| Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Abrar Alvi Guru Dutt (songs) |
| Based on | Saheb Bibi Golam (1956 film) (Bengali) |
| Screenplay by |
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| Produced by | Guru Dutt |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | V. K. Murthy |
| Edited by | Y. G. Chawhan |
| Music by | Hemant Kumar Shakeel Badayuni (film song lyrics) |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 152 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Box office | ₹8.4 million[2] |
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (transl. The Master, the Wife, and the Slave) is a 1962 IndianHindi-languagedrama film directed byAbrar Alvi, produced & co–directed byGuru Dutt, who also co-stars in it alongsideMeena Kumari,Rehman, andWaheeda Rehman. It is a remake of the 1956Bengali filmSaheb Bibi Golam,[3] which itself is based onBimal Mitra's1953 novel of the same name. It is set in the 19th century during theBritish Raj and focuses on Bhoothnath (Dutt), who meets Chhoti Bahu (Kumari), the lonely wife of azamindar (Rehman). The film follows Chhoti Bahu's effort to keep her husband—who likes drinking and watchingtawaifs perform—at their home by drinking with him. She becomes addicted to alcohol, leading both of them into bankruptcy.[4]
The book's rights were bought after his production ventureChaudhvin Ka Chand (1960) became commercially successful and covered hiscompany's loss following the failure ofKaagaz Ke Phool (1959), his previous directorial project. Mitra and Alvi took a year to write the screenplay, facing difficulties in translating the novel from Bengali to Hindi.Principal photography took place inAndheri andDhanyakuria with cinematographerV. K. Murthy; the film was edited by Y. G. Chawhan.Hemant Kumar composed the soundtrack andShakeel Badayuni wrote the lyrics.
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam was released on 29 July 1962. Although it commercially failed with a gross of₹8.4 million (US$99,000),it garnered positive responses from critics; most appreciation was given to the cast's performances, particularly that of Kumari, and Murthy's cinematography.Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam won fourFilmfare Awards, includingBest Film,Best Director for Alvi, andBest Actress for Kumari. It also received theNational Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi and theBengal Film Journalists' Association Award for Sixth Best Indian Film, and Alvi was awarded theBest Director trophy at the latter function. The film was chosen as theIndian submission for theAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film but it was not nominated.
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam became a milestone ofBollywood[citation needed] and is considered among the most important films in Dutt's career.[citation needed] In 2012, its screenplay was published as a book titledSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam: The Original Screenplay, which also contains interviews with the film's cast and crew. On the centenary of Indian cinema in 2013,IBN Live includedSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam in their listing of "100 Greatest Indian Films of All Time".[5]
InCalcutta, a group of labourers is demolishing the ruins of an oldhaveli. When the workers break for lunch, the overseer walks around the site. As he sits, a flashback to the late 19th century begins.
The lower-class yet educated Atulya "Bhoothnath" Chakraborty arrives in the colonial Calcutta looking for work. Along with his brother-in-law, he lives in thehaveli of the Choudhuryzamindar family. Bhoothnath meets Subinay, a dedicated member of the religious sectBrahmo Samaj, and the owner of the factory Mohini Sindoor. Subinay's daughter Jabba hears their conversation and is amused by the behaviour of Bhoothnath, whom she considers an unsophisticated rural dweller. Over time, the two develop an attraction to each other. Bhoothnath becomes fascinated with the goings-on in thehaveli and every night he observes the Choudhury brothers' decadent lifestyle.
One night, Bansi, another servant at the haveli, introduces Bhoothnath to the younger zamindar’s wife, Chhoti Bahu. She pleads with him to bring her someMohini sindoor, believing it will help mend her strained marriage to Chhote Babu, who spends most of his time with a dancing girl. Moved by her sorrow, Bhoothnath unintentionally becomes her secret confidant. When her efforts to win back her husband’s affection fail, she begins drinking with him in a bid to keep him close.
In the meanwhile, Subinay falls ill and closes the factory as he is unable to manage it due to his ill health. He also fixes Jabba's marriage to Supavitra, who is also a Brahmo Samaj member. Learning about this, a heartbroken Bhoothnath leaves from there. He becomes a trainee architect and is assigned to work on a project in a different town.
A few months later, he comes back to enquire on his mentor Subinay's health, and learns that he has succumbed to his illness. After the death of Subinay, Jabba breaks her engagement to Supavitra. Bhoothnath also discovers that long ago he and Jabba werebetrothed as children.
