Teesri Manzil (Hindi Language) (DVD)

I simply love the 1960's Hindi films, the music, the leading men,leading ladies and the 60's fashion of bouffant hair,eye make up, the cigarette line pants of the guys and gals of that time, the tight churidar kameez of the ladies...and Teesri Manzil had it all, a great deal of the sixties style to offer..

If i were to list out some of my favorite Hindi films, Teesri Manzil would certainly be among the Top Ten...It had all the right ingredients for a near perfect entertaining noir thriller, with a generous helping of romance and style...gripping storyline, and perhaps some of the most melodious and popular songs ever composed..

I must have watched Teesri Manzil scores of times over the years, and, yet i automatically reach out for it ,when i am in the mood to watch a film at home..it only gets better with time..

So, coming back to Teesri Manzil, the film has been directed by Vijay Anand , one of the most talented and stylish Film Directors of Hindi cinema, who has directed some classics like Guide,Jewel Thief,Kala Bazaar, etc;.And ,What remains most with the viewers is the outstanding soundtrack by R.D.Burman...

Every single song from this film is a Classic in its own right...A fantastic collection.

THE STORY

The film begins with the murder of a young lady Roopa (Sayeeda khan), who is thrown off from the Teesri Manzil( Third Floor) of a Hotel.It is presumed to be a suicide.But her sister Sunita (Asha Parekh) is not convinced , as she had received a letter from Roopa a few days before her death hinting at a possible romance with the drummer Rocky (Shammi Kapoor), at the Hotel in Mussorie, where she was staying with her Fiance, Ramesh (Prem Chopra)......

Sunita is almost certain that Rocky is behind her sister's suicide, and she is bent upon exposing him and taking revenge on him .She proceeds to Mussorie , a hill station ,with a group of her friends, where the tragedy had taken place, stays at the same hotel ,where her sister had died.She meets Rocky on her way to Mussorie, on the train , without realising that he is the same person that her sister had met....

Sunita is charmed by him and gradually falls in love with him....

In the mean time The police find certain clues which make them reopen the case for further invesigation, and ,according to them,Rocky is the main suspect , taking all the circumstancial evidences into account....he is questioned by the police and the truth about Rocky's so called involvement with Roopa comes out..
Sunita is dejected when she comes to know the truth about Rocky ....

There is also RUBY (Helen)the dancing partner of Rocky, who is in love with Rocky , naturally resenting the blooming romance between him and Sunita.She has some clues and evidence regarding the murder of Roopa which she uses in trying to blackmail Rocky...

Then there is Raja Saheb (Premnath), a local bigwig, who becomes friendly with Rocky and tries to help him out in his hour of need...there are other suspicious characters like the hooded manager of Raja Sahab, and ,a mysterious lady who appears from time to time under mysterious circumstances....

As the investigation progresses, Ruby gets murdered , and the mystery further deepens ....Rocky is again suspected for this murder, as well, since he was the last person to be seen with Ruby before she gets killed...
The film is fast paced and the suspense is carried on until the very last scene where the murderer is exposed...

The most enjoyable scenes in the film are between Rocky and Sunita played by Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh, ..their chemistry on screen has to be seen to be believed, they make a lovely couple ....

There are some extremely entertaining comic interludes between the two , on the train at the beginning of the film, and right through until they fall in love with each other...

Shammi Kapoor has done the best he can for the role ,with his earnest style of romancing, dancing and generally charming the viewers.....he is a pleasure to watch in his comedy scenes with Asha Parekh..

Asha Parekh looks very pretty and has the usual naughty,short tempered rich girl role, who gradually mellows down once she meets Rocky and falls in love with him...

Helen is positively delicious in her role as the club dancer..she gets to enact what is probably the best song of the film 'O haseena zulfowali..., with Shammi Kapoor, which is a high point of the film... with over the top picturization by Vijay Anand.

Music by R.D.Burman had become hugely popular at the time of its release, and continues to be as popular or even more popular today after nearly 42 years...

THE BACKGROUND MUSIC SCORE

The film has six outstanding tracks

1,O haseena zulfowali jaane jahaan

2,O mere sonare sonare

3,Deewana mujhsa nahin is ambar ke neeche

4,Dekhiye sahibo woh koyi aur thi

5,Aaja aajaa mein hoon pyar teraa

6,Tumne mujhe dekha ho kar meherbaan

A special mention should be made about the picturisation of these songs, they flow with the story and become a part of the story, one never feels that they have been unnecessarily introduced....each one of them has been beautifully shot ,and blends in very well with the story line and the film in general...

My own personal favorites are O mere sona re sona re..."Tumne mujhe dekha' and of course O haseena zulfonwale jaane jahaan..

DVD DETAILS

Teesri Manzil (Hindi)

Actor(s): Shammi Kapoor, Asha Parekh, Premnath, Helen,Iftekar,Nasir Khan,Salim,Sayeeda Khan and others

Director(s): Vijay Anand

Genre: Thriller & Mystery - Thriller

Classification: Parental Guidance

Running Time: 2 hours 47 minutes

Video Category: Bollywood Feature Film

Country Of Origin: India

No. of Discs : 1

DVD Release date: 23/02/2004

Teesri Manzil is one of the best sixties films worth having in ones collection ...