NOSTALGIA: Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam

PATHOS AND POIGNANCY

Ever since the release of Abrar Alvi's Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam in 1962, there has been widespread speculation about the authorship of this film. Abrar Alvi was its director, Guru Dutt, its producer. Legend has it that after the debacle of his dream project Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Guru Dutt vowed never to direct a film again. But enthusiasts and academics have analysed the film threadbare to sift the individual roles either of the Alvi-Dutt duo may have played in its creation. While it may or may not have been ghost directed by Dutt, it certainly possesses the qualities of subliminal pathos and innate delicacy which distinguished his cinema from that of other filmmakers of the time.

On watching Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam once again and after a gap of several years, I think the argument is largely irrelevant. It is a marvelous creation and a rare masterpiece of Hindi cinema. Based on the book Saheb Bibi Golam by Bimal Mitra, this period drama has a distinctive Bengali ethos about it. It explores the decline of the zamindari system during the late 19th century, the rise of the social reforms movement led by the Brahmo Samaj and the stirrings of rebellion against the British rule spearheaded by the intelligentsia. But its primary theme is an exceptional human story about the unlikely bond between a shy young man named Bhoothnath (Guru Dutt) and Chhoti Bahu (Meena Kumari), the devoted wife of a debauched zamindar pining for her husband's love and attention and willing to go to any lengths to get it.

The third angle of this tragedy is Jaba (Waheeda Rehman) a remarkably modern woman for her times -- capable, literate and strong-willed. Bhoothnath who has just arrived in Calcutta from the village, lives on the periphery of the large ancestral mansion of the zamindars and unwittingly gets drawn into Chhoti Bahu's life. He works for a factory (owned by Jaba's father) that produces sindoor and Chhoti Bahu summons him to get her a box, in order to gain her husband's attention. Chhote Babu (Rehman) lives up to his image of being a decadent and can't be seen spending time with his wife. He prefers the company of nautch girls and likes his alcohol, which leaves little time for estate matters as well. His older brother (Sapru) has his share of dancing women, interspersed with pigeon flying contests. Meanwhile, their conniving manager and other opportunists (including the British) are plotting to relieve them of their ill-gotten riches.

Alvi creates a rich mood of deliberate mystery and foreboding about the goings on in the Choudhary haveli. The half-deranged Ghadi Babu (Harindranath Chatopadhyay) ominously predicts the inevitable when he accosts an unsuspecting Bhoothnath on his first visit inside the mansion. But even before that, we hear the enchanting and forlorn call emanating from somewhere deep within the darkness of the house, as Chhoti Bahu sings, "Koi dur se aawaz de, chale aao" unknowingly drawing Bhoothnath towards herself. Soon he becomes her only friend and confidant. His attraction to her is evident in the way he speaks of her with Jaba, unmindful of the young woman's own feelings towards him. She taunts him and teases him and makes him uncomfortable, but from the start, we know where her heart lies.  

Chhoti Bahu's troubles compound when she realises the only way she can keep her man is by drinking with him and entertaining him with her singing. So she requests Bhoothnath to do the unthinkable -- procure her first bottle of alcohol. The decline of the haveli carries in its womb, the destruction of the gentle and doggedly devoted Chhoti Bahu who gradually slides into alcoholism.

In a stroke of poetic justice, Bhoothnath who stays loyal to her till the end and observes the decline of the feudal system through the eyes of an outsider, must also play the role of demolishing the derelict structure and solve the mystery of Chhoti Bahu's disappearance. When the film opens, he's an architect over-seeing the rebuilding of the haveli. As he sits amidst the ruins lost in recollection of past events (the film then plays out in flashback), workers summon him to a grave they've just unearthed. On the skeleton lying buried in the grounds Bhoothnath sees the gold bangle that he'd last seen in Chhoti Bahu's hand before she disappeared.

There's an elegiac quality to the structure of the film, all the rhythms of grand tragedy deftly woven into its fabric. V K Murthy's cinematography heightens the mood of melancholy and presentiment. Much has been written about the spectacular lighting in the song "Saaqiya aaj mujhe neend nahin aayegi" where the main dancer is fully lit in the foreground while the background dances are entirely in the shadows. Hemant Kumar's music further augments the atmosphere. While Chhoti Bahu's "Na jaao saiyaan" is the pathetic outpouring of a depressed and lonely wife, "Bhanwara bada naadaan hai" is a light-hearted and playful portrayal of Jaba and a welcome break from the film's overwhelmingly heavy air.

The acting in Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam is flawless. From Nasir Hussain, Dhumal and Chatopadhyay in minor roles to the callous rendering of Chhote Babu by Rahman. To my mind, Guru Dutt was miscast as the naive young rural bumpkin in the earlier parts of the film. A younger actor would have perhaps suited the role better. But Dutt was a far more intuitive actor than he was credited for, or then perhaps his directorial prowess over-shadowed his talent in front of the camera. He makes Bhoothnath convincing and likeable. Waheeda Rahman is her ever-dependable self as Jaba, effortlessly charming. But Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam is essentially Meena Kumari's vehicle. In the role of a lifetime, she essays one of the most memorable characters of Hindi cinema -- a heroine whose sexuality is searing, her despair, gut-wrenching. She's a passionate being who embraces both devotion and alcoholism with the same intensity.

That it proved to be an eerie premonition of the actress' own life only heightens the tragedy.

 

Comments

[paromeeta mathur banerjee]

Completely agree. Quite a coincidence that I was just yesterday discussing this very movie at length with a friend. It is a classic and one of my all time favourites.

[Deepa Deosthalee]

Thanks Paromeeta. :)