Prem Shastra


Prem Shastra is a 1974 Indian Hindi-language film written and directed by B. R. Ishara. The film stars Dev Anand, Zeenat Aman and Bindu.

Plot

Sagar Sharma is a popular author and a favourite among women. During one of his trips to a location to gather inspiration for a plot for his next novel, he autographs one of his previous novels for an admirer called Barkha. Sagar and Barkha fall in love and begin an intimate relationship. Later due to the pressures he faces in his life, Sagar requests Barkha to forget him. Diwan, who publishes Sagar's novels, informs him that one of his best-sellers was receiving backlashes as it focused on an affair between a father and a daughter, and that it has led many women activists to ask for a ban on the book. Unperturbed, Sagar decides to defy them by moving to court, if necessary.
Sagar returns home and Neelima, his wife who is a drunk and spoiled. Both are not in love with each other. Suddenly, Barkha, who is pregnant, visits Nilu. Nilu introduces her to Sagar as her sister. Sagar visits his gynaecologist, who informs him that Barkha is preparing for an abortion. Sagar visits Barkha and requests her not to undergo an abortion. It is revealed that Nilu blackmailed Sagar into marry her. The two then argue, during which Neelima says Barkha is Sagar’s elder brother’s daughter. A desperate Sagar visits his elder brother to discover Neelima had lied. The climax develops with flashbacks of Neelima’s past when she was Miss India in 1951. She had affairs with three rich people, of which she marries Rajan Arora. Desperate to ruin Sagar and Barkha's relationship, Neelima even appoints a hardcore criminal, Lallan, to kill them. A gripping court room climax reveals the truth and Sagar is united with Barkha.

Cast

Soundtrack

The music was composed by Laxmikant–Pyarelal while Anand Bakshi wrote the lyrics. On the album, film critic Suresh Kohli of The Hindu wrote that the songs by Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle were "mediocre". He found the title background score to be "memorable".

Reception

Kohli wrote that if the film was "scripted and filmed sans the sexual angles would have surely hit the bull’s eye at the box office."