Commentaires des utilisateurs

Mahesh Bhatt was one of the finest filmmakers of the 1980s in the Hindi film industry. Most of his films of that period, whether it's Arth, Saaransh or Kaash, dealt with subjects most people have to deal with in their lives. Arth is one of his finest works and is perhaps the most famous of his films of that time. The movie is mainly about marriage, infidelity and divorce, but it also deals with other relevant issues through some of its minor characters. These issues are handled exceptionally well by Bhatt, who keeps everything genuinely life-like and pays attention to details. Arth depicts a world which is real and authentic and it captures the urban lifestyle of that time with complete precision. The dialogues, the characters and the situations are very simple and realistic. That may be the main reason Arth is so moving and riveting. It has the ability to captivate and enthrall simply because it is very easy to relate to.

Arth may particularly inspire women to fight for their rights, but it can equally hearten any individual to never give up, showing that there always is a way of starting everything afresh. The story shows consistent development and is very interesting to see, particularly because its realism allows the viewer connect to the story. The film's main protagonist, Pooja Malhotra, is a true example of that. She is first a dependent wife who cannot even imagine her life without her husband, then a broken woman who mourns his betrayal and abandonment, still hoping to get him back. And finally, after coming to terms with herself, she understands the meaning of life and realises her own strength and ability to stand on her own and do it her way without anyone else's support or mercy. Pooja is a brilliantly written character which is well developed and the viewers highly anticipate the moment she makes a place in the sun.

There's one person who owns Arth and makes it the memorable picture it is today. It is of course Shabana Azmi, who delivers one of the finest performances of Indian cinema. The power of her portrayal seems to come in equal parts from her understanding of the character, and of course from the fact that she does not just act, but becomes. With ease and conviction she transforms into a simple woman who deals with problems in her life. Despite her heartbreak, Pooja never loses her sense of optimism and is brave enough to summon up the courage and fight for her dignity and for her right to find new happiness in life. Pooja's pain, suffering, honesty, growth and ultimately her coming of age, are very real and involving, and that's simply because they are portrayed with rare subtlety, depth and sincerity by Azmi, who, by the way, looks absolutely beautiful, authentic and graceful throughout the movie.

Azmi utterly dominates her scenes, and some of them are unforgettable. Just see Pooja's phone call to Kavita, when she begs the latter to give her husband back to her as she has nothing without him; just see Pooja's devastation and the astonishing pain in her tearful eyes upon seeing her husband with his lover at a party during the poignant Ghazal "Koi Yeh Kaise Bataye"; just see the subsequent scene in which she gets completely inebriated, attacks Kavita and publicly calls her a whore. These scenes show emotional conditions few actresses could master. Apart from other scenes between Pooja and her husband post their separation, another great scene is the one when Pooja goes to meet Kavita. The scene, devoid of clichés, shows both Kavita's conscience and Pooja's forgiving nature, and at the same time we see that Pooja has finally overcome her divorce from her husband and does not hold any grudge.

An equally great actress, Smita Patil delivers an incredibly convincing performance as the mentally unstable actress Kavita Senyal, a role that is smaller but even more complex than that of Azmi. Patil is amazing, performing the most difficult of scenes with unsettling intensity. She displays something very disturbing within her, and yet balances it with naturally played feelings of guilt and moments of sanity. While watching Azmi and Patil share the screen, one can see a competition between the two, a healthy one I mean, not the sort of childish rivalry between the young actresses of today. They were true actresses and unlike the new girls in the industry who may fight over who's had more hits, they competed to enhance the quality of their performances, and this extracted the best out of them. Kulbhushan Kharbanda is excellent as Inder, the infidel husband whose own weakness and confusion lead him to self-ruin.

The supporting cast--from Raj Kiran who plays the aspiring singer who falls for Pooja to Mazhar Khan, Dina Pathak and Kiran Vairale who play minor parts--is superb. But the one who stands out is Rohini Hattangadi, who plays Pooja's nameless housemaid. People often overlook Hattangandi's role, but she is pretty much a reflection of Pooja. Given a role of very minimal screen time, she plays a lower-middle class woman who herself is married to a drunkard who abuses and cheats on her. And she does it with great skill, getting the mannerisms, the dialect and the hopes of people of her region and class exceedingly well. She manages to convey so much of her character's essence, whether it's her way of accepting her fate, her dreams of building a future for her daughter, or her compassion towards Pooja's state (despite having pretty much the same problems and even worse), that it's hard to believe she is there for only 20 minutes. Truly a remarkable feat.

