Sachaa Jhutha (1970)

Directed by: Manmohan Desai
Music: Kalyanji-Anandji
Lyrics: Indeevar, Qamar Jalalabadi,
Gulshan Bawra
Starring: Rajesh Khanna, Naaz,
Mumtaz, Faryal,
Vinod Khanna, Kamal Kapoor,
Jagdish Raj, Ratnamala,
Pravin Paul
and
Rexy as Moti

The Rajesh Khanna Retrospective (sounds so much better than ‘Rajesh Khanna Month’) continues with a tale of lookalike men and what happens when one takes the other’s place. 

 

Bhola (Rajesh Khanna) is a simple, village musician whose only goal in life is to get his sister, Belu (Naaz) married off. Unfortunately, Belu is lame and needs the aid of crutches to walk. 

 

Belu’s handicap makes it difficult to arrange a marriage for her. In fact, the father of one ‘boy’ who comes to ‘see’ her makes it clear to Bhola: he was prepared to have his son marry a poor girl without dowry, but that didn’t mean he would have his son marry a cripple. If Bhola can get his sister treated, it would be a different matter. If, instead, he thought that anyone would marry Belu without a dowry of at least Rs10,000, he must be addled. 

 

Bhola’s and Belu’s lives are already made miserable by their stepmother (Pravin Paul). Now, sick of her taunts, Bhola decides to go to the city to earn the money needed for his sister’s treatment and her wedding. Poor Belu is loath to see him go. But Bhola leaves her to the care of their loyal dog, Moti and makes his way to the city.

 

Me: Moti is cute.
S: So is RK. [I laugh.] The poignancy of this scene is quite realistic, no? Belu’s only source of support is leaving, and she has more reasons than most to be sad.
[The credits play out over a robbery. And we see a Bhola lookalike committing murder. Shalini is verklempt over the fact that there’s a proper ‘villain’s den.]

 

The police are now on the search of a master jewel thief, who has carried out a series of daring jewel heists without leaving a trace. Inspector Pradhan (a young, dashing Vinod Khanna) is certain he knows who it is. 

 

S: Ooh, RK looks good in a tux in that pic!
Me: He does, indeed. [To myself: And this woman claims she’s not an RK fan?] I’d forgotten that Vinod Khanna is in the film.
S: I find VK forgettable in most movies. His appeal escapes me.
Me: I don’t mind VK and I like him when I see him onscreen but there’s not much he’s done where I remember him.  [Poor VK!]

 

 

The commissioner of police (Kamal Kapoor) cautions him. Ranjit Kumar is a well-respected businessman. He must tread carefully. But Inspector Pradhan has a plan – Ranjit’s weaknesses are diamonds and women. If he could co-opt fellow officer Leela (Mumtaz) to work undercover as Rita, a diamond heiress? 

 

 

Me: Mumu! As a CID officer!

S: She doesn’t really do anything in that capacity.

Meanwhile, Bhola has reached Bombay only to discover that he’s been robbed of his meagre savings and his 'izzat' (his turban). But he’s befriended by a chaiwala who, hearing of his plight, offers him a cup of tea. Bhola is charmed and grateful. 

 

 

S: The interaction between Bhola and the chaiwala is really nice. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I miss these touches in modern Hindi films. [I agree.]

Me: Man, Kaka was so good in this scene. I love his grin when he says “Tum bade ache ho.”

‘Rita’ and her ‘uncle and aunt’ (Jagdish Raj and Ratanmala), also undercover police officers, are hosting a masquerade party to which they have invited the city’s who’s who, including Ranjit. This will enable her to make Ranjit’s acquaintance without raising suspicion. 

 

 

Bhola, wandering about with his instruments, happens to be outside the venue [which is actually the exterior of the Asiatic Library in Bombay passing off as Rita’s residence] when he’s mistaken for Ranjit by the cops on duty. They duly escort him inside, where he’s welcomed and made much of by everyone, much to his bemusement.

 

Meanwhile, Ranjit (Rajesh Khanna) pulls up in a limousine and quickly masks himself. Since no one can identify him in his Zorro outfit, he is free to stand by and watch Bhola being mistaken for him.

 

When Leela comes down the stairs, Bhola is smitten at first sight.

S: I normally dislike the bumpkin act in Hindi films but RK is good. He’s balancing simple and innocence without appearing stupid. Also, Mumu looks lovely in her Amrapali outfit.

