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href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/author/vc"><strong>Vidyarthy Chatterjee</strong></a></p></blockquote> <p><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/guru-dutt-in-pyaasa.jpg" title="Guru Dutt in Pyaasa (1957), Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia.com"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://dearcinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/guru-dutt-in-pyaasa.jpg" alt="Guru Dutt in Pyaasa (1957), Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia.com" align="left" hspace="4" vspace="4"/></a>The lives and lifestyle of the mentor (Uday Shankar) and the protégé (Guru Dutt) were remarkably similar in the many ways. They followed a common pattern of high creativity with a pronounced disdain for the mediocre and the mundane. Both lives ended in disappointment at what they considered to be philistine society’s inability to recognize their genius. Only in the amount of the time they spent on earth were the two to be dissimilar. Uday Shankar was past 70 when he died, largely of financial distress; Guru Dutt, just 39, scornful of success and consumed by melancholia.</p> <p>Some 50 years ago, Guru Dutt Shiv Shankar Padukone, a Mangalore Saraswat by birth and a Calcutta Bengali by temperament, made Pyaasa (The Seeker), striking melodrama about a damned artist saved by a noble-hearted prostitute. Pyaasa did good business; it was also favorably received by many critics. But after sometime it was forgotten, as were Guru Dutt’s other films like Jaal, Aar Paar, Baazi, CID, Mr. and Mrs. 55, Chaudhavin Ka Chand and Kaagaz Ke Phool. Both the man and his quiet, contemplative work, many of them marked by a dark, corrosive anger at the unjust ways of the world combined with one’s inability to fight destiny, were allowed to gather dust till the early 80s when there was a dramatic revival of interest in both. His films, his handsome looks and arresting presence, his numerous affairs, his drinking bouts, and his downward emotional spiral ending in suicide – suddenly everything became subjects of drawing-room discussion. (His early fun-filled films are now, sadly, largely forgotten; only his later, dark portraits of the sensitive individual in failure and suffering are recalled.)</p> <p>For this changed scenario, the French are largely to be thanked. Nantes mounted retrospectives devoted to Dutt and another neglected genius and contemporary, Ritwik Ghatak; and Paris took over from where Nantes left off. The respected film Journal, Cahierer du Cinema, devoted pages of analysis and insight to the art and attitudes of the two directors, igniting the interest of film capitals across Europe.</p> <p>Largely neglected in his lifetime (how else does one account for the box-office failure of Kaagaz Ke Phool?) and ignored by his peers in Bombay, Ironically enough, Guru Dutt is now a cult figure in whole such strengths and virtues are being discovered by film pundits as would have perhaps floored Dutt himself. such is the fickleness of human conduct and the fate of the artist who dare to live ahead of his time! Not without reason has it been said that Dutt, who virtually tortured himself to a self-inflicted death, was a tragic victim of his own heightened vision of romance and drama, of life and creatively, of despair and death. To understand such visions, one may profitably turn to his early years.</p> <p>Guru Dutt had his education in Calcutta in the ’40s, a tumultuous period of mass misery which left its indelible impress on his sensitive and cultured mind. Formal education did not suite him; in fact, nothing humdrum or predictable ever did, much to the consternation of his disapproving family. So, soon after completing his matriculation, he left Calcutta for Almora to join Uday Shankar’s famous dance school, which had fired the imagination of many a creative youngster of the day. Dutt was to spend two years in the shadow of the great Shankar. He was also greatly influenced by the outstanding musician, Vishnudas Shirali, who is often credit with being a role model to Ravi Shankar as well.</p> <p>Guru Dutt’s path crossed that of numerous other artists at Almora. They included the “baba’, Ustand Alauddin Khan, his son Ali Akbar, Timir Baran, the Kathakali maestro Shankaran Namboodiri, Shanti Bardhan, the Frenchwoman Simkie with whom Uday Shankar enjoyed a special chemistry both on and off stage, Zohra Sehgal, her sister Uzra Butt, and Amala Shankar, who was destined to marry Uday Shankar.</p> <p>Speaking to the French film critic, Henry Micciollo, Satyajit Ray had interesting observations to make about the Almora chapter (1942-44) in Guru Dutt’s life and its influence on his style of filmmaking. Ray attributed Dutt’s “remarkable sense of rhythm and fluidity of camera” to the apprenticeship he served in the hills and characterized his approach to cinema as “musical.”</p> <p>After Almora, Guru Dutt’s next port of call was Pune, where, at the famous Prabhat Sudios, his initial assignment was that of a choreographer. The rest is history, a part of the folklore of modern Hindi cinema. After working as a assistant to, first, Gyan Mukherjee of Bombay Talkies and later, Amiya Chakroborty, he got his big break by virtue of his friendship with Dev Anand, his old Prabhat Studio friend.</p> <p>After making Jaal and Baazi, under the Nav Ketan banner of the Anand’s, the artist in search of individualist expression struck out on his own. For company he had such gifted friends and associates as Abrar Alvi, with whom he clashed often, only to make soon after; the cinematographer V. K Murthy; editor, Y G Chauhan; art director Biren Naug; and actors Rehman and Johny Walker.