Teesri Kasam: An Underrated Classic
I have been going through some tough times these days, mainly at the professional level, and that has kept me busy in more ways than one. Long hours in the office, not much opportunity to talk to friends or family, thinking about work much after office-hours and generally feeling low have been some of the symptoms. And then I talked to the doctor in me, and I prescribed myself some serious movie-watching, (not as in ‘art-films’, but like non-stop, one-after-the-other, everyday, day-after-day). Well, I submerged myself in the DVDs which had been lying at home; some watched umpteen times already, some the packing still unopened, some watched in theatres and later DVD bought as a collection. My DVD-player had been playing smart with me lately, sometimes stopping, sometimes jumping chapters, sometimes making screechy-noises, primarily sulking like an ignored housewife, probably because I had started favouring my laptop lately for the mere convenience of it.
Anyway, I promised myself to make amends by watching all the movies on the DVD-player, till the underemployed lens of my dusty-and-rarely-used-DVD-player would repair itself and start behaving like a child once more back in favour. Well, the movies were picked at random, but I must confess I didn’t have peace of mind, since I was literally spoilt for choices, and would start thinking about any alternative film much after I had decided upon one. The genre of the films has varied from comedy to social drama to action thrillers to horror films to typical art-house (Ray, Benegal and the likes).
Let me confess, every movie that I have watched, there has been a consciousness at the back of mind to write about it later on PFC, but blame it on the work schedule till late evenings and the next session of movie-watching in the nights, haven’t had much chance of writing anything. Well, that was till I watched Basu Bhattarcharya’s Teesri Kasam (once again, of course, but the first time I was too young to appreciate the film’s concept and had watched it merely as a film) and felt compelled to spend some time pondering over it, and eventually share my take on it through PFC.
Well, let me put the records straight by admitting that ancestrally I belong to almost the same part of the country where the film is set (well, almost, because Darbhanga is a bit away from Purnea, but both are primarily the Maithili heartland), and I could relate with and appreciate the nuanced detailing that the filmmaker has gone into. It immediately impresses you and you start taking the film per se more seriously for its other inherent qualities, knowing that you will not be cheated as a discerning audience. The way Raj Kapoor says “Issh” is the way you actually say it in those rural parts, and it brings the local flavour in its truest form. The film is filled with such perfect detailing.
Another example would be when Raj Kapoor brings the breakfast “Chooda-Dahi” (Beaten Rice & Curd – a local delicacy in Mithila) for Waheeda, and then says, “Pehle Aap Paa Leejiye”, literally meaning “first you have it”. It’s just so authentic! One more example is when Waheeda tells Raj Kapoor that she will not call him by his name Hiraman, but “Meeta”, because they share the same first name (Waheeda’s name is Hira Bai in the film), and people with same name call each other “Meeta”. The pleasure is in watching the sense of “belongingness” on Raj Kapoor’s face, and the innocence with which Waheeda declares this with that typical platonic feel to the whole ‘relationship-development’.
Cynics / sceptics might argue that the film is based on Phanishwar Nath Renu’s eponymous novel “Maare Gaye Gulfaam” and Renu belonged to that area, enabling him to bring out the local dialect and culture in his dialogues. But we have seen innumerable other adaptations where the soul of the original work is missing in the cinematic adaptations, and more often than not, it comes out as a hollow take, and falls flat in its overall impact. Not so with Teesri Kasam. Another major achievement of the film is in the fact that it doesn’t celebrate or pamper the central character for the sake of it, and at times, Raj Kapoor’s character is relegated to being secondary in the scheme of things. Case in point is in the picturization of the song “Chalat Musafir Moh Liyo Re”, in which Raj Kapoor joins the already singing crowd in the middle of the song, and is shown playing Dafli and singing as a chorus, a mere extra, rather than the lead, a far cry from the usual ‘hero-worshipping’ ways our films, where the hero has to be central “doer” of all things important.
The story of the film is quite simple. Hiraman (Raj Kapoor) is a naïve and honest bullock-cart driver, and comes across certain problems in his course of trade, resulting in his taking vow of not doing that thing ever again. In the first instance, he is almost caught by the police carrying some contraband items in his cart, despite having raised his suspicion but being assured by the owners of the goods that no harm will come to him. He vows never to carry the contraband goods again. In the second instance, he is carrying bamboo in his cart, which results in an accident with another motorist, and he vows never to carry bamboo again. Up to this point, one thinks of the naivety of Hiraman, and even the frivolity of the plot movement, since Hiraman is prone to taking a vow at the slightest hint of discomfort to his simplistic and ideal lifestyle. However, the film takes off from here, and almost the entire film is the story build-up of his taking the third vow, Teesri Kasam, of never ferrying a Nautanki Company woman in his cart. To an unsuspecting audience, the logical explanation for this third vow becomes a completely humbling experience, and allows seeing the inherent simplicity of the character, thereby justifying why he took the first two vows despite their apparent frivolities.
