Deewaar(1975) was the movie which firmly put Amitabh Bachan on the road to superstardom. Deewar means the Wall and in this movie it?s a metaphorical reference to the two brothers who find themselves on the opposite side of the law.

Deewar was not exactly an original path breaking story, this concept of 2 brothers on opposing sides had already been explored in Ganga Jamuna and Mother India. Deewar took the concept of the suffering mother figure left to fend all for herself from Mother India, and the idea of brothers on the opposite sides of the law from Gunga Jumna and fused it together. Also the dockyard scenes were again inspired by the Marlon Brando starrer On the Waterfront, which dealt with the mafia on the New York docks. But what made this movie a modern day classic is the brilliant characterization and almost taut direction by Yash Chopra and the superb script by Salim Javed.

The Story
The story starts off in a small mining town in Bihar where the trade union leader Anand Verma( Satyen Kapoor) is blackmailed by the ruthless mine owner( Kamal Kapoor) to sign a sellout agreement, failing which his wife Sumitra( Nirupa Roy) and kids would be put to death. Anand Babu gives in to the tactics and becomes the target of ridicule and abuse by his miner colleagues. Unable to face the humiliation, he abandons his family and flees.
 
When some drunkards tattoo the now famous slogan ?Mera Baap Chor Hai? onto the elder son?s Vijay?s arm, Sumitra flees with her kids to Mumbai. Sumitra and her two kids have a tough time in Mumbai, fighting for survival in a heartless city. In order to help his younger brother Ravi attend school, Vijay works as a shoeshine ,while Sumitra works as a construction worker.
 
The two children grow up soon with Vijay( Amitabh Bachan) a cynical, brooding docks worker, who having grown bitter with his life, doesn?t even believe in God, while Ravi( Shashi Kapoor), is an unemployed graduate but still retains a certain cheerfulness about life. Vijay gets into a fight with the goons of the dock mafia who extort money from the hapless workers and this gets him into a spot with Samant( Madan Puri), the leader of the mafia.
 
This brings him to the attention of another gangster, Davar(Ifthikar) who is Samant?s rival. Vijay becomes a top member of the mafia and earns enough money to buy a lavish bungalow for his mother and brother. His brother Ravi in the meanwhile has a romance with Vina( Neetu Singh), and on her father?s recommendation joins the police force. The rest of the movie is about the conflict between Vijay and Ravi ending with Vijay being shot down by his brother.

The Movie
What makes this movie a classic is the deft characterization and extremely taut direction by Yash Chopra . Not one scene in the movie is out of place and every piece fits in perfectly. Yash Chopra takes you onto a relentlessly searing journey into the soul of his troubled protagonist, Vijay Verma and never lets up the pressure. The only time the viewer breathes easy is in the romantic sequences between Shashi and Neetu which do lessen the intensity a bit.

While Deewar is by now famous for the Mere Paas Ma Hai, the showdown between the 2 brothers and the classic fight scene in the dockyard, there are some other scenes in the movie which stand out equally also

1. Ravi learns of his father?s death and when he meets his mom, he just wipes off the sindoor from her head. His mother who had been expecting her husband to return is shocked and when she realizes the truth, she breaks down. That scene just hits you straight in the heart.

2. Vijay in his childhood days, working as a shoeshine boy, tells Davar when he throws money at him ?Seth hum bhikari nahin hai, aap paisa humare paas aisa na mat phenkiye?. When Davar?s henchman(Sudhir) tries to assault him, Davar stops him and tells him later ?Yeh Ladka bahut bada ban jayegaa?. The prophecy comes true when Vijay joins Davar?s gang. Davar doesn?t recognize Vijay, but Vijay recognizes him and when Davar offers him the money he retorts back ? Main Aaj Bhi Phenke Hue Paise Nahin Utatha Hoon?. This is a brilliant example of how great Yash Chopra?s direction.

3. After the tragic death of a dockyard worker, when other co workers are discussing the death of their colleague due to his refusal to pay, Vijay coolly replies ? Chacha kal se Ek aur Majdoor hafta dena sa inkaar karega?. And when the local goon asks him for his share, he just hits him fair and square. The tension is brilliantly built up here.

4. When Ravi shoots a young boy who stole a loaf of bread, he goes to inform their parents of his death. While the boy?s father accepts it stoically, the mother shouts at the cops berating their double standards for the poor and the rich. That incident reaffirms Ravi?s resolve to act against his brother?s illegal activities.

Deewar centers around the character of Vijay Verma who comes out one of the most emotionally intense characters ever seen in Bollywood. Vijay seems destined for suffering and pain all his life. He sacrifices his education for his younger brother,and works hard to support the family, yet his mother chides him for getting into fisticuffs. He grows up cynical and disillusioned with the society around him, to an extent that he doesn?t even believe in God. He loves his mother and would do anything for her, yet she walks out on him when she learns of his illegal activities. He loses the girl he loved and he finally finds the peace he was missing all his life in death in his mother?s arms. Amitabh Bachan gives a performance of a lifetime in this movie.

As the anguished,brooding Vijay he sears with such an emotional intensity that it?s hard not to be affected by it. Yet he manages to evoke a sense of pity for all the suffering he went in his life. Amitabh was influenced a lot by Dilip Kumar and Marlon Brando, and that intensity shows in the movie. Yet ironically Amitabh didn?t get the Filmfare Award for this movie, which must be a real cruel joke.

Among other actors Shashi Kapoor offers a good portrayal as the cheerful and dutiful son Ravi. He does well in the scenes with Amitabh, but no way did he deserve the Filmfare Award for this movie. Good as an actor he is, its Amitabh Bachan who hits you straight with his performance in the movie. Among the heroines while Neetu Singh has nothing much to do, Parveen Babi does give a good performance as Anita.
 
The supporting cast of Nirupa Roy, Ifthikar, Sudhir do well. But Madan Puri hams as usual in the main villian?s role, in fact I never found him a very good actor and I guess that?s the weak link here. The villain is not very powerful in this movie unlike Gabbar of Sholay or Teza of Zanzeer. R.D.Burman?s music is good enough and two duets( Maine Tujhe Manga and Keh Doon Tujhe) are quite pleasing to the ear.

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