Decoding Pyaasa (1957)

April 17, 2018

Movie – 1/100

The genius of Guru Dutt has been a part of various discussions on filmmaking across the globe. Considered to be one of the most prolific filmmakers of his time, Guru Dutt’s movies have always been hailed as way ahead of their time and ‘Pyaasa’, released in 1957, was particularly regarded as one of his bests. Featured among the 100 best movies of all times by Time, this Guru Dutt – Waheeda Rehman – Mala Sinha starrer is a beautiful tale of pain and despair faced by a failed poet, who ends up questioning his existence in this materialistic world.

Pyaasa is the story of Vijay (played by Guru Dutt), a failed poet who struggles to make both ends meet, while trying to get his poetry (shayari) published. Set in Calcutta of the 1950s, Vijay has a remorseful existence – his brothers despise him, his snobbish ‘friend’ does not care much and publishers treat his poetry as trash. Vijay finds solace in the company of a prostitute, Gulabo (played by Waheeda Rehman), who falls in love with his poetry and eventually with Vijay as well. Their love is never confessed, never stated and for most of the time, remains underplayed till the climax. Vijay meets Mr. Ghosh, the owner of a publishing house and currently married to Vijay’s college sweetheart, Meena (played by Mala Sinha). Vijay starts working for Mr. Ghosh but soon realizes his poetry will not get its due as Mr. Ghosh suspects his relationship with Meena. As the story takes another melancholic turn, the sad and opportunistic nature of humans is exposed. Guru Dutt as the director, uses dialogues and camera to his strength to throw a light on emotions and twisted human nature.

The biggest assets that Guru Dutt uses as a director are the brilliantly crafted music, the beautifully written dialogues, sweeping angles on camera and the earnest performances. S.D Burman’s music and Sahir Ludhiyanvi’s lyrics add more depth to the characters and fill in the much-needed gloom. Guru Dutt uses sweeping camera angles, close-ups of the leads and theatre-like light work to enhance the movie – something which was a rarity back in the day. One of the best usage of alternate narratives is the sequence where Meena and Vijay meet in an elevator, their reflections meet on the mirror in the elevator and we are taken into a flashback. He ends it also on a subtle note, where Vijay just picks up a letter, reads it and walks away – symbolizing a heartbreak. The movie also made me realize how music and dialogues were such integral parts of the movie experience, the quality of which has deteriorated considerably now.

To speak of the performances, this was the first Guru Dutt film that I saw and he is every bit worth the acclaim he has received. His eyes speak the sadness and despair that his character is going through. Waheeda Rehman is beautiful and displays her various shades – from a street-smart girl to a girl painfully in love. Mala Sinha provides ample support as the practical girl, who chooses riches over love. The others in the cast like Rehman, Tun Tun and Johnie walker add their weight to their roles.

I was also surprised that the movie was just 2 hrs 15 minutes long and the pace, though slow, was still engaging – safe to say it can be watched by millennials suffering from ADHD as well. It is as relevant today as it was back then, while showing the bitter truth of fake and opportunistic people around us. With 99 movies to go, I think the start could not have been better!

You can watch it on YouTube.