Bollywood has time and again given women-oriented films to the audience, and at the moment filmmakers too are planning well to make more. We have seen enumerable women-oriented movies in the past which was appreciated by many, and this Women's Day weekend we have two films Queen and Gulaab Gang releasing too to hit the chord. Check out the top 5 cult women-oriented movies in Bollywood that entertained and moved the audience.
Mother India (1957)Mother India is a 1957 epic melodrama film, directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar, and Raaj Kumar. The film was the most expensive Hindi cinema production and earned the highest revenue for any Hindi film at that time. Mother India still ranks among the all-time Indian box office hits.
Pakeezah is a 1972 Indian film, written and directed by Kamal Amrohi who was known for his perfectionism. The music is composed by Ghulam Mohammed and Naushad Ali. The film tells the story of a Lucknow tawaif played by actress Meena Kumari who died shortly after the film was completed. Also starring Ashok Kumar, Raaj Kumar, Veena, Nadira, D.K. Sapru and others, the film won the Filmfare Best Art Direction Award in 1973.
Meanwhile, Pakeezah took nearly 14 years to shoot because of a change in relationship between Meena Kumari and the director. Meena Kumari and Kamal Amrohi were married when Pakeezah was first conceived. Due to a variety of different factors, Meena Kumari and Kamal Amrohi parted ways and the film remained incomplete. It was only when Nargis and Sunil Dutt saw the rushes of the film that they convinced Meena Kumari to complete it.
Meena Kumari was very ill when filming resumed and one can note the difference in the portions shot earlier in the earlier sixties and the ones shot during her illness. All the kathak dance sequences were performed by Meena Kumari herself except for the last dance sequence of the movie wherein a body double was used in the long-shots. Meena Kumari died weeks after the film was released. The film, which had been declared a flop when first released, became a success.
Aandhi (1975)Aandhi is a 1975 Indian political drama film directed by lyricist Gulzar. The film was supposedly based on then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's life, but in reality, only the look was inspired by politician Tarkeshwari Sinha, apart from Indira Gandhi. The film story is based around a chance meeting of a married couple after years of separation, when wife Aarti Devi, now a leading politician happens to stay in the hotel run by her estranged husband during an election campaign.
Actress Suchitra Sen played the character of Aarti Devi after actress Vyjayanthimala refused the film as she was fazed by physical resemblance of her character with Indira Gandhi. Later in 2011, she recounted Aandhi as one of few films she regretted not doing besides Mr and Mrs 55 (1955) by Guru Dutt and Bandini (1963) by Bimal Roy. Suchitra Sen was nominated as Best Actress in 23rd Filmfare Awards held in 1976 for her brilliant performance.
The movie was not allowed a full release when Mrs. Gandhi was in power, and was also banned in 1975's emergency. After her loss in the 1977 elections, the ruling Janata party cleared it and had it premiered on national television.
Khubsoorat (1980)Khubsoorat is a 1980 Indian Hindi film directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, whose direction together with dialogues by Gulzar. The film won the 1981 Filmfare Best Movie Award. The lead actress, Rekha, won her first Filmfare Best Actress Award for her role as Manju Dayal. Meanwhile, she was also nominated for a role in the film Judaai that year.
Umrao Jaan is a 1981 Bollywood film, directed by Muzaffar Ali. It is based on the Urdu novel Umrao Jaan Ada (1905), written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa based on the famous Lucknow courtesan. The film starred Bollywood actress Rekha and Farooq Shaikh as leads. Rekha was praised for her acting, but the box office returns were just average.