</p> <p>Guru Dutt worked some five decades ago, yet he’s strikingly modern in his craftsmanship, specially in the films he made under his own banner. The challenges he took in lighting, camera, sound, and heightened storytelling constitute an important chapter in story of courage and commitment as shown by a homegrown film artist. Today’s angry young men and women could learn many valuable lessons if only they care to look closely and for long at Pyaasa, Kaagaz Ke Phool and Saaheb Bibi and Gulab (directed by Abrar Alvi but under Dutt’s overall supervision). The soaring flights of fancy or the pits of disillusionment and decay in these films or the director’s portrayal of himself as a deceived romantic, may leave some of today’s filmmakers cold, but technically, if nothing else, they will have to travel many miles before they can catch up with the wizard who could make melancholic shadows and silhouettes move to unforgettable soulful music.</p> <p>The true artist suffers the slings and arrows of an uncomprehending society with a straight face, or sometimes with contortions produced by pains, anger and an all pervaded sense of betrayal. Whatever the case, the worthwhile artist’s calibre is in direct proportion to the height of all the summits he is out to scale. This writer for one, likes to remember Guru Dutt as a director, producer and actor rolled into one who dared to dream difficult dreams and thereby defeat the demands of mediocrity which has ruled the Bombay film industry ever since its inception with just a few honorable exceptions here and there; who dared to devise and improvise like few before him in Bombay and fewer still after he bade a hasty, premature exit; and who; no doubt, failed at times to realize his celluloid dreams but when he succeeded, which was more often, succeeded splendidly.</p> <p>Here, Guru Dutt’s own words should be recalled; “In the formula ridden film world of ours, one who ventures to go out of the beaten track is condemned to the definition which Mathew Amold used for Shelly, ….’an angel beating his wings in a void’…</p> <p>“I believe that one who is out to go against the wind has to be prepared for bouquets as well as brickbats, for triumph as well as heartbreaks whether or not one makes a classic or collects the cash. It is this baffling unpredictability that gives edge to the thrill of movie-making.” <div class="tweetmeme_button" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"><a class="tm_button" rel="&source=DearCinema&style=normal&b=2" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135"></a></div> <p class="fb-like"><iframe src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314if_/http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdearcinema.com%2Farticle%2Fthe-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt%2F3135&layout=box_count&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=65&font=lucida+grande" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:65px"></iframe></p> <p><h3>You might like reading:</h3></p><div><dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/interview/dev-anand-remembers-guru-dutt/1824" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Dev Anand Remembers Guru Dutt">Dev Anand Remembers Guru Dutt</a></dl> <dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/an-obsession-called-guru-dutt/0844" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: An Obsession Called Guru Dutt">An Obsession Called Guru Dutt</a></dl> <dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/news/guru-dutt-retrospective-at-hong-kong-international-film-fest/1120" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Guru Dutt retrospective at Hong Kong International Film Fest">Guru Dutt retrospective at Hong Kong International Film Fest</a></dl> <dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/news/guru-dutt-retro-in-florence/5336" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Guru Dutt Retro in Florence">Guru Dutt Retro in Florence</a></dl> <dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/news/guru-dutt-retrospective-in-the-9th-a%c2%a2a%e2%80%9a%c2%aceoeriver-to-river-florence-indian-film-festivala%c2%a2a%e2%80%9a%c2%aca%e2%80%9e%c2%a2/1111" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Guru Dutt Retrospective in the 9th River to River Florence Indian Film Festival">Guru Dutt Retrospective in the 9th River to River Florence Indian Film Festival</a></dl> <dl><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/sanjay-dutt:-like-father--like-son/3915" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Sanjay Dutt: Like Father, Like Son">Sanjay Dutt: Like Father, Like Son</a></dl> </div><div class="clear"></div> <div class="clear"></div> <div id="entryMeta"> <img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=39" class="avatar avatar-39 photo avatar-default" height="39" width="39"/> Posted by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/author/" title="Posts by "></a> on Sep 22 2008. Filed under <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/category/article" title="View all posts in Article" rel="category tag">Article</a>. You can follow any responses to this entry through the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135/feed">RSS 2.0</a>. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry <div class="clear"></div> </div> </div> <div id="postcomments">  <h3 id="comments">18 Comments for <span class="respondEntryTitle">“The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt”</span></h3> <ol class="commentlist"> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1455"> <div id="comment-1455"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://windsfromtheeast.