''Ram Teri Ganga Maili'' () is a 1985 Indian

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

-language

romantic drama film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typica ...

directed by

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...

. The film stars Mandakini and

Rajiv Kapoor Rajiv Raj Kapoor (25 August 1962 9 February 2021) was an Indian actor, film producer, film director and a member of the Kapoor family, best known for his lead role in ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili''. He was the youngest son of Raj Kapoor, the legenda ...

in lead roles. Music director

Ravindra Jain Ravindra Jain (28 February 1944 – 9 October 2015) was an Indian music composer, lyricist and playback singer. He started his career in the early 1970s by composing for several hit movies. His notable works include '' Chor Machaye Shor'' (19 ...

received a Filmfare Award for this film. The film generated controversy because of Mandakini's bold scenes of

breastfeeding Breastfeeding, or nursing, is the process by which human breast milk is fed to a child. Breast milk may be from the breast, or may be expressed by hand or pumped and fed to the infant. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that br ...

and bathing in a transparent saree, which wasn't something the conservative Indian Film Certification Board allowed then. Yet, it had a U (Universal) age rating, which was later amended to U/A. It was the last film directed by Kapoor. ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili'' is included in the 'All-Time Blockbusters' list of Indian Cinema. It was certified Diamond Jubilee in Mumbai and Golden Jubilee in other major cities. The film was the year's highest-grossing film. It was also one of the highest-grossing films of the 1980s, alongside ''

Kranti ''Kranti'' () is a 1981 Indian historical drama film, produced and directed by Manoj Kumar, with the story and screenplay written by Salim–Javed. It stars an ensemble cast, consisting of Dilip Kumar in the title role along with Manoj Kumar, ...

'' (1981) and ''

Maine Pyar Kiya ''Maine Pyar Kiya'' () is a 1989 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film written and directed by Sooraj Barjatya. Produced by Rajshri Productions, the film stars Salman Khan and Bhagyashree. It marked the debuts of Barjatya and Bhagyashre ...

'' (1989).

Plot

Narendra Sahay a.k.a. "Naren" is the son of Jeeva Sahay. He is a rich

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

(now Kolkata). Naren visits

Gangotri Gangotri is a town and a ''Nagar Panchayat'' (municipality) in Uttarkashi district in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is 99 km from Uttarkashi, the main district headquarter. It is a Hindu pilgrim town on the banks of the river Bhagirathi � ...

to study the source of the

holy river Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, springs, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with the sacramental blessing of a cleric. T ...

Ganga The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

, and to get some holy water for his wheelchair-using paternal grandmother. There he meets a very pretty girl named Ganga Singh (played by Mandakini). Ganga lives near Gangotri with her brother, Karam. Very soon, they fell in love with each other and decided to get married. They are happily married but all of a sudden Naren has to go back to Calcutta as he wanted to convince his parents about Ganga. While leaving for Calcutta, he promised that very soon he will come back to her. But in actual he could not do so because of some unavoidable circumstances. Ganga became pregnant at the time of his leaving and soon, she becomes mother of a child. She faces many problems at her place because of her child and her beauty. Ganga was alone and no one was there to look after her; finally she decides to go to her husband, Naren. Ganga travels from her place, Gangotri to Calcutta to find her husband. At

Rishikesh Rishikesh, also spelt as Hrishikesh, is a city near Dehradun in Dehradun district of the Indian state Uttarakhand. It is situated on the right bank of the Ganges River and is a pilgrimage town for Hindus, with ancient sages and saints meditati ...

, she was exploited by two women and a man. Then at

Benaras Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic tra ...

, she was molested by a

Pandit A Pandit ( sa, पण्डित, paṇḍit; hi, पंडित; also spelled Pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt.) is a man with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge whether it is shashtra (Holy Books) or shastra (Wea ...

, rescued by the

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

and given a ticket to Calcutta. She fell into the clutches of Manilal who lured her to a

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

near Benaras. At the end she meets her husband when he was getting married to another girl. His father fixes his marriage with Radha Choudhary (played by Divya Rana), who is the daughter of his friend, Bhagwat Choudhary (played by Raza Murad). Naren was being informed that Ganga is dead. So, he decided to marry according to his father's wish. On the other hand, Ganga is invited to dance on her husband's marriage. But lastly, love wins and Naren recognizes his wife Ganga. They try to go away from there with their son but Jeeva, who never loses to anyone, cannot take it and shoots Ganga. But eventually hurts his own son Naren. Naren understands the real scenario of his father's game and goes away with Ganga forever.

