Reflecting on the burgeoning field of feminist media histories and contemporary debates around Shanta Apte’s films, protests, and writing, along with sources that bring narratives from different women in the film industry, this paper argues that such discussions enable us to rethink questions of gender, creative labour, characteristics of film work, and the industrial milieu.
The popular song ‘Lara Lappa Lara Lappa Laayi Rakhda’ from the film “Ek Thi Ladki” (1949) may have done wonders to the then little-known actor Meena Shorey but many fans called it a “frivolous” song, just not up to Lata Mangeshkar’s standard.
The anger against Lata Mangeshkar for singing the song, as per her free-wheeling conversation with the London-based author Nasreen Munni Kabir, continued even after the film was released and the song became the most popular song of Ek Thi Ladki starring Shorey and Motilal.
Design by Saad Arifi
Pakistan’s film industry has produced blockbusters in all languages. After the industry matured, Pakistan made its name internationally and had superstars by the dozens. By late ’60s, Urdu films had Waheed Murad, Muhammad Ali, Nadeem and Kamal, while Punjabi films had Allauddin, Akmal, Habib and Kaifee who were ‘heroes’ of the day.
Most of them were able to ‘produce’ blockbusters either in Urdu or Punjabi. But there was only one actor and producer who was successful in both Urdu and Punjabi films. Like a true ‘hero’, Ejaz Durrani excelled in acting as well as production.