Me: Mumu looks lovely in anything. [S agrees.]

 

Inspector Pradhan is also present at the party and when the party (and a song) ends, discusses the case with Leela. 

 

Outside the venue, Bhola is being picked up by Ranjit’s men upon his orders. When he meets Ranjit face to face, he’s astonished. Ranjit spins a sad tale to con Bhola into taking his place. 

 

Sympathizing,  Bhola agrees, especially since he will be paid for the job. Ranjit gives his secretary Ruby (Faryal) orders:  She is to transform a rustic Bhola into sophisticated Ranjit within the next week. Bhola should be able to walk, talk and behave like him if he has to take his place. She has a difficult task, but she perseveres.

 

 

[We are in splits as Bhola tries to spear peas with a fork – “Jaan bacha ke bhaag raha hai!” We both agree that though we were prepared to roll our eyes at the ‘comedy’, it was actually quite funny, thanks to RK’s innate charm.] 

 

The success of Ruby’s endeavour will be tested at Ranjit’s birthday party where Bhola will play Ranjit (while Ranjit is getting rid of the diamonds he had stolen earlier).

S: I am liking Faryal’s outfits. She has a great body!

 

At the party, the fake Ranjit is busy sticking to Rita, and charming her.

Me: He’s a quick mover, isn’t he? He’s already gone to ‘jeevan sangat’.

S: He’s not at that ‘bhola’ when it comes to Rita. Not that I blame him. 

 

 

[We like that being a ‘villager’ doesn’t stop Bhola from being flirtatious and charming. We also agree that Mumu really wasn’t a good dancer but she has so much effervescence that one forgives her much.]

 

Meanwhile, the real Ranjit is finding his deal interrupted by Inspector Pradhan and the cops. His 'client' was a police informer. But Ranjit has a lucky break – despite being wounded in the gunfight that follows, he manages to escape.

Me: I must say that Ranjit’s revolver seems to have a never-ending supply of bullets!

S: I’m not following what’s happening other than everybody is shooting everybody!

 

 

Sure that he now has Ranjit where he wants him, Inspector Pradhan arrives at Ranjit’s home, only to discover ‘Ranjit’ playing a trumpet and dancing with Rita. What’s more, there are dozens of guests – including the Commissioner of Police – who can vouch for him being there all evening.

 

Meanwhile, Ranjit has had his men bring him a surgeon to remove the bullet from his leg. The reluctant doctor (so would you be, if you were abducted) removes the bullet but informs Ranjit that he must rest for a month, if he doesn’t want his mobility restricted for life. Ranjit is not pleased. He orders the doctor to stay put for a month as well.

Ruby, visiting Ranjit in his den, informs him that Bhola had fooled everyone, including the police. Ranjit tells her what the doctor said and asks her to tell Bhola that he will have to take his place for a month. Bhola is happy – it gives him a chance to be with Rita and earn money to send to Belu at the same time. 

 

Back home, however, floods have devastated the village. Belu escapes but their stepmother meets a tragic end. Left with no home and no one to call her own, Belu and Moti set off for Bombay to try and find Bhola. 

 

Meanwhile, Inspector Pradhan has given Leela a truth serum. She is to find an opportunity to drug Ranjit and record the ensuing conversation. Unfortunately for her (she really is a very inept CID officer), a mishap results in the tape recorder being at the bottom of the ocean and her drinking the doctored drink as well. 

 

S: Oh, Mumu, why do you try to dance? [But she’s (Shalini, not Mumu) soon distracted by the look RK gives Mumu. “Uff!”]
Me [sounding like a broken record]: I totally get the RK craze. 
Both Bhola and she confess their true identities to each other, and end up serenading each other with the beautiful Yunhi tum mujhse baat karti ho.
Me:  I wonder what Inspector Pradhan thinks of all this romancing. 
When the effects of the drug wear off, neither of them have an recollection of what went on. And Inspector Pradhan is no closer to discovering the truth. 

 

 

Meanwhile, Belu, who’s reached Bombay, spots Bhola getting into a car and desperately attempts to catch his attention. Unfortunately, she’s not looking where she’s going and is almost run over by Inspector Pradhan, who is naturally irate at the near accident. 

 

Ruby pulls up beside them just as Belu is explaining that she’s searching for her brother, Bhola. Ruby hastens to inform Ranjit, who’s furious – Belu’s presence in the city is dangerous to their plan. 

