Phool Aur Patthar

Phool Aur Patthar is a 1966 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed and produced by O. P. Ralhan, and written by Ralhan with Akhtar ul Iman and Ahsan Rizvi. It stars Meena Kumari and Dharmendra as contrasting characters who come together; he plays a tough criminal (the "Stone") whose inner good being (the "Flower") is drawn out by Kumari's character of a pure woman. The film made Dharmendra a star in Hindi cinema. It also stars Shashikala, Lalita Pawar, Madan Puri, and Iftekhar.

The film later became a golden jubilee hit, catapulting Dharmendra to stardom. It was the highest-grossing film in 1966. Due to Dharmendra's rugged physique, he was also acknowledged as the He-man of the Indian film Industry. In fact, a scene in the film where he takes off his shirt to cover the ailing Leela Chitnis was one of the highlights of the movie. His performance earned him a nomination in the Best Actor category at the Filmfare Awards that year. In the 1960s, it was unusual for the leading man not to sing any songs in a movie. The film was noted for making Dharmendra-Meena Kumari a popular couple and they later acted in other movies such as Chandan Ka Palna, Majhli Didi, and Baharon Ki Manzil.

During shooting at one point, Dharmendra had a show-down with the film's director O. P. Ralhan, since he felt that the director had an arrogant attitude and he contemplated quitting the film mid-way. However, better sense prevailed and he resumed shooting.

The film was remade in Tamil as Oli Vilakku with M. G. Ramachandran, in Telugu as Nindu Manasulu with N. T. Ramarao, and in Malayalam as Puthiya Velicham with Jayan.

Plot
Circumstances have made Shaka a career criminal. When plague empties a town of its inhabitants, he takes the opportunity to burgle a house. He finds nothing except Shanti, a widowed daughter-in-law who has been left to die by her cruel relatives. Shaka nurses her back to health. When her relatives return, they are not pleased to find her alive and even less pleased to discover that someone has tried to rob them. Shanti gets the blame and a beating. Shaka saves her from worse, at the hands of brother-in-law, and the pair flee. They set up home in Shaka's house, much to the displeasure of the respectable neighbours, who are all too ready to think the worst. Shanti's relatives are dismayed when a lawyer arrives to announce that Shanti has been left a legacy. They hatch a plot to get her back. Meanwhile, Shaka's rehabilitation is proceeding - much to the chagrin of his former criminal associates. Fire and redemption for some, death and handcuffs for others is what fate has in store.

Cast

 * Meena Kumari as Shanti Devi
 * Dharmendra as Shakti Singh / Shaaka
 * Shashikala as Rita
 * Lalita Pawar as Mrs. Jeevan Ram
 * Sunder as Dr. Alopinath - Vaidraj
 * Jeevan as Jeevan Ram
 * Ram Mohan	as Kalicharan (as Rammohan)
 * Manmohan Krishna as Police Inspector
 * Madan Puri as John - Boss (as Madanpuri)
 * Tun Tun as Mrs. Alopinath (Guddki) (as Tuntun)
 * Leela Chitnis as Blind Beggar
 * Iftekhar as Babu (as Iftikhar)
 * D.K. Sapru as Judge (as Sapru)
 * Paul Sharma as Paul
 * Johnny Whisky
 * Mauji Singh as in the crowd Sikh man (uncredited )
 * Shyam Ralhan (uncredited ) real brother of O.P Ralhan
 * Braham Bhardwaj as Public Prosecutor (as Braham Bharadwaj)
 * Jayshree T. at Jewellery shop (uncredited)
 * Baby Farida as Jumni
 * Master Aziz as Bablu
 * Ram Avtar as Fat Pickpocket
 * Bhairon as Daboo - the dog (as Famous Dog Bhairon)
 * O. P. Ralhan as Sadakram
 * Indira Billi as
 * Bhariron as Daboo (the dog)

Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by Ravi and lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni.

Box office
Phool Aur Patthar estimated worldwide box office – ₹million (US$million) – million ticket sales


 * India (1966) – ₹75 million (US$million) – 45 million ticket sales
 * Soviet Union (1970) – 11.6 million Rbls (US$12.89 million, ₹96.7 million) – 46.4 million ticket sales

Awards

 * Filmfare Awards
 * Best Art Director - Color - Shanti Dass (Won)
 * Best Editor - Vasant Borkar (Won)
 * Best Actor - Dharmendra (Nominated)
 * Best Actress - Meena Kumari (Nominated)
 * Best Supporting Actress - Shashikala (Nominated)