Anokhi Ada (1973)

My second film for Khanna O-Rama week is Anokhi Ada, while it has most of the ingredients for a great masala it doesn't quite have those 'squishy dil' moments that would make it qualify as a classic, there's enough goodness still though

Lalaji (Nazir Hussain) & Gupta (Manmohan Krishan) are best of friends as well as business partners, their kids Lalaji's son Rakesh (Jeetendra) & Gupta's daughter Neeta (Rekha) are also in love with one another (talk about keeping it all in the family)

All is well in both households until a certain man named Gopal is found unconscious by the village sea, Lalaji pays for his healthcare and nurses him back to health

When he awakes from his coma, he tells a sob story on how he has no one left in the world,Lalaji and his son Rakesh being the kind-hearted fellows they are, give him a job in the family company, in fact Rakesh is so trusting that he puts him in charge of the family business (Rakesh is clearly lazy and doesn't have time for business, all he wants to do is romance Neeta)

Gopal on the other hand is a man on a mission and its not long till he starts showing his true colours, his greed as well as his desire to gain his hands on Lalaji's property cause him to destroy Lalaji and Gupta's friendship by setting them up against one another with the help of Kushiram (Jeevan) an employee of Lalaji

Gopal's plans to destroy the entire family and gain the wealth all to himself comes under threat when Rakesh hears of his schemes, Gopal outsmarts him and before he can even make a move he orders his men to dump him in the sea

Now that Rakesh is out of the game, Gopal feels closer and is more confident of inheriting Lalaji's millions, but his plans are threatened when a Rakesh lookalike in the form of Kishan turns up, winning Lalaji's affection with Lalaji even adopting him as his own son

What schemes will Gopal come up with to ensure he ends up with the millions? Why does Kishan look so much like Rakesh, plus is Rakesh really dead? Will Lalalji & Gupta ever be friends again? Will Gopal be able to make away with the family's fortunes or will he be stopped

Anokhi Ada is a very much a product of 70's bollywood, escapist fare that's very watchable and charming but as i've said at the beginning of this post, it just doesn't have that 'squishy dil' angle that could have made it a classic, i guess the directors favoured camp entertainer rather than a message laden masala flick.

vah! great use of colour Vinod & never has a Villain looked so hot

This film made me think how versatile an actor Vinod is, I just loved him so much as the vilian here, such a stylish villain might i add, here are few of his amazing fashion statements but as i'm dissecting Vinod's fashion sensibilities in a later post i don't want to give to much away

A major fashion trend i picked out were lots of belts worn over tight t shirts complete with neckerchief (that's a styling tip for all you partygoers/clubbers who are stuck for inspiration on funky 70's bollywood outfits)

gotta love that eyeliner

As for Rekha she doesn't have much to do but she was charming and gave me the right amount of eye candy i could have wanted from her. I loved her looks in this, from her 70's style chiffon sari's to her eyeliners, she was uber cute

Like most early 70's film the feistiness the heroine lacked was made up for by a feisty Village belle played by Padma Khanna in this. Unlike most other films of the time like 'Caravan' and 'Mera Gaon mera desh' that gave the supporting actress much to do, Padma doesn't have as much screen time as i would have liked

Good soundtrack from Laxmikant Pyarelal not on the same level as some of their top soundtracks like Loafer or Nagin but there are enough goodies like the lovely romantci duet 'tere sil mein', playful 'sundari hai hai' my two favourites are 'Goom gayi Goom Gayi' with Padma Khanna in full on Village belle mode & an awesome qawalli 'Hal kya hai dilon ka'

Paisa Vasool Rating: 5/10