The Sindhi film industry, which now exists only in people’s imagination, boasts a rich history, spanning both Pakistan and India. During the pre-Partition era, movies in the Sindhi language had captivated audiences across the Subcontinent.

Notably, the first-ever Sindhi film, a silent film titled Raja Harishchandra, was released in 1913, produced by Dada Sahib Phalke. Eighteen years later, on March 13, 1931, the first talking film, Alam Ara, was released. Hindi and Urdu movies continued to dominate the Subcontinent’s cinema scene until 1940, when the first-ever Sindhi talkie film was released, marking the beginning of a new era in Sindhi cinema.

Raees Karim Bux Nizamani, a feudal lord, historian, writer, and actor from Matli, a small town in the Badin district of Sindh, holds the honour of financing the first Sindhi film, Ekta (Unity), and becoming its hero. The movie was written by Khehal Das Fani, produced by Ram Panjwani, and directed by Homi Wadia.

The movie featured Kaushalia, Gulshan Sufi and Hari Shivdasani in lead roles. Gulshan Sufi and Kaushalia not only played key roles in Ekta, but also lent their voices. Hari Shivdasani moved to India after Partition and became a household name in Hindi cinema; his daughter Babita and maternal granddaughters Karishma and Kareena Kapoor have followed in his footsteps to become top-class Bollywood actresses.

There is no Sindhi film industry today. But right from the advent of cinema in the Subcontinent in the early 20th century, until the 1980s, Sindhi films were a force to be reckoned with

The plot of Ekta revolved around the topic of Hindu-Muslim unity, and their living style during the pre-Partition era. The film was banned by the British government just after two weeks of its inauguration, but successfully set in motion the trend of making Sindhi movies.

The first successful Sindhi movie, titled Abana was made in India in 1952, while the 1956 film Umer Marvi, made in Pakistan, turned out to be the first Golden Jubilee Sindhi film. Syed Hussain Ali Shah Fazlani, Nighat Sultana and Noor Muhammad Charlie played lead roles in the blockbuster movie, revolving around the famous Sindhi folk tale of Umer and Marvi.

The 1956 film Umer Marvi, made in Pakistan, turned out to be the first Golden Jubilee Sindhi film. Syed Hussain Ali Shah Fazlani, Nighat Sultana and Noor Muhammad Charlie played lead roles in the blockbuster movie, revolving around the famous Sindhi folk tale of Umer and Marvi.

This movie probably laid the foundation for the golden era of the Sindhi film industry, infusing inspiration across borders to make films on historic subjects.

Hussain Ali Shah Fazlani played the lead role in another super-hit Sindhi movie, Pardesi, making him a notable face of the entertainment industry. Two years later, in 1958, Sindhi filmmakers came up with another movie, Sasui Punhu, a historic love story immortalised by Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai through his poetry. Another movie, Parai Zameen [Foreign Land], released the same year and shed light on the events of migration.

A decade later, Shahero Feroz (1968) introduced the melodious duo of Ustad Muhammad Yousuf and Runa Laila. The latter hailed from a Bengali family and gained unparalleled recognition for singing Sindhi film and folk songs.

After five more years, in 1973, the Sindhi film Jeejal Mahu went on to win the best film award by the Pakistan Arts Council. The same year, A.Q. Pirzada won the best director award for the Sindh movie Soorath [Face], indicating the scenic dominance of Sindhi films.

Then came the era when Melody Queen Madam Noor Jahan started to dominate the Sindhi film industry by singing memorable Sindhi songs in her soothing voice for several films during the ’70s and the ’80s.

The popularity of the real-life couple Mushtaq Changezi and Chakori in Sindh was similar to that of Muhammad Ali and Zeba, and Santosh Kumar and Sabiha Khanum. Besides that, Sadia, Reeta, Suzi Danial D’souza, Shafi Muhammad Shah, Qurban Jeelani, Shahbaz Durrani, Malik Anokha, Waseem, Mahboob Alam, Mansoor Baloch, Saqi Kamal Irani, Mumtaz Kanwal and Sheeren Ishtiaq remained eminent actors and actresses of Sindhi films during its golden era.

Sindh films touched their peak utilising quality storylines, captivating dialogue and heartwarming music. During the ’70s and ’80s, prominent Sindhi writers and poets such as Ammar Jaleel, Sheikh Ayaz, Ram Panjwani, Moosa Kaleem, Syed Mazoor Naqvi, Abdul Ghaffar Tabasum, Aga Abdul Naveed, Aga Saleem and Ayoub Sarhandi dedicated their skills and ideas to uplift the industry.

During the mid-80s, when Sindhi films witnessed a slight dip, filmmaker Asad Shah gave three super-hit films, Jalal Chandio, Paru and Shaheed [Martyr] — in order to rebuild the crumbling Sindhi film industry. Soon after, a movie highlighting the drought-like situation in the Tharparkar region of Sindh, titled Pukaar [Call], mesmerised Sindhi film buffs.

However, this rebirth of the industry could not last long, and it faced a sharp and unceasing decline during the 1990s. Himmat [Courage] proved to be the last commercial Sindhi film released in the theatres of Karachi and Hyderabad; thereafter movie lovers never saw any Sindhi film in the cinemas of the province.

There were multiple factors contributing to the collapse of the industry, but prominent among them were the dearth of quality scripts and the lack of interest from investors. Senior stage and television actor from Thatta Akbar Dhalwai says that the downfall of Pakistan’s mainstream film industry ultimately also put an end to the making of Sindhi films.

He adds that the provincial culture department was only confined to organising literary festivals, whereas it should also have been utilised for the revival of commercial Sindhi films.

Rafique Essani, another senior actor who has worked in several TV and stage plays, holds weak scripts and poor acting methods responsible for the decline of Sindhi films. He further adds that music composers from Sindh, such as Master Ghulam Hyder and Lal Muhammad Iqbal, had inspired music maestros of the Subcontinent such as Lata Mangeshkar and Ustad Mehdi Hasan. He also mentions that famous Pakistani singers, including Ahmed Rushdi, Masood Rana, Mehdi Hasan and Bashir Ahmed, sang songs for famous Sindhi movies, which is evidence of the industry’s past glory.

Rafique Essani urges celebrated Sindhi TV and film actors-directors of the present day, such as Fahad Mustafa, Yasir Nawaz and others, to play their role in the revival of Sindhi films. Noted director Syed Noor announced in 2018 that he would make a Sindhi film, but it was only an announcement.

A book on the history of Sindhi films, Sindh Talkies by Dr Mehmood Mughal, was launched in 2015, projecting the magnificent past of the Sindhi film industry. Sindhi movie lovers are still eagerly waiting for the revival of Sindhi films, as poor content and an inferior approach by directors have led to the crumbling of the Sindhi drama industry as well.

The author is a practising lawyer and freelance journalist. His areas of interest are cultural diversity and socio-political issues of Sindh

Published in Dawn, ICON, September 22nd, 2024