History Punjabi cinema

1 history

1.1 sound films (1930s–1946)
1.2 post–punjab partition

1.2.1 1950s
1.2.2 1960s
1.2.3 1970s
1.2.4 1980s
1.2.5 1990s
1.2.6 2000s
1.2.7 2010s

history

film operations started in 1920s in lahore, provincial capital of british punjab. first silent film, daughters of today, released in 1924 in lahore; city had 9 operational cinema houses. movies shown @ these cinemas produced in bombay , calcutta, , seldom hollywood , london.

the daughters of today brainchild of g.k. mehta, former officer north-western railways who, h. s. bhatavdekar, had imported camera country. mehta continued produce newsreel coverage companies abroad , delved further film projects dedication gave way when promptly left film industry more profitable ventures. later in 1929–1930, when abdur rashid kardar s husn ka daku released, film industry had established in essence in lahore s bhati gate locality. kardar, professional calligraphist, accompanied fellow-artist , friend muhammad ismail, make posters films.

sound films (1930s–1946)

although kardar had worked g.k. mehta on daughters of today, felt needed continue working , stay active in industry. alongside ismail, sold belongings set studio , production company under name united players corporation, in 1928. set @ ravi road (now timber market), duo hired actors work them on projects. shooting done in daylight , limited productivity, area encompassed enriched locations, including important landmarks.

the duo modeled work on american , english films influences not prevalent in actors attires movie titles , expressed desire seek means necessary make sound film of own. actors worked studio included hiralal, gul hamid, nazir, pran sikhand, kaushalya devi, gulzaar, mumtaaz , ahmed deen. husn ka daku, known mysterious eagle, kardar s directorial début firmly add him directors guild. produced hakim ram prasad, 1932 released heer ranjha, titled hoor punjab, first punjabi sound film ever made. hakim provided studio equipment necessary direct sound film, marked last directed kardar in lahore, starring m. ismail while launching careers of rafiq ghaznavi, nazeer , anwari.

produced indira movie tone, krishna dev mehra released directorial début, pind di kudi, in 1935. sound film, pind di kudi produced in calcutta , released in lahore , introduced young noor jahan actor , playback singer. due success of film, interest in punjabi films started escalate; therefore, in 1938, assistance of madan mohan mehra, k.d. mehra released second punjabi sound film, heer sial.

studios started open , many actors, filmmakers , technicians shifted bombay , calcutta lahore. prominent names included shanta apte, motilal, chandra mohan, hiralal, noor jehan, mumtaz shanti, wali, syed attahullah shah hashmi, krishna kumar, , shanker hussain. baldev raj chopra, later known director, started punjabi film industry in lahore, operated film magazine called cine herald. likewise, ramanand sagar, later director, associated evening news , syed attahullah shah hashmi worked film newspaper, adakar.

till date, bhati gate known have produced of notable actors, writers , artists, tensions running swift towards independence of pakistan , india in 1947, of actors traveled areas part of modern india. industry left in lahore later termed lollywood, portmanteau of lahore , hollywood.

post–punjab partition

in 1947, british province of punjab partitioned between india , pakistan. west punjab became part of pakistan , east punjab became part of india. affected punjabi cinema because muslim artists , directors moved pakistan, , worked in lollywood, while sikhs , hindus moved bombay.

1950s

attempts made keep punjabi cinema alive in period. filmmakers made films posti, lachhian , bhangra success not able revive punjabi cinema. songs films run months , years on radio resulting in long-term audience films.

post-partition, trend of comedies continued. 1 of hit comedies mulkh raj bhakhri s bhangra (1958), starring sundar , nishi. remade director mohan bhakhri jatti in 1980 mehar mittal , aparna chowdhry, , again commercial success. music film hansraj behl lyrics verma malik. songs sung shamshad , rafi batti balkay banere utte rakhdi han, rah bhul na jave chann mera , chitte dand hasnon nayion rehnde widespread hits. johnny walker (1957) hit.

