Must See Indian classics
Movies from the Golden Age
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- DirectorK. AsifStarsPrithviraj KapoorMadhubalaDilip KumarA 16th century prince falls in love with a court dancer and battles with his emperor father.
- DirectorMehboob KhanStarsNargisSunil DuttRajendra Kumar TuliIn this melodrama, a poverty-stricken woman raises her sons through many trials and tribulations. But no matter the struggles, she always sticks to her own moral code.
- DirectorHrishikesh MukherjeeStarsRajesh KhannaAmitabh BachchanSumita SanyalThe story of a terminally ill man who wishes to live life to the fullest before the inevitable occurs, as told by his best friend.
- DirectorGovind MoonisStarsSachin PilgaonkarSadhana SinghInder ThakurChandan and Gunja, who hails from a village across the river, fall in love with each other. After her sister dies, Gunja is compelled to marry her brother-in-law who is Chandan's brother.
- DirectorLekh TandonStarsVyjayanthimalaSunil DuttPremnath MalhotraA victory over neighboring state Vaishai has always eluded Magadh Samrat Ajaatshatru despite being winning and taking control over all neighboring states. He attacks Vaishali only get defeated again. Wounded, lost and on the run, Ajaatshatru dons the guise of a Vaishali soldier and takes shelter with a woman named Amrapali and they fall in love with each other. Ajaatshatru finds an ally in Senapati Balbadhra Singh and both start a plot to gain control of Vaishali. Vaishali Samrat comes to know about Ajaatshatru and Amrapali's liaison with him, he sentences her with a death penalty. Ajaatshatru is enraged at this, he gathers together his armies and storms the unsuspecting Vaishali and virtually burns the city down, killing almost everyone in it. This accomplished, he rushes to free his beloved from the dungeons. He does set her free but it is not the same Amrapali; this Amrapali is quite different. She is not at all thrilled to be in the presence of her conqueror lover. She teaches him what he won in the battle ground but what he lost in reality.
- DirectorRaja NawatheStarsNanda KarnatakiManoj KumarPran SikandEight people are stranded on an island. They reach a mansion where a butler is awaiting them. Then an unknown, vengeful person starts killing them, one by one.
- DirectorVijay AnandStarsDev AnandWaheeda RehmanLeela ChitnisWhen mistaken to be a sage by some villagers, an ex-tour guide reflects on his past and lost love to search for spiritual wisdom to guide the villagers.
- DirectorRamesh SippyStarsSanjeev KumarDharmendraAmitabh BachchanAfter his family is murdered by a notorious and ruthless bandit, a former police officer enlists the services of two outlaws to capture the bandit.
- DirectorKhwaja Ahmad AbbasStarsMadhuUtpal DuttJalal AghaA woman awaiting surgery recalls her life as a revolutionary along with seven other countrymen.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsDilip KumarSuchitra SenVyjayanthimalaThe scion of a wealthy landowner family turns to alcohol and self-pity and slowly self-destructs after class differences force him to break off his relationship with his childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorAbrar AlviStarsMeena KumariGuru DuttRehman KhanA lowly servant, Bhootnath gets close to the wife of his employer and narrates her story through his eyes and perspective.
- DirectorNazrul IslamStarsSuchandaRahmanAzim
- DirectorHemen GuptaStarsPrithviraj KapoorGeeta BaliRanjana
- DirectorGulzarStarsSanjeev KumarMoushumi ChatterjeeDeven VermaBased on Shakespeare's 'A Comedy of Errors', this is a story of identical twins (2 pairs) and mistaken identities.
- DirectorJyoti SwaroopStarsSunil DuttSaira BanuMehmoodA simple man from a village falls in love with his new neighbor. He enlists the help of his musical-theater friends to woo the lovely girl-next-door away from her music teacher.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsBalraj SahniNirupa RoyRatan KumarIn the hope of earning enough money to pay off his debts and save his land, a poor farmer becomes a rickshaw puller in Calcutta and faces many difficulties.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsDilip KumarVyjayanthimalaJohnny WalkerA young man takes shelter in a mansion when a landslide blocks his route to the railway station. Then, he finds the mansion familiar and soon learns about the story of his previous birth.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsKamini KaushalAbhi BhattacharyaShakuntalaNilambhar Chakravorty belongs to a poor family, and lives in a joint family with his married brother, Pitambar, unmarried sister, Punnu, and wife, Biraj. Since his sister is of marriageable age, he arranges her marriage, and borrows some money. When Pitambar comes to know about this, he refuses to share any expense in his sister's marriage, and decides to separate, resulting in a fence being put up between their homes. Nilambher, unable to find employment, is unable to pay back the loan, and soon both he and his wife barely have enough to live on. To complicate matters further, Deodhar, a wealthy young contractor has his eye on Biraj's beauty and would like to be intimate with her, in return for money and a better life. He even hires Biraj's maidservant, Sundari, to lure Biraj to him. One day when Nilambher goes to attend a funeral in a nearby town, and does not come home for two days. When he returns he is told that Biraj had been seen hear Deodhar's place. When he questions her, she refuses to explain and he asks to get out of his house, which she does, and eventually disappears from his life altogether. All Nilambher hears is rumors that Biraj has run away with Deodhar and is leading a comfortable life, but no one knows for sure where she is or why she refused to explain to Nilambher where she was that night.
