Guide

Raju is a charismatic tourist guide whose easy confidence draws people to him, especially Rosie, an unhappy married woman who yearns to dance. He encourages her talent and helps shape her into a celebrated performer, and their partnership grows into something intense and complicated. As Rosie's fame climbs, Raju's sense of self starts to wobble, and choices he makes begin to strain their bond and his own morals. The film watches the shift in power between artist and promoter, and how success alters relationships and priorities, without revealing how things ultimately resolve.

Released in 1965, Guide was directed by Vijay Anand and adapted from R.K. Narayan's novel, with contributions from Shailendra. Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman lead the cast, supported by Leela Chitnis, Anwar Hussain, and Gajanan Jagirdar.

At the time it opened, Guide did strong business and became one of the more commercially visible Indian films of its year. While exact gross figures differ across sources, its box office performance helped secure the film's mainstream status and wide audience reach.

Guide left a lasting mark on Indian cinema, partly through its memorable soundtrack and stylized dance sequences, and partly through the image of Waheeda Rehman's Rosie as an emblematic screen heroine. Raju's moral complexity and the film's frank treatment of desire made it a frequent reference point in later films and academic discussions, keeping it present in popular culture and retrospectives.

Contemporary critics offered mixed responses to the film's moral ambiguity, but most singled out the lead performances for depth and nuance. The movie tackles themes of ambition, artistic freedom, jealousy, and the cost of success, asking uncomfortable questions about who benefits when art becomes commerce. Even decades later it prompts conversations about ethics, identity, and the pressures fame puts on personal relationships.