The film has soul-stirring songs, some of them golden gems in their own right. Sajan Re Jhooth Mat Bolo, Sajanwa Bairi Ho Gaye Hamaar, Paan Khaye Saiyaan Hamaar Ho, Chalat Musafir Moh Liyo Re, Mare Gaye Gulfam, Aa, Aabhi Ja, Laali Laali Doliya Mein Laali Re Dulhaniya, Laila are some such. However, the core of the film is based on perhaps the best of the lot, Duniya Banane Waale Ka Tere Mann Mein Samaayee, Kaahe Ko Duniya Banayee. The feelings of the character of Hiraman in the film is best summarised by the following lyrics from the same song:
Preet Banake Tune Jeena Sikhaya, Hansna Sikhaya, Rona Sikhaya,
Jeevan Ke Pathh Par Meet Milaye, Meet Milake Tune Sapne Sajaye,
Sapne Sajake Tune Kaheko De Di Judaai, Kaahe Ko Duniya Banayee…
The songs have another importance in terms of their mood and placement. All the songs filmed on Hiraman are a reflection of his simple heart and lack of worldly-wisdom. The songs in the Nautanki, filmed on Hirabai, tantamount to either the rural folk songs when she is merely entertaining the crowd, or a deep pang of love lost when she is reflecting her relationship with Hiraman. The Chalat Musafir Moh Liyo Re song is an absolute rural-chaupal song, the types heard even today in those parts of the country. Duniya Banane Waale is the manifestation of Mahua-patwaran folklore, which is a real-life incident of rural Bihar, as legends would have it. However, my personal favourite would be Laali Laali Doliya Mein Laali Re Dulhaniya song, which is not as famous as the other songs from the film, but has a tremendous feel of the central characters who are contemplating a future through vicarious character-interpolation.
The film is different in many aspects from the regular run-of-the-mill films of the same genre, and the sense of loss, longingness for one’s soul-mate, non-vindications of one’s desires, the inherent moral values among the characters, and the power of sacrifice is reflected most beautifully. Both the central characters ultimately opt to lose what they so badly wanted, but they take back with them a lot of worldly experience from their apparent loss, which makes them a better human being, if nothing else. The climax of the film is heart-wrenching, at least for a certified ‘romantic’ like me, and it becomes more effective with the minimum of outward emotions that both the characters show while taking their life-altering decision.
One of the greatest lyricists, Shailendra, who was a good friend of Raj Kapoor, was so enamoured by Renu’s novel that he wanted to produce the film adaptation. He roped in Basu Bhattarchaya as the director, a protégé of the great Bimal Roy, and Basu Chatterjee, an upcoming director assisted him in direction. Shailendra had planned for Mehmood and Meena Kumari to play the lead, but that didn’t materialise due to various reasons, and his old friend Raj Kapoor volunteered to step in as the lead, and also brought another friend, Waheeda Rehman, as the female lead. Raj Kapoor even agreed to work for a nominal fee of only Re. 1 for the film.
Shailendra declined taking any cinematic liberties for his film, lest the rustic local flavour of the novel is lost in translation. He wanted to shoot the entire film in B&W, despite colour processing facilities being available by then, and did exactly that, in order to retain the local village milieu. He didn’t compromise even though his friends and well-wishers from the industry, Raj Kapoor among them, warned him of the imminent commercial failure of the film in its conceived form. As providence, the film didn’t make any money for Shailendra, and he died within 3-4 months of its release, not being able to digest how such a masterpiece could not be accepted by the so-called matured audience.
The film went on to win the President’s Gold Lotus Award for Best Feature Film of 1966, Best Lyricist (Shailendra) and Best Director (Basu Bhattarchaya), but Shailendra did not live long to see all the critical accolades showered on his masterpiece. The film also remains one of the finest works of Basu Bhattarchaya, who went on to direct the marital-trilogy of Anubhav, Avishkar and Griha Pravesh, as well as Aastha, among others. However, he could never match the rustic brilliance of Teesri Kasam in any of his future works, except maybe in the tele-serial directed by him – Byomkesh Bakshi.
