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Anari
1959 166’ b&w Hindi d Hrishikesh Mukherjee pc L.B. Films s Inder Raj Anand lyr Shailendra, Hasrat Jaipuri c Jaywant Pathare m Shankar- Jaikishen lp Raj Kapoor, Nutan, Lalita Pawar, Motilal, Shubha Khote, Nana Palsikar, Ashim Kumar, Paul Mahendra, Brahm Bhardwaj, Sulochana, Helen
The naive painter Raj (Kapoor) lodges with the devout, rather maternal Mrs D’Sa (Pawar). Raj falls in love with Aarti (Nutan), the niece of the wealthy pharmaceutics manufacturer Ramnath (Motilal) who is Raj’s employer. To sidestep class differences, Aarti pretends to be her own maid. This stratagem leads to problems aggravated when Mrs D’Sa dies after taking medicines made by Ramnath’s company. Raj is accused of having poisoned her. Eventually Ramnath acknowledges responsibility for the crime. Although directed and edited by Mukherjee, the film’s cynical view of capital accumulation betrays Kapoor’s authorial signature (cf. Shri 420, 1955). The presence of Shailendra, Hasrat and Shankar-Jaikishen, close collaborators of the RK banner, as well as the expected Mukesh solo showing a philosophising tramp (Kissi ki muskurahaton pe ho nisar) underline Kapoor’s direct influence on the film.