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">nitesh</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1455"> Oct 20, 2008 - 4:10 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/02ba6ac9e412823bacd3125d696db743?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>@ venkatash</p> <p>In my own humble opinion, I beg to differ regarding your opinion. Second, I think, film critics simply dint hail his direction work for the basic purpose of his acting ability or melodrama. What makes, and what made, Guru Dutt unique is his formulation of completely unique visual language what we call mise-en-secene in Cinema. Something I repeated in the comment above: the use of tighter focal length for close-ups, high contrast b& white lightning, the use of music within the narrative structure, and the use of popular conventions of melodrama to bring out stark realities and truth. Its is this š ‹“unique š ž properties that made him a great director, even today, one still goes through his movies like Kagez Ke Phool to understand the basic use of the š ‹“Cinemascope š ž lens, becasue it is one of the finest examples of using film space š ž , and how can one forget this collaboration with his cinematographer VK Murthy to redefine the image, and how it is actually š ‹“lit š ž and how the lightning affected the mood, the setting and the overall space. </p> <p>His uniqueness of mise-en-scene made him a great director, and not any other tall claim. Beside, I think, and as far as I have studied little of film criticism and Cinema, no good critic in my opinion has labeled Guru Dutt simply on his ability to move people with film title. And, to talk about considering Guru Dutt a forgotten chapter in Indian Cinema; I believe, first you should get back to understanding the history, tradition and culture of Indian and world cinema, instead of making any such claim. </p> <p>I don’t think I need to elaborate more, Anuj has just provided in ‘ few’ evidence of his mise-en-scene, and couldn’t agree more.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1455#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1455", "1455", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1456"> <div id="comment-1456"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dropofether.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Ankur Agarwal</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1456"> Oct 20, 2008 - 5:41 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/8a99022275335323c66ecd6ce4969fe6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>The scenes that you mention Anuj were actually laughably melodramatic or laden with overt messages, for me. Hardly any subtleties in Dutt.<br/> One of the strongpoints of a director has to be the selection of cast. The cast is more necessary than any mise-en-scene (the favourite phrase here, probably, I hope not just because it’s French and seems refined?). My criticism in Dutt as an actor implied criticism of Dutt as a director: why did he choose himself as the cast? After all, heroes weren’t paid greatly those days, so choosing another actor would’ve hardly increased the film budget!<br/> His films never ever touched me, and that’s the test of a film. If they did that to you and a majority, great. But they never did that to me. So, for me, he was a very ordinary director, much worse than most. Disagreeing with most doesn’t prove one an idiot, though it does make him by way of incurring so much wrath!</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1456#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1456", "1456", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1457"> <div id="comment-1457"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Anuj Malhotra</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1457"> Oct 20, 2008 - 6:08 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/6c22dab75d005f1fa4577e994c6c3584?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>To Ankur</p> <p>“The scenes that you mention Anuj were actually laughably melodramatic or laden with overt messages, for me.”<br/> If such implicit, and subtextual messages are overt for you, then it really must be a sight to see you sit through a Bhandarkar or a Manjrekar film. :smile: Anyways, about the subtleties, your not being able to notice much meaning in the shots I managed except explicit definitions like being laden with melodrama and other such stuff, proves they were a little too subtle. For you.</p> <p>” The cast is more necessary than any mise-en-scene ”<br/> We will not even attempt a debate here. It might result in you not sounding very intelligent. So skip this. Forget it ever happened. Erase the memory of this sentence from your so cinematically-bent mind. Zap it. Kill it.</p> <p>“favourite phrase here, probably, I hope not just because it š ž s French and seems refined?”<br/> No, because you have absolutely no idea as to what the term would pertain, which is fine enough. The sad part, however, is that you refuse to even acknowledge it. Or know about it. You are satisfied with criticising and observing Dutt’s acting. For God’s sake. This is film. This is not an acting workshop. Acting is but a small part of the scene. </p> <p>“why did he choose himself as the cast?”<br/> Heard the term ‘autobiographical’? Anyways, there could be a thousand so-called casting blunders made by each great director. If that is your idea of implicating someone for bad direction, then surely, you do realise the shallowness of the point you make. An opinion on an actor’s performance is just that – an opinion, laden with subjectivity. Lets agree to disagree. Or disagree to agree. </p> <p>“His films never ever touched me, ”<br/> Depends entirely on what ‘touching you’ would include. A superficial emotional crisis, wherein you wet the sleeve of your shirt, or cause a jaw-ache, or may it supercede even that? Also, can you name some films which oh-so touched you? </p> <p>“that š ž s the test of a film. ”<br/> For you. Do not state an opinion like a fact.