Arth is a fascinating picture about realisation, relationships, and the power of the overcoming human spirit. It proves the talent of all those who were associated with it, and the ending is terrific. A classic gem which deserves the highest of praise, that's it.

My Rating : 9/10

I've seen this movie twice now and thoroughly enjoyed it both times. 'Arth' is one of Mahesh Bhatt's finest and captivated me from the start.

If you don't mind slow-burning drama, certainly seek this out, it is semi-autobiographical (about Mahesh Bhatt's extramarital relationship with Parveen Babi) and with great performances from everyone.

Moving, riveting and simply a classic of parallel Indian cinema. Absolute Must-See.

I am mortally afraid of works of art which are proclaimed as classics by critics and the public. My bullshit antenna goes up and I end up avoiding such mainstream crap most of the time.

The name of the file which I downloaded from the net was "Arth- A Mahesh Bhatt Classic". The nomenclature got my hackles up and I was all ready to tear this apart with my words. I wasn't prepared for the emotions which were about to be unleashed by this cinematic piece of art.

This is a semi autobiographical movie. Mahesh Bhatt casts Kulbushan Kharbanda as himself, a director of advertisements and movies, who falls in love with an actress. Smita Patil plays the role of Parveen Babi. He decides to move in with the actress and leave behind his wife, essayed here by Shabana Azmi.

The dialogues ring true. It seems as if Mr. Bhatt had a small recording device with him when he was having huge rows with his wife and mistress. The direction is excellent. Mr. Bhatt never allows the drama to go over the top and become mawkish. He has a feel for the feminine mentality and the women characters come across as strong and not cardboard caricatures.

The music was composed by the late Jagjeet Singh and the songs include "Tum itna jo... ', lines which have since become immortal.

The acting is the strongest forte of this seminal classic. Azmi gives the performance of a life time as a woman who sees her world go up in smoke. She is vulnerable,teary eyed and then graceful.

This is a must watch for lovers of great drama. You would be blown away by what has increasingly become a rarity these days, an ultimate Hindi movie.

there are very few Indian films that confront real situations, without cheating the audience, treating them like children or giving them what they want instead of what they need. 'arth' is one of those few films.

the story is a simple and timeless one, yet one that is rarely explored in Indian film. what makes it so great is that each side of is represented, with two female points of view, another rarity in Indian film. but the performances are what bring this great story to life. the acting is superb, especially by shabana azmi and smita patil - two women with excellent performances in the same film, which is yet another rarity.

the film is well directed, and mahesh bhatt highlights the emotional impact of the situation very well. not a single shot is wasted and the story unfolds at a perfect pace.

at no point is 'arth' clichéd or predictable, and it tells the story as it should be told. the ending was one that would have made so many other films excellent, yet the storytellers were afraid to tell it. this is the thing i admire most about this film, it never cheats the audience and treats the situation as realistically as possible. most importantly, each of the main characters is three-dimensional, and the film examines each of these characters and their states of mind very well, rather than having them react to events.

the writing, directing, and acting in this film are absolutely perfect and this film is easily one of the best Indian films ever made.

Mahesh Bhatt's 'Arth' is said to be loosely based on his own marriage. The main story is of a woman coming to terms with life after separation from her husband (who was having an affair with an actress). The theme is quite simple and so is the execution but Bhatt gives it a raw but realistic and authentic look. While many have complained that 'Arth' is slow moving, the pace wasn't problematic for me. It's not a slick fast paced movie but I liked that Bhatt takes his time to let the events unfold as the characters are faced with decisions to make. It is very much a character driven piece and the film gives us the time to study these intriguing people. Moreover, Jagjit Singh's ghazals beautifully reflect the inner feelings of the characters.

Bhatt tells the story very convincingly and he has put a lot of heart into it. I liked that he didn't turned Inder Malhotra (the character who's based on himself) into a good guy towards the end and that perhaps his portrayal of his story is honest. But, whether real or not, that doesn't matter because the story in 'Arth' works very well regardless. It is clearly one of his best films.

