Amar prem (1971)

अमर प्रेम

One of the recurring archetypes of Hindi film is that of the saintly courtesan, forced by circumstance into a degrading way of life, yet capable of pure and unconditional love.  She stands for downtrodden, misunderstood womanhood, for inner purity that shines through the most miserable debasement.  She might stand for Mother India debased by colonial rape.  She is almost certainly an overdetermined symbol, with meanings that resonate far more deeply than the recent memories of the British Raj and Independence, meanings rooted in the ancient mythologies of India.  Amar prem ("Undying love") draws on this archetype, and while I enjoyed the film, I can't help thinking I would have appreciated it much more if I knew enough to fully unpack the metaphor. 

Pushpa (Sharmila Tagore) is thrown violently out of her husband's home after he tires of her apparent infertility and brings home a shrewish second wife.  Pushpa returns to her home village to a lukewarm reception; even her own mother is predisposed to believe that her exile is due to some bad conduct of Pushpa's own, and she is treated as a fallen woman:  shunned, disrespected, and molested.  Desperation leads her to a brothel in Calcutta, where she quickly earns the regular patronage of a wealthy, married businessman named Anand (Rajesh Khanna).  Meanwhile a family from Pushpa's village moves in across the street, including a little boy named Nandu who is shunned and mistreated by his stepmother.  Pushpa takes to Nandu, treating him to sweets and samosas when his stepmother is too busy or too angry to feed him. 

The remainder of the film chronicles the reverberations of Pushpa's kindness on Anand, Nandu, Nandu's father, and others, throughout their lives.  Pushpa's saintliness is truly boundless.  She cares for Anand, whose cryptic pronouncements make him something of a sphinx - a squinting, drunken, pontificating sphinx.  Late in the film Pushpa is thrown back into contact with the husband whose cruelty started her on the path to degradation and suffering, and she takes the magnanimous road in that circumstance as well.  Indeed, I would have found Pushpa a more interesting character had she shown any weakness at all, rather than a limitless capacity for both enduring pain and dishing out love.  It is this unreality of Pushpa that leads me again to the conclusion that she is pure allegory, pure symbol, and it is only because of my own ignorance of her antecedents that I do not fully appreciate her.  In the end of the film a direct identity is established between Pushpa and the goddess Durga; I do not know enough of the mythology of Durga to understand what this identity is telling me about Pushpa, about suffering, and about motherly love.

In short, Amar Prem, with its themes of mother-worship and woman's limitless capacity to endure suffering, is so very Indian as to be almost inaccessible to me, as a relatively ignorant outsider after less than two years of exposure to Indian films.  This is not an indictment of the film, however - rather, it incites my curiosity, because if very Indian themes had no resonance with me at all I would not have spent the better part of the last two years watching them and writing about them.  And so I invite all of you who can to offer any insight on what a film like Amar Prem has to say to an audience that understands the metaphoric language in which it speaks. 

The one thing that I could unequivocally appreciate about Amar Prem - other than the loveliness of Sharmila Tagore - was its beautiful soundtrack by the incomparable R.D. Burman.  Unlike other Burman soundtracks of the era, with their funky fusion sounds, there are no rockout tunes in Amar Prem - just one sensuous, haunting melody after another, with a thoroughly Indian yet fresh and contemporary sound.  The songs lack the flashiness of Burman's other popular endeavors, but the soundtrack is nevertheless one of his finest, a slow burn that works its way gradually into one's heart.  I could only find two examples, via YouTube:  "Chingare koi bhadke", and "Yeh kya hua," neither of which is my favorite, but they are lovely nevertheless.   

Comments

[Sanni]

I really like Sharmila and will never judge her choices in life but I can't help but think of the incredible irony of her doing these sort of "mother worship" movies (Aradhana, another Rajesh-Sharmila film was one, too) while basically choosing her career over family life. I read some recent interview with her where she basically said she was so busy working she didn't really get to raise her son and soon he was shipped off to private school. So she's only gotten to really know him now that he's an adult. Not throwing a pity party for Saif here, though, he turned out juuust fine, but still, interesting. Makes me understand the decisions of actresses who do let their career go for the sake of family (eg Madhuri, Kajol) more.

