobenge sanam tum ko bhii le Doobenge

Film : Aawaara

Year of release : 1951

Spoken by : Raj (Raj Kapoor)

Spoken to : Rita (Nargis)

This is a line which instantly reminds me of my 9th grade English textbook. There was a story written by a Bhabhani thingummajig which was entitled Mere Monkeys. If that short story was to be made into a Hindi film, I would have given it the same title as the title of this post.

One of the lasting impressions that I have in this film is a 11-12 year old Shashi Kapoor going and asking his mother 'Maa yeh aawaaraa kyaa hotaa hai'. It is probably the most contrived line I have heard in the history of Hindi cinema. Shashi Kapoor even at that tender age had the grace to look very very embarrassed. You must watch the film for just this one line. But otherwise this film - written by Khwaaja Ahmad Abbas - whose great grandson Shahid Kapoor is setting the screen on fire these days - was a paean to the socialist version of the nature vs nurture debate. Ever since Hitler did what he did, most scientists are loathe to propound any theory which links behaviour or traits to genetics. Khwaaja Ahmad Abbas tries to settle it in favour of 'nurture' with this film. Hence KN Singh goes to great lengths to disprove the judge's theory that a thief's son will turn out to be a thief. He picks up the judge's son and turns him into an 'aawaara' - a vagabond.

Anyways this line has nothing to do with all the pseudo serious drivel that I have written above. Raj and his girl friend Rita are frolicking on the beach. The famous Raj-Nargis chemistry is evident. They both have jumped into a small 'bay'. While Rita has managed to come out, Raj hasn't. He extends his hand out asking for help and utters this classic line.

"Hum to Doobenge sanam tum ko bhii le Doobenge"

"हम तो डूबेंगे सनम तुम को भी ले डूबेंगे"

kaun kambaKht hai jo bardaasht karne ke liye peetaa hi

Film : Devdas

Year of release : 1955

Spoken by : Devdas (Dilip Kumar)

Spoken to : Chandramukhi (Vyjayanthi Mala)

This is the real 'Devdas', not the bastardised glam version of SRK and Bhansali. I am not one of those who insists that the old is the real thing. In fact this film was made over two decades before my birth and I saw it over two decades after my birth, but I will surely put it above the SRK version. If you don't believe me, just search for this scene on youtube. Both the versions are available there. Go see it. Then read this post. But if you believe me, continue reading.

Devdas's father is on his death bed. He starts visiting Chandramukhi who is a prostitute. He has also started drinking. One such night, he is in a drunken stupor. Chandramukhi tries to stop him. She says

"aur mat piyo Devdas"

"kyo.n?" asks Devdas

"kucch hii din huye peenaa shuru kiye. Itnee zyaadaa bardaasht na kar sakoge"

"kaun kambaKht hai jo bardaasht karne ke liye peetaa hai. Mai.n to peetaa hoo.n ke...bas saa.ns le sakoo.n...aur...aisee jagah se uTh kar jaane kee taaqat nahee.n hai naa...tabhii to yahaa.n paDaa rahtaa hoo.n...bas...dekhtaa rahtaa hoo.n tumhaare mu.nh kee taraf...to bhii mai.n bilkul behosh nahee.n hotaa...kucch hosh rah hee jaataa hai...hosh se kah do...kabhii hosh naa aane paaye...

Chandramukhi says, "yahaa.n aise log bhee aate hai.n Devdas, jo sharaab ko chhoote bhee nahee.n

Devdas : chhote bhee nahee.n? mere paas bandook ho to mai.n unhe golii se uDaa doo.n. vo log mujh se bhii baDe paapii hai.n Chandramukhi. Pahle to mai.n sharaab peenaa chhoDoongaa nahee.n. aur agar chhoD diyaa to phir yahaa.n kabhii nahee.n aaoongaa. kabhii nahee.n aoongaa. meraa to ilaaj hai. lekin un logo.n ka kyaa hogaa ...jo peete bhii nahee.n. aur phir bhii yahaa.n aate hai.n

If you watch the video, also watch for these great lines...

"mat chhuo...haath mat lagaao mujhe Chandramukhi...ab bhii kucch hosh baaqii hai"

"pal bhar me.n sab kucch Khatam ho gayaa. woh shaadii ke raaste pe chal di aur mai.n barbaadii ke raaste par"

Achchhaa kyaa aur buraa kyaa sab bekaar kee baateN haiN

Film : Devdas

Year of release : 1955

Spoken by : Devdas (Dilip Kumar)

Spoken to : Chunilal (Motilal)

A distraught Devdas runs away to Calcutta, when his parents refuse to accede to his marriage with Paro. There he meets Chunilal, the inveterate wine-and-women-worshipper. He asks Chuni Babu to take him to the nautch girl whom Chuni visits often. Chuni is hesitant. He says

"chal to sakte haiN...par wo jagah achchhee nahee hai"

And a visibly irritated Devdas says

"Achchhaa kyaa aur buraa kyaa, sab bekaar kee baateN haiN"

"अच्छा क्या और बुरा क्या, सब बेकार की बातें हैं"

There are times when faced with the practical difficulties of life, you find it very difficult to do, what you think is the right thing. At such a time, if someone turns moralistic on you, you would find yourself mouthing this line.

I must say one thing. All Bimal Roy films are still very watchable. Bimal Roy did not drink himself. But he made a helluva Devdas.

