Dastak

Dastak

1970 · 145 min · ★ 5.0 · Music, Drama

Tells the story of newly weds Hamid and Salma. They move into a rental flat next door to the local red light district. The flat had been the former home of a well known mujra and qawali singer, Shamshad. Men still come to the door in the hope of seeing Shamshad and do not seem too put out by seeing Salma despite her protestations. The couple struggle to live within the bounds of their own moral code while the earnings of prostitution seem to be flaunted around them. Hamid gets more and more angry and seemingly unable to reconcile his morality with the immorality of the world and at one point beats his wife and then rapes her making her into a 'whore' of his fantasy. The story here bears resemblance to the later 'Ek Chadar Maili Si' by the same director and seems to explore the complex world of women and sexuality as viewed by Indian men: mother, goddess, whore. This film also explores the ethos of prostitution in its reality and as a metaphor for the outside world.

Directed by Rajinder Singh Bedi · Written by Rajinder Singh Bedi

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Cast

Sanjeev Kumar Hamid Ahmed
Rehana Sultan Salma Ahmed
Shakeela Bano Bhopali Shamshad Begum
Anwar Hussain Akhtar Marativale
Manmohan Krishna Shahid
Anju Mahendru Maria
Kamal Kapoor Brijmohan

Make it a double feature

4h 59m together

Dastak

Mere Hamdam Mere Dost

Both from Rajinder Singh Bedi.

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