Yesterday was Friendship Day and I was reminded of this Dosti song.
Movie: This song appears in 1964 super hit award-winning social Satyen Bose-directed drama Dosti (Friendship) produced by Tarachand Barjatiya under the banner of Rajshri Productions. The movie starred Sushil Kumar Somaya, Sudhir Kumar Sawant, Sanjay Khan (debut), Baby Farida, Uma Rajoo, late Nana Palsikar, late Abhi Bhattacharya, etc.
Ramnath or Ramu’s (Sushil Kumar) father dies during an accident in the factory where he worked. The factory refuses to pay compensation and Ramu loses his mother as well. He himself gets injured in an accident and loses a leg. Crippled and penniless, he is thrown out of his rented home as well. While roaming about the streets of Bombay (Mumbai now), he saves blind Mohan (Sudhir Kumar) from an accident.
Mohan is looking for his sister, who had joined a city hospital as a nurse so that she could pay for her brother’s treatment. She had left him with a caretaker in the village. But, Mohan is washed away from his shelter by flood and thus had to leave the village.
Ramu plays the harmonica well and Mohan is a good singer. They decide to sing songs on the streets to earn money together from people on the streets. They soon meet a small girl Manjula (Baby Farida), who has a rheumatic heart. She is a rich man Ashok’s (Sanjay Khan) sister. She also develops a sibling-like friendship with both of them.
Ramu wants to finish his studies and they need Rs.60 as the fees. They decide to ask the amount as a loan from Manjula. But, when Ashok gets to know about it, he gives them Rs.5 and sends them off, telling them not to return again. Ramu is sad and is dejected. Mohan immediately tells him not to lose hope. They somehow earn enough money for Ramu to join a school. One of the teachers Sharma (Nana Palsikar) takes pity on him and becomes his guardian.
Ramu is admitted in school post a brilliant performance in the entrance test, scoring 294 out of 300. Someone tries to steal their hard earned money while they dwell in the footpath and they get a place in the slum area. Ramu excels in studies in school, but, is ridiculed by the richer students. The headmaster and teacher Sharma take Ramu under their wings. Sharma also declares himself Ramu’s guardian. Sharma visits Ramu’s house and after seeing the poor neighborhood, which is not fit for study, insists that he move in with him. But, Ramu is loyal to Mohan and stays back.
One day, as he is singing, Mohan hears Ashok call out to Meena and rushes to embrace his long lost sister. Meena is not only looking after Manjula but also, she and Ashok are attracted to each other. Thus, Meena refuses to recognize her brother, who is in a poor condition. But, soon Meena confesses to Ashok about her brother and he consoles her that soon she would be with her brother. Mohan is reminded of Manjula as he sleeps and tells Ramu about it. Both decide to go and meet her but she is dead. Ashok brings Mohan home to give him Manjula’s chime as her remembrance. Ashok also attempts to tell Mohan about Meena. But, Mohan gets angry and insists that he was alone in this world, except for his friend Ramu.
Soon, Ramu gets into trouble with some goons and is mistakenly arrested by the police during a burglary. Sharma comes to his rescue and bails him out. He tells Ramu that he would be staying with him from then on. He also tells him to keep no contact with Mohan. Mohan is heart broken and tries to meet his friend. But, Sharma does not allow him to talk to Ramu. Deep in sorrow, Mohan roams about singing this song.
Song: The lyrics of this song were penned by Majrooh Sultanpuri and the music was composed by Lakshmikant-Pyarelal.
The gist of the song is, “I will love you (as a friend) morning evening. But, I will not even call out your name.”
Video: Cinematographer is Marshall Braganza.
The video opens with a desolate street and Sudhir Kumar Sawant walking across the focus area of the camera. He has just begun singing the song. He almost falls toward the beach from the high rocky shore. Then, he recovers his balance. He has tears in his eyes. He almost bumps into a coconut tree. He loses his stick and stumbles on some rocks to fall on the road.
He has hurt himself on his foot’s big toe and moves ahead with the injury. He is about to cross a road while vehicles are moving. A man stops him. Sudhir Kumar Sawant turns and continues on the border of the road. The song peters out and the video ends as Sudhir Kumar Sawant limps toward the gap below a bridge on the road.
Artists: The playback singer of this song is Mohammad Rafi and the onscreen performances are by Sudhir Kumar Sawant and others.
Cultural Influence: This typically filmi sad song is a way of saying that the boy would think of his friend and pray for him. But, he would not call out to him any time in the future. This could also be considered as a plea toward God as the boy has lost all his near and dear ones. The song and the artists are good and the video is watchable for the same.
