"Actor: Kumkum"

• Mr And Mrs 55 | DVD | (03/07/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Preetam (Guru Dutt) a poor and struggling cartoonist living off his friends meets Anita (Madhubala) and falls in love with her. Anita is a rich heiress who is controlled by two opposing forces. One her aunt Sita Devi (Lalita Pawar) a crusader for women's rights and other Anita's dead father who has stipulated in his will that Anita will inherit his fortune only if she marries within a month of turning 21. In a have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too plan Sita Devi plots to have a marraige of convenience for Anita. She hires Preetam to marry Anita unaware he is in love with her. When Anita finds out that Preetam has sold his services as her hired husband she is deeply shattered and disappointed. In spite of this the marraige takes place but Preetam frustrated at not being able to see Anita after the marraige carries her off to his brother's place. Sita Devi rescues Anita and divorce proceedings begin. However Anita now rediscovers her earlier love for Preetam. Will Preetam and Anita be united? What about Anita's fortune will it be sacrificed at the altar of love? Mr. & Mrs. 55 one of Guru Dutt's early successes is a sophisticated romantic comedy full of sparkling dialogue and fine comic performances. Apart from one of O.P. Nayyar's most successful musical scores including some of Geeta Dutt's greatest hits ""Jaane kahan mera jigar"" ""Thandi hawa kaali ghata"" the film has another highlight - Preetam's cartoons were actually drawn by India's top-most cartoonist R.K. Laxman.

• Pyaasa | DVD | (02/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

• Bhagman Bhag | DVD | (07/11/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  An all time classic comedy with hit songs and hit music. A story of intrigue and romance involving the two main characters Bhagu and Kishore and the mystery of the 'Black Coat'.

• Raja Aur Runk | DVD | (02/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £10.99

  Raja Aur Runk is the story of a prince and a pauper. Two children born on the same day at the same time - one to the king Raja Sahib and one to the poor man Hariya (Ajit). The king is thrilled at the birth of Yuvraj the heir to the throne while Hariya is cynical about the birth of his son Raja. Both the children grow up looking identical but there is a constant contrast in their lives and upbringing. One day Raja runs away from home and somehow ends up in the palace where he meets Yuvraj. Both the boys discover how different their lives are. Being tempted to see the world outside Yuvraj changes identities with Raja and leaves the palace. Both boys now struggle in vain to adjust to their new identity. Raja's mother (Nirupa Roy) and sister Sujjo (Nazima) both are miserable with his changed behaviour and the King is also very distressed about Yuvraj. Sudhir (Sanjeev Kumar) comes in as a pivotal player in this saga of gripping twists and turns. This Prasad Productions' costume drama has effective performances by Sanjeev Kumar Nazima and child artiste Mahesh Kothare. The hit team of Anand Bakshi and Laxmikant Pyarelal created melodious songs like 'Tu Kitni Achchi Hai...O Maa' 'O Phirkiwali' 'Mera Naam Hai Chameli' and 'Sang Basanti Ang Basanti'.

• C.I.D. | DVD | (20/08/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  Noir, Indian style: that in a nutshell is Raj Khosla's classic crime thriller C.I.D. (1956). Dev Anand plays the intrepid C.I.D Inspector Shekhar who is trying to solve the murder of a newspaper editor. On the way to achieving this he comes across a variety of stock film noir characters including a do-gooder with a dark side, a vamp with a heart of gold and a bumbling sidekick. All the elements of the genre are present, from the enigmatic woman to the cigarette-puffing hero to the tough police commissioner. And of course our hero finds true love as well. Produced by cult actor/director Guru Dutt, C.I.D. is a worthy companion piece to the Dutt-directed hit Baazi (1951) which explored similar territory. Cinematographer VK Murthy, who is now revered as one of the best ever, creates a shadowy, smoky world that perfectly frames the on-screen happenings. What makes it uniquely Indian is the introduction of several popular songs that enhance rather than disrupt the narrative. The suave Dev Anand is more of a soft-boiled detective than a hard-boiled one. But what makes the film memorable is Waheeda Rehman's vamp who is as coy, sexy and mysterious as they come. On the DVD: C.I.D. on DVD comes with a note that says "reproduced from vintage source for the sake of nostalgic appeal, hence possibly compromising on quality". Happily, the quality is quite good barring a couple of dropouts near the beginning. The black and white transfer is not as crisp as it could be, but given the state of film preservation in India it is quite acceptable. The subtitles are accurate. The best feature on the DVD is Nasreen Munni Kabir's three-part Channel 4 documentary "In Search of Guru Dutt" which is a comprehensive and fascinating look into the life and work of C.I.D.'s producer. --Nanan Ramachandran

• Aar Paar | DVD | (20/08/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  Kaalu (Guru Dutt) is a jobless common man aimlessly roaming the streets with no real ambition in life. He does small odd jobs and one day he takes up a job in a garage. There he meets and fall in love with Nikki who is the garage owner's daughter. Meanwhile he also meets a dancer (Shakila) in a bar where he goes to deliver a message to Captain from one of his jail mates. He asks Nikki's father for her hand in marriage who refuses as he thinks Kaalu as a worthless thug. Dejected he goes to see Captain and tells him of his dream to buy a taxi and become a taxi driver. Captains offers to buy him the taxi on the condition that it will be available for his use whenever he needs it. Kaalu agrees not knowing that Captain intends to use the taxi for smuggling. Kaalu then asks Nikki to elope with him. Nikki refuses. One day he finds out about Captain's nefarious activities and refuses to be a part of it. He is captured and about to be killed when Shakila tells Captain to force Kaalu to smuggle instead of killing him.

• C.I.D. | DVD | (07/08/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Inspector Shekhar an official of the Criminal Investigation Department receives a telephone call from Editor Srivastava and before Shekhar reaches the Editor's office the Editor has been murdered. He suspects a man and follows him and as the man drives away he chases him with the help of a car that was parked there. As ill luck would have it the murderer escapes. Jhonny a small time crook who happened to be at the Editor's office for stealing a typewriter is caught and is suspected to be the murderer of the Editor. Clever as he his Shekhar could easily know that murder is not to the capacity of Jhonny and so he is on the look out for the real culprit. By a clever ruse he catches the man who murdered the Editor. he cross-examines the arrested man several times but the crook would not speak. Shekhar gets a telephone call from a girl who promises to throw some light on the entire case. Shekhar anxious about the case accepts the invitation and reaches the girl's place. He is offered a bribe of fifty thousand rupees for the release of the prisoner in the lock-up but the offer was made very indirectly. Shekhar refuses to accept. As a matter of courtesy the girl gives him a glass of sherbat from a jug which he takes and after some time he faints. He wakes up to find himself in the house in the Superintendent of Police. He was picked up from the roadside. In the Superintendents house in a party he meets the same girl again. He reaches the police station sends for the prisoner in the lock up and questions him. The prisoner is dumb as ever and weary and tired on account of questioning. He is sent back to the cell. In a few minutes there is a hue and a cry and the prisoner is found dead in the cell. As Shekhar reaches the other prisoner in the cell accuses him of the murder of the prisoner. Shekhar has no other proof. All the evidence is against him....