Shabana Azmi gives a tour-de-force performance as the heartbroken Pooja. It is her film all the way and Azmi displays Pooja's growth with élan. It's one of the strongest portrayals by an actress. Smita Patil is equally fabulous in a smaller role as Kavita, the tormented actress. I always love watching these two actresses share the screen and here too their shared scenes are among highlights of the film. Kulbushan Kharbanda holds his own in a woman-oriented film. The rest of the cast that include Raj Kiran and Mazhar Khan offer adequate support.

'Arth' is a rare gem of the 80s which was known to be the worst decade of Indian cinema.

The is a progressive movie which many director and filmmaker not able deal with.This movie is like mirror to those people who think that they don't have money , try to put extra song and item number.The movie run smoothly and don't bore you. But this movie demands you to be awaken. One can easily relate this movie with anyone or with their life at any point of time.

Arth review :

There have been countless films on extra -marital affairs in bollywood but none come close to Mahesh Bhatt's semi autobiographical take on infidelity - the devastatingly brilliant 'Arth'.

Playing around with just three main characters - Inder (Kulbhushan Kharbanda), his wife Pooja (Shabana Azmi ) and the other woman Kavita (Smita Patil), Mahesh Bhatt layers them with such complexities and personality transformation, it's to the credit of these stalwart actors that they could pull it off with such seeming ease and elan. The characters, though complex, are completely believable and humane.

The core plot is pretty simple - Inder, an ad film director is having an affair on the side with Kavita, an established actress even as he is blissfully wedded to Pooja. Kavita, suffering from schizophrenia, threatens to spill the beans on Pooja leaving Inder no option but to confess (his affair) to Pooja.

Shattered beyond limit, Pooja tries to reconcile with Inder on many occasions offering him a second chance but to no avail. Finally, Pooja learns to battle her sorrows, assumes control over her own life and gets independent (both mentally and financially) enough to turn down Inder's reconciliation plea in the climax.

Yea it's a ladies film - the male lead character is too egoistic and self centered to the extent of leaving his wife in lurch for another woman and then shamelessly, trying to return back to her when his lover deserts him. He's merely a catalyst triggering off the unwanted undeserving events in his ladies' life.

Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil were aptly cast to play the wife and lover respectively and their performances are nothing short of extraordinary. Shabana got the meatier role, did full justice to it and won the National award that year. Admittedly though, I preferred Smita Patil and this is not just because I consider her one of the best bollywood actresses of her time. Watch her in the scene where she, in a demented state of mind, accuses Shabana's character of deliberately scattering her mangalsutra beads all over her house to hurt her and the subsequent one where she breaks off her relationship with Inder. Superlative!

The supporting cast includes Raj Kiran as an aspiring singer who supports Shabana Azmi in her moments of grief. Siddharth and Geeta Kak play the family friends. Mazhar Khan showed promise in a small role.

Music by Jagjit Singh has three memorable ghazals; 'Jhuki Jhuki si Nazar' and 'Tum Itna jo Muskura rahe ho' are two of my personal favorites. Story by Mahesh Bhatt is filled with intense and hard hitting situations - note the confrontation scene between a drunk Pooja and Inder -Kavita at a party and the phone conversation between her and Kavita.

Still looking relevant and contemporary, Arth will affect and move you for sure.

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni

"Arth" by Mahesh Bhatt is a masterpiece and a milestone in Indian cinema. Have started liking this movie when I was in 10th standard and since then it has continued to be one of my most favorites.

All of the three main characters are fabulous. Shabana Azmi's best performance till date. Her portrayal as Pooja in the film is the one which many of us can relate to. Pooja's world is devastated when she learns of her husband's (Inder Malhotra) affair with an actress. Her dreams shattered in a minute. She could not help much about it even as she tries in vain when she begs her husband to give her a second chance to revive the faltering household. One could imagine the hapless situation when the victim asks for a second chance (should be the other way round). Also her situation when she begs before Kavita (the other woman) to leave her husband as she would be all alone without him. This is Pooja's precarious situation and the point from where the character (and the film) picks up and moves smoothly for the rest of the movie length. Pooja's character in the movie is a strong one that demands strong performance. Also, Pooja is shown in the movie as a woman with real life characteristics and not as a saint. Her own shortcomings when she scolds Kavita in an inebriated state in a party. Brilliant performance by Shabana Azmi doing every bit of justice to the character.