</p> <p>“, for me, he was a very ordinary director, much worse than most.”<br/> Good for you. Or otherwise. </p> <p>Thanks.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1457#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1457", "1457", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1458"> <div id="comment-1458"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://windsfromtheeast.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">nitesh</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1458"> Oct 20, 2008 - 6:59 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/02ba6ac9e412823bacd3125d696db743?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Well, just as anuj put, ankur… acting is just a small part of mise-en-scene. Its finally here the director infuses in everything to create a new language, and even his; ‘ editing’ patterns are defined here. That too becomes an important aspect of the mise-en-scene, without mise-en-scene or mise-en-poetic there is no definite background existence of a film director and his artistic sensibilities and creation. </p> <p>We are one crazy movie nation as I keep repeating, but one illiterate about the medium. Here, Bazins, Greenberg, Rosenbaum and film critics are born from their mother womb, who believe, that the medium requires no studying, no history, nothing, just loving films is not enough. And filmmakers who wake up believing that all what exist is here, here and here, and no history or past, not concurrent industry exist wherever anywhere</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1458#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1458", "1458", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1459"> <div id="comment-1459"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dropofether.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Ankur Agarwal</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1459"> Oct 21, 2008 - 1:50 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/8a99022275335323c66ecd6ce4969fe6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>I won’t even attempt answering Anuj, since he already considers himself so authoritative on the topic. But yes, there might be more and more people getting influenced by the likes of Anuj…which is why probably fewer and fewer people now stick their necks out. Fewer actors bud. Fewer screenplays are tight and tense.</p> <p>So was it implied in the above messages that an actor is there to act in an actor’s workshop? Why am I made to feel time and again as if the film is something of a director’s showcase, his or her own completely, rather than something communal: even as a screenplay writer I can create inevitable mise-en-scenes that the director can only give his own flavour to, yet has to be obliged to give it my pain. Forget it, this is something that you won’t easily understand: since I write, I know my craft. A mise-en-scene with a camera is still far more easy than with a pen.</p> <p>There actually seems to be too much of an auteur theory here going around in this message board, besides the intolerance to other opinions. The director is not the auteur, unless he is someone like David Lean. And maybe not even Lean. He might have existed without Omar Sharif or even Peter O’Toole, but don’t tell me he, or anybody, would have made a Bridge on the River Kwai without an Alec Guiness. The cast of course comes first; because the cast makes its own interpretations, a film is a product of interpretations of each one of them about the story, the character. Which is why music is so central to Kieslowski’s films, for it was not added as an artifice later on. Which is why people (“the majority”, you know) often praise even a bad copy of 12 Angry Men, “Ek Ruka Hua Faisla”, since it’s the screenplay that powers the movie. Not much scope of a mise-en-scene there. i still remember Mel Gibson’s “Tim”, a wonderful film (yes, unfortunately, it did touch me more than any Guru Dutt film, easily more): it’s Gibson who runs around the older woman while jogging on the beach, it was his own interpretation of the character, and the layers that that single instance, those few moments on the screen add to the film, is simply unimaginable.</p> <p>Regarding how much I know about mise-en-scene or not, it is not for someone who does not know me or my background or my work to comment upon that. At least, thank goodness, I don’t fall for someone like Guru Dutt. Yes, indeed, good for me.</p> <p>Anyway, I think I’ve got tired of commenting. Sometimes, I think people write or comment to air on what they think, not to reflect on what they think. I just wrote this, since some of the comments could seem very fashionable to people new to world cinema, they would like such names like Bazin; but the gist of the matter remains that a film “is” a finished product, something hotly contested between me and Nitesh always. And it does and can stand on its own legs most times. A director is “not” its virtual master: and something which was just dark and gloomy and didn’t move a feet in thousands of frames, isn’t always art, most times isn’t.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1459#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1459", "1459", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1460"> <div id="comment-1460"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://roughinhere.