FilmIndia (1948)

OQ5 ( This is the render's forum — as and when space permits. From the producer to the lay film-eoer, evtry one can write to the Editor and ventilate his grievance. For every letter published in these columns, the publithits will pay R*. 5'Letters should be signtd and mat ked " Hoes And Fchocs". Photographs of the readers will be published along with thtir letters, if convenient. — The Editor.) PILGRIMS ALL "The other day I went to see Shanta ram's ".Teevan Yatra" at the local Prabhat. The picture turned out to be the rottenest show I've seen this year and easily one of the worst pictures I ever had the misfortune to witness. "The story is simply ridiculous and the innumerable coincidences stretch one's imagination to 'ho utmost. Tho-e is not even a sing'e moment of intellectual relief in ifs 11.110 feet of boredom. The new girl Nayrn Tara is the most anaemic rctrcss t^a* has ever appeared on the Indian screen. In addition she has a hunch back paid her fa^e disnlavs numerous wrink'es. Either she is over forty years or she is a sicklv girl. Whatever she is. it is most shocking to r^ad this dame being boosted as the "vogue of the screenland." She dees not possess even rn atom of acting talent. Her diction is awful and everything about her is miserable. "Baburro Pendharkar plays the role of a robber chieftain and in doing so keeps his dialogue well inside his mouth lest we come to know how to become a goonda ring leader. He simplv murders the beautiful Hindustani language and makes it sound worse than Tamil. Janki Da?s in the role of a bookworm keeps wondering why he took up to screen acfing at the cost of cycling. Only Yakub, at places gives a good performance. The music of the picture reminds us of the screeches which we hear when a heavy plmirah is being pulled. The photography of the picture is so du'l that I often wondered whether all these incidents took place between 7 p.m. and 5 am "The most shocking thing in the picture, however, is that Yakub has a scrape with a robber, for the hand of the o'd maid, and throws him over a cliff. We are fhown the man covering at least 3.000 feet of the atmosphere before landing. When Yaqub is tak en away to be beheaded for pushing this goonda. he turns up with a eoup'e of bandages. Everyone in the picture house (there were hardly 20 in the balconv seats, and it was on-y the second weekl gasped for breath and were stunned to see mirae'es being performed in this atomic age. "In short, the whole picture can best be described by this one word "stupid." To go to see ".Teevan Yatra" is to go on a pilgrimage of stupidity. This picture is a crving shame for Shantarpm who s+vles himse'f as India's greatest director and is cal'ed a master erpftsman and a wizard of motion picture production by umpteen paid pipers. This is the fifth successive flop from tlm one time great director r.nd I am afraid many more 'kalas' are under production at the KaUnmandir Studio." T*. A'. Fczhtr Rahman. BANGALORE. NOTHING SURPRISES ME! "You will be surprised to note the rates of admission in English cinemas of Delhi. In matinee shows the rates are 1-2, 2-4, 3-6 and in the evening shows, the same are 2-4, 3-6 and so on. Even in Bombay the premier city of India, the exhibitors do not charge so much. Just imagine a person going for an evening show having to spend 2-4 which is the minimum." Nana1 Kumar Bhatia. MATHURA. OUR LOSS "Meerut is one of the largest towns of U.P. and its importance is increasing daily. There are cinema houses here showing Hindustani pictures but it is a pity that not one of them is up to the standard of being visited by gentlemen. The projectors pre all old and to the utter disgust of the visitors, sometimes fail in the midst of the show. The seating arrangement is so hopeless, that rotten wooden chairs are supplied in the one rupee class. The sound equipment in some cinemas is so bad that it is hard to distinguish between a man and a woman's voice. Nargis does not seem to be appreciating what Violet and Sunalini Devi propose in "Romeo and Juliet", a Nargis Art picture to be released through Diamond Pictures. 61