Shri 420 1955

Shri 420 is a 1955 Indian Bollywood social film released on 1955. The film is directed by Raj Kapoor, produced by Raj Kapoor under banner named R. K. Films.

Ranbir Raj or Raju (Raj Kapoor, using his original name) comes to Mumbai to create a name for himself and make a fortune.
After he loses all his possessions, he meets with Vidya (Nargis), a teacher who runs a private school, and both fall in love. Raj soon gets a job in a laundry and meets Maya (Nadira) when he goes to deliver some clothes to her. Maya finds that Raju is good with cards and takes him to a casino where he wins Rs.20000/-, which unfortunately is pocketed by Maya.
A rich industrialist, Sonanand Dharmachand, approaches Ranbir, hires him to work for him, and starts exploiting Raju's conscience by showing him money. Raju falls for the greed and soon differences start to create between him and Vidya.
Will Raju remain in this paradise forever or will he come to know about Sonanand's plan? Will Raju and Vidya have a happy ending?

Having played a tramp in Awara (1951), Kapoor elaborates his vagabond image further with his sentimental story about Raju (Kapoor), a country boy carrying the archetypal bundle on the end of a stick over his shoulder, who tries to make his fortune in Bombay. The city is presented in terms of Abbass familiar stereotypical contrast between the corruption of the urban rich and the warm-hearted poor (e.g. Pawar as the fruit-seller). Raju falls in love with Vidya (Nargis), a poor schoolteacher who has a paralysed father. Maya (Nadira) is the femme fatale who embroils Raju in a decadent life. Raju is seen gambling, playing the trumpet in a club, surrounded by dancing-girls (the number, Mudmud ke na dekh), and he becomes a conman in the employ of Mayas friend Seth Dharmanand, a ruthless capitalist. When he is used to swindle the homeless, Raju rebels and a lively chase involving a bag of money provides the bridge to the happy ending. Opening with the Chaplin number Mera Joota hai japani (sung by Mukesh), the film includes some of the stars most famous star songs: the carnivalsque Dil ka hall sune dilwala (sung by Manna Dey) and the best-known Kapoor Nargis duet, performed in the rain as they fall in love, Pyar hua ikrar hua (sung by Manna Dey and Lata Mangeshkar). *.* Not so long ago, a young man, Raj Kumar Saxena, left Allahabad to seek a job in Bombay. He carried with him two precious things. Honesty in one hand and knowledge in the other, a gold medal awarded to him for being the most honest and truthful boy in the school and a degree confirming him to be a Bachelor of Arts. . But in the city of Bombay he found that his two assets had no value in the market, while the social system allowed profiteers, black marketeers, card sharpers and other species of "420"s to make million The footpath dwellers like Gangabai befriended Raj but they were powerless to help him since they were themselves mostly without jobs. . Vidya. a poor but beautiful girl, daughter of a crippled scchool- teacher and herself running a neighbourhood school foe poor children, entered Rajs life as a friend and soon became the girl of his dreams, a girl to love and to marry. Raj had very modest ambitious to earn enough to wed Vidya and to have a little home and to feel and educate the children that they will have some day. He, however, found out that these ambitions were impossible to achieve honestly and so economic need and bitter experience drove him to dishonesty and evil. . The influences pushing him on this vicious slope included Seth Sonachand Dharmanand, who camouflaged his fraudulent business activities behind the mask of a philanthropist and defender of the faith and his equally unscruplous business associates. They introduced Raj to the gay social life of posh hotels, high-stake gambling and drinking, a life summed up in the glamorous person of Maya, a cabaret dancer. . Between the honest, virtuous and sincere Vidya and the unscruplous Sonahand Dharmanand, a battle raged for the soul of RAj. Vidya had lost hopes of ever getting her innocent, honest and truthful Raj back to herself, when Seth Sonachand Dharmanand overplayed his hand by involving Raj in a sensational housing racket. . Vidya finally restored Rajs conscience, but then six shots rang out from Seth Sonachands revolver and Raj fell dead. . Yet, it was not Raj who died; only the "420" in him. . Indeed, the moment of Rajs death was also the moment of his re-birth and a joyous re-union with his beloved Vidya. Check out this page for more updates on Shri 420.