Jeevan Mrityu (1970)

Star Power: Dharmendra, Raakhee Gulzar, Ajit

Overall Rating: 5 out of 7 chilies

Music: 4.5 out of 7 chilies

Choreography: 4 out of 7 chilies

Synopsis:
Ashok Tandon (Dharmendra) is released from prison after serving his term and tries his best to pick up the pieces of the life he left behind seven years before. But he finds that much of the world he remembers has changed: his mother has died, his friend has moved away and the woman he loved has disappeared. While on the way to try to find the house of a friend, he is robbed by a thief who is then hit by a train, convincing the rest of the world that he is dead. Ashok begs a place to sleep for the night in the back yard of a wealthy man's home and while there, manages to avert a robbery planned by the wealthy man's nephews. Out of gratitude, the wealthy man invites Ashok in and coerces him into relating the sad story of how his life had gone so wrong, a tale of betrayal, wrongful accusations and lost love. The story is not over, however, and with the rich man behind him Ashok sets out to seek justice and revenge...

Comments:
This is a good, solid film out of vintage Bollywood. The plot is based off of the famous novel The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, and the movie really does a good job of adapting it to the world of 1970s India. Dharmendra gives another great performance, both as Ashok and the many disguised aliases which he adopts over the course of the film - he's so believeable it can be hard to realize it's really him! There isn't much music here - only two songs: "Jhilmil Sitaron Ka" and "Zamane Mein Aji", but they're both thoroughly enjoyable numbers.

Seeta aur Geeta (1972)

Star Power: Hema Malini (in a double role), Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar

Overall Rating: 6 out of 7 chilies

Music: 5 out of 7 chilies

Choreography: 5 out of 7 chilies

Synopsis:

When a rich man and his pregnant wife are stranded, they stay the night in the village cottage of another couple. The wife gives birth to a girl and they leave in the morning, but unbenownst to them, she actually gave birth to twins and the village wife stole one of her daughters to raise as her own. Many years later, the girls, called Seeta and Geeta (both played by Hema Malini), have grown up, each unaware of the other's existence. Seeta's rich parents have died and she lives under the thumb of her obnoxious aunt and uncle while trying to take care of her aging grandmother. Geeta, on the other hand, is a fiesty street performer working with a friend who lives nearby (Dharmendra). The trouble starts when Seeta runs away from home after nearly being raped and accused of stealing by her aunt's brother and the police bring home Geeta instead...

Comments:

A great classic Bollywood film and a stellar performance by Hema Malini, which won her a Filmfare Award for Best Actress. You can really believe she's two completely different people and you can root for both as they try to sort out the mistakes, each falling in love in the process. Dharmendra, a huge classic Bollywood star, (and later Hema Malini's husband) has a somewhat smaller role in this film, but both he and the other male lead, Sanjeev Kumar, come off as sweet and likeable. No real standout song for this film, in my opinion, but some fun active musical numbers, including one with some impressive balancing for Geeta's street performance and another on rollerskates down a mountain. An enjoyable romp with real 60s-70s style.