Baazi (1951 film)

Baazi
Poster
Directed byGuru Dutt
Written byBalraj Sahni
Screenplay byBalraj Sahni
Story byGuru Dutt
Balraj Sahni
Produced byDev Anand
StarringDev Anand
Geeta Bali
Kalpana Kartik
CinematographyV. Ratra
Edited byY. G. Chawhan
Music byS. D. Burman
Production
company
Distributed byNavketan Films
Release date
  • 1 July 1951 (1951-07-01)
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Baazi (1951)

Baazi (English: Gamble) is a 1951 Indian Hindi noir film directed by Guru Dutt. This was the second film of Dev Anand's production house Navketan Films, and as per a commitment given by Dev Anand to Guru Dutt in their days of struggle, the movie was given to Dutt for direction. Baazi was the first crime noir made in the country. It initiated a new genre called "Bombay Noir", the success of which encouraged and defined the later noir films of 1950s and '60s in Hindi cinema.[1] It was the first film in which Dev Anand came up with his unique style of rapid-fire. The film's story was partly inspired by the 1946 movie Gilda.[2][3]

The movie stars Dev Anand with Geeta Bali and Kalpana Kartik. It is a crime thriller and had very popular music composed by S.D. Burman.[4][5][6][7][8]

The film is a tribute to the Forties' Film noir Hollywood with the morally ambiguous hero, the transgressing siren, and shadow lighting.[9] It was hugely successful at the box office and was the second highest grossing film of 1951 after Awaara.[10]

The Times of India called Baazi, "a milestone in the short lived genre that can be loosely called Bombay Noir." It was listed by Filmfare in "Best Bollywood Noir Films of '50s".[11] It is considered one of the Best Noir films to have come from India.[9]

  1. ^ "Dev saga: When Navketan went noir". The Times of India. 10 December 2011. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Baazi (1951)". Archived from the original on 1 April 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Baazi (1951)". Archived from the original on 2 July 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  4. ^ "Baazi (1951)". harveypam.wordpress.com. Archived from the original on 14 November 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  5. ^ "Baazi(1951)". imdb.com. Archived from the original on 20 April 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  6. ^ "Baazi". britannica.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  7. ^ "Baazi". upperstall.com. Archived from the original on 17 August 2013. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  8. ^ Jonathan Crow (2016). "Baazi (1951)". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  9. ^ a b "14 must watch Neo-Noir films from India". Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  10. ^ "BoxOffice India.com". 2 January 2010. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  11. ^ "Filmfare recommends: Best Bollywood noir films of the '50s". filmfare.com. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021.