Cast: Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Simi Grewal, Rekha, AK Hangal, Raza Murad, Om Shivpuri, Durga Khote It is said that when Rajesh Kha...
Cast: Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Simi Grewal, Rekha, AK Hangal, Raza Murad, Om Shivpuri, Durga Khote
It is said that when Rajesh Khanna watched Amitabh Bachchan's performance in
Namak Haraam he realised that his days as a superstar were numbered. It was only
a matter of time before the tall, lanky angry young man would replace him. And rightly
so. After this, there was no looking back for Bachchan. The angry young man may
have been born in Prakash Mehra’s Zanjeer released on May 11 in 1973 but it
bore fruit in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Ode to friendship released a few months
later the same year on November 23. Bachchan gave one of his most intense
performances in Namak Haraam with scenes having him seething with anger yet
keeping the rage under control like the one when he snarls “Kaun hai woh maai ka laal jisne
mere Somu pe haath uthaya”.
Loosely based on the 1964 Becket starring Peter O‘Toole and Richard Burton, the plot revolved around the friendship of the rich and arrogant Vicky (Amitabh) and the poor and simple Somu (Rajesh) set against the background of the textile mills in Bombay of the early 70s. Somu joins as a worker in Vicky’s factory to keep a watch on the workers as Vicky's secret spy but he ends up as their trade union leader. This leads to a confrontation between the two with tragic consequences.
Rekha, Simi Grewal, Durga Khote, Asrani and Om Shiv Puri among others made up the stellar supporting cast, each contributing towards making Namak Haraam a masterpiece that is relevant even today.
The songs by RD Burman are evergreen melodies. Diye jalte hain, the soulful Main shayar badnam or Nadiya se Dariya all sung by Kishore Kumar are gems that remain etched in our minds.
Incidentally, this was the second and last time the two superstars shared screen space.
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