Meenakshi Shedde: Pyaasa: Thirsty still

A poster of the film PyaasaI had the enormous pleasure of seeing Guru Dutts Pyaasa The Thirsty One 1957 on the big screen in Mumbai last week Not only is this film a great classic but also a popular beloved one Pyaasa has been in Time magazines All Time 100 Best Movies and in Sight amp Sounds Critics and Curators worldwide poll in 2016 Whats more I saw it at a regular theatre Cinepolis formerly Fun Republic a DCP of a gloriously restored black and white version by Ultra Media The best part while there were people of my generation the hall was full of young people in their 20s and 30s and people kept clapping now and then Youngsters clapping for Pyaasa in 2017 It was extraordinaryDirectorproducer Guru Dutt exquisitely blends mainstream song and dance in an arthouse film that questions how our society values art and poetry And can you even imagine any other top directorproducer like Mani Ratnam Rajkumar Hirani or Sanjay Leela Bhansali dancing in his own film But Guru Dutt swung his hips in the waltzy Hum Aap Ki Ankhon Mein hes a bit stiff like a penguin on its first date but with those swoony clouds and magical stairway to the moon we dont careBriefly for those who havent seen it Pyaasa is about an impoverished poet Vijay victory who struggles to get published his brothers kick him out of the house publishers too The only ones who care about him and his poetry are Gulabo Waheeda Rehman a prostitute who later gets his poems published and a tel maalishwala Johnny Walker both people from the margins Vijay meets his ex Meena Mala Sinha who had abandoned him to marry a rich publisher Rehman Rehman gives Vijay a menial job to taunt his wife Later when Vijay lends his coat to a beggar who is run over by a train people assume Vijay is dead When the real Vijay insists he is Vijay the poet he is sent to a lunatic asylum from where he escapes to attend his own memorial where those who had scorned him now pay him glorious tributes Disillusioned by a world that values wealth more than decency honesty and art he leaves with Gulabo for a future which is uncertain but probably happier Guru Dutt values the prostitute as the only true artistic connoisseurThe film is elevated by memorable performances by Guru Dutt Waheeda Rehman Mala Sinha and the entire cast with superb dialogues by Abrar Alvi and glorious landmark photography by VK Murthy Above all it has haunting songs with lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi and music by SD Burman including Jaane Kya Tune Kahi Jaane Woh Kaise Log The Sar Jo Tera Chakraye and that eternal anthem Yeh duniya agar mil bhi jaaye What if you win this worldThe screening had been organised by 1018mb which programmes films according to public demand If enough people want to see a film they can secure or have in their catalogue they will screen it PVR Vkaao also has screenings by public demand Heres what a millennial or thereabouts thinks of Pyaasa Rhea Chakraborty just 24 a beautiful actress who acted in Mohit Suris Half Girlfriend said Pyaasa restored my faith in what is possible in our cinemaIf this is what Guru Dutt could do 50 years ago why did we go downhill from there Guru Dutts character says big meaningful things straight up yet he doesnt sound preachy He showed me I can be how I want to be I should take matters in my own hands write good scripts or find good directors Actually I was quite depressed that day but after seeing Pyaasa I have a renewed faith and hope in my work in film even in this country Guru Dutt Thou shouldst be living at this hourMeenakshi Shedde is South Asia Consultant to the Berlin Film Festival awardwinning critic curator to festivals worldwide and journalist Reach her at meenakshisheddegmailcom