MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

Mayank Singh This film might be Raj Kapoor's best film ever. Raj is a honest man who has come to Mumbai to make a living. But, as Fate would have it, he even had to pawn his medal(which he won for honesty). He also falls in love with the virtuous Vidya(Nargis). But he drawn into a world of hypocrisy and crime by Maya(Nadira). He catches the eye of Seth Sonachand and they embark on a path of a crime. Will Raj ever leave the world of crime?Will he be able to marry Vidya? The movie showcases the face how a simple individual is caught up in the web of crime. He isn't the real criminal. But the so called people from higher echelons of society are the real fraudsters. Raj Kapoor once again plays his simple Chaplinsque role(like he did in Awaara). Only this film is more light hearted and enjoyable than Awaara. The song score is excellent. "Mera Joota Hai Japani" by Mukesh is a gem. "Pyaar Hua Iqraar Hua" also catches your attention. Watching this film makes me think, why does Bollywood not produce such films anymore.

Mr. Bug They rarely make them like this anymore in Bollywood. Meaningful cinema with a message but presented in a highly entertaining and artistically solid way with great song numbers and characters you care for. The cast is first rate, the direction inventive and technically the film is well done. Just two examples: The use of a ghost image to express Vidya's dilemma of having to condemn Raj while still loving him and the use of rain/smoke in the love song. The rain/smoke patterns are subtle but wonderful. The songs are among the most popular in Hindi cinema and not one is weak or a filler. A timeless classic that will never become outdated. Unfortunately there is no good DVD around and the film needs restoration (as practically all older Bollywood films (and most newer ones too)).

rlelias Shree 420 is a classic Bollywood "social" of the 1950s. Its romanticized populism deserves comparison to Frank Capra's films. As in Kapoor's earlier Awara, the hero is a Chaplinesque tramp, another vagabond (as in Awara). Poor but honest (and happy), he falls in love with Vidya (Nargis), but is soon tempted to partner with a fat millionaire who makes money through fraud. Raj soon becomes rich but just as quickly regrets his choice, with Vidya serving throughout as the voice of his conscience. Songs in Kapoor's films are classics, but beyond their quality, the way Kapoor uses them is an important aspect of his directorial technique. In a pivotal scene, Raj (Kapoor's hero shares his first name) staggers drunk from a nightclub to encounter a stone-faced Vidya outside her poor home. The narrative problem here is that she – and the viewer – must condemn Raj but, at the same time, the movie has to communicate that she still loves him. Kapoor deftly solves this problem by showing Vidya staring coldly while a white-robed specter of Vidya sings a love song to the departing Raj: two Vidyas, one who censures him, another who reaffirms her love for him. And a good song. Imagine how a Hollywood film might resolve this. How many words would it take? How many tears? Kapor allows the stone-faced Vidya to image our disapproval while the spectral Vidya's song reveals what is going on in her mind.

VirginiaK_NYC Based on some Internet research on the best of Bollywood, and on a lifelong crush on Raj Kapoor's brother Shashi, this was the first Bollywood movie I sought out at an Indian video store, and it completely blew me away. If you want to start to get to know the greatness of this cultural tradition, this is a good place to start, and I recommend watching it thirty times. It is still my favorite after some months of searching out Bollywood classics.This movie provides a sublime pathway to love of Bollywood; for one thing the music is completely enchanting, beginning with the first song, sung by Raj Kapoor in his role as a university- educated ("B.A. passed") young country fellow garbed as a hobo on his way to Bombay--he sings his song of the road about "My shoes are Japanese, my trousers are British, my red hat is Russian, but my heart is Indian" --Mera juta hai Japani, etc. I do not speak Hindi and I have had to memorize it. I think some westerners may believe that the music of Bollywood movies will be a stumbling-block, but see if you still think that after you see this one. The songs are compelling and varied, the lyrics elaborate story elements, with the additional pleasure of being Indian or non-Western or whatever in their sentiments. Raj Kapoor's brilliant physicality and body language alone make the movie a joy.It also provides the pleasures of screen romance with powerful chemistry (between Raj Kapoor and the great star Nargis, his real life inspiration and beloved), and of movement into the nightclub world of the rich and glamorous, and the opportunity to see the spectacularly handsome Raj change from a foolish-acting tramp/clown to a worldly charmer in a dinner jacket (even though this spells temporary trouble for the forgotten and virtuous Nargis).~Virginia