Smita Patil has also been equally brilliant. Her character (Kavita Sanyal) is not portrayed as all negative and the human side of the "other woman" has also been shown. The character is also shown to be a sort of deviation from normal human attitude (but not exactly mentally unstable which many people seem to infer). This type of portrayal is complex and difficult and demanded a strong and intense performance and the acting is so brilliant and flawless. Smita has been able to bring out the inner moorings of the "other woman" so successfully.

Kulbhushan Kharbanda has been excellent as the unfaithful husband and his character also needs special mention because it is not shown just as someone who cheats on his wife being cool nor as something which celebrates hyper-masculinity. Rather, the character is shown to be someone who has not been strong enough to remain faithful and exhibits the weakness of the man's mind where he recognizes his own fault, is feeling the guilt but is certainly not able to do anything about it. This also demanded a very strong performance and KB does full justice to it.

Finally, the story is compelling, riveting, direction and editing is awesome. Every small detail is realistically captured. Absolutely nothing is flamboyant or melodramatic. Supporting cast is remarkable especially those of Raj Kiran and Rohini Hattangadi. The climax scene is superbly realistic and outstanding.

Music is all time classic and haunting. Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh are marvelous in music and playback department. Also Kaifi Azmi's lyrics enhances these timeless and classic ghazals which are great by themselves and also suit the story-line so perfectly.

Very less words actually to write about such a timeless classic like "Arth". A must watch for every person with a "genuine heart". A must watch for everyone who admires "genuine art". Thank you!

This is one of the best movies directed by Bhatt. This slow moving movie is dotted with some excellent Gazals sung by Jagjith sing. A good performance again from Shabana Azmi keeps the show going. But personally, I felt the story to be a little dragging. Arth is supposed to be the most popular 'Art' movie among the masses! Strictly recommended for hearing the songs!!

Music of this movie is best best and best... And a very good story

We are familiar with the term, unfaithful wife. Here in this movie we see an unfaithful husband. A happy couple, but one of the couple has an extra marital relationship with his coworker, an actress. Thus the couple broke. The another part of the couple, the wife, lives alone and she also find a love in the society. As the husband, as the wife. I didn't like this portion. Otherwise, great direction. Not perfect script. Good performance of everyone. Atmospheric. Recommended 70%.

Arth brought instant fame to mahesh bhatt who was a flop no one knew him he rose to fame in print media after getting involved with parveen and than arth which made him house hold name. Arth was first attempt by mahesh to cash on parveen babi and after that many attempt making on same subject to prove himself as a dignified honest man.

I liked Arth as a 12 year old kind watching on Doordarshan this was some thing new to me i found it to be a good movie and after that liked almost many of mahesh movie which were different from other Bollywood movies made during those time. I enjoyed reading mahesh's interview which was termed as bold i found him intelligent till I started to read about parveen life and mental illness . I found shabana's role very powerful she did good job and smita played parveen role which was very important part of the story but even that time as 12 year old i thought her screen presence was very less than shabana's. To get publicity mahesh even said the film was loosely based on parveen babi but no one was sure if it was on parveen and him or parveen and kabir bedi. Parveen was involved with Danny and kabir before mahesh took advantage of her condition and got involved with her. Kabir too got fame because of her name which he is still cashing on. Mahesh very well knew her mental condition before he got involved with her. The character of shabana draws sympathy potraying her as a suffering women whose life is destroyed by her husbands extra marital affair but in reality neither mahesh wife nor protima bedi identify with that character. If a movie if made on real life incident that too with one character suffering mental illness has to be made with lots of sensitivity but the entire movie potrays parveen as a home breaker mentally disturb person looking totally negative while shabana and kulbhusan as victims of situation. Mahesh bhatt was so greedy and selfish to show rohini character playing house help accusing smita for destroying her employer home. Even a kid will understand what kind of drastic effect this kind of movie can have on some one who is mentally ill and under medication. It was said the movie had a terrible effect of parveen's condition after it released and after this movie in few years parveen dissapeared from India. Mahesh got huge success , money, fame and he made few more movies on parveen potraying as if he was the only one in her life who cared for her and every one else including her family was evil but if you think about the entire situation right from Arth mahesh seems to be the only one who shamelessly cashed on parveen babi. All this attempts looks as if he is trying to get rid of his guilt and trying to assure himself that he did no wrong. If you watch Arth and try to connect it with all the incidents right from parveens career when she was on top one of the most naturally beautiful actress till getting involved with mahesh and the making of Arth, ditching of mahesh bhatt after getting fame and her disappearance you will loose all respect for mahesh bhatt no matter how many attempts he tries to self justify.

