Produced on a budget of ₹150million,[2]Umrao Jaan was released on 3 November 2006 in 600–700 screens worldwide[4] and grossed ₹195.2million.[3]
Plot
In 1840, a girl named Ameeran (Aishwarya Rai) is a joy in her parents' lives. She is kidnapped from her home in Faizabad by Dilawar Khan (Vishwajeet Pradhan) who had been sent to jail years before upon evidence presented by Ameeran's father. To take his revenge, Dilawar sells Ameeran to a brothel in Lucknow that is run by Khannum Jaan (Shabana Azmi). Bua Hussaini (Himani Shivpuri) and Maulvi Sahib (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) adopt Ameeran and treat her as their own daughter. In the company of Khurshid (Ayesha Jhulka), Bismillah (Divya Dutta), and one of the tawaif's sons, Gauhar Mirza (Puru Raaj Kumar), Ameeran learns the art of being a tawaif.
The girl grows into an elegant, poetic beauty by the name of Umrao Jaan (Aishwarya Rai), who catches the eye of Nawab Sultan Khan (Abhishek Bachchan). The two begin a passionate romance. Though Nawab Sultan's wealth grants him exclusivity to Umrao, he expresses suspicion that she may still offer her charms to other men, an accusation she detests. The lovers share a blissful time together until Nawab Sultan's father hears of their relationship and disowns him, stripping Nawab Sultan of his wealth. Promising Umrao that he will build their future and then return for her, the penniless Nawab goes to stay in the house of his uncle in Ghari, leaving Umrao desolate.
In Nawab Sultan's absence, Umrao catches the eye of the wealthy Faiz Ali (Sunil Shetty). Though she rejects his advances, he determinedly pursues her and eventually asks her to accompany him to his home in Daulatabad. Umrao accepts, but only upon learning that they will be traveling through Ghari. Along the way, the whole party is arrested by a group of state soldiers, and Faiz Ali is revealed to be a dacoit whom the soldiers have pursued for years. Nawab Sultan hears that Umrao and Faiz Ali are in Ghari and goes to meet Umrao, but first encounters the imprisoned Faiz Ali. Faiz Ali, realizing that Umrao only accompanied him so that she could reunite with Nawab Sultan, jealously manipulates Nawab into believing that Umrao and Faiz Ali had a sexual relationship. Believing that Umrao betrayed him, Nawab Sultan shuns her and has her escorted back to Lucknow. Umrao is crushed but refrains from begging Nawab to believe her, remembering that he had once vowed to never insult her with accusations of infidelity and feeling that his broken promise has destroyed their love anyway.
Heartbroken, she returns to Lucknow but fate has other plans for her. Upon her return, it is revealed that Maulvi Sahib, her adoptive father, had died while she was away. As she grapples with this grief, her childhood friend Gauhar Mirza (Puru Raaj Kumar), who had always lusted for her, reacts violently to her rejection and rapes her. Soon after, the British attack the city, and she is forced to flee, eventually traveling to her childhood home in Faizabad. There, she learns of her father's death years before and reunites with her mother and brother. She implores for their love, but they reject her for the shame she brought with her profession. Devastated, Umrao journeys back to her old life in Lucknow and on the way encounters Dilawar Khan, her childhood kidnapper. Wretched, homeless, injured, and suffering from leprosy, he begs Umrao for money, not recognizing her. She gives him her gold bangles and prays to God for his forgiveness. Ostracized by all and having forgiven those who destroyed her life, Umrao spends the remainder of her life in Lucknow with her poetry and memories.
