Ilyas Rashidi

Ilyas Rashidi
Born1925 (1925)
Delhi, British India
Died1997[1]
Karachi, Pakistan
NationalityPakistani
Other namesBaba-e-Filmi Sahafat (Pioneer of Film Journalism) in Pakistan[1]
OccupationFilm journalist[1]
Years active1948 – 1997
Known forFounder of Nigar Awards (founded 1957) and Nigar (magazine) (a weekly film magazine in Urdu language (founded 1948)[1]
RelativesAslam Ilyas Rashidi (son of Ilyas Rashidi and current 'flag-bearer and custodian' of Nigar Awards[2]

Ilyas Rashidi (Urdu: اِلیاس رشیدی) was a Pakistani publisher and editor who founded the film magazine Nigar, dedicated to films and film personalities, in 1948 and the historic and prestigious Nigar Awards on 17 July 1957.[3][1][2]

Born in Delhi in 1925 he worked with his brothers, Mohammad Usman Azad and Mohammad Umar Farooqi, for the Delhi-based Urdu newspaper Anjum (owned by Umar) which shifted to Karachi after partition. He launched Nigar from there, modelling it after the Indian film magazine Filmfare. Ilyas had purchased a children's magazine Monthly Nigar from his friend Ibne Hassan Nigar, and re-branded it as a weekly film magazine.[4]

The Ilyas Rashidi Lifetime Achievement Gold Medal is presented annually at the Nigar Awards ceremony and event. In January 2017, a press conference was held at a local hotel in Karachi to announce the scheduled date of 16 March 2017 for the 47th Nigar Awards.[2]

Death and legacy

Ilyas Rashidi died in 1997 in Karachi.[1] He was also affectionately called Baba-e-Filmi Sahafat (Pioneer of Film Journalism) in Pakistan. His son, Aslam Ilyas Rashidi temporarily suspended the annual awarding of Nigar Awards from 2005 to 2012 due to a then ongoing decline in Pakistani film industry during that period. In 2012, Aslam Ilyas Rashidi announced plans to revive the Nigar Awards for films and stated that this time it would also include awards for the Pakistani television industry.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Rafay Mahmood (12 January 2012). "Baba-e-Filmi Sahafat: The return of Nigar Awards". The Express Tribune (newspaper). Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Reviving the industry's annual award show". Daily Times (newspaper). 21 January 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  3. ^ "COVER STORY: Trouble in tinsel town". Dawn (newspaper). 17 December 2008. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Reviving the industry's annual award show". Daily Times. 21 January 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2019.