Devdas
1955 · Directed by Bimal Roy
Original language: Hindi
- music
- drama
- romance
The story
Childhood sweethearts grow up in a small village with a love-hate relationship which changes to love when they mature.
What it’s like
Soft black-and-white photography, with lamplit interiors, rain-soaked village lanes and wide, carefully composed courtyards and mansion halls, gives the film a lingering, faded-photograph quality. Its sound is the draw: a run of melodic songs, often staged as aching set pieces, rises over tabla and strings, and the quieter passages let the silence hang. The mood is wistful and melancholy, with a slow, deliberate pace and a tragic emotional register that centres on longing, pride and the cost of pride. A childhood romance in a provincial household, later shadowed by drinking and despair, unfolds through glances and reticence more than action. The intensity is low in physical terms: there is no graphic violence or gore, and the sensuality is restrained, though the sorrow is heavy and sustained. It suits a rainy afternoon, a late evening alone with a cup of tea, or a first encounter with classic Hindi cinema. It is for viewers who want romantic melancholy, expressive music and the patience of a slow, heartfelt drama.
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