Angoor

Original Hindi film poster for sale of the cult classic comedy Angoor (1982).

This is an actual surviving classic Hindi poster for sale of the 1982 comedy film written and directed by Gulzar that starred Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma in double roles.

Printed and circulated during the first release run of the film (somewhere in the early 1980s), this Angoor movie poster was printed for publicity of the film but never ended up being used.

Angoor was based on one of Shakespeare’s earliest plays, “The Comedy of Errors.” It is unanimously considered one of the finest comedies ever made in Indian cinema and has amassed a cult following over the years. Sanjeev Kumar’s double role in Angoor was listed among the 25 best acting performances of Indian cinema by Forbes India on the occasion of celebrating 100 years of Indian Cinema, making this Angoor movie poster, highly collectible!

The film’s simplicity and writer director Gulzar’s genius have become a subject of intrigue. A book titled “Gulzar’s Angoor: Insights into The Film” written by Sathya Saran has been published by HarperCollins.

This old Hindi film poster was originally designed using a collage technique combining both hand painted artwork as well as pasting of still photos. Sanjeev Kumar and Moushumi Chatterjee are seen in over-painted still pictures on the top of this classic Hindi poster. A hand painted portrait of actress Deepti Naval is seen at the bottom. Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma are seen eating “pakodas” laced with bhang (cannabis) in a still picture taken from an iconic scene in the film at the bottom of this old Hindi film poster. Set against a largely plain white background, this classic Hindi poster creates an immediate visual impact owing largely to its minimalist design.

The title of the film “Angoor Comedy of Twins” is seen in English in yellow at the center of this Hindi movie poster. A translation in Devanagari Hindi is seen in red at the bottom.

Angoor was the third adaptation of Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors” – the previous two being the 1968 Hindi film “Do Dooni Char” and the 1963 Bengali film “Bhrantibilas.” A song from the film, “Pritam Aan Milo” is instantly recalled and fondly remembered till today.