Exclusives
Does Jaya Bachchan also make her subtle musical presence felt in the movie ‘Uunchai’ starring Amitabh Bachchan?
Three of the ‘Uunchai’ cast star-actors have returned to what they as “familiar home-ground Rajshri culture”.
By Chaitanya Padukone
The much-awaited Sooraj Barjatya-directed latest Rajshri venture ‘Uunchai’ with an ensemble cast headlined by mega-star Amitabh Bachchan releases this week on a unique date 11-11-22. The movie ‘Uunchai’ which had its star-studded premiere hosted by Anupam Kher, last night, appears to be an engaging drama ‘A spectrum of emotions, sentiments, quirky comedy, laughter, music-songs-dancing and also a tragic jolt-twist like most Rajshri films.
But Uunchai this time mainly revolves around the friendship-bonding of adventurous senior citizens. citizens played by Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Danny Denzongpa, and of course the Big B. Jointly produced by Rajshri Productions, Boundless Media [headed by dynamic Natasha Malpani-Oswal], and Mahaveer Jain Films, the maverick movie has its foot-tapping musical song situations as well.
Jaya Bachchan with Anupam Kher at Uunchai premiere
Already the song ‘Keti Ko’ is a tending chartbuster and has been lauded by millions of viewers. “Uunchai’ co-producer Natasha Malpani-Oswal [Boundless Media} informs me that in the Himalayan region local Nepali language Keti Ko in Hindi means Ladki Ka! So, Keti Ko Surkh Aggan Hai means – “The girl is a flaming fire.”. Natasha also discloses that “it’s a love letter to the mountains, he is referring to the “mountains” as if it is a “girl”.”
Following Danny’s character’s on-screen death, the three friends of Uunchai–Amitabh, Anupam, and Boman–decide to take the challenging trek in his memory. The trailer underlines how difficult it will be for these 65-plus men to take this challenging trek. Coach-guide Parineeti Chopra is seen explaining the difficulties of the trek, but unsure of the trio’s chances of completing the trek. Neena Gupta plays Boman Irani’s wife. The ‘Uunchai’ trailer finishes with a soul-stirring nostalgia, as a bass-baritone voice resonates – “Bhupen ka favorite gaanaa,” and Rajshri’s classic gem, a Laxmikant-Pyarelal composed soulful retro-number ‘Yeh Jeevan Hai’ starts playing.
Also read: Uunchai Review: A volatile trek that leaves an emotional hang-over!
Jaya Bhaduri-Bachchan with Anil Dhawan in song ‘Yeh Jeevan Hai’ ( Piya Ka Ghar)
Interestingly, this nostalgic meaningful background song ‘Yeh Jeevan Hai’ is picturized on Jaya Bhaduri-Bachchan and her on-screen husband played by Anil Dhawan from the Rajshri 1972 film ‘Piya Ka Ghar’, directed by Basu Chatterjee. When the original Kishore-da song audio track starts playing, retro-music lovers are bound to recall the original song visuals of Jaya and Anil. That’s how madame Jaya makes her subtle presence felt in ‘Uunchai’, where her mega-star husband Amitabh headlines the ensemble cast.
“Golden memories are getting refreshed,” reacted legendary composer Pyarelal, when contacted, to comment on their amazing (L-P.) composed song being revived.
Three of the ‘Uunchai’ cast star-actors have returned to what they as “familiar home-ground Rajshri culture”. As is known, Anupam Kher started his career (“filmi-janam” as Kher calls it) with Rajshri Productions movie ‘Saaransh, [1984], secondly, Sarika got her big-break with a Rajshri film ‘Geet Gaata Chal’ [1975]. Similarly, Bachchan-Saab got one of his major romantic lead hero break-thru with ‘Saudagar’ [1973], again a Rajshri venture.
(The writer Chaitanya Padukone is an award-winning eminent senior film-journalist-columnist-author of memoirs book R D BurMania)
