Back in 1937, Hollywood made a film that is today considered a real classic...though in it's time it was seen more as a little, lower budgeted picture. "Make Way for Tomorrow" is a tragic story about a husband and wife who have worked their entire lives for their children...only to find that the kids aren't there for them when they get old. It's a truly heartbreaking film to watch yet really works because of the amazing story as well as the direction by Leo McCarey--one of the great directors of his time. Well, Bollywood often remakes classic or contemporary Hollywood films and "Baghban" is no different--adding the usual Bollywood music and style to the terrific and sad tale of two parents with ungrateful children.
When the film begins, the Molhatras are celebrating their 40th anniversary. All their friends and most of their family (their adopted son is abroad working and '''studying) come and they do what every Indian family apparently does (at least in Indian films), they have a giant song and dance-filled night. It culminates with one of their four grown sons asking to borrow some money--and Raj (Amitabh Bachchan) very generously gives it to him. After all, he's their father and for decades he's been giving his boys everything he and his wife, Pooja (Hema Malini), have.
Despite the Molhatras being so generous, or, perhaps because of it, this soon spells trouble. Raj is about to retire and he simply assumes like the average Indian that his kids will quickly offer to have he and Pooja move in with them. The problems are that they have never really saved up for retirement and they cannot keep going on has they have...and the boys are ungrateful wretches. Each has an excuse for not taking in the parents and they offer a lousy option instead--each parent can move in with one of them...separately! So what's next in this sad film? After all, you learn all this only halfway into this picture. What of the Molhatras and what of their brats? Well, in the Hollywood film, it pretty much ends here...so it's up to you to see how the two films differ.
One of the biggest and most obvious difference, apart from all the song and dance numbers, was the choice of stars. Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini) look amazingly young...perhaps too young. By contrast, victor Moore and Beulah Bondi LOOKED very old in the Hollywood film--- though Bondi and Moore were actually close to the same age (and Bondi was the youngest of all). This is because the Hollywood actors were made to look as plain and simple as possible-- whereas Malini and Bachchan were still very beautiful people. I'm 51 and would LOVE to look as youthful as they do here in "Baghban"! I think using B-list actors like Moore and Bondi actually worked better in making the couple seem realistic and believable.
But to me, THE biggest difference overall was the second half of the film. The original story simply stopped with the oldsters having their lives torn apart...no happy ending, that's for sure. But in the Bollywood version they did what most Bollywood films do...end with everyone happy and the story neatly tied up in a way that is satisfying but completely unrealistic. I liked this film but having seen the original, I can see that it's only a pale imitation in many ways.
When the film begins, the Molhatras are celebrating their 40th anniversary. All their friends and most of their family (their adopted son is abroad working and '''studying) come and they do what every Indian family apparently does (at least in Indian films), they have a giant song and dance-filled night. It culminates with one of their four grown sons asking to borrow some money--and Raj (Amitabh Bachchan) very generously gives it to him. After all, he's their father and for decades he's been giving his boys everything he and his wife, Pooja (Hema Malini), have.
Despite the Molhatras being so generous, or, perhaps because of it, this soon spells trouble. Raj is about to retire and he simply assumes like the average Indian that his kids will quickly offer to have he and Pooja move in with them. The problems are that they have never really saved up for retirement and they cannot keep going on has they have...and the boys are ungrateful wretches. Each has an excuse for not taking in the parents and they offer a lousy option instead--each parent can move in with one of them...separately! So what's next in this sad film? After all, you learn all this only halfway into this picture. What of the Molhatras and what of their brats? Well, in the Hollywood film, it pretty much ends here...so it's up to you to see how the two films differ.
One of the biggest and most obvious difference, apart from all the song and dance numbers, was the choice of stars. Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini) look amazingly young...perhaps too young. By contrast, victor Moore and Beulah Bondi LOOKED very old in the Hollywood film--- though Bondi and Moore were actually close to the same age (and Bondi was the youngest of all). This is because the Hollywood actors were made to look as plain and simple as possible-- whereas Malini and Bachchan were still very beautiful people. I'm 51 and would LOVE to look as youthful as they do here in "Baghban"! I think using B-list actors like Moore and Bondi actually worked better in making the couple seem realistic and believable.
But to me, THE biggest difference overall was the second half of the film. The original story simply stopped with the oldsters having their lives torn apart...no happy ending, that's for sure. But in the Bollywood version they did what most Bollywood films do...end with everyone happy and the story neatly tied up in a way that is satisfying but completely unrealistic. I liked this film but having seen the original, I can see that it's only a pale imitation in many ways.