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/in-search-of-uday-shankars-kalpana-1948/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">In Search of Uday Shankar s Kalpana (1948) « Rough In Her</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1460"> Nov 6, 2008 - 12:26 am</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=30" class="avatar avatar-30 photo avatar-default" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>[...] fact, there isš an interesting article discussing this fact and comparing the two artists, from the Dear Cinema [...]</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1460#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1460", "1460", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1461"> <div id="comment-1461"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Anirban</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1461"> Dec 15, 2008 - 6:28 am</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/5d24fd2f14ae6effb5d4fe74138aecc6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>I do not want to open the argument again. But, interestingly it leads to the same old discussion — what is a review? Is it more a subjective or an objective affair? And then which factors form a subjectivity, and bla bla bla bla</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1461#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1461", "1461", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1462"> <div id="comment-1462"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/author/bikas" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Bikas Mishra</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1462"> Dec 15, 2008 - 1:44 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/f85c20170f47ff4d4f99377f2784c440?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>This is a never ending debate Anirban, it only helps us define our positions. </p> <p>I personally don’t agree that a film could be interpreted in a vacuum, the cinematic text isn’t the ultimate interpretation of itself without the social, cultural context. </p> <p>If one excludes history of cinema from reviewing it, then probably one come say “breathless” is cinematically incompetent.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1462#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1462", "1462", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1463"> <div id="comment-1463"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Anirban</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1463"> Dec 15, 2008 - 6:17 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/5d24fd2f14ae6effb5d4fe74138aecc6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Then comes the eternal question, “incompetent by which standard?” And the answer, unarguably, is “Classical Hollywood cinema.” And film history comes to the front.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1463#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1463", "1463", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1446"> <div id="comment-1446"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://theseventhart.wordpress.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Srikanth</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1446"> Sep 23, 2008 - 5:14 am</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/cd129e030df2e7439900c3e035dda4a9?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Damn good article. So much trivia! I also think Sahib Bibi & Ghulam and Kaagaz Ke Phool deserve more than what they get now…</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1446#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1446", "1446", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1447"> <div id="comment-1447"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Rituparna Chatterjee</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1447"> Sep 23, 2008 - 5:37 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/713a134ca706533cd61aebfb967beb68?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Thank you for this wonderful and enlightening ode to Guru Dutt!! And for all the fascinating facts about his life! It’s too sad such a genius died so early!</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1447#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1447", "1447", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1448"> <div id="comment-1448"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Aniruddha Basu</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1448"> Sep 23, 2008 - 6:42 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/1da025062710410575543098bb0dfb4e?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Vidyarthi Da<br/> Thanks for a truly great article. It is sad that genius’ should be honoured only after their time. And its nothing short of tragic that Kagaaz Ke Phool was not appreciated during Guru Dutt’s lifetime. I still remember Guru Dutt’s Christ-like image during Pyaasa’s “Mahalon ki Duniya” song. Thats one of the most enduring images in Hindi cinema.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1448#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1448", "1448", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1449"> <div id="comment-1449"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dropofether.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Ankur Agarwal</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1449"> Sep 24, 2008 - 4:57 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/8a99022275335323c66ecd6ce4969fe6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Never liked Guru Dutt at all, pas du tout! But what a brilliant article you’ve written, one of the best among all the DearCinema articles! Possibly the best. Superb construction, backed up by so much of trivia.