Came to your blog from Beth's, I think...I'm Bitterlemons on Bollywhat.

I think the music of Amar Prem was understood to have been by S.D.Burman's really - and that he "allowed" his son to put his name on it. At least, that is the general opinion that I am familiar with, because, like you said, the music of this movie is very unlike other R.D.Burman stuff, but is very S.D.Burmanish...

Regards,

Bitterlemons.

[carla]

sanni - no doubt it's difficult to balance work and family in any profession, least of all one that might require you to be away from home for weeks at a clip and attend parties and other public functions in the evenings. I try very hard not to judge women who opt out of struggling with that very delicate balance. (I don't always succeed, bu I try.)

Your post gave shape to something else that bugged me about Sharmila's character in *Amar prem*: she stands for perfect motherly love, but she got to do this because she wasn't actually a mother - she had the kid for ten seconds a day and fed him sweets and samosas! Not exactly rising to the full challenge of motherhood.

Bitterlemons, thanks for stopping by. I hadn't thought of the S.D. ghostwriting explanation - you are right that the soundtrack sounded very S.D.-ish. I'm not sure why they would have done this, though, since I would have thought that by this time R.D. was already well on his way. Do you know any more about it? It sounds like a curious and juicy story.

[Daddy's Girl]

Hi Carla,

Interesting review of ‘Amar Prem’. I haven’t seen this movie – been looking for a DVD at the right price (i.e. dirt cheap) for a while… but I found your thoughts on the longsuffering fallen woman/mother figure really intriguing – particularly the fact that you find the metaphor hard to unpack. For me, this depiction is very familiar, and although I can’t unpack her either, I do understand why people are drawn to her again and again.

The idea of the praiseworthy ‘fallen woman’ who has an inestimable power to love, yet is deprived of a ‘natural’ (I’d prefer to say ‘conventional’) outlet for her love; although very strong in Indian film, occurs in many other times and spaces. In a way, it’s a 'universal' theme. I think there is a strong representation of it in Hinduism, although I stand to be corrected. As a Christian, the Biblical story of Rahab, the prostitute who helped Jewish spies at the risk of her life and became a national heroine is very familiar; and in the New Testament, there’s Mary Magdalene, a fallen woman who stands by Christ throughout his ordeal (the male disciples all having run away) and is given the privilege of being one of the first to see the risen Christ.

Moving on from religion (but not underestimating its importance in creating this woman), this theme continues to be strong in Western literature and cinema as well – from the time of Dickens (the unconditionally loving ‘Nancy’ in ‘Oliver Twist’) to the kind-hearted prostitute you can find in any number of modern-day Hollywood movies. And of course, as you pointed out, there are parallels with the concept of the ‘mother nation’. As a ‘child’ of another country that was degraded by the British in the dark days of colonialism, continues to be degraded by her own children today; but is still regarded by us (her children) as warm, welcoming and endlessly giving; I can really relate to that metaphor.

I think there are a number of reasons why this woman, fictional as she is, is so attractive to story-tellers.

First of all, she’s fictional – or is she? There’s a certain mystery about her. Everyone’s met someone who’s kinda like her, but not quite so nauseatingly and annoyingly (at least to me) loving…

Second, there’s the idea that she is able to love and forgive endlessly because she’s been treated so inhumanely – therefore her ability to empathise is boundless.

Third, there is the age old theme of redemption – and a neat contrast: she is ‘unsalvageable’ (in this world of prejudice, everyone knows that once a woman ‘falls’, she can’t get up), yet she has a limitless ability to ‘save’ – and of course, in this male-dominated world, she just has to save a man (would be so refreshing to see her save a girl for once!) Of course, tied to that is the insufferable notion that by saving someone else, she’s indirectly saving herself (codswallop!)

Fourth, from the young male’s point of view, I think there is at least a twinge of the sexual fantasy of a loving angel with dirty wings.

I just thought of a fifth thing (I like prime numbers)… but… no, it’s gone. Maybe it was the thing you’ve already discussed - the whole mother-worship thing (especially worship from her male child) which appears in almost every major religion (you mentioned Durga, there’s (controversially) the 'perfect mother', the Virgin Mary in Catholicism) and in many cultures – and, apart from that, is part of many a man’s ‘reality’.

