Ashok Kumar and Madhubala
Mahal is a 1949 Indian Hindi film directed by Kamal Amrohi and starring Ashok Kumar and Madhubala. It was India's first reincarnation thriller film.[1]
Produced by Bombay Talkies studio, this Kamal Amrohi's directorial debut launched both playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and the leading lady Madhubala into
super-stardom.[2][3] Its songs, particularly "Aayega Aane Waala" sung by Lata Mangeshkar, are perennial favorites. Rajkumari sang two other well-known songs from the film, "Mein woh dulhan hon" and "Yeh raat phir na aayge". Their lyrics were written by Nakshab. Rajkumari also sang these songs live on a Channel 4 (a UK TV station) programme called 'Mahfil' aired on 24 March 1991.
Mahal made Lata Mangeshkar famous and established playback singers as stars in their own right. Before Mahal, records listed character names and indeed the first batch of records credited “Aayega aane wala” to Kamini, the character played by Madhubala. When the song first played on All India Radio, its phone lines were flooded with callers inquiring the singer's name. All India Radio had to find this out from the record company before it could announce Lata Mangeshkar's name on the air.[4]
Contents [hide]
1 Theme
2 Cast
3 Soundtrack
4 Influence
5 References
6 External links
Theme[edit]
The movie was a groundbreaking supernatural suspense thriller and one of the earliest known films dealing with reincarnation. Mahal became one of the biggest box office hits of 1949 in India [5] and paved way for Indian gothic fiction.[6]
Cast[edit]
Many established actresses and new faces were screen-tested for the coveted female lead. The part was written with the then-reigning superstar, Suraiya in mind. However after two screen tests, the fledgling Madhubala, only 16 at the time was selected. The film was key in defining her screen persona and establishing her as one of the most successful and illustrious actresses of the 1950s.
Ashok Kumar as Hari Shankar
Madhubala as Kamini
M. Kumar as Hari Shankar's Father
Vijayalaxmi as Ranjana
Kanu Roy as Shrinath
S. Nazir
Eruch Tarapore
Sheela Naik
Leela Pandey
Neelam
Kaneez
Jagannath
Mohsin
Laxman Rao
S.A. Baker
Ramastri
Raja Salim
Soundtrack[edit]
For lyrics written by Nakshab, the music of the songs was composed by Khemchand Prakash.
"Aayega Aanewala" - Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
"Chun Chun Gunguruva Baje Jhumba" - Singers: Rajkumari, Zohrabai Ambalawali
"Ghabrekar Ke Jo Hum Sir Ko Takraayan" - Singer: Rajkumari
"Dil Ne Fir Yaad Kiya" - Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
"Main Wo Hansi Hun Lab Pe Jo Aane Se Rah Gayi" - Singer: Rajkumari
"Ek Teer Chala Dil Pe Laga" - Singer: Rajkumari
"Mushkil Hai Bachut Mushkil" - Singer: Lata Mangeshkar