Contrary to a general belief about the viability of his film projects, Dutt more or less produced commercially successful films. Over the years the commercial nature of his projects saw a trade-off with his creative aspirations. Movies such as "C.I.D.", "Baazi", "Pyaasa", "Kaagaz Ke Phool", "Chaudhvin Ka Chand" and "Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam" were the first of their kind in Hindi cinema. The only movie produced by Dutt that was considered a box office disaster was "Kaagaz Ke Phool", which is now a cult classic. He lost over Rs. 17 crore producing that film, a large amount by the standards of that time, which was more than recovered by his next project, "Chaudhvin Ka Chand". He never lost faith in his team or in the distributors of his films. Once a project was over, he would begin anew – with little concern about the commercial success of the previous project. He, along with Raj Kapoor, Mehboob Khan and Bimal Roy, was one of the few Indian film directors able to achieve a healthy blend of artistic and commercial success between the mid-1950s and mid-1960s. His brother Atma Ram dedicated his 1969 directorial "Chanda Aur Bijli" to him. "Pyaasa" was rated as one of the best 100 films of all time by "Time" magazine.