forty miles away. As they travel together, Hiraman sings to pass the time and tells Hirabai the story of the legend of Mahua. As the journey progresses, Hirabai is mesmerized by Hiraman's innocence and his simple philosophy of life. Hiraman sees Hirabai as an angel of purity. Once they reach the village fair, Hiraman joins his band of bullock cart drivers and Hirabai joins the nautanki company. Hirabai asks Hiraman to stay at the village fair for a few days to see her dance. Hirabai arranges free passes for Hiraman and his friends to see the nautanki on every night for the duration of the fair. As Hiraman attends the nautanki, he becomes aware that other people see Hirabai as a prostitute and this disturbs him. He tries to shield and protect her from society. As the days pass, the bond between Hirabai and Hiraman grows stronger. When Hiraman becomes involved in fights with local people who disparage Hirabai and her profession, Hirabai tries to make him understand that it is the harsh reality of her life. Hiraman asks Hirabai to leave her profession and to start living a respectable life. Hirabai refuses to leave. Feeling depressed, Hiraman leaves the village fair and returns to his village. Hirabai meets Hiraman and tells him her secret that she had been sold and she was not a virgin beauty and then leaves. Hiraman then takes a third vow (teesri kasam) that he will never again carry a nautanki company dancer in his cart. Cast Raj Kapoor as Meeta, Hiraman Waheeda Rehman as Hirabai Dulari as Hiraman's bhabhi (sister in law) Iftekhar as Thakur Vikram Singh Keshto Mukherji as Shivratan A.K. Hangal as Hiraman's older brother Asit Sen as mela announcer C. S. Dubey as Birju Shailendra Rehana Rekha Navendu Ghosh Vishwa Mehera Shivaji Bhai Mansaram B. Periera Production Development and Pre-production Phanishwarnath Renu who wrote the original short story Mare Gaye Gulfam in 1954, also wrote the script. The screenplay was written by Nabendu Ghosh, whose works include Devdas (1955), Sujata (1959) and Bandini (1963). Basu Bhattacharya directed the film with a sense of realism and natural style. He felt it was important for the film that Raj Kapoor should avoid his usual "simple man" mannerisms. Shailendra acquired Mare gaye gulfam rights and initially Mehmood and Meena Kumari was selected for the role of Hiraman and Hirabai. Raj Kapoor charged only one