Aah

1953 DramaRomance 138 minutes Directed by Raja Nawathe

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About Aah

Raj's father has him write to Chandra, a woman he has picked as a bride. Chandra ignores the letter. Her younger sister Neelu answers it under Chandra's name, and she and Raj fall in love before he knows who is writing. He is then told he has tuberculosis, the disease that killed his mother. He pretends he never loved Neelu, flirts with Chandra, and tells Neelu to marry his friend Dr. Kailash. Chandra stops the pretense. Neelu takes Raj as he is. In the release cut he recovers. The ending shot for the premiere was different: Neelu married Kailash, and Raj died as her wedding procession passed.

Cast & crew

More about Aah

Raja Nawathe directed his first film on his own, after assisting Raj Kapoor on Aag (1948), Barsaat (1949), and Awaara (1951). Kapoor produced it and plays Raj. Inder Raj Anand wrote it. Nargis plays Neelu. Pran plays Dr. Kailash. Shankar-Jaikishan wrote the music. It runs 138 minutes. It was dubbed in Tamil as Avan, with dialogue by S. D. Sundharam, and in Telugu as Prema Lekhalu. Trade reports rated the first release below average.

Themes

  • Letters answered by the wrong sister
  • A tuberculosis diagnosis like his mother's
  • A premiere ending that was thrown out
  • Raj Kapoor
  • Neelu
  • Chandra
  • Dr. Kailash
  • letters
  • tuberculosis
  • Nargis
  • Shankar-Jaikishan

Making

Nawathe shot the correspondence story Kapoor produced. After the premiere Kapoor had the last reel changed so Raj lives and Neelu stays with him.

Audiences

The first release was rated below average in the trade. Kapoor took that premiere reaction as a flop and ordered a new ending.

Music

Shankar-Jaikishan wrote the songs. Mukesh sings "Chhoti Si Yeh Zindagani" on screen.

Preservation

The release version, with the happy ending, survives.

Notes

  • Hit songs from the score include "Raja Ki Aayegi Baaraat," "Aaja Re Ab Mera Dil Pukara," and "Jaane Na Nazar.
  • Mukesh sings "Chhoti Si Yeh Zindagani" and appears in the picturization.
  • Kapoor said of the premiere, "The atmosphere in an auditorium is like a living, palpitating thing. It told me again and again: 'Your picture is a flop.'
  • Bunny Reuben, in Raj Kapoor, The Fabulous Showman, writes that the Devdas-like tragic ending was replaced with a happy one because the film did not do well on first release.
  • The tragic-hero idea is linked to Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Devdas.
  • A Turkish remake, Ah Bu Dünya, directed by Nuri Ergün, came out in 1965. Boş Çerçeve, directed by Ertem Eğilmez, came out in 1969.

Scenes

  • Neelu writes back in Chandra's name, and Raj falls in love with the letters.
  • After the diagnosis he flirts with Chandra so Neelu will marry Dr. Kailash.
  • In the ending first shown, he dies as her wedding procession goes by. The release cut lets him recover.

Influenced by

  • Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's Devdas

Influenced

  • Ah Bu Dünya (1965)
  • Boş Çerçeve (1969)

Also available

  • Internet Archive (aah-1953-untouched-dvd9-ntsc-yrf)

Quotes

The atmosphere in an auditorium is like a living, palpitating thing. It told me again and again: Your picture is a flop.