Bibbo (actress)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bibbo (born Ishrat Sultana 1906 – 1972) was a music composer, singer and actress who worked in both Indian and Pakistani films. She acted in
Indian cinema The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on p ...
from 1931 to 1947 before moving to
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
, following Partition of India in 1947. She started her acting career with Ajanta Cinetone Ltd. in 1933, working with directors like M. D. Bhavnani and A. P. Kapoor. She was one of the top leading ladies of the 1930s along with actresses like
Devika Rani Devika Rani Chaudhuri (30 March 1908 – 9 March 1994), usually known as Devika Rani, was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films. Widely acknowledged as the First Lady of Indian cinema, Devika Rani is regarded as one of the greatest ...
,
Durga Khote Durga Khote (née Vita Lad; 14 January 1905 − 22 September 1991) was an Indian actress, beginning as one of the foremost leading ladies of her time. She remained active in Hindi and Marathi cinema, as well as theatre, for over 50 years, starr ...
, Sulochana,
Mehtab Mehtab is both a given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Mehtab (actress) (1913–1997), Indian actress * Mehtab Abbasi (born 1953), Pakistani politician * Mehtab Hossain (born 1985), Indian footballer and coach ...
,
Shanta Apte Shanta Apte (1916–1964) was an Indian actress-singer who worked in Marathi language, Marathi and Hindi cinema. Renowned for her roles in films like ''Duniya Na Mane/Kunku'' (1937) and ''Amar Jyoti'' (1936) under the Prabhat Films banner, she w ...
,
Sabita Devi Sabita Devi (1914–1965) was a Hindi cinema, Hindi film actress in Indian cinema. She is stated to be one of the "prominent" leading ladies of the "pioneering era" of Indian cinema along with Mehtab (actress), Mehtab, Bibbo (actress), Bibbo, Du ...
, Leela Desai and
Naseem Banu Naseem Banu (4 July 1916 – 18 June 2002) was an Indian actress. Starting her acting career in the mid-1930s she continued to act till mid-1950s. Her first film was '' Khoon Ka Khoon'' (Hamlet) (1935) with Sohrab Modi under whose Minerva Mo ...
. She was referred to as "one of the most important female stars of the 1930s and 1940s". Her fame had her featured in the lyrics of a popular song from the film ''Gharib Ke Lal'' (1939) sung by Mirza Musharraf and Kamla Karnataki, with music by Sagheer Asif and lyrics by Rafi Kashmiri. "Tujhe Bibbo Kahoon Ke Sulochana" (Should I call you Bibbo or Sulochana), where Sulochana referred to another popular actress of the time. This was the first time a song featuring famous actors was used in the lyrics of a film song. Bibbo became the first female music composer of Indian cinema, when she composed the music for ''Adal-e-Jahangir'' in 1934, a year before
Jaddanbai Jaddanbai Hussain (1 April 1892 – 8 April 1949; known professionally as Jaddanbai) was an Indian singer, music composer, dancer, actress, filmmaker, and one of the pioneers of Indian cinema. She along with Bibbo and Saraswati Devi were one ...
, mother of actress
Nargis Nargis Dutt (born Fatima Rashid, also known as Nirmala Dutt; 1 June 1929 – 3 May 1981) known mononyomusly as Nargis was an Indian actress and politician who worked in Hindi cinema. Regarded as one of the greatest and finest actresses in the ...
, composed music for ''Talash-e-Haq'' (1935). She was also the music director for a second film called ''Qazzak Ki Ladki'' (1937). She worked with actors like Master Nissar,
Surendra Surendra is an Indian masculine given name. Notable people with this name include: * Surendra (actor), Indian singer and actor * Surendra Bhave * Surendra Chaturvedi * Surendra Dubey * Surendra Gambhir * Surendra Hiranandani * Surendra Jain * ...
and Kumar. She formed a popular working relationship with them. Her pairing with Surendra was especially well-liked with the pair giving several hits like ''
Manmohan Manmohan means 'Winner of the heart'. It is another name of Krishna, the Hindu deity, one of the "avatars" (or "incarnation") of Lord Vishnu. Manmohan may also refer to: *Man Mohan Adhikari (1920–1999), former Prime Minister of Nepal *Manmohan (a ...
'' (1936), '' Jagirdar'' (1937), ''Gramaphone Singer'' (1938), ''Dynamite'' (1938) and '' Ladies Only'' (1939). Her first film was ''Rangila Rajput'', followed by ''Mayajaal'', both in 1933. She worked in nearly thirty films as a lead actress in India from 1933 to 1947, shifting to character roles in later years, following her move to Pakistan. She won the
Nigar Award 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 ...
for the best character actress for her role in the Pakistani film ''Zehr-e-Ishq'' (1958).


