Daag (1973 film)

Daag: A Poem of Love is a 1973 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film produced and directed by Yash Chopra in his debut as a producer, which laid the foundation of Yash Raj Films (which till today the biggest production house in India). It is an adaptation of the 1886 Thomas Hardy novel The Mayor of Casterbridge. The film stars Rajesh Khanna, Sharmila Tagore and Raakhee in lead roles, with Madan Puri, Kader Khan, Prem Chopra and A. K. Hangal.

Daag was made at the peak of Rajesh Khanna's craze and became a blockbuster at the box office. The music by Laxmikant Pyarelal dominated the charts for the year. The film was later remade into the Telugu film Vichitra Jeevitham (1978). This film was Kader Khan's debut as an actor.

At the 21st Filmfare Awards, Daag: A Poem of Love received 7 nominations, including Best Film, Best Actor (Khanna) and Best Actress (Tagore), and won 2 awards – Best Director (Chopra) and Best Supporting Actress (Raakhee). 

Chopra used Raakhee's character name 'Chandni' from this film also in his later films Silsila (1981) and Chandni (1989).

Plot
A young man, Sunil Kohli, falls for the beautiful Sonia. Soon, they get married and leave for their honeymoon. On the way, owing to bad weather, they decide to spend a night at a bungalow owned by Sunil's boss. The boss's son, Dheeraj Kapoor, tries to rape Sonia when she is alone. But Sunil arrives in time, and a fight ensues, resulting in the death of Dheeraj. Sunil is arrested and, later, sentenced to life imprisonment by the court. But, on the way to prison, the police van carrying him meets with an accident. All occupants are killed.

Years later, Sonia, working as a school teacher and bringing up Sunil's and her son, finds out that her husband is still alive. He is living with a new identity as Sudhir, and is married to a rich woman named Chandni. After escaping from the police van, Sunil met Chandni, whose lover had ditched her on learning of her pregnancy. Sunil married her to provide legitimacy to her child, in return for her help in establishing his new identity. Now, after so many years, the law is once again at his doorstep. This time, however, there is an added crime to his name: bigamy.

Cast

 * Rajesh Khanna as Sunil Kohli / Sudhir
 * Sharmila Tagore as Sonia Kohli
 * Raakhee as Chandni
 * Prem Chopra as Dheeraj Kapoor
 * Baby Pinky as Pinky
 * Raju Shrestha (Master Raju) as Rinku
 * Manmohan Krishna as Deewan, Chandni's father
 * Madan Puri as K. C. Khanna
 * Achala Sachdev as Mrs. Malti Khanna
 * Iftekhar as Inspector Singh
 * Hari Shivdasani as Jagdish Kapoor
 * Yashodra Katju as School Principal
 * Kader Khan as Prosecuting attorney
 * A. K. Hangal as Prosecuting Attorney / Judge
 * S. N. Banerjee as Judge
 * Karan Dewan as Doctor Kapoor who treats Chandni's father
 * Surendra as Sunil's uncle
 * Jagdish Raj as Ram Singh (driver)
 * Manmohan as Prisoner in van fighting with Sunil
 * Padma Khanna as Dancer
 * Aruna as Dancer
 * Habib as Blacksmith removing Sunil's handcuffs
 * Saul George as Jr. Artist

Crew

 * Director – Yash Chopra
 * Story – Gulshan Nanda
 * Dialogue – Akhtar-Ul-Iman
 * Producer – Yash Chopra
 * Editor – Pran Mehra
 * Art Director – R. G. Gaekwad
 * Cinematographer – Kay Gee
 * Stunts – Ravi Khanna, M. B. Shetty
 * Choreographer – Suresh Bhatt
 * Lyricist – Sahir Ludhianvi
 * Music Director – Laxmikant Pyarelal
 * Playback Singers – Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Rajesh Khanna

Soundtrack
The soundtrack includes the following tracks, composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal, and with lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi
 * The song "Ab Chahe Ma Roothe Yaa Baba" was listed at #7 on Binaca Geetmala annual list 1973
 * The song "Mere Dil Mein Aaj Kya Hai" was listed at #20 on Binaca Geetmala annual list 1973

Awards and nominations
21st Filmfare Awards: 

Won Nominated
 * Best Director – Yash Chopra
 * Best Supporting Actress – Raakhee
 * Best Film
 * Best Actor – Rajesh Khanna
 * Best Actress – Sharmila Tagore
 * Best Music Director – Laxmikant Pyarelal
 * Best Male Playback Singer – Kishore Kumar for "Mere Dil Mein Aaj Kya Hai"