Part of the Raj Kapoor season at the BFI. Might be interesting after the Untouchable discussion as its an epic love story with social themes (caste/class, rich/poor). It was a big hit in the Soviet Union, Chairman Mao named it as his favourite film for its social realism and it was also nominated for the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. It's probably most famous though for the chemistry between Raj Kapoor and Nargis (who he was secretly/not so secretly having an affair with).

http://www.bfi.org.uk...

One of the greatest and most famous Indian films ever made, Awaara was a global sensation and marks the first appearance of the tramp persona that would make Raj Kapoor famous: a sly, sexy bandit, a carefree underdog who could charm a rock. Collaborating for the first time with star writer KA Abbas, Kapoor concocted a modern-day version of the tale of Rama's banishment of Sita, and the film's marvellous, extended dream sequence revolutionised Hindi cinema, introducing the idea of externalising characters' inner conflicts though song-and-dance numbers.