Aradhana

Aradhana is a 1969 Indian Hindi romantic drama film directed by Shakti Samanta, starring Sharmila Tagore and Rajesh Khanna. It won the Filmfare Award for Best Film at the 17th Filmfare Awards. Tagore won her only Filmfare Best Actress Award. Originally released in Hindi and dubbed in Bengali, Aradhanas huge success led to two remakes: the Tamil film Sivagamiyin Selvan (1974) and the Telugu film Kannavari Kalalu (1974). This film is counted among the 17 consecutive hit films of Rajesh Khanna between 1969 and 1971, by adding the two hero films Marayada and Andaz to the 15 consecutive solo hits he gave from 1969 to 1971. Aradhana was a blockbuster in India and the Soviet Union. The theme of the movie was based on the 1946 film To Each His Own. Plot Indian Air Force officer Arun Varma sings "Mere Sapno Ki Rani" in an open jeep winding along Darjeeling, West Bengal 's hills with his co-pilot Madan, while Vandana, the daughter of Dr Gopal Tripathi casts skittish glances full of summer romance from a train window. Smitten, they wed in a temple without rituals, with only God as a witness. But the heavens open and they are soaked. Left to take refuge in a shelter with a flickering fire, their passion is subsumed beyond reach. Vandana returns home. Within days, Arun dies in a plane. Vandana discovers that she is pregnant. Arun's family are unable to accept her as a daughter in law. Her father also dies, leaving her destitute. Vandana's son is born and named Suraj, the sun. She puts him up for adoption hoping to legally adopt him the next day but she is forced to let a childless couple adopt him. Determined to be a part of his life, she accepts the role of being his nanny. One day, her employer's brother-in-law, finding her alone in the house, attacks her but Suraj rescues her by stabbing him to death. When the police arrive, Vandana takes the blame for the murder and is arrested. Suraj runs away. Years later when Vandana is released from jail, the jailor takes her to his home and introduces her to his daughter Renu. Vandana soon meets Renu's love, Suraj. He is the image of his father and a pilot too. He has the sensation of having seen Vandana before but his memories are fleeting. Anxious that the true story of his parents may cause him pain, Vandana tries to hide away.