Teesri Manzil is like a long shot of cool joy to every lonely cell of your body. It is one of the great Bollywood films of the 1960s. Cutting edge, hip, stuffed with great songs and sets and has Helen. Not to mention Shammi. Shammi Kapoor was at the height of his fame having brought a fresh, insolent charm to the before stoic heroes of Bollywood. And he could dance till the sweat poured down his face. This begins and ends in great drama, but in between it bounces back and forth between a typically Bollywood romance of misunderstandings and a murder mystery. I have seen this a few times but never realized till now that the DVD version is missing about 30-minutes and that is pretty much what everyone has seen. No blue-ray sadly. But once you watch this knowing that, it explains some weird fast jumps in locations. Still, we get 150 minutes and all the songs. And that is probably as much as most people want. But I would gladly take another 30-minutes of Shammi and Asha Parekh jousting and outwitting one another.


This is directed by Vijay Anand and scripted by Nasir Hussain, two of the biggest behind the camera names in Bollywood. Anand was the brother of the superstar Dev Anand and directed two of his classics; Guide and Jewel Thief. Hussain had directed some of the best modernistic films that are so much fun, witty, romantic and were big hits; Tumsa Nahin Dekha, Dil Deke Dekho, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Caravan and Yaadon Ki Baaraat. He had the golden touch and had helped make Shammi and Asha into big stars. This film also became a huge hit. It has it all. Even a slugfest or two. Shammi admittedly dances better than he fights though.


As charming as the two leads are what made the film a huge success were the songs. Everyone is a dinger. Hussein turned to a relative newcomer to compose the music. His few previous film songs had gained no traction. He was about to become a legend and was to go on to compose the music for 300 more films. R.D.Burman, son of legendary composer, S.D. Burman. His music was a big jolt for Bollywood bringing in many Western influences such as rock and roll rhythms, electric guitars, pop harmonies but still keeping an Indian sensibility. His nightclub songs in particular are riotous or achingly heartbreaking as Shammi singing Tumne Mujhe Dekha Hokar Meherban right after he learned that his real-life wife Geeta Bali had passed away. The unlit candle is for her. The actual singing is of course done by Mohammed Rafi who was Shammi's singing voice in nearly all his films. Asha Bhosle sings the female parts. It doesn't get any better than that duo.


The camera and editing is full of wit and whimsy as it swoops around, shoots from odd angles and placement at times and goes for close-ups of feet walking or eyes peeking. Bollywood was undergoing changes in the 60s to bring it more on par with Western films. You can see that in this film in how rapid the editing is at times and the colored Dali like sets. Also, to some degree in the subject matter; murder and infidelity.


It starts with a woman falling from the roof of a hotel. Suicide they rule. Rupa apparently depressed because Rocky the drummer in the hotel band rejected her after taking her innocence. A year later her sister Sunita (Asha) travels to find Rocky and disgrace him (by beating him up with a female field hockey team). On the train, she is annoyingly harassed by Anil (Shammi) who likes what he sees and puts on the Shammi fast talking joking persona to charm her. It doesn't work though it does with a rotund fellow passenger (Ram Avtar) who nearly laughs himself sick till she beats him over the head.


Anil tells her she killed him, but he will toss the body off the train and cover for her. He is very much alive but so begins his repeated attempts to fool her and woo her and her saying no. Of course, he is actually Rocky and tries to stop her from finding out. Helen is the dancer in the band and in love with Rocky. Her first number is a sizzler. Slowly into this misbegotten romance intrudes murder and mystery. Perhaps it was not suicide and someone is trying to kill or frame Shammi. The songs are dropped with about 30-minutes to go and it turns into a tense fight to survive.

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