Aug 02, 2007 10:50 AM
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The yesteryear classic Naya Daur will be seen once again this week in a new re-colored format. Released 10 years after the Indian independence, the film had a strong social message for the people of this country. It showcased a life in the villages and the collateral costs of progress. Even after 50 years the message of the film remains valid. While the film went on to be a super-hit there are many interesting tidbits that went into the making and remaking of the film. Let’s see what some of those were...
When prominent filmmakers of the time such as Subodh Mukherjee, Mehboob Khan and Raj Kapoor heard writer Akhtar Mirza’s concept
they thought a film on such an idea would have certainly bombed at the box office. It was B.R. Chopra who loved the idea and made a super-hit film out of it.
Initially Dilip Kumar was unimpressed by his character which was that of a simple villager. It was his friend and fellow actor Ashok Kumar, who liked the story and persuaded him to accept the role. The film went onto become one of his career’s finest performances.
The film’s budget was 17 lakhs – a high amount for that era. The successes of the film saw the film recover 70% of the production budget within the first week.
Madhubala was originally attached to the project as the female lead. In fact she had even shot for 10 days; but when the film unit had to go to Bhopal for further shooting her father Ataullah Khan refused to let her go. Ataullah reasoned that Madhubala’s health did not permit her for such a journey. The truth was that he wasn’t happy with the blossoming romance between his daughter and Dilip Kumar. The producer-director B.R Chopra repeatedly tried convincing him but when Ataullah continued to refuse Madhubala was dropped altogether from the film. When Vyjantimala was cast in her place Madhubala’s father moved to court. B.R Chopra then contested that the outdoor scenes were indeed necessary for the film. But in the end no judgment was passed till the end of the film.
Brother Yash Chopra served as a second assistant director to B. R. Chopra for Naya Daur . After two years he then went ahead to have his own directorial debut with Dhool Ka Phool under the banner of B.R. Films.
Naya Daur worked wonders for the fortunes of Asha Bhosle who sang four of the songs on the album. This was Asha’s first major success and saw her rise to fame.
The re-coloration process for Naya Daur costs Rs 4 crores. The film will also be presented with a digitally remastered 5.1 surround sound.
Naya Daur was one of the two films in 1957 that saw O P Nayyar perched at the top of the music industry. The other film was Tumsa Nahin Dekha . However he has not worked with B R Chopra or Dilip Kumar thereafter.
Forty five years later, a homage was paid to Naya Daur in Mujhse Dosti Karoge ! when the lead actors performed the song ‘ Ude jab jab zulfen teri’ as part of a dance sequence. The film was a Yash Raj production and was picturized Hrithik Roshan, Rani Mukherjee, Uday Chopra and Kareena Kapoor.
A Punjabi music troupe was the source of inspiration for the music of Naya Daur. The group had come to perform on the occasion of 25th week celebrations of another B.R Chopra’s film titled Ek Hi Raasta that had been released in 1956.