Cast

as Narendra "Naren" Sahay * Mandakini as Ganga Singh *

Divya Rana Divya Rana is a former Bollywood actress most noted for her role in Raj Kapoor's ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili''. Divya began her career with the film '' Ek Jaan Hain Hum'' (1983) opposite Raj Kapoor's youngest son Rajiv Kapoor. Then she was selected as ...

as Radha B. Choudhary *

Sushma Seth Sushma Seth (born 20 June 1936) is an Indian stage, film and television actress. She started her career in the 1950s, and was a founder member of the Delhi-based theatre group Yatrik. Her first movie was ''Junoon (1978 film), Junoon'' in ...

as Dadima *

Saeed Jaffrey Saeed Jaffrey (8 January 1929 – 15 November 2015) was a British-Indian actor. His career covered film, radio, stage and television roles over six decades and more than 150 British, American, and Indian movies. During the 1980s and 1990s he wa ...

as Kunj Bihari *

Kulbhushan Kharbanda Kulbhushan Kharbanda (born 21 October 1944) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi and Punjabi films. He is best known for his role as the antagonist Shakaal in '' Shaan'' (1980), Starting off with the Delhi-based theatre group 'Yatrik' in the 1 ...

as Jeeva Sahay *

Raza Murad Raza Murad (born 23 November 1950) is an Indian actor who appears primarily in Hindi films. He has over 250 Bollywood film credits. Murad has also appeared in Bhojpuri and other regional-language films and on Hindi television. Early life He i ...

as Bhagwat Choudhary *

Geeta Siddharth Gita Siddharth (died 14 December 2019) was an Indian actress and social worker. She acted in mainstream Bollywood as well as art house cinema, like '' Parichay'' (1972), '' Garm Hava'' (1973), and '' Gaman'' (1978). She was best known for her ...

as Mrs. Sahay *

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 seco ...

as Professor *

Krishan Dhawan Krishan Dhawan (1926 - 20 May 1994 was an Indian character actor in Hindi language films. Career Krishan Dhawan was an actor, known for Vidhaata (1982), Mujhe Jeene Do (1963) and Roti Kapada Aur Makaan (1974). Personal life He is the fat ...

as Manilal * Vishwa Mehra as Postbabu *

Urmila Bhatt Urmila Bhatt (1 November 1933 – 22 February 1997) was an actress of Hindi cinema. She started acting in Drama Theatre. She joined Sangeet Kala Academy in Rajkot as a folk dancer and singer. It was during that time that her famous Gujarati dra ...

as Tajeshwaribai *

A.K. Hangal AK and A.K. (but not Ak) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''A.K.'' (film), a 1985 film directed by Chris Marker * AK (radio program), a weekly program produced by Alaska Public Radio Network from 2003 to 2008, later a segment on ''Alaska ...

as Brij Kishore *

Gautam Sarin Gautama, Gautam or Gotama may refer to: Ancient sages and philosophers * Akṣapāda Gautama, a Hindu sage and founder of the Nyaya school of Hindu philosophy: see Nyāya Sūtras * Indrabhuti Gautama, chief disciple of Mahavira * Gautama Buddha, t ...

as Naren's fellow student *

Monty Nath Monty is a masculine given name, often a short form of Montgomery, Montague and other similar names. It is also a surname. Notable people with the name or nickname include: First name Nickname *Bernard Montgomery (1887–1976), British Second ...

as Naren's fellow student who lost his watch * Kamaldeep as Chamanlal *

Tom Alter Thomas Beach Alter (22 June 1950 – 29 September 2017) was an Indian actor. He was best known for his works in Hindi cinema, and Indian theatre. In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India. Early life Born in Mussoorie i ...

as Karam Singh (Ganga's elder brother)

Production

According to

Padmini Kolhapure Padmini Kolhapure is an Indian actress and singer, who works primarily in Hindi films. She began her acting career in 1972 at the age of seven, and her early works include ''Zindagi'' (1976) and ''Dream Girl'' (1977). She had her breakthrough ...

, she was the initial choice for the female lead role but declined because the script had a kissing scene. Mandakini, who ultimately played the role, disputed Kolhapure's claims. She said Raj Kapoor wanted only a new face, rather than an established actress, as he believed he could not "make someone pure Ganga if they have an established image". Mandakini also stated that she did not breastfeed despite popular belief, but the scene was shot in a way to suggest that.

Cultural allusions

According to

Philip Lutgendorf Philip Lutgendorf is an American Indologist. He is Professor of Hindu and Modern Indian Studies at the University of Iowa. His areas of work and interest include the epic poem ''Ramcharitmanas'', the life and works of Hindu poet Tulsidas, the wors ...

