''Shaheed'' () is a 1962 Pakistani Urdu language music blockbuster classical film directed and produced by Khalil Qaiser under the production banner of K. K. Productions, and was a new banner that Qaiser formed. It is written by

Riaz Shahid Riaz Shahid (1927 – 1 October 1972) was a Pakistani filmmaker, film writer, and a journalist. Influenced by poet Habib Jalib, who would later become a friend, Shahid frequently engaged with political activists at socialist gatherings in ...

, while the music is composed by

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 ...

. It features

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 ...

, Allauddin and Husna in the lead among other protagonist characters. It is recognized as one of the successful films of the

Pakistani cinema The film industry of Pakistan, consisting of motion pictures, has had a large effect on culture of Pakistan, Pakistani society and culture since the nation's independence. Pakistani cinema is made up of various sub-industries, including ...

. In 2016, the

Lok Virsa Museum Heritage Museum (), also known as Lok Virsa Museum, is a museum administered and managed by Lok Virsa - National Institute of Folk & Traditional Heritage. It is a museum of history and culture in Islamabad, Pakistan, located on the Shakarparia ...

screened the film as part of retaining historical film records in the museum. while Emir opposes petroleum extraction. Attre's composition from the poems by

Munir Niazi Munir Niazi (Punjabi language, Punjabi, Urdu: ;09 April 1923 – 26 December 2006), was a Pakistani poet. He mostly wrote in the Punjabi language, Punjabi and Urdu languages and also wrote for newspapers, magazines and radio. In 1960, he es ...

and

Faiz Ahmad Faiz Chaudhry Faiz Ahmad Faiz (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984) was a Pakistani poet and author of Punjabi language, Punjabi and Urdu literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated, popular, and influential Urdu writers of his time, and his ...

played a prominent role in the film. It was later nominated for the Nigar Awards, presented by the Nigar magazine. The film became the recipient of nine Nigar Awards, leading it to become one of the Pakistani films with maximum awards received. The film revolves around political and social themes, in particular

anti-imperialism Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is opposition to imperialism or neocolonialism. Anti-imperialist sentiment typically manifests as a political principle in independence struggles against intervention or influen ...

theme reportedly based on Lawrence of Arabia.

Plot

The fictional story of the film involves a European trader named Lawrence who arrives in Saudi Arabia wearing a helmet with a cigar in his hand, accompanied by his

femme fatale A ( , ; ), sometimes called a maneater, Mata Hari, or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and Seduction, seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype ...

named Laila. After reaching in the country, he formulates a plan to extract petroleum from the

Arabian Desert The Arabian Desert () is a vast desert wilderness in West Asia that occupies almost the entire Arabian Peninsula with an area of . It stretches from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and Oman to Jordan and Iraq. It is the fourth largest desert in the ...

. He subsequently meets a person named Haris who works as an Arab blacksmith. Haris decides to resist the European trader, a former chieftain who has been exiled from the desert or the country. After she learns about his love, she returns to her home and this event leaves her heart broken. She then sings a song titled "Us bewafa ka shahar" (the city of the unfaithful) which became one of the prominent songs of the 1960s. Laila, a femme fatale has been exiled from the tribe for her involvement in

street dancing Street dance is an umbrella term for a large number of social dance styles such as: breakdancing, popping, locking, house dance, waacking, voguing, etc. Social dance styles have many accompanying steps and foundations, created organically fr ...

which is supposed to be a shameful act in the Arabian tribes. Despite being neglected by Haris, she wants him to take over the trader, and later she sets herself ablaze for Harris's victory in resistance and the oil refinery is damaged. She also sets herself ablaze as a result of her honour suicide in an attempt to regain her pride in the tribe and to save her country from the foreign occupiers.

Cast

* Talish as Lawrence *

as Laila *

Ejaz Durrani Ejaz Durrani (18 April 1935 – 1 March 2021), known mononymously as Ejaz, was a Pakistani film actor, director and producer active from 1956 to 1984. He was married to legendary Pakistani actress-singer Noor Jehan. He is mostly remembered for ...

as Haris * Husna as Aaliya while Emir opposes petroleum extraction. Laila falls in love with Haris, he however falls in love with Aaliya. * Allauddin as Emir

Soundtrack

Legacy

Considered as an important film of 1962, ''Shaheed'' is among the only a few female-led films, that became successful at the box office too by accomplishing the status of a

golden jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali language, ...

film. ''Shaheed'' was selected among the "Top ten films" of the

by the critic Aijaz Gul, as published in "Asian Film Journeys: Selection from Cinemaya". The critic also included it in the same list as published by '' BBC Urdu''. The film was remade by

Hassan Tariq Hassan Tariq (22 October 1934 – 24 April 1982) was a Pakistani film director, film producer and screenwriter who was famous for making films like Anjuman (1970 film), ''Anjuman'', Kaneez (1965 film), ''Kaneez'', ''Baharo Phool Barsao'' and ''D ...

as ''Watan'' (1981), starring

Rani ''Rani'' () is a female title, equivalent to queen, for royal or princely rulers in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It translates to 'queen' in English. It is also a Sanskrit Hindu feminine given name. The term applies equally to a ...

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

and

Shahid ''Shahid'' ( , , ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); the latter sense acq ...

in leading roles.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

{{NigarAwardBestFilm 1962 films 1960s Urdu-language films 1960s musical drama films Films scored by Rashid Attre Pakistani musical films Films shot in Pakistan Nigar Award winners Lollywood films 1962 drama films Cultural depictions of T. E. Lawrence 1960s historical drama films Films set in deserts Urdu-language Pakistani films