Mr. & Mrs. '55

Mr. & Mrs. '55 is a 1955 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed and produced by Guru Dutt, and written by Abrar Alvi. A socially critical film set in contemporary Bombay, it stars Madhubala as Anita Verma, a naive heiress who is forced into a marriage with an unemployed cartoonist (Guru Dutt) to save her millions.

Mr. & Mrs. '55
Theatrical release poster
Directed byGuru Dutt
Produced byGuru Dutt
Written byAbrar Alvi
StarringGuru Dutt
Madhubala
Lalita Pawar
Music byOP Nayyar
CinematographyV.K. Murthy
Distributed byUltra Distributors Pvt. Ltd.
Release date
11 February 1955[1]
Running time
157 minutes
LanguageHindi
Box officeest. ₹17.5 million[2]

Mr. & Mrs. '55 was among the early works of Dutt, and was also one of the few comedies made by him. Upon its theatrical release on 11 February, 1955, the film emerged as a major critical and commercial success. Its box-office victory marked a reversal of fortunes for Madhubala, who was one of the film stars deemed "box office poison" in 1954. Her portrayal of Anita Verma has been generally considered one of her most memorable and identifiable performances.

Mr. & Mrs. '55 has gained classic status over years. In 2019, Time Out London placed it at the 57th place in the list of "The 100 Best Bollywood movies".[3]

Plot

Preetam (Guru Dutt), a struggling cartoonist, meets Anita (Madhubala) at a tennis match, where she is watching her favourite tennis star. Anita, a wealthy and westernised heiress, is controlled by her aunt, Seeta Devi (Lalita Pawar). Seeta is suspicious of men and cultivates her attitudes in Anita. However, to receive her fortune, her father's will decrees that Anita must marry within one month of turning 21. Seeta Devi doesn't agree with this and tries to set Anita up with a sham marriage which will soon lead to divorce, thereby giving her both freedom and a fortune. Seeta hires Preetam to marry Anita, but she doesn't know that the pair have already met. Preetam is kept from Anita after their marriage, but he kidnaps her and takes her to the traditional house of his brother.

While at the house, Anita befriends Preetam's sister-in-law, and she begins to see the merit in becoming a wife. Preetam is worried that he has lost Anita and expedites their divorce by providing false, incriminating evidence to the court. Preetam then leaves Mumbai, heartbroken. Anita now recognises her feelings for Preetam and rushes to meet him at the airport. In the end, the couple is reunited.

Cast
Dutt in Mr. & Mrs. '55

Production

The cartoons in the film were drawn by R. K. Laxman.[7][8]

The initial choice for playing Anita Verma, the main character of the film, was Shyama. Guru Dutt had approached her as she was his leading lady in the highly successful Aar Paar (1954), but Shyama demanded a high fee and he refused.[9] Dutt then contacted Vyjayanthimala, who rejected the role due to her hectic schedule and later recalled it as her "worst decision ever" in 2011.[10] It was then when Madhubala was chosen to play the leading lady in the film.

Soundtrack

The music of this movie was composed by O. P. Nayyar and Majrooh Sultanpuri was the lyricist.

The song "Preetam Aan Milo" was originally sung by C. H. Atma in 1945 as a non-filmly song. Nayyar, having liked that song, included it in the film and it was sung by Geeta Dutt.[11]

SongSinger
"Meri Duniya Loot Rahi Thi" Mohammed Rafi
"Ae Ji, Dil Par Hua Aisa Jaadu" Mohammed Rafi
"Chal Diye Banda Nawaz" Mohammed Rafi, Geeta Dutt
"Udhar Tum Haseen Ho" Mohammed Rafi, Geeta Dutt
"Jaane Kahan Mera Jigar Gaya Ji" Mohammed Rafi, Geeta Dutt
"Neele Aasmani" Geeta Dutt
"Preetam Aan Milo" (Solo) Geeta Dutt
"Preetam Aan Milo" (Duet) Geeta Dutt, C. H. Atma
"Thandi Hawa, Kaali Ghata" Geeta Dutt, Shamshad Begum
"Ab To Ji Hone Laga" Shamshad Begum

Release

Mr. & Mrs. '55 was theatrically released on 11 February 1955.[5]

Critical reception
Madhubala's performance as a modern miss was well-received by film critics and audience.

Filmfare, in its May 1955 issue quoted : "A thoroughly delightful, honey and cream social comedy. Mr. & Mrs. '55 is a model of film craft and has gripping interest for every class of cinegoer. Its satire of characters we know and its incidents taken from life are spiced with humour… the dialogue, well-written, tense and witty, enhances the appeal of this true-to-life and thought-provoking entertainer."[12]

Karan Bali of Upperstall.com praised the film thoroughly and wrote that it "sparkles with wit and imagination". He also acknowledged Madhubala's power of "lift[ing] the film several notches up with her natural and spontaneous flair for comedy."[12]

Box office

Mr. & Mrs. '55 was a huge commercial success. The fifth highest-grossing picture of 1955, it earned ₹17.5 million at the box office, generating a large profit of ₹9 million for Dutt.[13] It retained its position as Madhubala's biggest hit for almost three years before it was surpassed by Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958). In 2018, Best of the Year gave its inflation-adjusted gross as ₹4.85 billion.[5]

Notes
  1. Yasmin's real name was Vinita Bhatt.[4] She was side heroine in this film opposite Johnny Walker.[5] She did not stay long in films and married a popular make-up man Jimmy Vining. Mr. & Mrs. '55 was her first and last film.[6]

References
  1. "Mr. & Mrs. '55 - Lifetime Box Office Collection, Budget, Reviews, Cast, etc". BOTY. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  2. "Top grossers of 1955". web.archive.org. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  3. "The 100 best Bollywood movies". Time Out London. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  4. "Yasmin". IMDb. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  5. "Mr & Mrs 55: Celluloid Magic by Stalwarts". Moneylife NEWS & VIEWS. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  6. "Yasmin (II) – Cineplot.com". Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  7. Bali, Karan (2004). "Mr and Mrs 55". Upperstall.com. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  8. "Mr & Mrs '55 1955". The Hindu. 24 October 2009. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  9. "When Madhubala replaced Shyama - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  10. Mr. & Mrs. '55 (1955) - IMDb, retrieved 4 November 2020
  11. Deepa (20 January 2020). "The Original And The Spoof – Preetam Aan Milo". TheSongPedia. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  12. Bali, Karan (12 March 2004). "Mr and Mrs 55". Upperstall.com. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  13. "Top Earners 1955". web.archive.org. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
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