Early life

Bibbo was born Ishrat to a famous singer Hafeezan Begum. She was cited as being a famous singer and
tawaif A ''tawaif'' () was a highly successful courtesan singer‚ dancer‚ and poet who catered to the nobility of the Indian subcontinent, particularly during the Mughal era. Many tawaifs (" nautch girls" to the British) were forced to go into pro ...
from Delhi who came to Bombay to join films. Bibbo was a trained singer with a "coarse husky quality" like
Zohrabai Ambalewali Zohrabai Ambalewali (1918 – 21 February 1990) was an Indian classical singer and playback singer in Hindi cinema in the 1930s and 1940s. She was considered one of the most popular female playback singers of early and mid 1940s. She is best k ...
and
Shamshad Begum Shamshad Begum (Urdu: شمشاد بیگم, IAST: ''Śamśād Bēgam''; 14 April 1919 – 23 April 2013) was an Indian singer who was one of the first playback singers in the Hindi film industry. Notable for her distinctive voice and range, sh ...
.


Career


In India

Bibbo's first recorded film was the successful ''Rangila Rajput'' (The Gay Cavalier) (1933), directed by M. D. Bhavnani and starring Master Nissar, with popular music by B. S. Hoogan. Her second film that year for Ajanta was ''Mayajaal'', a fantasy directed by Shanti L. Dave for Ajanta Cinetone Ltd., co-starring Master Nissar,
P. Jairaj Paidipati Jairaj (28 September 1909 – 11 August 2000) was an Indian actor, director and producer known for his works majorly in Hindi; few Marathi, Gujarati, Telugu language films, and Telugu theatre.Luminaries of 20th Century, Potti Sreeramu ...
and Shahzadi, with music composed by B. S. Hoogan. Her acting was appreciated by the Hindi journalist Pitambar Jha, who predicted a bright future for her in his article in the Hindi magazine, ''Chitrapat'' 1934. In 1934, Bibbo acted in five films. ''Vasavdatta'' or the ''Shahi Gawaiya'' (The Royal Musician) was her third film. It was produced by Ajanta and directed by P. Y. Altekar, with B. Sohni and Jairaj as co-stars. The music was by B. S. Hoogan. The story revolved around King Udyan, who is obsessively in love with his wife, ignoring his kingdom in the process. She was then cast in her fourth film, M. D. Bhavnani's ''Sair-E-Paristan'', produced by Ajanta Cinetone Ltd. and co-starring
P. Jairaj Paidipati Jairaj (28 September 1909 – 11 August 2000) was an Indian actor, director and producer known for his works majorly in Hindi; few Marathi, Gujarati, Telugu language films, and Telugu theatre.Luminaries of 20th Century, Potti Sreeramu ...
, Khalil Aftab, Master Nissar and W. M. Khan. A fantasy, the story was about three Princes falling in love with the same girl. The music was composed by B. S. Hoogan. It was in 1934, that Bibbo composed music for a film called ''Adal-e-Jehangir'', thus becoming the first Indian female composer. ''The Mill'', also called ''Mazdoor'' was directed by M. D. Bhavnani (Mohan Dayaram Bhavnani), and starred Bibbo, who played the mill owner's daughter in the film with Motilal as the hero. The film was controversial and was banned for a few years. In 1936, she acted in ''Garib Parivar'' and ''Manmohan''. She was cast by
