Anamika (1973 film)

Devendra Dutt (Sanjeev Kumar), also known as Deven, is a famous author and a misogynist as he portrays woman as untrustworthy in his novels. He lives with his paternal uncle, Shiv Prasad (A. K. Hangal), and young niece, Dolly (Baby Pinky). One night, while returning home from a meeting, Deven and Shiv Prasad witness a young woman (Jaya Bhaduri) being thrown out of a moving car and falling unconscious on the street. Deven grows suspicious and decides to approach the police, but Shiv Prasad insists that they take her home and give her medical attention, and Deven hesitatingly agrees. The next morning, the young woman regains consciousness and Deven's doctor, Dr. Irshad Hussain (Iftekhar), diagnoses her with amnesia. She cannot remember anything from the past, not even her name - except that she is Deven's wife, "Mrs. Devendra Dutt". Everyone tries to convince her otherwise, but she strongly insists that she is in her own home. Deven and Shiv Prasad post an advertisement for her in the newspaper, but receive no response. Seeing her fragile state, Shiv Prasad, Dr. Hussain and the police decide to let the young woman stay until someone comes for her. Deven is against this decision and believes that she is trying to dupe them for some money, but names the young woman "Anamika" (meaning a woman with no name).

Soon, Anamika takes control of Deven's house and regulates Shiv Prasad's diet, while Dolly becomes her close friend and confidante. Shiv Prasad is delighted to have a daughter-in-law in the house. However, Deven hates Anamika and always keeps her at a distance. He even banishes her from his room whenever Anamika tries to enter at night to sleep with him. As a result, Dr. Hussain advises Deven to take it easy as his harshness could bring mental trauma to Anamika, but it turns out to be a ruse by him and Shiv Prasad to make Deven get rid of his attitude. Despite his initial hatred towards women, Deven gradually grows close to Anamika and falls in love with her, secretly wishing that she would stay at his house forever. Shortly, things take a turn when Naresh (Rajesh Behl), the son of Deven's now-paralysed publisher, Daulat Ram (Shivraj), visits Deven to hand over a royalty cheque and identifies Anamika, about whom he has an unpleasant memory. While Anamika does not identify Naresh, he keeps the truth a secret from Deven and then sends his goons to kidnap Anamika at night. However, Deven intervenes on time and saves Anamika from Naresh's goons, causing them to escape.

On Shiv Prasad's suggestion, Deven takes Anamika on a holiday to Shimla to help her fragile recovery. While there, Deven is surprised to see Anamika's photograph in a studio, and tracks the hotel of which the address is in the studio's register. On further inquiry at the hotel about the photograph, the receptionist remembers Anamika as "Mrs. Kanchan Malhotra", the wife of a businessman named Ganga Prasad Malhotra (Narendra Nath). Though heartbroken by the realisation that Anamika is already married, Deven receives Malhotra's address from the receptionist and returns to Mumbai with Anamika. He proceeds to meet Malhotra, who informs Deven that Kanchan is actually not his wife, but his employee who accompanied him on his holiday to Shimla the previous year. On Malhotra's suggestion, Deven visits a cabaret dancer named Rubai (Helen) and learns from her that Kanchan is a prostitute who used to work for her. Deven, already being supposedly deceived by a woman named Sapna four years prior, feels conned and believes that Anamika, like all other women, is immoral and after his money. As a result, Deven banishes Anamika from his house with rage and even refuses to hear her side, disappointing Shiv Prasad and Dolly.

