Baiju Bawra

Baiju Bawra is a divine concoction of heavenly music and romanticized emotions. The movie is about the life of a dhrupad musician and understandably, Hindustani music lies at its heart. The album composed by Naushad got him his only Filmfare award and with a cast comprising of Shakeel Badayuni as the lyricist, Mohd.Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar, Ustad Amir Khan and Pandit D.V.Paluskar as the singers, it is no wonder that the movie gifts the world with a timeless masterpiece.

Bharat Bhushan perfectly portrays the diverse sides of Baiju's character ranging from a romantic to a troubled revenge seeker although at many a times his emotions seem exaggerated and forced . Meena Kumari takes the limelight for her depiction of Gauri, a bubbly village girl with a pure heart and an undying devotion to Baiju. The character of Gauri is further embellished by the voice of Lata Mangeshkar and the result is simply magical.

Beneath all the layers of music and drama,the movie tries to show how big names exercise excessive power and try to overshadow the lesser known figures. It also depicts the rigidity of the caste system and how the lower income groups can be in such a setting.

The movie is a gem in the the crown of Bollywood and one that should not be missed.