Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Ankush movie - A reminder of the 1980s

Love is strongest when it's unreasonsble. But it can reasonably be said that love always comes with a reality check. This is best depicted in a scene from the epic movie ANKUSH (Barb) I was watching today. This movie is from the year 1986, catapulted the actor Nana Patekar to fame. In the movie, a boy unemployed in spite of having a Civil Engineering degree, solicits love from a girl in his neighborhood by approaching her with a Rose. 

She rudely rebuffs him, throwing away the flower sideways, "HUN, MAHINA 100 RUPIA KAMAA NAHI SAKTA, CHALA AYA PYAAR KARNE KE LIYE" - "Huh, Can't even earn Rs.100 (Roughly $10 those days) a month, now comes to express his love". Few days away from my Engineering College admission, this scene was profound enough for me not to opt for Civil Branch of Engineering. 

One of the big hits of our teenage days, the movie captures the ethos and pathos of the youth of the time. The milieu was morbid, unemployment was rampant with not much hope and scope for the youth to dream aloud. Bollywood was a vent for the frustration and disillusion of the youth of the day.

Though a serious movie with depiction of few ghastly murders, the movie had its comic moments too. A feminine boy went around the neighborhood swinging his hips while Nana Patekar and friends passed comments to a girl (a term used for teasing girls back home). The boy protests - LAKDIYON KO CHHENE SE TUMHE SHARAM NAHIN AATI ? MEIN SAARE LADKIYON KO APNI MAA SAMAJH TA HOON (Don't you feel ashamed to teasing girls. I consider all girls as my mom).

To this Nana delivers his epic Punchline, "TERA NIYAT TO THIK HAI, LEKIN TERA BAAP KA KYA HOGA - You're fine, but what will happen to your dad". Ankush was a few good movies at a time when Amitabh Bachchan was the one man of an industry which struggled against mediocrity. Ankush was a breather, a breath of fresh air.

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