When Bhootnath visits thehaveli, he sees it has been partially ruined and the Choudhurys have fallen on bad times. Chhoti Bahu is now a desperate alcoholic and her husband is paralysed. He chastises her on her drinking and they have an argument. Their conversation is overheard by the elderzamindar Majhle Babu, who suspects Chhoti Bahu is having an affair with Bhoothnath.
One night, when Chhoti Bahu asks Bhoothnath to accompany her to a nearby shrine to pray for her husband; Majhle Babu orders his henchmen to chase them. Bhoothnath and Chhoti Bahu travel in a carriage, but Majhle Babu's henchmen stop it. Bhoothnath is knocked unconscious and Chhoti Bahu is abducted. When he wakes up in the hospital, Bansi tells Bhoothnath that Chhoti Bahu has disappeared and her husband is dead.
The flashback ends. Bhoothnath's workers inform him a skeleton has been found in the ruins of thehaveli. From the jewellery on the corpse, Bhoothnath realises it is the remains of Chhoti Bahu. In the last scene, a nostalgic Bhoothnath rides away in a carriage with Jabba, who is now his wife.
The cast is listed below:[6]
Guru Dutt wanted to adaptBimal Mitra's novelSaheb Bibi Golam (1953) into a film after reading it and watching its staged version at Rang Mahal Theatre, Calcutta, with his wifeGeeta, Mitra, andAbrar Alvi.[7][8] This marked the novel's second cinematic adaptation after the1956 version.[9] The novel was written in and never translated fromBengali. Dutt asked Alvi to write a screenplay; according to Alvi, he was surprised Dutt gave him the offer because Dutt had previously discharged him from his companyGuru Dutt Movies Pvt. Ltd. after Dutt'sKaagaz Ke Phool (1959), in which Alvi served as the screenwriter, became aflop and he could not pay his workers.[7] Since then, Dutt decided to not direct any films he worked on.[10] After his next releaseChaudhvin Ka Chand (1960) commercially succeeded, he was able to save the studio from bankruptcy and later acquired the rights ofSaheb Bibi Golam.[11] Dutt and Alvi started translating the novel toHindi but Alvi was not fluent in Bengali. They tried translating it word-for-word but realised the process would be really slow and stopped after a few days.[7]
Dutt invited Mitra, who lived in Calcutta, to visit him at a bungalow Dutt rented inKhandala. Alvi said Dutt was thorough on any aspects of his projects and that the bungalow was used to ensure both Mitra and Alvi concentrated on writing the screenplay. After arriving in Khandala, Mitra and Alvi invited a "Mr. Mukherjee", who was fluent in Bengali and Hindi, to be a "bridge between us". The translator, however, gave up after fifteen days, asking them to do the rest by themselves. Alvi said the screenplay was written "slowly but surely"; he and Mitra made many changes to the story so the film would be fit with Hindi audience's interest. For instance, they removed several characters who appear in the novel version, includingSwami Vivekananda, and made Bhoothnath more naïve and less educated.[12] Dutt's biographerNasreen Munni Kabir estimated the translating took two months and said Dutt, who was impressed by the screenplay, suggested Alvi to direct the film.[11][13]Yasser Usman reported it was the first time the screenplay of a film Dutt produced was finished before filming began. In preparation, Alvi was sent to Calcutta to learn about the Bengalimilieu and thezamindars' background.[14]
Dutt and Alvi completed the casting;[15] their first choice to play Bhoothnath wasShashi Kapoor, who was invited for a meeting with Dutt but he arrived two-and-a-half hours late, which irritated Dutt, who then declined to cast him.[16]Biswajit Chatterjee, who portrayed Bhoothnath in the play, became Dutt's next choice; he and Chatterjee had dinner at theGrand Hotel to discuss it.[8] The film was to be Chatterjee'sBollywood debut but his friends and fans informed him his popularity among Bengali people was increasing, so he reluctantly rejected the offer, a decision he later regretted.[17] The role was eventually played by Dutt, who had to shave his moustache to make him look younger.[18]
Chhaya Arya, the wife of the photographer Jitendra Arya, was suggested to portray Chhoti Bahu.[19] Living in London, the film's production team asked her to move toBombay (now Mumbai). In October 1960,[20] she arrived there for a photograph session. When seeing the results, Dutt felt she was not too wanton- or motherly-looking for the role.[21] He searched for a more suitable female actor and choseMeena Kumari for the role.[a] In 1953, Kumari lost the opportunity to be cast for a role inDevdas (1955), which was eventually given toSuchitra Sen,[24][25] Kumari's husbandKamal Amrohi refused his offers, feeling Chhoti Bahu had a negative reputation; he asked for₹600,000 (US$7,100) but Dutt could pay₹200,000 (US$2,400) only.[26] Kumari persuaded Dutt she was the only actor who was capable of playing the role and, by 1962, she finally got the role. Alvi said Kumari was entranced by the film's themes and saw the role had the potential to boost her career.[27]
