Wajood (1998)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

N. Chandra

Writers:

N. Chandra (dialogue)
N. Chandra (written by)

Release Date:

1 December 1998 (India)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

This story revolves around Malhar Gopaldas Agnihotri, a out-of-work actor, poor, and dependent on his father...

Cast

Nana Patekar	...	Malhar Gopaldas Agnihotri / Col. Latti
Madhuri Dixit	...	Apoorva Choudhury
Mukul Dev	...	Nihal Joshi
Ramya Krishna	...	Shalini / Sophia / Amina
Johnny Lever	...	Inspector Rahim Khan (as Johny Lever)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dr. Hemu Adhikari	...	Malhar's father
Maya Alagh	...	Mrs. Abhijeet Joshi
Gulzar	...	Himself (presenting award)
Jagdeep	...	Bagh Singh
Kunika	...	Mrs. Chawla
Sanjay Mishra	...	Kanchan (camera operator)
Parikshat Sahni	...	Abhijeet Joshi
Tej Sapru	...	Apoorva's boss
Shivaji Satham	...	Police Commissioner of Mumbai
G.P. Singh	...	Man wanted to build a Shopping Centre
Rajiv Varma	...	Mr. Choudhury (Apoorva's dad)

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi

Color:

Color

Company:

N. Chandra Productions

Wajood - Proof of Your Identity !

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Means Identity. Story relating : What happens when : a Director decides to become an Actor. Result : Ruckus – a whole lot of it – since Directors are much more versatile than Actors – and a versatile man can either be immensely constructive or highly destructive. Parents, Society, Upbringing decides that for any Individual – whether to become constructive ..or destructive. Of course there is Karma Phal, fate, destiny as well – but then Humans are given the capacity – by the Creator – to surpass destiny by a boon called : Free Will.

Story Line : Malhar (Nana Pathekar) lives in a dilapidated chawl (a single building with many families living in small rooms) is born to a poor typist clerk. He is shown Motherless from childhood. Good in studies, a versatile character – wins trophies in Creativity/ drama but is never appreciated by less educated father – who would rather want him to learn typing and make both ends meet. A sad childhood & adulthood – showing that even if the entire World appreciates or marvels at you – the approval & appreciation of parents is definitely required for success.

Malhar used to write & direct dramas/plays in his college – when he meets Apporva (Madhuri Dixit) a very rich and beautiful looking bubbly girl of his college. While directing and working with her – he falls madly in love with her. In an incident when she wins the Best Actress Award – she calls upon Malhar on stage and gives all the credit to him in front of the entire college – such small gestures of Apporva makes Malhar – of a poor deprived childhood – feel that she loves him too – but it was a misunderstanding.

Meanwhile Apporva meets Nihal (Mukul Dev)- son of a rich Bureaucrat – and they fall in love – he was good looking and belonged to a rich background – so the chemistry was but natural. Nihal's father approaches Apoorva's father to ask for his daughter's hand for his son. This news reaches Malhar – and he thinks that this marriage is taking place without Apoorva's consent (since he thought that she was in love with him)- he barges in their house to stop the marriage – and accidentally Nihal's father gets killed – Malhar is sent to jail and Apoorva's father breaks off her engagement with Nihal since after his father's death – he had no identity. All three of them separate from each other at this juncture.

Malhar is shown spending his days in jail thinking of Apoorva all the time – in his dreamland – he had already married Apoorva – and even fantasized her carrying his child – he thought of all the things with her that a simple Indian wife usually does ..or is supposed to do – pampering husband , acting innocent, kiddish etc. Although his father never appreciated him – but still he had kept a place for his father in his dreams and thought of himself as enjoying life with the wife and father – all living under one roof as a family.

Malhar manages to escape and then starts his escapades of making quick money – by giving advertisements in Newspapers and focusing mostly on rich widows –after mesmerizing them – he knew all the nuances of mesmerizing ladies – exactly how to win their hearts – since he was well read and versatile himself - he looted them or simply murdered them for money.

Nihal had become a police officer and Apoorva - a Journalist. Nihal happens to meet Apoorva again to solve the mystery of the 'stranger' in the city who was looting rich widows and murdering them.Malhar gets a companion with him – an ex-maid of a rich widow – and together they loot people . Malhar starts calling up Apoorva and hinted his next step to her – and she used to write it in Newspapers etc. Ultimately, after creating a whole lot of ruckus – Malhar came face to face with Apoorva and she tells him that she'd never loved him in her life – and that it was just his dream – he is heart broken, gets caught and he dies in the end.

Some points to notice :

1. Apoorva organized an Interview with 3 women who had been looted by Malhar – all three of them confessed of his versatility – and the way he had loved them and made them feel important – and the fact that they would forgive him for whatever he had done to them !! Shows how frustrated these Indian widows / spinsters are – kind of 'desperate housewives' – who can be fooled easily by anyone with a wee bit of brains and charms !! Frankly speaking – such women better be looted !! 2. There is a song – 'Aur hum tum' where the maid servant -that Malhar had made as his comrade- is seen singing with him – (by the way – he was having 'sexual' relationship with her – in fact indications are given that he was rendering 'sexual services' to all the women he had looted – shows that the way to a woman's heart is also a 'good hump session' after all– very similar to what men are infamous for !!- poor men have always been cornered world-wide – the fact that women are equally to be blamed is never pointed out !! Well in this song the simple lovelorn heart of Malhar is depicted – the fact that in spite of singing / dancing/having sex with another sexy & voluptuous woman – Malhar continues to think of Apoorva – like she, he and his father on his bicycle, eating together in their small dilapidated house .