Top-5 Bollywood 1970s comedies to watch on Netflix

Netflix is betting big in India is quite obvious from the fact that its CEO Reed Hastings had committed more than Rs 3000 crore towards local programming. Now the company is testing out a promotional scheme where a few new users get to pay Rs.5 for the first month before they choose an existing plan. 

In case you happen to be among the lucky ones to get this offer, ensure that you make the best use of it. Netflix has a massive library of movies and television shows that can be intimidating for early users and making the right choice to assuage the mood created by these uncertain times can be a tough ask. 

However, we at TechRadar India have got you covered on this one. Here is a curated list of best Bollywood comedies from the 1970s and early 1980s. And, why are we suggesting retro stuff when much more is on offer now? Because, these movies would make perfect sense when watched with the entire family that includes grandparents.

Golmaal

Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Writers: Shailesh Dey, Rahi Masoom Raza

Cast: Amol Palekar, Utpal Dutt, Bindiya Goswami

Synopsis: Shakespeare created a laughter riot with Comedy of Errors based on two pairs of twins. Golmaal tells the story of a desperate sports lover who ends up playing his own twin brother when his cantankerous boss catches him goofing off at a hockey match. The movie was the biggest grosser of 1979 and bucked the trend of “angry young man” movies from Amitabh Bachchan. Golmaal is considered a cult classic of Bollywood comedies and ironically Mr. Bachchan appears as himself in the film.

Chupke Chupke

Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Writers: Upendranath Ganguly 

Cast: Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri, Om Prakash

Synopsis: The story revolves around a lady who is so obsessed with the IQ of her barrister brother-in-law that leaves her husband fuming. The duo hatch a plan to make a fool of this egoistic brother-in-law where the husband works as his driver and pretends to be having an affair with the sister-in-law. The resultant chaos and the manner in which it eventually gets resolved raises several guffaws, none louder than for the comic scenes involving Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan. The movie was released in 1975, the same year that Sholay went on to create history.

Bawarchi

Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee 

Writers: Tapan Sinha

Cast: Rajesh Khanna, Jaya Bhaduri, Asrani, Harindranath Chattopadhyay

Synopsis: The story revolves around a middle class family whose major challenge is to survive the day without getting into petty squabbles over who will cook or who uses the bathroom first. Into this milieu comes a man servant who is every person’s dream as he is not just an excellent cook but also adept at other household chores. The only problem is none of the family members can recall having sought such a servant. The makers got well-known Indian English poet and dramatist Harindranath Chattopadhyay to play the role of the elderly patriarch of the family. Released in 1972, the movie was a big hit.

Namak Halaal

Director: Prakash Mehra

Writers: Kader Khan and Prakash Mehra

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Smita Patil, Parveen Babi

Synopsis: The movie was made at a time when the lost-and-found theme was the hot favorite with the directors and the audience. Though this movie had a mother and son staying in close proximity without actually knowing each other, the fun element came from the lead actor Amitabh Bachchan and his grandpa Om Prakash. Their thick Haryanvi accent and the constant refrain about adulthood keeps returning through the film which also saw Bachchan recreate his magic with fellow actor Shashi Kapoor.

Khubsoorat

Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Writers: D N Mukherjee 

Cast: Ashok Kumar, Rekha, Rakesh Roshan, Dina Pathak

Synopsis: The story revolves around a happy-go-lucky girl who visits her married sister and finds that family too disciplined for her liking. She goes after each family member to understand their hidden pleasures and gets them to indulge in a song and dance show, much to the chagrin of the lady of the house. The movie saw Rekha in excellent form that fetched her the Best Actress award at Filmfare and her cackling chemistry with none other than thespian Ashok Kumar, who plays the father-in-law.