Arth is a brilliantly made film. I guess no other director in Bollywood, other than Mahesh Bhatt, had the guts to portray their real life relations on screen. By deciding to portray his relationship with actress Parveen Babi on screen, Bhatt comes up with a timeless masterpiece that rests on the shoulders of two of its able performers: Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil.

Arth is the story of a woman (Shabana Azmi) who is trying to come to terms with her separation from her husband (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) who is having an affair with a schizophrenic actress (Smita Patil). Bhatt intelligently weaves a grand saga of emotions because he is aided by nothing other than his own life's story.

Talking about the performances, this is undoubtedly one of Azmi and Patil's best performances. Azmi leaves no stone unturned in trying to convey the turmoil within her as she is dealing with the separation from her husband. Patil, despite a shorter role compared to Azmi's, leaves a great impact as a depressed, disillusioned actress. She shows why she was one of the best actresses of the 80s. Kharbanda is equally competent as a weak man, torn between two women. Rohini Hattangadi lends ample support as a maid whose life mirrors the life of Azmi's character in the film. Raj Kiran is good too as Azmi's admirer in the film.

The editing is brilliant. Praveen Bhatt's cinematography is outstanding. The memorable soundtrack by the Ghazal duo, the magnificent Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh leaves an everlasting impact on the hearts of the viewers.

Overall, Arth is a must watch!

Arth (1982) : Brief Review -

Arth explains real Meaning of Woman Empowerment and Inherence. Woman oriented films have always been special and important for Bollywood cinema and there have been at least one or two such films made in every decade since 50s. Bimal Roy's cinema was far ahead of time while others took right time to make such films and Mahesh Bhatt got his achievement in early 80s. Arth is a story of a married Woman whose husband leaves for other woman and the wife tries to find the meaning and cause of her existence. The topic is extremely important and worthy for Social change as it happens with so many women in real world but they endure such husbands for the sake of old school traditions of naive wife. Here, Arth teaches them a lesson to live thier life on thier own and maintain self-respect. What Arth lacks is excessive nature and poignant take on this issue. Every conflict in the film is small and that's how a realistic content should be so it works perfectly. The problem is, the motive comes into light too late, almost at the ending scene which was quite unfair from my point of view. Despite being so confident in married life, as she herself says to the lady servant about leaving such nasty husband, the wife takes soft stand when it comes to her life. She should have left him with confidence and then try to find her own path but she seems quite soft cause she's still hoping that her husband will be back one day. By the end she denies herself though, just like I said too late. It's effective for sure so don't make any opinion. The husband's character is perfectly written i don't see anything that can be improved and same goes the 2nd woman's role. She was looking little contradictory to her own views but it's okay to have at least one lose character so that the Main character will look effective. The climax is filled with intelligent sentiments which have rarely been seen in Bollywood cinema. Shabana Azmi is sublime in the film and deservingly won Filmfare and National Award. Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Raj Kiran are impressive whereas Smita Patil looks hot. Music is fulsomely situational so don't expect much. Dialogues are worthy and sharp, it lacks excessiveness though. Mahesh Bhatt's direction is fantastic. If am not wrong then Arth was First Ever Classic in his career and guess what? It lives forever. I don't care how many films were made on Woman Empowerment after Arth, it still works and it still feels special. So don't miss.

RATING - 8/10*

By - #samthebestest

Arth is a drama film directed by Mahesh Bhatt. The film stars Shabana Azmi, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Late Smita Patil, Raj Kiran and Rohini Hattangadi.

An ambitious director gets involved with a successful actress into an extramarital relationship and he deserts his wife. Shocked and Heartbroken she then embarks on a journey to find her true identity.

One of the finest films made in the history of Indian cinema and those were the time when Mahesh Bhatt wasn't much keen to make commercial films and were more busy and inclined towards creating such wonders.

The plot of the film is taken from the life of Mahesh Bhatt himself and his affair with Late Parvin Babi. The film looks very realistic and none of the scene looked over-dramatic and has kept close to the originality.

