Joy Mukherjee's unreleased film ready for release

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That a film starring Joy Mukherjee titled Love in Bombay was ready in 1971 but hadn't hit the theatres, TOI had reported yesterday. Apparently, after Joy's demise on March 9 last year, his son Monojoy stumbled upon an old bill from Film Centre while rummaging through his father's belongings.

One thing led to another and he discovered his dad's unreleased film nestled inside an old box of negatives. After months of painstaking effort, the film may well release on February 24, which coincides with Joy's birthday.

What is most interesting about Love in Bombay, conceptualised by Joy and Bengali writer Ajay Chakraborty is the actors and their characterisation. Apart from Joy, the film stars Waheeda Rehman as a hip city girl, very different from her usual sari-clad avatar, Rehman as the villain, Kishore Kumar and Ashok Kumar among others.

Said Joy's widow Neelam, "Joy plays a Crocodile Dundee kind of character. The rom-com takes me back to my own romance. Joy was the 'golden boy' of the Mukherjees, who wooed me here, and it was love in Mumbai for us too."

Promising a chartbuster in the number Maaza Naav Ganpat Rao, sung and enacted by Kishore Kumar and composed by Shankar-Jaikishen, Neelam said, "Kishore mama has a full-fledged role opposite Sonia Sahani. I was present at the Filmalaya studio during the shoot. Dressed like they do in the interiors of Maharashtra, he was a riot. He'd break into steps the choreographer hadn't even rehearsed, and everyone would applaud after the shot. There was a live bear on the sets too."

Speaking about the restoration, Monojoy said, "We've gone for 2K restoration in high definition, corrected each frame over six months, working 10 hours a day. I've worked on the sound for three months. Now, both my brother Sujoy and me, along with our sister Simran and mom, feel confident to unveil the film under our father's banner."