Tamanna

Tamanna poster for sale.

Featured here is an actual surviving original vintage Bollywood poster of the 1969 Hindi drama written and directed by K.P. Atma (K. Pratyagatma) that starred Biswajit Chatterjee and Mala Sinha in key roles.

Produced by Suraj Prakash Seth and presented by Krishna Kumari under the K.S. Pictures banner, Tamanna (1969) also starred Nasir Hussain, Deven Verma, Asit Sen, Krishan Dhawan, Agha, Sajjan, Shashikala, Nazima, Achala Sachdev, Sulochana Latkar and Praveen Paul in supporting roles.

Tamanna (1969) told the story of love that transcends societal barriers. Suraj (Biswajit Chatterjee) who is the son of a wealthy businessman Seth Dhanpatraj (Nasir Hussain) falls for a poor girl called Saroj (Mala Sinha) during his college days. Saroj was born out of wedlock and has been raised by her single mother Gauri (Sulochana Latkar), who was abandoned by her partner Kundan at a young age before the two could get married. Kundan has become a petty thief over the years, struggling to survive on the streets. Being the daughter of an unmarried woman has brought immense shame to Saroj’s life, destroying her prospects of getting married. However, things turnaround for Saroj when she meets Suraj. The two fall in love, desiring to solemnize their undying love with marriage. Seth Dhanpatraj has big plans for his son and wants to send him abroad to pursue higher education. When he gets wind of their affair, he is devastated. Father and son have a face-off. Seth Dhanpatraj believes Saroj will bring shame to their family as she doesn’t even know who her father is. He compels Suraj to marry a woman of his choice. When Suraj refuses, he is expelled from the family and estate. Suraj and Saroj get married in a simple temple ceremony with the blessings of Gauri and start their new life together. Saroj completes his education and joins the police force, becoming an inspector, while Saroj completes her graduation in medicine and becomes a doctor. With Suraj now estranged from his parents, his step-sister (Shashikala) plans to usurp the entire estate and wealth of Seth Dhanpatraj. Can Suraj stop her and reconcile with his parents?

Printed and circulated during the first release run of the film in theaters (somewhere in 1969), this Tamanna 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 master Bollywood poster artist V.G. Parchure of Pamart Studio fame, this illustrated poster features striking artwork. V.G. Parchure’s signature in the name of his art studio Pamart is seen on the bottom left of this old Bollywood poster.

Lead actress Mala Sinha is seen in a stunning close up hand drawn illustration in the background of this Tamanna poster. Her face seamlessly blends into the red background, with vertical brushstrokes highlighting the artwork. The combination of yellow, orange and red hues give this hand painted Bollywood poster a stunning appearance.

Actor Biswajit Chatterjee is seen in a smaller full figure rendition in the foreground, dressed as a police inspector. Master Bollywood poster artist V.G. Parchure captures likeness and accuracy in both portraits flawlessly.

Typography used in this Mala Sinha poster is entirely in Devanagari Hindi, with only it’s title translated to both English as well as Urdu on the top.

The soundtrack album of Tamanna (1969) was composed by Kalyanji-Anandji, while lyrics were written by Anand Bakshi. It featured the beautiful track, “Tere Jaisa Kaun Hai” sung by Mohammed Rafi”