On his birth anniversary, it’s time to look beyond the blockbuster hits and celebrate Sunil Dutt’s lesser-known but powerful performances. He rose to fame with Mother India in 1957 but his career includes many underrated films where he delivered compelling performances. Here are five forgotten gems that you need to revisit.
Sujata (1959)
Sujata is directed by Bimal Roy film and It stars Nutan and Sunil Dutt in lead roles and Shashikala, Lalita Pawar, Sulochana Latkar and Tarun Bose in supporting roles. It’s based on a Bengali short story by Subodh Ghosh and explores the issue of caste in Indian society.
Sadhana (1958)
Sadhna is a Black and white film produced and directed by B. R. Chopra which aims at social reforming. It stars Vyjayanthimala and Sunil Dutt in the lead and Leela Chitnis, Radhakrishan, Manmohan Krishna, Uma Dutt and Ravikant in key roles. The film revolves around Champa (Vyjayanthimala), a prostitute and her love affair with Mohan, a college teacher played by Sunil Dutt.
Nartaki (1963)
Nartakee is a socially themed film directed by Nitin Bose. It stars Sunil Dutt and Nanda in key roles and Om Prakash, Agha, Zeb Rehman, Pritibala and Aruna Irani in supporting roles.
Chirag (1969)
Chirag is directed by Raj Khosla. The film stars Sunil Dutt and Asha Parekh in the lead roles. Apart from other plus points, it has the song “Teri Aankhon Ke Siwa” sung separately by Mohd. Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. Asha Parekh said in one of her interviews about Sunil Dutt, “Dutt Saab was God’s child. He was a saint in the truest sense of the word. We did Chirag together where I had played a blind girl. Dutt Saab was so supportive and gentle as if I was really blind.”
Darpan (1970)
Directed by Adurthi Subba Rao. It stars Sunil Dutt, Waheeda Rehman and Sonia Sahni. Dutt plays Balraj, a respected teacher from a wealthy family who falls for and marries Madhvi played by Waheeda Rehman, a former proustite.
