Kala Bazar

For the 1989 film, see Kala Bazaar.
Kala Bazar
Theatrical poster
Directed byVijay Anand
Written byVijay Anand
Produced byDev Anand
StarringDev Anand
Waheeda Rehman
Nanda
Music byS. D. Burman
Production
company
Release date
  • 9 September 1960 (1960-09-09)
Running time
163 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi

Kala Bazar (lit. 'Black Market') is a 1960 Hindi crime film produced by Dev Anand for Navketan Films. Written and directed by Dev's younger brother Vijay Anand, the film starred Dev Anand, Waheeda Rehman, Vijay Anand, Chetan Anand, Nanda, Rashid Khan, Madan Puri, Leela Chitnis, Mumtaz Begum and Helen. S.D. Burman composed the music, while the lyrics were penned by Shailendra.[1]

It was noted for having several of Bollywood's stars in a cameo at the film premiere of Mother India (1957), and it was also the only film to star the three Anand brothers together.[2]

Plot

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Raghuveer is a poor bus conductor who is fired from the job after getting into an argument with a passenger. With an ailing mother and two younger siblings to take care of, Raghuveer doesn't know how to provide for his family. When he passes by a cinema hall and sees Kalu (Rashid Khan) selling movie tickets, he gets an idea. Seeing that as a good source of quick money, he too decides to black market movie tickets. But for that, he needs capital to start with. So he robs Advocate Desai (Chetan Anand) of Rs 5000 and soon sets his own network of black marketers outside all prominent cinema-halls of Bombay.

First, he works with Kalu and at the premiere of Mother India, their tickets sell faster and faster as more film stars arrive – they include Dilip Kumar, Geeta Dutt, Guru Dutt, Kishore Kumar, Raaj Kumar, Rajendra Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Sohrab Modi, Mohammed Rafi, Nargis, Nadira and Nimmi. Finally, he sells his last ticket for 100 rupees when one ticket cost only 2 rupees. Elated with his newfound business, Raghuveer and Kalu go from strength to strength, recruiting many poor and homeless thieves. When Ganesh dares to challenge him, Raghuveer beats him up. The next day, Ganesh agrees to work for Raghuveer. Now a wealthy man, Raghuveer buys a new, spacious flat for his family on Marine Drive. Things change when a group of students buy movie tickets from him. Alka finds out that her friends bought them in black, and tears the tickets as she hates black marketing. This has a great impact on Raghuveer and he gets attracted towards Alka, who is standing nearby and watching. She was in love with her boyfriend, Nand Kumar Chattopadhyay (Vijay Anand) who promises her not to do it again. Smitten with Alka, Raghuveer starts to follow her. So, when Nand gets a scholarship and travels overseas, Alka's parents decide to take her to Ooty to take her mind off Nand. Raghuveer sees this as a perfect opportunity and gets on the same cabin as her family and attempts to woo Alka on their trip to Ooty, but in vain. He sings "Apni To Har Aah Ek Toofan Hai", trying to flirt with Alka, while the song itself was veiled as a prayer. He also helps to cure Alka's father's back pain with a massage and soon, he becomes friends with the family. Though he is unable to win Alka, his feelings towards her makes him a changed man and he gives up the path of black marketing.

All that taken care of, he sets out to romance Alka, but she resists and turns away his love when she lies that she is engaged to Nand. Heartbroken, Raghuveer returns to Bombay to continue his business, but his love for Alka has changed him. When he left Alka in Ooty, he promised that he would never do anything bad. Raghuveer tries to convince his partners to stop black marketing and get an honest job, but they all eventually go back to their bad deeds. Raghuveer continues to try and earn an honest living and to his surprise, he meets Alka one day in Bombay. Alka, meanwhile, also falls for Raghuveer, but hesitates to tell him. Finally, she writes a letter to Nand, telling him to forget her, because she loves Raghuveer. The latter is delighted and Alka tells him to come in the evening to talk to her parents. However, everything goes awry when she learns that Nand has returned. When Nand comes to her house, the two of them argue, but finally both concede that their "love" was just childishness. Now free to profess her love for Raghuveer, Alka goes to his house, only to learn that he has been arrested for black marketing. The movie takes a turn and the court case is with Advocate Desai. The court room drama is really engaging as it shows how the black marketers changed the kala bazaar to Safed Bazar and all the people working for Raghuveer, give their opinion which is his positive side. The movie ends with Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman walking in the rain under a single umbrella.

Cast

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Critical response

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Vijay Lokapally of The Hindu called Kala Bazar a "timeless classic".[4]

References

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  1. ^ Sharma, Devesh (26 September 2020). "Best Dev Anand Movies". Filmfare. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  2. ^ Chopra, Anupama (15 February 2018). "Why You Should Watch Vijay Anand's 1960 Classic Kala Bazar". Film Companion. Archived from the original on 26 August 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Kala Bazar (1960) Cast - Actor, Actress, Director, Producer, Music Director". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  4. ^ Lokapally, Vijay (27 November 2009). "Kala Bazar (1960)". The Hindu. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
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