''Anarkali'' is a 1958 Pakistani

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...

film, directed by

Anwar Kamal Pasha Anwar Kamal Pasha (), (23 February 1925 – 13 October 1987) was the pioneer in the Pakistan film industry and an early Pakistani film director and producer from Lahore, Pakistan. Life and career Pasha was a graduate from the Forman Chri ...

and starring

Noor Jehan Noor Jehan (21 September 192623 December 2000) was a Pakistani playback singer and actress who worked in both British India and later in Pakistan's cinema of Pakistan, cinema. Her career lasted over six decades, during which she recorded 10,00 ...

and Sudhir in lead roles. Based on the Urdu play of the same name by

Imtiaz Ali Taj Syed Imtiaz Ali Taj (; ; 1900–1970) was a Pakistani dramatist who wrote in the Urdu language. He is best known for his 1922 play ''Anarkali'', based on the life of Anarkali, that was staged hundreds of times and was adapted for feature film ...

, the screenplay is written by

Qamar Ajnalvi Qamar Ajnalvi (قمر اجنالوی), born Abdus Sattar (July 1919 – 30 May 1993), was a Pakistani novelist and Poet as well as Movies Script & Story Writer who wrote in the Urdu language.

. The film revolves around the love of

Jahangir Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim (31 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was List of emperors of the Mughal Empire, Emperor of Hindustan from 1605 until his death in 1627, and the fourth Mughal emperors, Mughal ...

for a slave girl,

Anarkali Anarkali () is a legendary lady said to be loved by the 16th-century Mughal Prince Salim, who later became Emperor Jahangir. According to some accounts, Anarkali was the nickname of the courtesan ( tawaif) Sharf-un-Nisa, though scholars hold ...

, which creates a serious conflict between Prince Jahangir and his father,

Mughal emperor The emperors of the Mughal Empire, who were all members of the Timurid dynasty (House of Babur), ruled the empire from its inception on 21 April 1526 to its dissolution on 21 September 1857. They were supreme monarchs of the Mughal Empire in ...

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

. The film was released on 4 June 1958, and its performance was 'average' at the box office. Made with a budget of high production, the film is usually compared with the landmark Bollywood film, ''

Mughal-e-Azam ''Mughal-e-Azam'' () is a 1960 Indian Epic film, epic historical drama film produced and directed by K. Asif. Starring Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, and Durga Khote, it follows the love affair between Mughal Empire, Mughal Prince ...

'' ,which was also based on the same play.The film was praised for its music, which was composed by

Master Inayat Hussain Master Inayat Hussain (Punjabi language, Punjabi, ; 1916 – 26 March 1993) was a Pakistani film music composer. Early life and career Inayat Hussain was born in the Bhati Gate area of Lahore in 1916. He also lived in the Lohari Gate, Laho ...

and

Rashid Attre Abdul Rasheed Attray (15 February 1919 – 18 December 1967), also known as Rasheed Attre, was a Pakistani film score composer. Early life and career Rasheed Attre was born in Amritsar, Punjab, British India in 1919. His father, Khushi Mohamma ...

. At the

Nigar Awards The Nigar Awards () were presented in an annual award show to recognize outstanding achievement in Pakistani cinema, after having been revived in 2017 following a 15-year absence. The honors are awarded by Nigar Magazine founded in 1948. The ...

ceremony in 1958, it won two awards:Best Lyricist for

Qateel Shifai Muhammad Aurangzeb or Qateel Shifai (; 24 December 1919 – 11 July 2001) was a Pakistani Urdu poet and lyricist. Early life and career Qateel Shifai was born in Haripur District as Muhammad Aurangzeb in 1919 in British India (now Pakistan).< ...

and Best Playback Singer for

Cast

as Nadira/

* Sudhir as

Prince Salim Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim (31 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was Emperor of Hindustan from 1605 until his death in 1627, and the fourth Mughal Emperor. Born as Prince Salim, he was the third and on ...

* Himalaya Wala as Emperor Jalal-u-Din Mohammad Akbar *

Shamim Ara Shamim Ara (, 22 March 1938 – 5 August 2016) was a Pakistani film actress, director, and producer. She was known as ''The Tragic Beauty'' because of the tragic heroine roles she often portrayed in films. She was one of the most popular actr ...

as Suraiya * Ragni as Dilaram * Zohra Mirza as Jodha Bai *

M. Ajmal Mohammad Ajmal Qadri (popularly known as Ajmal) (17 May 1910 – 19 June 1988) was an Indian-born Pakistani actor, best known for his role as ''Kaido'' in classic Pakistani Punjabi film Heer Ranjha (1970 film). This film had super-hit musi ...

as Abu'l Fazl * Fazal Haq as Daroga *

Bibbo Bibbo Bibbowski is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is typically portrayed as a close friend and supporter of Superman. Bibbo Bibbowski first appeared in '' The Adventures of Superman'' #428 (Ma ...

as Begum * G.N. Butt as

Man Singh Mirza Raja Man Singh I (21 December 1550 – 6 July 1614) was the 24th Kachawaha Rajput ruler of the Kingdom of Amber from 1589 to 1614. He also served as the foremost imperial Subahdar of Bihar Subah from 1587 to 1594, then for Bengal ...

Asha Posley Sabira Begum better known as Asha Posley ( Punjabi, ) (1927 – 25 March 1998) was the first heroine of Pakistani films. Early life Asha Posley was born as Sabira Begum in Patiala, Punjab, British India in 1927. Asha Posley was the daughte ...

as Maharani * Zarif as Prince Salim's friend

Soundtrack

Release

The film was released on 4 June 1958. Its performance was rated as average at the box office, and it had a theatrical run for 18 weeks in Karachi cinemas.

Production

's ''Anārkalī'' was adapted as a screenplay by director

for the film ''Anarkali''. In the 1940s, Mohammad Afzal, better known by his stage name Himalaya Wala, was selected to play the character of

Salim Salim, Saleem or Selim may refer to: People *Salim (name), or Saleem or Salem or Selim, a name of Arabic origin **Salim (poet) (1800–1866), Kurdish poet **Saleem (playwright), Palestinian-American gay Muslim playwright, actor, DJ, and dancer * ...

's Rajput friend, Durjan Singh, in

K. Asif K. Asif (born Karimuddin Asif; 14 June 1922 – 9 March 1971) was an Indian film director, film producer and screenwriter who is known for his epic film, ''Mughal-e-Azam'' (1960). Early life Asif was born in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, India to pa ...

adaptation of Taj's play (''

''), but due to political turmoil and the worst conditions in the country that led to the

independence of Pakistan The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation th ...

, the project was halted, and he went on to star in ''Anarkali'' after he migrated to Pakistan. The film is compared with the landmark Bollywood film ''

'', which was also based on the same play by Taj and broke all the box office records but ''Anarkali'' could not perform remarkably at the box office and had low a production budget in comparison to its rival.

Reception

Film analysts criticized the casting of

, as Jehan was in her 30s by then and chubby at that time. She nowhere resembled a young, pretty female servant as is portrayed in the 1920s novel by the same name. The film music was however praised.

Awards and nominations

Nigar Awards The Nigar Awards () were presented in an annual award show to recognize outstanding achievement in Pakistani cinema, after having been revived in 2017 following a 15-year absence. The honors are awarded by Nigar Magazine founded in 1948. The ...

* Best Lyricist -

* Best Playback Singer - Noor Jehan

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1950s Urdu-language films Pakistani historical films Pakistani romance films 1958 films Nigar Award winners Pakistani black-and-white films Urdu-language Pakistani films Films scored by Rashid Attre Films scored by Inayat Hussain (composer)