- Nazir Ahmed Khan
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Nazir Ahmed Shah File:Nazir Sb Film Society.jpg Other names Nazir Sahib, Bao Jee Occupation Actor, Film Director, Film Producer Spouse Sikandar Begum, Swaran Lata, Sitara Devi Children Afzal Nazir, Suraiya Nazir, Akhtar Nazir (Cooki), Aslam Nazir, Ismat Nazir Nazir Ahmed Shah (1910–1983) was a versatile and renowned Pakistani/Indian film actor, director and producer. He was the first successful film hero in Pre-Partition India and later in Pakistan.
Nazir also married Swaran Lata and Sitara Devi. Swaran Lata was the reigning Queen of Pakistani cinema in the post partition period.
Nazir Ahmed Shah was a versatile and renowned Pakistani/Indian film actor, director and producer. He was the first successful film hero in Pre-Partition India and later in Pakistan.He was widely known as Bao Jee in the film industries on both sides of the border. It was in the late 1920s when Nazir went to Calcutta along with A. R. Kardar, and appeared in a character role in Kardar’s Sarfarosh aka Brave Heart in 1929. Kardar later made Heer in which Nazir played the role of the Qazi. Both these films are from the silent era. He also did a secondary role in Kardar’s Mysterious Bandit.
Nazir’s artistic elegance and excellent command over acting won him applaud all across the industry and resulted in him going to Bombay. During this period he was casted in important leading roles in Rajputana Ka Sher, Chandaal Chaukri, Badmaash Ka Baita and Pahari Sawar.
In 1934 he went back to Calcutta on the request of his old friend Kardar to act in important roles in his productions of Chandra Gupta, Sultana, Milaap, Mandar, Night Bird and Aab-e-Hayat. He also worked as the lead in Ezra Mir’s Badroohi and Zareena.
In Calcutta Nazir won laurels for his dynamic role of Chanakiya in Chandra Gupta. To perform this role realistically, Nazir had his head shaved off completely to authentically perform the role of the cunning prime minister.
In 1939, both Nazir and Kardar moved to Bombay and under Kardar’s banner he performed his most well remembered and renowned character role in Baghbaan, which besides creating box office records also established Nazir’s name as one of the most well refined sensitive and matured actor of his era.
Nazir was one of the pioneers of the Film Industry in India. He is the only Hero in history to have been cast opposite 35 Actresses most of whom were the Reigning Queens of their time. Nazir started producing and directing films under the banner of “Hind Pictures” and established a Studio in Bombay under the same name. Although this did not stop him from accepting assignments from other producers.
Shokh Dilruba, Sher ka Panja, Shamaa, Midnight Mail, Swami Pooja, Apni Nagaria, Laila Majnu, Wamaq Azra, Sandaisa, Kaljug, Society, Chher Chhar, Aabroo, Salma, Gaon Ki Gori, Maa Baap ki Laaj, Yaadgar, Malika and Abida and several other hit films of that era are go to his credit to name but a few. He also produced and Directed many of them. Most of the films directed by him saw the milestones of being Silver Jubilees.
Nazir was associated with almost Two Hundred films during his career, which spanned over a period of 55 years. Only a few artistes have contributed more to the development of cinema in the sub-continent than Nazir. He was a talented actor, a vibrant director and an astute producer.
Nazir’s studio and the offices of Hind Pictures were burnt down during the partition riots as Nazir had daringly hoisted the flag of the then Muslim League there. He stood there patiently, smoking his packet of cigarettes looking at burning of the birthplace of such great films, in disgust. Once the ashes started cooling he left never to return to Bombay ever again.
In 1947, Nazir migrated to Pakistan. He left everything he had behind in Bombay and shifted to Lahore. He started from scratch and in the process became one of the pioneers of the Pakistan Film Industry.
He produced and directed Saachai, as his first film in the newly born Pakistan. It was followed by the first Silver Jubilee film of Pakistani Cinema, Pheray. He was such a hard worker and strict task master that he was known for his speedy productions, yet his work was always flawless and a milestone of perfection. Nazir completed Pheray in just one month, followed by Larey which was also completed in the same amount of time. Nazir understood the need of entertainment to the newly established state. G. A Chisti, who was Nazir’s composer and music director in many of his films, even surprised Nazir himself by writing, composing and recording the songs of Pheray in just one day.