 

When will Bhola realize that Ranjit is just using him? Will Belu find Bhola or will Ranjit get to her before that? What’s more important, when will the police realize that Ranjit has a lookalike? How will Bhola convince anyone he’s not Ranjit? 

 

Sachaa Jhutha is a very Manmohan Desai film full of coincidences and near misses. In a large city like Bombay, it’s wondrous how many times the characters’ paths criss-cross each other. Yet, these coincidences are not without their emotional beats, and Man manages to catch the sur of each one of these beats. 

 

In this, he’s aided by his leading man. Rajesh Khanna managed to infuse both his characters with individuality, without resorting to studied mannerisms. His Ranjit is cold, ruthless and chilling. I couldn’t imagine Kaka looking so cruel. Bhola is softer, more innocent, but definitely not the stereotypical  naïve and bumbling village bumpkin. 

 

He is a simple man, no doubt, honest to the core, but both the script and Rajesh himself avoid the pitfalls of making him foolish or credulous. Rajesh Khanna also plays him as a cheery, guileless person without going overboard. Bhola is an open, friendly soul, not a silly, stupid one, overawed by the city. 

 

The scene where he spots a bridal couple and remembers his sister was again nicely etched – that the bride tears up at his expressed sentiments was also a nice touch. RK managed to convey a brother’s love and concern so sincerely without overdoing the sweetness.

 

Ranjit, on the other hand, is suave and sophisticated in his businessman avatar and cold and ruthless as the mastermind. There were times when his expressions were downright chilling. He’s also truly bad without any mitigating circumstances. [The remakes in both Tamil and Kannada gave the ‘bad’ guy a backstory to explain away the badness; so, it is doubly impressive that Rajesh Khanna didn’t need one.] What helped – and what impressed me the most about his portrayal of the two men – was the way Kaka modulated his voice for both characters. What’s even more impressive is that when Ranjit is impersonating Bhola, he remembers to change his voice to that of Bhola’s only to snap back to his more incisive tones a minute later when he’s speaking in his own character.

S: I really liked the ‘bad RK’ character. I mean, is being a criminal that wrong?

Me: Being an attractive criminal like RK (or AB as the real Don) is never wrong.

[We both agree that besides being unsympathetic women, our morals are all warped.]

 

Very few of the scenes are wasted and each ‘coincidence’ ties into the plot at a later point. Case in point, the chaiwala. He’s a minor character who pops up multiple times, and the emotional undertones to his interactions with the characters is interesting to watch. And the actor playing the role (?) pitches it just right – a slight sympathy based on shared circumstances, but the ‘goodness’ is not overdone. 

 

That lack of melodrama runs through every single relationship in this movie. Since the script focused on the sibling relationship, Naaz had a very important role to play. 

 

She’s gorgeous and acts well, so it was unfortunate that she devolves into a typical Hindi film sister part way through the movie. But the sibling relationship between her and RK is sweet but not cloying.

 

Mumtaz, pretty as a picture, is, as I mentioned earlier, pretty inept as a police officer. The script doesn’t give her much to do except look pretty and sing a few songs but the chemistry between her and Kaka is sweet and charming. 

 

 

Vinod Khanna got most of the action scenes and he acquitted himself well. [Shalini felt that since VK had to play hero, they sidelined Moti. I love Moti but I thought VK was a good substitute.] The romance between him and Naaz was sweet and not at all ‘handicapped girl rescued by good man’ at all.

S: VK has the charisma of a telephone pole but he’s nice to Naaz so I’m okay! [At the risk of repeating myself, poor VK!]

We did salivate over Faryal's outfits, and she had a longer role than usual, but unfortunately, not one dance sequence did she get. Moti [Rexy) was my favourite.

 

Moti is smarter than most humans, can fight off goons, identify the real Bhola, fetch and carry for Belu, and is better at navigating Bombay traffic than Belu is. Though I did have my heart in my mouth when Moti was hit by a car - I do hope s/he was okay. 

Sachaa Jhutha is a fun film – we particularly loved the ‘magic drinks’ in this film, and can think of hundreds of ways to put them to use. As a film, this was much better plotted than some of Manmohan Desai’s other films, and Rajesh Khanna had much to do with the film’s entertainment quotient. 

 

 

So if you want to watch Rajesh Khanna in a double role, with Mumtaz and Faryal opposite him, along with Vinod Khanna and Naaz in a fast-paced, well-made, entertaining film, this is the one to watch.