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1449#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1449", "1449", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1450"> <div id="comment-1450"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://windsfromtheeast.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Nitesh</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1450"> Sep 24, 2008 - 8:33 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/150c35913cfb32e682ad3c3471c9478b?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Guru Dutt was one of the rare auteur to work in mainstream cinema. One can’t deny his contribution in developing a visual language( that can be called his own) derived through his key innovation in the mise-en-scene- the use of tighter focal length for close-ups, high contrast b& white lightning, the use of music within the narrative structure, and the use of popular conventions of melodrama to bring out stark realities and truth. Vidyarthy da loved the article, but I still read- and re-read the article you had written on John Abraham.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1450#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1450", "1450", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1451"> <div id="comment-1451"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">yasser</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1451"> Sep 24, 2008 - 10:33 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/dd3c63e18445bf5cf768024c56ea47fa?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F1.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Fantastic writeup vidhyarthy… its heartwarming to read anything about Guru Dutt. Just wonderful !!!</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1451#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1451", "1451", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1452"> <div id="comment-1452"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Venkatesh</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1452"> Oct 20, 2008 - 6:29 am</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/c3b03390ea6c557a1cef634f62a300ae?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>I beg to differ.In my humble opinion Guru Dutt was not at all a genius.He was just a silly, failed artist. The best thing which can be said about Guru Dutt is that he was just one of those run of the mill song and dance directors. If he is considered a so called “auteur” it is because of not so fastidious critics who paste such silly labels on people who do not deserve them. His film were just average and if someone considers him as a great director then it is uniquely that person’s opinion. One reason why his films were liked by critics is that he acted in most of them and all of them were melodramatic.This was/is something which Indian public and critic adore.One would easily be moved if you have titles like Pyasa or kagaz ke phool etc.<br/> It is a good relief that he did not go on to make his humanist trilogy comprising of two unmade film<br/> “Bhooka” and “Nanga”.Guru Dutt must be considered a forgotten chapter of the so called glorious Indian cinema.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1452#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1452", "1452", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment even thread-even depth-1" id="li-comment-1453"> <div id="comment-1453"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dropofether.blogspot.com/" rel="external nofollow" class="url">Ankur Agarwal</a></cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1453"> Oct 20, 2008 - 6:57 am</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/8a99022275335323c66ecd6ce4969fe6?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>Completely agree with you, Venkatesh. As an actor, he was one of the worst actors in fact, among those I’ve ever seen. As a director, nothing at all. Actually, a film like “Kagaz ke phool” in the hands of some other director could’ve been a brilliant, moving film. He messed it up completely.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1453#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1453", "1453", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="comment odd alt thread-odd thread-alt depth-1" id="li-comment-1454"> <div id="comment-1454"> <div class="comment-author vcard"> <cite class="fn">Anuj Malhotra</cite> <div class="comment-meta commentmetadata"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#comment-1454"> Oct 20, 2008 - 4:03 pm</a> </div> <div class="avatar"><img alt="" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/6c22dab75d005f1fa4577e994c6c3584?s=30&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D30&r=G" class="avatar avatar-30 photo" height="30" width="30"/></div> </div> <p>To all</p> <p>The last comment need not even be cared about. Its irrelevant. Someone who measures Dutt by his acting capabilities is but an idiot. As for the second last comment, its the man’s much-too deliberate attempt to flow against the wave. This does not mean that Dutt lies exonerated from all claims against his greatness, or those which do not seem enthused about it. But these comments need to supplement themselves with justification and validation because unfortunate as it might be, more people seem to acquiesce the man’s greatness than those who do not, and a minority has lesser luxuries. Furthermore, the second last comment seems so grievously injected by hatred for the man, that it does not seem objective. </p> <p>As for my opinion on the man, I regard him as someone whose works aptly blended philosophy, with realism. The surreal with the real. Almost Fellinisque. But he had almost no influence on the New Wave, as is commonly believed. For instance, Pyaasa mixed the death of ‘art’ and the rejection of the ‘artist’ so beautifully with the morally bankrupt society.