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and made even the minor characters Mumbai, and rose to establish a criminal
unforgettable—it became a uniquely Indian empire of smuggling, extortion, contract-
genre that was given the label of Curry killing.
Western. A powerful, sadistic villain Trishul, also directed by Yash Chopra,
Gabbar Singh (Amjad Khan) his henchman again tapped the brooding rage of Vijay,
Samba (Macmohan) and Kalia (Viju Khote), who goes after his father, who had
Soorma Bhopali (Jagdeep), Angrezon ke abandoned his mother to marry a rich
zamane ka jailor (Asrani) added as much woman. He targets his business and his
spice to the film as as Thakur (Sanjeev family to make him suffer like his mother
Kumar), Jai and Veeru (Amitabh Bachchan, did.
Dharmendra), the chatty tangewali Basanti These films are remembered for their
(Hema Malini), tempered with the pathos of gripping plots, dialogue and performances,
the silent widow (Jaya Bhaduri, soon to be but Salim-Javed also wrote light hearted
Bachchan) films like Haathi Mere Saathi, Seeta Aur
Yash Chopra’s Deewar remains the Geeta, Haath Ki Safai, Chacha Bhatija;
pinnacle of their achievements—an they waved their magic over the old lost-
urbanized Mother India and Ganga Jumna, and-found plot in Yaadon Ki Baraat; they
in which one brother (Bachchan) becomes cooled the wrath of Vijay and made him
a criminal and the other (Shashi Kapoor) a dance to Khaike paan Banaraswala in Don,
cop, who, in the end, shoots his brother to and gave him another immortal line—Don
stop his escape. It was a time of cynicism ko padakna mushkil hi nahin, namumkin
in Indian society, the post-Independence hai.
euphoria a hazy memory; corruption was The two big duds in their hit-studded
career were Immaan Dharam and Shaan,
which, they admit was a result of their
arrogance and complacency. Aakhri Dao
Image courtesy: india.com either, but their work was not found
and Kaala Patthar were not blockbusters
lacking. In retrospect, Kaala Patthar
is counted as one of Yash Chopra and
Bachchan’s best collaborations, inspired,
rife, crime was on the rise and Mumbai believe it or not, on Joseph Conrad’s novel,
saw the beginnings of organised crime,
that challenged not just law and order,
but the moral compass of a society that
admired gangsters who were seen as anti-
Establishment heroes. The period before
and after the Emergency had shaken the Image courtesy: bollywoodshaadis.com
people’s faith in the system. In Deewar,
Bachchan’s Vijay was vaguely based on
Haji Mastan, who like the screen character,
also started working in the docks of
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #63 | SEPTEMBER 2024 33
