Cast:- Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Prada, Pran, Om Prakash, Deepak Parashar, Suresh Oberoi & Ranjeet Music :- Bappi Lahiri Director :- Pr...
Cast:- Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Prada, Pran, Om Prakash, Deepak Parashar, Suresh Oberoi & Ranjeet
Music :- Bappi Lahiri
Director :- Prakash Mehra
Released on May 18, 1984, Sharaabi (Drunkard) was an emotional drama with dollops of action and comedy. The film which turns 40 this year has a multi-layered storyline and is essentially a tale of a father who is a business tycoon and his son who is addicted to alcohol primarily due to his father’s negligence. Although it’s inspired by the British movie Arthur (1981) starring the famous British actor Dudley Moor, director Prakash Mehra and dialogue writer Kader Khan suitably Indianized it by adding all the tropes of a Bachchan flick to make it more dramatic and entertaining for the Indian audience. The film was a super hit at the box office and won two Filmfare awards for Best Music and Best Playback Singer (Male). Sharaabi was later remade in Kannada as Nee Thanda Khanike (1985), but it was not as successful as the original.
Storyline:- Vicky Kapoor (Amitabh Bachchan) is the only son of multi-millionaire Amarnath Kapoor (Pran) who is materialistic to the core and has no time for his son. Vicky’s yearning for paternal love is understood only by Munshi Phoolchand (Om Prakash). Pining for his father’s love and affection Vicky turns into an alcoholic and develops a strong dislike for his father's wealth and the hypocritical lifestyle of his father’s friends and colleagues.
Vicky has a heart
of gold since his adolescent years and helps an orphan boy Anwar by secretly
financing his upbringing. Anwar (Deepak Parashar) grows up to be an honest
police officer who is hellbent on finding out his secret angel. Vicky falls in
love with a dancer Meena (Jaya Prada), daughter of a blind man, much to the
chagrin of his father. Meena’s greedy agent Natwar (Ranjeet) hatches a sinister
conspiracy which results in a huge row between father and son. Vicky leaves his
father’s mansion and property along with Munshi Phoolchand. How Vicky deals
with the vagaries and hardships of life after getting ousted, how his volatile
equation with his father changes, and how the beneficiaries of his good deeds
help him in the path of life forms the rest of the story.
Performances: - Amitabh
Bachchan is superb as an alcoholic with a golden heart, his comic timing is
unmatchable and he is equally proficient in the dramatic scenes with Pran and
romantic scenes with Jaya Prada. His voice modulation throughout the movie is
exemplary. His sheer presence lights up the screen and it's not difficult
to fathom why he was towering above other stars in that period. Pran is
excellent as Amarnath, the metamorphosis of his character in the second half is
excellent. Om Prakash is first-rate as Munshi Phoolchand, he breathes life into
the character. Jaya Prada looks ethereal and performs well. Deepak Parashar
probably gives his best performance as Anwar; he looks dashing and heroic. Ranjeet,
Mayur, and Suresh Oberoi are adequate in their roles.
Music :- Music of
the film by Bappi Lahiri was a rage at that time and continues to be popular even
today. Bappi da took two folksy tunes of Bangladesh, Allah megh de
paani de by Abbasuddin and Bondhu teen din by Runa Laila, and fused them with
his own characteristic disco beats to create De de pyaar de and Jahan char yaar mil jaaye, both of them were chartbusters. The other songs, the slow and fast-paced Inteha ho gayee, the lilting Mujhe naulakha mangwa de, and the
deeply philosophical Manzilein apni jagah hain which fetched Kishore Kumar the
Filmfare award for best singer (male) are still heard in almost all retro radio
stations and TV channels.
Sharaabi was released
with a lot of fanfare and lived up to the expectations of the masses in almost
every department. Although archrival Manmohan Desai dismissed the film as
“misleading for the youth” and a few critics wrote negatively about it, its
dialogues like “moonchein ho toh nathulal jaisi” and Amitabh’s walk with one
hand in his pocket (he burnt his hand while bursting Diwali crackers before the
shooting of this film) became iconic. Today, a few of the scenes may appear
longish and a couple of comedy gags may appear “crass” to some, but there is no
doubt that the film which was the last hit of the Prakash Mehra – Amitabh
Bachchan combo, stands tall even now and is like a glass of sangria, heady
and smooth at the same time !!
By Ayushman Mitra
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