</p> <p>His mise-en-scene is usually theatrical, and that is ofcourse, the ‘surreal’ aspect of his films. See, for example the scene where the filmmaker returns to the old studios, and the old Director’s chair is lit only by a single beam of light – its like the chair is the magical portal to a more glorious past.</p> <p>Obviously, other sequences like his first meeting with Waheeda’s character under the tree, in the rain. Atmospheric, romantic, nostalgic – all at the same time.</p> <p>Or his blocking – one of his two shots that I can never forget -:<br/> 1) Pyaasa- During the brilliant picturisation of the song, “Jaane Woh Kaise Log the”, he is in the middle of the frame, and people around him, the rich guys, the upper class surround him. Its as if his tragedy has become a show for them. And the camera slowly moves in. Brilliant.</p> <p>2) KKP – When Vijay enters the old studios, there is the old studio logo statue staring DOWN at him. Its as if the director has been so belittled in front of his own creation.</p> <p>As a milder accusation on the author of the article, I would just say – I think the article is largely romanticised, with an author who is more inclined towards claiming Dutt as a great director, as if its a proven fact, than actually taking the time to prove it.</p> <p>Thanks.</p> <div class="reply"> <a rel="nofollow" class="comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135?replytocom=1454#respond" onclick="return addComment.moveForm("comment-1454", "1454", "respond", "1421")">Reply</a> </div> </div> </li> </ol> <div class="navigation"> <div class="previous"></div> <div class="next"></div> <div class="clear"></div> </div>  <h3 id="leaveComment">Leave a Reply</h3> <div id="respond"> <div class="cancel-comment-reply"> <small><a rel="nofollow" id="cancel-comment-reply-link" href="/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135#respond" style="display:none;">Click here to cancel reply.</a></small> </div> <form action="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/wordpress/wp-comments-post.php" method="post" id="commentform"> <p><input type="text" name="author" id="author" value="" size="22" tabindex="1"/> <label for="author"><small>Name (required)</small></label></p> <p><input type="text" name="email" id="email" value="" size="22" tabindex="2"/> <label for="email"><small>Mail (will not be published) (required)</small></label></p> <p><input type="text" name="url" id="url" value="" size="22" tabindex="3"/> <label for="url"><small>Website</small></label></p>  <p><textarea name="comment" id="commentText" cols="100%" rows="10" tabindex="4"></textarea></p> <p><input name="submit" type="submit" id="submit" tabindex="5" value=""/> <input type="hidden" name="comment_post_ID" value="1421" id="comment_post_ID"/> <input type="hidden" name="comment_parent" id="comment_parent" value="0"/> </p> <p style="display: none;"><input type="hidden" id="akismet_comment_nonce" name="akismet_comment_nonce" value="4e626b06ed"/></p></form> </div> </div> </div> <div id="narrowSidebar"> <div class="widget"> <h3 class="widget_sTitle_b">Share It</h3> <ul> <li class="digg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135&title=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt">Digg It</a></li> <li class="delicious"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135&title=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt">Del Icio Us</a></li> <li class="fb"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135&t=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt">Add to Facebook</a></li> <li class="google"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=edit&bkmk=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135&title=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt">Google Bookmarks</a></li> <li class="stumble"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135&title=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt">Stumble It</a></li> <li class="twitter"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://twitter.com/home?status=The Meloncholic Genius of Guru Dutt - http://dearcinema.com/?p=1421">Twitter</a></li> <li class="reddit"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http://dearcinema.com/article/the-meloncholic-genius-of-guru-dutt/3135">Add to Reddit</a></li> <li class="print"><a href="javascript:window.print();">Print This Post</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="t_center marginbottom"> <script type="text/javascript"> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314js_/http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> </div> </div> <div id="wideSidebar"> <div class="widget"> <script type="text/javascript"> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314js_/http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> </div> <div class="widget"> <h3 class="widget_sTitle">Recently Commented</h3> <ul> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110116233314/http://dearcinema.com/news/registrations-open-for-international-documentary-challenge-2011/2402#comment-5837" title="Registrations open for International Documentary Challenge 2011, Jan 15, 2011">Nandita Dutta</a>: Mr. Stewart has a point. 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