We always look at the art but often get over the story of the artists. Look at the case of Pakeezah. The movie is nothing less than epic as it stands as a giant in terms of beauty, grace, music and everything that has to do with aesthetics.
But what about its makers?
Kamal Amrohi directed the movie in a span of 14 years. He started working on the film in the mid 1950s but it was released only in 1972. Meena Kumari invested her life in the movie and shot it in extremely pathetic health conditions. Perhaps that’s the reason she passed away only 2 months after the film’s release. It happened as if she was alive just for the movie to be released.
Kamal Amrohi wrote the entire screenplay, dialogues, a song and was involved in everything. He even retained the music even though everyone called it outdated. The movie today has one of the greatest soundtracks ever made in the Indian cinema.
The two were a couple who got divorced during the shoot and that caused the film to go on a hiatus. On the persuasion of Nargis and Sunil Dutt, they resumed the shoot and Meena Kumari completed it when she should have been ideally bedridden.
The making of Pakeezah is the very essence of the epic love and pathetic beauty that the film represents.
Saregama is bringing a movie based on their story titled “Kamal Aur Meena”. It is a huge responsibility on the shoulders of Saregama but let’s hope that they do justice.
The project was announced back in 2022 and was supposed to be a series initially but will materialise into a film.
“Kamal Aur Meena” will show us their 20-year journey, starting from their first meeting when she was just 18 and he was 34, to the creation, filming and release of the epic Pakeezah.
Siddharth P Malhotra will be directing the movie.
The album of the movie will be composed by AR Rahman and the lyrics will be penned by Irshad Kamil, Kausar Munir and more. We think that it will be the most challenging department of the film as the actual album of Pakeezah is something beyond adjectives.
The movie is to begin shooting in 2025 and will be released in 2026 if things go well.
All the best for this ambitious project. We hope it justifies the benchmarks.
A dream that refused to die...
— Saregama (@saregamaglobal) September 11, 2024
A love that went beyond the grave...#KamalAurMeena
@sidpmalhotra @bilalamrohi @arrahman @kausarmuni @irshad_kamil #bhavaniiyer @rohandeepsbisht @saregamaglobal @StudiosTom31788 @YoodleeFilms pic.twitter.com/fIm0Vm1rnh