Down Memory Lane : Majboor

Mr. Bond |

23 | February 28, 2007 at 1:47 pm | 45 views | NaachGaana Bol| Share

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http://www.planetbollywood.com/displayReview.php?id=041406055849

Majboor is one of Bollywood’s most untouched classics. It is a complete suspense thriller with a flawless story and screenplay, which is packed with equally flawless performances.

The film revolves around a simple middle-aged man Ravi (Amitabh Bachchan), who works as a travel agent. He is the sole income earner in his family which consists of his aging mother, younger brother and crippled sister ( color=”#800080″>Farida Jalal) who he loves dearly. Over a period of time Ravi starts experiencing intense pain in his head and it is later discovered that he has a brain tumor. He is now worried that if he dies, there will be no one to look after his family. That’s when Ravi strikes upon an idea.

Ravi’s client Surendra Sinha (Murad), was kidnapped and killed and his murderer was not found. The police, however, had a slight

suspicion that perhaps it was Ravi who committed the crime because he was the last person to see him alive. Surendra Sinha´s brother, Narendra Sinha (Satyen Kapoo) has offered a 5 lakhs reward to anyone who captures the killer. Ravi decides to play a trick in which he takes the blame on his shoulders and gets the 5 lakhs so that if he does die, his family will have the 5 lakhs to live on thereafter.

Ravi is prosecuted for the crime (though he did not do it) and given the death sentence. Prior to his death sequence Ravi has another seizure and an operation is conducted which surprisingly removes Ravi´s tumor. Ravi realizes what he has done and he doesn’t want to die. The only way Ravi can live again is if he catches the real killer of Surendra Sinha. So begins Ravi´s mission to find the real killer. Alongside him is his girlfriend (Parveen Babi).

The movie’s major addictiveness is its story, screenplay and dialogues by Salim-Javed. The plot of the movie sounds simple, yet the execution and breakneck pace of the film works far beyond simplicity. Undoubtedly, amongst the classics that this duo has delivered in terms of writing in Bollywood history, Majboor rates amongst their best. It’s amazing how this duo has written a tightly packed, near flawless and gripping suspense thriller.

Performance wise the film belongs to the one man who steals the show Amitabh Bachchan. He breathes life into the character of Ravi and one is actually convinced that we are watching “Ravi” on screen and not Amitabh Bachchan. Majboor definitely rates in

Amitabh´s top ten performances. His facial expressions, explosive dialogues and overall performance is simply markable. Parveen Babi is simply ok in her short role, which could have been played by most other actresses of that time like Zeenat Aman or Rekha. But the movie doesn’t provide much scope for a female character since the film’s script is a

character of its own.

Pran’s portrayal of Michael is also excellent. His entry into

the movie has a strong impact on the viewer and his scenes in the film certainly make it

much more enjoyable. He infuses more life into the second half of the movie and matches

Bachchan step to step in the second half in terms of histrionics. Satyen Kapoo, Farida

Jalal, Mac Mohan and Iftekar all play their parts well.

Musically the film

stands out on one number that is played three times in the movie and is perfectly placed. Dekh

Sakta Ho Main Kuch Bhi Hote Hue and Nahin Main Nahin Dekh Sakta Tujhe Rote

Hue are numbers that stand out (especially the latter which was a hit number at its

time). Laxmikant Pyarelal have excelled in the music department.

Director Ravi Tandon does a fine job of directing a suspense thriller. He maintains the

film at a breakneck pace without divulging into any unwanted comedy sequences keeping the film tightly knit. The romance

sequences seem to flow well with the movie, though there aren’t too many. Tandon also

extracts superlative performances from his entire cast and is complimented well by Salim-Javed´s terrific script.

Certain portions will remain in your memory long after the film is over. Some include,

Amitabh’s first run in with Iftekar when he has to recall what he did that night

after he left Surendra Sinha’s car. The scene where Amitabh has his first mind

seizure; The scene where he purchases a fish tank and has another mind seizure; The scene

where the doctor tells him he has brain tumor and several others have quite a lasting impression on the viewer.

Overall Majboor is a hands down classic till this day-and the movie remains a

suspenseful and thrilling ride right to the end. Even by today’s standards Majboor is

perfect in its essence. The film is clearly a classic thriller from some of

Bollywood’s best talents.

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Revisiting DOSTANA (Hindi, 1980)

There Are 23 Responses So Far. »

007 28 February 2007
01:53:49 pm

That was the greatness of AB, that in most roles he would not look AB but would convince everybody that he “was the character” he was playing. Most actors appear the same in every role.

007 28 February 2007
01:55:21 pm

SRK also was great in that sense in some films like Baazigar/Dar and DDLJ etc. The other actor is Amir who is convincing.

