''Kanku'' is a 1969

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

social drama film, starring Kishore Bhatt, Kishore Jariwala, Pallavi Mehta, directed by

Kantilal Rathod Kantilal Rathod was an Indian film maker known for his work in Gujarati and Hindi cinema. He directed the 1969 Gujarati film '' Kanku'' which won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Gujarati at the 17th National Film Awards. Biography B ...

. The film was adapted from

Pannalal Patel Pannalal Nanalal Patel (7 May 1912 – 6 April 1989) was an Indian author known for his contributions in Gujarati literature. He wrote more than 20 short story collections, such as ''Sukhdukhna Sathi'' (1940) and ''Vatrakne Kanthe'' (1952), and ...

's short story of the same name. The film won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Gujarati at the

17th National Film Awards The 17th National Film Awards were presented by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of India to facilitate the best of Indian cinema released in 1969. The ceremony took place at University Centenary Auditorium, Madras on 21 November ...

Plot

The film deals with struggles of a widow, Kanku (Pallavi Mehta).

Production

Gujarati writer

had written a 20-pages long short story ''Kanku'' in 1936 for Diwali Special edition of ''Nav-Saurashtra'' magazine.

contacted him and convinced him to adapt it into film. Patel also helped him writing script and dialogues of the film.

Soundtrack

Release

The film was released in theatres in 1969. The film was released on Home Video DVD by

Moser Baer Moser Baer was an Indian multinational manufacturer of optical discs, storage devices, CDs, DVDs, based in New Delhi. The company was present in over 100 countries, serviced through 15 marketing offices and representatives, and had tie-ups w ...

. It has shorter cut of 136 minutes, 12 minutes less than the original.

Reception

The film was commercially successful and was critically acclaimed. Film critic

Amrit Gangar Amrit Gangar is an Indian film scholar, historian, critic, curator and writer from Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He worked as consultant content developer for the National Museum of Indian Cinema set up by the National Council of Science Museums ...

considered ''Kanku'' as the "first real spark in Gujarati cinema firmament".

Awards

Pallavi Mehta won an award at 6th

Chicago International Film Festival The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the compo ...

in 1970. The film won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Gujarati at the

Adaptation

After success of film, Pannalal Patel expanded short story into novel and was serialized in ''Jansatta'' daily in 1970. He dedicated novel to Kantilal Rathod.

References

External links

* * {{Gujarati Vishwakosh Indian black-and-white films Films based on short fiction Films set in Gujarat Films shot in Gujarat Indian drama films 1960s Gujarati-language films Films about widowhood in India