Is aundhee duniyaa ko seedhaa dekhanaa ho to sar ke bal khaDaa honaa paDtaa hai

Film : Shree 420

Year of release : 1955

Spoken by : Raj (Raj Kapoor)

Spoken to : Police constable

This is the famous sequence where Raj is fooling around on the Mumbai beach and the police constable has been observing his antics for a while. He is standing on his head. The police constable asks him what he is doing. Raj says

"sachchee baat to ye hai havaldaar sahib ki is aundhee duniyaa ko seedhaa dekhanaa ho to sar ke bal khaDaa honaa paDtaa hai"

Aaj kee raat tumhe vidya kee zaroorat nahee maayaa ki zaroorat hai

Film : Shree 420

Year of release : 1955

Spoken by : Seth Sonachand Dharmanand (Nemo)

Spoken to : Raj Kumar (Raj Kapoor)

This comes during Raj's interaction with Sonachand just before the MuD muD ke song. Vidya (which means knowledge) is Nargis' name in this film. Maya (which means illusion) is Nadira's name. Raj Kapoor had a fetish for this silly symbolism. You can see that in Sangam when the three people are reading Time, Life and Fortune. Here the symbolism is closer home. Maya has insulted Vidya at a party to which Raj had invited her. She runs out with Raj in hot pursuit. As Vidya goes out of the revolving door, Seth Sonachand comes in and sees Raj calling after Vidya. He pauses and says,

"आज की रात तुम्हे विद्या की ज़रूरत नहीं, माया की ज़रूरत है"

"Aaj kee raat tumhe vidya kee zaroorat naheeN, maya kee zaroorat hai"

which is a none-too-veiled reference to the fact that the party would involve a bit of gambling and in such a milieu, it is not knowledge but the illusive and elusive 'maayaa' that would be required.

Four decades of post-independence education in India were devoted to rote learning and 'collecting' knowledge for the heck of it. Vocational education or training was looked down upon. Though this trend is changing of late. Though there are still heavy school bags and school teachers focussing on learning by rote, the entire education system is slowly realising the fact that

'tumhe vidya kee zaroorat nahee maayaa kee zaroorat hai'

khaa gayee naa aap bhee kapDoN se dhokhaa

इसे हिन्दी में पढने के लिए यहाँ क्लिक करें

Film: Shree 420
Year of release : 1955
Spoken by : Raj (Raj Kapoor)
Spoken to : Vidya (Nargis)

Immediately after the famous song 'eechak daanaa', Raj rings the bell and all kids run away. Vidya is very angry. Raj is dresssed as a tramp and Vidya is making no secret of her disdain for him. She calls him an illiterate bumpkin and wonders if Raj would want that the kids also end up like him. Raj protests.

This is the exchange between them

Raj : Main graduate hooN...BA pass मैं ग्रॅजुएट हूं ...बी ए पास

Vidya : BA pass ...huh. ek aur jhooTh. zaraa apanaa huliyaa to dekho. college ke paDhe likhe graduates kee yeh soorat hotee hai?

बी ए पास...हह...एक और झूठ. ज़रा अपना हुलिया तो देखो. कॉलिज के पढे लिखे ग्रॅजुएट्स की ये सूरत होती है?

Raj : khaa gayee naa aap bhee kapDoN se dhokha!

खा गयीं ना आप भी कपडों से धोखा!
Agar aaj main ek badhiyaa suit pehne, shaandaar gaadee me baiThkar yahaan aataa to shaayad aap mujhe badtameez, jaahil ganwaar na kehteeN…aur isme aapkaa koee dosh nahee hai…jis duniyaa me aap rehtee hain wahaan insaan ke dil aur dimaag kee naheeN, uske kapdo kee izzat hotee hai. Sharkskin ke suit, silk kee kameezen aur georgette kee saaRiyon kee izzat hotee hai.

अगर आज मैं बढिया सूट पहने, शानदार गाडी में बैठकर यहां आता तो शायद आप मुझे बदतमीज़, जाहिल गंवार न कह्तीं ...और इसमे आपका कोई दोष नहीं है...जिस दुनिया में आप रहतीं हैं, वहां इंसान के दिल और दिमाग़ की नहीं, उसके कपडों की इज़्ज़त होती है. शार्कस्किन के सूट, सिल्क की कमीज़ें और जॉर्जॅट की साड़ियों की इज़्ज़त होती है".

Great socialistic monologue which worked very well in that era. But the message in that one line is still relevant. It happens all the time. So either you can keep complaining about it - as Raj does. Or make it work to your advantage. As Raj himself does in the later half of the movie.

Jab aur sab paap kar liye to yahee kyoN rah jaaye

Film : Shree 420

Year of release : 1955

Spoken by : Raj (Raj Kapoor)

Spoken to : Vidya (Nargis)

I used to quite like a couplet by a poet called Anand Narayan Mulla

Vo kaun hain jinhen taubaa kii mil gayee fursat

Hamein to gunaah karne ko bhi zindagi kam hai

वो कौन हैं जिन्हें तौबा की मिल गयी फ़ुर्सत

हमें तो गुनाह करने को भी ज़िन्दगी कम है

This line from Raj Kapoor’s Shree 420 does echo a related thought – though spoken in a slightly defeatist tone.

Raj Kapoor understood rule no 1 of the corporate world. If you want to succeed, put in place a great team. I think he put together a great team. It did pay him rich dividends.

Raj is about to jump into the sea and commit suicide. Vidya sees him and stops him. She says it is a sin to commit suicide. Raj retorts with

जब और सब पाप कर लिये तो यही क्यों रह जाये

It is a very convincing logic when someone says – ek khoon kee sazaa bhee phaansee hai aur do khoon kee bhee. It almost seems to be a different version of the law of diminishing marginal utility. These kind of statements are very difficult to argue against.

The 50s and Raj Kapoor making a debut on this blog.