Saugandh

As a first movie as lead actor Akshay did good job. One time watch. Go ahead.

If you love Akshay Kumar, you will Love it. That's it.

On this day 1991.

Star was born.

An ideal person.

Well made movie.

Verdict: Flop at box office.

Saugandh 1991 was Akshay Kumar's debut film, and while it wasn't a critical or commercial success, it's notable for launching his Bollywood career.

Here's a brief overview Plot: The film follows a typical revenge story with elements of action and romance.

Reception: It received mixed reviews and was considered a box office flop, primarily due to strong competition from Amitabh Bachchan's "Hum" which released around the same time.

Significance: Despite its commercial failure, Sugandh is important as it marked the beginning of Akshay Kumar's journey in Bollywood.

Key takeaways: Not a critical or commercial success.

Launched Akshay Kumar's Bollywood career.

Typical Bollywood action-romance with a revenge theme.

If you're a die-hard Akshay Kumar fan, you might find it interesting to see his debut performance. However, for general audiences, it's unlikely to be considered a must-watch.

Saugandh review :

Directed by Raj (Daddu) Sippy, the 1991 released Saugandh marked the debut of Akshay Kumar who had made a ten seconds uncredited appearance in Mahesh Bhatt's Aaj (1988) a couple of years before. The chef cum martial arts trainer in Bangkok was discovered by noted director Pramod Chakraborty who promptly signed him for his film Deedar (1992) which got a bit delayed and enabled Saugandh to hit the marquèe first.

A mix of Taming of the Shrew meets Romeo and Juliet; Saugandh had Akshay Kumar and Shantipriya playing the lovers who are torn in to the age old enemity between Rakhee and Mukesh Khanna. In fact, the confrontation scenes between Rakhee and Khanna were the film's highlight. Anand Milind's music was also a positive factor with "Laila ko bhool jaayenge" rising up the popularity charts.

Shantipriya got a meaty role and was completely convincing in her transformation from a rugged tomboy to a coy 'bhartiya naari'. An impressive performance indeed!! Surprisingly, it was Akshay who looked too raw and amateur though his screen presence was towering even then. Interestingly, his introduction scene starts with him walking inverted on his hands before he leaps up and we see his face for the first time. Rakhee and Mukesh Khanna had the 'ceetimaar' punchlines and they didn't disappoint.

Saugandh would've probably done better had it not clashed with Amitabh Bachchan's Hum (1991) which released a week later and completely stormed the box office leaving no space for other movies.

I had seen Saugandh at Citylight Cinema, Matunga where it had done decent business. I came out having mixed feelings for the debutant actor least expecting he would be the superstar of the coming decades. Speaks volumes of his hard work and perseverance. Kudos Akshay!!

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.

Until the release of Khiladi majority of the earlier films starring Akshay Kumar were cringe worthy. A film named Deedar was supposed to be his first film but its release was delayed until 1992. Despite being an unheard film until watching the film, i gave this film a try for two reasons. One being Akshay kumar's debut film and the second being it was directed by Raj N Sippy, who had directed well known films like Inkaar, Satte Pe Satta & Satyamev Jayate. But these reasoning are not enough to like this film as it was a predictable and cringe worthy film were in recent time the only film it can be compared with is Marjavaan, thanks to its predictable story and dialogues being uttered in poetic verses.

The story involves a woman avenging the murder of her family against a egoistic landlord by making her son marry the daughter of the landlord. As a promise given to his mother, the male lead (Akshay Kumar) goes up to any extent in fulfilling it?

In terms technical aspect the direction by Raj Sippy was pathetic when compared to the aforementioned films. The writer, Iqbal Durrani, could have worked on a slightly better script considering later in the year he wrote another mediocre film named Phool Aur Kaante (also starring a debutant in the form of Ajay Devgn). In the films of 90s the songs tended to be melodious but the film fails in that as well as none of the songs are memorable & the only positive that the film has to offer is its villain Pankaj Dheer, who if acted in 70s and 80s could have become a memorable villain and the fighting sequences of Akshay Kumar. Meanwhile it was sad to see Rakhee act in such film when there was a time when she was considered to be the most versatile actress of her era and unfortunately she continued the trend by acting in films like Barood & Sham Ghanshyam. Regarding Mukesh Khanna, his over the top performance was at its worse and it was better if he limited such acting in mythological serials. Same goes with the performance of its female lead- Shantipriya.

On the whole Saugandh is a forgettable film and can be recommended to those who want to see how Akshay Kumar acted in his debut film. (Considering the memorable films that he became a part of it is a pity he had to debut with such film. But these stuggles made him work hard and become one of the acclaimed actors in the industry)