In the late seventies, right in the middle of Amitabh-mania, came an actor - who was an exact anti-thesis of the ‘ Angry Young Man’. Amol Palekar’s short but successful innings as a shy, mild-mannered, middle-of-the-path, middle class hero was a refreshing change and it provided some ‘clean family entertainment’ (to use the clichéd expression!) in the days when mindless slam-bang violence was taking over Hindi cinema.

Chitchor was director Basu Chatterjee’s film for Tarachand Barjatya’s ‘Rajshri Prduction’, famed for its low budget family sagas. A young engineer (Amol Palekar) comes over to a small village to supervise a bridge project. A picture-perfect family consisting of a young marriageable girl (Zareena Wahab), her small endearing brother (Master Raju) and two doting parents, then greets and treats him as one of their own. The parents have mistaken the young man for his boss (Vijayendra) and thinking him to be the perfect beau for their daughter, they encourage the budding romance. Troubles and complications start when the real boss comes over. Finally all gets sorted out and a family photograph ending ensues. Good performances all around and a melodious score by Ravindra Jain with hits like Gori Tera Gaon Bada Pyara make this a perfect family entertainer.

 Chhotisi Baat is another film from director Basu Chatterji and a delightful comedy. A young man (Amol Palekar), is getting all the right hints from his love (Vidya Sinha) yet is too shy to express his feelings. Constantly he ends up being upstaged by his extra-smart competitor (Asrani), who is also vying for the lady’s hand. To counter this shyness and to win his love, he approaches a retired army officer (Ashok Kumar), who offers ‘training’ in such matters. The funny part begins with this ‘trained smartness’ but finally his innate goodness wins him the day and the damsel.

 Golmaal is a comedy classic from Hrishikesh Mukherjee. To get a job from an eccentric boss (Utpal Dutt), a smart young chartered accountant (Amol Palekar) dons a short kurta (to save cloth for the millions unclothed!) and a moustache (for it is the real sign of manhood and wisdom according to the boss!) to become a simpleton employee. Boss’s suspicions compel him to invent a vagabond younger brother (Himself - without the moustache of course!) and a fake mother (Dina Pathak). The complications start when the boss’s daughter falls for ‘younger brother’. It’s a wild merry-go-round with laughs aplenty.