Mehboob Khan
Mehboob Khan (born Mehboob Khan Ramzan Khan; 9 September 1907[1] – 28 May 1964) was a pioneer producer-director of Indian cinema, best known for directing the social epic Mother India (1957), which won the Filmfare Awards for Best Film and Best Director, two National Film Awards, and was a nominee for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.[2] He set up his production company – Mehboob Productions, and later a film studio – Mehboob Studios in Bandra, Mumbai in 1954.[3][4][5] He also created the dacoit film genre with Aurat (1940) and Mother India,[6] and is also known for other blockbusters including the romantic drama Andaz (1949), the swashbuckling musical Aan (1951), and the melodrama Amar (1954).
He was brought to Bombay from his home town in Gujarat ( Surat ) by Noor Muhammad Ali Muhammed Shipra (producer and horse supplier in Indian cinema) to work as a horseshoe repairer in a stable (owned by Shipra). One day at the shooting of South Indian director Chandrashekhar, Mehboob showed interest in working with Chandrashekhar. After seeing his great interest and skills, Chandrashekhar asked Shipra to take Mehboob with him to work at small jobs in the film studios of Bombay (assistant director). He started as an assistant in the Silent Film era and as an extra in the studios of the Imperial Film Company of Ardeshir Irani, before directing his first film Al Hilal a.k.a. Judgement of Allah (1935), when he started directing films for the Sagar Film Company. Notable films he directed for Sagar Movietone and National Studios included Deccan Queen (1936), Ek Hi Raasta (1939), Alibaba (1940), Aurat (1940) and Bahen (1941).
In 1945, Khan set up his own production house – Mehboob Productions. In 1946, he directed the musical hit Anmol Ghadi, which featured singing stars Surendra, Noor Jehan and Suraiya in leading roles. Khan went on to produce and direct many blockbuster films, the most notable being the romantic drama Andaz (1949), the swashbuckling musical Aan (1951), the melodrama Amar (1954), and the social epic Mother India (1957). The latter was nominated for an Academy Award in 1957 and was a remake of his 1940 film Aurat. His earlier works were in Urdu, but his later material, including Mother India, were in Hindustani, a friendlier and softer spoken version of Hindi and Urdu. Several of his films, especially his earlier work on Humayun (1945), the story of a Mogul emperor who ruled India, Anmol Ghadi (1946), and Taqdeer, (in which he introduced Nargis, who later married Sunil Dutt), were written by Aghajani Kashmeri. Kashmeri was responsible for picking and training Nargis in Hindustani and Urdu dialogue delivery. His last film as a director was 1962’s Son of India.
