A despondent, weary, aloof, dreamy and penniless poet Vijay (Guru Dutt) sublimates his feelings into poetry, which is turned down by his licentious publishers. In the first scene, he sings about nature- the sweet spring, the flowers, the bees. When his visit at the publishing house turns unfruitful with the publisher telling that he must've thrown the papers, Vijay frantically searches for them, wrecking the entire place till he finds his papers in the bin. Now if I were the poet, that too a struggling one, I would've certainly been more furious. Anyway, Vijay takes his work and ambles the town till his mother and a boy get hold off him and plead him to come home. 2 ladies are shown shamelessly gossiping in loud tones about Vijay. At home, he is reviled and ostracized by his irascible brothers, while his mother helplessly cries for him.
His brother sold Vijay's poetry file to a raddiwala for 10 annas, and so the poet goes to the friendly raddiwala who tells him that a girl had bought them. A dolorous Vijay wanders at night only to be allured by the warbles of an enigmatic lady (Waheeda) who takes him to a brothel ( yes, she is a prostitute). The lady has his poems but in a fit of rage drives him away only to search for his whereabouts once she knows he is the writer. Vijay also crosses paths with his college-love (Mala) who is now the unhappy wife of his new boss. When Vijay loses hope after his mother's demise and the sorrows around him, he tries to commit suicide. A case of mistaken identity, declares him as dead while he is locked in an institution, his poems now selling in millions. this sorry state of affairs makes him a changed, stoical man who takes a beating and starts a new life.
Pyaasa has some fine poetry in it, simple yet profound. the one bad apple is 'Sar Jo tera Chakraye' an out-of-place song just to attract masses. If Guru Dutt were completely committed to this project, he would've excluded this incongruous, digressive material. The standout ones are the at the college reunion, the sad song at Vijay's boss' home, the drunken requiem at the chawl and the one towards the end in the auditorium. All are purposeful, tragic and heartfelt. The dream duet with it's Singing in the Rain-esque magic is lovely, mellifluous and romantic. So, songs are in overall a near success. In terms of story, excess stretch the movie by almost 15 minutes. The strange love between Sattar and Juhi went nowhere. the maxim 'Money cam buy the world' is adeptly told here, but the end just stretched to absurdity. The climatic scene at the auditorium could've been combined with the next, making it a single scene ( since Vijay already knows of his brothers' hypocrisy ) and ended it the same way with the ladies. A movie has to snag it's build-ups so that it can smash it in the climax. The two climaxes were unnecessary. But, the movie is quite personal and reflective, as many writers mourn their own failures in their works, and resort to drinking and such. I felt that Vijay should've embraced Meena before leaving her since there was such closeness between them. Gulab's character was well-etched, as she professes her selfless love for Vijay. However, the end was too filmy and impractical, since she leaves with him without taking anything with her or even informing her friend Juhi ( again, the scene could've ended with Juhi's affirmation and and embrace).
The acting is a positive aspect in the film. Guru shows his pain and despair in the beginning and stoicism in the end with finesse and naturalism. Waheeda is enlightening, pouring passion, flare, remorse, love in her role. Mala however is over-sentimental, always covering her face with her hand and not living up to her role. Walker's caricature of Sattar fails when he sings, and succeeds when he talks with Vijay. Mr. Ghosh's antagonism can't be blamed to a certain extent since Vijay and Meera being in one locked room can (and should) be disturbing for Mala's husband. The actors who play the brothers as well as Vija's male friend do get some heat with their greedy behavior. Props for them.
The movie is a brave excess, and would've been miles better without the redundancies; a elegy chronicling the Weltschmerz circumscribing a common man who, in this case, is a poet. Yet, Pyaasa quenches the viewer's thirst with it's aching poetries and unaffected performances by GD and WR.
His brother sold Vijay's poetry file to a raddiwala for 10 annas, and so the poet goes to the friendly raddiwala who tells him that a girl had bought them. A dolorous Vijay wanders at night only to be allured by the warbles of an enigmatic lady (Waheeda) who takes him to a brothel ( yes, she is a prostitute). The lady has his poems but in a fit of rage drives him away only to search for his whereabouts once she knows he is the writer. Vijay also crosses paths with his college-love (Mala) who is now the unhappy wife of his new boss. When Vijay loses hope after his mother's demise and the sorrows around him, he tries to commit suicide. A case of mistaken identity, declares him as dead while he is locked in an institution, his poems now selling in millions. this sorry state of affairs makes him a changed, stoical man who takes a beating and starts a new life.
Pyaasa has some fine poetry in it, simple yet profound. the one bad apple is 'Sar Jo tera Chakraye' an out-of-place song just to attract masses. If Guru Dutt were completely committed to this project, he would've excluded this incongruous, digressive material. The standout ones are the at the college reunion, the sad song at Vijay's boss' home, the drunken requiem at the chawl and the one towards the end in the auditorium. All are purposeful, tragic and heartfelt. The dream duet with it's Singing in the Rain-esque magic is lovely, mellifluous and romantic. So, songs are in overall a near success. In terms of story, excess stretch the movie by almost 15 minutes. The strange love between Sattar and Juhi went nowhere. the maxim 'Money cam buy the world' is adeptly told here, but the end just stretched to absurdity. The climatic scene at the auditorium could've been combined with the next, making it a single scene ( since Vijay already knows of his brothers' hypocrisy ) and ended it the same way with the ladies. A movie has to snag it's build-ups so that it can smash it in the climax. The two climaxes were unnecessary. But, the movie is quite personal and reflective, as many writers mourn their own failures in their works, and resort to drinking and such. I felt that Vijay should've embraced Meena before leaving her since there was such closeness between them. Gulab's character was well-etched, as she professes her selfless love for Vijay. However, the end was too filmy and impractical, since she leaves with him without taking anything with her or even informing her friend Juhi ( again, the scene could've ended with Juhi's affirmation and and embrace).
The acting is a positive aspect in the film. Guru shows his pain and despair in the beginning and stoicism in the end with finesse and naturalism. Waheeda is enlightening, pouring passion, flare, remorse, love in her role. Mala however is over-sentimental, always covering her face with her hand and not living up to her role. Walker's caricature of Sattar fails when he sings, and succeeds when he talks with Vijay. Mr. Ghosh's antagonism can't be blamed to a certain extent since Vijay and Meera being in one locked room can (and should) be disturbing for Mala's husband. The actors who play the brothers as well as Vija's male friend do get some heat with their greedy behavior. Props for them.
The movie is a brave excess, and would've been miles better without the redundancies; a elegy chronicling the Weltschmerz circumscribing a common man who, in this case, is a poet. Yet, Pyaasa quenches the viewer's thirst with it's aching poetries and unaffected performances by GD and WR.