Bobby

A completely crazy Romeo and Juliet-style story about two teenagers, him rich and her poor, who fall head over heels for each other and defend their love against all adversity. Maybe not Raj Kapoor's best, but certainly interesting and groundbreaking for its time. This was actually the first Bollywood film I ever saw where it was clearly expressed (even though through a song and dance scene) that the pair was sleeping with each other - even more unusual as the couple consisted of two teenagers! Very Seventies in style with a severely overacting cast, but great fun nevertheless. In many ways a movie of a much freer and more uncompromising spirit than most Bollywood fare of today - but then, it was the Seventies...

Raj Kapoor proved himself as a successful director by the release of Bobby. He introduced his next son Rishi, (younger than the elder Randhir) who later in years became a screen icon along with Amitab.

Bobby was released in 1973 during the Rajesh Khanna years and this film was eventful in the sense that people learned and became aware of a young entrant of an old Indian cinema family - The first being the Prithvi Raj Kapoor.

The songs composed by R.D. Burman are mesmerizing and the direction is also superb. This film along with Amitabh's "Zanjeer" both released in 1973 served a real shock to the "Khanna phenomenon" which was the talk of every town for the last so many years.

Raj Kapoor's "Bobby" will never get old. It is a brilliantly made modern teen romance. Raj Kapoor's direction and imagination are excellent, ditto for his realistic portrayal of the modern 1970s India and its middle-class Christian community. The romance is portrayed beautifully, injected with many youthful energies and further aided by colourful and vernal locations, beautiful romantic songs, comedy and drama, and two very charming fresh talents in the lead roles.

This is the love story of a pretty, smart and headstrong Christian school-girl named Bobby, and a romantic, rich and well-mannered young man named Raj, who, unlike most of his contemporaries, prefers to sit at home and write poetry. He falls in love with her the first minute he meets her, and surprisingly enough, it does not look clichéd. The story shows how they start dating each other and how they later fight parental opposition.

Interestingly, while Raj Kapoor made this film to launch his son on the big screen, he titled it after Dimple Kapadia, who impressed him very much and reminded him of his muse Nargis. In a documentary about the life and craft of Raj Kapoor, he said that Bobby's first meeting with Raj in the film was loosely inspired by Kapoor's first meeting with Nargis at her home. And I completely understand why the memory of meeting her stayed with him for the rest of his life when I see this scene. It is a magic moment.

Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia make for a very good couple. This is according to me Rishi Kapoor's best performance along with his role in Mera Naam Joker. Maybe his dad was the one who could extract his talent to the fullest. He is likable, impressive and very convincing as Raj. Dimple Kapadia's is undoubtedly one of the greatest debuts in the history of Hindi cinema. She was natural, compelling, beautiful and acted with total aplomb. Her western outfits and sex-appeal are still very memorable. The rest of the cast are excellent, with Prem Nath standing out in a wonderful comic act as Bobby's loving father. Pran was also very convincing as Raj's witty, proud and dignified father, and Durga Khote and Aruna Irani provided fantastic support. Oh, and how can one forget Farida Jalal's Alka Sharma? A five-minute role which stays with you forever just like the film.

The film's cinematography is effective, the editing is good as well, and the art direction is fantastic. The characters are well-written, and most importantly - the music is simply outstanding. My favourite songs are "Main Shair To Nahin" (as is Aruna Irani's wonderful dance for the song) and "Chabi Kho Jaye (Hum Tum)". All in all, Bobby was a trend-setter, and it still remains an all-time sensational and fresh love story, which will never look dated.

Wanting to get back into "Hindi retro" movies after a few years hiatus, a friend of mine in Kerala showed me the YouTube channel Bollywood 70s 80s, where this movie had been uploaded with English subtitles.

Fifty-one years later & in another country, I found 'Bobby' to be a timeless story. The namesake is for Bobby Braganza, the daughter of a drunkard Goan fisherman. Raja, the son of a rich but unsympathetic businessman, returns home at the end of term from boarding school, where his father throws him a party at which he has the pick of several forward caste nubiles, with Nima, a particularly flirty one, making herself explicitly available to him. Raja, however, is disappointed by these options, seemingly feeling that none of these women really wanted to get to know him for who he was. Amidst his despair at finding a genuine partner whom he would understand & who would understand him, he is stricken with passion by the demure, painfully shy Bobby. Despite her feelings of inadequacy for being beneath his standing, & initially being indifferent to him, she too finds her passion for him.

The story touches lightly on topics that are more familiar to Indian audiences than those in my own part of the world - namely, caste distinction, the sensitivities of family honour, corruption, & bridal kidnapping. It touches lightly enough that these topics don't overseason the rest of the story, which itself unfolds & develops at a very sensible pace. It's not a short movie, but this allows for the story to cook slowly & feel more natural.

I was drawn to this movie specifically because of the ethereal, sphincter-tickling beauty of Dimple Kapadia. Despite being about fifteen at the time of filming, she played her role brilliantly - as did all of her elder peers. Aruna Irani was also pretty sizziling, but, like Raja, I was turned off initially by her immodest, even aggressive, come-on towards him was.

I would give this movie a 10/10, but for two reasons. I deduct one star in that the dynamic between Bobby & Raja consists almost entirely of anticipation & struggle, & the audience does not get to view any external expression of their love (perhaps the sensibilities of Indian cinema in that era were not in favour of displaying gratuitous lovemaking). I also deduct a star for the movie's rather limited production value, which I would have liked to see more polished, especially given how beautiful the story is.

I saw the movie recently on a DVD given to me by a friend. I was aware about the movie when it was released many years ago. "Bobby" is a gorgeous girl and the scenery was awe inspiring. The producers took a chance in conservative India to feature her in mini skirts and somewhat promiscuous scenes. Anyway she reminds me of a famous American star Kristie Ally from an old TV series Cheers. How can I join her fan club?