Jaane Bhi Do yaaro - time for a repeat ?

ASHOK’s FIVE reasons to watch a contemporary cult classic “Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro” (JBDY), Kundan Shah’s directorial debut released in 1983 and featuring a stellar star cast comprising Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Neena Gupta, Pankaj Kapur, Satish Kaushik and Satish Shah. Initially dismissed as a flop, the film went on to become a cult for its non-stop riot of humour and deeper overtones of satire with regard to the politician-businessman nexus that is the bane of the common man. JBDY is the story of two young men, Vinod (Naseer) and Sudhir (Ravi Baswani) who open a studio and struggle to make ends meet till they are persuaded by a fiery woman journalist to be part of an investigation into the nexus between the builders Tarneja (Pankaj Kapur) and Ahuja (Om Puri) who are in cahoots with the Municipal Commissioner De’Mello (Satish Shah). Satish Kaushik and Neena Gupta play side-kicks to Tarneja.

As I watched JBDY again, I was more circumspect and a little wary as to whether to rate it up there or pare it down as the handiwork of a gang of boys having a blast while shooting this mad caper! I watched this film first in the eighties and saw it again this week and the acting, madcap humour and some over-the-top scenes has me rolling on the floor. It is interesting as to how it’s still relevant for the current generation even today. Would urge you to sit down with family and watch this over the weekend.

1.Watch JDBY for the golden gang from NSD who worked on this film much before they became legendary actors. Naseer has gone on record to say that it was a nightmare to make the film and Shah’s persuasion was the only reason they kept going in spite of the logical inconsistencies of the script. He went on to say “I thought it was the stupidest film ever made… I had no hope for that film”. It’s an irony that brilliant performances make up for this and a special word of mention for Ravi Baswani who passed away in 2010. His chemistry with Naseer is brilliant. Om Puri plays a fiery alcoholic and it is fun to see him in a role that would perhaps come his way much later in his career. Superb comic timing by all the actors, Satish Shah’s trademark deadpan humour and Pankaj Kapur’s evil DNA make for a potent mix. And a little bit of trivia, Satish Kaushik plays Tarneja’s sidekick with a screen name Ashok Namboodiri!

2. Produced on a budget of Rs 9 lacs by NFDC, JBDY is inspired by the 1966 film “Blow Up” and has on its credits big names like Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Sudhir Mishra. Quite incredible to imagine them working as assistants. The film stands out for some memorable scenes and dialogues. Remember “Thoda Khao, Thoda Pheko” and “Shaant Gadha dhari Bheem”? Or the coffin scene where De/Mello sits up in his coffin and Ahuja mistakes him for driving a car and how the coffin slides back and forth as the local train goes past? Or the climax scene where Draupadi’s cheer haran from Mahabharat is meshed with Salim-Anarkali drama?

3. JBDY does not have even one song but the background music designed by Vanraj Bhatia is brilliant and serves to dial up the dark humour in various scenes. There are also lot of subtle nuances thrown in, for example, in the Tarneja press conference room, there is a board that has a quote from JRD Tata “I think it is wrong for a businessman to join politics. For him to play a political role”. Similarly, the editor Shobha (played by Bhakti Barve) has Frost’s lines on a canvas “The woods are lovely, dark and deep”. Shah also uses the song “Hum Honge Kamyaab” in the sense of the hurdles that Vinod and Sudhir need to overcome but also in a tangential reference to the political climate in the country at that time even as the country was still scarred from the Emergency.

4. More than politics though, JBDY beyond the tomfoolery is a commentary on the builder-administration-politician nexus that had crept into the society and corruption and graft had left the common man helpless. Remember this was also the time Amitabh Bachchan was moving towards escape velocity with his angry young man portrayal. That dialogue “Tum Kya samajhte ho, yeh municipality hamare baap ki hai” and the pat response “Nahi sir aao ki hai” sums up the nation’s angst at the situation.

5. The license-permit raj and the suspicious outlook towards business and enterprise is also reflected in the way Tarneja’s character and his dialogues are constructed. “Business ka ek hi matlab hota hai, doosre ka nuksan aur apna fayda” Perhaps the idea was to off-set the general pessimism in the air at that time even as inflation, lack of opportunity and extremism were on the rise. Remember, prime minister was assassinated the next year.

“Jaane bhi do Yaaro” remains an endearing film and relevant to this day. The dialogues have become part of modern-day vocabulary and beyond the humour and horse-play, there is an element of holding up a mirror to society. Thirty-seven years later, there is anxiety and uncertainty albeit around different themes. Perhaps time for a sequel? Am going with a circumspect 4 on 5 rating for JBDY.