Phool Aur Patthar

Phool Aur Patthar review :

Long before Salman Khan went shirtless to evoke cheers from his fans, the original He-man of Bollywood - Dharmendra - appeared bare chested in O. P. Ralhan's Phool Aur Patthar which established his image of a macho action star. The minute garam Dharam removes his shirt and starts moving towards a sleeping Meena Kumari only to cover her with it, the audience used to go berserk with excitement. A young voluptuous Shashikala seducing Dharam in the song 'Sheeshe se pee yaa paimane se" was another 'taalimaar' moment in the film.

Dharam played the kind hearted toughie Shaaka who protects the widowed Meena Kumari and tries to turn a new leaf but fate has something else in store...

The beautiful Meena Kumari and Dharam shared a solid chemistry which ensured Phool Aur Patthar to be a roaring hit at the ticket counters. It also became a re-run favourite at Paradise Cinema, Mahim playing multiple times there in the '80s and '90s when I saw it on one such occasion. Dharam's entry and the shirtless scene evoked ceetis from the audience even after so many years.

Dharmendra's Shaaka character was replicated many times in other '80s films particularly in Pahlaj Nihalani's Aag Ka Gola (1989) where beta Sunny Deol played the namesake good hearted goon.

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.