, the movie is an allegory that "synthesizes classical and mythic narrative, soft-core political and social commentary (here condemning the corruption of politicians and capitalists and championing the nascent environmental initiatives of Prime Minister

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...

). The narrative recapitulates the

Abhijñānaśākuntalam ''Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (Devanagari: अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम्, IAST: ''Abhijñānaśākuntalam''), also known as ''Shakuntala'', ''The Recognition of Shakuntala'', ''The Sign of Shakuntala'', and many other variant ...

story that first appeared in the epic

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

and then was reworked, some six hundred years later, by the poet

Kalidasa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and ...

." The final song sequence "Ek Radha ek Meera" brings Raj Kapoor's personal experiences with filmdom and reality. This song sequence is the climax of the plot where the bride-to-be is face-to-face with the other "saut", the culturally "polluted" dancer who has made that journey from the pure source of the Himalayas to the ever-flowing and ever-absorbing Ganges with all of the human impurities. It also differentiates between the love of Radha and Meera and reconnects the movie back to the Krishna Leelas. The movie was a hit, and it earned Mandakini a

Filmfare ''Filmfare'' is an Indian English language, English-language fortnightly magazine published by Worldwide Media. Acknowledged as one of Indian most popular entertainment magazines, it publishes pieces involving news, interviews, photos, videos, r ...

nomination as Best Actress. The film also caused a stir because of two scenes: one in which Mandakini bathes under a waterfall wearing only a flimsy white

saree A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various Languages of South Asia, regional languages include: * as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO * bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO * gu, સાડી ...

through which her breasts are clearly visible and another in which she is shown breast-feeding a child. Some critics claimed that the scenes were vulgar and exploitative, and were used to get around the Censor Board's stringent rules against

nudity Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. The loss of body hair was one of the physical characteristics that marked the biological evolution of modern humans from their hominin ancestors. Adaptations related to ...

. Kapoor defended the inclusion of the scenes stating that they were tasteful.

Awards

;

33rd Filmfare Awards The 33rd Filmfare Awards were held in 1986, in Mumbai, India. ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili'' and ''Saagar'' led the ceremony with 10 nominations each, followed by ''Meri Jung'' and ''Tawaif'' with 7 nominations. ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili'' won 5 awar ...

: Won *

Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

–

Randhir Kapoor Randhir Raj Kapoor (born 15 February 1947) is an Indian actor, film producer and director who worked in Hindi cinema. He was an established actor of the 1970s and received two Filmfare Award nominations. However, his career declined in the ear ...

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

–

* Best Music Director –

* Best Art Direction – Suresh J. Sawant * Best Editing – Raj Kapoor Nominated *

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress awar ...

– Mandakini * Best Supporting Actor –

* Best Lyricist –

Hasrat Jaipuri Hasrat Jaipuri, born Iqbal Hussain (15 April 1922 – 17 September 1999) was an Indian poet, who wrote in the Hindi and Urdu languages. He was also a renowned film lyricist in Hindi films, where he won the Filmfare Awards for Best Lyricis ...

for "Sun Sahiba Sun" * Best Male Playback Singer –

Suresh Wadkar Suresh Ishwar Wadkar (born 7 August 1955) is an Indian playback singer. He performs in both Hindi and Marathi films. He has sung songs in some Bhojpuri films, Odia albums and bhajans and in Konkani films. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Aka ...

for "Main Hi Main Hoon" * Best Story – Raj Kapoor

Songs

Music of this movie was given by late

, who won Fimfare Award for Best Music Director for this. # "Ek Dukhiyari Kahe" – Lata Mangeshkar & chorus Lyrics-

# "Ek Radha Ek Meera" – Lata Mangeshkar Lyrics-

# "Husn Pahadon Ka" – Lata Mangeshkar,

Lyrics-

# "Ram Teri Ganga Maili Ho Gayee" – Part 1 – Suresh Wadkar Lyrics-

# "Sun Sahiba Sun Pyaar Ki Dhun Maine Tujhe Chun Liya" – Lata Mangeshkar & chorus; Lyrics –

# "Tujhe Bulayen Yeh Meri Bahen" – Lata Mangeshkar Lyrics-

# "Yaara O Yaara" – Lata Mangeshkar, Suresh Wadkar Lyrics-

# "Ram Teri Ganga Maili Ho Gayee" – Part 2 – Suresh Wadkar & Chorus Lyrics-

# "Main Hi Main Hoon -Suresh Wadkar; Lyrics – Amir Qazalbash

References

External links

* {{Raj Kapoor 1985 films 1980s Hindi-language films Films directed by Raj Kapoor Films set in Kolkata R. K. Films films Indian erotic drama films 1980s erotic drama films Films scored by Ravindra Jain 1985 drama films