Reviewer's Summary - Fine
Language: Hindi
Year: 1981
Actors: Rekha, Farouque Shaikh, Naseeruddin Shah, Prema Narayan, Raj Babbar, Shaukat Kaifi
Director & Producer: Muzaffar Ali
Music: Khayyam
Lyrics: Shahryar
Story: Mirza Hadi Ruswa
Screenplay & Dialogs: Shama Zaidi, Javed Siddiqui & Muzaffar Ali
Umrao Jaan is a classic, a rara avis in the cesspool of Bollywood.
The movie has a glittering freshness - in the story, acting and music - that is seldom seen in Indian movies.
More than 25 years after its release, Umrao Jaan's haunting melodies still echo in the mind.
Umrao Jaan is also perhaps the movie that Rekha will be best remembered for in a long career - her stellar portrayal of a 19th century dance girl in this movie is matchless.
Set in the 1840s, Umrao Jaan is the story of a young singer and dance girl Umrao Jaan (Rekha).
Kidnapped as a young girl and sold into a brothel in Lucknow, where she is given the name Umrao Jaan by the Madam of the house, Umrao's life is a tale of stoical acceptance of fate and the flowering of talent.
Umrao Jaan is also the story of failed love, rejection and abandonment.
Umrao's love for Nawab Sultan (Farouque Shaikh) and subsequent elopement with the notorious dacoit Faiz Ali (Raj Babbar) have been beautifully depicted by director Muzaffar Ali.
Farouque Shaikh, Naseeruddin Shah, Raj Babbar and Shaukat Kaifi are all fine actors and leave no room for complaint.
But make no mistake. Umrao Jaan is Rekha's movie. All the other actors are mere props. After all, the story is woven around the central character Umrao Jaan.
Besides the story and Rekha's fine performance, what sets Umrao Jaan apart from the run of the mill Bollywood trash is the high quality of its music. All of the songs still work their magic on listeners despite the passage of time.
Di Cheeze Kya Hai, In Aankhon Ki Masti and Yeh Kya Jagah Hai Dosto have delighted us immensely over the last two decades and more.
Of Umrao Jaan's songs, it can truly be said that they are timeless.- Copyright SearchIndia.com.
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