After moving out from Deven's house, Anamika is promptly kidnapped by the goons of Naresh, who has her imprisoned at an isolated house, and addresses her by the name of "Archana". Naresh forces Archana to sign back to him all his property which his own father handed over to her. Although Archana signs the documents, Naresh's property lawyer refuses to betray Daulat Ram and starts a scuffle with Naresh, which results in a big house fire. The lawyer burns the property documents in it and escapes with Archana, while Naresh is trapped behind in the fire. Meanwhile, Shiv Prasad, who has still faith in Anamika, shows Deven a newspaper article about Anamika, where she is identified as Archana, receiving an award for philanthropy on behalf of her late mother (Achala Sachdev). Deven remains unconvinced, but reluctantly travels to Delhi to attend the silver jubilee celebration of his publishers. He is fortunate to meet Anamika there again, but unfortunately she refuses to identify him and is introduced to him as "Mrs. Kashyap", the new owner of the publishing firm. Confused, Deven follows Anamika to her house in Delhi and pleads her to reveal the truth about herself. Anamika accuses him of distrusting all women over a heartbreak, but finally narrates her ill-fated past to Deven in a flashback.

An ardent fan of Deven's novels, Archana was infatuated with him since college. However, incessantly pursued by her classmate, Naresh, and helpless by her poverty, which was worsened by her mother's terminal cancer, she agreed for an arranged marriage. On her marriage night, however, Archana discovered that she was married to Naresh's brother, Kashyap, who deserted her the same night, believing himself undeserving of Archana. Naresh took advantage of his brother's absence and continued to harass Archana. Her husband eventually committed suicide as he was impotent, causing the shocked Daulat Ram to be paralysed and hand over all his property to Archana, as Naresh was always unfit for that responsibility. Meanwhile, Archana's mother finally succumbed to her illness and died, and Naresh tried to rape the grieving Archana one night. As a result, Archana escaped from Naresh's house and met Rubai, who helped her join Malhotra's modeling company as Kanchan in order to start a new life. On a holiday to Shimla, Malhotra tried to take advantage of her, and when Archana resisted, he blamed her for the incident. After she quit her job, Rubai outwardly sympathised with Archana and let her stay in what she claimed was a working women's hostel.

A few days later, Archana got arrested with the rest of the girls in a police raid, which is when she realised that she had been staying at a brothel. However, she was later acquitted by the police, based on the testimony of the other inmates and her own testimony against Rubai in the court. Rubai tried to seek revenge from Archana for this and sent her goons to murder her. While Rubai's goons were kidnapping Archana, she jumped out of their moving car and fell unconscious on the night Deven and Shiv Prasad discovered her. When she regained consciousness and discovered that she was at her favourite author's house, she felt that fate had suddenly smiled on her and decided to stay, come what may, which led her to fake amnesia and claim to be Deven's wife. After revealing the truth about herself to Deven, Anamika admits that she has no evidence to prove it, but Deven believes her and empathises with her, begging forgiveness and reconciling with her. Just then, a badly burnt Naresh, who had survived the house fire, enters the house and attacks them both in an attempt to rape and murder Anamika. After a prolonged cat-and-mouse pursuit in a darkened house, Naresh gets electrocuted to death, and Deven and Anamika are finally united.

• Sanjeev Kumar as Devendra Dutt (Deven)
• Jaya Bhaduri as "Anamika" / Archana / Mrs. Devendra Dutt / Kanchan / Mrs. Kashyap
• Rajesh Behl as Naresh Kashyap
• A. K. Hangal as Shiv Prasad (Deven's uncle)
• Iftekhar as Dr. Irshad Hussain (Deven's doctor)
• Helen as Rubai (cabaret dancer)
• Baby Pinky as Dolly (Deven's niece)
• Shivraj as Daulat Ram Kashyap (Naresh's father)
• Achala Sachdev as Archana's mother (special appearance)
• Narendra Nath as Ganga Prasad Malhotra (special appearance)
• Asrani as Hanuman Singh (Deven's secretary)
• Ashoo as the nurse
• Meena T. as Bijli
• Yunus Parvez as Ram Lakhan
• Raja Duggal as photoshop owner
• Siraj Syed as college student secretary

• The song "Meri Bheegi Bheegi Si" was listed at #4 on Binaca Geetmala annual list 1973
• The song "Bahon Mein Chale Aao" was listed at #36 on Binaca Geetmala annual list 1973

The musical instrument duggi was played by Homi Mullan for the song "Bahaon Mein Chale Aao".^[2]

• Anamika at IMDb