In today’s times of Love Aaj Kal, the reference of Teesri Kasam becomes all the more relevant for the absolute puritan ways in which love in those days used to be nurtured. All aspects of the film ooze simplicity and maturity at the same time, and the film may well be the benchmark of understated and unrequited love for the generation that is fed on the mixed flavour of popcorn.
Tags: basu bhattacharya, Raj Kapoor, shailendra, Teesri Kasam, waheeda rehman
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
‘Laali Laali Doliya Mein Laali Re Dulhaniya’ is on my ‘Favourites’ play list!!!!! I listen to it often. Such a fluid song. Lovely movie. Thanks for such an in depth analysis.
hmm its surely be a must wathc.
Was waiting for article since long time.Yup i had seen it long ago, have to watch it again.
On other note are dvds of Byomkesh Bakshi available.
If you guys observe the poster…i got it from online..it doesnt credit Basu da as director..what a shame!!!!!
PS: Its not a mistake by Jha..it was voluntarily put to bring out the ignorance of the poster creator!!
OM: i seriously think the poster will become a collectors’ item, coz it has everything wrong except the pic. i mean, not just the director, but the producer, music director & lyricist names are also absolutely misleading.
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i was tempted to think this is a cover version owned by T series in disguise
nice post bro… will check this one out, one of these days… appreciate the effort.
A masterpiece and greatest of work done in Indian cinema, watching teesri kasam is an experience and journey of real india with real characters. Whosover done this manipulation of credits in the poster should be condemend and it is not by mistake i had read somewhere that such a DVD has been officially released. What a shame!!!!!!!!!
Jha- what do I say for this post yaar- really appreciate it.I had seen the movie ages ago and still remember the basic outline of the plot and the songs.Even I wondered earlier why the movie was shot on b&w instead of colour and this post explains this.Sajan re jhoot mat bolo is a personal favorite- can keep listening to it.a very simple and artistic film- should watch it again sometime soon.As for the one who committed the faux paus with the poster- shameful!!!
nice post!!!. My fav song was sajanwa beri ho gaye hamar….simply amazing
Beautiful analysis Jha! Specially the music bit. I remember listening to the film on radio. Yeah, I was a vivid bharati listener. People refuse to believe that when I say.
Neeraj- and why would they refuse to believe that? I was a passionate vivid bharati listener too.Bioscope ki baatein,chhaya geet,binaca/cibaca geet mala,chitralok and so many such programs- wish I could revisit all those days.
Always thot chalat musafir was a rural folk song. Never knew it was a film song. The rest of the songs of course are brilliant.
vinay, chalat musafir is indeed a folk-song of mithila region in bihar. the film used it brilliantly to show the chaupal-effect in the rural areas, especially when ppl are by default more charged up during the mela-nautanki days.
infact till 2000 (when I used to stay at Bihar) I did not know that it is a movie song.
one of the most authentic scenes in the film is when raj kapoor goes to a snacks-shop for getting “chaah” (tea or chai is called that in eastern / northern UP / Bihar) or waheeda, and comes across a group of ppl talking about the modern women of today, their way of dressing and their overall modern conduct in chaste Maithili (the local lingo).
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what impacts is not only the detailing gone behind the dialect and diction, but also the raging topic of “modern” women taking the men-folk unawares. its a very natural reaction of the rural men who have otherwise come to the nautanki to watch one such “modern” lady.
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i wanted to put this point in the main article itself, but thoght it wud lead the discussions to a new tangent, thereby forgetting about the soul-stirring impact that the film has.
oops, its FOR waheeda, not OR waheeda in the above comment. my bad.
Fanishwar nath renu, Rajkapoor, shailendra & Basu in one movie!
It has to be a masterpiece, we don’t get to watch movies with such intensity. Probably I can relate with the movie coz I also belong from the same area…but I am sure anyone would love it.
Dear Satyendra, as per my knowledge it was not a novel by Renu but the story originally named as “Mare Gaye Gulfaam”
@Satyendra,
Teesri Kasam is a wonderful film and it is quite layered also where so many things are shown symbolically.
Its music has always been one of the favourites among music lovers of hindi film music. Lali lali… not only a beautiful song but its picturisation is also quite effective. Waheeda Rehman, especially, makes most of this song on screen through her gestures and facial expressions.
Whoever has seen the film atleast once may recall atleast few things associated with the film and I am not sure if it’s apt to use word UNDERRATED with such a piece of cinema.
Basu Bhattacharya was not only a protégé of BIMAL ROY but his son in law also. Basu Da married, Rinki, daughter of Bimal Da. She is mother of Aditya Bhattachrya (Raakh Fame).
