Guru Dutt’s films are integral to the golden age of Hindi cinema as they were both critical and commercial successes. In a short career spanning twenty years, Dutt has served as an actor, a director, and a producer. His versatility is testament to a deep understanding of every aspect of filmmaking. Critics contend that contradictory ideas coalesced in his movies. A prominent theme of nationalism is at the heart of Dutt’s oeuvre. While he set out to refashion Indian national identity, Dutt envisioned a utopia for the new nation. Ideologically, Dutt was influenced by Nehruvian socialism, which finds its expression in his selection of subjects and themes. His movies also critiqued the new nation’s failure to afford equal opportunities to every citizen.

Dutt experimented with different genres ranging from comedy to romantic farce and from satire to tragedy. In Black and White: Hollywood and Melodrama of Guru Dutt, Darius Cooper notes that a strain of melodrama runs through his movies. The fame and critical acclaim he earned as the “tragic hero” of Pyaasa (1957) and the self-reflexive director in Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) often overshadow the romantic comedies like Mr. and Mrs. 55 (1955). In his first directorial venture, Baazi (1951), Dutt created a new subgenre called Bombay noir that remains a popular genre in Bombay cinema even today. Notwithstanding his experimentation with different genres, social issues undergird these films, more specifically social inequities in post-independent Indian society which is often followed by an exploration of different means of social uplift.

Guru Dutt’s collaborations have also been legendary. He is known to have collaborated with some of the most renowned talents of the Bombay film industry of that time. Music director S.D. Burman, lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi, and singer and wife Geeta Dutt have composed some unforgettable tunes for Dutt’s films. Viewers remember Dutt’s movies for his recasting of renowned names like Waheeda Rahman, Rehman, Johnny Walker, and Tun Tun. His collaboration with cinematographer V. K. Murthy resulted in innovative camera techniques, creative use of light, and entertaining musical sequences.

This edited collection is seeking chapters on a wide range of topics that fall under the purview of Guru Dutt’s films: 

•  Dutt’s political narrative
•  Dutt’s cinematic innovations
•  Dutt and Hollywood
•  Bombay Noir
•  Calcutta in Dutt’s films
•  Dutt and Self-reflexivity
•  Dutt’s techniques (lighting, camera angles, background
•    score, props, etc)
•  Themes in Dutt’s movies
•  Dutt and nationalism
•  Dutt and gender
•  Dutt’s industry collaborations
•  Musical sequences in Dutt’s movies
•  Dutt and genre
• your suggested topic

The Films of Guru Dutt will be proposed as one among the series of scholarly editions for the Edinburgh University Press series of ReFocus volumes dedicated to international directors. The ReFocus series is edited by Robert Singer, Gary D. Rhodes, and Stefanie Van de Peer. This volume will be edited by Dr. Afrin Zeenat (Dallas College) and Dr. Umme Al-Wazedi (Augustana College). 

Please email your proposals of around 200--250 words to guruduttanthology@gmail.com. The turnaround will be quick. Prospective contributors will be expected to submit their full chapters of (approximately) 7,000 words including endnotes (referenced in Chicago style) by March 20, 2025.