Acting is top notch and Shabana Azmi was just magnificent in her character and make the character looked real with her immaculate acting. Kulbhushan Kharbanda is a wasted talent of Indian cinema and after watching his superb acting in this film i thought that he should've been utilized more. Raj Kiran was the surprise package in the film and was very very impressive, Late Smita Patil the acting powerhouse was equally impressive in her character.

Screenplay of the film is decent and will keep you engaged, the screenplay is beautifully been supported by melodious music by the legend Late Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh. Climax of the film is superb and looked original.

We don't see many such film nowadays and this film should be appreciated. A must watch.

One of the finest movies of India, Good acting, nice background score, and very good directing is the bonus point of this movie. The story of this film is also realistice. Amazing movie.

Arth is a pleasantly surprising movie, a great cinematic experience. It's one of those few movies that makes us live the journey of the main character, and make us believe the decisions and path of the cast. It's a well acted, edited and directed movie with a powerful screenplay. It will be unfair to not appreciate the cast especially Sabhana Azmi. It's a philosophically satisfying conclusion. A strong ending and a feel good vibe. It's a must watch movie. Highly recommended.

Review By Kamal K

This movie is a gem. It gives us so many lessons to live our life with dignity. The presence of others in our life do not complete us or give meaning to our lives. Rather we are complete in ourselves despite our flaws.

Hats off to Mahesh Bhatt for this masterpiece. Shabana Azmi, Smita Patil, Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Raj Kiran have performed outstandingly.

For more reviews and Hot news ... Just LIKE this page

https://www.facebook.com/MovieReviewByYunusIrshad.

Arth (A) Hindi --------- my Rating : 4/5 stars VERY GOOD

It is a slow pace classic family drama.....

VERY GOOD: *Performances : shabana azmi deserve to win awards.... *Dialouges : masterpiece..... *Direction : perfect... *Story : excellent family drama... *Climax..... *Side characters : really have major roles.....

AVERAGE: *Songs : they were rocking in 80's.....

VERY BAD: *Screenplay : very slow..... *No adult contents except few words....

FINAL VERDICT: It is a worth watching family drama with full of emotions......

Arth (Hindi: अर्थ, in English: Meaning) is a 1982 film directed by Mahesh Bhatt, starring Shabana Azmi, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Smita Patil, Raj Kiran and Rohini Hattangadi. It features a memorable soundtrack by Ghazal duo, Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh. The semi-autobiographical film was written by Mahesh Bhatt about his extramarital relationship with actress Parveen Babi.[1] It is one of the 25 Must See Bollywood Movies as compiled by Indiatimes Movies

Before watching I felt this is a movie on extramarital affairs. But after watching this moview found it is much more than an extramarital affairs.

If you just feel the essence it was about the internal fear and fealing of helplessness . How we are dependent on others for our happiness.

Untill Raj was introduced you feel you you are chocking because you can relate to Shabana azmi's feeling, his presence was like fresh air.

Shabana Azmi was brilliant, perhaps best movie of her carrier.

Kulbhushan kharbanda and Smita Patil were good too but couldn't make the same impact.

Mahesh Bhatt is a magician , it's just a small story and this could be movie on women empowerment, liberating themselves from the different layers they have them around.

Songs were inseparable part of the movie and even after 40 years lyrics are so meaningful echoing human sentiments.

Ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh has passed away. The world of Ghazals and Shaayari is mourning the sad demise of the one and only Jagjit Singh. Ghazal singing has never been a profession for him. He always took it as the worship of the Lord. His soulmate Chitra stopped singing after the demise of their the only son - Vivek in an accident in 1993 but Jagjit did not stop it. Can a devotee stop worshipping the Almighty in any condition ? No. Hence Jagjit Singh continued, suppressing and trying to forget the grief in his heart.

Jagjit Singh always sung from the heart. And he always chose Ghazals and Nazms of very high literary quality for singing. That's how he became instrumental in popularizing Ghazals as a form of light music. He sang for Bollywood movies too. The Ghazal, Nazm and songs of Saath Saath (1982) and the immortal love song - Hothon Se Chhoo Lo Tum (Prem Geet - 1981) are a few illustrations. However Mahesh Bhatt's Arth (1982) is different in the sense that Jagjit Singh not only sang the Ghazals and Nazms but he only composed their music also. The music director of Arth is none other than Jagjit Singh himself. Though he had composed the music of Prem Geet also, Arth is his unique contribution to Bollywood music because in addition to composing the music, he and his soulmate Chitra sang all the Ghazals and Nazms included in the movie and all are invaluable gems for the lovers of music and Shaayari. I pay my tribute to him through review of this movie which was considered quite bold at the time of its release.