Anyway, for all these reasons, this woman is not going anywhere in a jiffy. The fact that she is unexplainable, and her actions basically barmy, is a big part of her staying power. I find her interesting for the most part, especially when she is depicted with a level of depth and complexity. I’ve found that, in a lot of movies, she’s purely an object, which, as I pointed out in my review of the film on my blog, is probably what I liked most about Rekha’s portrayal of her in the old ‘Umrao Jaan’ – her Umrao was a ‘real’ person. If they can bring some ‘realness’ to the long-suffering, blindly loving, ever gracious, self-sacrificing 'fallen woman', then I can live with her; much as I cannot understand her, agree with her choices or believe she exists.

I honestly did not mean to rattle on for so long … do forgive!

[carla]

Daddy's girl, thank you, thank you for the interesting and thoughtful comments.

Thank you for pointing out that the symbol of the saintly fallen woman is universal or near-universal. I was caught up in the Indian-ness *Amar Prem*'s incarnation of it and comparing that to other Indian representations of the symbol that I didn't really consider its representations in other cultures.

[V. Manohar]

RAJESH KHANNA - THE GREATEST LEGEND & REAL SUPER STAR OF INDIAN CINEMA.

There are romantic leading men and there are romantic leading men, but very few have taken cinematic love to legendary heights. While there might be other icons but Super-Star- Actor Rajesh Khanna after four decades, he is the ultimate true romantic legend.

[maxqnz]

Very interesting review, Carla. From my personal history, I tend to find the Indic fascination with mothers as idealised all-caring and godlike figures both cloying and irritating, but your comments on the soundtrack caught my eye. Even if I don't watch this movie, I'll be sure to track down the songs. I am particularly interested in trying to develop an appreciation of the differences between the two Burmans.

[Yash]

Hi,

I accidently found your site and well I am astonished by the interest you folks seem to show in Indian films. Don't worry being Indian myself I am prone to too-critical view of them at times...especially with the song-n-dance sequence at the most importune moment (most of the times). But you guys have brought a refreshing outsider views to them all and I am thankful to all for that.

Coming back to the movie I had not though of Sharmila's character as symbolic, I had thought of it as more of an cliche. But it's an interesting theory. I probably need to see the movie again to refresh my memories. And yes indeed, the music of Amar Prem does seem SD Burmanish now that you mention it...

Anyways, you'll probably see me around as I explore this site! :)

PS: for dirt-cheap Indian DVDs try nehaflix.com...enjoy.

[haunted by your hair]

Hi,

I'm watching this movie again right now and I have to say it's a pretty amazing movie.....she really does face injustice at every turn and specifically injustices dealt out to women but her reaction is never anger or
indignation..the songs rock and I'm fascinated by
the Kuch to Log song, it's so bleak and cynical..it's funny how much more I like this movie than Mausam, which has a similar theme. I wonder, when watching this movie and say Mere Ghar Mere Bacche, is the intent of the filmaker that we admire/emulate the saintly and
giving nature of the female charactors, or we examine
society's hypocrisy in it's treatment of them?
From the prespective of an American audience it's really different to see movies
where at no point will the hero/heroine have a montage sequence of doing pullups and
shooting submachine guns in preparation for the final asswhuppin'.
I really appreciate this site.

[Kaushik Chatterji]

Unfortunately, there are people like that whose only weakness happens to be the fact that they are too saintly and virtuous to be living in this world. Guess you need to meet more people.

[Kriti]

I myself am not in a position to understand much of symbolism shown in the movie, being much too young to have witnessed such contexts or such themes which form the very basis of the protagonists life. But I have loved the movie and its soundtrack ever since I was old enough to see it. I am not an archetypical kid of my era. I have enjoyed a lot of classics and seek them out whenever I can. But its the haunting soundtrack of the movie which keeps taking me back to it every so often.

more songs from the said movie from you tube. since you write they are inaccessible to you.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRk9pG5Upe4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95UdAo4JdJI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KngOTfCR7s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saApSghVCOU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpM0jPd6-7w

[jaydeep]

I feel the film is not about the concept of pure womanhood or (stoicism+giving love) completely. Rather it is about the protrayal of absolute concept of love, which in its true sense is quite positive. That is why probably you see only Pushpa's positive points, because the negative have simply not been elaborated on because you will never find any faults in even your mother's love though you may find them outside.

