Vijay Anand was without doubt one of the greatest directors that Hindi cinema has seen. And while his films shone with their technical virtuosity and marvelous sense of storytelling, his incredible talent as a filmmaker comes through even more forcefully in his picturisation of songs. It can be said that Vijay Anand was arguably the greatest picturiser of songs in the history of Hindi, no make that Indian Cinema. His use of creating unusual situations and sets (the unending number of windows through which Dev Anand romances Hema Malini - Pal Bhar ke Liye Koi Humein Pyaar Karle from Johnny Mera Naam (1970)), using long complicated takes involving both character and camera movement (Tere Mere Sapne Ab Ek Rang Hai from Guide (1965) - entire song in just 3 shots), incredible use of foreground and background of the frame (O Mere Sona re (Teesri Manzil (1966)), dynamic framing with a camera almost always on the move (Aaj Phir Jeene ki Tamanna hai (Guide)) and making the most of tightly enclosed spaces (Dil ka Bhanwar Kare Pukar - Tere Ghar ke Saamne (1963) on a set of the inside of the Qutub but what a picturisation!) all played a great part in the magic of the songs in his films.

Known as Goldie, the younger sibling of Filmmaker Chetan Anand and star Dev Anand, Vijay Anand was born in Gurdaspur, Punjab. He did his BA from Bombay University and while still not 20 wrote the script for the Dev Anand starrer Taxi Driver (1954), directed by Chetan Anand. The film, inspired by the film noir movement of Hollywood, was one of the biggest hits of Navketan playing a big part in giving Dev Anand his well-known stylish screen persona.

Nau Do Gyarah, released in 1957, saw Vijay Anand make his directorial debut in Bollywood. The film, a combination of the urban thrillers that Bollywood was churning out in the 1950s with the road movie (certain elements borrowed from Capra's It Happened One Night (1934)), was a promising debut for the young Goldie and remains one of the most enjoyable and likeable Hindi film fares of the 1950s. Early evidence of Goldie's filmic craft and song picturising ability however can be glimpsed through use of the foreground and background in Kali ke Roop Mein Chali Ho Dhoop Mein Kahan or using a constricted space (a room and a toilet!) in the romantic ditty Aaja Panchhi Akela Hai. Other Musical hits of the film include Hum Hain Rahi Pyaar Ke, Aankhon Mein Kya Ji and Kya Ho Phir Jo Din Rangeela Ho. Nau Do Gyarah also boasts of a technical flourish when two men are fighting it out in a room and the vamp outside is dancing to the strains of See Le Zubaan, Goldie cuts to a series of hands of the various characters outside the room to highlight their tension!

Goldie followed up Nau Do Gyarah with the story of a black marketer and his redemption - Kaala Bazaar (1960). The film is still known for its amazing picturisation of Rhim Jhim ke Tarane Leke Aayi Barsat with Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman braving the Bombay monsoons under a single umbrella while he supers their earlier scenes over them walking! Tere Ghar ke Saamne (1963) with Dev Anand and Nutan remains one of the most likeable romantic comedies the Hindi screen has seen. Barring the Qutub Minar song, Goldie also astounded audiences with his visualization of the title song wherein Dev Anand imagines a miniature Nutan inside his drink and sings to her! The song has an unforgettable moment when Anand's assistant Rashid Khan puts an ice cube into the glass causing Nutan to shiver which Dev Anand gallantly takes out! In between there was Hum Dono (1961) directorially credited to Navketan's publicist Amarjeet, but every frame of the film seems to be Goldie's style.

Perhaps Goldie's real triumph as a filmmaker came with Guide (1965). Initially he was dead against directing this film causing Anand to approach elder brother Chetan Anand who was busy with his own film, Haqeeqat (1964) and then Raj Khosla but things didn't work out here either. Vijay Anand was approached again and this time he took on the film albeit reluctantly. Ironic because Guide today is regarded as perhaps the best film that Vijay Anand has made and rightly so. Based on RK. Narayan's novel The Guide, the film is immortalized by the director's bold, unconventional strokes; who would have dared to show a man and woman living together outside the sanctity of a marriage way back in the 1960s? And that too in a milieu as traditional as that of Hindi cinema which doesn't allow nonconformist relationships even today! In fact, it is one of the earliest efforts in Indian Cinema to actually show its two leading characters as frail human beings who could make mistakes in life, sin and yet be unapologetic about it.

