Pratiggya

Pratiggya poster for sale.

Featured here is an actual surviving original vintage Bollywood poster of the 1975 action comedy directed by Dulal Guha that starred real life couple, Dharmendra and Hema Malini in lead roles.

Produced by Bikram Singh and Ajit Singh and released under the Bikramjeet Films banner, Pratiggya (1975) also starred Ajit, Keshto Mukherjee, Abhi Bhattacharya, Jagdeep, Satyen Kappu, Sapru, Leela Mishra, Nazir Hussain, Johnny Walker & Madhu Malini in supporting roles. Pradeep Kumar and Urmila Bhatt made special appearances in the film.

Edited by Bimal Roy, Pratiggya (1975) was a unique story that combined revenge with slapstick comedy. A major commercial success, the film featured superstar Dharmendra in a double role.

Printed and circulated during the film’s first release in theaters (somewhere in 1975), this Pratiggya poster was originally designed for publicity of the film but never ended up being used.

Originally designed in hand painted oil on canvas format by Indian cinema’s most sought after and highest paid movie poster designer, Diwakar Karkare of Studio Diwakar fame, this Dharmendra poster features a striking design.

Actress Hema Malini is seen in a large close up portrait in her character of a young free spirited village girl in this Pratiggya poster. Her hair covered with a dupatta, she is illustrated wearing rustic village jewelry. Master Bollywood poster painter Diwakar captures her smile and boundless energy perfectly in this striking illustration, focusing largely on the depth of her eyes.

A smaller over painted photographic still of the lead couple, Dharmendra and Hema Malini, taken from the song “Uth Neend Se Mirzia Jaag Jaa” sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Rafi is seen on the bottom left of this old Bollywood poster. The two appear dressed in qawwali outfits, dancing together, with Dharmendra seen on his knees as if proposing to Hema Malini holding her hand.

The background comprises a minimal soothing pastel shade, with small hand drawn retro flowers breaking up the monotony and giving it a romantic feel. Typography used in this vintage Pratiggya poster is entirely in Devanagari Hindi, with the title standing our in blue accentuated with a yellow border.

The soundtrack album of Pratiggya (1975) was composed by hit duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal, while lyrics were written by Anand Bakshi. The album is fondly remembered for the unforgettable classic, “Main Jat Yamla Pagla Deewana” sung by Mohammed Rafi. Over the years, the song has become the defining track of superstar Dharmendra and was even used as the title of a trilogy featuring him along with his sons – Yamla Pagla Deewana (2011), Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 (2013) & Yamla Pagla Deewana 3 (2018).