It was after a session at the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) during the Gandhara International Film Festival that I finally managed to catch up with the legendary Pakistani film actress of yore, Mumtaz.

Like Waheed Murad, Nadeem, Muhammad Ali, Kamal, Zeba, Shamim Ara, Rani and Deeba, she had been a part of my childhood, which was spent mostly watching Urdu movies on Shalimar Television Network.

Meeting the dancing queen of Lollywood was nothing short of travelling back in time. She was in Pakistan not to delve into her glorious past, but to look to the future. She was accompanied by her handsome son, Zeeshan, who she wants to launch as an actor. Zeeshan is her son with Raheel Bari Malik of the famed Bari Studios.

“I was living a semi-retired life in Canada when my son Zeeshan persuaded me to return to Pakistan with him. It’s his wish to launch his career in showbiz in Pakistan, as he has acting in his blood,” she tells Icon.

Mumtaz once ruled the screen in Lollywood with memorable dance numbers and riveting performances in fi lm after fi lm. She’s back in Pakistan after a long hiatus and open to acting again. Will she fi nd takers?

Mumtaz received a warm welcome both in Karachi and Lahore, and was more than happy to catch up with her co-stars.

Zeeshan was born in London but spent most of his life in Canada. Initially, his father worked in side roles in a couple of films but he could not continue while handling the affairs at Bari Studios. Zeeshan’s grandfather, Bari Malik, was among the pioneers of the film industry, who launched dozens of film stars.

With the earnings from the Punjabi film Mahi Munda, Malik established Bari Studios, where hundreds of films were later shot. Bari Studios housed multiple halls, studio rooms, film sets, a laboratory and all the necessary equipment for filming and post-production.

Bari Malik was related to director Nazir, and Zeeshan can easily trace his roots back to K. Asif (maternal nephew of Nazir) — the man behind the magnum opus Mughal-i-Azam. Zeeshan has some acting experience from school in Toronto and, despite more opportunities in Canada, he has his heart set on beginning his acting career from the same place which still honours his mother as an actress to reckon with.

Mumtaz, who was born Rifat Qazalbash, hasn’t changed much even after the passage of time. She entered the film industry when it was spread across Dhaka, Lahore and Karachi. She is also among the frontline actors who fought the invasion of Indian films, braved the oppression of dictator Gen Ziaul Haq, and continued to work in films till the 1990s.

Mumtaz still holds reverence for actress-turned-producer Shamim Ara, who was behind her meteoric rise to the top. In Farz (1973), Mumtaz excelled in the song ‘Jaan-i-bahaar aaya’, but it was in the song ‘Akh larri bado badi’ in the Punjabi film Banarsi Thug the same year that transformed her into an overnight sensation.

The next four years elevated her status as a film actress into the top league and she was seen starring with Shabnam, Babra Sharif and even Rani. Such was the popularity of her performance in songs that in the film titled Akh Larri Bado Badi (1976), Mumtaz appeared in the lead with superstar Waheed Murad.

Though she had a raspy voice, considered non-filmi in certain circles back then, and initially considered a drawback, her excellent dancing and strong acting skills drew massive admiration from the crowds and her fans.

At a time when women’s rights were gaining momentum around the world, they also found their way into films with the effect that more and more roles about independent women started being written. Before that, women were mostly assigned ‘look pretty’ roles but with the emergence of Zeenat Aman and her performance in the song ‘Dum maaro dum’ (Hare Krishna Hare Ram, 1971), a lot also changed this side of the Wagah border.

Pakistan Television (PTV) aired its first comedy serial with a woman in a title character, Shehzori, in 1972. People wanted to see a cheerful but no-nonsense girl taking on her oppressors, and Mumtaz was the perfect fit.

With a deep husky voice, outgoing nature, looks resembling those of then Italian diva Claudia Cardinale and dancing skills of a pro, Mumtaz’s ‘Achanak batti bujh gayi’ and ‘Main moam ki gurriya hoon’ from the film Intezaar (1974) perfectly described her character of the Europe-returned Roohi in the film. Soon, she transitioned into everyone’s first love and every man’s dream girl, with her contemporary looks, unorthodox voice and attractive figure.

