Sone Ki Chidiya (1958)
Director: Shaheed Latif; Writer: Ismat Chughtai; Producer: Ismat Chughtai; Cinematographer: Nariman A. Irani; Editor: S.E. Chandiwale; Cast: Nutan, Balraj Sahni, Talat Mahmood, Altaf, Amar, Bikram Kapoor, Pratima Devi, Chandabai, Sarita Devi, Baij Sharma, Hammad Jafri, Zebunissa, Dhumal
Duration: 02:16:35; Aspect Ratio: 1.333:1; Hue: 85.714; Saturation: 0.053; Lightness: 0.064; Volume: 0.358; Cuts per Minute: 4.773
Summary: The orphaned Lakshmi (Nutan), unwanted by either of her two aunts, suddenly becomes a film star. Her relatives now vie with each other to exploit her new-found earning capacity. Lakshmi falls in love with Amar, a gossip journalist (Mahmood), who ditches her when he realises that Lakshmi’s wealth is controlled by her greedy family. On the point of committing suicide, Lakshmi hears the hope- filled song Raat bhar ka yeh mehmaan andhera [Darkness is only a guest for the night] (written by Ludhianvi and sung by Mohammed Rafi) and meets the radical poet Shrikant (Sahni) whom she has idolised for years. After a long digression stigmatising the way the film industry exploits its workforce, Shrikant falls in love with Lakshmi, but when Lakshmi’s brothers offer him money to abandon her, he accepts the money and donates it to the Junior Artists’ Fund. Lakshmi, believing herself betrayed yet again, realises the truth only at the end of the film when she rejoins Shrikant to the refrain of the ‘new dawn’ song. Writer and producer Chughtai contrasts the popular cinema’s romanticised narratives (cf. the soft-focus film-within-the-film song between Amar and Lakshmi) with the hard- edged reality of industrial exploitation underpinning them: the Saiyan jab se ladi tori akhiyan song is rapidly followed by the documentary-type Junior Artists’ episode. Sahni’s imposing presence enhances the film’s realist aspirations, e.g. when he reads his poem to a bored producer or when he discovers the reality beneath the industry’s glamour.
Experiments with alchemy. This sequence ends with the arrival of 'Lakshmi', who is soon to become the 'Sone ki chidiya' for both families. A rather rigorously underlined metaphorical point.
The unwanted orphan finds solace in the inspiring words of the poet Shrikant.
Lakshmi literally stumbles onto a new stage in her life!
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Song: Beqas ki tabaahi saamaan hazaaron hain
बेकस की तबाही के सामान हज़ारों हैं
दीपक तो अकेला है, तूफ़ान हज़ारों हैं
Narrator chimes in over this sequence illustrating Lakshmi's rise to stardom. 'She got everything in life.. except for love.'
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Singer: Talat Mehmood
Song: Pyaar par bas toh nahin hai mera
प्यार पर बस तो नहीं है मेरा, लेकिन फिर भी
तू बता दे के तुझे प्यार करूँ या ना करूँ
The infantilized 'Baby' nurtures a hearty maternal instinct. A comment on how an actress' youth and desires are often stifled by family pressures to singlemindedly earn money while beauty lasts.
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Song: Chhuk chhuk chhuk chhuk rail chali
छुक छुक छुक छुक रेल चले
चुन्नु मुन्नु आये तो ये खेल चले
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Singer: Talat Mehmood
Song: Sach bataa tu mujhpe fidaa
सच बता तू मुझ पे फ़िदा, अरे, क्यूँ हुआ और कैसे हुआ
Real emotions overlap with screen emotions to rouse the suspicions of Ballu babu & co.
Amar's mother is aghast at his intention to marry a 'disreputable actress', a 'common dancing girl'. But 'money can silence all dissenting voices'.
Lakshmi eagerly anticipates Amar's arrival. He has promised to take her away from her exploitative relatives and marry her. She dresses up for this auspicious occasion, much like a bride who awaits her chosen groom, but Amar never shows up. A dramatic sequence featuring time lapse, evocative low-key lighting, and good use of sets and composition to create a sense of the growing desolation that Lakshmi experiences.. a feeling of abandonment that turns into the physical shock of one who has lost her mind and her bearings. This sequence reminds me a bit of Chughtai's story, 'The Veil', in which a young virgin bride waits eternally for her husband to lift her bridal veil...
Lakshmi is unable to concentrate on work, every thought wanders to Amar and his betrayal.
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Mohammad Rafi
Song: Maut kabhi bhi mil sakti hai
मौत कभी भी मिल सकती है लेकिन जीवन कल न मिलेगा
मरने वाले सोच समझ ले फिर तुझको ये पल न मिलेगा
Lakshmi is saved from suicide by the poet Shrikant's song: 'Raat bhar ka hai mehmaan andhera, kiske rokey ruka haai savera.' Melodramatic sequence with effective use of lighting, pathetic fallacy, melos (of course), sets, and an exaggerated acting style. The use of the expressionist mode for psychological exposition had become quite the trend in the 1950s.
Shrikant delivers his thoughts on artistic sincerity.
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Song: Saiyya jab se ladhi hai to se ankhiyaan
सैयाँ जब से लड़ी हैं तोसे अँखियाँ
हाय निंदिया न आये सारी रात
Jab se ladi to se ankiyaan 02
Interesting 'social service message' inserted into this mainstream film. Style of a realist documentary to expose the harsh realities of below-the-line work in the supposedly glamorous film industry.
Shrikant recites Kaifi Azmi's famous poem 'Aaj ki raat bahut garm hawa chalti hai'. The sound appears to have been recorded at a live mehfil recitation as the spontaneous 'wah-wahs' have no place in the narrative logic of this scene.
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