Guru Dutt

My sister during her recent trip to India, wanted to gift something to me (for what?) before she returned to US. This 'tokenish' token of affection was a gift coupon from Odyssey. It was obvious that this action was just 'tokenish' (without any research on other possibilities) because Odyssey didnt have any books/DVDs that I wanted (what sort of a bookstore it is?), despite showing it on online catalogue. I finally decided to use one coupon at Odyssey, Chennai to buy DVDS of GodFather I and II. I found it in Bengaluru that those DVDs dont work in Philips DVD player :o After two more trips to Odyssey, Bengaluru, I finally settled on a set of DVDs of classic Guru Dutt films. It actually proved to be a serendipity.

I have gone many times to film festivals over weekends in Chennai. I was awestruck by the b/w cinematography of Mexican films made in 1940s or even before. In India, it is tough to get such work even with all the modern 'comforts'. Of course, most b/w films in India are like a camera placed in front of a stage, given the big drama/theatre background in different states. Indoor shooting mostly led to development of studios. There were a few exceptions even in those days when SS Vasan or Sridhar resorted to outdoor shooting even in b/w films.

In Hindi, I had great regard for Dev Anand, because it was in his films that I saw outdoors. Much was talked about Satyajit Ray's work in Pather Panchali, but I really found it pretty ordinary. In comparison, Guru Dutt's movies are masterpieces in Hindi cinema. It looks Hindi cinema has no real 'native' players. If not for Guru Dutt, who is from Karnataka, they wouldnt have known what is film-making. If not for Burmans, they wouldnt have know what is music in films. I now read that Dev Anand and Guru Dutt did share quite a lot.

To quote from the link, Remembering his old friend Guru Dutt, Anand quotes, “He was a young man he should not have made depressing pictures…”. I dont know if I like films made with heavier heart, but I know that I surely dont like 'goody-goody/mushy-mushy' films. When I read V.K. Murthy awarded Dada Saheb Phalke Award. I remembered seeing his name in Bharat Ek Khoj. I now realize that he has shot almost all films of Guru Dutt. Some of the shots are really milestones in Indian cinematography. Some scenes shot my regard for Guru Dutt by light years immediately. Though Kaagaz Ke Phool is immediate in capturing our visual attention, I thought Pyaasa was the real classic. I think Guru Dutt had a keen eye on the lyrics and was probably very particular on Mohammed Rafi. I personally prefer Rafi over Kishore Kumar on any day. He also seems to understand Urdu quite well and dialogues/lyrics are too deep.