Punjabi Movies & Films Resources

If one just happens to mention Maula Jat that has been one of the biggest blockbusters of the Punjabi Movies all polite conversation ends might probably end at that point among the Pakistani circles. Maula Jat is a famous Punjabi movie that was set against the backdrop of Zia's Martial Law and Bhutto's trial and hanging. This movie came out on the eve of the final act of the Zia-Bhutto drama. The villain in the movie who is played by Mustufa Qureishi is meant to be a soft-spoken, polite character who wants total power. This movie was very successful in Punjab and rural Sindh, basically the predominantly Bhutto constituencies. It was in 1935 that the first Punjabi film that was called Pind di Kuri was produced. This movie was produced in Calcutta and not in Lahore. In this movie the director Gazdar smoothly moves beyond the national histories. The director makes an attempt to resurrect the literary theory of Kautilya, Chanikya and the aristocratic attitudes towards art of Akbar, the Mughals, the courtiers, traders and the peasants.

The very first film that was made in a Lahore studio was Delhi Express (1935) and of course since then many Urdu and Punjabi films have emerged from Lahore every year.

In1954 a milestone in the history of films in Pakistan was set when a Punjabi film Sassi was released. This Punjabi movie featured Sabiha Khanum, Sudhir and Asha Posle. This movie the film was directed by seasoned director Daud Chand The music director of the movie was G A Chishti. This movie turned out to be the first Pakistani film to be a golden jubilee hit.One of the famous and successful movies that emerged was Arman. The record which was set by tbe success of Arman was then later only be broken five years later by a Punjab Films production Dosti in 1971. The best movie that set all of these previous records rolling was released two years later. This widely successful Punjabi movie was the earlier mentioned Maula Jat featuring violent hero Sultan Rahi. This movie ran in the theatres for so many years long that people simply lost track. This movie had such a strong impact on the Punjabi Movies that were made henceforth that the word Jat was tagged on to the title of every Punjabi Movie that was released since then.

The current trend in the Punjabi movies is changing. A healthy competitive spirit is developing among producers and directors who are now making healthy attempts to make quality films.

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