Mehboob Khan Mehboob Khan Ramzan Khan (9 September 1907
at filmreference.com.
– 28 May 1964) was a pr ...
in ''Manmohan'', a film made to compete with Calcutta's
New Theatres Ltd New Theatres is an Indian film studio. It was formed in Calcutta by producer B. N. Sircar (Birendranath Sircar, the recipient of Dadasaheb Phalke Award of 1970 And Padma Bhushan in 1972). It was formed on February 10, 1931. The company motto wa ...
famous film ''Devdas''. Her co-star was Surendra and the film went on to become a commercial success with the songs becoming popular. 1937 saw her acting in four films, out of which ''Jagirdar'', directed by Mehboob Khan and co-starring Surendra, was the most famous. The film was a "romantic melodrama", with Bibbo and Surendra playing actor Motilal's parents in the latter part. Though made on a small budget, it went on to do big business commercially for
Sagar Movietone Sagar Movietone also Sagar Films, Sagar Film Company and Sagar Productions was an Indian film production company involved in the making of films for Indian cinema. It was launched by Ardeshir Irani with Chimanlal Desai and Dr. Ambalal Patel in 1 ...
. She acted in, and once again composed music for the film ''Qazzak Ki Ladki'', using the name Ishrat Sultana as composer. The film co-starred Surendra and was directed by Sultan Mirza and S. Varman for Rainbow Films. 1938 proved to be a successful year for her with all five films doing well at the box office. '' Watan'', produced by Sagar Studios and directed by Mehboob Khan was a quasi-historical costume drama involving Tartars, with a nationalistic element. The film starred Kumar, Yakub and Maya Bannerjee with music by Anil Biswas. ''Gramaphone Singer'' (1938) and ''Dynamite'' (1938), had her pairing with Surendra again. Both films went on to become successful. ''Gramaphone Singer'' was a love triangle directed by V. C. Desai, which had Bibbo playing the other woman, with Prabha playing Surendra's wife. ''
Teen Sau Din Ke Baad ''Teen Sau Din Ke Baad'' () is a 1938 Indian social comedy film directed by Sarvottam Badami. The film was produced by Sagar Movietone, with story written by Babubhai A. Mehta and dialogue by Wajahat Mirza and Waqif. The music was composed by A ...
'', also called ''300 Days And After'', was a Sagar film directed by
Sarvottam Badami Sarvottam Badami (1910–2005) was an Indian film director of Hindi, Telugu language, Telugu, and Tamil language, Tamil films. He started his career as a sound recordist for the first talkie in India, ''Alam Ara'' (1931). In 1948 he helped set ...
. It had Motilal, Sabita Devi and
Yakub Yakub, Yaqub, Yaqoob, Yaqoub, Yacoub, Yakoub or Yaâkub (, also transliterated in other ways; ''Yakob,'' as commonly westernized) is a male given name. It is the Arabic version of Jacob and James. The Arabic form ''Ya'qūb/Ya'kūb'' may be direct ...
starring with Bibbo. With music by Anil Biswas, the film went on to do well. Baburao Patel of ''Filmindia'' called it "easily the best picture to come out of Sagar". In 1939, '' Ladies Only'' co-starred Bibbo with Prabha, Sabita Devi and Surendra in a comedy film directed by
