Anokhi Raat

1968 Hindi film directed by Asit Sen

1968 (1968)

CountryIndiaLanguageHindi

Anokhi Raat (lit. 'Strange Night') is a 1968 Hindi film produced by L. B. Lachman and L. B. Thakur and directed by Asit Sen. The film stars Sanjeev Kumar, Zaheeda Hussain, Aruna Irani, Keshto Mukherjee and Parikshit Sahni. It has music by Roshan and Salil Chowdhury, with the former being the song composer and the latter being the film score composer. The film has some outstanding songs that include "Oh Re Taal Mile", "Mahalon Ka Raja Mila", "Mile Na Phool To", and "Dulhan Se Tumhara Milan Hoga".^[1]

Plot

The events depicted in the film take place on a single night and results in several characters sharing their life stories. It is a fascinating depiction of some of the challenges faced by the poor and by women in Indian society, some of which continue to this day.^[2]

Cast

Sanjeev Kumar as Baldev Singh
Zaheeda Hussain as Rama / Gopa
Tarun Bose as Madan Lal
Aruna Irani as Mrs. Prema Rai
Parikshit Sahni as Painter
Anwar Hussain as Ram Das
Praveen Paul[1] as Orphanage Matron (as Pravin Paul)

Dev Kishan[2] as Matron's Uncle
Keshto Mukherjee as Buyer (stammerer)
Viju Khote as Idle bandit (as Vijay Khote)
Vishwa Mehra[3] as Lakhan Singh (Bandit)
Brahm Bhardwaj[4] as Madanlal's Lawyer
Mukri as Naubat
Badri Prasad[5] as Durga Prasad

Parikshit Sahni incidentally changed his screen name to Ajay Sahni at the suggestion of Sanjeev Kumar during the shooting of this film, before eventually reverting to his own name a few years later.^[3]^[4]

Soundtrack

The film score was composed by Salil Chowdhury while the songs featured in the film were composed by Roshan.

#	Song	Singer
1	"O Re Taal Mile Nadi Ke Jal Mein"	Mukesh
2	"Dulhan Se Tumhara Milan Hoga"	Mukesh
3	"Mehlon Ka Raja Mila, Tumhari Beti Raaj Karegi"	Lata Mangeshkar
4	"Mile Na Phool To Kaanto Se Dosti Kar Li"	Mohammed Rafi
5	"Mere Beri Ke Ber Mat Todo, Kaanta Chubh Jaayega"	Asha Bhosle

Awards

Filmfare Best Art Direction (black & white)- Ajit Bannerjee
Filmfare Best Cinematographer Award (black & white) - Kamal Bose
Filmfare Best Screenplay Award- Hrishikesh Mukherjee^[5]
Filmfare Best Dialogue Award- Anand Kumar^[6]

References

^ Anokhi Raat Songs
^ Movie synopsis
^ Ajay Sahni – Interview
^ Parikshit Sahni talks about his best friend Sanjeev Kumar
^ "Best Screenplay Award". Filmfare Award Official Listings, Indiatimes. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
^ Awards IMDb