Guide released to great critical acclaim and was a big commercial success as well even though RK Narayan was most unhappy with the final film as he felt it deviated too much from his novel. One of the major changes that Vijay Anand did was to change the setting of the film from Malgudi to Udaipur and while this did give the film an exotic, grand visual look, admittedly perhaps this took away from the ambiance of the small town of Narayan's novel. The ending too of the film was significantly different from that of the novel. But then Vijay Anand has always maintained that he was never interested in merely copying any work of art from one medium to another unless there was scope for value addition and to be fair to him, he has made Guide into a rich and unforgettable cinematic experience. Guide more than reinforces his reputation as Indian Cinema's premier song picturizer. Special mention must be made of Aaj Phir Jeene ki Tamanna Hai (The famous low angle tracking shot of Waheeda dancing along the ledge of the temple continues to amaze one even today) and Tere Mere Sapne, which he canned in just 4 shots with complex character and camera movements - truly a great filmmaker at the height of his craft.

With Guide, Vijay Anand became the Hindi Film Industry's big hope. Here was a filmmaker who could make intellectually stimulating films that could be profitable money earners as well! Following Guide, Vijay Anand went from success to success with films like Teesri Manzil (1966), Jewel Thief (1967), Johnny Mera Naam (1970) and Tere Mere Sapne (1971). All the above named films show Goldie at his creative best as a filmmaker. Teesri Manzil might be a Nasir Hussain script but it is Vijay Anand who infused the necessary technical pizzaz raising the film several notches. Jewel Thief (the picturisation of Hothon pe Aisi Baat being one of the greatest in the history of Hindi cinema as Vyjayantimala dances like never before) and Johnny Mera Naam still occupy a pride of place on filmgoers hearts as far as thrillers go but perhaps Goldie's most satisfying film of this period was Tere Mere Sapne. Based on AJ Cronin's The Citadel, the film looks at an idealist doctor losing his values to money before realizing his mistake at the end. The film is one of the most sensitive and maturely directed film by Vijay Anand, particularly the scenes between the husband and wife who leaves him when she sees he is no longer the same man she married.

Sadly however Vijay Anand's career took a curious turn following Tere Mere Sapne. His subsequent films like Blackmail (1973) and Chhupa Rustom (1973) while having the odd Vijay Anand sparkle (the Pal Pal Dil ke Paas song in Blackmail) were major disappointments. At this time he was going through personal upheavals as he married his niece and even turned to Godman Rajneesh. He did return to directing films with multi-starrers like Ram Balram (1980) and Rajput (1982) but found himself stifled with the dictates of the star system. He still made the odd film - Hum Rahe Na Hum (1984) and Main Tere Liye (1988) but the magic was missing.

Vijay Anand also acted in various films - Agra Road (1957), Haqeeqat (1964), Chhupa Rustom (1973), Kora Kagaz(1974) and Main Tulsi Tere Aangan ki (1978) but though some of the films were successes, particularly the last two named, he failed to make the same impact he did when he was behind the camera. In the early 1990s, he was seen in the television serial Tehqiqaat playing Sam the Detective and was in the process of making a film with brother Dev Anand - Jaana Nahin Dil se Door when he passed away.

Vijay Anand died in Mumbai on February 23, 2004 due to a heart attack. It was one of the rare times that even the emotionally controlled Dev Anand wept openly. And it indeed is a sad reflection of the times we live in today that the news of his death was but a scroll of text on the News channels while a leading lady's wedding crockery got far more coverage. However in the eyes of the true cineaste, filmmakers like Goldie Saab don't die. They merely become immortal.