B&W version of the film : might be due to economical reasons as perhaps it was still cheaper to shoot on B&W film.
“in order to retain the local village milieu” does not look true else where would you put Mother India and Ganga Jamuna? Both (were coloured and) were set in villages.
Other reason could be the cinematographer Subrata Mitra. I am not sure if he had done any coloured picture before and it could be his insistence to shoot on B&W film.
whatever was the reason behind the selection of B&W over colour, cinematography and framing of shots were noteworthy.
These two aspects may evolve a complete post.
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(Contd.. in second)
Teesri Kasam was based on a short story (Mare Gaye Gulfam) of Renu and I think period is not clearly mentioned in the story. Because Train is there so it belongs to a period after 1856. There is no mention of British regime but still it was a period film.
Films based on good literature have benefits (though it is risky also as so many times comparison between film and literature may affect the chances for a film) because writers (screen play and dialogue) and director and actors too get a SOLID background to do their research to go deep in to the characters and events happening in their lives.
In this particular case, lyricist got atleast the mukhdas of most of the songs in the Renu’s story.
Teesri Kasam explores two characters and goes deeply in to their lives.
Maare Gaye Gulfaam sets the nature of character Heeraman and Teesri Kasam is based on this story.
When you say that :”Raj Kapoor’s character is relegated to being secondary in the scheme of things”: then it is part of the story. It is part of the characterisation of Heeraman. If it’s changed then film is killed.
HeeraBai, is a dancer and most of the men see her with lustful desires. They try to appear as “THE MEN” before her so that they could control her.
Heeraman is not having those traits. It is his innocency, honesty and down to earth attitude which attract HeeraBai toward him. It’s not because of his being THE MAN.
We can see the contrast in Krishan Dhawan’s character who tries to over power everybody in his mandali. He tries to approach Heerabai as a MAN. On the very first day inside the theatre he points out,” he is the landlord of that area, he is so and so powerful man of that area” while Heeraman is focussing on the statues of lords and Varun etc. and then there is the character of landlord, played by Iftikhar.
All these characters establish contrast, but true, nature of HEERAMAN.
Among his fellow villagers Heeraman is not having qualities which could make him a hero among them. He is a bhola ganwar for the people of his mandali.
If he is shown a hero among them also then Teesri Kasam can not be made. Then story can not go ahead as it has gone now.
So that kind of liberty was beyond the rights or imagination of writers or director of the film. They had to keep Heeraman like this only. Because of these subtle things Teesri Kasam is a sort of master piece while several other village based films where directors take liberties of their own likings are forgotten within 12-14 months of their release.
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Plot and characterisation is so strong in Teesri Kasam that many pairs of actors could have worked within the dimensions set by the story.
Mehmood and Meena Kumari would have been another brilliant choice.
If Basu Da had not made this film >
(Leaving Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Balraj Sahni’s generation), It would have worked (AS A PERIOD FILM)with few other combinations of actors also :
Sunil Dutt-Waheeda Rehman/Nutan in late 60s, Sanjeev Kumar- Hema Malini in early to mid 70s, Amitabh -Rekha in late 70s, Naseer/Om Puri- Smita Patil/Rekha in early 80s, Govinda/Manoj Bajpai/Irfan Khan-Madhuri Dixit/Tabu in late 90s.
Solid Plot and good characterisation give a range to capable actors and. Film would have changed a bit with different set of actors and as per the interpretation of director.
Byomkesh Bakshi directed by Basu Bhattacharya or Basu Basu Chatterjee?
who says under-rated??
happens to be my all-time favorite Hindi film.. (oops, can’t believe it’s not a Gurudutt..)
2nd generation Bimal Roy (Basu da), 1st generation God of Light (Subrato da), greatest ever female character gracing the Indian screen (waheeeeedaaaaa), RK’s genius impersonation..
India never looked beautifuller :-)
Read – ‘Maare gaye gulfam’…
Thanks for bringing up this refreshing topic. One point I would like to make is that Purnea is not exactly Mithilanchal. The nuances in language vary a bit — in fact, if I am not wrong, the variation starts from Madhepura iself.
Parts of Purnea, especially in the present Kishanganj district, actually speaks a dialect which is a almost a different language. it is called Surjapuri. Its resonance can be found in Maithli, Bangla and Assamese. Even some Nepali influence can be detected too. Surjapuri apart, the present Purnea district area also has its own linguistic nuances which Renu showcased extensively in the masterpiece Maila Aanchal.
Once again, thanks for bringing up this film.