ROMANCING IN THE HIMALAYAS

The 0G romantic, Dev Anand aka Dev Saab, not only set a benchmark with his diction and flamboyant fashion but also paved the way for B’wood towards Himalayas

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For over six decades, he strode jauntily across the screen, and into the hearts of legions of fans with his distinctive diction, nonchalant nod, and flamboyant fashion. Yet, Dev Anand had another major contribution to Indian cinema than his stardom – pioneering its 'Neighbourhood First' and 'Look East' focus.

It was in the 1950s that Indian filmmakers set their sights outside, and Ashok Kumar and Nalini Jaywant's Naaz (1954) was the first to be shot abroad, namely in Cairo and London. Raj Kapoor's Sangam (1964) opened the floodgates and was followed by the likes of Love in Tokyo (1966), An Evening in Paris which marked the start of Bollywood's Switzerland tryst, and Around the World (both 1967) and many others.

However, Dev, who would have turned 101 at the end of September this year, had his sight on equally picturesque, much closer, yet virtually untapped foreign locales – the Himalayan kingdoms on the country's eastern borders.

Sikkim's on-screen debut

When his younger brother and collaborator Vijay 'Goldie' Anand wanted to work on suspense thrillers, after the ambivalent response to their ambitious bilingual Guide (1965), Dev suggested that he "should explore a new location as the backdrop, a region so far unexplored in Indian cinema".