Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho!
Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho! (transl. Summons for Mohan Joshi) is a 1984 Hindi art film, made by Saeed Akhtar Mirza, based on his own story, during the Parallel Cinema period of Indian cinema.[1]
| Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho! | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Saeed Akhtar Mirza |
| Written by | Yusuf Mehta (Screenplay) Saeed Akhtar Mirza (Story) Sudhir Mishra (Dialogue) |
| Produced by | Saeed Akhtar Mirza |
| Starring | Naseeruddin Shah Deepti Naval Bhisham Sahni Dina Pathak |
| Cinematography | Virendra Saini |
| Edited by | Renu Saluja |
| Music by | Vanraj Bhatia |
Release date |
|
Running time | 130 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
The film is a comic satire on a judicial system, where cases drag on for decades, where plaintiffs either die or lose hope and money, while the corrupt run scot free, thanks to their nexus with corrupt lawyers.
It won the 1984 National Film Award for Best Film on Family Welfare.
Plot
An elderly couple, Mohan Joshi (Bhisham Sahni) and his wife (Dina Pathak), sues their landlord (Amjad Khan) for not maintaining their 'collapsing' apartment building. For this, they hire two cunning lawyers (Naseeruddin Shah and Satish Shah), while Rohini Hattangadi is the opposition lawyer.
The court case drags on for years and the lawyers milk the old couple dry, while they become rich. Back home in the society, the old couple is ridiculed for fighting the landlord, but they fight on nevertheless.
In the end, when the judge comes to check the condition of the chawl, the landlord's men prop up the place, thus convincing the judge that all is well. Finally, Joshi gathers all his strength and pulls down the temporary supports put up by the men causing the building to collapse on himself.[2]
Cast
- Naseeruddin Shah as Advocate Malkani
- Bhisham Sahni as Mohan Joshi
- Dina Pathak as Joshi's wife
- Deepti Naval
- Mohan Gokhale
- Rohini Hattangadi as Advocate
- Pankaj Kapur as Promoter 1
- Amjad Khan as Kundan Kapadia, landlord
- Satish Shah as Advocate
- Salim Ghouse as Promoter 2
- Anjali Paigankar as Joshi's Son's girlfriend
Location
Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho! was shot at Kamithapura, Bapty Road, and Duncan Road (Two Tanks/Do Tanki) at Mumbai's middle-class Hindu Muslim locality.
References
- Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho! One Hundred Indian Feature Films: An Annotated Filmography, by Shampa Banerjee, Anil Srivastava. Taylor & Francis, 1988. ISBN 0-8240-9483-2. page 123.
- Synopsis: Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho!