From ‘Bombay noir’ to breezy rom-coms, films that defined Dev Anand

In his youth, he had gone from his home in Gurdaspur to Amritsar to get medicines for his ailing mother. To quench his thirst, he ordered a glass of sugarcane juice from a stall near the Golden Temple. When the vendor took a closer look at him, he exclaimed that Dev Anand had the sun on his forehead, foretelling greatness. The prediction did come true – Dev Anand did become a star that burnt bright across an over six-decade-long career.

With his undeniable charm, fast diction, the slight lopsided gait, trademark nodding to add emphasis, the winning winsome smile, and the flamboyant sartorial style, Dev Anand sparkled in a career that began before Independence and lasted into the second decade of the 21st century. Included in the pantheon of the top three heroes of Hindi cinema in the 1950s, he not only outpaced his peers Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor, who did around 70-odd films each, with almost 120 to his credit, but remained a leading man well after the other two - who were about a year older and a year younger, respectively - had taken up playing fathers or roles more suited to their ages, or given up acting altogether.

Also, what marked him out from the other two was that an overwhelming majority of his roles were of characters in urban settings, unlike Dilip Kumar, who had no compunction in portraying rustic characters, and Raj Kapoor, whose specialty was the small-town simpleton.

Popularizing what became to be known as "Bombay Noir", where he played characters with a tinge of grey or moral ambiguities, as well as the staple family dramas or breezy romantic comedies, and thrillers, and even the odd costumed swashbuckler, Dev Anand did not break new ground. While he is most known for films like "Guide" (1965), with its bold themes - for the day - and crime flicks, like "Jewel Thief" (1967), with its colourful locales, glamour surplus, and unexpected twist, and "Johny Mera Naam" (1970), which incorporates the lost siblings plot, and "Hare Rama Hare Krishna" (1971), which would be a sort of swan song to the hippy culture, there was a lot more in his repertoire.

Let's traverse through a dozen-odd, good and bad, known or forgotten.

Hum Ek Hain (1946): Marking Dev Anand's debut, this film, coming at the cusp of India's Independence - and Partition - was prescient in its espousal of inter-faith harmony and how inimical forces could seek to destroy it. Set in a village, it chronicles a woman landowner (Durga Khote) raising up her son (Dev Anand) along with three adopted orphans, a Dalit girl (Ranjitkumari), a Muslim (Rehman), and a Christian (R.V. Rane) and how seeds of division are planted before they recombine to defeat the nefarious forces.

Afsar (1950): An adaption of Russian author Nikolai Gogol's satire "The Inspector General", the film - the first of Dev Anand's newly-set up Navketan Productions - has city resident Dev Anand reaching a village to find work, but getting mistaken for a government agent by locals amid the land reforms drive.

Baazi (1951): Scripted by Balraj Sahni (who, however, did not like the end result much!), this Bombay Noir was the first hit for Dev Anand's Navketan banner, as well the first with Kalpana Kartik - who would eventually become his wife.

Insaniyat (1955): The Hindi version of a Telugu hit, this rare outing into a costumed swashbuckler has Dev Anand - with a moustache - acting together with Dilip Kumar for the first and only time. That is one saving grace of this rather formulaic potboiler, apart from Jayant's overboard acting as a tyrannical ruler and a chimpanzee named Zippy!

Kala Pani (1958): Featuring Dev Anand as a dutiful son trying to absolve his father of a murder charge, his appearance in all black in the film gave rise to the urban rumour that he was not allowed to wear the colour subsequently due to the effect it had on his female fans! It stars Madhubala as the feisty journalist and Nalini Jaywant as a prostitute helping him, while Kishore Sahu, Krishan Dhawan, Sapru, Nazir Hussain, and Bir Sakhuja round up the cast.

Hum Dono (1961): A realistic look at what costs an armed forces career imposes on the men in uniform - and their near and dear ones - especially when war comes. Dev Anand, in his first double role, impressed both as the earnest young officer who expresses his sentiments in "Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala" and the elder, and the louder, officer - whom several army officers watching the film claimed to have known! Sadhana and Nanda played their lady loves, with music composer Jaidev proving himself in his first chance.

Duniya (1968): A slick courtroom drama, with twists galore, but also lashings of the family melodrama and lost and found relatives and friends, this film sees young and brash lawyer Dev Anand lock horns with redoubtable public prosecutor Balraj Sahni, whose purported son (Prem Chopra) has been murdered allegedly by Dev's childhood friend (Pakistani actor Suresh). Vyjayanthimala is the love interest, Madan Puri among other accused, and stern judge DK Sapru presides over the bench. IANS

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