Arth (meaning) is the story of extra-marital relationship of Inder (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) and Kavita (Smita Patil). Inder is married to Pooja (Shabaana Azmi). Inder leaves Pooja for the sake of mentally insecure and unstable Kavita but finally Kavita also discards him. Pooja is heartbroken whom Raj (Raj Kiran) tries to console through his love for her. However Pooja decides to search an identity for herself in the world, independent of the support of any male.

Mahesh Bhatt used to direct average movies prior to Arth (Manzilen Aur Bhi Hain, Lahu Ke Do Rang, Vishwasghaat etc.). Arth was a milestone in his directorial career after which he never looked back. He always blew the trumpet that Arth was inspired by his own life-story (Parveen Babi being the abnormal other woman in his life). Whether it has anything to do with his life or not, Arth is an admirable movie. A good story was taken and the climax made the announcement of the true woman-lib, i.e., liberation from the shackles of dependence on men.

Arth boasts of power-packed performances of all the three principal actors - Shabaana Aazmi, Smita Patil and Kulbhushan Kharbanda. I won't try to show lamp to the sun by saying anything about the leading ladies who were the pillars of the parallel cinema movement of the seventies and the eighties. However I say about Kulbhushan Kharbanda that it is definitely one of the best ever performances of this underrated actor.

But the trouble lies in the fact that Mahesh Bhatt painted all these three characters with very thick colours. So thick that they lost their naturalness and turned from flesh and blood human-beings to lifeless portraits on the canvas. Mahesh Bhatt could not restrain himself in certain matters and went for exaggeration. And his over-enthusiasm did not allow the movie to become a classic or a masterpiece. What Kavita realized later (that when Inder could leave Pooja for her, he could leave her too for someone else), could have been (and should have been) realized by her earlier too. Inder returns back to Pooja (after he has been discarded by Kavita) like a beggar. It does not match his basic Character.

Raj Kiran as the Ghazal singer has performed even better than the main threesome and he has impressed the most because his character has not lost its natural flavour like the other three. His performance in the song - Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho is simply lovable. That's why Shabaana's refusing his love in the end does not appeal to the audience because independence from men does not mean a life devoid of love.

Other than Raj Kiran, the other supporting characters also performed very well. And it's the performance of the supporting cast which elevated the movie by a few notches. The performance of Rohini Hattangadi as the maid of Pooja deserves special mention.

Ultimately, it's the music composed by Jagjit Singh, using the Shaayari of Shabaana's father and the great Shaayar - Janaab Kaifi Aazmi which makes this movie an unforgettable one. You can forget the movie, not its songs. Whether it's the Ghazals - Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho and Jhuki Jhuki Si Nazar Beqaraar Hai Ki Nahin (both sung by Jagjit Singh himself) and Tu Nahi To Zindagi Mein Aur Kya Reh Jaayega (sung by Chitra Singh) or it's the heart-piercing Nazms - Koi Ye Kaise Bataaye and Tere Khushboo Mein Base Khat Main Jalaata Kaise, every piece is enchanting for the listener. Jagjit himself sung the songs because no other voice could do justice to the lyric and the composition. Ghazal word has been derived from Ghazala (female deer) and the painful sound coming from its throat is known as Ghazal. And that's why the true Ghazal singer is one who is able to convey the Soz (pain) inherent in the words. Jagjit Singh with his God-given voice perfectly suiting Ghazals and Nazms, only could do it as far as the songs of Arth are concerned. The music of this movie is an invaluable jewel in the treasure of Bollywood music.

I recommend this sentimental movie with a strong message to the people interested in watching meaningful cinema.

I saw this movie recently (2002) and was amazed that a simple theme was handled pretty well. Shabna Azmi's acting is good as usual. The editing is pretty poor and the movie moves pretty slowly. The best part of the movie are the three songs and the music by Jagjit Singh. I was hooked to these songs from the very first time I heard them couple of years ago.

I would give this movie a 7/10 on an absolute scale.