Umrao Jaan 1981

Umrao Jaan is a 1981 Bollywood film, directed by Muzaffar Ali. It is based on the Urdu novel Umrao Jaan Ada (1905), written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa based on the famous Lucknow courtesan. The film starred Bollywood actress Rekha and Farooq Shaikh as leads.

In essence Muzaffar Ali’s 1981 classic ‘Umrao Jaan’ can be called the story of a prostitute, or to be more precise, the story of a prostitute with a heart of gold and the soul of a poet. Not getting into the morality of the lead character’s profession, one could say she is simply a little girl lost, confined within the walls of a brothel whose only escape is her heartfelt poetry and the undependable lovers who share her bed.

The longing for love, is a theme which many film deals with and is probably the most cliché foundation to use when dealing with the life of a prostitute. However, in the context of Umrao Jaan’s story, it is the most applicable base to start from.

Cast

Rekha as Amiran

Seema Sathyu as Young Amiran

Farooq Shaikh as Nawab Sultan

Naseeruddin Shah as Gohar Mirza

Raj Babbar as Faiz Ali

Gajanan Jagirdar as Maulvi

Shaukat Kaifi as Khanum Jaan

Umme Farwa as Young Amiran

Dina Pathak as Husseini

Prema Narayan as Bismillah

Bharat Bhushan as Khan Saheb

Mukri as Parnan Aziz

Satish Shah as Daroga Dilawar

Directed by Muzaffar Ali

Produced by Muzaffar Ali

Written by Muzaffar Ali,Javed Siddiqui

Release dates 1981

The film is based on the 1899 novel ‘Umrao Jan Ada’, written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa; it has also been called the first novel in the Urdu language. Ruswa claimed that it was based on the true story of a courtesan named Umrao. How much truth there is to that claim, we will probably never know, but if there was a real person named Umrao Jaan and if this story is anything to go by, then she truly must have been a tragic figure.

Umrao Jaan was not born a harlot, as no prostitute ever is, but by a cruel hand that life deals her, she becomes one. Her life started as a young innocent girl named Amiran, who is kidnapped by an enemy of her fathers in Faizabad and then sold to a brothel in Lucknow. In such an unenviable position, she is reborn and schooled into a courtesan. Dancing, singing and generally being submissive to would-be customers are the ways of the trade, but it is poetry that is her passion. This passion initially is kept secret and only revealed to those close to her, but gradually it becomes a trademark and in the end, as it turns out, a means of livelihood for her.

At the heart of this movie is obviously Rekha, who was probably never been more beautiful or more powerful as she is in the title role. Bringing just about the right amount of naiveté, disillusionment and composed defiance, her performance makes this movie click and like the shining sun, has the other characters revolving around her. Her seductive eyes and exquisite features project all the elements needed to bring Umrao Jaan to life. Add to this her acting chops and Urdu dialogue delivery, and you have a class act that is truly timeless. Rekha, apparently had to work hard at her Urdu to make it believable and it shows.