1960s

the big-budget romantic punjabi film director padam prakash maheshwary, satluj de kande, released in 1964. film starred balraj sahni, nishi, wasti, , mirza musharraf, music hansraj behl. punjabi film starring balraj sahni. major hit , earned national film award. satluj de kande telecasted 3 times on public tv channel doordarshan in india.

in 1969 religious film nanak nam jahaz hai starring prithviraj kapoor, i. s. johar, vimmi, som dutt, nishi, suresh, , david abraham released. film first major successful punjabi film in post-independent india, major cultural impact on punjabi sikhs @ home , abroad, , credited revival of punjabi film industry in india. people stood in kilometre-long lines buy ticket film.

1970s

after success of nanak nam jahaz hai, films released in huge numbers. hindi actors of punjabi descent became interested in punjabi films. kankan de ohle (dharmendra, asha parekh , ravindra kapoor) , nanak dukhiya sab sansar (dara singh, balraj sahni, ram mohan , asha sachdev) released in 1970. 1971 saw no major releases. in 1972, dara singh starred prithviraj kapoor in mele mitran de. man jeete jag jeet, religious film starring sunil dutt, radha saluja , ranjeet, major release of 1973. in 1974, sher (dharmendra , rajendra kumar), bhagat dhanna jatt (dara singh , feroz khan), sacha mera roop hai (manmohan krishan) , dukh bhanjan tera naam (shaminder singh , radha saluja) released. successful dukh bhanjan tera naam, due wide appeal of religious historical setting , appearances bollywood actors including sunil dutt, rajendra kumar, dharmendra, johnny walker, ranjeet , dara singh.

teri meri ik jindri (1975) starred dharmendra , introduced cousin veerendra. many films released in 1976: daaj, giddha, main papi tum bakhshanhaar, papi tarey anek, santo banto, sardar-e-azam, sawa lakh se ek ladaun, taakra, , yamla jatt. sawa lakh se ek ladaun biggest hit , starred dara singh in main lead; rajesh khanna made special appearance qawal. film ran conflict sikh political parties film had fauj-i-khas soldiers wearing fake beards. year 1977 not major 1 punjabi film industry. jai mata di, saal solvan chadya, sat sri akal, , shaheed kartar singh sarabha released, amongst others. saal solvan chadya highlight because of cameo appearance rekha. sat sri akal hit film. starred sunil dutt, shatrughan sinha, , premnath. in 1978 udeekan, dhyani bhagat, jai mata sheranwali, , jindri yar di released. drama udeekan hit. walayati babu, first ever remake in punjabi cinema, released in 1978. film remade punjabi film of same name johnny walker; featured special appearance amitabh bachchan , mehar mittal played main lead. 1979 big year: guru manio granth, jatt punjabi, kunwara mama, sukhi pariwar, , til til dalekha released. religious film guru manio granth instant hit. jatt punjabi had big cast , special appearance manoj kumar. til til da lekha starred rajesh khanna main lead hero , mehar mittal played comedian s role; film became golden jubilee hit @ box office. til til dalekha second punjabi movie of rajesh khanna , first film lead hero in punjabi films. won punjab state government award best story writer , second best feature film of 1979. first punjabi mystery film, vangaar (the challenge), released failed become hit.

1980s

chann pardesi, first punjabi film win national award, released in 1980, , biggest hit of year. starred raj babbar, rama vij, amrish puri, om puri, , kulbhushan kharbanda. fauji chacha had veteran bollywood actor sanjeev kumar in lead. remake of mulkh raj bhakhri s 1958 film bhangra came out in 1980 director mohan bhakhri. film titled jatti, , starred sundar, nishi, mehar mittal, , aparna chowdhry. original, remake tremendous success.