Also, the hero himself is maybe even more stoic and giving than Pushpa, and so is the little boy to his own tiny extent. There have been far many portrayals of the true and pure womanhood. But each has its own primary or secondary flavours which make them different. eg: The faith of Penelope is indeed of importance in the Odyssey, but the exploits of Ulysses are the main fragrance. That is why Ulysses' relation of his journey(about lotophagi, Laestragonians,etc.) is considered as the true Odyssey.

But unlike the example, there are some which are judged on superficial aspects. Like the story of being misinterpreted as simply a tale on masculine heroism (feminine stoicism is just its counterpart). Actually it is the story of man fighting fate/gods on a constant quest of improving himself. This doesn't mean his heroism isn't an aspect, it is just secondary. Similarly, the broad concept of love and how people share it through sacrifices is, I think, is the actual point of this story.

Btw, I felt Anand is much more saintly than Pushpa. His songs which are quite a major part of his character development are just like those sung by saints to enlighten us and cheer us. Sadly, here again we have a hero who is better than the heroine. He is not just stoic and loving, but carries th solid base needed to logically support his thinking and way of life. Nowhere in the film we see Pushpa supporting Anand(maybe due to concept of feminity in 1970s).

[jaydeep]

Really sorry the second example was story of Hercules. Sorry if i talked to much.

[carla]

Kriti - thanks for the links; I wrote this review more than three years ago, and there is a lot more material available on YouTube now than there was then, so the update is appreciated.

Jaydeep - not too much at all, thanks for the thoughtful and detailed comments. I have to admit that casting the film as being about how hard it is to be a man perhaps makes it even less appealing to me than a film about how hard it is to be a woman. <-- said with a wink and tongue firmly in cheek, your comments are intriguing and I am automatically a big fan of anyone who is willing to venture as far afield as classical Greece in analyzing Hindi films. vaah!

[Hans Meier]

Thanks, very interesting review. After Amar Prem i was just totally in love with Sharmila Tagore, but you brought me back to real life, so to speak, with some critical thoughts (not on her acting in the movie, but at least on her role in the movie and in real life).

[carla]

Thanks, Hans. I have been thinking about watching this movie again. I saw it a relatively long time ago and I'd like to watch it again with new perspective. I don't know if my opinion of it would change - and, my dislike for Rajesh Khanna has solidified much since then - but it seems an important enough movie to give a second look.

[Bosco]

This movie is primarily about a strong yet unsung human emotion of caring. The two main characters of Anand (Rajesh Khanna) and Pushpa (Sharmila Tagore) yearn for the same. Also, modern society adds fuel to the fire by not upholding the values of caring which is seen clearly in this movie. First, Pushpa is uncaringly thrown out by her husband (who is pressured by societal norms clearly biased against women) and then abused by others till she arrives in the worst (as per society) possible place. She has reached the nadir in her life. It is here that she finds solace in a man who doesnt objectify her but cares for her. Anand himself is a victim of an uncaring wife. Although, she does not appear in person, she seems to be a so called modern women caught up with all the trappings of the modern world i.e. partying, late nights, etc and least bothered about her husband. Anand merely wants caring which he readily gets from Pushpa at the Brothel. He doesn't judge her, just basks in her caring for him. Also, Nandu the third most important character in the film yearns for caring that he does not get from his step-mother and readily gets from Pushpa. Both Anand and Nandu are so overwhelmed by Pushpa's caring ways that they become oblivious of the social stigma attached to her.

It is the chemistry between Anand, Pushpa and Nandu which is the most appealing part of the story, which depicts that three absolutely unrelated people with no LABEL of a RELATION interact in such a beautiful way that it puts the so called RELATIONSHIP LABEL which they otherwise possess to shame.

[carla]

Thanks for that thoughtful comment, Bosco! I guess I just mentioned that I've been thinking about watching this movie again. Your comment gives me quite a bit to think about when I do that.

[aanwer hashim]

whats the name of child star who played as a Nandu
( Venod Mehra's child Role ). I think might be she was baby girl who played nandu .