Film:
Pakeezah (1972)
Producer/
Director: Kamal Amrohi
Cast:
Meena Kumari ,Ashok Kumar ,Raaj Kumar
The
story opens on the dance floor. In
between a flickering orange flame and a red chandelier looming large into the
frame, a dancer swirls in a flowing dress as the narrator in chaste Urdu recounts
the story of courtesan Nargis/ Meena Kumari, who makes the tactical error of
falling in love. Shahabudin/ Ashok Kumar rescues Nargis from the kotha but is unable to oppose his
father who will not accept her as family. She flees to a graveyard in anguish and
dies heartbroken after giving birth to a baby girl who is rescued by her aunt
and groomed to become a bewitching courtesan, Sahibjaan.
It
was a story of the kotha v/s kothi or rather the courtesan v/s the
feudal lord. While both lived in sprawling mansions with large families, the
home of the feudal lords in this case Ashok Kumar/ Raaj Kumar was a respectable kothi where as the dwelling place of
the courtesan/ Meena Kumari was a kotha.
The kotha women painted their faces,
hands and feet, shampooed their hair in scented ponds, slept on large fragrant beds
with frilled pillow covers often hiding secrets and guarded by transparent,
musical curtains. In the evening, they dressed and danced on embroidered carpets,
accompanied by musicians and surrounded by lanterns. The courtyard blossomed
with colorful fountains every time a guest arrived inside the porch riding a
horse carriage. The nautch girls had a life before dusk and Pakeezah gave us a glimpse into the
bonhomie where they bonded over fun and mischief, borrowed jewels and shared dark
secrets.
Unlike
the kotha the women in kothis had no voice and moved freely
only when the patriarch was away. The feudal lord/ Sapru and his large family
spanning three generations ate together sitting in a large circle and slept in
common space separated by beds and curtains. The only thing common between the
two worlds is tehzeeb and director Kamal
Amrohi portrays the diversity in the concluding scene where the two worlds come
together in a wedding and a funeral and where Nawabjaan/ Veena breaks down in
dignity Sapru full of remorse mourns in silence!
Pakeezah is associated
with its poetry and melody. The haunting background score of maestro Naushad
Ali and Ibrahim and poetry of Majrooh Sultanpuri, Kaifi Azmi, Kaifi Bhopali and
Kamal Amrohi composed in the music of Ghulam Mohmad are songs for a lifetime. A
team of choreographers came together to ensure that every dance was distinctly
different so while ‘Inhi logo ne…’
and ‘Thade rahiyyo…’ by Lachu Mahrajj
concentrates on abhinaya, Gauri
Shankar’s ‘Chalte chalte…’ emphasizes
on footwork and ‘Aaj hum apni duaaon…’
on pherras essential part of Kathak
dance form. Meena Kumari even though grossly overweight and untrained in
classical dance through intricate mudras
and mercurial expressions added navrasas
in her role as a seductress to a mehfil
of admirers.
When
Sahibjaan dressed in ornate costume walks with ringing anklets into Gulabi
Mahal and settles majestically, your heart misses a beat. The story travels two eras and both immortalized
by love letters. The first, written by Nargis to Shahabuddin/ Ashok Kumar on
her death bed and soaked in tears, reaches Ashok Kumar 17 years later. The
second written by Salim/ Raj Kumar after he invades a train compartment and is
enamored by the sleeping Sahebjaan and her beautiful feet. The boat ride
ferrying the two on a shimmering lake with ‘Chalo
dil dar chalo…’ is the most romantic moment in the film.
The
whistling, chugging train is a recurrent motif piercing through dramatic
moments in the film. Director Kamal Amrohi transforms every frame into a
painting. The film was shot in times when real animals/ birds were used and no
activists raised objections. The story made references to cities and singers
like Gauhar Jaan and no court cases were registered. The heroine wore real
jewellery and no brands claimed credit. Revisiting Pakeezah
you realize where Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Rekha find their muse as a
filmmaker and as an actor.
Bhawana Somaaya/ Tweets @bhawanasomaaya
Film:
Pakeezah (1972) Producer/ Director: Kamal Amrohi
Pakeezah is associated
with its poetry and melody. The haunting background score of maestro Naushad
Ali and Ibrahim and poetry of Majrooh Sultanpuri, Kaifi Azmi, Kaifi Bhopali and
Kamal Amrohi composed in the music of Ghulam Mohmad are songs for a lifetime. A
team of choreographers came together to ensure that every dance was distinctly
different so while ‘Inhi logo ne…’
and ‘Thade rahiyyo…’ by Lachu Mahrajj
concentrates on abhinaya, Gauri
Shankar’s ‘Chalte chalte…’ emphasizes
on footwork and ‘Aaj hum apni duaaon…’
on pherras essential part of Kathak
dance form. Meena Kumari even though grossly overweight and untrained in
classical dance through intricate mudras
and mercurial expressions added navrasas
in her role as a seductress to a mehfil
of admirers. 
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