Did anyone ever wonder in fact how K. Asif and Shapoorji communicated with each other? K. Asif spoke Hindi/ Urdu while Shapoorji could only speak Bambaiyya Hindi with Parsi accent. Yet together they made one of the greatest works of cinema art in post independence India. They worked together, not just for a few days or a few months but for nine years. Language ceases to be a barrier when the heart and mind decide to communicate. An interesting example of this was made event to me during a special screening of Mughal-e-Azam that I had organized for me alma mater IIT Madras. The IIT theatre was jam-packed and everyone was thoroughly enjoying the English subtitled version of the film when suddenly due to a technical fault, the subtitles disappeared. The audience (a majority comprising non-Urdu speaking) remained as intensely involved with the film as before.
Communication, as they say, is not just "verbal." It is vocal visual and most importantly visceral. This is one of the reasons that I was so confident of how well Mughal-e-Azam would do on its re-release in 2004. While I was undertaking the project which I like to call " the renaissance of Mughal-e-Azam" (as against the colourisation) many film critics expressed their reservation on its success. Besides citing the usual reasons -"how will an old film run in theatres when new films are finding it so difficult?" -critics would vehemently support their argument by adding that today's audience would not even understand the language of the film. What they did not realize was that film's dialogue is delivered with so much power that even if one does not know the exact meaning of the words it is easy to comprehend their intention.
Mughal-e-Azam's dialogue has such power and distinction that any Indian film-lover can guess a single line-if quoted -of this splendid text. Shapoorji who could hardly speak good Hindi or Urdu, became so fond of the dialogue that even years after the release of the film, he would recite the lines repeatedly. The words so excited him and the fine nuances of the language no longer escaped him.
Having researched in detail the making of the film, this text would not be complete without mentioning Shapoorji's risky and enterprising decision to make funds available so that the song Job Pyar Kiya to Darna kya would be shot in colour. Is was a hard decision to make as by 1975, a large part of the film had already been shot. Film critics doubted any possibility of the move recovering its costs. By this time Rs 10 million (or USD 2 million)- almost ten times the cost of a film made in those days- had already been spent so how would the film make any profit? Against the odds, and knowing that the most lucrative territory for this film Pakistan, had stopped free entry of Indian films in 1956, Shapoorji willingly agreed to give the go- ahead to K. Asif to build a new set (the famous and spectacular Sheesh Mahal) for the colour sequence. Shapoorji increased the budget by a further 30%, knowing he had lost 30% of the potential revenue (as Indian films were facing restrictions in Pakistan).
In hindsight, it was this song that became the signature of the film, making it a blockbuster. It was also this that ultimately inspired the new version of the film in 2004. And it was the new version of Mughal-e-Azam that lead to the release of the film in Pakistan (thanks to the Herculean efforts of Mr. Asif and Mr. Nadeem Mandviwalla), thus re- opening the gates for Indian cinema's official entry across the border.
This book is dedicated to the construction baron and a great visionary Seth Shapoorji Pallonji Misty, who gave concrete shape to K. Asif's extraordinary dream. Shapoorji adored every aspect of this immortal film, including the dialogue, which is regarded as a fine literary work in its own right. It is no coincidence but perhaps a greater plan that this book is together in the true spirit of the vision of an Emperor whom both nations remember as Mughal-e-Azam.
From the Jacket
A unique book for lovers of Urdu and cinephiles alike The Immortal Dialogue of K. Asif's Mughal-e-Azam features the original dialogue of this classic film in Urdu as well as Hindi and Roman scripts. This is accompanied by an English translation by Nasreen Munni Kabir and Suhail Akhtar. With a foreword by the celebrated Urdu writer/ Poet Javed Akhtar the book also features lavish photographs from the colourised version of the movie.
Combining a rich tapestry of puns phrases and romantic exchanges the remarkable dialogue (based on the screenplay by director K. Asif and Aman) was written by the immensely talented Urdu writers Amanullah Khan Ehsan Razvi Kamal Amrohi and Vajahat Mirza.
A cinematic landmark, Mughal-e-Azam is acknowledged as one of india's best loved and most enduring films distinguished by screenplay matchless in elegance, intelligence and wit.
The dialogue of the film presented in Urdu, Hindi and Roman scripts has been carefully transcribed from the original soundtrack of the film by Suhail Akhtar. The book also features a Hindi- Urdu glossary prepared by Kahkashan Latif.
Notes on translators:
Nasreen Munni Kabir is an author and documentary filmmaker, who has made several films on Hindi cinema and written many books on the subject including In search of guru Dutta (OUP, 1996).
Suhail Akhtar is an Urdu scholar and Poet>
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