Favourite Movie Frames: Yash Chopra’s Kabhi Kabhie

This is one of my favourite frames in one of my favorite love stories – Kabhi Kabhie directed by Yash Chopra in 1976.  The husbands – Amit and Vijay – are in the foreground.  The wives – Pooja and Anjali – are in the background.  Vijay has just told Amit that he knows that Amit and Pooja were once in love. As their partners listen, Amit tries to explain to Vijay what he and Pooja shared and why they decided to part, ending with the unforgettable line, “Daag daaman pe nahin, dil pe liya hai maine” (dialogues: Sagar Sarhadi).  Look at the ache in Amit’s eyes. Pooja’s head is bowed, in regret and sadness perhaps.  Anjali looks on wordlessly. This is the film’s emotional climax and Yash Chopra choreographed it with precision.  There is so much here – acknowledgement, understanding, confrontation and ultimately acceptance.  Forty-four years ago, it was an unusually progressive stance to take regarding your wife’s past.  Which is one of the many things that makes the film endure.