Sarvottam Badami Sarvottam Badami (1910–2005) was an Indian film director of Hindi, Telugu language, Telugu, and Tamil language, Tamil films. He started his career as a sound recordist for the first talkie in India, ''Alam Ara'' (1931). In 1948 he helped set ...
for Sagar Movietone. The music was composed by Anupam Ghatak. According to ''
Filmindia ''filmindia'' is an Indian monthly magazine covering Indian cinema and published in English language. Started by Baburao Patel in 1935, ''filmindia'' was the first English film periodical to be published from Bombay. The magazine was reportedly ...
'' editor
Baburao Patel Baburao Patel (1904–1982) was an Indian publisher and writer, associated with films and politics. Career Baburao: A Pioneer of Indian Cinema. Baburao was a key figure in the early days of Indian cinema. He started his career as a journalist ...
, Bibbo in her role "shines out with her vigorous performance". ''Laxmi'' with Kumar, Maya, Gope, Jeevan and Indira was directed by Mohan Sinha, with music composed by Timir Baran. The
Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
review quoted in ''Filmindia'' commented: "Bibbo is brilliant as the other woman and very nearly steals the picture with her wonderfully sympathetic role". ''
Sneh Bandhan ''Sneh Bandhan'' (The Bonds Of Love) also called Intezar, is a social melodrama Bollywood film. It was released in 1940. The film was a maiden production from producer Kikubhai Desai's new banner; Great India Pictures. Previously known to produc ...
'' had Bibbo pairing with Navin Yagnik and E. Billimoria in a melodrama about love and sacrifice. Bibbo's acting was lauded with the reviewer commenting "Never before has she looked so charming and… never before has she acquitted herself so well in her work. She takes the complete burden of the drama and gives a beautiful performance throughout". '' Akela'' (1941) released in 1941, starred Bibbo with Mazhar Khan and E. Billimoria. The film was produced by Kikubhai Desai and directed by Pesi Karani. The film described as a sensible picture for the intelligentsia and the masses, was a big success commercially. In 1945 she acted in '' Zeenat'', 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 ...
, the film went on to become a big hit for Noor Jehan. It was directed by
Shaukat Hussain Rizvi Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi (1914 – 19 August 1999) was a Pakistani actor, film producer and director. He is widely considered to be a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry. Early life and career Shaukat Hussain Rizvi was born in the city of ...
with music composed by Mir Saheb. ''Pehli Nazar'' was another film in 1945 opposite Veena,
Munawwar Sultana Munawar Sultana (8 November 1924 – 15 September 2007) was an Indian cinema actress, who acted in Hindi films. She is cited as one of the "popular" actresses of the late 1940s to early 1950s period, along with Noor Jehan, Swarnalata and Ragi ...
and Motilal. Directed by Mazhar Khan for Mazhar Art, it had music by Anil Biswas. Bibbo's last film in India was ''Pahela Pyar'' (First Love) (1947), directed by A. P. Kapoor for Sagar Movietone.


