Andaz is till date regarded as the mother of all triangles of Hindi Cinema. Llove triangles were made frequently even before Andaz but such is it's impact on Indian Cinema that whenever the genre of love triangles in Indian Cinema is discussed, the first film that comes to mind is Andaz! The film had everything going for it right from its sensational star cast of Nargis, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor. Though Andaz is talked about its unique casting coup of bringing together the superstars Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor, it must be admitted that at the time of Andaz's making, both were just beginning to become stars and hence their coming together is today regarded as a coup and not really then when the film was made.

In Andaz, Mehboob targets the youth of the 1940s whom he felt were wrongly aping western culture, behaviour and fashion and addresses to them the greatness of Indian traditions. However, this aspect of the film ends up dramatising the contradictory proposition that new, independent India should value capitalist modernization while retaining feudal family and moral values. What really makes this film (regarded as independent India's first 'modern film' looking at its affluent urban class) work is its high production value, technical gloss hitherto unseen in Bollywood (superbly photographed by Faredoon Irani) and of course its engrossing dramatic content and highly-charged lead performances that elevate the film several, several notches above the commonplace.

In fact, central to the film are the three superb lead performances. Andaz took Nargis right to the top and established her without doubt as India's finest dramatic actress. Andaz was one in a series of films where she played a heroine caught in the dilemma of the heart leading to tragic results, the kind of roles played by Patience Cooper in the 1920s. Dilip Kumar too consolidated on his image of paying the tragic lover as he handles the author-backed role of the doomed lover with ease. Raj Kapoor in the more difficult role of the husband suspecting his wife's infidelity more than manages to match strides with Dilip Kumar. Developing an individialistic set of mannerisms overdone for effect, his performance is a total contrast to Dilip Kumar's subtle underplaying and goes extremely extremely well with the flow of the film. The support by Cuckoo, Murad and VH Desai is adequate although the comedy sequences with Desai seem to go on and on and add nothing to the film.

The film is a musical triumph for Naushad. Each and every song in the film was a raging hit - Tu Kahe Agar, Jhoom Jhoom ke Nacho Aaj, Toote Na Dil Toote Na, Hum Aaj Kahin Dil Kho Bhaithe, Uthaye Ja Unke Situm, Tod Diya Dil Mera are among the finest songs that Naushad has composed. The last two sung by Lata Mangeshkar represent her early singing work in the year when she finally broke through to become India's leading playback artist and it is interesting to see her initial singing style highly reminiscent of the great Noor Jehan. Further, Naushad uses Mohammed Rafi to sing for Raj Kapoor and Mukesh for Dilip Kumar in a total reversal of singing roles. But again at this state of their careers the Raj-Mukesh and Dilip-Rafi were yet to be solidly established and, in fact, Mukesh had scored heavily under Naushad singing for Dilip Kumar in Mela (1948), just the previous year.

However, what gives Andaz it's cult status and timelessness is that the film remains startlingly modern even in today's times though propagating traditionalism. And not just due to its Hollywood like gloss and high technical standards. Even as Mehboob on the surface propagates traditional Indian values and questions whether friendship between members of the opposite sex can ever be platonic, somewhere the film aquires an additional depth and layer through the playing of the centre character by Nargis, maybe unintentionally, because Mehboob never spoke on this aspect of the film ever. Though Nargis claims that she was just friends with Dilip Kumar and clearly loves Raj Kapoor whom she has married, she has, in fact, responded to Dilip Kumar's love for her in Raj's absence, even if subconsciously. One cannot blame Dilip Kumar. Even the audience feels that she is indeed in love with him. When her father dies, she turns to him rather than Raj Kapoor and makes him her partner. It is only later that Raj's existence is revealed thus surprising the audience. Mehboob cleverly develops the 'romance' between Dilip Kumar and Nargis. Remember it was 1949 and audiences would not have accepted a woman's friendship with a man when she is already engaged to another. So Mehboob brings in Raj Kapoor as a surprise element. Just when you think the love story is developing between Dilip Kumar and Nargis, she tells him of Raj's arrival and immeditely picks up the threads of her love story with Raj Kapoor. If one knew that Nargis was bethrothed to Raj Kapoor and she was this open with Dilip Kumar, she would have been labelled a slut but bringing him in later not only brings a twist in the tale but heightens the drama of the film. In fact to further push this point home, when Dilip Kumar declares his love for Nargis on her wedding day, her reaction is not one of shock that how could he think their friendship was love but one that only confirms her worst fears thought best unsaid as she finds herself torn between two men. Consequently what comes out is a highly charged and volatile love triangle rising to great levels of Greek tragedy.

Thus, rather then a film of simply pitting 'Western Modernity' v/s 'Indian Tradition' Andaz emerges as a timeless classic - a rich, complex journey into the very depth of the human heart. It is perhaps Mehboob's finest film, even Mother India (1957) notwithstanding.