In 1954, the Bengali novelist Ashapurna Debi’s book Agni Pariksha was adapted for the silver screen, into a film starring relative newcomers Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen – who had made a mark as an onscreen couple just the previous year, in Shaarey Chhuattar.
Agni Pariksha was the story of a woman caught in a dilemma, torn between the man she loves and the man (whom she hasn’t met for more than a decade) to whom she was married as a 14-year old. The film was a smash hit, with great music, and succeeded in cementing the Uttam Kumar-Suchitra Sen pairing.
… and then, 13 years down the line, Uttam Kumar produced and starred in a Hindi remake of the film: Chhoti si Mulaqat, opposite Vyjyanthimala. The film flopped miserably.
Why? Why was Agni Pariksha such a hit, Chhoti si Mulaqat such a dud?
I examine these two films for LnC’s Silhouette Magazine, for the ongoing retrospective on Uttam Kumar. Click here to read the full article, and do check out the other articles that form part of the mahanayak‘s centenary celebrations.
Just wanted to repeat what I wrote there, Madhu… it was a great essay. I did wish you had compared Uttam’s performances in more depth, but that’s because I’m greedy!
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Thank you so much, Anu! I could have gone on and on, actually, but then – word limits. ;-) Also, I think among the many other sins of Chhoti si Mulaqat was that it did not really give him much space to do anything other than lip-sync to songs. Even though Suchitra Sen and Vyjyanthimala have more or less equal space in their respective roles, Uttam Kumar gets far less to do in the Hindi film.
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Your article is excellent Madhulikaji. And I agree with your view that Chhoti Si Mulaqat was an out and out regressive film. Uttam Kumar was a great actor but even the greatest actor cannot lift a weak script.
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Thank you, Jitendraji. And yes, I agree completely. Ironically enough (given that he produced the film!) Uttam Kumar really got no chance to show just how good an actor he was in this film. Even if he had stuck to the script of Agni Pariksha, he would have got a better part.
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