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Shree 420 (1955) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
8.2/10   294 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 9% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Raj Kapoor
Writers:
Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (dialogue)
Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (screenplay)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Shree 420 on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
6 September 1955 (India) more
Genre:
Musical | Drama | Romance more
Plot:
Wearing torn Japanese shoes, English trousers, a red Russian cap, and a Hindustani heart, orphaned Ranbir Raj comes to Bombay to make his fortune... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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Awards:
2 wins more
User Comments:
Kapoor's technique more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Nargis ... Vidya Omkarnath Shastri
Nadira ... Maya

Raj Kapoor ... Ranbir Raj / Raj Kumar of Pipli
Nemo ... Seth Sonachand Dharmanand
Lalita Pawar ... Ganga Mai
M. Kumar
Hari Shivdasani ... Philachand
Nana Palsikar ... Gambler with goatee
Bhudo Advani ... Gambler
Pesi Patel (as Pessi Patel)
Ramesh Sinha
Rashid Khan ... Radiwala
Sheelavaz (as Sheila Vaaz)
S.P. Berry
Kathana
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Mr. 420
Shri 420 (India: Hindi title) (alternative transliteration)
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Runtime:
168 min
Country:
India
Language:
Hindi
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:
India:U | UK:U

Fun Stuff

Movie Connections:
Referenced in Kilukkam (1991) more
Soundtrack:
Mera Joota Hai Japani (part II) more

FAQ

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8 out of 10 people found the following comment useful:-
Kapoor's technique, 7 March 2005
10/10
Author: rlelias from United States

Shree 420 is a classic Bollywood "social" of the 1950s. Its romanticized populism deserves comparison to Frank Capra's films. As in Kapoor's earlier Awara, the hero is a Chaplinesque tramp, another vagabond (as in Awara). Poor but honest (and happy), he falls in love with Vidya (Nargis), but is soon tempted to partner with a fat millionaire who makes money through fraud. Raj soon becomes rich but just as quickly regrets his choice, with Vidya serving throughout as the voice of his conscience. Songs in Kapoor's films are classics, but beyond their quality, the way Kapoor uses them is an important aspect of his directorial technique. In a pivotal scene, Raj (Kapoor's hero shares his first name) staggers drunk from a nightclub to encounter a stone-faced Vidya outside her poor home. The narrative problem here is that she – and the viewer – must condemn Raj but, at the same time, the movie has to communicate that she still loves him. Kapoor deftly solves this problem by showing Vidya staring coldly while a white-robed specter of Vidya sings a love song to the departing Raj: two Vidyas, one who censures him, another who reaffirms her love for him. And a good song. Imagine how a Hollywood film might resolve this. How many words would it take? How many tears? Kapor allows the stone-faced Vidya to image our disapproval while the spectral Vidya's song reveals what is going on in her mind.

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