Naseeb (1981 film)

Naseeb, a story of destiny and fate, begins with a lottery ticket. A drunken man who cannot pay his tab trades: he decides to sell his ticket to the waiter, Naamdev (Pran). Namdev purchases this ticket with his three friends Damu (Amjad Khan), Raghu (Kader Khan) and Jaggi (Jagdish Raj). Using a system of drawing out the highest card to decide who keeps the ticket, Jaggi wins, and the ticket stays with him. When the ticket turns out to be a winner, Damu and Raghu turn on the other two, murdering Jaggi and framing Namdev. Namdev goes on the run, but Raghu and Damu intervene and throw him over a bridge into a river. Namdev is presumed dead.

However, he is rescued by Don (Amrish Puri), and no one is aware he is alive.

Twenty years later, Damu and Raghu have used their stolen lottery money to build a fabulous hotel and make millions, becoming very successful businessmen. Damu has used a share of his money to send his youngest son, Vicky (Shatrughan Sinha), to school in England. They have even employed Namdev's oldest son Johnny (Amitabh Bachchan), Vicky's best friend, as a waiter in the hotel. By coincidence (or by fate!) Johnny and Vicky fall in love with the same beautiful singer, Miss Asha (Hema Malini). Julie (Reena Roy) is a childhood friend of Vicky's who is in love with him, but he only sees her as a friend. When Johnny discovers this, he and Julie sacrifice their own love to ensure that Vicky and Asha get together. At the same time, Johnny's younger brother Sunny (Rishi Kapoor) has fallen for Asha's younger sister, Kim (Kim Yashpal). Kim and Asha happen to be the daughters of Jaggi, the man Namdev supposedly murdered. Namdev returns soon after and plans to take revenge against Damu and Raghu for separating him from his sons Johnny and Sunny. The lives of all these characters become intertwined and Naseeb becomes a poignant story about love, friendship, sacrifice, deceit, revenge and, above all, destiny.

• Amitabh Bachchan as John Jani Janardan (Johnny)
• Shatrughan Sinha as Vikram (Vicky)
• Rishi Kapoor as Sunny
• Hema Malini as Asha
• Reena Roy as Julie
• Kim as Kim
• Pran as Naamdev (Waiter)
• Amjad Khan as Damodar 'Damu' (Photographer)
• Kader Khan as Raghuvir 'Raghu' (Tangerwala)
• Prem Chopra as (Raghu's Elder Son)
• Shakti Kapoor as Ashok (Raghu's Younger Son)
• Amrish Puri as Don
• Lalita Pawar as Mrs. Gomes (Julie's Mother)
• Yusuf Khan as Zabisco (Don's Son)
• Jagdish Raj as Jaggi (Asha & Kim's Father) (Band Musician)
• Om Shivpuri as K.K.
• Mukri as Mehboob Bhai
• Shubha Khote as Ms. Prema (School Principal)
• Jeevan as Professor Prem (School Principal)
• Viju Khote as Rodricks
• Manik Irani as Fighter
• Asrani as Himself (Shooting Advert with Asha)

All the songs were composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal and the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi.

One of the songs in the film sung by Mohammed Rafi, "John Jani Janardan", has cameo appearances by many actors playing themselves. The appearances include Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Dharmendra, Rajesh Khanna, Rakesh Roshan, Vijay Arora, Waheeda Rehman, Sharmila Tagore, Mala Sinha, Bindu, Simi Garewal and Simple Kapadia. According to eminent film expert Rajesh Subramanian, the opening line was composed by Manmohan Desai himself. The tune was inspired by a catchy line from the song "Aksar Koi Ladka" from Bobby.

The star studded song was shot at R. K. Studios and the shooting spanned one week. Showman Raj Kapoor played an integral part in the song and during the shooting. The one-week shoot was a gala event.

The film was an "All Time Earner", got the highest verdict (equivalent to All Time Blockbuster today) present at that time by Trade Guide Bollywood box office magazine, and was among those rare movies which crossed 1 crore per territory.[3] There were only 13 All Time Earners (crossing 1 crore per territory) before 1984, and Naseeb was among them.[5]

• Filmfare Best Actress Award - Hema Malini - nominated[7]

• Naseeb on IMDb