Subodh Mukherji's 'Paying Guest' starts off as a romantic comedy then it shifts to drama and finally to a thriller. If the shift was more consistent, 'Paying Guest' would have been a far more entertaining experience. Somewhere in the middle, the film deviates from Ramesh and Shanti by focusing more on Shobha Khote's character and the thriller angle could have been more well built. The courtroom sequence is a major disappointment as the tactics seem both clichéd and unconvincing.
The strength of the film lies in the first hour, the romantic comedy angle of the film. Nutan and Dev Anand form quite the sweet romantic couple. There are both sweet moments and funny moments. This is indeed the best part and perhaps director Mukherji should have stuck to this angle.
While both Dev Anand and Nutan act very well, they are somewhat relegated to the background as the second hour focuses more on Shobha Khote. Khote herself isn't bad and thankfully not loud. Sajjan is also impressive as Ramesh's friend (he's completely different from his 'Kabuliwala' persona).
Another strength is that Burman's score is sweetly melodious with some lovely songs by Lata Mangeshkar and the legendary Kishore Kumar.
'Paying Guest' doesn't entirely stay true to it's title and it could have been a far better film. Being a fan of Nutan and having heard so much about it, I'm disappointed. Yet, it's not entirely bad as it does have its good moments.