The film marked the sixth collaboration between Waheeda Rehman and Dutt.[28][29] InSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, Waheeda Rehman stars as the "couldn't-care-less carefree" Jabba.[30] After reading the novel, she wanted to play Chhoti Bahu but Dutt felt she was too young for that role, saying she looked more like a girl than a woman. Still insisting, she asked Dutt and the film's cinematographerV. K. Murthy for a photograph session in which she would dress up as Chhoti Bahu, wearing aBengali sari and atilaka. After looking at the photographs, Murthy agreed with Dutt and likened her to a child. When Alvi was appointed to direct the film, he called in Waheeda Rehman was and offered her the part of Jabba. Dutt disapproved of this casting because she was an established actress and he did not want her cast as the second female lead after Kumari. According to Dutt, the film's title represents its three leads;Sahib for Rehman,Bibi for Kumari, andGhulam for Dutt, but these excluded Waheeda Rehman. She, however, told Dutt she was fine by it.[31]
Principal photography forSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam took place inAndheri and a forty-to-fifty-roomhaveli inDhanyakuria.[32] It started on 1 January 1961 with amuhurat ceremony that was attended by the film's production team. The cinematographer was Murthy and the sets were designed byBiren Nag.[33]Bhanu Athaiya, who knew little about Bengali people and their looks, designed the costumes; Dutt sent her to Calcutta to prepare for filming.[34] According to Usman, Athaiya was also involved in the film's directing, especially that of the song sequences,[35] though only Alvi's name appears in the credits.[36]
Filming, except for the scenes that feature Chhoti Bahu, was almost completed by the beginning of 1962;[37] filming was completed with a 45-consecutive-day schedule in Andheri.[38] There are no scenes of Chhoti Bahu and Jabba together; Waheeda Rehman wanted to act with Kumari so she asked Dutt to rework the story. She suggested a scene in which Jabba persistently asks Bhootnath about Chhoti Bahu and he later takes her to thehaveli. Dutt, however, dismissed the idea, saying the characters never meet in the novel and that the audience would not be interested by it.[39] After filming, P. Thackersey and Y. G. Chawhan handled the sound and editing, respectively.[40][41]
The soundtrack—released bySaregama—was composed by Hemant Kumar,Shakeel Badayuni wrote the lyrics,[6] and Geeta andAsha Bhosle sang vocals.[42] Dutt directed the songs but Alvi replaced him while he was absent from the sets during the filming of "Bhanwara Bada Nadan". Dutt watched the result ten times but felt disappointed and re-filmed it by adding comedic elements.[43] After the film's release, Dutt cut the song "Sahil Ki Taraf" from the climax, in which Chhoti Bahu rests her head on Bhoothnath's lap because the audience criticised it. Kumar reused the song for "Ya Dil Ki Suno Duniyawalo"[44] for the 1966 filmAnupama.[45]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Meri Baat Rahi Meri Man Men" | Asha Bhosle | 4:10 |
| 2. | "Meri Jaan O Meri Jaan" | Asha Bhosle | 3:38 |
| 3. | "Sakhiya Aaj Mujhe Neend Nahin" | Asha Bhosle | 5:46 |
| 4. | "Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam Theme" (Instrumental) | 3:03 | |
| 5. | "Bhanwara Bada Nadan" | Asha Bhosle | 4:29 |
| 6. | "Chale Aao Chale Aao" | Geeta Dutt | 1:43 |
| 7. | "Na Jao Saiyan Chhuda Ke Baiyan" | Geeta Dutt | 4:07 |
| 8. | "Piya Aiso Jiya Men Samaya Gao" | Geeta Dutt | 4:15 |
| Total length: | 31:11 | ||
Posters forSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam were printed by Dutt and Alvi.[15] When the film was released on 29 July 1962,[46][47] the initial audience response was negative. A day after its premiere, Dutt went to Bombay's Minerva Cinema[48] and observed audiences were disappointed by the scene in which Chhoti Bahu asks for a last sip of alcohol and the song "Sahil Ki Taraf" that made the relationship between Chhoti Bahu and Bhoothnath ambiguous. He visited the directorK. Asif's house and was suggested to make Chhoti Bahu recover from her addiction and her marital relationship improve. Dutt asked Alvi and Mitra to write a new climax and invited Kumari for another day's filming. The next day, while they were discussing the unexpected changes, Dutt decided to maintain it, and instead removed the Chhoti Bahu scene and "Sahil Ki Taraf", saying he did not mind if the film became a box-office disappointment. He added it was not possible to create another scene because the changes would the audience would be confused about the film's plot.[49]
Exact figures for the film's box-office earnings are not available. Firoze Rangoonwala, in the 1973 bookGuru Dutt, 1925–1965: A Monograph, reported it performed poorly but better thanKaagaz Ke Phool (1959),[50] while in 2005Stardust calledSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam an "average grosser".[51]Box Office India estimated its total gross to be₹8.4 million (US$99,000), supporting Rangoonwala's claim.[2]Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam was the official submission from India to the13th Berlin International Film Festival, for which a shorter version was made.[52] On 26 June 1963, Dutt, Kumari, Waheeda Rehman with sister Sayeeda, and Alvi arrived inEast Berlin and the screening occurred the next evening.[53] All twenty-five people attending the screening gave a poor response to the film's melodramatic plot, unrelatable themes, and slow screenplay.[54]Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam received aGolden Bear nomination but lost to the French comedyTo Bed or Not to Bed and the Japanese action filmBushido, Samurai Saga (both 1963).[55]
