FilmIndia (Feb-Dec 1949)

)UR REV7FW "Ram Baan", An Unpardonable Slander On Hindus ! Pregnant Shobhana Acts Sita! Of all the filthy and misconceived rsions of Ramayana that have ap;ared on the screen so far, "Ram an" of Prakash is perhaps the orst of its type. "Ramayana", says Professor Moer Williams, "is undoubtedly one the greatest treasures in Sanskrit terature. The classical poetry, clear;ss and simplicity of its style, the :quisite touches of true poetic feelg with which it abounds, its gralic description of the heroic inci:nts, nature's grandest scenes, the ;ep acquaintance it displays with a conflicting workings and most reled emotions of the human heart. 1 entitle it to rank among the most :autiful compositions that have ap;ared at any period or in any counThe character of Rama is nobly rtravd. It is only too consistently iselfish to be human. We must in ct bear in mind that he is half a »d, yet though occasionally dazzlI by flashes from his superior naMre, we are not often blinded or beA|ildered by it. ^ "As to Sita, sh-» is a paragon of mestic virtues. Sita is the noblest eal of a woman. Her noble and 1m devotion to her lord, her ununded love, her exalted conception the eternal, nay. divine relation of wife to her husband are ideals unralleled for loftiness and sublimity any language or literature". AND PRAKASH'S RAM AY AN ? Prakash's "Ram Baan" gives us an tirely different and distorted picre of Ramayana, the epic which s become the sacred and spiritual ide and symbol of millions of indus all over the world. Ramayana is no longer merely ic poetry. Through ages of devon to it, Ramayana has now come be worshipped as a r?ligious scripre of the Hindus and as such any rties taken with its spiritual conts and teachings, as embodied in time-honoured incidents, must rt the religious susceptibilities of 5 Hindus. The warriors of the past ve become gods of the present and illions of Hindus have learnt to Worship the name of Ram as the sym bol of Divinity. Gandhiji, the father of our nation, sang the song of Ram all his life and even used his last breath to shape the name of Ram as his final offering of a life-time of devotion. Apart from the cultural treasure which we inherit with the name of Ram. it is impossible to tear out from the hearts of millions the altar of spiritual perfection and Divinity with which the word. Ram is identified. PREGNANT "SITA" ! To such millions of devotees of Ram. Prakash's "Ram Baan" must cause intense pain because of the idiotic portrayals of the main characters and the distortion of timehonoured incidents. To these millions of Hindu devotees Prakash presents Prem Adib as Ram and Shobhana Samarth as Sita. Could our gods be slandered more? Prem Adib w ith his thick and stretched nostrils, silly and short stature and his sagging and emaciated muscles makes a disgustingly poor picture of our warrior-god who by virtue of his skill in archer and the RAM BAAN Producers: Language: Story : Dialogue: Prakash Pictures Hindi Mohanlal Dave Pt. Girish Songs: Pt. Indra, Moli & Tiwari Music: S. Vyas Photography: G. N. Shirodkar Audiography: L. J. Bhatt Cast: Prem Adib, Shobhana Samarth, Umakant, Chandramohan, Amirbai, Lila Misra etc. Released At: Super, Bombay Date of Release: 2nd December 1948 Directed By: VIJAY BHATT strength of his character gave to millions an epic of events which has now become a religious scripture. Prakash presents the eight-month pregnant Shobhana as Sita. Her pregnancy stares every one in the eye and becomes a sickly and sacrilegious spectacle through 14147 feet of the film. Motion pictures are primarily meant for the eye and the eye must necessarily see the correct shape of characters before they appeal to the heart. It is contrary to the spirit of loftiness and sublimity associated w ith the name of Sita to ask a woman in her dangerously delicate condition to play a role which is worshipped by millions as the noblest and divine ideal of a woman. Why Jairaj needs a drink with Madhubala so attractively placed beats our imagination in "Singhar", a social theme directed by J. K. Nanda. 41