In Pakistan

Bibbo shifted to Pakistan following partition of India in 1947. She started working in films there as a character artist doing about twelve films from 1950 to 1966. Her first film in Pakistan was ''Shammi'' (1950), a
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...
picture directed by Munshi Dil. She co-starred with Shammi,
Santosh Santosh (), also spelled as Santhosh, is a given name in India and Nepal, usually masculine, sometimes feminine. The name means "Satisfaction" or "Happiness". Notable people with the given name Santosh, male * Santosh Bagrodia, former MP, politi ...
and Ajmal. It had music composed by Master Inayat Hussain. ''
Dupatta The dupattā, also called chunni, chunari, chundari, lugda, rao/rawo, gandhi, pothi, orna, and odhni is a long shawl-like scarf traditionally worn by women in the Indian subcontinent. Traditionally, in India, the dupatta is part of the women's le ...
'' (1952), an Urdu film directed by Sibtain Fazli and produced by Aslam Lodhi, starred
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 ...
, Sudhir, Ajay Kumar and Yasmin along with Bibbo. The film was acclaimed as a big hit commercially and had music composed by Firoz Nizami, with songs sung by Noor Jehan. ''Zahr-e-Ishq'' was released in April 1958. Produced by
Khwaja Khurshid Anwar Khwaja Khurshid Anwar (21 March 1912 − 30 October 1984) was a Pakistani filmmaker, writer, director and music composer who earned recognition in both India and Pakistan. He is credited as being one of the most original and inventive music dir ...
and Sultan Jilani under the banner of Select Pictures, it starred
Musarrat Nazir Musarrat Nazir Khawaja (; born 13 October 1940) is a Pakistani singer and film actress, who acted in many Urdu and Punjabi language, Punjabi films. She is also known as ''The Silver Screen's Sparkling Star'' and is recognized for her role in Ci ...
, Habib, Yasmin, Neelo and Bibbo. The music was by Khurshid Anwar, with lyrics by
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).< ...
. Hailed as an "excellent film" by the reviewer, it won Bibbo the
Nigar Award 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 ...
for best character actress. '' Jhoomer'' is a 1959 film directed by Masud Pervez, with music composed Khurshid Anwar. Produced by Anwar for Noor Minar Pictures banner, it starred Musarrat Nazir, Sudhir and Laila. ''
Ghunghat A ghoonghat (''ghunghat'', ''ghunghta'', ''ghomta'', ''orhni'', ''odani'', ''laaj'', ''chunari'', ''jhund'', ''kundh'') is a headcovering or headscarf, worn primarily in the Indian subcontinent, by some married Hindu, Jain, and Sikh women to co ...
'' (1962), a suspense-thriller drama, was directed by Khurshid Anwar, who also wrote the story and composed the music. The cast included Nayyar Sultana, Santosh, Neelo, Laila and Bibbo. Bibbo acted in a few more films, with ''Fanoos'' (1963) and ''
Ghalib Mirza Asadullah Beg Khan (27 December 179715 February 1869), commonly known as Mirza Ghalib, was an Indian poet. Widely regarded as one of the greatest poets in the Urdu language, he also produced a significant body of work in Persian. Ghali ...
'' being commendable from her acting point of view, though the films did not do well commercially. Her last cited film is '' Armaan'' (1966), directed by Parvez Malik, with music by
Sohail Rana Sohail Rana (born 31 March 1938) is a Pakistani music composer for films and television. He was introduced by actor Waheed Murad in Pakistan film industry and gained popularity when singer Ahmed Rushdi sang his compositions in such films as ...
.


Personal life

Bibbo was married by the end of the 1930s to Khalil Sardar, who directed her in ''Adal-e-Jahangir'', for which she gave music. Following the marriage, they left Bombay and moved to Lahore, where they produced a film under the banner of Rainbow films, ''Qazzak Ki Ladki'' (1937), where she was also the music director. The film was a commercial failure and Bibbo finally returned to Bombay. Following Partition in 1947, Bibbo moved to Pakistan, where she worked as a character artiste. According to Zulqarnain Shahid (The Weekly MAG, Pakistan) re-published in Cineplot, it was stated that Bibbo was married to Shahnawaz Bhutto, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's father. This is doubtful because in the June 1943 issue of ''Filmindia'', Baburao Patel answered a query about Bibbo claiming she was "indeed married to Imdad Bhutto".And there is no evidence that Shahnawaz Bhutto was ever called Imdad Bhutto.


Death

The last days of Bibbo's life are claimed to have been lonely, with her life described as being "miserable and poverty stricken". She died on 25 May 1972.


Filmography


In India

Her films list:


In Pakistan

Her films list:http://www.citwf.com/person97352.htm, Filmography of actress Bibbo on Complete Index To World Film website. Retrieved 9 November 2016


Awards and recognition


References


External links

*
Bibbo Rare Picture
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bibbo 1906 births 20th-century Indian composers Indian emigrants to Pakistan 1972 deaths 20th-century Indian singers Actresses in Hindi cinema 20th-century Pakistani women singers 20th-century Pakistani singers Muhajir people 20th-century women composers Indian film actresses 20th-century Indian actresses Pakistani women composers 20th-century Indian women musicians 20th-century Pakistani actresses Actresses from Delhi Pakistani film actresses 20th-century Indian women singers Actresses in Urdu cinema Pakistani film score composers Nigar Award winners Actresses in Punjabi cinema Pakistani composers Actresses in Sindhi cinema