Nagina (1951 film)

Nagina
Directed by	Ravindra Dave
Written by	K. S. Chaudhry
Produced by	Dalsukh M. Pancholi
Starring	Nutan Nasir Khan
Cinematography	M. N. Malhotra
Edited by	Dharamvir
Music by	Shankar–Jaikishan
Production company	Pancholi Productions
Release date	1951 (1951)
Country	India
Language	Hindi

Nagina is an Indian Hindi suspense thriller film directed by Ravindra Dave, released in 1951 under Pancholi Productions.[1][2] The film stars Nutan and Nasir Khan in lead roles. Nutan's performance in it gained her greater recognition.[3] The film became a commercial success.[4][5] Nutan was aged 15 at the time of its release, and was thus not allowed to attend its premiere as it was certified "A": (restricted for adults) and she was underage.[6][7]

Plot

When Shreenath's father is accused of murder, he disappears. Twenty years later, he is believed to be dead, and Shreenath attends the crime scene to find out what happened and possibly clear his father's name. There he meets Mukta, a young and beautiful woman, at a mysterious ancient mansion.

Cast

• Nutan ... Mukta
• Nasir Khan ... Shreenath (as Nasir)
• Bipin Gupta ... Raiji
• Hiralalb... Nihal
• Mohana ... Lily
• Goldstein ... Goonga
• Gope ... Dixit
• Shyamlal ... Shreenath's father (as Shamlal)
• Michael ... Lilly's Father

Music

The soundtrack was composed by Shankar–Jaikishan.[2] The film introduced singer C. H. Atma.[7] Author Bradley Shope noted the soundtrack for its jazzy style.[8] The soundtrack marked the first job by Goan music arranger Sebastian D'Souza, who replaced Sunny Castelino halfway through production.[9] He was noted for his "dance-band arranging skills".[10]

Release and reception

The film did well at the box office and, according to Box Office India, was among the ten highest-grossing Indian films of the year.[11][5][12] Its success consolidated Nutan's position as a rising star.[3] Nutan, accompanied by Shammi Kapoor, went to attend the premiere but could not enter the theatre to watch the film as she was underage.[13][14] According to Amjad Parvez, the film is memorable for Nasir Khan's appearance.[15] Author Ashok Raj noted Khan's work in this film alongside a popular actress as a highlight in his career.[16] A 1964 issue of Film World magazine considered the film one of Nutan's most notable films.[17] Author and film critic Dinesh Raheja considered the film an adults-only film and included it in his list of Nutan's "landmark films".[18] According to The Tribune, Nutan was written off for her frail looks.[19] According to author Jagdish Bhatia, in his book Celebrities: A Comprehensive Biographical Thesaurus of Important Men and Women in India, director Dave "took the cine world with storm" with this film, which, "under his supervision, very suspense subject treated so slickly well photographed".[20]

References

1. Rajadhyaksha & Willemen 2014, p. 622.
2. Booth 2008, p. 302.
3. Booch & Doyle 1962, p. 122.
4. Dawar 2006, p. 87.
5. Raheja & Kothari 1996, p. 57.
6. Booch & Doyle 1962, p. 123.
7. Dave, Hiren B. (16 April 2019). "Tribute: Director Ravindra Dave, who was 'Ravinbhai' in Hindi films and 'Bapa' for Gujarati cinema". Scroll.in. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
8. Shope 2016, p. 161.
9. Slobin 2008, p. 93.
10. Booth 2008, p. 241.
11. "Box Office 1952". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 8 December 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
12. Nivas, Namita (3 October 2014). "63 years of change". The Indian Express. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
13. Gahlot 2011, p. 18.
14. Vijayakar, Rajiv (21 October 2016). "Shammi Kapoor: The man who lived life King-Size!". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
15. Parvez, Amjad (12 May 2020). "Nasir Khan was one of Pakistan's first filmy hero". Daily Times. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
16. Raj 2009.
17. "Nutan". Film World. T.M. Ramachandran. 1964. p. 93. Retrieved 8 May 2022. Her notable vehicles are ' Nagina '
18. Raheja, Dinesh (5 February 2002). "Forever Nutan". Rediff.com. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
19. Dhawan, M. L. (26 February 2006). "To the manner born". The Tribune. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
20. Bhatia 1952, p. 136.

Sources

• Bhatia, Jagdish (1952). Celebrities: A Comprehensive Biographical Thesaurus of Important Men and Women in India. Aeon.
• Booth, Gregory D. (13 October 2008). Behind the Curtain: Making Music in Mumbai's Film Studios. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-029624-7.
• Gahlot, Deepa (4 February 2011). Shammi Kapoor: Legends of Indian Cinema. SCB Distributors. ISBN 978-81-8328-228-4.
• Booch, Harish S.; Doyle, Karing (1962). Star-portrait: Intimate Life Stories of Famous Film Stars. Lakhani Book Depot.
• Dawar, Ramesh (2006). Bollywood: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow. Star Publications. ISBN 978-1-905863-01-3.
• Raheja, Dinesh; Kothari, Jitendra (1996). The Hundred Luminaries of Hindi Cinema. India Book House Publishers. ISBN 978-81-7508-007-2.
• Raj, Ashok (1 November 2009). Hero Vol.1. Hay House, Inc. ISBN 978-93-81398-02-9.
• Rajadhyaksha, Ashish; Willemen, Paul (10 July 2014). Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-94318-9.
• Shope, Bradley (2016). American Popular Music in Britain's Raj. Boydell & Brewer. ISBN 978-1-58046-548-9.
• Slobin, Mark (29 September 2008). Global Soundtracks: Worlds of Film Music. Wesleyan University Press. ISBN 978-0-8195-6882-3.

External links

• Nagina at IMDb