Kaagaz Ke Phool (Paper Flowers)

Name: Kaagaz Ke Phool (Paper Flowers)
Brand: Bloomsbury Publishing (AUS)
Price: 26.99 AUD
Availability: PreOrder

By: Lalitha Gopalan

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Paperback | 11 December 2025

At a Glance

Paperback
104 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
19.0 x 13.5 x 0.7

Paperback

$26.99

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Available: 11th December 2025

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Guru Dutt's final film as a director, Kaagaz Ke Phool (Paper Flowers, 1959), follows the successful filmmaker Suresh Sinha (played by Dutt himself) as rumours of his affair with his actress Shanti (Waheeda Rehman) lead him to lose his family, descend into alcoholism, and ultimately retreat from the film industry. Initially met with critical and commercial failure, the film is now revered for its technical prowess and considered one of the finest self-reflexive works in Indian cinema.

In her study of the film, Lalitha Gopalan explores the filmâs innovative visual style, being the first Indian film shot in CinemaScope, highlighting cinematographer V.K. Murthyâs essential contribution to the film. She also analyses the filmâs soundtrack, composed by S.D. Burman with lyrics by Kaifi Azmi and Shailendra, examining the now-classic picturisations of songs like "Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam". Drawing on interviews with practitioners and people close to Dutt, Gopalan reconstructs the original contexts of the film's production and reception.

Gopalan uses Kagaaz Ke Phool as a lens through which to assess Dutt's influence on popular Indian cinema during the long 1950s, as well as on global film melodrama more broadly.

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