Charandas Chor

Charandas Chor
Charandas Chor
	Movie poster
Directed by	Shyam Benegal
Written by	Shyam Benegal ; Shama Zaidi (Screen Adaptation)
Story by	Vijaydan Detha
Based on	Rajasthani folk tale; by Vijaydan Detha
Produced by	Children's Film Society of India
Starring	Smita Patil, Lalu Ram, Sunder
Music by	Nand Kishore Mittal
Release date	1975;
Running time	156 min
Country	India
Language	Hindi

Charandas Chor (Charandas the Thief) is a 1975 children's film by noted director Shyam Benegal, based on the famous play by Habib Tanvir,^[1] which itself was an adaptation of a classical Rajasthani folktale by Vijaydan Detha. The lyrics of the film were also by Habib Tanvir.

The film starred Smita Patil, Lalu Ram, Madanlal and Habib Tanvir. The film is the start of Patil's career in cinema.^[2]

Plot edit

The film is derived from a classic folk tale, originally narrated by Vijaydan Detha, and interpreted as folk play by Habib Tanvir. The film charts the tumultuous life of a petty thief, Charandas (Lalu Ram). Curiously he is a man of principles – an honest thief with a strong sense of integrity and professional efficiency. He makes four vows to his Guru, that he would never eat in a gold plate, never lead a procession that is in his honour, never become a king and never marry a princess, thinking all of them are far out possibilities for him. Later, his guru adds a fifth one - never to tell a lie and sets him of on his life's journey which leads him to a kingdom, where the turn of events make him famous, and eventually he is offered the seat of political power which he has to refuse. Later, the local princess (Smita Patil) gets enchanted by him, and proposes to marry him. This is when his refusal costs him his life. As he is put to death, he illustrates the inherent paradox in human existence, where truthful existence becomes an impossibility, both for the truthful and the accidentally truthful alike.

Cast edit

Lalu Ram as Charandas
Smita Patil^[3] as Princess
Madanlal
Fida Bhai
Sadhu Meher
Habib Tanvir^[4]
Anjali Paigankar
Sunder
Baby Dass
Babu
Kemal Kar

References edit

^ Singh, Mohnish (1 September 2023). "Playwright Habib Tanvir's 'Charandas Chor' to get big screen adaptation - Bangladesh Weekly". Bangladesh Weekly. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
^ "India's goddess of the silver screen heads for martyrdom". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 January 1987. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
^ Ray, Bibekananda. Conscience of The Race. Publications Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. ISBN 978-81-230-2661-9. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
^ Brandon, James R.; Banham, Martin (28 January 1997). The Cambridge Guide to Asian Theatre. Cambridge University Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-521-58822-5. Retrieved 21 February 2024.