This is my second piece on Bollywood and sixties pop culture. I love the collision of the highly moral and sexually restrained Hindi films with the free and swinging western culture of the time. When naivete meets go go decadence, we encounter the attraction of opposites. Although awash in Technicolor, Bollywood sees life as a black and white reality: good vs. evil, rich vs. poor, chastity vs. promiscuity.

Bollywood director Dev Anand explores a subject that was new to Hindi cinema in 1971’s Hare Rama Hare Krishna: hippies and drug culture. Despite being somewhat critical of the stoners in the film, director Anand depicts the “straights” in an even worse light: conventional, uptight and cruel.

Hare Rama Hare Krishna is the story of a young woman, portrayed by actress Zeenat Aman, who runs off to Katmandu to join a hippie commune. In this groovy clip, Zeenat lipsynchs “Dum Maro Dum” (take another puff) as a group of hippies follow her directions and start toking on some industrial-sized chillums.

The score is by one of Bollywood’s most prolific and highly regarded composers, R.D. Burman. The vocals are by Asha Bhosle, India’s go to girl for singing overdubs.