1981 had 1 hit: balbiro bhabhi. film had veerendra in lead role. 2 major releases of 1985 ucha dar babe nanak da , sarpanch. former religious film established gurdas mann star. sarpanch starred veerendra. in 1983, many movies released, putt jattan de being biggest commercially. veerendra had hit in 1984 film yaari jatt di. first punjabi film have more half footage shot in united kingdom. mamla garbar hai hit actor gurdas mann. film s songs loved.

two hit films of 1985 mohammad sadiq s guddo , veerendra s vairi. long da lishkara big hit of 1986, starring raj babbar, gurdas mann, om puri, , nina deol. in 1987 veerendra starred in patola , jor jatt da. punjab shaken assassination of veerendra gunshot during filming of jatt tey zameen. death opened door supporting actors including guggu gill , yograj singh take leading roles.

1988 had no major film releases. in 1989 came critically acclaimed marhi da deeva. film starred raj babbar, pankaj kapur, kanwaljit singh, parikshit sahni, , deepti naval.

1990s

in 1990 qurbani jatt di released, starring guggu gill, yograj singh, gurdas mann, dharmendra, raj babbar , priti sapru. film directed preeti sapru herself, , did @ box office. second important release dushmani di agg, last film of veerendra. starred gurdas mann , priti sapru, , successful @ box office. in 1991 major film anakh jattan di starred daljeet kaur , guggu gill. first movie audience accepted ex-villain guggu gill hero. film followed films jor jatt da, managed recover cost. badla jatti da major success of year. starred guggu gill, yograj singh in villain role, , aman noorie. udeekan saun diyan garnered critical acclaim, not commercial success. sounh menoo punjab di, starring satish kaul, rama vij, mehar mittal, , pal randhawa 1 of releases of 1991. film directed sukhdev ahluwalia, 1 of successful directors of punjwood, , had music surinder kohli.

vaisakhi, starring deep dhillon , sunita dheer, released in 1991 critical acclaim, did not succeed commercially. jatt jeona morh major hit year, , made guggu gill superstar. released yograj singh s jagga daku, did moderately well. dil da mamla, starring guggu gill , amar noori, did poorly @ box office.

1993 had films jatt sucha singh soorma (with yograj singh , neena sidhu), mirza sahiban (starring guggu gill), lalkara jatt da, , saali adhi gharwali. these films managed adequately @ box office, not major successes. preeti sapru s mehndi shagnan di, starring malkit singh, hansraj hans, preeti sapru, , yograj singh, lost money. kudi canada di starring yograj singh did poorly.

kachehri (1994) starred gurdas mann, yograj singh, , others. film praised critics, commercial success, , won national award. second release tabahi, starring newcomer vishal singh; blockbuster hit of year. guggu gill s vairi did quite @ box office, jigra jatt da, yograj singh villain, did poorly @ box office.

kimi verma starred in naseebo , qahar in 1995 critical acclaim, not commercial success. naseebo managed recover costs. pratigya, starring guggu gill, gurdas maan, preeti sapru, , dara singh, did @ box office. zaildaar (yograj singh), nain preeto de (yograj singh), , sir dhad di baazi did well. gurdas mann s baghawat did not. jakhmi jagirdar , mera punjab amongst others did poorly year.

punjabi cinema began decline in 1996. film sukha (starring vishal singh) did @ box office. deson pardeson, dhee jatt di (upasana singh, gurkirtan, , shivinder mahal), vichoda (yograj singh), gawahi jatt di, , jorawar did poorly @ box office. dara singh s vindoo , farha s rabb diyan rakhan fared poorly.

films of 1997 (mela, truck driver, sardari, preetan de pehredaar, , pachtaawa) failed make profit. guggu gill s films not successful. train pakistan filmed in mixture of hindi , punjabi, , later dubbed punjabi film festivals.

