Mughal-e-Azam (1960)
A prince, a court dancer and an emperor who will not bend. Possibly the most lavish production of its era.
- Year
- 1960
- Language
- Hindi / Urdu
- Director
- K. Asif
- Starring
- Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, Durga Khote
- Also
- Music by Naushad
The story
Prince Salim, son of the Emperor Akbar, falls in love with Anarkali, a dancer at the royal court. Akbar refuses to accept the match, and the conflict between father and son grows into open war.
The film is told in grand, theatrical style, with formal Urdu dialogue, huge sets and celebrated songs.
Why it matters
- It took more than a decade to make and was famous for its scale.
- The song "Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya", set in a palace hall of mirrors, was one of the few sequences shot in colour in an otherwise black-and-white film.
- A digitally colourised version was released in cinemas in 2004, and a stage musical based on the film has toured India in recent years.
- Madhubala's Anarkali is one of the most iconic performances in Hindi cinema.
Where to watch
Both the black-and-white and the colour versions are available through licensed services. 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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