Mother India (1957)
A poor village mother holds her family together through debt, flood and famine. One of the founding epics of Indian cinema.
- Year
- 1957
- Language
- Hindi
- Director
- Mehboob Khan
- Starring
- Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar, Raaj Kumar
- Also
- Remake of Mehboob Khan's own Aurat (1940)
The story
Radha, played by Nargis, is a newly married woman in a farming village. Her family falls into the hands of a greedy moneylender, Sukhilala, and over the years she loses almost everything. She raises her sons alone, refusing to give up her land or her dignity.
The story is told largely in flashback and ends with a famous moral choice between love for her rebellious son Birju (Sunil Dutt) and justice for the village.
Why it matters
- It was India's first film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
- Nargis's performance is still one of the most admired in Indian film history.
- Its image of the self-sacrificing mother shaped Hindi cinema for decades.
Where to watch
Mother India is available on licensed streaming services and in restored versions on official studio channels. Availability changes from country to country and month to month; see how to find a legal stream. Please don't use pirate download sites: they are illegal in India and a common source of malware.
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