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam received positive feedback from both contemporaneous and modern critics,[56] who praised the cast's performances—particularly that of Kumari—the cinematography, the costumes and the art direction.[10][57] Reviewers panned the way Chhoti Bahu is unconventionally depicted as an alcoholic woman.[50] In a review dated 24 June 1962, a writer forThe Times of India said the film is excellent because of its well-written screenplay that makes an effective balance between the characters and emotional sequences, and "provides a neat dramatic pattern". Calling the film "a classic in celluloid", he said it does "a specially successful job" though it is based on Mitra's novel, which the reviewer called untidy and with a wordy writing style.[58] Kabir, who collected Dutt's handwritten letters for a book titledYours Guru Dutt (2006), reported it is one of few reviews Dutt read during his lifetime.[59]
Vinod Mehta, who biographed Kumari's life in 1972, said Kumari overshadows her co-stars and added; "Gone were the traces of frivolity, gone was the look of undernourishment, gone was the look of the 'girl-next-door'. She was now a woman of sharp, mature, mysterious persona ... whose one smile concealed a thousand enigmas."[60] In her 1985 bookProfiles: Five Film-makers from India, Shampa Banerjee complimented Kumari for being the greatest performer in the film. She also found Bhoothnath to be completely different Dutt's previous roles, noting its "rustic simplicity and comic innocence, coupled with a deeply compassionate nature, lent Bhootnath's character an immediate realism, a natural complexity, which justified the keen internal version of the older Bhootnath who recounts the tale".[61] On 19 February 1989,The Illustrated Weekly of India'sKhalid Mohamed called Waheeda Rehman's role equal to that of Kumari's and wrote of her importance in the film, even though hers is a supporting role whereas Kumari's is a lead.[62]
Dinesh Raheja, writing forRediff.com in 2003, called the film "a fascinating mood movie made by people gifted with acute sensitivity". He said Dutt was at his best when playing Bhootnath without his moustache. Raheja, however, was critical of Rehman and said her scenes could be partly removed because her character, which he deemed perky, is less important to the film's main plot.[63] Writing forThe Hindu in 2008, A. P. S. Malhotra said Kumari's portrayal of a "career-defining role" is an "awe-inspiring performance". He praised Athaiya's costumes and Murthy's cinematography, stating both are outstanding throughout the film.[10]Anna M. M. Vetticad, in an article published byFirstpost in 2020, said Kumari played her role brilliantly and commended the film's production, including the art direction.[64] In 2021, Sampada Sharma ofThe Indian Express wrote of Kumari; "Her perpetually melancholic eyes and her pristine beauty make her a tragic figure who is slowly drowning in a sea of despair".[65]
The film won aNational Film Award in the categoryBest Feature Film in Hindi, and at the10th Filmfare Awards, it wonBest Film,Best Director (Alvi), andBest Actress (Kumari).[66][67] TheFilm Federation of India choseSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam torepresent India in theBest Foreign Language Film award at the35th Academy Awards over theTamil-language romantic dramaNenjil Or Aalayam (1962).[68]Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, however, failed to be nominated and theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences wrote to Dutt telling him according to American culture, it was inappropriate for a woman to be an alcoholic.[69][70]
| Award | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26th Annual BFJA Awards | Best Indian Films (Sixth) | Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam | Won | [71] |
| Best Director (Hindi) | Abrar Alvi | Won | ||
| Best Actor (Hindi) | Guru Dutt | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actor (Hindi) | Rehman | Won | ||
| Best Cinematographer (Hindi) | V. K. Murthy | Won | ||
| Best Dialogue (Hindi) | Abrar Alvi | Won | ||
| 13th Berlin International Film Festival | Golden Bear | Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam | Nominated | [72] |
| 10th Filmfare Awards | Best Film | Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam | Won | [67] [73] |
| Best Director | Abrar Alvi | Won | ||
| Best Actor | Guru Dutt | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress | Meena Kumari | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Rehman | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Waheeda Rehman | Nominated | ||
| Best Story | Bimal Mitra | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | V. K. Murthy | Won | ||
| 10th National Film Awards | Best Feature Film in Hindi | Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam | Won | [66] |
"It must have been in 1961 or 1962. I don’t remember the exact date, but it was during the filming of the final scene inSahib Bibi [Aur Ghulam]. Jabba is waiting for Bhoothnath in a carriage in the haveli ruins. That was the last time we worked together. He never offered me another role afterSahib Bibi [Aur Ghulam]."
