Remembering CHETAN ANAND on his Death Anniversary

Maker of innovative, meaningful movies

Born on 3rd January 1921 and died on the night of 6th July1997,Chetan Anand was the eldest of three Anand Brothers.

He was from a well to do family,his father Pishori lal Anand was an established Advocate.He was English Graduate from Government college Lahore.

In the early 1940s, while he was teaching History, he wrote a film script on king Ashoka, which he went on to show to director Phani Majumdar in Mumbai. Anand failed to qualify for the Indian Civil Service (ICS) exams in London. As luck would have it, Phani Majumdar cast him as a lead in his Hindi film, Rajkumar, released in 1944,Nargis being the co star. He also became associated with Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in Mumbai  

His first venture as a director was a milestone for the industry. Neecha Nagar, shorn of songs and dances, was a realis tic take on the freedom move ment which won the prestigious Palme d'Or (best film) at Cannes in 1946. His success and en couragement drew his younger brother Dev into the world of cinema. After the latter established himself with a few hits, the duo set up Navketan.This film gave the break to Kamini Kaushal and also to Pt Ravi Shankar as Music Composer.His wife UMA ANAND was also in this movie.

By the early 1950s, he and his younger brother Dev Anand had set up Navketan Productions in Mumbai. Afsar, starring Dev Anand and Suraiya, was the first film made by Navketan, which turned out to be a moderate success. It was followed by Andhiyan and Taxi Driver both of which he directed for the Navketan banner.

Funtoosh is a 1956 Bollywood film directed by Chetan Anand. The film stars Dev Anand, Sheila Ramani and K.N. Singh. It was the 9th highest grossing film of 1956, and was declared "above average"

In 1963 Chetan Anand Directed the movie Kinare Kinare for Producer Nyaya Sharma who co scripted,he acted in this movie while the lead pair were Dev Anand and Meena Kumari.Jaidev gave the Music.

In 1964 he started his own Banner"Himalaya Films and the first movie was" HAQEEKAT"which  was based on the India-China Border Conflict of 1962. Shot on actual locations, Chetan told the tale of patriotism and bravery with grit and realism. It had Balraj Sahni and Dharmendra supported by Priya Rajvansh, Vijay Anand . Chetan dedicated this movie to Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru and produced it under the banner of the Himalayan Films

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Next film under this banner was Aakhri Khat which was written and directed by Chetan Anand.The music of the film was byKhayyam and lyrics by Kaifi Azmi; it includes the song "Baharon Mera Jeevan Bhi Sanwaro", sung by Lata Mangeshkar. The film was given 5 stars in Bollywood Guide Collections.Super Star Rajesh Khanna was given a break in this movie. The film was selected as the Indian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 40th Academy Awards in 1967, but was not accepted as a nominee.

Chetan Anand’s "Heer Ranjha" remains the quintessential interpretation of Waris Shah’s Heer. Screenplay written by Kaifi Azmi, the film is delivered in poetical verse, making it one of the most unique and original pieces of work to come out of Hindi cinema.

His wife Uma was his collaborator working on his scripts and productions but regretfully they parted company. He developed a life-long relationship with attractive actor Priya Rajvansh, the heroine of ‘Haqeeqat,’ ‘Heer Ranjha,’ ‘Hindustan Ki Kasam’ and ‘Hanste Zakham.’

After a distinguished career in Hindi cinema, to which he gave a different direction, Chetan Anand passed away in 1997 during his 82nd year.