- DirectorSatyajit RayStarsKanu BannerjeeKaruna BannerjeeSubir BanerjeeImpoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.
- DirectorSatyajit RayStarsSoumitra ChatterjeeMadhavi MukherjeeShailen MukherjeeThe lonely wife of a newspaper editor falls in love with her visiting cousin-in-law, who shares her love for literature.
- DirectorManoj KumarStarsManoj KumarShashi KapoorZeenat AmanBharat faces challenges in leading his family after taking the responsibilities following his father's death.
- DirectorS. Ram SharmaStarsKamini KaushalNirupa RoyAnand KumarShaheed (1965) presents the inspirational biography of one of India's greatest patriots Sardar Bhagat Singh.
- DirectorRaj KhoslaStarsSadhana ShivdasaniManoj KumarParveen ChoudharyOne stormy night, a doctor offers a ride to a ghostly woman he meets on the side of the road. Later, he discovers his intended bride is identical in appearance to the ghost. Who was she and why does she haunt him?
- DirectorHrishikesh MukherjeeStarsDharmendraSharmila TagoreAmitabh BachchanA newly wedded husband plays a practical joke on his wife's family with full support from his wife and friends.
- DirectorHrishikesh MukherjeeStarsAmol PalekarBindiya GoswamiDeven VermaA man's simple lie to secure his job escalates into more complex lies when his orthodox boss gets suspicious.
- DirectorM.S. SathyuStarsBalraj SahniA.K. HangalGeeta KakIn post-partition India, a Muslim businessman and his family struggle for their rights in a country which was once their own.
- DirectorChetan AnandStarsRaaj KumarPriya RajvanshBalraj SahniWar movie based on Operation Cactus Lilly in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
- DirectorTapan SinhaStarsChhabi BiswasOindrila TagoreRadhamohan BhattacharyaRahmat a middle-aged fruit seller from Afghanistan, comes to Calcutta to hawk his merchandise and befriends a small Bengali girl called Mini.
- DirectorKhurshid AnwarStarsMohammad AliShamim AraTariq Aziz
- DirectorRam MaheshwariStarsWaheeda RehmanRaaj KumarManoj KumarSleepwalker Sita Raichand (Waheeda Rehman) is rescued by Ram (Manoj Kumar) while walking on a railway track. Shortly thereafter Guruji (David) and Mr. Raichand (Balraj Sahni), approach Ram's mom (Lalita Pawar) with a marriage proposal. Finding the proposal suitable both Ram and his mom agree, and as a result Ram and Sita are married. After the marriage, Sita displays very strange behaviour, like walking away during the night for long durations. This increases the suspicions of everyone in Ram's household. Ram subsequently finds out that there is a lot more to Sita's disappearance than sleepwalking, as Sita seems attracted to someone else from a previous birth.
- DirectorRaj KapoorStarsRaj KapoorManoj KumarSimi GarewalRaju is a joker, a clown. It is what he is and what he always shall be. As his life story unfolds in three chapters, from his school days to the circus to the streets, he must always make people laugh and be happy, no matter how unhappy he is within. Along the way, Raju loves and loses, but must always keep a smile on his face because, in the words of his circus manager, "The show must go on." Over six years in the making, "Mera Naam Joker" is Raj Kapoor's semi-autobiographical story of the life, love, and philosophy of an entertainer.
- DirectorM. SadiqStarsWaheeda RehmanGuru DuttRehman KhanThe setting is the city of Lucknow in northern India, where Islamic culture flourished. Two of the three best friends who live in this city have unknowingly fallen in love with the same woman, Jameela. Aslam and Nawab are the two friends caught in this love triangle.
