Awaara

Awaara poster for sale! Featured here is a very rare original Bollywood movie poster of one of the greatest Hindi films ever made in the history of Indian cinema, Awaara (1951).

Awaara is a 1951 blockbuster directed and produced by Raj Kapoor, featuring him in a leading role opposite Nargis.

Listed here for sale is an actual surviving vintage Bollywood poster of the cult classic, Awaara. Printed and circulated a few years after the original first release of the film (somewhere in the late 1950s), this Awaara poster was originally designed for publicity of the film but never ended up being used.

Awaara was nominated for the Grand Prize of the Cannes Film Festival in 1953 and finds a place in the All-Time 100 greatest films list by Time, making this original Bollywood movie poster, highly collectible!

Raj Kapoor’s father Prithviraj Kapoor starred in Awaara as his on-screen father, while his youngest brother Shashi Kapoor played the younger version of his character in a cameo. Further, Raj Kapoor’s grandfather Dewan Basheswarnath Singh Kapoor also played a cameo in Awaara – his only film appearance.

These family appearances made Awaara the only film in the history of Indian cinema that had many generations of the Kapoor family starring together on screen. The film is considered to be Raj Kapoor’s finest performance ever.

Raj Kapoor and Nargis had unbeatable chemistry together. Awaara, much like Raj Kapoor’s other films, showcased the sensuality and beauty of Nargis to perfection. These strong emotions are reflected in this vintage Bollywood poster with a beautiful portrait of Raj Kapoor and Nargis in an iconic sensuous pose. Raj Kapoor is seen planting a kiss on the shoulder of Nargis in this original Awaara poster.

The poster is set against a palette blue background, with visible brush strokes. Typography used in this poster is seen prominently in English at the bottom, with a translation in Devanagari Hindi and in Urdu on either side. The iconic RK logo is seen at the bottom of this very rare Raj Kapoor film poster.

Raj Kapoor’s “tramp” character in the film was influenced heavily by Charlie Chaplin. The film became a rage throughout South Asia and found overseas success primarily in the Soviet Union. After the widespread success of Awaara, Raj Kapoor carried this “tramp” character forward in subsequent films such as Shree 420.

The soundtrack album of Awaara was composed by Shankar Jaikishan, while lyrics were written by Shailendra and Hasrat Jaipuri. Songs from the film such as “Awara Hoon” (I am a Tramp) and “Ghar Aaya Mera Pardesi” became blockbuster hits, which are remembered and played till today. The album finds a permanent place on the list of 100 Greatest Bollywood Soundtracks of all time.

In the Soviet Union, Awara is estimated to have sold over 100 million tickets. It remained the most successful Indian film in the Soviet Union up until films like Bobby, Seeta Aur Geeta and Disco Dancer achieved a similar level of success there.

The film was also a nationwide success in China, again selling over 100 million tickets. The song “Awara Hoon” and actor Raj Kapoor became widely known across China.

The film’s success in both the Soviet Union and China has been attributed to the socialist themes expressed in the film. The film Awaara and the song “Awara Hoon” are believed to have been Chairman Mao’s (founder of People’s Republic of China 1949) favourite film and song, respectively.

In Turkey, Awaara released in 1955, selling over 100,000 tickets within the first week. Due to the film’s remarkable success with Turkish audiences, Awaara was remade in Turkey a total of eight times – the first and most prominent remake being Avare (1964).