1988 film directed by Feroz Khan
Dayavan (transl. The Compassionate) is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language action crime film directed by Feroz Khan. It is a remake of the 1987 Tamil film Nayakan. The film stars Vinod Khanna, Feroz Khan and Madhuri Dixit with Aditya Pancholi in important roles.
The film was most talked about for its passionate lovemaking scene between Khanna and Dixit but there was more to the film than the kiss.[1] Khan was originally working on Yalgaar(1992) but after watching Nayakan on Tinu Anand's suggestion he decided to remake it and originally wanted to play the main character but later decided to step down because of the lovemaking scene. So he contacted his old friend Vinod Khanna who had just returned from a 5 year long hiatus. This was Khan's 3rd and final collaboration with Khanna after Shankar Shambhu(1976) and Qurbani(1980). The film is remembered for Khanna's powerful performance, which is considered to be one of his best.[2][3]
Plot
After having witnessed his dad being killed by the local police, and being orphaned and homeless, Shakti Velu develops hatred and distrust of the police in India. He is befriended by another homeless boy named Shanker, who asks him to accompany him to Bombay's slums, where they live with a kind-hearted Muslim named Karim Baba, and his daughter, Shama. This is where Shakti and Shankar spend their childhood. When they mature, they take to petty crime. Here too, Shakti witnesses police brutality and atrocities, especially at the hands of sadistic, alcoholic, and womanizing Police Inspector Ratan Singh. When Karim Baba is arrested, jailed, and found hanging by his neck in police custody, Shakti hunts down Ratan Singh, and kills him in broad daylight in front of several hundred people. An investigation is launched, but no one comes forward as a witness. Thus Shakti gets his reputation as a Don with a good heart i.e., Dayavan. Shakti marries a local prostitute, Neelu, and has two children, Suraj and Sarita. He becomes even more powerful and influential all over Bombay, and his working partners are powerful criminal dons who have ruled over Bombay for eons. Shakti eventually replaces these dons and becomes Bombay's only Don. This creates enemies for him and his family, but he believes since he has not really done any harm to anyone, he and his family will be safe. It is this belief that will take a heavy toll on his life and that of his family when the truth dawns that he, himself, is responsible for being kind to a man, who will ultimately bring forward ruin to the Velu family.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack is available on T-Series, and is composed by veteran music directors Laxmikant–Pyarelal. The hit song "Aaj Phir Tum Pe" was recreated in 2014 for the film Hate Story 2, with vocals rendered by Arijit Singh. Chahe Meri Jaan Tu Le Le was recreated in 2019 for Marjaavaan with vocals rendered by Tulsi Kumar and Jubin Nautiyal[5]
Reception
Simran Bhargava of India Today wrote "While Khan's film doesn't reach the peaks touched by Nayakan, it is still the best film he has made. The gloss is all there but the western tints of Apradh and Qurbani are gone. This one belongs to India."[6]
