Naseeb (1981 film)

Naseeb
Naseeb
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Manmohan Desai
Written by	Kader Khan; Prayag Raj; K. K. Shukla
Produced by	Manmohan Desai
Starring	Amitabh Bachchan; Shatrughan Sinha; Rishi Kapoor; Hema Malini; Reena Roy; Kim
Cinematography	Jal Mistry
Music by	Laxmikant–Pyarelal
Distributed by	Aasia Films Pvt. Ltd.
Release date	1 May 1981;
Running time	182 mins
Country	India
Language	Hindi
Budget	₹4 crore (equivalent to ₹69 crore or US$9.2 million in 2020)
Box office	₹14.5 crore (equivalent to ₹252 crore or US$33 million in 2020)

Naseeb (transl. Destiny) is a 1981 Indian Hindi-language masala film^[3] produced and directed by Manmohan Desai, and written by Kader Khan. It is a typical Manmohan Desai film starring, Amitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha, Rishi Kapoor, Hema Malini, Reena Roy, Kim in lead roles and Pran, Prem Chopra, Shakti Kapoor, Kader Khan, Amjad Khan, Amrish Puri in supporting roles, along with Jeevan in a small positive role. The music is by the Manmohan Desai regulars Laxmikant–Pyarelal.

Naseeb was at box office and was the Bollywood movie of 1981.^[4]

The film was later remade in Tamil as Sandhippu (1983), with Sivaji Ganesan and Prabhu Ganesan, and in Telugu as Trimurtulu (1987), with Daggubati Venkatesh.^[5]

Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha were shooting for 3 movies during the same time. Dostana, Shaan and Naseeb.

Plot[]

Naseeb, a story of destiny and fate, begins with a lottery ticket. A drunken man who cannot pay his tab trades: he decides to sell his ticket to the waiter, Naamdev (Pran). Namdev purchases this ticket with his three friends Damu (Amjad Khan), Raghu (Kader Khan) and Jaggi (Jagdish Raj). Using a system of drawing out the highest card to decide who keeps the ticket, Jaggi wins, and the ticket stays with him. When the ticket turns out to be a winner, Damu and Raghu turn on the other two, murdering Jaggi and framing Namdev. Namdev goes on the run, but Raghu and Damu intervene and throw him over a bridge into a river. Namdev is presumed dead.

However, he is rescued by Don (Amrish Puri), and no one is aware he is alive.

Twenty years later, Damu and Raghu have used their stolen lottery money to build a fabulous hotel and make millions, becoming very successful businessmen. Damu has used a share of his money to send his youngest son, Vicky (Shatrughan Sinha), to school in England. They have even employed Namdev's oldest son Johnny (Amitabh Bachchan), Vicky's best friend, as a waiter in the hotel. By coincidence (or by fate!) Johnny and Vicky fall in love with the same beautiful singer, Miss Asha (Hema Malini). Julie (Reena Roy) is a childhood friend of Vicky's who is in love with him, but he only sees her as a friend. When Johnny discovers this, he and Julie sacrifice their own love to ensure that Vicky and Asha get together. At the same time, Johnny's younger brother Sunny (Rishi Kapoor) has fallen for Asha's younger sister, Kim (Kim Yashpal). Kim and Asha happen to be the daughters of Jaggi, the man Namdev supposedly murdered. Namdev returns soon after and plans to take revenge against Damu and Raghu for separating him from his sons Johnny and Sunny. The lives of all these characters become intertwined and Naseeb becomes a poignant story about love, friendship, sacrifice, deceit, revenge and, above all, destiny.

Cast[]

as John Jani Janardan "Johny"
as Vikram "Vicky"
as Sunny
as Robert
as john
as Namdev
as Prem
as Ashok
as Raghuveer "Raghu"
as Damodar "Damu"
as Don
as Zabisco
as jaggi
as Mrs. Gomes
as Mehmood Bhai
as jack martins
as Professor Prem
as Rodricks
as Fighter
as K.K.puri

Soundtrack[]

All the songs were composed by Laxmikant–Pyarelal and the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi.

Song	Singer
"John Jani Janardan"	Mohammed Rafi
"Chal Mere Bhai, Tere Haath Jodta Hoon, Haath Jodta Hoon, Tere Paon Padta Hoon"	Mohammed Rafi, Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor
"Rang Jamake Jayenge, Chakkar Chalake Jayenge, Jhumke, Ghumke Sabko Ghumake Jayenge"	Kishore Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Shailendra Singh, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Usha Mangeshkar
"Pakdo Pakdo Pakdo, Jakdo Jakdo Jakdo, Dekho Jane Na Paye"	Kishore Kumar, Usha Mangeshkar
"Mere Naseeb Mein"	Lata Mangeshkar
"Zindagi Imtihan Leti Hai"	, Anwar, Suman Kalyanpur

Cameo appearances[]

One of the songs in the film sung by Mohammed Rafi, "John Jani Janardan", has cameo appearances by many actors playing themselves. The appearances include Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Dharmendra, Rajesh Khanna, Rakesh Roshan, Vijay Arora, Waheeda Rehman, Sharmila Tagore, Mala Sinha, Bindu, Simi Garewal and Simple Kapadia. According to eminent film expert Rajesh Subramanian, the opening line was composed by Manmohan Desai himself. The tune was inspired by a catchy line from the song "Aksar Koi Ladka" from Bobby.

The star studded song was shot at R. K. Studios and the shooting spanned one week. Showman Raj Kapoor played an integral part in the song and during the shooting. The one-week shoot was a gala event.

Box office[]

The film was an "All Time Earner", got the highest verdict (equivalent to All Time Blockbuster today) present at that time by Trade Guide Bollywood box office magazine, and was among those rare movies which crossed 1 crore per territory. There were only 13 All Time Earners (crossing 1 crore per territory) before 1984, and Naseeb was among them.

Awards and nominations[]

Filmfare Best Actress Award - Hema Malini - nominated^[6]

References[]

^ Sethi, Sunil (15 January 1982). "Year 1981 was for Indian movies what 1977 had been for Indian politics". India Today. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
^ "Box Office 1981". Box Office India. 15 January 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013.
^ Pothukuchi, Madhavi (26 February 2020). "The champion of masala films, Manmohan Desai made Bollywood what it is today". ThePrint. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
^ "Boxofficeindia.com". 15 January 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
^ "venkatesh filmography". TeluguCinema.Com. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
^ "1st Filmfare Awards 1953" (PDF).

External links[]

Naseeb at IMDb

[1] Sethi, Sunil (15 January 1982). "Year 1981 was for Indian movies what 1977 had been for Indian politics". India Today. Retrieved 4 July 2014.

[2] "Box Office 1981". Box Office India. 15 January 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013.

[3] Pothukuchi, Madhavi (26 February 2020). "The champion of masala films, Manmohan Desai made Bollywood what it is today". ThePrint. Retrieved 21 August 2020.

[4] "Boxofficeindia.com". 15 January 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2021.

[5] "venkatesh filmography". TeluguCinema.Com. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2012.

[6] "1st Filmfare Awards 1953" (PDF).

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