The Lovable Jewel Thief: Dev Anand

(26 September, 1923- 03 December, 2011)

“Pal bhar ke liye koi haemin pyar kar le….” crooned Dev Anand. Well, who wouldn’t love this utterly charming god of romance? In fact, many generations of women swooned over him. Starting in the 1940’s with heroines like Suraiya, he continued to be the love interest for women four decades his junior in age, including, notably, Zeenat Aman. She came as the ‘Dam Maro Dam’ girl in Hare Rama Hare Krishna, cast as his sister, soon to be his love interest in movies that followed. This is a hero who got the tag of ‘evergreen’ not for nothing. If a mother and daughter would go together to watch his film, chances would be that both would be drooling over him by themselves.

If the name Devdutt Pishorimal Anand had stayed, would the debonair Dev still be the same? Most likely, yes. But seems almost certain that his fans would still have given him the name he had opted for: Dev Anand; for, indeed he was the dev (god) of anand (pleasure). Dev Anand would have been 92 years old on September 26 this year.

Second of three brothers, Dev was destined to head for a film career. Elder brother Chetan was a well-known artist owing to his association with films and theatre. It was, therefore, no surprise that after graduating with English Literature from Lahore, he moved over to Bombay (now Mumbai) to try his luck in films. He started as an employee of the Military Censor Office for a princely salary of Rs 160. This was only for a short while. He soon got a break in Prabhat Talkies production ‘Hum Ek Hain’ in 1946. This film was the launching pad not merely for a remarkable journey for a legendary career as an actor, but also brought together two very close friends: Dev Anand and Guru Dutt. They shared a lot of things: even their shirts and, more importantly, their dreams for the future. They are said to have arrived at a pact: if Dev produced a film, Guru Dutt would direct it; and if Guru Dutt produced a film, Dev would act in it.

Dev’s hero was the legendary actor, Ashok Kumar. It was Ashok Kumar who offered to Dev Anand the lead role in a Bombay Talkies 1948 production, ‘Ziddi’. The film was a hit, and was the point from which Dev was never to look back for several decades thereafter.

The following year, in 1949, Dev Anand launched his own production banner Navketan Films. When Dev produced ‘Baazi’ in 1951, he fulfilled his promise and invited Guru Dutt to direct it for him. The film had a very popular musical score, and the song ‘Tadbeer Se Bigdi Hui Taqdeer Bana Le’ sung by Geeta Roy became a great hit. As if to prove these lyrics by poet Sahir Ludhianvi true, with this film Dev Anand became a household name. His hard work, suave looks and a very special style of acting made him the darling of the cinema lovers all over the country. Films that followed included ‘Munimjee’, ‘CID’,‘Kaala Paani’, ‘Kaala Bazar’, ‘Tere Ghar Ke Saamne’, etc. His name was being mentioned alongside the thespian Dilip Kumar and show man Raj Kapoor, to make them the most formidable trio of superstars of the 1950s and 1960s.

Dev Anand married Kalpana Kartik, whose real name was Mona Singha, and who acted opposite him in films like ‘Nau Do Gyarah’ and ‘House no 44’. The two became parents of son Suneil and daughter Devina. It is believed that the marriage to Mona was never a binding for the romantic Dev to have affairs with other ladies. In fact, he and Suraiya were very keen to get married, but Suraiya’s grandmother opposed the move, and it is said that it was on a rebound that Dev proposed to Mona, and the rest is history.

Dev Anand had played the suave city-dweller or the lovable ruffian in most of his films. ‘Hum Dono’, which had him in a double role, brought critical appreciation for his acting skills. Yet, for the more dramatic roles where acting was the key requirement, he was not really the preferred choice. The film ‘Guide’, directed brilliantly by younger brother Vijay Anand, changed the perception of his worst critics. In this film, produced both in Hindi and English, based on R K Narayan’s novel, Dev played the role of a tourist guide who falls in love with a married woman, played most sensationally by Waheeda Rehman, who, on being finally jilted, becomes a sanyasi. There was a demand for histrionics of the highest class from him, and he certainly lived up to that.

Vijay “Goldie” Anand was a brilliant script writer in addition to being one of the most talented directors the film industry has seen. The thrillers, ‘Jewel Thief’ and ‘Johnny Mera Naam’ were great hits, and the romantic image of Dev Anand got even more strengthened with these films. It was in ‘Jewel Thief’ that he was seen wooing a very young Hema Malini with the ‘Pal Bhar Ke Liye Koi Hamein Pyar Kar Le’ song. Goldie also directed him in the critically acclaimed ‘Tere Mere Sapne’ in which Dev played a doctor whose wife was essayed by Mumtaz, but got attracted to a dancer played by Hema Malini. His role called for intense acting, and Dev was equal to that challenge.

Dev Anand produced the film ‘Prem Pujari’, his first film as director. It flopped at the box office. ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’, which was a hit, redeemed his position as a director. However, one must say that Dev Anand was not as gifted a director as he was as an actor. He continued to produce and direct films till his last years but was never very successful in those films either as a director.

Dev Anand passed away in 2011 at the age of 88 in London where he was under treatment.

Dev Anand will forever be remembered for his very special style of dressing, hairstyle, his caps, endearing smile and, without doubt, the music of his films. His favourite music composers were S D Burman, O P Nayyar and R D Burman, and they composed for him some of the most memorable numbers of the Hindi film industry. It can be said that the romantic image that Dev Saab enjoyed owes much to the songs that he emoted on the screen. Songs like ‘Abhi Na Jao Chhodkar’ from the film Hum Duno, ‘Khoya Khoya Chand’ from the film Kala Bazaar, ‘Deewana Mastana Hua Dil’ from Bambai ka Babu, ‘Mana Janab Ne Pukara Nahin’ from the film Paying Guest and ‘Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke’ from the film Nau Do Gyarah are but a few of the unforgettable numbers that Dev Anand brought to life on the screen.

There will never be another Dev Anand.

Dev Anand in ‘Guide’

Dev Anand in ‘Jewel Thief’