Geet (The Song), 1970
Set of 4 Showcards, c. 1970, 36.5cm X 100cm
Tinted gelatin silver print and poster paint on board with screen-printed lettering.
Geet is a romantic tragedy, starring Rajendra Kumar, one of Bollywood’s most successful actors. His role in this film is an example of his gestural style of acting, which-- along with his quivering lips and emotion-laden voice- became his signature. He was a master of melodorama, and was unrivaled in his ability to charm women in musical romances.
There was a time when every film starring Rajendra Kumar was a silver jubilee hit, earning him the affectionate nickname ‘Jubilee Kumar’.
"In this film, Kamla, a wealthy girl from Delhi, goes on holiday in Kulu, a mountain town. She meets and falls in love with a village flute-player named Sarju. The holiday setting serves as a place where idealistic fantasies can be acted out in contrast to the tension of urban life. The bright range of colours in each showcard suggests the range of moods and emotions portrayed in the film. Cat. no. 30 is particularly elaborate: individual characters in various poses are superimposed on a series of photographs connected through paint.
The film Geet (1970) was produced by Ramanand Sagar of Sagar Art International and directed by Ramanand Sagar. Music by Kalyanji Anandji, colour, Hindi, starring Rajendra Kumar, Mala Singh and Nasir Hussain."
--Text by Dr. Deepali Dewan and Alexandra McCarter, based on Deepali Dewan, ed. Bollywood Cinema Showcards: Indian Film Art from the 1950s to the 1980s. Showcards from The Hartwick Collection. Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum Press, 2011. Copyright of and reproduced here with the generous permission of the Royal Ontario Museum.
Literature
Deepali Dewan, ed. Bollywood Cinema Showcards: Indian Film Art from the 1950s to the 1980s. Showcards from The Hartwick Collection. Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum Press, 2011, p. 87, Cat. no. 31.