Umrao Jaan
Directed by:
J.P. DuttaScreenplay:
J.P. DuttaCinematography:
Ayananka BoseComposer:
Anu MalikCast:
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Sunil Shetty, Abhishek Bachchan, Puru Rajkumar, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Divya Dutta, Parikshat Sahni (more)VOD (1)
Plots(1)
In 1840, eight year old Amiran (Bansree Mandhani) is kidnapped from her home in Faizabad by Dilawar Khan (Vishwajeet Pradhan) who had been sent to jail based upon the evidence presented by Amiran's father. To take his revenge, he kidnaps Amiran and sells her to a brothel in Lucknow, run by Khannum Jaan (Shabana Azmi). She is adopted by Bua Hussaini (Himani Shivpuri) and Maulvi Sahib (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) who treat her as their own daughter. In the company of Khurshid (Ayesha Jhulka), Bismillah (Divya Dutta) and Gauhar Mirza (Puru Rajkumar), Amiran learns the art of being a courtesan. The young girl turns into an elegant, poetic beauty by the name of Umrao Jaan (Aishwarya Rai). Umrao's beauty and poetry is enough to catch the eye of Nawab Sultan (Abhishek Bachchan). The two begin a passionate romance, but when his father finds out he disowns Nawab Sultan from his life, wealth and property. The penniless Nawab goes to his uncle's Nazimuddin in Grahi to sort himself out and Umrao prays everyday for his return. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Reviews (1)
This is Umrao Jaan Ady’s magnificent melodramatic story told by her across the flow of time... Above all, this is an opportunity to see flawless acting by Aishwarya Rai and the storytellers through big colorful screens. Gold is the most predominant of all the colors - it is the color of the beautiful saris, jewelry, and the golden cage in which Umrao is imprisoned. A visual orgy of the senses leads the axis of five perfect performances of the divine courtesan, inspiring a feud between two powerful men who will ultimately cause her downfall. As we approach that bitter end, the colors of the sari change to an icy blue. Aishwarya dominates the entire film, leaving no one in doubt that Umrao is her top role directly following Paro from the spectacular Devdas. None of the ensemble cast is nearly as good as her, including even the likes of Abhishek Bachchan and Shabana Azmi. Aishwarya is an icon of the entire Indian film industry and if it is possible to capture her at her peak for the next generation, then that has been done in this film.
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