Nazir knew how to captivate the cinemagoer. He was a master at playing key roles as a character actor. His portrayal of the underdogs in the society in his film Naukar, is a league above all and is a beacon of light for budding actors. His perfectionism and portrayal of reality in the true sense of its meaning are yet to be matched in the industry. He created such perfect master pieces of cinema with the minimum possible physical and financial resources and yet he managed to give the industry such films.
His other movies also include Shehri Babu, Anokhi Daastan, Shamaa, Heer, Khatoon, Noor-e-Islam and Azmat-e-Islam.
He is one of those filmmakers who introduced many new faces to the industry who later became legends of both the Indian and Pakistani cinema. Mohammed Rafi, K. Asif and Inayat Hussain Bhatti are to name but a few. The world famous and recently expired painter M.F. Hussain used to work for Nazir as a painter of banners and posters for his films. Hussain was very modest and humble to remember it and he even published this fact in his book. This fact was also stated in the in-flight magazine of Jet Airways in March 2010.
He was one of those gifted artistes whose acute sense of observation and creative ingenuity helped in the chiseling of his personality. He learnt filmmaking processes with the belief to derive the maximum benefit from it. He was an astounding Director, Producer, Actor, Editor. He was of the belief that every character in a film is worthy of development and has to be performed perfectly and with feeling. The reason for his emphasis on the development of minor characters stemmed from his belief that both elements must Be integrated if they were to be presented to the audience successfully. By the quality of his production, he strengthened the belief that in art, the background must be integrated with the foreground to give a suitable and an aesthetically satisfactory prominence to the foreground material.
His brother-in-law K. Asif, who followed Nazir to Bombay and initiated his career as his assistant, became a successful director due to his perfectionism in weaving his imagination into an art form and gave birth to Mughal-e-Azam, a legendary film in the Sub-Continental Cinema which needs no introduction nor does other family names like Yousaf Khan (Dilip Kumar) who have contributed to Cinema in a major way.
He disassociated himself with the Pakistani Cinema, when he foresaw the decline in this industry. He could not reconcile himself with the qualitatively declining trends in this industry which was later to be dominated by financiers whose aim was Glamour and Easy Profits. He left the world for his eternal ethereal abode in August 1983.
Filmography
- Sawaal (1966)
- Haveli (1964)
- Billo Jee (1962)
- Shama (1959)
- Noor-e-Islam (1957)
- Sabira (1956)
- Soteeli Maa (1956)
- Wehshi (1956)
- Hameeda (1956)
- Nagin (1955)
- Naukar (1955)
- Khatoon (1952)
- Bheegi Palkain (1950)
- Anokhi Dastan (1950)
- Humari Basti (1950)
- Ghalat Fahmi (1950)
- Laraay (1949)
- Pheray (1949)
- Sachchai (1947)
- Heer (1946)
- Wamaq Azra (1946)
- Gaoon Ki Gori (1945)
- Laila Majnu (1945)
- Naatak (1944)
- Maa Baap (1941)
- Swami (1941)
- Taj Mahal (1940)
- Apni Nagariya (1939)
- Joshe Islam (1938)
- Baghban (1938)
- Bhabi (1938)
- Sitara Tanzi (1937)
- Dukhiyari (1936)
- Pratima (1935)
- Delhi Ka Thug (1934)
- Iraq Ka Chor (1934)
- Chandragupta (1934)
- Night Bird (1933)
- Abe Hayat (1933)
- Lal-e-Yaman (1932)
- Zarina (1932)
- Sarfarosh (1930)
[http://[2] A walk down memory lane with legendary filmmaker Nazir Ahmed Khan By Asif Nazir Khan]
References
- ^ Khan, Asif (26 August 2011). "Mr.". Pakistan Today. http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/?p=116523. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- ^ {{cite%20news|last=Khan|first=Asif|title=Mr.|url=http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/?p=116523%7Caccessdate=26%20August%202011%7Cnewspaper=Pakistan%20Today%7Cdate=26%20August%202011}}
External links
Categories:- 1983 deaths
- Pakistani people
- People from Lahore
- Pakistani film actors
- Pakistani film directors
- Pakistani film producers
- 1910 births
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