Flashback Friday: From Flop To Classic, The Shift Of Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya, And Rekha Starrer Sisila

Brilliant casting by Yash Chopra, who got Amitabh Bachchan's alleged real-life dynamic into the film, is what made 'Silsila' intriguing.

Yash Chopra took a chance by turning a fairly conventional romantic narrative into a deeper and more nuanced portrayal of love.

Why 'Silsila' is this week's pick

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Silsila (1981), directed by Yash Chopra, turned 42 on July 29. It was a failure upon its initial release but has now come to be regarded as a classic in the genre of romantic films. More than the screenplay, the film is iconic for its ensemble cast and memorable tunes which still have a place in our playlist.

New Delhi: How does a movie become a classic? Exceptionally strong and memorable screenplay? A premise that holds true even today? Or do the compelling performances of the actors who bring it to life? It might be all of that, but at times it could simply be an epic failure paving the way for everlasting glory. The last point is true for one of Yash Chopra's biggest flops, 'Silsila', which he made in an effort to rekindle his career in cinema but it bombed at the box office and did not win over moviegoers. However, the landmark romance movie from 1981 is now regarded as the crowning jewel of Hindi cinema, and it's possible that the same factors that drove the movie's downfall when it first came out are also linked to its present popularity.

Brilliant casting by producer-director Yash Chopra, who got Amitabh Bachchan's alleged real-life dynamic into the film, is what made 'Silsila' intriguing. However, it initially seemed that Smita Patil and Parveen Babi were picked as the spouse and lover, respectively, in the movie. But Jaya Bhaduri and Rekha were the actors that Yash Chopra desired to play the roles. Amitabh Bachchan sensed that the renowned director wasn't pleased with the casting when he called him for the movie. Eventually, Yash disclosed to the actor his ideal cast. Surprisingly, Bachchan agreed to it almost without hesitation and asked the director to persuade the female actors -Jaya and Rekha- to take up the roles.

After more than four decades, the movie is unearthed for its never-before-seen (or even after) casting and the handling of a narrative that involves adultery, a topic that directors would feel to steer clear of in an era when audiences generally embraced and celebrated films about big, happy families, almost on a utopic level.

The theme of an extramarital affair was strongly sensational at the time of its release, and this raised people's heads, but what really caught their curiosity about the movie was its ensemble cast. The audience was making assumptions more since there were speculations of a possible romance between Bachchan and Rekha at that point in time. Yash Chopra, who is famed for his dreamy romance flicks, took a chance by turning a fairly conventional romantic narrative into a deeper and more nuanced portrayal of love.

The Chopra-directed movie might seem to be about a love triangle, but when looked through the prism of modern sensibilities, it attains something that filmmakers have rarely been capable of doing: it treats the tale of a failed marriage and the rebirth of an old love with the utmost tenderness and dignity. In the first part of the movie, we witness Amit (Bachchan) falling in love with Chandni (Rekha) and dreaming of a life with her, but fate compels him to get married Jaya Bhaduri, the pregnant fiancée of his deceased brother Shekhar (Shashi Kapoor).

Today, one can wonder why the man turned into a saviour in order to safeguard the woman's honour in society while she was treated like an 'abla naari'. The story would undoubtedly have taken another path if it had been made today; Jaya's character would have possibly rejected the offer and gone on her own the pursuit of taking power over her life. 'Silsila' has some shortcomings that we are bound to notice, but decades ago even the most progressive films frequently fell short of when addressing issues pertaining to women. Alternately, one could argue that despite their modern takes on the topics they tackled, old films nevertheless attempted to fit into social conventions since they wanted to appeal to a wider audience. 

After Amit and Shobha's marriage, the second half of the film shows the former running into Chandni and starting an affair with her. The couple is depicted as being trapped in an unhappy marriage. The appearance of skepticism was just a trick on the audience's part because they were mindful that Amit wouldn't pick Chandni over Shobha. Why do you stay to see the end of the film, then?  It was primarily for the famed pair for me. Not Rekha and Amitabh, but rather the leading actresses - Jaya and Rekha.

The director has captured an encounter between two women who face off for what they feel are entitled to with great dignity and sophistication. Rekha and Jaya, not Bachchan, were the inevitable 'heroes' of 'Silsila'. Without them, Chopra would never have gotten the movie and cast he had in mind. However, it may be unfair to assume that no other actor could have performed the roles in the same way they did. But if it weren't for the women who looked beyond prejudice to give the story a soul, would 'Silsila' really be what it is today?