Recalling old times, Mumtaz smiles and termed the shooting of films back then as more of a picnic, which they wished would never end.

She recounted anecdotes from the two most famous songs from the film Muhabbat Zindagi Hai — ‘Tu turu turu tara rara’ and ‘Dil sambhala na jaye.’

“I was rehearsing for ‘Tu turu turu’ in a shalwar qameez when Waheed Murad, who was playing my love interest, came up with a totally new and different idea. He made changes in the wardrobe and suggested the idea of a red cap. The dress became an instant fashion of the day and girls all over Pakistan turned to bell-bottoms as a fashion staple.”

As for ‘Dil sambhala na jaaye’, she had to perform in the absence of dance director Hameed Chaudhary, and it was due to collaboration between a very young Faisal Bukhari (later director) and Mumtaz which made the song truly memorable.

Mumtaz worked with all the leading stars of the day, be it Kamal, Sudhir or Yusuf Khan, who were around since Mumtaz was quite young. She also worked with Nadeem, Waheed Murad and Muhammad Ali, who she grew up watching on the big screen.

She even starred with Asif Raza Mir, Javed Sheikh and Izhar Qazi, who arrived on the scene years after Mumtaz had made her debut. She also acted with Sultan Rahi and is remembered for her dance number in the song ‘Saathi mujhay mil gaya’ from Jasoos (1977).

“Rahi sahib loved to work in Urdu films and was quite a good dancer, as well as a good human being. If anybody was cash-strapped and his film had to be released, Rahi sahib would go out of the way to have it released,” remembers Mumtaz.

“It was during the recording of Shamim Ara’s Farz [1973] that I was handpicked by Yusuf Khan for the film Sohni Mahiwal [1976]. I had played Sudhir’s wife and daughter in Hassan Askari’s Jeenay Ki Saza [1979], while Kamal sahib gave me my big break with Yahan Se Wahan Tak [1979]. The movie was shot in the US, Canada and Europe.

“It was during that trip that I fell in love with Canada. On a tree near Niagara Falls, I wrote ‘Mumtaz yahaan rahay gi’ [Mumtaz will live here] in true filmi style, and after bidding adieu to films, I settled there [Canada],” says Mumtaz.

On the question of being spotted in Toronto by the Pakistani community, Zeeshan pitched in, saying that his mother would always hide her identity. She would come up with the lame excuse of “Meri shakal unn se milti hai” [I resemble her], and would never acknowledge that she was, indeed, Mumtaz.

In 1978, a film she had great expectations from bombed at the box office while a low-budget rom-com went on to become a smash hit. Both the films were directed by Dada Nazrul Islam: Sheeshay Ka Ghar and Ambar, respectively.

Ambar was released in January 1978, in which Mumtaz played the title role and was cast opposite Nadeem. With memorable music and superb acting, it also had Muhammad Ali playing Nadeem’s father.

Mumtaz accepts some of the responsibility for the failure of Sheeshay Ka Ghar.

She had cajoled the then chocolate hero Murad to play the negative role that was considered the most expensive of its time. She believes that people could not digest the idea that Murad could also play a baddie in films.

“The girls went crazy about him and he was adored by men while families thronged to the cinemas just to see him act. How could he be accepted as a villain? I was asked by both the producer and the director to persuade Waheed to take on the role as they thought only a star of Waheed sahib’s calibre could do justice to it. But it all turned out to be a terrible miscalculation, where we all had to pay the ultimate price,” she reminisces.

She credits Murad for guiding her during the early part of her career. She was his co-star in the film Hero which was in production when Murad unexpectedly passed away in 1983. Hero was finally released in 1985, after some “cheat shots” were inserted by director Iqbal Yusuf.

Mumtaz says she is enjoying her return to Pakistan and is open to good acting offers. She is being showered with attention and one can see what has been missing from her life during her stay in Canada: the limelight.

Mumtaz had scaled the heights of stardom in the blink of an eye. You never know, maybe Lady Luck will also favour Mumtaz’s son Zeeshan the same way.

Published in Dawn, ICON, December 3rd, 2023