in 1998, purja purja kat mare guggu gill, laali dara singh, ravinder maan, , vishal, , dildaara kalbhooshan kharbanda , tanuja did not make money. big budget films guru gobind singh did poorly. critically acclaimed film main maa punjab dee (directed balwant dullat) won national award. film main maa punjab dee has been shown repeatedly on national television. year ended on positive note jaspal bhatti s mahaul theek hai became instant hit of punjabi cinema. first big hit since jatt jeona morh (1991) , badla jatti da (1992).

punjabi films more successful in 1999. mahaul theek hai, shaheed-e-mohabbat boota singh gurdas maan , divya dutta critical , commercial success. muqqadar, tera mera pyar, nadiyon vichde neer, door nahin nankana, , ishq nachave gali gali (randeep virender, manjeet kullar, deepak saraf, neeru singh, , surinder sharma) did poorly @ box office. rajniti, made in hindi, failed make money. raj babbar s shaheed udham singh did towards end of year. there 2 major hits year, shaheed e mohabbat , shaheed udham singh.

2000s

in 2000 there single release: dard pardesan de, starring avinash wadhawan, upasana singh, paramveer, , deepshikha, fared poorly in punjab, did overseas. sikandra , jagira released in 2001. avinash wadhawan , ayesha jhulka starred in khalsa mero roop hai khaas, released overseas market not in punjab.

in 2002 jee ayan nu released, featuring singer-turned-actor harbhajan mann , directed manmohan singh. movie made on big budget punjwood - 9 million, compared more typical 20-25 million. successful. turning point in revival of punjabi cinema.

badla came out in 2003. asa nu maan watna da released in 2004, again actor harbhajan mann , director manmohan singh.

jija ji, des hoyaa pardes, main tu assi tussi, yaaran naal baharan, , nalaik released in 2005. dil apna punjabi (again pairing harbhajan , director manmohan), ek jind ek jaan (introducing prabhleen sandhu), mannat (directed , written gurbir singh grewal, having jimmy sheirgill , introducing kulraj randhawa), , waris shah: ishq daa waaris came out in 2006. kambdi kalai, punjabi diaspora movie based out of united states, came out in 2006. rustam-e-hind , mitti wajan mardi (with harbhajan , manmohan) released in 2007.

a significant number of movies produced in 2008: hashar: love story (introducing gurleen chopra), yaariyan, mera pind, lakh pardesi hoye, heaven on earth, , sat sri akal. in 2009, jag jeodeye deh mele became hit, , tera mera ki rishta jimmy shergill , kulraj randhawa hit. biggest earner of punjabi films manmohan singh s munde u.k. de jimmy shergill , gurpreet ghuggi.

munde u.k. de broke record of dil apna punjabi directed manmohan singh , became biggest earner of punjabi movies.

mehndi wale hath (2006), written , directed harinder gill , new-star cast of goldie somal, gavie chahal, , prableen, hit film in east punjab territory.

2010s

in 2010, 16 movies released. mel karade rabba starring jimmy shergill, gippy grewal later broke records , grossed 110 million net, becoming highest-grossing punjabi film ever. babbu maan s ekam – son of soil released in april , smash hit. brought british-punjabi actress mandy takhar industry. jawani zindabad, written , directed harinder gill , starring famous punjabi singer raj barar, pooja kanwal, guggu gill, , gurkirtan, released in march 2010. became big hit in canada. channa sachi muchi, written , directed harinder gill , starring miss pooja , goldie somal, released in august 2010. released in 2010 sukhmani (hope life), starring gurdas maan, juhi chawla & divya dutta.

in 2011, film ek noor starring harshdeep kaur , yami gautam released. chhevan dariya (the sixth river), directed ish amitoj kaur, released in september 2011. kaur first punjabi woman have directed, produced, , written punjabi film. film starred gulshan grover, neena gupta, manpreet singh, lakhwinder wadali, christa cannon , rana ranbir.

at end of year chak jawana released, directed simerjit singh , starring gurdas maan.

in february 2011, ptc punjabi channel organised first ever ptc punjabi film awards @ panchkula. tremendous boost industry , attended likes of om puri, prem chopra, gurdas maan, guddu dhanoa, preeti sapru, raza murad, satish kaul, manmohan singh, amrinder gill, gippy grewal, jasbir jassi, puneet issar, rakesh bedi, rama vij, sudhanshu pandey, , akriti kakkar.