— Waheeda Rehman on Dutt ending their collaboration with the film[39]
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam attainedcult status and became a milestone in Hindi cinema.[64][74] Along withPyaasa (1957) andKaagaz Ke Phool (1959), critics have regardedSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam among Dutt's best work.[75][76] According to Banerjee,Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam is Dutt's last major contribution to the industry.[61] It is also the only film Alvi directed.[77] Film experts have regarded Kumari's performance inSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam as one of the best of her career;[78] according toTejaswini Ganti, the film made her particularly known for tragic roles,[79] and Raheja commented; "Meena took the audience on an unforgettable odyssey into the inner recesses of the mind of an emotionally and physically cloistered woman".[80] Kumari played similar roles in several more films, including the dramasDil Ek Mandir (1963),Chitralekha (1964),Gazal (1964),Kaajal (1965),Phool Aur Patthar (1966) andPakeezah (1972).[81][82] Dutt collaborated with Kumari again inSanjh Aur Savera (1964), which was his last film to be released during his lifetime.[83][84]
Several lists have includedSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam. In 2005,Rachel Dwyer selected the film for her book100 Bollywood Films,[85] andThe Times of India's Rachna Kanwar included it in her listing of "25 Must See Bollywood Movies", commenting: "Chhoti Bahu is the most spectacular character in tragedienne Meena Kumari's career; a role that was uncannily similar to her own life Meena Kumari, like the miraculous sindoor she yearns for in the film mesmerizes you with her acting skills ... The film remains with you forever simply because of the splendid performance of Meena Kumari."[86] As part of celebrations of the centenary of Indian cinema in 2013,Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam was featured byIBN Live on their lists of "100 Greatest Indian Films of All Time".[5] In the same year,Filmfare listed among the "100 Best Films" released between 1958 and 1969.[87] The next year, the American IndologistPhilip Lutgendorf of theUniversity of Iowa chose the film for his list of "Ten Indian Popular Films that are Not-to-be-missed".[88] Dwyer, in an article forHindustan Times, listed the film in "70 Iconic Movies of Independent India" in 2017.[89] On India's 75thIndependence Day in 2021,Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam appeared inThe Indian Express' list of "75 Films that Celebrate the Journey of India".[90]
In a 1994 interview withSight & Sound, the scholarAshish Rajadhyaksha considered the film a much more accurate depiction of India's corrupt 19th-centuryfeudalism thanSatyajit Ray's dramaJalsaghar (1958).[91] In 2010, a retrospective of Dutt's films, includingSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, was screened in Israel and was positively received by the audience.[92]Jai Arjun Singh wrote the following year it is "one of Hindi cinema's most vivid treatments of a transitional period in India's social history".[93] A dialogue from Rehman to Kumari "Gehne tudwao, gehne banvao. Aur koriyaan khelo. So aaram se." (Break old jewellery sets, make new ones. Play with shells. And sleep.), and Kumari's dialogue "Hindu ghar ki bahu hokar, kya sharab pee hai kissine?" (Has any Hindu household's daughter-in-law ever drunk liquor?) attained popularity.[63] In 2012, film historiansDinesh Raheja and Jitendra Kothari published the film's screenplay as a book titledSahib Bibi Aur Ghulam: The Original Screenplay, which also contains the authors' interviews with the surviving cast and crew.[25][31]
