Silsila () is a 1981 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic drama film co-written, directed, and produced by Yash Chopra. The story revolves around the love triangle of a romantic playwright Amit (Amitabh Bachchan), his wife Shobha (Jaya Bachchan), and his former lover Chandni (Rekha). The soundtrack was composed by Shiv–Hari, with lyrics from Javed Akhtar, Hasan Kamal, Mirabai, Nida Fazli, Rajendra Krishan, and Harivansh Rai Bachchan.

Silsila attracted considerable attention from the media when it was in production due to its casting. Principal photography took place in Amsterdam, Bombay (now Mumbai), Delhi, and Kashmir from November 1980 and May 1981. The film, however, failed at the box office after releasing on 14 August 1981, grossing only . At the 29th Filmfare Awards, the film received nominations for Best Actor (Amitabh Bachchan), Best Actress (Jaya Bachchan), and Best Music Director (Shiv–Hari). Critically, it received negative notice for the story and the cast's performances.

Plot

Orphaned at a young age, brothers Shekhar and Amit Malhotra enjoy a close relationship but live independently. Shekhar, the older brother, is a squadron leader in the Indian Air Force, while Amit is a Delhi-based romantic playwright. Shekhar introduces Amit to his fiancée, Shobha, and the three form a camaraderie. Amit, in turn, meets Chandni and their relationship blossoms into love with hopes of marriage. Before Amit is able to introduce Chandni to Shekhar, Shekhar dies in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Shobha is subsequently revealed to be pregnant with Shekhar's child. Devastated from the loss of Shekhar, Amit marries Shobha to shield her from societal scorn and the stigma of being an unwed mother, and to honor Shekhar's memory. He sends a letter to Chandni ending their relationship, professing his love but urging her to move on, leaving Chandni heartbroken.

Tragedy strikes once more when Amit and Shobha are injured in a car accident and Shobha suffers a miscarriage. She is treated by Dr. V.K. Anand, who is revealed to have married Chandni. Without a child to bind them together, Amit and Shobha settle into their passionless marriage. Amit befriends Dr. Anand in an attempt to rekindle his romance with Chandni, who eventually gives in. They meet secretly, although not without arousing the suspicions of Shobha, who despite her history with Shekhar has come to revere Amit. On the way home from a tryst, Amit and Chandni injure a pedestrian with their car. Their affair is endangered when the policeman investigating the accident happens to be Shobha's cousin, who is protective of Shobha and intends to expose Amit.

Amit decides to leave his loveless marriage to be with Chandni. The news shatters Shobha, who has genuinely fallen for Amit but believes that her love will make him return. Dr. Anand is also aware of Chandni's infidelity and feels devastated. When Dr. Anand leaves on a business trip, Amit and Chandni secretly leave town to start a new life. Anand's plane then crashes, causing Amit, Chandni, and Shobha to rush to the wreckage site. There, Amit is confronted by Shobha, who reveals that she is expecting his child. He vows to return to her, then rushes to rescue Anand from the wreckage. Chandni realizes her love for her husband and returns to him. The film ends with Amit and Shobha living happily in their marriage.

Cast

  • Amitabh Bachchan as Amit Malhotra
  • Shashi Kapoor as Sqn. Ldr. Shekhar Malhotra
  • Jaya Bachchan as Shobha Malhotra
  • Rekha as Chandni Anand
  • Sanjeev Kumar as Dr. V. K. Anand
  • Sudha Chopra as Shobha's mother
  • Sushma Seth as Amit's benefactor
  • Kulbhushan Kharbanda as police officer Kulbhushan, Shobha's cousin (guest appearance)
  • Deven Verma as Vidyarthi (guest appearance)

Production

Silsila was directed and produced by Yash Chopra for his banner Yash Raj Films. He co-wrote the screenplay with Sagar Sarhadi, who also co-wrote the story with Preeti Bedi. The dialogue was written by Romesh Sharma. after he failed with action films, Chopra had decided to make a romantic film for his next venture.

Chopra's biographer Rachel Dwyer described the casting as complicated, for which the film was controversial before release. Speculations about the relationship between Amitabh Bachchan, who was married to Jaya Bachchan, and Rekha was common in gossip magazines and newspapers at the time. Chopra called his ability to cast the three his greatest achievement.

Silsila was shot by Raju Kaygee. The lyrics were by Javed Akhtar, Hasan Kamal, Mirabai, Nida Fazli, Rajendra Krishan, and Harivansh Rai Bachchan. Akhtar, who previously collaborated with Salim Khan in screenwriting, turned to lyrical composition and "Dekha Ek Khwab" was his first written song. Akhtar was chosen after Chopra hearing his poetry and being astonished by it. "Rang Barse Bhige Chunar Wali" became one of the most-played songs in the Holi celebration.

Release and reception

Silsila was released on 14 August 1981 and failed at the box office, which Chopra believed was due to the audience's attentions mostly given to the controversy, resulted by the casting, rather than the plot. Around a week later, a screening was held at the Mumbai Metro and collected , with being donated to the Nargis Dutt Foundation.</blockquote>

Dwyer wrote that Amitabh Bachchan's then-popular screen persona as an "angry young man", which he got from Deewaar (1975), was incompatible with his role in Silsila as a lover. It marked the beginning of the setback in Chopra's career; in spite of this, he called Silsila one of his favourite films in a 2011 interview.

References

  • Silsila at Bollywood Hungama