2011 looks year when industry moves away typical nri-centered storylines , towards more meaningful , creative storylines movies lion of punjab starring diljit dosanjh , dharti starring rannvijay singh.

jihne mera dil luteya 2011 punjabi film directed mandeep kumar story , screenplay dheeraj rattan, produced batra showbiz pvt. ltd. , starring gippy grewal, diljit dosanjh, neeru bajwa, , jaswinder bhalla. grossed 125 million. these films raise bar of punjabi films , took punjabi cinema next level.

in september 2011, yaara o dildaara released, directed ksshitij chaudhary , starring harbhajan mann, tulip joshi, kabir bedi, , gurpreet ghuggi. in october, yaar annmulle introducing yuvraj hans , harish verma released. film box office hit.

this year considered golden year of punjabi cinema , industry reached many milestones in year having india impact. there release of hollywood-style film mirza – untold story costly film (₹9 crore (us$1.4 million)) in history of punjabi cinema in april starring yo yo honey singh , gippy grewal. in june film jatt & juliet greatest blockbuster , till holds title of best ever film of punjabi cinema. film established diljit dosanjh , neeru bajwa superstars of punjabi film industry. himesh reshammiya has purchased remake rights of movie ₹3.5 crore (us$550,000). in july 2012 out , out comedy film carry on jatta starring gippy grewal blockbuster after jatt & juliet commercially. first time in punjabi cinema sequel of sperhit film yaaran naal baharan, film yaraan naal baharaan 2 released.

in september, ajj de ranjhe starring deep dhillon , kul sidhu released. directed man ji. in october 2012, saadi wakhri hai shaan, directed gurbir grewal, released. film featured 8 songs, composed debut music director dilpreet bhatia. film s music contemporary fusion of western classical , punjabi folk music.

this year many new production houses started production of many comedy movies. binnu dhillon, gurpreet ghuggi, jaswinder bhalla, rana ranbir, karamjit anmol , b.n. sharma established greatest comedians of punjabi industry.

in august 2012, first ever punjabi international film academy awards organised in toronto, canada. tremendous success, attended host of punjabi stars. renewed interest public, punjabi cinema has seen revival more releases every year featuring bigger budgets, homegrown stars, , bollywood actors of punjabi descent taking part. there film festivals punjabi film festival, amritsar, ma boli international punjabi film festival, vancouver , punjabi international film festival, toronto held annually.

2013 carried golden phase of punjabi movies next level. superstars diljit dosanjh, neeru bajwa, gippy grewal , surveen chawla stole hearts of audiences successful films year. jatt & juliet 2 broke records of prequel jatt & juliet. jatt & juliet 2 released in pakistani punjab in on 15 screens , liked pakistani audiences.

sadda haq, true story based in late 1980s , 1990s during period of extreme turmoil in punjab second blockbuster of year 2013 after jatt & juliet 2. bhaji in problem starring gippy grewal blockbuster of year produced akshay kumar , having extended appearance along cricketer harbhajan singh. other hit films jimmy shergill s saadi love story starring diljit dosanjh, fer mamla gadbad gadbad starring roshan prince , japji khaira, jatts in golmaal starring arya babbar , samiksha, tu mera 22 main tera 22 starring yo yo honey singh , superstar gippy grewal s lucky di unlucky story , action flick singh vs kaur. religious film, pagri singh da taaj, released.

the hollywood blockbuster day die hard dubbed in punjabi superstar gippy grewal s voice released in punjab.

