Syed Ammar Alavi

On July 31, 1947 Abdul Sameed Askari and Sardar Begum Habib Agha, both of Iranian origin but settled in Bombay, India, were blessed with a daughter, who they decided to name Mumtaz, who would be sister to Malika, and step-sister to Shazhath and Sharook and cousin of villain Roopesh Kumar Mumtaz' only Filmi connections were through her actress sister, Malika, which soon ended when Malika got married and quit Bollywood. #Mumtaz first starred as a child artiste in 1952 in 'Sanskar'. Thereafter she appeared in 'Yasmin', 'Stree', 'Wallah Kya Baat Hai', 'Main Shaadi Karne Chala', 'Dr. Vidya', 'Sehra', 'Rustom Sohrab' and 'Mujhe Jeene Do'. Her first role as an adult was in 1963 'Gehra Daag'. Thereafter she starred opposite Dara Singh in 'Faulad'. This heralded to the public at large that Mumtaz had arrived. Her career, in just over a decade, would span close to 115 movies.Opposite Dara Singh...

Mohammed Rafi, whose voice brought to life hundreds of melodies, was born in a village Kotla Sultan Singh near Amritsar long before India attained its independence. But music training beckoned him to Lahore where he cut his musical teeth under the hawk-like eye of Ustad Ghulam Ali Khan. He made his singing debut in the Punjabi film Gul baloch by rendering a duet with Zeenat Begum, 'Soniye Ni Heeriye Ni' composed by Shyamsunder. Wadia Movietone was a prominent film company and it was Homi Wadia who saw the talent in Mohammed Rafi and insisted that he sing for his forthcoming film Sharbati Ankhen under the Music directorship of Feroz Nizami. The voice of Mohammed Rafi encompassed a tremendous range, which is unparalleled. The peculiar trait that separates a playback singer from a classical vocalist is not the range or ability as a singer but the voice quality. With Mohammed Rafi it was the ultimate combination that helped him reign supreme in the field of playback singing....

Amjad Khan, best known for playing the iconic Gabbar Singh in Sholay, passed away on July 27, 1992 Amjad Khan was an acclaimed Indian actor and director. He worked in over 130 films in his film career spanning nearly twenty years. He enjoyed iconic popularity for his villain roles in Hindi language films — he is most famous for playing the role of the dacoit Gabbar Singh in Sholay (1975). Personal life and education Amjad Khan was born in Hyderabad. He was the son of legendary actor Jayant, to Muslim parents. He was the brother of fellow actor Imtiaz Khan and Inayat Khan who only acted in one film. In 1957, he was cast in the movie Ab Dili Dur Nahin, as a child artist. His family hails from Ghazni, the pathan region of Afghanistan. Khan did schooling at St Theresa's High School, Bandra. He attended R D National College, Bandra and was the General Secretary - the highest elected student body representative. He had already gained a reputation of being a heavyweight ...

Great actor Mohammad Ali (19 April 1931 - 19 March 2006) will be remembered for his versatile roles and heavy voice which helped him perform passionately. He worked with Radio Pakistan Hyderabad first as a broadcaster and then as actor for about a decade before he was picked up for films in the sixties. Born in 1931 at Rohtak, #India, Mohammad Ali, affectionately known as Ali Bhai, migrated to #Pakistan soon after partition and settled in Multan. From there, he went to Hyderabad and lived there for many years. Ali started his silver screen career when Fazal Ahmad Karim Fazli, whose two brothers Hasnain Fazli and Sabtain Fazli were already in the showbiz, gave him a role in his first film Chiragh Jalta Raha with Zeba and Deeba. The film was released in 1962. Interestingly, Mohammad Ali played the role of a villain in his maiden film. Later, more producers offered Ali the villainous roles in their films. Director Munawwar Rasheed’s Bahadur, Iqbal Yusuf’s Daal Main ...

Pride of Pakistan superstar Nadeem Baig started his career as a hero in film “Chakori” which hit the box office. He performed as a hero in hundreds of films. Nadeem was born in 1941. He also acted in several telefilms and TV drama serials and anchored a prize-winning quiz show on ARY Digital. He has played leading roles in more than 200 films. Nadeem was born in Vijaywada, Madras, British #India. His real name is Nazeer Baig Mughal. After partition, he, at the age of 5, migrated with his father Mirza Abbas Baig from #Hyderabad Deccan to Karachi. He got his graduation from Islamia College, #Karachi. At that time the Islamia Club was considered as the centre of great film and radio artists. Different musical competitions were organised to unveil the talent of college students. Artists like Talat Hussein, M. Zaheer Khan, TV producer Iqbal Haider, Aftab Azeem and Saleem Jafry were all discovered from that Club. Nadeem was also one of them. He had a friends circle with Ameer Ahmed...

