Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
romance
Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to:
Common meanings
* Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings
* Romance languages, ...
film, released in 1964. The script is by Chandrashekhar, who also directed the film and plays the lead male role. It also features Helen in her first leading role.
The cast also includes
Om Prakash
Om Prakash (born Om Prakash Chibber 19 December 1919 – 21 February 1998) was an Indian film actor. He was born in Jammu as Om Prakash Chibber and went on to become a well-known character actor of Bollywood. His most well-known movies are Na ...
,
Leela Mishra
Leela Mishra (1 January 1908 – 17 January 1988) was an Indian actress. She worked as a character actor in over 200 Hindi films for five decades, and is best remembered for playing stock characters such as aunts (''Chachi'' or ''Mausi''). She ...
,
Iftekhar
Sayedna Iftekhar Ahmed Sharif (22 February 1924 – 4 March 1995), often mononymously credited as Iftekhar, was an Indian actor who mainly worked in Hindi cinema. He is known for his role as a police officer.
Career
Iftekhar was born in ...
Tun Tun
Tun Tun Press Release, Iqbal Qureshi. The song "Subah Na Aayi Shaam Na Aayi", was written by the then new song writer, Neeraj, and
Makhdoom Mohiuddin
Makhdoom Mohiuddin, or Abu Sayeed Mohammad Makhdoom Mohiuddin Khudri, (4 February 1908 – 25 August 1969) was an Urdu poet and Marxist political activist of India who founded the Progressive Writers Union in Hyderabad and was active with the ...
's poem "Chara Gar" is depicted in the song "Ek Chameli Ke Mandwe Tale", which tells the story of two lovers who can never be together.
Plot
Lali, played by Helen, returns home from abroad, disappointing her mother with her new attitudes, looks, and affinity to dance. After reluctantly making a trip to the
temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
at the request of her mother, Lali assumes that the man (Puran) singing in the temple, is referring to her in the lyrics of his song. In response, and to the surprise of onlookers, she slaps him, only to shortly discover that he is blind and was singing a religious song. Feeling guilty, and with the support of her family, Puran is taken to
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...
(then
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
), and regains his eyesight following eye surgery paid for by Lali's family.
Lali's character soon changes. Unable to persuade Puran to learn Western dance, she assumes traditional dress and the two fall in love. However, she is subsequently persuaded by her father to marry a wealthy businessman and end the relationship with Puran for the sake of family honour in light of her upcoming sister's marriage, as Puran, being of a "harijan" caste, is deemed unsuitable for her by her parents.
When she is struck by a disability, her husband leaves her. Puran in the meantime becomes a singing/dancing hero.
Cast
The cast includes:
* Chandrashekhar as Puranchan Kashmiri "Puran"
* Helen as Lali
*
Om Prakash
Om Prakash (born Om Prakash Chibber 19 December 1919 – 21 February 1998) was an Indian film actor. He was born in Jammu as Om Prakash Chibber and went on to become a well-known character actor of Bollywood. His most well-known movies are Na ...
as Dinanath (Lali's Father)
*
Leela Mishra
Leela Mishra (1 January 1908 – 17 January 1988) was an Indian actress. She worked as a character actor in over 200 Hindi films for five decades, and is best remembered for playing stock characters such as aunts (''Chachi'' or ''Mausi''). She ...
as Laxmi (Lali's Mother)
* Agha as Lali's Brother
*
Iftekhar
Sayedna Iftekhar Ahmed Sharif (22 February 1924 – 4 March 1995), often mononymously credited as Iftekhar, was an Indian actor who mainly worked in Hindi cinema. He is known for his role as a police officer.
Career
Iftekhar was born in ...
Mac Mohan
Mohan Makijany (24 April 1938 – 10 May 2010), popularly known as Mac Mohan, was an Indian actor, who worked in Hindi cinema. He was known for his villainous roles in films throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He appeared in over 200 films, i ...
as Sushil
*
Tun Tun
Tun Tun Press Release, Bela Bose
Bela Bose is an Indian dancer and actress who was active in Hindi films during the 1960s and 70s.
Early life
Bela Bose was born in Calcutta in a well-to-do family. Her father was a cloth merchant and her mother was a homemaker. Following a ...
as Kalpana
*
Aruna Irani
Aruna Irani (born 3 May 1946) is an Indian actress, who has acted in over 500 films throughout Hindi, Kannada, Marathi and Gujarati cinema, playing mostly supporting and character roles. She has won two Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Ac ...
The script was written by Chandrashekhar, who directed the film and played the lead male role. It was released in 1964.
Music
Music in the film was composed by Iqbal Qureshi. Performances in the film include the dance sequence "Cha Cha Cha", and the song "Subah Na Aayi Shaam Na Aayi", written by the then new song writer Neeraj. The film also includes
Makhdoom Mohiuddin
Makhdoom Mohiuddin, or Abu Sayeed Mohammad Makhdoom Mohiuddin Khudri, (4 February 1908 – 25 August 1969) was an Urdu poet and Marxist political activist of India who founded the Progressive Writers Union in Hyderabad and was active with the ...
's poem "Chara Gar" depicted in the song "Ek Chameli Ke Mandwe Tale", which tells the story of two lovers who can never be together. This song was sung by Mohammed Rafi and
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur
and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...
.
Reception and legacy
The film was one of Helen's few successes in a leading role.Filmfare described Helen as someone "who slides across the film with the grace of a leopardess, whose femininity and quiet behaviour are in pleasing in contrast to Bela Bose's enthusiastic flaunting of over-emphasised charms".
Kate Spade noted in her 2013 Cha Cha Cha timeline that in 1964 "Bollywood is hit with Cha Cha Cha fever".
In 2014 ''Cha Cha Cha'' was listed in ''40 Retakes: Bollywood Classics You May Have Missed'' by Avijit Ghosh.