मेरा गांव मेरा देश

Music, Locations, Cinematography, Acting....... Super movie. Dharmendra and Vinod Khanna at their best.

Mera Gaon Mera Desh is an action drama film, directed by Late Raj Khosla. The film stars Dharmendra, Asha Parekh, Late Laxmi Chhaya, Late Jayant and Late Vinod Khanna.

A former prisoner comes to a village and gets to know about the terror of Jabbar, he decides to stand up against him.

Wow!! What a film. I thoroughly enjoyed this stunning and somewhat underrated masterpiece from the great Raj khosla. This was probably one of the rarest film of Hindi cinema where the role of Villain is more loved and admired than the main leads.

The plot of the film is good and execution is superb. This was the film which probably gave birth to another masterpiece and legendary film Sholay.

The screenplay if the film is good and will keep you engaged. The film has some of the melodious songs such as "Apni Prem Kahaniyan", "Aaya Aaya Atariya Pe Koi Chor", "Sona Lai Ja Re", "Kuch Kehta Hai Yeh Saawan" and "Maar Diya Jaye Ke Chhod Diya Jaye"and another rarest instance where all the songs of the film were big hit and is still heard.

Acting in the film was another strong aspect of the film as all the characters were very impressive and were spot on in their respective roles. Climax of the film is good.

A must film for great songs and powerpacked acting.

This film is pure fun. In fact this is the picture on which great 'Sholay' was based. If Sholay had Gabbar Singh, this movie has Jabbar Singh as villain and that is Vinod Khanna, who looks every inch a bad man. Film is shot in a realistic manner and there is hardly any scope for superfluous dance sequences. Whatever music is there, is hummable. A song 'Maar diya jaye ya…'performed by Laxmi Chhaya near the end is one of the most popular melodies in Indian movie history.

Film has a good tight script, performances are also nice. The climax shot where hero Dharmendra stands in the heart of the village and challenges Jabbar Singh is scintillating. Camera work there is wonderful. Director Raj Khosla deserved to be among the very best of Bombay filmmakers of his era, it's a pity that he wasn't given his due. He has left an impressive body of work, though last few films of his career failed, yet his mark was there. This film is among his very best.

And a few words about great Laxmi Chhaya. This film has the best performance from her. She had a regrettably short film career and is not even remembered today. But see her here and you will never forget her. What a natural she was...

9 out of 10.

okay, lets just put it this way: if you enjoyed sholay, you will definitely love this movie. if you watch the film you will see many similarities with sholay. sholay is considered to be one of the all time great indian movies because of its successful adaptation of a spaghetti western, great performances by the two main characters, and a super villain in amjad khan(gabar singh). this movie is also an "indian western", but instead of two heroes it only has one, dharmendra. his characters personality is a blend of veeru, and jai in sholay. this movie also has a villain, played by vinod khanna, in one of his finest performances, who is incidentally named "jabbar singh". may not be as good as sholay, but comes extremely close. if it were made after sholay, you would think of it as a nice rip off; however, it was made before sholay, therefore it is a trend setter. by the way this movie is complete on all accounts of indian cinema: it has a great story, excellent performances, and great music. satisfaction is guaranteed. also for some reason pratiggya, another super "indian western" is not listed in IMDB, check it out also.

Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971) : Brief Review -

"High Noon" meets Spaghetti Western!" A dacoit drama that knows nothing but to fulfill its duties to its genre. Some films are so rooted and so honest in their themes and genres that you feel like you are living in their worlds for those 2 hours. Films like Ganga Jamuna and Mughal-E-Azam were fine examples of such filmmaking, where the locations, costumes, accent, and overall production everything looked to have immersed itself in that specific world. Mera Gaon Mera Desh is one such film that immerses itself in that dacoit's world, which we have seen many times and sometimes better, but yet it feels close to reality. Except for that introduction scene in the jail, which was needed to transfer the main character from that world to this world, the entire film is set in a village, and every single frame speaks about its volumes of filmmaking. The only problem is that the storyline is very similar to the old Hollywood western or the newly formed westerns (in the 60s), which makes it a very predictable affair. My father has seen it in a theater, and he often watches this film on TV and loves it. He sometimes skips a few scenes, but he never skips the songs and the climax. I agree too. "Kya Kehta Hai Saawan," "Apni Prem Kahaniyaan," and "Maar Diya Jaye" are super hit songs and are ageless. MGMD can be noted as one of Vinod Khanna's most impactful performances ever because the screen presence he creates as a brutal dacoit and an antagonist takes this film a notch higher. Dharmendra is a criminal turned into a savior, and he gets enough of his own scenes. The entire climax portion, which includes gunshots, chase, and that last belt treatment scene, is elevated by Dharmendra's macho image. Asha Parekh and Laxmi Chhaya both add "beauty with brain" term and make this one a glamorous affair for villagers. Regardless of a weak plot, Raj Khosla creates a massy and engaging dacoit drama that is true to its identity. Overall, a good film boosted by super hit songs.

RATING - 6.5/10*

By - #samthebestest.