MUMBAI:  Satyam Shivam Sundaram is a chapter in Indian Cinema History that holds a great spot. The film was iconic in terms of stature and its storyline. However, it turned into a controversial affair even before the release. 

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Nonetheless, it was a super hit at the Box Office, with Zeenat Aman getting all the love for her portrayal of the lead character Roopa. But it was Dev Anand, who once expressed his displeasure over such a film.

The Shashi Kapoor starrer released a few months before Dev Anand’s film Des Pardes. Interestingly, it was directed and produced by him as well. However, when Raj Kapoor’s directorial hit the theatres it was a rage.

Seeing the film perform so well might have irked Dev Sahab, who was trying hard to save his sinking career by then as he was witnessing a decline in his stardom. When Satyam Shivam Sundaram was released, Dev Anand, in an interview, expressed his displeasure over the racy tone of the film.

Indian Express quoted from an interview of Vir Sanghvi, which was documented in his autobiography as well. Dev Anand said, “Let them come to see Zeenat’s body. They will go out remembering my film.” 

He even commented on the s*xualisation of Zeenat Aman’s character and said, “It’s a dirty film. Did you notice how the camera kept focusing on Zeenat’s body? Dirty!”

Interestingly, Raj Kapoor faced a lot of criticism for the same even after the film was released. A case was filed against him for moral depravity and too loud for Indian sensibilities. The film was so talked about that Zeenat Aman’s looks were already leaked by a publication before the film was even released.

For the unversed, the film portrayed Zeenat Aman as a poor village girl Rupa. Her character in the film donned sarees and lehengas with deep cholis. In fact, the film even had a scene where she was backless. A waterfall scene, where Rupa takes a bath in a white saree, also created quite a stir.

Also read -Shocking! Zeenat Aman Recalls ‘bursts into a flood of tears’ when Raj Kapoor narrated her before Satyam Shivam Sundaram song shoot; ‘Raj Kapoor laughed and said…’

Her portrayal was objectified according to those times, and such a racy portrayal was not believed to be apt for Indian society, one of the reasons why Dev Anand called it dirty.

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Credits - koimoi