Pyaasa (1957)

प्यासा

This 1957 film, which I selected on the recommendation of some of my friends at the BollyWHAT? discussion forums, has a very unusual hero – a starving, unrecognized poet Vijay (Guru Dutt).

Early in the film, Vijay is driven out of his mother’s home by his brothers, who think he’s a good-for-nothing layabout; they sell his life’s work, all of his poems, to a junk dealer as scrap paper.  Left with nothing, Vijay wanders the streets, encountering a prostitute, Gulabo (Waheeda Rehman, stunningly gorgeous and probably not more than 19 years old) and his old college flame Meena (Mala Sinha), now married to a big-time publisher. As (through a twisting series of events) Vijay’s poems become known to the world, he is disillusioned by the constant jockeying of everyone around him to benefit from the success of his work.

Pyaasa ("Thirst") is a beautiful film, shot with breathtaking cinematography, and the songs – whch are meant to be Vijay’s poems – are uniquely lovely.  (Unfortunately not all DVD editions subtitle the songs.)   Among my favorites is "Jaane kya tune kahin," which shows how breathtaking the young Waheeda was.  And "Ham aap ki aankhon mein" is one of the classic genre of ballroom fantasy sequences parodied in Dil chahta hai's "Woh ladki hai kahaan."

In one of its most interesting aspects, Pyaasa was sensitive to the plight of prostitutes and nautch-girls, while at the same treating society women (represented by Meena) much less kindly. The downtrodden women were shown just trying to make a living and care for their children, all the while demeaned and abused by the very men they serviced.   The society woman, in contrast, was exposed as a manipulative, selfish fraud. This is the kind of message I expect in a Deepa Mehta or Shyam Benegal film - but I was (perhaps naively) surprised and pleased to see it in a mainstream film from 1957.

Comments

[माझी]

अगर आप को प्यासा अच्छी लगी तो शायद "काग़ज़ के फूल" भी अच्छी लगे.. मैं काग़ज़ की कहानी भूल चुका हूँ लेकिन "वक़्त ने किया" गाना और पिक्चराइज़ेशन अभी भी अच्छी तरह याद है। गुरुदत्त की फ़िल्में वाकई अनोखी थीं..

[carla]

माझी जी, आपके सुझाव के लिये बहुत धन्यवाद | मैं तो "काग़ज़ के फूल" देखना बहुत चाहती हूँ | मेरे कुछ फ़िल्मी दोस्तों को भी "काग़ज़ के फूल" बहुत अच्छी लगी - इस लिये वह मेरे "लिस्ट" पर है |

(Majhi recommended the film "Kaagaz ke phool." I said thank you, and noted that it had been highly recommended by some of my filmi friends and was already on my list of films I'd like to see.)

[maxqnz]

It is a sin against my conscience to let slip any opportunity to praise this film. Not simply one of my favourite Hindi films, it is one of favourite films, fullstop. The songs, the powerful story, the wonderful demonstration of how it IS possible to make meaningful, significant and though-provoking commercial cinema. Oh, and did I mention the songs? ये दुनिया अगर is a great song, and one of the best endings in cinema, up there with the end of Casablanca and Dil Se, among movies I enjoyed. Having grown weary of trying to keep up with the drek churned out at lightspeed by the David Dhawans and Karan Johars of this world, I take comfort in being able to go back to precious gems like this one. Thanks for reminding me to watch this again, carla, and to get around to watching काग़ज़ के फूल.

[carla]

I haven't yet gotten around to watching *Kaagaz ke phool* either, max. We should coordinate from our respective sides of the planet.

I'd also like to watch *Pyaasa* again. I was very pleased with the ending, because it resisted the temptation of the artist-ascetic and one-true-love cliches.

[yves]

Carla,

I've just watched Pyaasa, and I'm trying to get people to help me with that query of mine about what I call the "jesus equation" between Vijay and Jesus: what do you think? Barring Guru Dutt's direct declaration that Vijay is indeed a Jesus-figure, would you say there is sufficient material in the film to support that equation?

[carla]

I don't know, Yves. I'm not an expert on Jesus imagery. But the theme of redemption from death and rebirth is hardly unique to Christianity, and given the many forms of reincarnation that are central to the mythologies underpinning Indian society, it's as likely that Guru Dutt was drawing on those as it is that he was drawing on Christian themes.

But the text speaks for itself - if you saw Jesus imagery in it, and that resonance informs your interpretation of the film, that's all that matters.

[Vivek]

Indeed!

(One minor thing - 'Pyaasa' means one (masc.) who is thirsty - 'pyaas' would be thirst.)

[bawa]

Just a list of 50s films you have not yet seen, and are worth it..
Devdas, Do Bigha Zameen, Mr. & Mrs. 55, Do Ankhen Baraah Haath, Naya Daur, Sujata, Baiju Bawra, Mirza Ghalib, Bombay ka Babu.

[bawa]

Just a list of 50s films you have not yet seen, and are worth it..
Devdas, Do Bigha Zameen, Mr. & Mrs. 55, Do Ankhen Baraah Haath, Naya Daur, Sujata, Baiju Bawra, Mirza Ghalib, Bombay ka Babu.

[carla]

Thanks for this list too bawa! *Mr & Mrs 55* is in my collection awaiting its turn in the DVD player but none of the others are; I'll add them to my long-term list of stuff to check out. Still so much to see ...

[bawa]

I have to add that I really don't like the moral behind Mr & Mrs 55 in the end...seems tacked on by a typical Indian male. But I guess otherwise it wouldn't have been accepted at the time. Love the song "Pritam aan milo.."

Look forward to your reviews of all the others, see what you think.