007 28 February 2007
01:57:28 pm

Although I love Sanjay Dutt, I would not put him in that category. Hrithik – no sir. Abhishek did an awesome job in Guru but will have to perform in a few more to be added to that list IMO

Rocky 28 February 2007
01:58:10 pm

Phoolo ka taron ka sabka kehna hai.. bhi issi movie ka hai na ???

akshay shah 28 February 2007
02:05:13 pm

Thoguht this review sounded familiar:) I wrote it a long time ago..thanks for reposting bhai!!!!! I simply LOVE this movie, it’s a GEM!

Rocky: Phoolo Ka Taron Ka Sabka Kehna Hai is from Dev Anands HARE RAMA HARE KRISHNA with Dev and Zeenat Aman! The song here is Nahin Main Nahin Dekh Sakta Tujhe Rote Huye:)

PRAN rocked here and I LOVE that climax scene still…what a film!!!!

Sameer 28 February 2007
02:13:30 pm

So, even Majboor is a classic? LOL!

Rocky 28 February 2007
02:13:42 pm

Thanks AKS !!!

Rocky 28 February 2007
02:17:45 pm

Why Not Sameer ???

akshay shah 28 February 2007
02:25:08 pm

Sameer: You will be surprised, but Majboor has always been hailed as a “classic” by viewers since the time the movie released, I suggest you go watch the movie again, it holds the test of time REMARKABLY well and gives most of the thrillers released in todays time a run for it’s money!

Khalnayak 28 February 2007
05:07:01 pm

I haven’t heard of this film before! Is it really that good Akshay? I might as well get a hand on this!

rajen 28 February 2007
05:48:01 pm

Guys,
You dont even know what a classic is.Thats reserved for Ram Jaane/KANK/EBDM etc.

akshay shah 28 February 2007
05:53:13 pm

Khalnayak:you wil love Majboor-get it!!! It was Salim-Javed at their creative best and is one of the most inventive, suspenseful and gripping thrillers! Bachchans “common man” performance as a man who finds out he has a few weeks to live, and the turn of events is just too damn good. Pran is wicked here and the climax is a masterstroke….stands the test of time well..MAJBOOR is priceless!!

Rajen:LOL!

Khalnayak 28 February 2007
05:54:10 pm

LOL Rajen.. but seriously speaking i actually have known some Srk fans who hail Ram Jaane as a classic and a brilliant peice of acting frm Srk lol

Also how dare you forget Gudu and ODYHI in that lists of classics of yours?? you better have some explanation for that LOL

rajen 28 February 2007
05:59:27 pm

Sorry Khalnayak.Galti se mishtake ho gaya!

akshay shah 28 February 2007
06:00:49 pm

RAM JAANE is ONE VERY OVERRATED performance from Shahrukh—a poor mans imitation(NOT take) of Amitabh…this is Shahrukh at his hammiest worse, and I can sit through CHAHAT and SHAKTI-THE POWER performances more than RAM JAANE! The BEST thing bout this movie is Pankuj Kapur aka Technicolour!

Sameer 28 February 2007
06:33:00 pm

Akshay, I thought you liked SRK’s Ram-Jaane’s performance!

Aditya 28 February 2007
09:56:31 pm

‘majboor’ is indeed one of amitabh’s most underrated films. very taut, well-acted suspense thriller. besides this film, amitabh had other awesome but rarely talked about films like bemisaal, mili, faraar, do aur do paanch, main azaad hoon, etc

abid 28 February 2007
10:16:56 pm

007 – Please credit the review to Akshay Shah ( kindly edit)

Thanks

akshay shah 28 February 2007
10:41:20 pm

Sameer: Ram Jaane is one SRK performance that has not held the test of time rather well at all. I loved this performance when I first saw it, had a definite “bachchan” aura to it, but after viewing it again it comes across SOOOO FAKE AND FORCED I cringed! I can still sit through Shahrukhs CHAHAT and SHAKTI acts again(both of which got heavily slammed) however RAM JAANE I cannot!

Aditya: Glad you mentioned all the films on that list—FARAAR is a NEAT little film, I simply LOVE the song MAIN PYAARA TUM SAAWAN! And MAIN AZAAD HOON is another film that ranks in Bachchans top 10 performances….he was powerhouse here!

A.Shah

mgshah 1 March 2007
12:27:15 am

farrar and majboor are both very good films and majboor would be an awesome script to remake/update.

akshay shah 1 March 2007
01:25:06 am

MAJBOOR would be an FANTASTIC remake!!! And Dare I say…I said this a while ago..I would love to see a remake with either SRK or Akshay Kumar!

mgshah 1 March 2007
01:33:30 am

i’d like someone like devgan or akshaye khanna(my top choice). abhishek would be good, and not b/c he’s bachchan’s son. and i guess could also see srk, akshay, and saif. but the other three are my top choices along w/ saif.