Author: Ziya Us Salam
Translator(s)/ Editors(s): Mahesh Bhatt
Publisher: Om Book
Year: 2012
Language: English
Pages: 256
ISBN/UPC (if available): 93-80070-25-X
Description
Housefull : The Golden Age of Hindi Cinema revisits the 1950s and’ 60s, when Hindi Cinema, espousing contemporary socio-economic and political realities, often molded public opinion, highlighting the challenges faced by an emerging nation.
The depiction of urban angst in Raj Kapoor’s oeuvre; the moral turpitude of Guru Dutt’s films or the social chasm of Bimal Roy’s sages, always gave voice to the voiceless and expression to the ignored. Hindi Cinema yearned for a past that could act as a blueprint for the future.
V Shantaram’s Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje and Navrang Strove to Make the Classical Popular as they Made a statement for and on behalf of Indian arts. Much like Vijay Bhatt’s Baiju Bawra, Sohrab Modi’s Mirza Ghalib and Nandlal Jasvantlal’s Anarkali did in the early 50s. it was a time when Indian filmmakers repeatedly reasserted a pluralistic polity : Baiju Bawra’s Bhajans were composed by Naushad penned by Shakeel Badayuni and Sung by Mohammed Rafi. K Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam was Presented largely in Persianised Urdu.
While it was set in the court of the great Emperor Akbar, in the scenes with the Emperor , his Rajput Hindu wife and the Rajput warriors of the court, the dialogue effortlessly slipped into chaste Hindi and even Sanskrit !
Housefull attempts to revive a shared past when art united all Indians, when cinema often set the agenda for society and when filmmakers, while doing their job as entertainers, also ensured that films were both teachers of the past and guides for the future.
Contents
Foreword : Mahesh Bhatt
Introduction : Ziya Us Salam
Bimal Roy (1909-1966)
Remembering Bimalda : Galzar
1. Do Bigh Zamin (1953)
2. Devdas (1955)
3. Madhumati (1958)
4. Sujata (1959)
5. Bandini (1963)
Guru Dutt (1925-1964)
The Genius of Guru Dutt : VK Murthy
6. Pyaasa (1957)
7. Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959)
8. Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960)
9. Sahib Bibi our Ghulam (1962)
Mehboob Khan (1907-1964)
For the Greater Good of Humanity : Ziya Us Salam
10. Aan (1952)
11. Mother India (1957)
Raj Kapoor (1922-1988)
The Man With a King-sized Heart : Lekh Tandon
12. Awara (1951)
13. Shree 420 (1955)
14. Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai (1960) Radhu Karmakar
V Shantaram (1901-1990)
Culture in his Psyche : Madhura Jasraj
15. Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955)
16. Do Ankhen Barah Haath (1957)
17. Navrang (1959)
Period Films (1952-1960)
Those Were the Days : Ziya Us Salam
18. Baiju Bawra(1952)
19. Anarkali (1953)
20. Mirza Ghalib (1954)
21. Mughal-e-Azam (1960)
22. Taj Mahal (1960)
Navketan Productions (1949-Present)
23. Chetan Anand (1921—1997)
24. Dev Anand (1923-2011)
25. Vijay Anand (1925-2004)
Dev on Dev Anand : As told us Suresh Kohli
26. Kala Pani (1958)
27. Kala Bazar (1960)
28. Hum Dono (1961)
29. Guide (1965)
30. Jewel Thief (1967)
Shakti Samanta (1926-2009)
A Father Extraordinaire : Ashim Samanta
31. Howrah Bridge (1958)
32. Kashmir Ki Kali (1964)
33. Aradhana (1969)
The Chopras
BR Chopra (1914-2008)
Yash Chopra (1932-Present)
Filmmaker with a social conscience : Ravi Chopra
34. Naya Daur (1957)
35. Dhool Ka Phool (1959)
36. Waqt (1965)
Solos
Single Swallows : Ziya Us Salam
37. Deedar (1951)
38. Nagin (1954)
Ustad Bismillah Khan : Goutam Ghose
39. Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959)
40. Gunga Jumna (1961)
41. Bees Saal Baad (1962)
42. Mujhe Jeene Do (1963)
43. Yeh Raaste Hain Pyar Ke (1963)
44. Leader (1964)
45. Haqeeqat (1964)
46. Teesri Kasam (1966)
47. Milan (1967)
48. Ram aur Shyam (19647)
49. Upkar (1967)
50. Padosan (1968)
51. Sunghursh (1968)
52. Satyakam (1969)
53. Khamoshi (1969)
Film That Live ON…
Afterword : Jayaprada
Contributors