many meaningful films based on social issues , reality of punjab successful national award winner nabar, stupid 7 based on student life in punjab, chandigarh student politics based sikander, sadda haq, corruption , social issues based bikkar bai sentimental, religious film dastaar, punjab bolda, haani, , dil pardesi ho gaya.

this year saw production of first punjabi 3d feature film, pehchaan 3d, produced , directed manny parmar.

irrfan khan starrer qissa won 4 awards in indian international film festival of queensland of best actor award irrfan, best actress award tillotama shome, best director award anup singh , best cinematography sebastian edschmid.

in year 2014, around 42 films released , 80 percent of films slapstick comedies. successful films of year blockbusters chaar sahibzaade(3d), diljit dosanjh s punjab 1984, gippy grewal s jatt james bond, disco singh, double di trouble, mr & mrs 420, goreya nu daffa karo. in year many action films released kirpaan: sword of honour, fateh, romeo ranjha, yoddha warrior , baaz. released in january, patiala dreamz romantic thriller, right doses of action, suspense, romance , comedy. there many movies touching 1984 subject such punjab 1984, kaum de heere, 47 84 hun main kisnu watan kahunga. other films released in year aa gaye munde u.k. de starring jimmy shergill , neeru bajwa, mundeyan ton bachke rahin starring jassi gill, roshan prince , simran kaur mundi, dil vil pyaar vyaar starring gurdas mann , neeru bajwa.

also year many notable actors , singers debuted in punjabi cinema, year notably veteran actors dharmendra , poonam dhillon in double di trouble, famous bollywood comedian razak khan in marriage da garriage, bollywood actress zarine khan in jatt james bond, singer garry sandhu in romeo ranjha.

chaar sahibzaade first punjabi 3d animated historical drama film. blockbuster grossing on ₹70 crore (us$11 million) globally , made tax free governments of states madhya pradesh, delhi, punjab, uttrakhand, uttar pradesh.

canadian-punjabi feature film work weather wife represented canada @ 87th oscar awards (87th academy awards) , canadian film made final shortlist of 79 best original songs songs moon , long braid. @ 72nd golden globe awards best foreign language feature film , made top 53 films in long list. stars harpreet sandhu , reema nagra in lead role dilbag brar , kirat bhattal. directed harpreet sandhu.

year 2015 attributed few directors took risk of taking different subjects fresh stories , fresh actors , villains. diljit dosanjh, neeru bajwa , mandy takhar-starrer sardaar ji blockbuster film , achieved ₹50 crore (us$7.8 million) milestone gross earning record, according film pandits. second blockbuster film amrinder gill, sargun mehta, aditi sharma , binnu dhillon starrer, 1945 based rural punjabi love story angrej did both in punjab abroad.

punjabi films of strong storyline equally strong direction shareek (directed navaniat singh, starring jimmy shergill , mahie gill), qissa panjab (directed jatinder mauhar weaved in 7 different stories one), judge singh llb (directed atharv baluja first punjabi courtroom drama), gippy grewal s faraar (directed baljit singh deo brought in double role suspense) highest budget film ₹13 crore (us$2.0 million) in history of punjabi cinema. other flop films dildariyaan, hero naam yaad rakhi, mitti na pharol jogiya, oh yaara ainvayi ainvayi lut gaya, munde kamaal de. while films raking controversy or inviting ban mastermind jinda sukha , pata pata singhan da vairi , nanak shah fakir (temporarily faced ban in parts of country).

in 2016, high 41 movies released. ambarsariya, sardaar ji 2, love punjab, vaisakhi list, channo kamli yaar di, kaptaan, saadey cm saab, bambukat, chauthi koot, nikka zaildar of big commercial/critical winners.

in first half of 2017, new concept , excellent content paying dividends. super singh, manje bistre, jindua, lahoriye, sargi, saab bahadar, sarvann, rabb da radio , great sardaar of big commercial/critical winners.