Hum Dono (Rangeen)

Actors: Dev Anand,Dev Anand, Sadhna,Nanda, Lalita Pawar, Gajanand Jagirdar

Director: Amar Jeet

Yes, ‘Hum Dono’ is back. The 1961 film about two look-alike soldiers who become friends at war, is as far-fetched in plot as say, today’s ‘Dabangg’ or James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’. Indeed, the film’s old-world values of valour, integrity, loyalty, fidelity and trustworthiness seem to belong to another era, if not a completely different planet. They are rescued from fading by computer-coloured velocity. Admittedly even today ‘Hum Dono’ makes a fairly engaging triangular love story with war at its backdrop. The coloured version that has come to us now leaves us with mixed feelings. Though at first one enjoys the splash of colour that is added to V. Ratra’s outstanding black-and-white cinematography, a lot of the film’s original visual intensity is lost in colourised translation.

We are left wondering who decided what colour Dev Anand’s shirt or Sadhana’s sari was meant to be! Did the colour-generating department check with the film’s core team to decide the colour schemes? If not, is it ethical or even legally permissible to tamper with the film’s creators’ original vision? The Dolby-enhanced sound leaves no room for quibble. Jaidev’s music score, considered by many aficionados to be one the 10 finest Hindi motion-picture soundtracks of all times, heals all the wounds of excessive coloured flamboyance. Whether it is Mohammad Rafi and Asha Bhosle’s duet ‘Abhi na jao chhod kar’ or Lata Mangeshkar’s immortal bhajan ‘Allah tero naam’, or those two imperishable Rafi ghazals ‘Kabhi khud pe kabhi halaat pe rona aaya’ and ‘Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya’ you just can’t help being swept into the sheer melody of the moment.

The casually stylish way the songs are shot, the sharp closeups being intercut with lyrical poetic long-shots, incidental but intense interludes of passion played out in the visual detailing, all carry the distinctive stamp of Vijay Anand who wrote ‘Hum Dono’. The film’s direction is credited to Amarjeet, who later directed Dev Anand in a film called ‘Gambler’. Ah, Dev Anand…a star beyond any definition of stardom! He shines with meteoric melancholy in the double role of men at war with themselves, much more than for his country. The way this debonair actor enacts the solo numbers by Rafi makes you wonder if the song came first? Or was the song inspired by the face that conveys the numbers on screen? Sadhana (impish, coquettish) and Nanda (tremulously poignant) are lovely supplements to the Dev Anand mystique. What was he thinking when he romanced these beautiful ladies?Surely more than what Sahir Ludhianvi’s love-lorn lyrics describe!

They don’t make stars like Dev Anand any more. They never will. Or for that matter a film so suffused in the splendour of its own cultivated grace is impossibly to come by in today’s era of pelvic passion. Old world charm - That's the major most reason for one to check out what 'Hum Dono Rangeen', the coloured version of Dev Anand's 'Hum Dono', has to offer. Re-releasing after half a century has passed by, the film has also been technically enhanced by means of sound and cinemascope viewing, something that makes it a promising viewing for those who haven't caught the movie yet.

The story here is about a jobless youth (Dev Anand) and his rich girlfriend (Sadhna) who can't live together due to their class boundaries. Feeling jilted, the young man joins the Army and finds a senior who is his look-alike (Dev Anand again) and already married (to Nanda). The two become thick friends but when the senior goes missing on the war-field, the junior has to take the responsibility of filling up for him at the home-front. How he struggles while trying to live a dual life is what 'Hum Dono Rangeen' is about.

The person who makes the entire revisit of the film worth it is the man at the hot seat, Dev Anand, who (with his unmistakable charm) still manages to win your heart. He plays two distinct characters in both his roles and brings in a difference through physical appearance, body language as well as mannerisms. Amongst the leading ladies, Sadhna is of course easier on eyes due to her more 'crowd friendly' characterisation since Nanda is shown to be already married and also bed ridden for large portions in the film. It has to be noted though that the film doesn't really have many twists and turns save the one around the pre-climax. An extended war sequence before the interval is done well though.

'Hum Dono Rangeen' isn't one of those stylised films, something that Dev Anand has been famous for. Instead, the shot taking is simple, sets pretty ordinary and production values average as well. Also, for those who are used to watching films that last under two hours, 'Hum Dono Rangeen' is indeed a test of patience. There are long drawn scenes and extra long pauses that contribute in a major way to result in a near three hour long affair. In fact it wouldn't have been a bad idea if a snappier, under two and a half hours version, of the film would have actually been released. Nevertheless, what gets etched in your memory are the songs with (of course) 'Main Zindagi Ka Saath', 'Abhi Na Jaayo Chorr Kar' and 'Allah Tero Naam' being the pick of the lot.

With a passage of 50 years and hence 10000 films, it isn't difficult to predict how the storyline of 'Hum Dono Rangeen' will take the shape. What could have been mighty original then would seem stale or repetitive today. This is the reason why one has to keep this in mind while watching the film. Also, there are number of other changes that have happened over a period of time. The mode of communication, family values, relationships, patience there are so many places where one feels that if a similar situation would have taken place in the current era, the outcome would have been different.