Khushboo (1975)

Kusum and Brindaban were betrothed as children, but a quarrel between their families broke off the match, and Brindaban, now a doctor in a nearby village, married someone else and was widowed, left with a small son. Kusum, still unmarried, has never stopped thinking of herself as his. When chance brings his son into her care, an unspoken bond grows between the two households, but pride and old misunderstandings keep the adults from saying what they feel. Khushboo ("fragrance") is a quiet, delicate film by Gulzar, based on a story by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, with Hema Malini in one of her most restrained performances. R. D. Burman's music includes "O majhi re" and "Bechara dil kya kare", and the film's gentle village setting is part of its charm.