- DirectorGulzarStarsSuchitra SenSanjeev KumarOm ShivpuriHotel manager J.K. (Sanjeev Kumar) works there. One day, he bravely steps in to save Aarti, the drunken daughter of a politician (Suchitra Sen). Aarti and J.K. have a small ceremony to celebrate their marriage after falling in love. The married pair decides to separate after a few years because of several issues. Aarti and J.K. eventually cross paths again when she has achieved political success. Both of them sense a connection despite their distance, but Aarti is reluctant to speak up for fear of having her reputation ruined and endangering her profession. However, when the opposing party conducts a rally to disparage and humiliate Aarti Devi, When she gets there, she informs the populace and voters of her decision to leave her husband and family in order to serve this nation's citizens. The public respects her and is deeply moved by her voice and selflessness. J.K. arrives there as well and offers her support; she is overjoyed and moves on. She is elected and goes on to have a fulfilling life.
- DirectorGulzarStarsSanjeev KumarJaya BachchanGovardhan AsraniA speech and hearing-impaired couple persists through unforgiving obstacles to be accepted by society and live a life of dignity.
- DirectorPrakash MehraStarsAmitabh BachchanJaya BachchanPran SikandA tough and honest police officer clashes with a crime boss who, unbeknownst to him, happens to be his parents' murderer.
- DirectorShyam BenegalStarsShashi KapoorRekhaRaj BabbarThis movie tells story of fierce and total competition of two related business families in the days of license raaj India. The overall plot is based on Mahabharat. This movie shows that how the pursuit of self serving ideals even legitimizes killing of family members.
- DirectorBasu ChatterjeeStarsAmol PalekarZarina WahabVijayendra GhatgeGeeta ends up with two suitors after her father goes to bring home a prospective groom and mistakenly picks up the wrong man.
- DirectorGovind NihalaniStarsOm PuriSmita PatilAmrish PuriA newly appointed police rookie deals with corruption, romance, and brutality.
- StarsPankaj KapurDeepa SahiAmrish PuriThis TV miniseries ("Darkness" in English) became famous in India in the mid/late 80s for its realistic depiction of the partition of the Indian subcontinent. In 1947, the sub-continent became India, East (now Bangladesh), and West Pakistan (today's Pakistan). The series pretended to keep memories and truths about the partition alive, at a time when many Indians and Pakistanis seemed to be forgetting this historical tragedy. The miniseries became a landmark 297-minute, 35mm film, now shown mostly at Indian Film Festivals. The film is based on the book by Bhisham Sahni, himself a refugee to India from West Punjab, now in Pakistan. Thus fittingly, this epic looks at Partition from an Indian Punjabi perspective, as the fate of Sikh and Hindu families in West Punjab is emphasized. The first part also underscores the Muslim viewpoint: the provocations they suffered from Sikhs and especially Hindus, and their ultimate supremacy in West Punjab, which became the heart of Pakistan. The "Darkness" of those times of religious intolerance and civil war highlights two stories of refugee families, one Sikh and the other Hindu. These victims of hate and their Muslim counterparts had, until 1947, been brothers and co-existed for over a thousand years throughout the Indian subcontinent. With "modern freedom", the lands of this once "one people" was partitioned into Muslim and Hindu republics. Non-Muslim religious groups, however (Sikhs, Christians, and many Muslims - as many as in Pakistan), migrated to the new India. Pakistan became, "de facto", exclusively Muslim.
- DirectorShyam BenegalStarsGirish KarnadSmita PatilNaseeruddin ShahDr.Rao (Girih Karnad) is a Vetinary doc, who comes to this village with the aim of starting a Milk Co-operative society for the welfare of the villagers. But the wealthy businessman Mishraji (Amrish Puri) and Sarpanch (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) are unhappy about this. How Dr.rao succeeds in his mission to make the villagers self reliant, with the help of Bindu (Smit Patil) and Bhola (Naseeruddin shah) is worth watching.
- DirectorShyam BenegalStarsShashi KapoorNafisa AliShabana AzmiSet during the 1857 War of Independence, an obsessed Indian Nawab desires to wed a young Anglo-Indian woman, but the girl's obstinate mother stands between them.
- DirectorShyam BenegalStarsShabana AzmiSadhu MeherAnant NagBelonging to a lower caste, Lakshmi and her deaf-mute husband Kishtayya serve the landlord's son, Surya. When Surya's young wife finds out about his affair with Lakshmi, they all find themselves at crossroads.
