on this day

Bharat Ratna and the ‘Czar of Shehnai’, Ustad Bismillah Khan immortalized the classical music instrument of shehnai for generations to come. A legend in every possible sense he commemorated the Independence of India when he played shehnai on the Red fort as Pt Jawaharlal Nehru unfurled the Indian flag for the first time. Yet again, on the eve of first Republic Day of India, he graced the occasion with his shehnai. Cinemaazi fondly remembers the maestro on his death anniversary. He passed away on 21 August 2006 at the age of 90.

 

Today marks the birth anniversary of Atma Ram, a most influential and revered director of the Hindi film industry. Born on this day, 21 August 1930, he was an exceptionally educated filmmaker, with years of international experience, having worked in London on advertising films as well as documentaries. After the death of his brother, Guru Dutt, he took over the production company and made his foray into Hindi films, with successful and acclaimed projects such as Shikar (1968), Umang (1970), and Aarop (1973) among many others.

H S Rawail, the successful director has had a storied career in the film industry. Born in Lyallpur, Punjab, he moved to Mumbai yo become a filmmaker. He also worked in Kolkata for some time, writing scripts for films. He acted in the Punjabi film Pooran Bhagat(1939). He made his directorial debut with Dorangia Daku (1940). After three films which could not make a mark at the box office (Shukriya,Zid and Jhoothi Kasmein), he hit it big with the success of Patanga (1949). He made several films in the 50s like Sagai (1951), Saqi (1952),Shagufta (1953), Lehren (1953), Mastana (1954), Pocket Maar (1956) and Shararat (1959). He made Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja(1961) with Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman and Kanch Ki Gudiya (1963) with Manoj Kumar. Kanch Ki Gudiya was Manoj Kumar's first film as lead actor and gave his career a much-needed boost. It was also Sayeeda Khan's debut. 1963's Mere Mehboob was a big hit. Sunghursh (1968) was also a box office success. He made Mehboob Ki Mehndi (1971) starring Rajesh Khanna and Leena Chandavarkar which had memorable music. He won the Certificate of Merit for Second Best Feature Film in Hindi for this film. Laila Majnu (1976) starring Rishi Kapoor and Ranjeeta was a big success. His last film was Deedar-e-Yaar (1982). He passed away on 17 September, 2004. His son Rahul Rawail is a successful film director. His wife Anjana Rawail worked as a costume designer in films. Cinemaazi remembers H S Rawail on his birth anniversary.

Music composer, lyricist and singer Avinash Vyas left his mark on the world of Gujarati sugam (light) music, through the approximately 10,000 songs that he composed in the course of his career. Composing around 1,200 songs for over 190 Gujarati films, his songs covered a wide range of subjects and moods.

On this day we remember the remarkable T P Rajlakshmi on her death anniversary. She passed away on 20 August 1964. An extraordinary woman in every right she defied societal norms to earn the honorific title of “Cinema Rani.” The first actress, first woman director, producer, dialogue and scriptwriter, she donned many hats at the same time. Cinemaazi pays its tribute to the remarkable woman for her contribution to Tamil cinema.

Kumari Naaz, born as Salma Baig and also credited as Baby Naaz, on 20 August 1944, started performing on stage when she was four. By the age of 10, she had become a staple in Hindi films and had even received international acclaim for her performance as an orphan who is forced to beg on the streets with her brother in Boot Polish(1954). After powerful supporting roles in films like Bimal Roy’s Devdas (1955), Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Musafir (1957), Lajwanti (1958) and Guru Dutt’s Kagaz Ke Phool(1959), the child artist seemed headed towards stardom but ended up doing supporting roles. 

Naaz held her greedy and unprofessional mother responsible for her inability to sustain her fame in the film industry. Naaz had a tragic childhood. In the second phase of her career she became a dubbing artist, lending her voice to several new actresses, most famously Sridevi.

Kannada films' actor M P Shankar was born on 20 August 1935 in Mysore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India.

He appeared at least in 70 films in his cinematic career. He passed away on 17 July 2008 at Mysore, Karnataka

Image credit:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._P._Shankar

“Khayyam brings to mind the sensitivity of a poet, the focus of a sculptor and the quiet zeal of a painter,” music critic Monica Kar had thus summed up the veteran music composer Mohammed Zayur Khayyam Hashmi, more famous mononymously as Khayyam. His long and illustrious career is studded with gems in classic films like Umrao Jaan (1981), Kabhi Kabhie (1976), and Razia Sultan (1983) that continue to be loved and admired.

Cinemaazi remembers the legendary producer, director and actor Shaukat Hussain Rizvi on his death anniversary (19 August 1999). Shaukat began his film career in Calcutta as an assistant projectionist. He formally started his film editing business after moving to Lahore in 1938. His directorial debut was Khandan (1942) with the young Noorjehan and Pran played leading roles. The film was a big hit. He married Noor Jehan in 1944. 

In 1947, he migrated to Pakistan during the partition and settled there with his family. Shaukat directed and produced numerous critically acclaimed and commercially successful movies. Some of his prominent works include Naukar (1943), Dost (1944), Zeenat (1945), and Jugnu(1947). His other hits include Naukar, Dost, Zeenat, Jugnu, Chanwey and Gulnar. He died on 19 August 1999 in Lahore. He remained passionate about all things related to the film business for as long as he lived.

A legendary actor, director, playwright and theatre aficionado, Utpal Dutt was an exemplary artist and political activist who made immense contributions to the Indian film industry. His role as Bhavani Shankar, Amol Palekar's boss in the film Gol Maal (1979), became an iconic character for its remarkable moustache and hilarious traditional values. His ingenious sense of humour and nuanced comedic timing was unique. Today, on his death anniversary, we fondly remember the veteran actor.

Picture credits: New Indian Express

Renowned poet and lyricist Jan Nisar Akhtar passed away on this day, 19 August 1976. He made a distinguished mark for himself as a romantic and revolutionary poet. His writing though simple to read carried a sublime philosophical meaning in its subtext. Some of his famous songs include Aankhon hi aankhon me ishaara ho gya from C.I.D (1956), Meri neendon me tum from Naya Andaz (1956), Aaja re o mere dilbar aaja from Noorie (1979) and Ae dil-e-naadan from Razia Sultan (1983).

Cinemaazi remembers Master Vinayak, the legendary actor and director in Marathi and Hindi films, on his death anniversary today.