Javed Khan as Peer Baksh (Dilawar Khan's accomplice)
Vimarsh Roshan
Bansree Madhani as Amiran (the young Umrao)
Alexandre Boisvert as Sultan Khan
Production
According to Dutta the film is based on the script written by his father O. P. Dutta,[5] which in turn was adapted from the classic Urdu novel Umrao Jan Ada by Mirza Hadi Ruswa. The film was shot on location including some palaces in Jaipur. Saroj Khan was selected to choreograph the dances, but backed out owing to disagreements with director J. P. Dutta.[6] She was replaced by Vaibhavi Merchant.[7]
Several of the roles were changed during pre-production. Priyanka Chopra was considered to play the part of Umrao Jaan, but could not allot the ninety consecutive dates required for shooting due to her prior commitments in Bluffmaster! (2005).[8]Arshad Warsi was to star in the film as Gauhar Mirza, but dropped out soon after as he chose to appear in Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006).[9] Subsequently, Puru Raaj Kumar replaced Warsi. Shabana Azmi, who plays the role of Khannum Jaan, is the daughter of Shaukat Azmi, who played the same role in the 1981 version.[10]Saif Ali Khan was approached for the role of Nawab Sultan in the film along with Akshaye Khanna in Faiz Ali's role, but both declined the film due to other projects. This led to Abhishek Bachchan replacing Saif Ali Khan, and Sunil Shetty replacing Akshaye Khanna.
The film performed poorly at the box office, grossing only Rs. 6,49,00,000.[14] The film received negative reviews from critics. Many of them reacted unfavourably to J. P. Dutta's direction and the film's three-hour running time, and several critics panned it while comparing it to the highly acclaimed 1981 version directed by Muzaffar Ali.[15]
BBC film critic Poonam Joshi concluded, "J. P. Dutta's film is an Ash-fest that adds little to the legacy of Umrao Jaan." She praised Azmi's performance as "exemplary" and wrote about Rai, "While only Rai could emulate the grace and poise of Rekha, she doesn't quite capture the intensity of Umrao's abiding melancholy", later commenting that "her incandescent beauty and artistry... does indeed keep the audience watching, though not necessarily emotionally engaged."[16] Describing Rai's performance, Nikhat Kazmi wrote, "she's riveting in places, diligent throughout and tries so hard to recreate a lost world of grandeur that your heart almost goes out to her." while Rediff gave two and a half rating out of five and wrote "there is Rai the star, queen and saving grace of Umrao Jaan. She enthralls with her gorgeousness, the precision in her dance movements, elegance in her gestures and sincerity in her willingness to become Umrao Jaan".[17][18]
Susan Muthalaly from The Hindu wrote, "Umrao Jaan remains a spectacle that does nothing for you, personally." She wrote about Rai, "You'd think that since she's playing someone so close to her real life, there would be real feeling in the performance. But remember, this is a realistic performance, so Rai stays true to her real-life character and shows no genuine emotion for most of the film. She dances like a dream, but her range of emotions is limited."[19] Another review in The Hindu said, "Umrao Jaan of 2006 would be at best remembered as a poor man's remake of a classic or a love story with a period flavour."[20]
The Tribune concluded that "Umrao Jaan fails to impress" and while referring to Rai's performance wrote, "She is no match to Rekha".[21] Seena Menon of Deccan Herald said, "Unfortunately, watching 19th-century Lucknow in the 2006 version of Umrao Jaan gives you nothing but a feeling akin to staring at a glass model of the original."[22]
Kathakali Jana from Hindustan Times wrote, "Though comparing the film with the 1981 magnum opus is not fair, what does one do with a baggage of incredible weight? One simply remembers it again and decides to go back to it once more." Similarly, Jana wrote about Rai that she "looks lovely when she smiles. She looks lovelier when she cries. Dutta's screenplay – which runs into 180 excruciating minutes – allows her to do both in good measure. But where is the celebrated 19th-century tawaif of Lucknow whose untold sufferings could do nothing to strip her of her dignity?"[23]
Ziya Us Salam wrote for the same newspaper in a more positive review, "At its soul, body, even content, this Umrao Jaan is as beautiful as its leading lady (Rai), the one who once had the world at her feet."[24] Gullu Singh, another reviewer for Rediff, praised the film for being more loyal to the novel."[25]
Worldwide, the film has grossed Rs. 19.52 crore, including $485,000 at the U.S. box office.[26]
Related Research Articles
A tawaif was a highly successful courtesan singer‚ dancer‚ and poet who catered to the nobility of the Indian subcontinent, particularly during the Mughal era. Many tawaifs were forced to go into prostitution due to a lack of opportunities by the time of the British Raj.
Umrao Jaan is a 1981 Indian period musical drama film directed by Muzaffar Ali and starring Rekha as the eponymous character. Based on the 1905 Urdu novel Umrao Jaan Ada, the film tells the story of a Lucknow tawaif and poet, and her rise to fame.
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