FilmIndia (1939)

Pound the town "ZAMANA" Producers: Krishin Movietone — Story and Scenario: K. S. Daryani — Direction: Ram S. Daryani — Dialogues & Songs: D. N. Madhok — Photography: S. R. Narasimha — Recording: J. B. Jagtap — Music: Sunderdas - Cast: Padmadevi (The Colour Queen), Nazir, Bansi Karnatki, Gope, Dar, Master Vasant, Gulab, Hansa Wadker & others. Releaesd at: Imperial Cinema, Bombay. Date of Release: 10th December 1938. This is a powerful story, which provides a strong argument against the evils of the dowry system prevalent amongst the Hindus. The picture vividly depicts the pathetic plight of a newly wedded pair, suppressing their modernism and making it serviceable to orthodoxy, which inspite of this homage indulges in merciless persecution till a once promising home is wrecked and lost in grim tragedy. This picture is an entertainment of tears, — tears which come out In sympathy and leave a soothing feeling behind. The Story: Professor Govind, i3 a modern educated youth with rich parents who are utterly orthodox. His mother is anxious to see her son wedded, preferably to a girl whose parents can give a big dowry. As events turn out. however. Govind marries Sushila an educated girl from a poor family of two brothers, who possess only a small house in the village as their sole wealth. But the house is sold and Sushila is married to Professor Govind. Govind's mother does not receive the new bride well and now starts a villifying campaign against the new comer. Govind tries his best to put some sense into his parents, but fails. Affairs soon become tragic and the drama ends with Sushila and her two brothers dying in the lap of tragedy and Govind becoming a wreck. Acting: Padmadevi as Sushila has a very sympathetic role to play. She does this superbly, bringing tears to the eyes of the onlookers with her intensely pathetic performance. A sharp contrast to this role is provided by Gulab as the mother of the hero. Gulab's portrayal is excellent, and certain scenes she carries to success on her shoulders. Nazir as Professor Govind is good. Dar as Mohan the elder brother of the heroine wins our sympathy without seeking it. With an excellent diction and suitable emotion, this clever artiste has made the story vivid. In his younger brother Gulab. well-played by Master Vasant, Dar gets the requisite support. The comic interludes were portrayed by Mr. Ram Dariani, our smallest and youngest director whose recent effort "Zamana" has won the applause of all. Gope and Amir Karnatki rather well. Hansa Wadker showed considerable improvement in a minor role. Production: Ram Daryani, the Director of this picture gets our congratulations for the clever direction of a beautiful story which was not so easy to handle. The scenario of the story was beautifully written with a professional eye on balancing the dramatic values. K. S. Daryani rightly enjoys the reputation of being called the "Shakespeare of Sindh". (The reviews published under this section are useful both to the average cine-goer and the exhibitor. Several technical aspects which are of importance to the exhibitor in his bookings have been treated here in short, maintaining, at the same time, the casual interest of readers in general.) The story of Zamana does him great credit, as Mrs. Leelavati Munshi. M.L.A. put it while opening the picture at the Imperial Cinema. The photography was generally good and beautiful in outdoors. Recording called for a little more care. Dialogues are beautifully written. The music was pleasant and correct. Padmadevi's songs particularly appealed due to her melodious voice. Editing of the picture is praiseworthy. Points of Appeal: In saying that no one should miss this excellent picture, we have said everything about it. The instruction in the picture, however, is implied in its treatment on the evils of the dowry system. The performances of Padmadevi, Gulab and Dar are attractive and worth a visit. The picture takes our vote as an excellent production with an intensely sensible subject. "THE STREET SINGER" Producers: New Theatres Ltd. — Story & Direction: Phani Mazumdar — Photography: Dilip Gupta and Sudhish Ghatak — Recording: Loken Bose — Dialogues: A. H. Shore — Songs: Arzu — Music: R. C. Boral — Editing: Kali Raha — Cast : Saigal, Kanan, Jagadish, Bikram, Ramkumari and others — Released at: Minerva Talkies, Bombay. Date of Release: 24th November, 1938. It is a romance of the streets. Two orphans — a boy and a girlteam together to make a living primarily as street singers. Their rise to fame and adventures on way are described in the story with the ultimate dis-illusionment after ac 43