Aastha: In the Prison of Spring

Aastha: In the Prison of Spring is a 1997 Bollywood film, produced and directed by Basu Bhattacharya. The film stars Rekha, Om Puri, Navin Nischol and Daisy Irani in the main roles. The film went on to receive both critical acclaim and commercial success, the latter of which had eluded Basu in his last few films. Subsequently, spurred on by this success, Basu was even planning to remake the film in English, though he died in June 1997, at the age 62.[2] The film's success was described as blurring the gap between Indian art and commercial cinema, where art film makers, dealing with serious issues, used a musical format to make the film more commercially appealing, thus reaching a wider audience.[3] Rekha received a nomination of 1997 Star Screen Award for Best Actress.[4]

In the movie, Rekha had the controversial role of a married woman who turns into a prostitute, which was severely criticized by the audience.[5] About her role in the movie, Rekha said, "After 'Aastha: In the Prison of Spring' people had a lot to say about my role of a wife who moonlights as a prostitute. I don't have problems playing anything. I've reached a stage where I could do justice to any role that came my way. It could be role of a mother, a sister-in-law; negative, positive, sensational or anything."[6]

The movie is remarkable for its explicit love scenes.[7]