''Achhut '' (''The Untouchable'') is a

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

social Indian

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

film based on untouchability. It was the third highest grossing Indian film of 1940. The film was produced by Chandulal Shah for his Ranjit Studios. He also wrote the story and screenplay, and directed it. ''Achhuts premiere was attended by

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel (; ; 31 October 1875 – 15 December 1950), commonly known as Sardar, was an Indian lawyer, influential political leader, barrister and statesman who served as the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of I ...

on 23 December 1939, who stated: "If the picture helps India to remove this curse, it can be said to have helped India to win Swaraj as untouchability is one of the chief obstacles in the road to freedom". The film had Motilal and Gohar in the main lead with,

Sitara Devi Sitara Devi (named Dhanlakshm; 8 November 1920 – 25 November 2014) was an Indian dancer of the classical Kathak style of dancing, a singer, and an actress. She was the recipient of several awards and accolades, and performed at several pres ...

, Mazhar Khan,

Noor Mohammed Charlie Noor Mohammed Charlie (1911–1983), popularly known as Charlie, was a Pakistani actor born on 1 July 1911 in Ranavav village, Porbandar, Saurashtra, British India. Best known for his comedy roles, he was the first 'star' comedian and has been ...

, Vasanti and Rajkumari playing important roles. The music was by

Gyan Dutt Gyan Dutt was one of the most prominent music directors in Bollywood in the 1940s. He was music director for films such as ''Thokar'' (1939), '' Achhut'' (1940), '' Bhakta Surdas'' (1942), ''Sunehre Din'' (1949) and '' Ghayal'' (1951). Many of hi ...

, with lyrics by Raghunath Brahmabhatt. The cinematography was by Krishna Gopal. The film was made to "promote Gandhi's movement against untouchability". The film was initially released in the

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...

version on 23 December 1939.

Plot

When Lakshmi (

Gohar Mamajiwala Gohar Khayyam Mamajiwala (19 November 1910 – 28 September 1985), also known as Miss Gohar, was an Indian singer, actress, producer and studio owner. Early life She was born into a Dawoodi Bohra family. Gohar's father's business almost collaps ...

), the daughter of a

Harijan Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...

, fetches water from a temple an infuriated Pujari (priest) breaks the pot on her head. This incident, plus several other injustices that he has faced, forces the father to adopt Christianity into which he brings Lakshmi. The mother refuses to become one and remains a Hindu along with her other child. A rich businessman, Seth Haridas, adopts Lakshmi and she becomes a friend to his daughter, Savitri. Lakshmi gets a good education and the two girls grow up to fall in love with the same man, Madhukar. As Madhukar comes from a high caste family, the Seth, in order to get his daughter married to him informs Madhukar's family of Lakshmi's background. Lakshmi returns to her mother in the village, where she meets Ramu ( Motilal), the boy to whom she had been wed as a child. The two get together and rebel against the atrocities against the untouchables (Harijans). The message finally gets through and they are allowed to enter the temple.

Cast

as Lakshmi * Motilal *

* Vasanti *

* Mazhar Khan * Rajkumari *

Trilok Kapoor Trilok Kapoor (11 February 1912 23 September 1988) was an Indian actor and a member of the Kapoor family who worked in Bollywood films. He was the younger brother of actor Prithviraj Kapoor. Early and personal life Trilok was born as the sec ...

* Dixit * Ebrahim * Lala Yaqoob * Bhupatrai

Review

Baburao Patel Baburao Patel (1904–1982) was an Indian publisher and writer, associated with films and politics. Career He was the editor and publisher of India's first film trade magazine, ''Filmindia'', the first edition of which was published in 1935. ...

, editor ''Filmindia'', in his review in the January 1940 issue, having seen the Gujarati version stated "The realistic atmosphere, the folklore songs and dances, faithful portrayal of characters, all contribute to make the picture a beautiful poem of instructive screen entertainment". There was praise for the actors, with Gohar giving a'dynamic performance', and Motilal was perfectly cast with his "wonderful restraint of emotions". Sitara Devi, Charlie and Vasanti were also commended for their acting. The reviewer for ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split be ...

'' felt the film was of "all-round excellence and tremendous propaganda value". Gohar's performance was commended with the reviewer calling her the "Queen of Emotions". He further added, "Naturally the subject matter gives ample scope for Gohar's versatility of histrionic gifts and she delights the audience with a wide range of human emotions, from the ecstasy of romance to the poignancy of tragedy." He felt the songs provided a "varied fare", Sitara's folk dance "exceptionally well rendered", " e fire and storm scenes ... realistic" and the "photographic sequences ... delightful".

Soundtrack

The music direction was by Gyan Dutt and the singers were Gohar, Vasanti, Sitara Devi, Popatlal, Kesari, and Khursheed.

Songlist

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0275893, title=Achhut 1940 films 1940s Hindi-language films Films scored by Gyan Dutt Indian black-and-white films