“Devdas” has been made into a Hindi movie three times: in 1936, in 1955, and in 2002 by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. The original story was taken from a popular Bengali romance novel written by seventeen-year-old Sarat Chandra Chatterjee in 1917. The setting was West Bengal sometime in the early 1900s. Over time, Chatterjee’s character Devdas has become an iconic tragic hero in the imagination of the Indian people.
As a child, Devdas Mukherjee (Shah Rukh Khan) had a penchant for troubling his parents and his teacher. Eventually, he was shipped off to a London boarding school and away from his neighbor and soulmate, Parvati. Paro (Aishwarya Rai) has pined for Devdas, keeping an oil lamp lit continually until he returns as a symbol of her love and devotion. As the movie begins, Devdas has returned home after being away for ten years.
When they meet, Paro is coy and Devdas is condescending, but the spark of love heats up between them. Paro and her mother, Sumitra (Kirron Kher), decide to bring up the idea of marriage to Devdas’ mother Kaushalya (Smita Jayker). The proud Mukherjee’s take offense to the suggestion as Paro’s family is of a lower caste than Devdas, and worst yet Sumitra was once a dancer. Kaushalya humiliates Sumitra with a public refusal, and a devastated Sumitra vows to see Paro married to a wealthier family within eight days. Slipping into his room in the middle of the night, Paro begs Devdas to marry her. Devdas approaches his father but is soundly rebuked.
Without the will to stand up to his father, a confused Devdas leaves the family home looking for an escape. He finds himself in Calcutta, where he writes a letter to Paro denying his love for her. Soon after, realizing he has made a grave mistake, Devdas hurries to correct it. Paro has started preparing for her marriage to a much older and wealthier man. Devdas pleads for her to elope, but, Paro, devastated by the letter he wrote, wants him to feel the sting of rejection. She goes through with her plans to marry.
Devdas, always a good and moral man, starts drinking to ease the pain of his broken heart. At a brothel, he meets the beautiful courtesan Chandramukhi (Madhuri Dixit), who falls in love with him. Will Chandramukhi’s love save Devdas or is he doomed to spend his life as an alcoholic? This has what makes up the rest of the story.
Shah Rukh Khan plays Devdas as a rather childish and spoiled young man, with a sharp tongue yet a sensitive soul. Aishwarya Rai is fragile, passionate, and coy, she knows how to use her beauty to her advantage, but in the end, her vanity is her undoing. Madhuri Dixit as the courtesan dazzles us with her dancing. The combination of Aiswarya and Madhuri dancing together in ‘Dola Re Dola” is a unique experience not to be missed by Bollywood lovers. Three other characters stand out. Smita Jayker as Devdas’ mother, wears her love for her son on her sleeve, but her resentments and prejudices contribute to his destruction. Kirron Kher as Sumitra, also lets her humiliation lead to revenge and heartbreak for her daughter. Finally, Ananya Khare as Devdas’ sister-in-law, never misses an opportunity to negatively influence those around her.
At the time “Devdas” was made in 2002, it was considered the most expensive Bollywood movie made to date. Filled with opulent sets, tragic characters, beautiful music and wonderful dances, Bhansali leaves his signature everywhere. The movie starred three of the most popular actors of that time period: Madhuri Dixit, Aishwarya Rai, and Shah Rukh Khan. “Devdas” won many awards in 2002 from Filmfare including Best Film, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematographer, Best Art Direction, and Best Choreography.