It was not only Rajesh Khanna's persona that charmed audiences, but his songs were equally popular. From romantic numbers like Mere Sapnon Ki Raani, Kora Kagaz Tha Yeh Man Mera to soothing ones like Kahin Door Jab Din Dhal Jaaye and Woh Shaam Kuch Ajeeb Thi, his songs were equally popular among his fans. Jatin Khanna, the first superstar of Indian and Hindi Cinema with 74 Golden Jubilee Hits - (which includes 48 Platinum Jubilee hits and 26 Golden Jubilee Hits) & in addition had 22 Silver Jubilee Hits and 9 average hits, was born on 29 December 1942 in Amritsar, Punjab, India. Known as the most versatile of all actors who later regionally were given superstar status in media. In his on screen career, he has convincingly carried off a variety of roles without the aid of complicated costumes or make up. In fact, some of his most popular roles have required him to play two contrasting characters in a single movie and he used to work in 2 movies in the same day for most of...

It turned out to be a black day for the entertainment industry on Tuesday as veteran actress Rita Bhaduri breathed her last this morning. Again we lost another legendary actress and a beautiful and humble humanbeing. Rest in peace Rita Bhaduri! Veteran actress Rita Bhaduri, who worked extensively in films and television shows, including the ongoing “Nimki Mukhiya”, died in Mumbai today morning. She was fighting a weak kidney and was on dialysis. “She died at around 1.30 a.m. and her family members took her body from the hospital at around 4 a.m.,” the source told. With a career spanning over five decades, Rita played important supporting parts in movies like “Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa”, “Kya Kehna”, “Dil Vil Pyar Vyar” and “Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon”. She also featured in Gujarati movies. On the TV front, her credits include popular shows like “Hasratein”, “Sarabhai vs Sarabhai”, “Khichdi”, “Ek Nayi Pehchaan”, “Amanat”, “Ek Mahal Ho Sapnon Ka” and “Kumkum”. She was par...

Leela Chitnis played a crucial role in dismantling the disrespectful image of film actors, particularly that of women, during the early years of 1930s. Chitnis was one of the first educated actresses to join the Hindi film industry and continued to work there well into the 1980s. Chitnis is best remembered for her personification of the sacrificial and victimized mother in a number of films such as Chhaya (1936), Insaaf (1937), Bandhan (1940), Awaara (1951), Naya Daur (1957), Kala Bazar (1960) and Waqt (1965). Born in Dhanwad, Karnataka on September 9, 1909, Chitnis was brought up in an educated family, where her father was an English professor. She was married at the young age of fifteen to Dr. G Y Chitnis and started a big family of four children. Post her graduation, she had joined ‘Natyamanwantar’, a progressive theatre group that produced plays in Marathi. She was an avid supporter of India’s independence struggler and even harboured the freedom fighter Manabendra Nath Roy....

Music Director Roshan can be placed among those legends who will always remain alive because of their immortal musical creations which will continue to be sung, crooned, listened to and enjoyed by lovers of good music. On the maestro’s 101st birth anniversary, here is a look at five evergreen numbers that cement his musical legacy. 1. ‘Zindagi Bhar Nahi Bhoolegi Woh Barsaat Ki Raat’ – Barsat Ki Raat (1960) After his big break in Baware Nain (1950), music composer Roshan’s first big success came with this soundtrack. Music was a big part of the storyline of this Muslim social directed by PL Santoshi. Bharat Bhushan plays an emerging poet Amaan Hyderbadi who sings on the radio about his magical encounter with a beautiful young woman, played by Madhubala, one rainy night. The lyrics were penned by Roshan’s frequent collaborator, Sahir Ludhianvi while the song was sung by Mohammed Rafi. 2. ‘Laaga Chunnari Mein Daag’ - Dil Hi To Hai (1963) Roshan gave Manna Dey a wonderfu...

Born in Bijnore, Uttar Pradesh, on July 13, 1939, Prakash Mehra began his career as a production controller. He dabbled in multiple jobs in the industry, including as a songwriter, before turning to film direction. He ventured into filmmaking in 1968 with the Shashi Kapoor starrer Haseena Maan Jayegi. However, Mehra's first success came in 1971 with Mela. The movie brought together the Khan brothers -- Feroz Khan and Sanjay Khan -- for the first time on silver screen. His next was Samadhi (1972) with Dharmendra. Over the next two decades, he would churn out blockbusters like Zanjeer, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978), Laawaris (1981), Namak Halaal (1982) and Sharaabi (1984). Prakash Mehra with some of the cast and crew including actors Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri and Ajit, at the muhurat of Zanjeer He struck gold at the box office with the 1973 action flick Zanjeer, with Bachchan in the main lead. The success of the film made Mehra a name to reckon with as a director and la...

Bimal Roy is regarded as one of the greatest masters of Indian cinema till date. Bimal Roy who was a complete film institute in himself, directed many cinematic gems which went to become cult classic in Indian history. Today is the 109th birth anniversary of Roy, who won national and international acclaim for his contribution to cinema. Born in Dhaka on 12 July 1909, Roy later moved to Calcutta and started his career as a camera assistant. He was inspired by Italian neo-realistic cinema and is known for his socialistic and realistic movies. On his 109th birth anniversary, here's a look at Five must-watch films of the legendary director for any cinema lover. Do Bigha Zamin (1953) was Roy's first movie to win Filmfare and National Film Awards. The film also won two prizes at Cannes Film Fest in 1953. Starring Nirupa Roy and Bajraj Sahni, it is about struggles of father-son duo struck by famine. Bimal Roy's Devdas starring Dilip Kumar was the first on-screen ada...