- DirectorKidar Nath SharmaStarsAshok KumarMeena KumariPradeep KumarWhen Aryaputra Samant Bijgupt ignores Yashodhara and continues to frequent Rajnartaki Chitralekha, Yashodhara's father, Mrityunjay, approaches celibate Yogi Kumargiri, who reprimands Chitralekha and asks her to free Bijgupt so that he can marry and sire a heir. She initially refuses, but subsequently decides to abandon her lavish lifestyle, and re-locates to the Ashram of Kumargiri and his male disciples, leaving a disillusioned Bijgupt no choice but to accede to the request of Samrat Chandragupt and marry Yashodhara.
- DirectorGuru DuttStarsWaheeda RehmanGuru DuttKumari NaazSuresh Sinha, a famous director, discovers star potential in Shanti, a woman he stumbled into one rainy evening, and casts her as the lead in a film. In a twist of fate, Shanti becomes a superstar and Suresh faces a decline in his career.
- DirectorMoni BhattacharjeeStarsWaheeda RehmanDharmendraJohnny WalkerElizabeth's uncle is in deep financial crisis. He somehow manages to prove his own death and cremate someone else's body in order to claim Rs.250,000 (a huge amount during 60s) from the insurance company. Inspector Ajay unfolds the mystery.
- DirectorRaj KhoslaStarsDev AnandMadhubalaNalini JaywantBased on A.J.Cronin's 'Beyond This Place', this movie narrates the story of an untiring crusade for justice. A young man, learning about his father's wrongful implication in a fifteen-year-old murder, vows to bring the true criminals to justice and release his innocent father from 'kaala paani' (life imprisonment), for which he enlists the help of a press reporter, a retired police inspector and an unwitting prostitute who happens to possess some key evidence.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsAshok KumarMeena KumariAsitbaranLove blossoms between the son of wealthy man and his middle class neighbor. But their romance is put to the test both by a feud between the families and by the entrance of a rival for the girl's affection.
- DirectorShantaram Rajaram VankudreStarsSandhyaMahipalKeshavrao DateDiwakar is a poet and loves his wife Jamuna more than anything. But Jamuna feels that Diwakar lives in a fantasy world and is irresponsible in the real world. Diwakar creates a muse from his imagination, who looks exactly like his wife and whom he calls Mohini. Diwakar becomes a recognized poet and Jamuna gives birth to a boy. Unfortunately, the happiness does not last long as Diwakar loses his job because of critical songs against the British. Now he can no longer feed his sickly father nor his son. On top of all this, Diwakar's obsession with Mohini shows no sign of abating, forcing Jamuna to leave their home.
- DirectorShantaram Rajaram VankudreStarsGopi KrishnaSandhyaKeshavrao DateDancer maestro Mangal Maharaj wants his son, Girdhar, who is a dancer par excellence, to enter the once-in-ten-years Nateshwar Utsav dance competition, win it, and be crowned the Bharat Natraj. While Girdhar can do a solo dance number, he is also required to dance the Shiv-Parvati Tandav dance with a female partner. Mangal Maharaj would like Roopkala to be his partner, but ends up being disappointed with her. Now with only a year left for the Utsav, he chances upon talented dancer and singer, Neeladevi, and recruits her. He subjects her to strenuous training and he is pleased with her performance. Then he finds out that Girdhar and Neela have fallen in love with each other, and their involvement is interfering with their performance. Unhappy with Neeladevi, he dismisses her, and sets forth to look for another dancer. The question remains: Will he be able to find another one, train her, and make her compete just in time for the Utsav, or will he lose this opportunity altogether and wait for another 10 years?
- DirectorAsit SenStarsRajesh KhannaWaheeda RehmanNasir HussainTale of a female nurse trying to maintain a balance between her professional life and her emotions who falls victim to the natural feeling of love and compassion when a person takes care of another person.
- DirectorKamal AmrohiStarsAshok KumarMeena KumariRaaj KumarIn Lucknow at the turn of the century, a dancer and courtesan believes that her pure soul and body will enable her to find true love and honor.
- DirectorShantaram Rajaram VankudreStarsJeetendraRajshreeBharathiAn impoverished sculptor marries his inspiration but is then betrayed by her.
- DirectorShantaram Rajaram VankudreStarsJeetendraMumtaz AskariAkashdeepA once-disgraced school-master gets arrested for killing a lawyer's pregnant daughter.
- DirectorBiren NagStarsBiswajeet ChatterjeeWaheeda RehmanManmohan KrishnaWhen a young man's family gets haunted by a spirit, he is warned not to return to his hometown, but he decides to investigate the issue.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsAshok KumarNutanDharmendraDuring the British Raj of the 1930s, a prison-doctor falls in love with a convict who eventually reveals the story of her past and her connection to a freedom fighter.